Bill Beckner stories, Page 124
Greensburg Central Catholic boys bounce back, clinch section title with rout of Jeannette
The Greensburg Central Catholic boys basketball team had its 20-game home winning streak end Friday night in a loss to Serra Catholic. It was the No. 2-ranked Centurions’ second defeat in three games. One way to make it all better and end the late-season slip? Blow out your rival on...
Westmoreland high school notebook: Ligonier Valley’s Hollick brings hockey sensibility
Jake Hollick is one of the top senior basketball players at Ligonier Valley this season. He is known for playing with a little bit of an edge. Well, there’s an explanation for that. Hollick also is a talented hockey player. But because Ligonier Valley does not have a team, he...
Soccer rivalry between Norwin, Penn-Trafford takes hit in realignment
A longtime soccer rivalry was sideswiped by the new enrollment numbers for the PIAA’s next two-year cycle. The ramifications will be felt from Turner Valley to the Bushy Run Soccer Complex. Norwin and Penn-Trafford have been playing in the same section since the 1990s, but the girls and boys teams...
Norwin notebook: Swimmer gets in on ground floor at Southern Indiana
Norwin senior Joey Testa moved from Katy, Texas, where she was a standout for Katy Aquatics in the AAA Junior Olympics. She still holds records there. But she earned her college scholarship as a Norwin Knight. Testa, who moved to the area in eighth grade, recently signed to swim at...
Franklin Regional standout Caden Smith seeking college football fit
Franklin Regional standout senior Caden Smith, a terrific three-sport athlete, wants to play football in college. Many consider him a Division I prospect, and some schools have inquired. But the 6-foot-4 wide receiver and safety doesn’t have any offers — yet. He was hoping to commit by national signing day,...
Norwin boys hold off Penn-Trafford, earn playoff spot for 1st time in 6 years
Norwin didn’t make a field goal in the fourth quarter, but that might have had something to do with the effort the Knights were putting in on the defensive end against visiting Penn-Trafford. It was, attack on defense, rest on offense and hold on tight from there. Or, maybe they...
Norwin’s Brianna Zajicek sinks near 70-foot buzzer-beater
Brianna Zajicek moved to point guard this season, so she has a different perspective on the game and new decisions to make. As she dribbled up the floor Thursday night at Penn-Trafford with the third-quarter clock ticking down to single digits, she made some magic happen. “I was trying to...
Westmoreland County boys basketball notes: Playoff field nearly set
The Westmoreland County WPIAL boys basketball playoff field is nearly complete. All that remains in Section 3-6A is the postseason fate of Hempfield and Norwin, who head into Friday night’s action tied for fourth place. Hempfield (6-13, 3-6) will finish section play at home Friday against Greensburg Salem (2-18, 0-9),...
Suman, Penn-Trafford steal the show, top No. 3 Norwin in final seconds
Penn-Trafford stole one. Literally. A flurry of late takeaways, including two by Maura Suman — their all-time steals leader and lone senior — along with some three-point plays down the stretch, propelled the Lady Warriors to a spirited 37-36 upset over No. 3 Norwin on Thursday night in the Section...
Ligonier Valley boys ‘want to earn everything’
Ligonier Valley got a free pass to the WPIAL boys basketball playoffs last year because the league had an open tournament where any team could participate, a result of the covid pandemic. It was a nice benefit for the Rams in their first season in District 7. But they knew...
Scott Morrison resigns as Yough athletic director
Yough is looking for an athletic director after the resignation of Scott Morrison, who held the position for nearly two years. Morrison said he wants to pursue other opportunities. Yough’s AD position is part time but Morrison worked full-time hours, often putting in 12-hour days while attending games and matches....
Franklin Regional alum Spencer Lee part of clue on ‘Jeopardy!’
Spencer Lee already has a Wikipedia page, his own clothing line and a fan following that stretches from Murrysville to Des Moines, Iowa — and beyond. He is a well-known figure in college wrestling. But the Iowa sensation’s popularity has reached new heights. The Franklin Regional graduate was part of...
Westmoreland girls basketball notebook: Playoff participants set
Westmoreland County’s contributions to the WPIAL girls basketball playoff field are set. In Class 6A, local rivals Norwin (15-4, 12-1) and Penn-Trafford (11-8, 8-5), who will meet Thursday night at Penn-Trafford in the Section 1 finale, have qualified. In 5A, Latrobe (14-3, 10-1) is back in the postseason after reaching...
Westmoreland basketball teams welcome chance to start playoffs at home
A number of basketball coaches expressed their admiration for the WPIAL’s decision to allow higher-seeded teams to host first-round and quarterfinal playoff games last season because of the pandemic. The WPIAL was listening. Home sweet home will be the theme again as the league uses the same format for this...
Southmoreland plans symbolic hiring of late football coach Ron Frederick
Ron Frederick couldn’t wait to begin his dream job as the head football coach at Southmoreland. The school district will make sure the late coach’s job becomes official. Southmoreland will follow through with Frederick’s posthumous hiring at Thursday’s meeting, which comes one week after the 40-year-old died unexpectedly. Frederick was...
Hempfield closes in on WPIAL playoff spot after win at Penn-Trafford
Playing with a sense of playoff urgency, Hempfield pieced together a Section 3-6A win and moved a step closer to securing a postseason berth. Then came the waterworks. “I could cry right now,” coach Bill Swan said, soaked in a white T-shirt, dress pants and damp dress shoes. “These guys...
Notre Dame golfer, Franklin Regional grad Palmer Jackson on Ben Hogan watch list
Palmer Jackson is one of 30 golfers up for the 2022 Ben Hogan Award, presented to the nation’s top golfer among all college divisions for his play over the past 12 months. Jackson, a junior at Notre Dame and a Franklin Regional graduate, joins a watch list that includes 17...
Westmoreland notebook: Work to upgrade Derry’s Trojan Stadium begins this summer
The entrance to Derry’s Trojan Stadium is going to look quite different in the near future. Through charitable donations the Derry Area School District Foundation described as “major,” the stadium gateway will undergo renovations this summer. The entry way will include a larger ticket booth, updated restrooms, a new concession...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Seton Hill baseball favored in PSAC West
After a 39-8 season that included a 23-4 mark in conference play, the Seton Hill baseball team is favored to win the PSAC West Division. The Griffins won the Atlantic Regional title and advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament. The team returns PSAC West Rookie of the Year Owen...
Short-handed Derry perseveres through trying season
Down to seven players, a hobbled leading scorer and a section schedule wearing thin on opportunities, the Derry girls basketball team played on with flickering playoff hopes. Yes, these Lady Trojans, who could have mailed it in weeks ago, kept reaching upward toward fourth place in the Section 1-4A standings....
Westmoreland campus clippings: Latrobe grad Bryce Butler shines at West Liberty
Mountain East Conference Player of the Week Bryce Butler continues to round out his game at West Liberty. The 6-foot-5 sophomore guard had one of his best all-around games as the Division II No. 5-ranked Hilltoppers won for the 15th time in 16 games by holding back West Virginia State,...
Palmer Jackson wins prestigious Jones Cup Invitational
Palmer Jackson leaked some oil in Sunday’s final round but still managed his top victory to date at the Jones Cup Invitational at Ocean Forest Golf Club in Sea Island, Ga. Jackson, a Notre Dame junior and Franklin Regional graduate, closed with a 4-over-par 76 in challenging weather conditions but...
Derry grad, baseball player Ryan Bushey pinch hits for Mt. Aloysius basketball team
Athletically, Ryan Bushey went to college to play baseball. But he is the gym-rat type, a sign of his affection for basketball that still lingers beyond high school. He likes to shoot around and play pick-up games, even if it’s against players from the men’s basketball teams at Mt. Aloysius,...
Westmoreland notebook: GCC’s Stasko to be long snapper at Duquesne
Senior Aaron Stasko was a jack-of all-trades type for Greensburg Central Catholic football. He played wide receiver, defensive end and long snapper for the Centurions. The third position mentioned looks to be what he will do at the next level. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound Stasko committed to Duquesne as a preferred...
Pool renovations can’t slow Norwin swim teams
The pool is undergoing a remodel at Norwin, but that doesn’t mean swimming talent has dried up. The Knights boys and girls programs have learned to cope with the inconvenience, even rallying around it through another WPIAL season. “We have been busing to nearby East Allegheny High School to practice...
