Matt Freed, Post-Gazette Zak Sinclair not only is hitting .388, but he also will be West Allegheny's starting pitcher in the Class AAA title game. Click photo for larger image. Game Info & Probable Starters: Baseball Championships: City League Baseball Championships: WPIAL AAAA Baseball Championships: WPIAL AAA Baseball Championships: WPIAL AA Baseball Championships: WPIAL A

This is the fourth year in a row the WPIAL baseball championships will be played at Consol Energy Park (formerly Falconi Field) in Washington. This year, the place could be the "perfect" spot for some WPIAL history.

West Allegheny plays Blackhawk tomorrow night (7:30 p.m. start) in the Class AAA championship. West Allegheny owns a perfect, 22-0 record and has a chance to join an elite group.

Since the WPIAL changed its baseball makeup to more than one classification in 1979, only two teams have won titles with undefeated records -- Freeport (17-0, 1979) and Canevin (20-0, 1993).

West Allegheny is favored to become the Perfect Storm III.

"What are you trying to [do,] jinx me?" West Allegheny coach Bryan Cornell said, with a laugh, when told how rare it is for a team to win a WPIAL championship with a perfect record.

Cornell had no idea only two champs were perfect in the past 28 seasons. Only 11 teams since 1979 have won championships with only one loss.

"If we would win this, and, if you're going to try and compare teams from different eras, I think you could argue that we might have one of the best teams in WPIAL history," Cornell said. "But we have to win it to be considered."

Cornell said the undefeated record has not been talked about on the team since the playoffs started.

"I think it was talked about more toward the end of the regular season," Cornell said. "When we were playing games outside of our section, we were trying to develop some pitchers. But these kids had that goal of going 20-0 in the regular season."

Cornell doesn't believe there is more pressure because of the perfect record.

"Right now, regardless of whether we had no losses, one loss or 10 losses, we're in the final game, and that's all we're thinking about," he said.

Before the season, Cornell believed he had a talented team, but he was unsure how his players would mesh.

"I told them all the time that I never questioned their physical ability," said Cornell, who won a WPIAL title as a West Allegheny player in 1994. "It was their mental makeup and chemistry that I wondered about. But since the playoffs have started, it's not a chore to get them to come to practice and get work done."

West Allegheny has been strong offensively with a .369 team batting average. Jared Littler, Ricky Deveraux and Mark Diskin are all hitting well above .400.

One of West Allegheny's best all-around players is Zak Sinclair. He is batting .388 with 29 RBIs. He will be the starting pitcher against Blackhawk and is 6-0 with a 1.86 ERA. He has 48 strikeouts in 37²/₃ innings.

Sinclair will face an upstart Blackhawk team that was 9-9 in the regular season and the No. 11 seed in the 12-team Class AAA field.

The situation sounds a lot like basketball season when West Allegheny was the No. 16 seed for the playoffs, upset No. 1 Greensburg Salem in the first round and went on to win the WPIAL title.

"I think we have a great measuring stick with our basketball team, and I tell our guys that," said Cornell. "Baseball is all about who is playing best at the end of the season."