When Belle Vernon Area’s legendary coach Joe Salvino announces prior to the start of the playoffs that he’s retiring following this season, it felt that the Leopards winning a title would be the only appropriate send off for one of the most accomplished coaches in WPIAL history. That storybook ending came to fruition on Thursday at the Petersen Events Center, as the Leopards held off North Catholic 54-49 to capture the WPIAL Class 4A title.

“What coach would ever think that you’re retiring and you’re in a championship game and you win. It’s icing on the cake,” detailed Salvino, who has 744 career wins, the second most in district history for boys basketball.

In the process, the top-seeded Leopards not only won their first WPIAL crown with Salvino at the helm of the program, but the first for BVA since 1978. North Catholic, the No. 2 seed, was denied its sixth title, with the most recent coming in 2020.

While prolific senior Zion Moore has garnered most of the headlines among the players for the Leopards (21-4), it was Moore’s fellow seniors, Tommy Davis and Trevor Kovatch, who did most of the damage through the first three quarters for BVA.

Kovatch, who stands 5-foot-9, tallied nine points in the first quarter, while the 6-foot-6 Davis scored eight in the second quarter and 14 total in the half. As a result, Belle Vernon took a 34-22 lead into the locker room.

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The Leopards sputtered offensively in the third quarter, however, while the Trojans (19-6) trimmed the deficit down to six, at 43-37. Jason Fredericks, who scored 30 points in a mercy-rule victory in the semifinals against Beaver Area, was the hot hand in the period for NC, scoring seven points.

Although momentum was seemingly on the side of the Trojans, as they pulled within one point twice in the fourth quarter, the Leopards had a counterpunch in Moore. Although the 2,000-point scorer was limited to just six points through the first three quarters, he produced six more points in the fourth, including a crucial layup with 1:17 left to put BVA ahead 49-46.

“He’s not going to give up. He’s going to keep on playing,” Salvino said of Moore. “He’s learned to be a lot more team oriented, and he knows he doesn’t always have to be the man.”

The Leopards closed the game out at the charity stripe, as Curty Wade knocked down a free throw, and Tommy Davis hit a pair of foul shots. The biggest advantage for the Leopards, however, came in the battle of the glass, as Belle Vernon outrebounded North Catholic by a remarkable 40-17 margin. Dom Ghilani, who did not score, snagged a game-best 13 boards, while Davis finished with a double-double, tallying 20 points to go with 10 rebounds.

“Their strength inside, I think, really hurt North Catholic,” detailed Salvino.

Additionally, Moore and Kovatch each finished with a dozen points, with Kovatch also registering three steals.

Fredericks paced the Trojans with 20 points, while Jude Rottman posted 15 points on 4-of-12 shooting.

Both teams will shift their focus to the Class 4A state playoffs, which will commence next Friday.