FOX CHAPEL — Connor Coward clapped his hands, looked to the dugout and let out a big yell.

Seeing his teammates making the Johnny Manziel money gesture, Coward brought his arms waist-high before stopping.

“I was kind of floating at the point,” said Coward, who was celebrating his lead-off double in the third inning. “I didn't know what I was doing.”

Remembering how to do things was to be expected from the Seneca Valley pitcher. Coward, who made his first start on the mound this season due to a nagging back injury, figured it out quickly.

Coward struck out six to propel the 16th-seeded Raiders to a 3-0 win over ninth-seeded Shaler in a WPIAL Class AAAA quarterfinal baseball playoff game Saturday afternoon at Fox Chapel High School.

Seneca Valley, which upset top-seeded Hempfield Friday, will make its fourth straight trip to the semifinals. The Raiders (8-11) will play fourth-seeded Pine-Richland Wednesday at a time and place to be determined.

The kid with the bad back played like the Man of Steel against the Titans (13-8).

“It was really a matter of not doing way too much.” Coward said. “If I kept it in the strike zone and didn't try to do too much with my curveball, fastball or changeup I knew I could be successful today. ”

Getting Coward back was the last puzzle piece for a team that appears to be jelling at the right time.

This group didn't have nearly the same expectations as the last three years, which all ended with WPIAL championship game appearances. Seneca Valley struggled at times and coach Eric Semega felt its seed would be a no-brainer.

Now, he's seeing a completely different team.

“We weren't flying under the radar. ...This year there were a lot of good, even teams,” Raiders coach Semega said. “I bet they had a hard time pairing teams. If there was one seed that was for sure, it was ours.”

Coward led off the third inning with a double and scored on two wild pitches by Kevin Gannon. One batter later, John Harper hit a one-out single, stole second and advance to third.

Johnny Brittner drove him in with a sacrifice fly to put the Raiders ahead 2-0.

“Our energy is just crazy right now,” Brittner said. “After a hard season, we're just doing our best.”

Brittner set the table for an insurance run in the sixth inning. He hit a lead-off double and moved to third on a bunt by Matt Rafferty.

Vince Augustine brought him in with a sacrifice fly.

“We just didn't get the timely hits today,” Shaler coach Brian Junker said. “We ran into a Seneca Valley team that if you take the six off their seed, that's how they played. Like a No. 1 seed. ”

The Titans finished with three hits and only advanced two runners into scoring position. Shaler threatened in the fifth inning. Justin Defide drew a one-out walk and advanced to second on a single by Alex Ficorelli. Justin Mazza then worked the count against Coward to 3-0 before striking out.

Seneca Valley is one step away from its fourth consecutive appearance in the WPIAL finals.

The Raiders' road wasn't easy.

“We went through some frustrating times this year. This makes it a lot easier to forget,” Semega said. “It wasn't smooth. It was a roller coaster. We'd play well, then we'd play like we didn't deserve to be on the field. The last few games we haven't looked like the same team.”

Seneca Valley 002 001 0 — 3 4 0

Shaler 000 000 0 — 0 3 0

W: Connor Coward 5IP (6K, 2BB). L: Gavin Cannon 7IP (9K, 1BB).

Seneca Valley (8-11): Connor Coward 2B, John Harper 1B, Johnny Brittner 2B, Matt Rafferty 1B

Shaler (13-7): Andy Mueller 1B, Sam Ireland 1B, Alex Ficorelli 1B,

Wednesday: Seneca Valley vs. Pine-Richland TBD