The boot on Steve Swiech's right foot is symbolic. His absence Friday was a prime factor in Elizabeth Forward getting booted from the WPIAL playoffs.
The Warriors felt the pain of Swiech's stress fracture as they lost to Section 4 rival Thomas Jefferson, 61-46, in the Class AAA quarterfinals. Then their hopes of qualifying for PIAA play were extinguished Tuesday when Moon toppled TJ, 74-60, in the semifinals.
Thus ended the warm, fuzzy run of a first-time section titlist, a longtime chew toy that ascended to No. 1 seed. Though 22-4, the Warriors are done.
"I'm sick about the whole thing," said Elizabeth Forward coach Jim Nesser. "We thought we had an opportunity to win a championship. Having it taken away from our team, our community and Stevie is tough to swallow."
Swiech, a junior, is one of the most highly regarded prospects in Pennsylvania. He goes 6 feet 9, 240 pounds, wears size-19 shoes, and nearly averaged a triple-double this season: 26.8 points, 13 rebounds, seven blocks per game.
He's scored a school-record 1,353 points, and with a senior season similar to the most recent one, he could top 2,000.
Nesser said he wasn't sure when Swiech's foot was injured initially, but believes it occurred in early February.
"It bothered him for about three weeks. We were carefully watching it, but it never seemed to get better."
It may have worsened Feb. 21, Nesser said, when Swiech came down hard in a first-round game against Derry. An MRI last week showed the extent of the damage.
Swiech was supposed to have a pin inserted yesterday. Recovery should take about six weeks.
Trivial pursuit
Watergate was still fresh in the public consciousness when this deft ball-handler and shooter emerged as the first acknowledged superstar of WPIAL girls' basketball. Who was she?
PIAA update
Eleven PG South teams will enter PIAA play: the Mt. Lebanon boys and girls (Class AAAA); boys' teams from Bethel Park, Mc-Keesport Area (AAAA), Thomas Jefferson (AAA), Bishop Canevin (AA), Serra Catholic, Clairton and Duquesne (A); and the West Mifflin (AAA) and Seton-LaSalle (AA) girls.
Six WPIAL boys' and girls' teams advance to states in Classes AAAA and AAA: the semifinalists plus the teams that lost in the quarterfinals to the eventual finalists.
All eight quarterfinalists make it in AA, and five move on in A -- the semifinalists, plus the team that lost in the quarterfinals to the eventual champ.
The Chartiers Valley boys needed McKeesport to beat Bethel Park last night to qualify in AAAA. The Elizabeth Forward and West Mifflin boys (AAA) and the Duquesne girls (A) were eliminated when their quarterfinal conquerors lost their semifinal games Tuesday.
Shades of Keystone Oaks
Ben O'Connor is pretty good at this resurrection stuff.
O'Connor is in his first season as the Fox Chapel Area boys' team. The Foxes are 16-10, and a Central Catholic upset of Mt. Lebanon in the WPIAL Class AAAA semifinals last night would have put them in the PIAA tournament.
The Foxes went 6-18 last winter. Their metamorphosis is similar to the one Keystone Oaks experienced in the 1999-2000 season, O'Connor's initial campaign as a varsity coach.
The Golden Eagles went 0-22 the winter before he took over at his alma mater. O'Connor, all of 21 then, led them to the playoffs and an 11-13 record in his debut.
O'Connor led the Eagles for four years, amassing three winning seasons and three playoff berths, before accepting an assistant's job at Westminster College. The Titans were 6-20 pre-Ben O'Connor, then won 16 and 17 the next two seasons before he moved to Fox Chapel.
Bulls-eye
Andrew DiDonato should someday get a job with Target. He's that good at hitting one.
DiDonato passed for 6,573 yards during his Lions football career, second best in WPIAL history.
He also distinguished himself on the court. A 6-foot guard, DiDonato finished with 1,432 points, believed to be the school record.
DiDonato averaged 15.8 points for the Lions (19-7) this winter. He will, however, play football at Geneva College, a Division III program where brother Dave was a wide receiver.
Trivia answer
Denise Del Greco, who led Baldwin to WPIAL Class AAA titles in 1974 and 1976 and a runner-up finish to Elizabeth Forward in 1975. She is the daughter of former Pirates outfielder Bobby Del Greco..
First Published: March 2, 2006, 5:00 a.m.
