Bill Beckner stories, Page 161
Franklin Regional basketball doing best to push through stop-and-start season
Franklin Regional had just ripped off three straight Section 3-5A boys basketball wins — a thrilling, double-overtime victory at McKeesport, a tough-fought home win against Gateway and a blowout over Kiski Area, also at home. The Panthers rose to first place and had begun to build serious momentum. Then it...
Greensburg Central Catholic names Marko Thomas head football coach
Marko Thomas does not think he has a coaching identity yet. No schematic traits or positions that have given him a reputation. With just four years of head coaching experience, he thinks that might be an organic thing that happens as his career moves forward. It could be a sidenote...
Transfers provide boost for several top Westmoreland County teams
Bailey Kuhns and Christian McGowan did not experience the WPIAL basketball playoffs last season because of the timing of their transfers to Greensburg Central Catholic. They were ruled ineligible for the postseason because they changed schools after the start of 10th grade. Kuhns left Southmoreland about midseason, and McGowan came...
Division I dream comes true for Norwin’s Giansante, other Westmoreland football players
Finally, the day of promise arrived for Anthony Giansante. Fading in his rear-view mirror was what could have been. But resting squarely in front of him, in crystal-clear view, was what will be for the burly senior lineman from Norwin. National signing day allowed Giansante to finally make his dream...
Westmoreland girls basketball notebook: Norwin fine-tunes as postseason approaches
Norwin plans to be in the thick of the WPIAL Class 6A chase when the playoffs begin later this month. Based on program tradition, it would be unusual if the Lady Knights were not. But coach Brian Brozeski thinks some fine-tuning needs done to get his girls ready for March...
Penn-Trafford boys ride big 1st half to victory over Greensburg Salem
Penn-Trafford sent a message to visiting Greensburg Salem early in Tuesday night’s boys basketball game. The message: If you’re going to cross midcourt, be prepared to feel some heat. The Warriors trapped constantly and forced Greensburg Salem into mistakes in the open court, creating turnovers and building a commanding lead...
Carlow’s Olivia Miller, Ligonier Valley alum, named River States’ field athlete of week
When Carlow says, “jump,” Olivia Miller asks, “how high?” The senior, who competes in a multiple events for the Celtics track and field team, garnered River States Athletic Conference Field Athlete of the Week honors after a strong start to the indoor season. A Ligonier Valley graduate, Miller has competed...
Navy offers Penn-Trafford’s Cade Yacamelli
Penn-Trafford’s Cade Yacamelli does not play basketball at his school, yet he has a photo of himself dunking one handed on an outdoor rim as his Twitter background. It’s that kind of athleticism college football programs are starting to notice in Yacamelli. The junior running back and defensive back added...
Latrobe girls basketball team dominates Franklin Regional
That Latrobe has twin towers in Anna Rafferty and Emma Blair is not a secret anymore. The secret to stopping them, that’s another story. Blair and Rafferty, who both average a double-double, piloted an impressive scoring run as first-place Latrobe pitched a shutout in the second quarter and cruised to...
Westmoreland Campus Clippings: Spencer Lee dominates
Not that it comes as much of a surprise, but Spencer Lee is holding down his No. 1 national ranking at Iowa. The senior 125-pound wrestler from Franklin Regional recorded another pin for the top-ranked Hawkeyes flattened No. 9 Illinois, 36-6. The victory improved his winning streak to 26 matches,...
Greensburg Central Catholic’s Metrosky picks Pitt
Pitt fan Matt Metrosky says he has the “traditional stuff” around the house to show his allegiance to Panthers football. “I have hats and clothes,” the Greensburg Central Catholic senior lineman said. “But I also have a Pitt version of the Terrible Towel, which is kind of unique, along with...
Hunter Schmidt making ‘big’ impact for Jeannette boys basketball
When Hunter Schmidt walks into a room, people take notice. Sometimes he has to duck to get through a doorway. But he doesn’t mind because life is good for the 6-foot-9, 290-pound Jeannette Jayhawk. Schmidt has a happy-go-lucky demeanor — even though he could step on most point guards with...
Norwin community rallies around basketball player Ty Bilinsky after stroke, blood disorder diagnosis
The Norwin community is rallying around senior basketball player Ty Bilinsky, who has missed some time because of health issues. The boys basketball team wore #TyStrong shirts in pregame warmups Friday night at Hempfield, and shirts like the team wore are being sold to raise money for the Bilinsky family....
Dunn deal: Norwin baseball player commits to Hartford
Norwin continues to churn out college baseball talent. What else is new? This year’s roster, which the Knights can’t wait to roll out in the spring, especially after last season was canceled, is loaded top-to-bottom with talent. Elijah Dunn is the latest prospect to make a commitment to a NCAA...
Westmoreland H.S. notebook: Greensburg CC lauded for fall sports success
Sunday is the beginning of Catholic Schools Week, and the Diocese of Greensburg is recognizing the remarkable fall sports season Greensburg Central Catholic had in 2020. While tiptoeing around a global pandemic and growing covid-19 numbers in Westmoreland County, GCC managed three WPIAL championships, a WPIAL runner-up and a trio...
Greensburg Salem loses delayed season opener to JeannetteVideo
Greensburg Salem boys basketball coach Mark Zahorchak glared through a doorway as his players ran onto the court. He watched proudly and his Golden Lions, the last WPIAL boys team to take the floor for a game this season, finally returned to action. There were butterflies. There were smiles and...
Franklin Regional’s Brush happy to continue basketball career
Maria Brush wants to be a physician’s assistant. That much was clear when she looked into pursuing a degree in her preferred field at Seton Hill. Basketball would be a bonus if she could somehow make both worlds work simultaneously. The Franklin Regional senior will get that opportunity next year...
Norwin notebook: Giansante headed to Western Carolina
Anthony Giansante could have tapped out. When Western Kentucky pulled his football scholarship offer several months back, and a few other offers went by the wayside, the senior from Norwin had to regroup and essentially start over. He continued to cast lines to college coaches, posting videos of his workouts,...
Penn-Trafford’s Frye brothers accept twin FCS offers as preferred walk-ons
St. Francis bagged a package deal Friday, landing football commitments from Penn-Trafford’s Frye twins — Mason and Nate. The siblings were recruited as defensive backs and will join the program as preferred walk-ons. “It is honestly super exciting to be able to go to the same program,” Mason Frye said....
Hempfield boys attack basket, handle Norwin
Joe Fiedor is that player in practice who never slows down. A constant ball of energy. “I like to play fast and go to the paint,” the Hempfield junior guard said. “I am always going.” A 6-foot guard, Fiedor spent much of the night slashing through the lane and attacking...
Greensburg Central Catholic’s Metrosky earns walk-on offer from Pitt
Matt Metrosky had a few NCAA Division II options on his plate when he picked up a surprise offer from a familiar Division I program Thursday. It had him saying, “H2P,” with emphasis. The senior lineman from Greensburg Central Catholic suddenly has a chance to be a preferred walk-on with...
Southmoreland girls use defense to fend off Belle Vernon
Southmoreland doesn’t have a true rival in girls basketball. Belle Vernon might be the closest thing. “It’s always rough when he play here,” Southmoreland junior forward Gracie Spadaro said about Belle Vernon’s gym. Fourth-ranked Southmoreland wasn’t itself in the early going Thursday night as it struggled to run offensive sets,...
Greensburg Central Catholic boys correct course after early season loss
When Greensburg Central Catholic lost by a point to Jeannette earlier this month, 47-46, the Centurions took some stock in themselves and re-racked. The defeat, however early in the season it was, did not demonstrate the Centurions’ best traits. You might even call it an anomaly, second-year coach Christian Hyland...
Westmoreland boys basketball notebook: Greensburg Salem, Franklin Regional affected by shutdowns
Greensburg Salem is the only active boys basketball team in the WPIAL that has not played a game this season. Summit Academy also is 0-0 but opted to forego the season. All told, Greensburg Salem has lost 27 days to covid-19 shutdowns, including the mandatory three-week pause of high school...
Former WPIAL champ, Point Park standout Max Kaminsky to coach La Roche men’s golf
It wasn’t all that long ago Max Kaminsky was celebrating a WPIAL golf championship as a freshman at Serra Catholic, the first ninth-grade boy to win a district title. Or, when he was qualifying for NAIA nationals as a long-hitting frontman at Point Park. His game matured fast and so...
