Dropping down: Mikes baseball, softball teams fall in classification
A combined nine local baseball and softball teams will drop in classification for the 2023 WPIAL spring season.
The PIAA totaled its latest enrollment figures and recently released the new classifications that will be in effect for the 2022-23 high school sports year.
In the third of a three-part series, today we鈥檒l look at the impact the upcoming realignment, which takes place every two years, will have on the local spring sports season.
Albert Gallatin will drop from Class 5A to 4A in baseball and softball. Carmichaels and California will do the same in both sports from 2A to 1A.
Charleroi is the only other baseball team on the move, going from 3A to 2A.
The Colonials could wind up in a baseball section that also includes Laurel Highlands and Uniontown, which both remain in 4A along with Belle Vernon, Elizabeth Forward and Ringgold. The scenario is the game for the Lady Colonials in softball.
As for the rest of baseball, Connellsville will remain in 5A, Brownsville, Waynesburg Central, Mount Pleasant, Southmoreland and Yough will stay in 3A, Frazier, Beth-Center and Bentworth will remain in 2A, and Jefferson-Morgan, Mapletown, West Greene and Monessen will stay in 1A.
Carmichaels would seem to naturally fall into a section with that latter group, and possibly California as well. The Mikes and Trojans are two of the stronger programs in 2A.
Trojans coach Lou Pasquale wasn鈥檛 sure where his team was going to end up.
鈥淚nitially I was told I was staying in Double-A,鈥� Pasquale said. 鈥淣ot that it matters either way, because I have no say in it. But a couple weeks later I was told they were recounting because they had to fix something, correct some numbers or whatever. Then I got the information that we were going to Single-A.
鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to say yay or nay. We鈥檙e going to try to win either way.鈥�
The shifting of teams takes place too often for Pasquale鈥檚 liking.
鈥淚 just don鈥檛 get why they have to do it every two years to be honest with you,鈥� Pasquale said. 鈥淪ome of these teams are always on that bubble, a couple kids over, a couple kids under every time they do it, and then they鈥檙e moving down, then back up then down again.
鈥淓very four years would be fine, or maybe even come up with a different formula. To me it鈥檚 just overkill. I just don鈥檛 like it. My opinion is there should be a buffer. If a team is in one class and then they鈥檙e a couple kids over or under the next time, I think they should be given a choice if they want to stay where they are.鈥�
In softball, like baseball, AG moving down leaves Connellsville as the lone local team at 5A. Perennial power Yough will fall from 4A to 3A but still remaining there are formidable programs such as Mount Pleasant, Soutmoreland and Waynesburg Central. Brownsville also will stay in 3A.
Beth-Center, Bentworth and Charleoi will stay in 2A but 2019 PIAA champion Frazier joins the Lady Mikes and Lady Trojans as teams dropping to 1A, where juggernaut West Greene along with Jefferson-Morgan, Mapletown and Monessen remain.
鈥淲hen I started looking around at the other numbers, Class A is going to change drastically,鈥� Lady Commodores coach Don Hartman pointed out. 鈥淚t鈥檚 going from 18 up to like 33. The whole dynamic of Single-A has changed with some nice storied programs dropping down. Carmichaels and Chartiers-Houston are going down with us.鈥�
Laurel, one of the strongest 2A programs, stays put but there is always the Lady Pioneers, coached by Billy Simms, looming in 1A.
鈥淓verything goes through West Greene now,鈥� Hartman said. 鈥淗opefully, we can make it a little more competitive for Billy. I think it鈥檚 going to be ultra-competitive. It鈥檚 still going to be very tough softball.
鈥淭he only thing that concerns me is where everybody is going to land. From where we sit on the geographic map we could end up playing up north or down in Greene County. We鈥檒l see.鈥�
Carmichaels coach Dave Briggs has watched his team play in both 2A and 1A.
鈥淲e鈥檝e kind of went up and down a few times,鈥� Briggs said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e always close to that cut-off number. The last couple years Double-A has been so deep with so many good teams. The nice thing about Single-A is it puts us with most of the other Greene County schools. Not that we didn鈥檛 play them in exhibition games but it鈥檚 good I think to be competing in the same section playing twice a year.
鈥淪ingle-A was one of the smaller classifications before but now it鈥檚 shifted a lot and I think it鈥檚 going to be one of the bigger classes. It鈥檚 going to be pretty competitive.鈥�
Briggs isn鈥檛 all that concerned about the 2023 season yet.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not going to happen until next year so we won鈥檛 really discuss it much with this year鈥檚 team,鈥� he said.
There was no change in classifications for local teams in the other spring sports.
Boys and girls track & field mirror each other with Uniontown, Laurel Highlands, Albert Gallatin, Connellsville, Belle Vernon, Ringgold and Elizabeth Forward still in 3A, and Bentworth, Beth-Center, Brownsville, Charleroi, Waynesburg Central, West Greene, Frazier, Geibel Catholic, Monessen, Mount Pleasant, Southmoreland and Yough still in 2A.
The only change is California will not field a track & field team next year, according to the PIAA listings.
In boys tennis, Connellsville will stay at 3A, and Mount Pleasant, Southmoreland and Ringgold will remain at 2A.
Yough, the area鈥檚 only girls lacrosse program, will stay in 2A.