Timing is everything.

Outside of football, postseason glory in professional sports is decided by a best-of-seven series. There’s a chance to regroup after a loss, come back and prove which team is truly supreme.

In high school, there are no second chances.

There simply isn’t enough time on the schedule to play it out any differently.

What happened in the regular season is only a memory. When the postseason rolls around, there’s only one opportunity for a team, wrestler or swimmer to prove themselves.

The PIAA Swimming and Diving Championships get started today and the pressure is immense. On the biggest stage against top-caliber competition, every hundredth of a second counts. One bad start or one faulty stroke can sink a dream.

It’s one of the most unforgiving sports around, which makes the six WPIAL titles for Mars’ Maggie Gruber all the more incredible.

In swimming, a certain number of places from the district meet automatically advance to state competition, but others can earn a trip with a qualifying time. In other words, the best swimmers can always find a way to Bucknell University.

There is no such mercy in wrestling. A predetermined amount of grapplers from each region move on to the state tournament, no matter how stacked the competition in a particular weight class.

Slippery Rock senior Forrest Christmann was undoubtedly one of the best heavyweights in the state this year, but didn’t have a chance to prove it at the PIAA Tournament.

After winning the District 10 Class AA championship, Christmann placed fourth at regionals and only the top three moved on. He lost a pair of 2-1 decisions to Lakeview’s Sam Breese and Port Allegany’s Nicholas Budd.

A week later, Breese and Budd went head-to-head for the 285-pound PIAA championship, where Breese prevailed 3-1. Back on Jan. 23, Christmann edged the eventual state champion by a 3-1 margin.

Clearly capable of claiming PIAA gold, it’s a shame such a slim margin kept Christmann from receiving an invite.

The Mars boys basketball team was another example of a regular-season win failing to carry over into the playoffs. The Planets defeated Montour 71-68 on Dec. 19, but dropped their WPIAL semifinal matchup with the Spartans, 61-52.

The Freeport hockey team tied Kittanning 1-1 on Nov. 15, before giving the Wildcats a 5-3 loss for Valentine’s Day on the way to a section championship. When the playoffs rolled around, it just wasn’t Freeport’s night, as Kittanning eliminated the Yellowjackets from the Penguins Cup quarterfinals, 5-2.

It’s tough, but that’s the way it is. One night bad day can derail a season.

The Mars hockey team is the last team left standing from winter sports. The Planets will take on powerhouse Quaker Valley for the Penguins Cup title a week from today at Consol Energy Center.

The defending champion Quakers outscored their opponents 172-21 during an undefeated regular season and dropped Mars by a 5-2 score earlier this year.

I wouldn’t count the Planets out, though. It’s only one game and anything can happen.

And this time, it’s for everything.