Published Friday, Feb. 21, 1997

`High school playoffs at a glance`

Who: Farrell (15-9) vs. New Brighton (20-5)

What: WPIAL Class AA boys quarterfinals

When: 2:30 p.m. Saturday

Where: New Castle High School

How qualified:

Farrell by defeating Freeport, 61-59, and New Brighton by defeating Burgettstown, 86-52, in WPIAL first-round match-ups.

Top players:

Farrell _ Melvin Gregory, 6-2 jr. forward, 13.1 ppg.; Merci Flint, 5-10 sr. guard, 10.5 ppg.; Jackson Jones, 6-0 so. guard, 10.4 ppg.

New Brighton _ Jeremy Sheffield, 6-0 sr., guard, 18 ppg.; Joe Kirschner, 6-4 sr. forward, 17.1 ppg.; Marcess Williams, 6-4 jr. forward, 13.2 ppg.; Christian Burgess, 5-10 jr. guard, 10.7 ppg.

Winner will play:

Wednesday in the WPIAL Class AA semifinals against the South Allegheny (18-6) vs. Shady Side Academy (18-4) winner.

Bonus shots:

Jones has averaged nearly 16 points per game during a seven-game stretch in which Farrell has gone 6-1. ... The Steelers knocked New Brighton out of the state playoffs a year ago with a 62-41 second-round victory. Chris Kucik, Brandon Smith and Gregory all saw some mop-up duty. ... Farrell, in fact, has beaten New Brighton five consecutive times over the last three seasons. ... In its 31 WPIAL playoff appearances dating to 1943, the Steelers have a remarkable record of 74-16 (.822). ... New Brighton lost to Shenango in the WPIAL quarterfinals, while Farrell fell to Shady Side in the semis last season. ... New Brighton was the Section 3-AA-A runnerup behind Aliquippa this year. ... Kirschner is a 4-year letterwinner. ... In its win over Burgettstown, New Brighton jetted to a 22-0 lead and held a 22-2 edge after one quarter. Sheffield scored 30 points to lead the way.

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Updated Feb. 21, 1997
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