Girls high school basketball continues to grow thanks in part to the men and women who give of their time to teach, coach and mentor young women throughout the WPIAL.
While we would like to now salute all 126 WPIAL girls basketball coaches from the 2025-2026 campaign, we have a special seat in the front of the classroom for those who had a golden shine at the end of the season.
Some are repeat performers, others are new to the front row, and a couple have been up front several times now.
The following six WPIAL and one City League coach will fill those seats after being named the Trib HSSN Head of the Class for the 2026 season in each of the six classifications.
Class 6A
John Fontana, Canon-McMillan
The biggest challenge for the Canon-McMillan girls basketball program was what Fontana called going from the hunter to the hunted. Following a breakout season in 2025, the Big Macs for the first time had the Class 6A bull’s-eye on their chest and the team wore it proudly. Canon-McMillan won the Section 2-6A title by one game over traditional power Norwin, and then defeated Mt. Lebanon and Seneca Valley to reach the district title game. The Big Macs finished the deal with a 12-point win over Norwin to capture their first WPIAL title. They reached the PIAA quarterfinals before the season ended at 23-5.
Class 5A
Bryan Bennett, South Fayette
The awards and accolades keep piling up for one of the great dynasties in WPIAL girls basketball history. In arguably one of the best seasons ever, Bennett’s South Fayette team continued its streak of five consecutive seasons with at least a WPIAL or PIAA championship. However, for the first time in this incredible five-year run, the Lions struck gold twice. They defeated Thomas Jefferson to return to the WPIAL winners circle after a one-year absence, then they racked up five more wins to become the seventh WPIAL school to win back-to-back girls basketball state championships, finishing at 30-1.
Class 4A
Henry Schecter, Oakland Catholic
Much like Corey Dotchin has done with the Chartiers Valley boys, Schecter has two WPIAL championships in two seasons as head coach at Oakland Catholic. The Eagles soared past North Catholic twice in the regular season to win the Section 1-4A crown by two games. Again, Oakland Catholic was seeded No. 2 in the Class 4A playoffs behind top-seeded Blackhawk and for the second straight year, the Eagles defeated the Cougars in the district finals, 51-44. The OC advanced to the state finals but lost by five points to Neumann-Goretti to settle for state silver and finish 25-3.
Class 3A
Jonna Burke, Shady Side Academy
Jonna Burke led Shady Side Academy to a second WPIAL Class 3A championship in the last three years. Coach Chris Skatell overcame a loss in the district finals to lead Greensburg Central Catholic to five straight wins and claim a PIAA title for the second time in school history. With two successful coaches leading two recently dominant programs, the tiebreaker goes to Burke for the two regular season wins and winning the Section 2-3A title by two games over GCC. The Bulldogs had built up a 17-game winning streak before falling to the Centurions in the state semifinals to finish the season 36-3.
Class 2A
Luann Grybowski, Neshannock
It was a milestone season for Neshannock and their veteran coach. The Lancers cruised to the Section 1-2A title by three games over Rochester, and then rolled to district playoff wins over Brentwood, Laurel and Rochester by 60, 38 and 49 points to reach the WPIAL finals. Neshannock knocked off Winchester Thurston for its first district crown since 2022. Grybowski entered rare air with career win No. 800 in a quarterfinal triumph over Kennedy Catholic. She picked up one more in the state semis before the Lancers fell to Berlin-Brothersvalley in the state finals to finish 26-4.
Class A
Mike Voit, Serra Catholic
It has been said that you want to be the person who follows the person who follows the legend. That was the boat Mike Voit found himself in three years ago when he took over the Serra Catholic girls program from Matt Bacco, who replaced legendary coach Bill Cleary. Under Cleary, the Eagles soared to four WPIAL championships in 1992, 1999, 2003 and 2005. This year, Serra Catholic earned a share of the Section 2-A title with Geibel Catholic, who it faced again in the WPIAL Class A finals. The Eagles edged the Gators in a thriller, 47-46, to capture a fifth WPIAL title.
City League
Ellen Guillard, Allderdice
Tin or aluminum are what people traditionally get as gifts to help celebrate a 10th anniversary. You’ll forgive the Allderdice girls basketball players for getting 10 confused with 50 and giving coach Ellen Guillard gold for her 10th season as coach of the Dragons. After earning a share of the City League regular season title with Obama, the two met in the District 8 championship game with the Dragons crushing the Eagles, 66-29, for a third straight City League crown. In the PIAA playoffs, Allderdice slayed Upper St. Clair in the first round before falling to Canon-McMillan in Round 2 to finish the season 20-7.