Seneca Valley beats North Allegheny for 1st WPIAL boys soccer title since 2018 on Zach White’s goal
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Seneca Valley and North Allegheny prior to the start in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's captains receive pre-match instructions in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's Zach White (8) dribbles against North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley prepares to face rival North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley celebrates the victory over North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's student section in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley celebrates the victory over North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's student section in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley goalie Chase Goode (1) in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's Jake Howard (24) heads the ball past North Allegheny's Francis Randiga (9) in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley celebrates the victory over North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's Jacob Prex (10) after the victory over North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's Connor Mackrell (22) looks to pass against North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's Zach White (8) scored the only goal against North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's Jacob Prex (10) heads the ball against North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's Jacob Prex (10) takes a free kick against North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's Jacob Prex (10) controls the ball against North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's Connor Mackrell (22) dribbles up the field against North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's Jake Howard (24) clears the ball in the midfield against North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley head coach George Williams the victory over North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley head coach George Williams, in black, prepares prior to the match against North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley's Fynn O’Donnell (2) heads the ball over North Allegheny's Vik Vaders (16) in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
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Seneca Valley head coach George Williams congratulates Luke West (3) after the victory over North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A Boys Soccer Championship game Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, at F.N.B. Stadium. JJ LaBella/Special to the Eagle
PITTSBURGH — Seneca Valley added another trophy to its illustrious soccer history, capturing the WPIAL Class 4A title Friday night at F.N.B. Stadium.
It required a tense 80 minutes against rival North Allegheny to bring home the hardware.
The decisive goal came 45 seconds into the game, as senior forward Zach White scored off a corner kick and an assist from Jacob Prex to give the Raiders the only scoring they would need in a 1-0 win.
“Prex took the corner, and it deflected off a few people and bounced right to my chest. I controlled it and just finished it,” White said after the game.
For the Raiders, who lost last year’s final on penalty kicks to Fox Chapel, this year’s win was especially gratifying.
“We just knew if we got this chance again, we’d come back stronger, faster, working harder,” White said. “We came back and we really wanted it this time. We really, really wanted it, and it just feels so good to come back with a win.”
“I’m so happy for the players,” SV head coach George Williams said. “To be able to see them on the good side of it this time is really rewarding.”
Defender Chase Lively very nearly made it 2-0 in the fourth minute, but Tigers goalkeeper Jaxon Cowgers knocked it away with his fingertips.
Seneca Valley goalkeeper Kyle DeMaster kept a clean sheet with four saves for the Raiders’ 10th shutout of the season.
DeMaster was hardly tested in the opening 40 minutes, as Seneca Valley dominated possession and wound up with nine shots and six corner kicks to North Allegheny’s three shots and zero corners.
White nearly got a second goal eight minutes into the second half, but he narrowly overshot the crossbar. With four minutes left in the contest, White had another chance for a goal that would have put the game out of reach, but this shot was stopped by Cowgers.
The NA goalie limited the damage by saving six Raider shots.
However, the Raiders’ defenders held firm throughout the second half, keeping their one-goal lead intact.
“(The Tigers are) a good team. They’re not here by accident,” Williams said. “They almost tied it up a couple of times, but we were able to bend and not break.”
“It went exactly how we thought it was going to go,” said Luke Birckbichler, a member of Seneca Valley’s hockey club, and one of many Seneca Valley students and fans who followed the boys soccer team to Pittsburgh for the game. “We went in with high hopes, and we knew exactly what NA was going to throw at us and we came out with a win.”
Friday’s victory makes it two out of three for the Raiders against North Allegheny in 2026. The Tigers dealt Seneca Valley its only loss of the season Sept. 15, a 1-0 defeat at home. Less than a month later, the Raiders got their revenge with a 2-0 win at North Allegheny.
Since both class finalists advance to the PIAA tournament — the Raiders will face the District 3 fourth seed Wednesday at a site and time to be announced Sunday — both White and Williams expect Seneca Valley will meet North Allegheny, who are on the same side of the bracket, for a fourth time.
“I’d be surprised if we don’t see them again,” Williams said. “I think the chances are great that we’ll see them again.”
“I think we can make a deep, deep run,” White said.
