The WPIAL released its completed spring sports realignments at the end of May, but one particular piece of reshuffling has a big impact on competition locally.

Beginning with the 2008-09 season, the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association will offer state championships in both boys and girls lacrosse. In response, the WPIAL assumed control of boys lacrosse and created a competition format to be common between both boys and girls.

Lacrosse will feature divisions, rather than enrollment classes, with Division 1 being comprised of state championship-eligible teams and Division 2 being the lower tier of competition. Schools joined divisions voluntarily, with a surprising result close to home.

Sewickley Academy will compete in Division 1, while Quaker Valley will be in Division 2.

While the move mirrors the teams' placing in the old WPSLA for boys lacrosse, it mean that the Quaker Valley girls, a team with playoff wins in each of the last two seasons, both against current Division 1 teams, will not be able to compete for the PIAA's championship in the spring.

"I was shocked that QV was going to stay down, knowing that if you're down, you're not eligible for the state tournament," Sewickley Academy coach Cheryl Ann Lassen said.

Quaker Valley athletic director Jerry Veshio commented on the decision.

"They're not playing down, they're with their right size by enrollment," Veshio said.

"In both divisions, we looked at what was best for QV. We had no idea what the other schools were going to do. The WPIAL did a great job of soliciting feedback from member schools and most schools said they wanted the two divisions."

The alignment change puts Sewickley Academy in a section with Fox Chapel, North Allegheny, Oakland Catholic, Pine-Richland and Seneca Valley. The Quakers, meanwhile, will face Bethel Park, Chartiers Valley, Greensburg C.C., Greensburg Salem, Seton-La Salle, Winchester Thurston and Yough.

The plus to the decision for each school is that it is only binding for two years. After the 2010 season, the WPIAL will realign again, allowing Quaker Valley to move up, if it chooses.

"We can change what we want to do based on how the next two seasons go," Veshio said. "We'll see where we think we fit in at that time."

"After two years, I hope we'll look at moving up so that our girls will be able to compete for a championship," Quaker Valley coach Jessica Garavaglia said, following her team's playoff loss at Seneca Valley.

As for the Academy, Lassen feels her team is where it needs to be, despite being the smalled Division 1 school.

"I like the challenge and want to go for it, because to me, it's all about challenging the girls. I want them to be proud of themselves and know they can do it," she said.