Once again, the “great” is back regarding the Class AAA Greater Allegheny Conference.

Four of the six conference teams won their playoff openers last week: Franklin Regional defeated Montour, Mars bested Elizabeth-Forward, Indiana, perhaps the most underrated team in the Class AAA field, defeated Ringgold, and Highlands knocked off New Castle at home.

No one should be surprised.

At least one Greater Allegheny team had made to the WPIAL semifinals 11 consecutive seasons before falling back last year.

That’s a far cry from 1999 when the conference went 0-4 in the playoffs.

The Greater Allegheny Conference was created in 1980 when the WPIAL went to four classifications.

Hampton and Hollidaysburg, part of a four-way tie for fourth place in the Greater Allegheny, lost their first-round encounters.

As for the Allegheny Conference, that group continues to struggle in the Class AA postseason.

For the second consecutive season, all four Conference teams were bounced in the first round of the playoffs.

The Allegheny Conference is 1-11 over the past three seasons in playoff action.

Between 1960 and 1989, the Allegheny and its predecessor, the AIC, had 28 teams in the Class A and AA finals during that 30-year span, including Freeport seven times.

On to the quarters

The two surviving local teams will have a difficult challenges in quarterfinal play this weekend.

Highlands will travel to Chartiers Valley to play No. 2-ranked Thomas Jefferson, and Apollo-Ridge faces Class A No. 1 Sto-Rox at Deer Lakes.

Both games are Friday at 7:30 p.m.

The Golden Rams will go against Jaguars coach Bill Cherpak, who has won 201 games in his 19 seasons at the helm.

Thomas Jefferson has made the playoffs all 19 seasons of Cherpak’s tenure.

With the victory over Hampton last week, Cherpak passed Don Earley for 21st place on the all-time WPIAL coaching wins list.

Speaking of Cherpak’s 19 seasons, had the WPIAL taken the top four conference teams to the playoffs in Earley’s era, Freeport would have made the playoffs in all 19 seasons Earley was at Freeport.

As for Apollo-Ridge, the Vikings will have to try and stop the WPIAL’s all-time leading passer, senior Lenny Williams.

Williams has 7,850 career passing yards, which is also eighth on the all-time Pennsylvania list.

Whaley to Wilkinsburg

Valley High School graduate Jonathan Whaley has been named the new girls basketball coach at Wilkinsburg High School.

Whaley will inherit a team that went 0-16 last season and reportedly finished the season with just six players.

This year’s team will consist mainly of sophomores and freshmen, but Whaley considers that a plus.

“I can teach without them being influenced by any other coaching style,” Whaley said.

Wilkinsburg’s section is likely the toughest in the WPIAL, consisting of traditional powers Seton-La Salle and Bishop Canevin.

Whaley has been best known as a 20-year broadcaster, starting with WMGW Meadville in 1989.

The 1975 Valley and 1979 Pitt grad also has worked more recently with Internet sites msasports.net and westmorelandsports.com.

“I want to teach these girls lessons in values, diversity and athletics,” Whaley said.

Whaley’s first game will be in the Serra Catholic tourney Dec. 6.

He will bring the Tigers into the area for the Apollo Trust Tournament at Apollo-Ridge High School in late December.

George Guido is a Valley News Dispatch scholastic sports correspondent. His column appears Wednesdays.

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