Shady Side Academy girls fighting their way through PIAA bracket

Josh Rizzo TribLive Sat, Mar 14, 2026 • 11:01 AM

Shady Side Academy senior point guard Karis Thomas attempts to pass the ball out of a scramble while John Carroll (Md.) guard Jade Thames lunges toward the ball Nov. 30 at Woodland Hills High School. (Josh Rizzo | For TribLive)

The Shady Side Academy girls basketball team hasn’t seen anyone bow in front of them during the PIAA Class 3A playoffs. The Bulldogs, who reached the championship game for the first time in school history last year, have had to scrap their way back to the quarterfinals.

Shady Side Academy (25-2) needed overtime to beat Marion Center, the third-place team out of District 6, in the first round. During the second round, the Bulldogs fell behind Beaver Falls by 12 points before rallying to win 39-31.

“I think they showed some resilience in the first two rounds,” Bulldogs coach Jonna Burke said. “First, we have to give credit to our opponent. We were facing two teams who put a lot of wins together, and they were difficult matchups. Honestly, we had to believe in ourselves and not give up.”

Shady Side Academy was scheduled to face another tough test against Central Cambria in the quarterfinals March 13. The Red Devils crashed the offensive glass hard against Karns City to reach the quarters for the second consecutive season.

Results of the game were too late for this edition.

The Bulldogs were pushed to the brink by Beaver Falls. The Tigers opened on a 14-2 run and led 30-28 after three quarters.

Shady Side Academy guard Karis Thomas led the Bulldogs with 22 points.

Burke said that the variety Beaver Falls brings to the court makes the Tigers hard to guard. Kiyah Tymous opened things up by scoring a team-high 12 points. Tymous made three 3-pointers during the Tigers’ run to open the game.

“They are so fast and skilled at getting to the hoop,” Burke said. “(Tymous) is a really good shooter. It was difficult. You have to pick your poison with them.”

Thomas gave Shady Side Academy its first lead, 33-30, when she made a 3-pointer with 6 minutes, 35 seconds remaining.

Shady Side Academy, which won the WPIAL championship this season, was hoping to inch toward another trip to the PIAA final. The Bulldogs knew they would have to continue to problem-solve on the way through the bracket.

Burke knows Shady Side Academy will have to be sharp on the boards if it wants to advance.

“I think we’ve been up and down,” Burke said. “It continues to be a work in progress for us. When we rebound the basketball, we are usually ahead in the game. We got outrebounded by Beaver Falls. To play championship-level basketball, you absolutely have to rebound on both ends of the floor.”