Feb 19, 2018 4 min read

The WPIAL football playoffs will have a streamlined look in both Class 6A and 1A next fall.

The WPIAL released Monday its new football playoff formats and they include fewer qualifiers in the largest and smallest classifications. Only six teams in Class 6A will advance to the playoffs while the Class 1A field has been reduced by half, from 16 to eight.

The change in Class 6A is the result of statewide realignment for the 2018 season that reduced the WPIAL’s number of schools in the classification to nine. Class 6A has only one conference and six teams will qualify for the playoffs. The No. 1 and 2 seeds will get a first-round bye.

In Class 1A, which includes the Tri-County South, there are three conferences and eight teams will qualify for the three-week playoffs. The top two teams in each conference and two wild-card teams make the postseason.

The WPIAL cited a lack of competitiveness in Class A’s first-round playoff games as the reason why the postseason field was cut in half. Last year, the average margin of victory in the eight first-round games was 32 points with only one game decided by fewer than 20 points.

The playoff formats for the other classifications are:

• Class 5A has three conferences and 16 teams will qualify with four weeks of playoffs. The top five in each conference earn a postseason spot along with one wild-card team.
• Class 4A has two conferences and eight teams will qualify for three weeks of playoffs. The top four in each conference make the postseason.
• Class 3A has two conferences and eight teams will advance for three weeks of playoffs. The top four in each conference earn playoff spots.
• Class 2A has four conferences and 16 teams will qualify for four weeks of playoffs. The top four in each conference advance.

The WPIAL also revealed that the Class 6A, 4A, 3A and 2A championships will be played at Heinz Field, either Nov. 16 or 17. The Class 5A and 2A title games will be played at a site to be determined, either Nov. 23 or 24, but they will not be at Heinz Field.

In other action, the WPIAL released its section alignments for the 2018-19 boys basketball, girls basketball and wrestling seasons. The most significant change involving local schools is in wrestling, where longtime rivals Canon-McMillan and Trinity will no longer be in the same sub-section.

Canon-McMillan will wrestle in Section 4-A of Class 3A along with Ambridge, New Castle, South Fayette and West Allegheny. South Fayette moves up from Class 2A.

Trinity will be part of Section 4-B with Waynesburg, Moon, Montour and Chartiers Valley.

In girls basketball, Trinity and South Fayette, the teams that met in the state semifinals a year ago, will play in the same section next season.

In boys basketball, South Fayette is moving up to Class 5A and has been placed in a section that includes Trinity. Ringgold moves down to Class 4A and will be in a section with Belle Vernon and Waynesburg, among others. McGuffey drops to Class 3A and is in the same section as Washington County rivals Beth-Center, Charleroi and Washington.

Burgettstown will drop to Class 2A but has been placed in a section that does not include any Washington County opponents. The Blue Devils are matched with Laurel, Mohawk, OLSH, Sewickley Academy, Shenango and South Side Beaver.

Jefferson-Morgan will drop back down to Class A and will play in a section with Avella, Geibel, Mapletown, Monessen, West Greene and Bishop Canevin.

Site for softball championsips

moving

The WPIAL must find a new home for its softball championships.

With California University’s Lilley Field scheduled to undergo major renovations this spring, the WPIAL is searching for a site for its softball championships. Lilley Field has been the longtime home of high school softball playoff games, including the WPIAL finals.

This year’s finals are tentatively scheduled for May 30-31.

Renovation at the field, which is located next to Adamson Stadium, has not started but the project has forced the California University women’s softball team to alter its schedule. According to Cal sports information director Matt Kifer, the Vulcans will play only road games this season.