WEXFORD — Mary Cassamassa erased 452 seconds of futility in the most satisfying way possible for the Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic girls basketball team.

The freshman forward took Evelyn Brazil's pass and let fly a 3-pointer that dropped straight through the cylinder with 8 seconds remaining.

North Catholic's first field goal in nearly eight minutes gave the Trojanettes a 41-40 win over Riverview in the WPIAL Class A semifinals Wednesday night at North Allegheny High School.

“I really didn't see much,” Cassamassa said. “When Evelyn gave me the ball, I was just thinking shoot it. I was hoping to be able to get it up and in.”

The Trojanettes (20-5) will take on Vincentian Academy — which is the three-time defending WPIAL and 2014 PIAA champion —in the finals Saturday at 11 a.m. at the Peterson Events Center.

The Royals swept the regular-season series, winning 72-44 and 61-48.

“I'm hoping we can do a lot better,” Cassamassa said. “The first time we weren't quite what we wanted to be. The second time we improved and managed to stick with them longer. With this one, we have to stay calm.”

Cassamassa's calm saved the Trojanettes from losing to a team they beat twice.

North Catholic won the first two meetings with the Raiders by a combined 42 points.

“What saved our butt was we went to a 1-3-1 half-court trap and diamond press that disrupted them a little bit,” North Catholic coach Molly Rottmann said. “They played great. They disrupted us. It was a couple time-and-score things.”

The Raiders (17-8) led 40-38 after a Cassamassa free throw with 33 seconds left. Bree Patsey broke through North Catholic's pressure and missed a layup.

After collecting her own rebound, she was whistled for a double dribbble.

After Cassamassa put North Catholic ahead, Riverview turned the ball over on its ensuing possession with 1.8 seconds remaining.

“I would've really liked to have that,” said Raiders coaching Keith Stitt of being out of timeouts. “I could have used that in the last minute. Some of it is on me, it always is. If I had it to do over again, I would have saved another one along the line.”

The Raiders box-and-one defense gave Breen and the Trojanettes' offense headaches. Breen, who scored a team-high 18 points and grabbed 15 rebounds, scored one point in the second half.

North Catholic's offense as a whole sputtered.

After Evelyn Brazil scored on a jumper to put the Trojanettes ahead 36-28 with 7:40 left, they missed their next 13 shots.

Riverview took advantage, going on a 10-0 run to take the lead, 38-36, on a layup from Hannah Larkin with 2:06 remaining.

The Raiders' Sadie Buchsel scored seven of her game-high 23 points in the final quarter.

Rottmann said her team had prepared for this type of situation.

“We worked on time and score a lot in practice, what to do if we're up five, down seven,” Rottmann said. “I think there was some panic, but not as much.”

Riverview gave the Trojanettes the biggest scare since Raiders coach Keith Stitt has been at the helm.

North Catholic has beaten Stitt's squads in their past eight meetings. He takes no consolation in the margin.

“This is the closest we have ever come,” Stitt said. “A 1-point loss, a 16-point loss, it's still a loss. This is harder for the kids.”

North Catholic will play Vincentian in the playoffs for the first time since the the Royals beat them 54-50 in the 2012 WPIAL title game.

“I know against Vincentian we always play our hardest. I don't know about the smartest,” Breen said. “If we get these next two practices and get what we need to get done and contribute on defense, we should be fine.”

RIVERVIEW 40

Leah Sero 3 1-2 9, Nicole Munion 0 1-4 1, Sadie Buchser 10 0-0 23, Hannah Larkin 1 0-0 2, Ariel Rafferty 2 0-4 4, Bree Patsey 0 1-2 1, Molly Kennedy 0 0-0 0. Totals: 15 3-12 40.

CW NORTH CATHOLIC 41

Mia Palmer 1 1-2 3, Abby Goetz 1 0-0 2, Evelyn Brazil 2 0-0 4, Sam Breen 7 4-5 18, Mary Cassamassa 3 3-6 10, Kiki Palmer 2 0-0 4. Totals: 16 8-13 41.

Riverview 9 7 12 12 — 40

North Catholic16 12 6 7 — 41

3-point goals: Riverview 4 (Sero 2, Buchser 2); North Catholic 1 (Cassamassa)

Saturday: Vincentian Academy vs. Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic