We close out March with a focus on the first of two games in the WPIAL baseball section series Monday.
Last season, Serra Catholic and Eden Christian Academy reached the WPIAL baseball championship game at Wild Things Park, the Eagles in 2A and the Warriors in A.
Both had to settle for district silver as Serra Catholic was blanked 5-0 by Seton LaSalle in the 2A final, and Eden Christian Academy fell to Bishop Canevin, 10-3, in the A title game.
Each team returns a lot of talent from those runner-up teams, and with the Eagles moving to Class A in realignment, these “silver sluggers” are now Section 3-A dance partners.
The first big dance between the two comes Monday at Eden Christian Academy in Wexford at 4:15 p.m.
This season, the Warriors are ranked No. 1 in A, and the Eagles are No. 2.
Eden Christian Academy is 5-0 this season and coming off a section series sweep of Clairton last week.
The Warriors have outscored their five opponents 56-12.
Serra Catholic is 5-1 and bounced back from its only loss of the season — to Valley — with back-to-back section wins last week against Monessen.
The Eagles have outscored the opposition 61-7 in their six games.
The teams are tied for first place after one week with another Class A heavyweight, No. 3 Bishop Canevin (2-0, 2-2).
The teams are slated to meet in the second game of the section series Tuesday at renovated Little Boston Field in Elizabeth.
Two of three in 3A
Play begins in Sections 1 and 2 in Class 3A baseball and continues in Sections 3 and 4 on Monday.
The first week of section action in Section 3 and 4 was one of sweep or be swept.
Last week, Burrell, Deer Lakes and Mt. Pleasant swept their two-game Section 3-3A series, and Charleroi, Seton LaSalle and Waynesburg Central did the same in Section 4-3A, leaving all of them tied for first place at 2-0.
In Section 3 on Monday, Deer Lakes visits Mt. Pleasant, and Burrell visits Southmoreland.
The Lancers are 2-2 overall as they battle a Vikings team that is 3-2 for the season.
The front-running Buccaneers are 2-2 as they visit a Scotties team that is 1-4 overall and 0-2 in the section.
In Section 4, defending champion Seton LaSalle hosts Charleroi at Brookline Community Field, and Waynesburg Central (2-0, 6-0) enjoys the week off from section play.
The Rebels are 3-2, and the Cougars are 3-1.
Title game rematch
Eight sections will begin play in classes 5A, 4A, 2A and A on Monday, however one of the feature matchups on the softball diamond is in Class 6A.
It’s a rematch from last season’s surprise WPIAL 6A championship game when Seneca Valley hosts Norwin at 4 p.m.
In the 2024 title game, No. 5 Norwin scored a run in the first inning and two more in the second to go up 3-0.
Seneca Valley answered with a run in the third inning and two more in the sixth to send the battle for the district championship into extra innings.
Pinch runner Julia Valasek scored the golden run with one out in the bottom of the eighth to give the Raiders their second crown in four years.
Then junior pitcher Lexie Hames struck out 19 and allowed four hits in the win for SV.
This season, Seneca Valley is 1-0 in 6A and 3-0 overall.
But it has been a rough start for Norwin, as they are 1-1 in 6A and 1-4 overall.