There is no question 2020 will be remembered for how difficult many of the past 366 days have been. But, lucky for fans of the purple and gold - OLSH student-athletes overcame the adversity and challenges to give us many amazing moments to look back on and be proud of. Here are our top 10 moments.
10. 20 OF 21 FOR GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
A return to the WPIAL Playoffs in 2020 meant that girls volleyball has qualified for the WPIAL playoffs in 20 of the last 21 seasons . After missing the postseason last year and ending a streak of 19 straight seasons, the 2020 OLSH Volleyball team started what could be a new streak - returning to the playoffs and making a run to the WPIAL Semifinals, falling to the eventual Champs. The squad finished the season with a strong 16-5 record, and with a good group returning in '21, a trip to the postseason is sure to remain the standard for Coach Mac and his team.
9. PLAYOFFS?! FOOTBALL MAKES IT 5 IN A ROW
In the first six seasons of existence for the Charger football program, they didn't know what it was like to make the playoffs. In 2016 OLSH made the playoffs it to the postseason for the first time and they haven't known what it is like to miss it since. 2020 marked head coach Dan Bradley's 5th season and he has led the Chargers to five straight playoff berths, and of course one WPIAL title in 2018.
The 2020 Chargers battled injuries and a shortened season, but still pulled through with a 5-3 record. A less than favorable seed at the No. 8 spot put the Chargers up against No.1 Clairton in the first round. All three of the Chargers' losses came to teams that qualified for the playoffs.
8. SWEENEY RUNS TO CHOCOLATE TOWN...AGAIN
Maybe there should be movie called "Sweeney and the Chocolate Factory"? After all Finn Sweeney has made Chocolate Town, USA a regular stop on his cross country tour.
Finn Sweeney medaled with a 7th place finish and a blazing time of 16:44 on the muddy course in the WPIAL Championships to qualify for the PIAA State Championship in Hershey for the 3rd time in his career. Finn represented OLSH well finishing 39th - the best finish at states in his three appearances.
7. "WOW BRO" - CAM JOHNSON '14 SHINES IN NBA BUBBLE
Cam Johnson '14 became the first OLSH alumni to make it to the NBA, but just simply getting there wasn't enough for him.
Johnson was coming off the bench much of the season and averaged just 8.8 points and 3.3 rebounds per game for the Suns but shot 39 percent from behind the arc. When the NBA resumed the season in the bubble, the Suns needed to win all 8 eight games to even have a shot at the postseason. Cam started all eight games in Orlando in place of Dario Saric, switching to the power forward position. The Suns would win all eight games, but come just short of the help they needed to get into the playoffs.
Johnson was a different player in the bubble averaging 13.3 points and 5.9 rebounds per game, creating some big-time buzz around his second season in the league. Johnson's 39 percent from beyond the arc ranked him 3rd in rookies trailing only Michael Porter Jr. and Zion Williamson.
6. 'PACK ATTACK' EARNS GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY 2ND PLACE AT WPIALS
The OLSH Girls Cross Country team finished 2nd at the Class A WPIAL Championship held in White Oak park in October.
This season the team had strong performances by a "pack attack" that included closely bunched runners. At the WPIAL meet the time span from the first to the 6th runner was just 9 seconds.
Abby Wertz led the pack by placing 27th with a time of 21:41 Kennedy Walsh finished 28th, Malley Aiello finished 29th, Emma Kenneweg placed 31st, Faith Gartley placed 32nd & Abby Aiello placed 33rd in the tight pack.
5. LEGENDS IN THE MAKING: DANTE & JAKE
In the NBA we've seen the "Big 3" win a title, but back in the WPIAL there is the "Big Two" in OLSH Basketball's Dante Spadafora and Jake DiMichele - the two were selected 1st Team All-State, and became the one of the best scoring tandems in the last 40 years in the state. They led the Chargers to their second straight WPIAL title.
DiMichele was averaging 29.5 points while Spadafora was at 23.2 ppg. Jake and Dante haven't lost a home game as Chargers.
Last season the two were averaging more points than 29 (22%) of the WPIAL's 133 teams.
4. LADY CHARGERS BASKETBALL SECTION 3-PEAT
The girls basketball teams have played in some of the toughest sections over the past decade, but now it is safe to say they are the ones everyone one else is trying to knock off.
The Chargers won their third straight section title with a 13-1 record. The Chargers took advantage of going on the road to South Side with the title on the line and handling the Rams 50-38
The 2019-2020 OLSH team was led by senior point guard Haley Hamilton, senior forward Hannah Valenty, junior Grace Bradley, and sophomores Kaleigh Costantino, Katie Hoff, and Kennedy Walsh, along with a star freshman Emily Schuck.
3. BOYS SOCCER SEASON FOR THE RECORD BOOKS
No OLSH Boys Soccer team had ever finished a regular season undefeated until 2020. The boys of fall will go down in the OLSH record books for their incredible 10-0-1 regular season and their first win over cross-river rival Sewickley Academy since 2011 in an overtime thriller; the teams split their three meetings 1-1-1.
The team advanced to the WPIAL semifinals; any other year that would have also meant a trip to the state playoffs. The purple and gold finished the year 11-1-1 thanks in part to scoring leader Ryan Gehring, and great play in net by goaltender Dawson Summers.
2. GIRLS SOCCER ODDS-DEFYING RUN
OLSH Girls Soccer advanced to the program's first-ever WPIAL Championship behind a wild playoff run. OLSH defeated No. 3 Freedom for the second time to move on to the WPIAL semifinals. The first time they beat Freedom this year it was the Bulldogs' first regular season loss in 5 years. When the two teams met in the playoffs the Chargers used a four-goal outburst in the first half to secure another victory.
The Chargers would go on to play No. 2 Steel Valley, the game going to OT when Freshman Alexa Taylor scored the game winner. The Chargers pushed Greensburg Central Catholic to the limits in the WPIAL championship game, falling 3-2.
The Chargers had a record number of players selected to the All-Section team - Defensemen Abby Aiello and Meghan McCoy, goalkeeper Bella Costanzo, midfielders Alexa Taylor and Kennedy Walsh, along with forward Paige Smith.
1. BOYS BASKETBALL REPEATS AS WPIAL CHAMPIONS
OLSH Basketball had never won a WPIAL Basketball title before doing so in 2019. They enjoyed it so much they put together another Championship-worthy season in 2020, defeating Sto-Rox at the Petersen Events Center. The most successful season in OLSH history had just one blemish - an OT loss to Aliquippa (3A). While the team was led by one of the most prolific duos in the state, the contributions of the "role players" is what made this team so special.
The 2019-2020 team featured the incredible defensive performance by senior Jake Kocent, "Chargers for Charges" led by senior Jake Gartley, strong play inside by seniors Matt Rees and Eric Olexa, and a freshman that stole the show in the first half with some huge shots from behind the arc in BJ Vaughn.
Head coach Mike Rodriguez was rightfully named 2A PIAA Coach of the Year. Coach Rod has been an impressive 97-16 including 22-5 in post-season play in the past four seasons, to go along with 4 straight appearances in the WPIAL Championship game.
