With time winding down on the regular season, the top four baseball teams in Section 1-6A are set to collide in three key contests this week, starting with the series opener Monday.
Entering this week, three teams are tied with the fewest section losses while a separate teams sits with the most section wins.
Butler, Seneca Valley and North Allegheny are all 4-2 in section play while Central Catholic has three more games played and sits at 5-4 in the section.
In the first game of their series, Central Catholic visits Butler at Pullman Park at 5:30 p.m.
The Vikings are 6-7 overall this season and coming off three straight losses to North Allegheny.
The Golden Tornado are 9-3 thus far and won two tough nonsection games last week over Hempfield and Pine-Richland.
Also on Monday, Seneca Valley visits North Allegheny at 4 p.m.
The Raiders are 9-5 and have won four straight games, including a section series sweep of North Hills last week.
The Tigers sit at 7-4 this season, also with four consecutive victories. NA swept Central Catholic a week ago.
In Section 2-6A, first-place Canon-McMillan opens up a three-game series at fourth-place Hempfield at 4:15 p.m.
The Big Macs are 7-2 in the section and 12-2 overall with both losses coming last week against Mt. Lebanon.
The Spartans are 5-8 this season, but only two games out of first place at 2-4 in the section.
The Section 2-6A slate also includes Woodland Hills (4-6, 0-6) visiting Mt. Lebanon (8-4, 3-3) at 4:15 p.m.
Monday matchups for first
First place in two other WPIAL baseball sections will be determined with key section series slated for Monday and Tuesday.
There has been a lot of chatter over the last week plus about Shenango vs. Neshannock softball.
Well, both school’s baseball teams are also in the hunt for first place.
The winner Monday will be alone in Section 2-2A when Shenango hosts Neshannock at 4:30 p.m.
Both teams enter their section showdown with 5-1 section records.
The Wildcats are 9-3 this season but have dropped two straight games.
The Lancers are 11-1 overall and have won eight straight.
Another big series among the smaller district schools is for the top spot in Section 1-A when Avella hosts Greensburg Central Catholic at 4 p.m.
The Eagles are 7-1 with only two section series remaining. They are 10-3 this year with wins in seven of their last nine games.
The Centurions still have seven section games remaining, but they are 5-0 and in first place.
For the season, GCC is a perfect 6-0.
Golden rivalry continues
Hempfield and Seneca Valley have been the two dominant programs this decade in WPIAL Class 6A softball.
Their success has continued in 2026 as they are a combined 21-2 this spring entering their second meeting of this season.
First place or a share of it is up for grabs when Seneca Valley visits Hempfield at 4 p.m.
The Raiders are in second place with a section mark of 8-1.
SV is 10-1 this season with six straight wins.
The Spartans are alone in first place with a 9-0 section record. The 2025 champions are 11-1 and winners of nine in a row with seven of those victories via the mercy rule.
In the first meeting, Hempfield rallied from an early deficit to win at Seneca Valley, 5-2.
These two programs have split their last four WPIAL Class 6A softball crowns, with the Spartans winning in 2023 and 2025 while the Raiders claimed district gold in 2022 and 2024.
Other softball showdowns for the top
There are three other district softball games to begin the week with first-place ramifications.
• In Section 2-3A, first-place and defending champion Mohawk (7-1) visits second-place Avonworth (6-4).
The Warriors are 5-0, one game up on the Antelopes at 4-1.
Mohawk defeated visiting Avonworth two weeks ago, 4-2.
• In Section 2-A, Jefferson-Morgan (10-2) and Carmichaels (8-3) are tied for first place.
The Rockets are 7-1 while the Mighty Mikes are 6-1 in the section.
Both are one game ahead of West Greene (9-4), which is 6-2 in section play.
The Rockets host the Pioneers on Monday as West Greene needs a win to keep its section title hopes alive.
• In Section 3-A, the top two teams that are already playoff bound collide for a second time this season when Jeannette (7-2) visits Serra Catholic (6-4).
The Jayhawks are 5-1 in the section, and the Eagles are 5-0.
Two weeks ago, Serra Catholic cruised past host Jeannette, 13-0.
Monday on Trib HSSN
There are 12 broadcasts and two podcasts you can watch or listen to at TribHSSN.TribLive.com on the 20th day of April.
Video Stream: Rebel Yell Podcast with the WPIAL Softball Player of the Week on the TribLive High School Sports Network at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
Video Stream: Rebel Yell Podcast with the WPIAL Diamond Team of the Week on the TribLive High School Sports Network at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Baseball Video Stream – Peters Township at Upper St. Clair at 4 p.m. on the TribLive High School Sports Network at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Baseball Video Stream – South Fayette at Trinity at 7 p.m. on WJPA-AM 1450 at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Baseball Video Stream – Connellsville at Baldwin at 4 p.m. on the Connellsville Falcons Sports Network at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Baseball Video Stream – Laurel Highlands at West Mifflin at 7 p.m. on WMBS-AM 590, WMBS-FM 101.1 at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Baseball Video Stream – Greensburg Salem at Derry at 4 p.m. on the Westmoreland County Sports Network at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Baseball Video Stream – South Park at South Allegheny at 4 p.m. on MVI Live at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Baseball Video Stream – Neshannock at Shenango at 4:30 p.m. on Lawrence County Sports Net at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Baseball Audio Stream – Seneca Valley at North Allegheny at 4 p.m. on the North Allegheny Sports Network at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Softball Video Stream – Laurel Highlands at West Mifflin at 4 p.m. on the TribLive High School Sports Network at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Softball Video Stream – Seneca Valley at Hempfield at 4 p.m. on the Westmoreland County Sports Network at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Softball Video Stream – Bentworth at Washington at 3 p.m. on WJPA-AM 1450 at TribHSSN.TribLive.com
WPIAL Girls Lacrosse Audio Stream – Seneca Valley at North Allegheny at 7 p.m. on the North Allegheny Sports Network at TribHSSN.TribLive.com