Height does not ensure success on the volleyball court, but it certainly helps.

Central Catholic volleyball coach Kris Scigliano is fielding the tallest squad he's ever had.

"Height only takes you so far," said Scigliano, now in his 24th season as Central Catholic's head coach. "Passing and defense are also important. If you can't get the ball to your hitters, it doesn't matter how tall you are."

Height has played a factor, however, in Central Catholic's success this season. The Vikings concluded the regular season with a 7-3 record, which earned them second place in Section 1-AAA.

"We lost twice to [unbeaten section champion] Bethel Park and split with Baldwin," Scigliano said. "It's our sixth consecutive WPIAL playoff berth."

Bethel Park finished the season with a 10-0 record and is ranked No. 2 in the WPIAL, behind defending champion North Allegheny.

Central Catholic, Baldwin (6-4) and Upper St. Clair (5-5) also qualified from Section 1-AAA. The Vikings are tied with Penn-Trafford for No. 10 in the WPIAL Class AAA rankings.

"I haven't seen North Allegheny yet, but they have to be considered the favorite," said Scigliano, when asked to assess the 12-team playoff field. "They have almost everybody back from a team that won the title last year."

The WPIAL Volleyball Steering Committee will meet Monday to determine the playoff brackets. The playoffs could begin as early as Tuesday.

"North Allegheny may be the favorite, but Bethel Park proved it can be beaten," said Scigliano, referring to Bethel Park's 25-22 win over the Tigers in the semifinals of the Plum tournament.

"There are quite a few teams that have a legitimate shot of winning the title."

Scigliano is hoping for a repeat of the 2004 season.

"We made it to the WPIAL final four that year and almost qualified for the PIAA tournament," said Scigliano. "That was our best season."

Scigliano has returned to the head job, after allowing Mike Scahill to run the varsity for one season. Scahill's son, Zack, was a senior on last year's squad. The elder Scahill has since stepped down after working six seasons with Scigliano.

The younger Scahill was one of three starters who graduated.

Mark Carnevale, a 5-10 sophomore, had the difficult task of replacing Scahill at setter.

"It was hard to get Mark much playing time last year with Zack running the show," Scigliano said. "He's adjusted well to the jump from junior varsity to varsity."

Carnevale is one of nine players in Central Catholic's starting rotation. Seven of the nine are seniors, including 6-foot-6 middle hitter John Benzing, 6-7 middle hitter Anthony Capizzi and 6-7 outside hitter Mike Cratsley.

"Benzing and Cratsley are two-year starters, while Capizzi is a first-year starter," Scigliano said. "Cratsley has been our big hitter. He's being recruited by several small schools."

The other seniors are 6-2 outside hitter Mike Kozlowski, 5-11 outside hitter Andrew Kuczma, 5-6 defensive specialist Adam Brozda, and 6-2 outside hitter Ron Fischer.

The only other player in Scigliano's nine-player rotation is Grant Heckman, a 5-7 freshman libero.

"We were in three regular-season tournaments, but fell short of the playoffs in all three," said Scigliano. "That will no doubt hurt us in the seeding process."