Rick Devereaux isn't sure who was the best bowler on this season's West Allegheny baseball team; he is pretty certain though that throwing strikes was one of several keys to the team's success.

Devereaux, a senior catcher and four-year starter, helped West Allegheny to its second consecutive WPIAL Class AAA championship this season. He said the championship was borne of camaraderie built by things such as a team bowling night and a routine in which the team gathered each evening before a playoff game to watch movies and share pizza in the school auditorium.

"I think that off-the-field stuff was important for us," said Devereaux, who will play at Duquesne University next year. "We kind of stole that from the football team, but it worked for us.

"Those things brought us closer together. We got to know each other better and I think it was the kind of thing that made us root for each other and pull together more."

The Indians did not pull far enough to reach their ultimate goal. After winning the WPIAL Class AAA title a season ago, their No. 1 goal for this season was to win the PIAA championship. The seniors who made up the core of the team helped West Allegheny win section titles three of four times and advance to the WPIAL semifinals in three of their four years.

Their dream of winning a PIAA title ended last week with a 7-2 loss to Somerset in the quarterfinal round of the PIAA playoffs.

"The state championship was our only goal," Devereaux said. "Winning the section [title] this year was OK and winning the WPIAL again was great, but the state was our goal. When we look back, winning the WPIAL two years in a row is going to be a great memory, but not getting the state this year is going to be a little disappointing."

West Allegheny had an outstanding season even though it did not reach its ultimate goal. Coach Bryan Cornell said the leadership of seniors such as Devereaux, pitcher Zak Sinclair, shortstop Derrik Zeroski, second baseman Mark Diskin and center fielder Tyler Savisky, all four-year starters, was what drove the team forward on the field.

Sinclair, a 34th round draft choice of the Boston Red Sox in last week's Major League Baseball Amateur Draft and the Gatorade Pennsylvania High School Player of the Year, led the way on the mound with another outstanding season. Devereaux, Zeroski, Diskin and Savisky were outstanding both offensively and defensively.

"The key for us all year really was that we had a great senior class with those guys," Cornell said. "Just great senior leadership. Those kids played for us for four years, they knew the game of baseball and they competed.

"They wanted to win the section and they wanted to win the WPIAL again and they accomplished those things. I know their goal was to win the PIAA [title], but when you are in that kind of [playoff] competition against good teams, one bad day or one bad inning can really cost you.

"Somerset has a great team. They played well and we didn't play our best game. But our kids can be proud of all they accomplished."

Like Deveraux, Cornell cited the camaraderie established by the off-the-field events and the fact that the team played together so well not only this season, but in seasons past, as the real keys to its success.

"Those kinds of things that happen off the field mean a lot and go a long way toward building your team," Cornell said. "We had a lot of character guys. When they were on the field, they always played at the highest level. But they were a real good group off the field, too. They had a lot of fun together."

One of the ways they had fun was to divide the squad during practice. The winning team got ice cream.

"Just like Little League," Cornell said with a laugh. "It was a lot of fun for them, but it made them really compete."

West Allegheny expects to have another strong team next season, although its players know the Section 3-AAA schedule, with games against tough Moon and Hopewell teams, will not be easy to negotiate.

The Indians have a strong core group back led by Nick Dymkowski, who pitched and played behind the plate this season, Mike Visloski, who returns on the mound and in the outfield, third baseman Justin Meyers, outfielder Ken Cool and pitcher Ethan Thompson, who went 4-0 this season.

"That's a good group to have back," Cornell said. "A lot of them could have been starters on other teams in our section, but they had some real good players in front of them this year. I think they learned from those guys and now it will be their time to step in.

"We play in a tough section. You know Moon will be good and Hopewell will be good, and you know we'll have that target on our back again as a two-time WPIAL champion. But we have some talent back, even though we lost some great talent and leadership. These guys will be ready again."