Cranberry's basketball teams need no introductions to their PIAA playoff opponents this week. They're casual acquaintances who "know" each other in different ways.

The girls will play Greensburg Central Catholic at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Hampton High School. (GCC is the host team but is not deemed a suitable playoff venue by the PIAA.) The boys will visit Aliquippa Saturday for a 1 p.m. contest with the Quips. 

Cranberry-Greensburg CC girls

Even though they haven't been dominant lately, the Cranberry girls have been no strangers to playoff basketball over the last 30 years. Lest anyone forget, they won three straight 2A state championships from 1992-94 when they were led by all-time leading scorer Susan Blauser and coached, first by the late Jim Garland, and then by Scott Creighton. 

In those days, and even since that time through close to about five years ago, Cranberry was a member of Who's Who in girls hoops. The Berries along with Girard, Karns City and, yes, Greensburg Central Catholic, to name a few, belong in the select club. 

The two didn't meet the first two years the Berries won the state title, but in 1994, they escaped the Centurians, 44-43, in the round of 16 at Butler High School. Then in 1995, they defeated the Centurians again, 52-43, at Clarion before being ousted in the state semifinals by Bishop Guilfoyle, 51-42, at IUP. 

For good measure, the two also played in 1996 with GCC coming out on top, 54-37, again at Butler. The Berries were runnersup to Girard in District 10 that season; the Centurians made it to the state finals where they lost to Pine Grove (that same school Venango Christian beat to win its state title in 1980).

But they, along with those aforementioned schools, were fixtures in the state tourney as the years progressed, up through this decade where both are now 3A in enrollment. 

While Cranberry is not as invincible as it once was, or since 2012 when it claimed four straight District 9 titles, it is still poking around and will be making its second straight appearance in interdistricts. GCC won the WPIAL last season. Its victim in 2025, Shady Side Academy, got revenge this year with a 57-40 decision in the WPIAL championship game. 

That game matched two Division I recruits who have scored more than 2,000 points -- Karis Thomas (Purdue-Fort Wayne) for SSA and Erica Gribble (Richmond) for GCC. The Centurians have another talented player in Jayla Peterson.

The last time Cranberry faced the Centurians was 2011 when GCC was a 49-42 first round victor at Clarion. So... nice to see you again. It means we're in the playoffs.

Cranberry-Aliquippa boys

​Some of the players on Cranberry's boys basketball team play football for Oil City in the co-op between the two schools -- well, namely, Cole Findlay and Landon Baker. Findlay was quarterback for the District 10 champions and Baker, a first-year senior, was his favorite receiver. The Oilers were feeling their way against the Quips in a playoff game, finally putting together a serious drive just before halftime. That's when disaster struck in the form of Qa'Lil Goode, who intercepted a pass intended for Baker and made a 100-yard return -- the shock heard round northern and eastern Venango County.

Well, wouldn't you know Goode plays basketball for the Quips, too. He scored 21 in the WPIAL semifinals and 30 more on 13-for-17 shooting to go with eight rebounds in the WPIAL championship game against South Allegheny.

It appears the 18-6 Quips have needed every ounce of his talent before he graduates and goes on to play football at Slippery Rock. They were without three starters against South Allegheny, but, as has been their M.O., they don't quit; they Find. A. Way. One player, Dejuan Hill, never played high school basketball before (this year?) stepped in and gave them 25 minutes and 13 points.

The Quips were also missing a 6-2 soph and a 6-4 guy,  but 6-0 senior Antonio Reddic contributed another 13 points to a 15th WPIAL title.

The Quips' whole rep is storied and sounds intimidating, but the Berries have athletes and a legendary mascot.