2026 Trib HSSN Softball Player of the Year
Bria Bosiljevac
Sr., Pitcher, Shaler
Just find a way to get it done.
Among the many gifts that great athletes have, their ability to find ways to excel when the deck is stacked against them or when their team needs them the most is what makes them so special.
Bria Bosiljevec will tell you she has been blessed by God with the ability to pitch a softball at a high success rate, but she has worked hard and sacrificed to perfect her craft in the circle.
“She refuses to just go with the flow,” Shaler coach Tom Sorce said of his senior right-hander’s work ethic. “She works very hard to be her best every time she pitches, whether it’s at practice or games. She refuses to quit or give up on hitters whether the count is 3 and 0, or 0 and 2. She never gives up.”
After guiding Shaler to WPIAL and PIAA championships this season, Bosiljevec has been named the Trib HSSN Softball Player of the Year.
“The whole game, everyone was just hitting for me. I felt pretty good on the mound,” Bosiljevac said of the state championship win. “It was just such a surreal experience (to win). That same field, three years ago, we were crying in each other’s arms because we lost. It was such a full circle moment and it felt so good.”
In the first two years of Bosiljevac’s high school career, she led the Titans to a PIAA Class 5A runner-up finish as a freshman, and then battled through injuries as a sophomore.
But her last two years have been golden, helping Shaler win back-to-back WPIAL championships and a PIAA crown two weeks ago.
Her first championship last spring showed off her true grit.
Bosiljevac had just retired the side in the bottom of the 10th inning of the 2025 WPIAL Class 5A title game that was tied 1-1 between Shaler and Penn-Trafford.
The then-junior pitcher gathered her teammates in the dugout and told them she was tired and wasn’t sure how much longer she could pitch. She pleaded with them to score a run in the top of the 11th inning and she would finish off the title.
Addi Aleski drove in Jayla Antomachi with single to put the Titans up 2-1.
“Bria being Bria and, as tired as she was, she struck out the three batters she faced to secure the championship for us,” Sorce said. “That will stay with me forever. She would not be denied and somehow found the strength to battle through and get it done.
“Her will to win is of legendary status.”
Winning was twice as nice to Bosiljevac and the Titans in 2026.
Shaler won the Section 1-5A title by four games over Fox Chapel and Plum and finished the regular season with a 17-1 record.
In the first three rounds of the WPIAL playoffs, Bosiljevac was nearly unhittable.
She no-hit Moon in the first round, one-hit Armstrong in the quarterfinals and allowed one hit in a whitewash of Baldwin. In those three games, she combined to strike out 35 batters.
In the 2026 district title game, Shaler knocked off rival North Hills, 10-2.
“Having been around the game at this level for a number of years, it is evident that Bria started with a high level of natural ability,” North Hills coach Libby Gasior said. “However, she has taken that ability to the next level by devoting endless time, hard work and discipline to become the dominant force she was this season. What has always stood out about her from an opposing coach’s perspective is her competitive nature and her desire to win.”
In the state playoffs, Bosiljevac and Shaler cruised past Red Land in the opening round, 10-0.
However, a rematch with Baldwin in the state quarterfinals was a dogfight with the Titans hanging on to win 2-1.
“I would say her ability to change speeds pitch to pitch, with control,” Baldwin coach Ron Santillo said of what makes Bosiljevac stand out in the circle. “It keeps hitters off-balance.”
In a semifinal victory over Thomas Jefferson, the Titans pulled out a dramatic, 5-3 win in an 11-inning marathon.
Bosiljevac was at her best at Penn State in the PIAA title game as she allowed one hit and struck out eight in a 10-0 win over Abington Heights for the program’s third state championship and first in 20 years.
“What stood out about Bria’s play this season was her leadership was off the charts,” Source said. “She has always been a leader through her work ethic, but this year it seemed to go another level. She was more vocal and made sure our younger players were involved and included.
“Most importantly, she is humble. She didn’t get too excited or let things get to her head despite all her successes.”
Bosiljevac finished the year undefeated since she did not pitch in the team’s lone loss against Penn-Trafford. She was 21-0 with a 0.59 ERA with 245 strikeouts in 133 innings pitched.
While she may or may not hit when she heads to Bloomington in the fall to pitch for Indiana University, she batted .333 with a homer and 10 RBIs.
“There have been so many great players who have played here at Shaler that have helped create an aura of a solid program,” Sorce said. “She is now part of that group. She is humble and, above all, a caring and thoughtful person.
“I believe she is a better person first and a great softball player second.”