Bill Beckner stories, Page 170
Breaking down the 2020 WPIAL girls soccer playoffs
Here’s a look at the WPIAL girls soccer playoffs: Class 4A Favorite: One of the more skilled teams in a pretty open field, top-seeded Peters Township shut out eight opponents and did not lose in its final seven games. The Indians, who made the semifinals a year ago, are 6-0...
GCC soccer teams get top seeds but no home-field advantage
Home-field advantage could play a big part in this year’s WPIAL soccer playoffs. Higher-seeded teams get home games through the semifinals because the WPIAL tried to avoid multiple teams traveling to the same site — a product of covid-19 awareness. Greensburg Central Catholic landed No. 1 seeds in the WPIAL...
Westmoreland high school football notebook: Penn-Trafford focused on rivalry game
Penn-Trafford could finish atop the Class 5A Big East Conference but not be considered a conference champion. The WPIAL said it will not recognize conference winners if canceled games would have an impact on the outcome. Penn-Trafford had covid-19 cases not long after Gateway did, forcing the teams’ anticipated matchup...
Franklin Regional boys soccer eyes WPIAL 3-peat
Franklin Regional arranged some objectives early in the boys soccer season, like it was laying out a new outfit for the first day of in-person school. No matter what the Panthers wear, they still look good. But winning the section was first on the list. Bringing home a third WPIAL...
Westmoreland boys soccer notebook: Norwin back to full strength for playoffs
Norwin had two late-season ties in boys soccer, which caught the eye of opposing teams and the people who conjure up the WPIAL rankings. Both games were at Norwin Knights Stadium. Allderdice played the high-powered Knights to a 0-0 draw, and, three games later, improved Latrobe and No. 4 Norwin...
Norwin girls volleyball, Latrobe boys soccer shut down because of covid-19 concerns
The Norwin girls volleyball and Latrobe boys soccer teams have shut down for 14 days because of possible exposure to covid-19. Norwin canceled its last four matches and Latrobe its final four games. If Norwin (5-4) qualifies for the WPIAL playoffs, based on results of other matches, the team might...
Jeannette freshman QB Brad Birch is ‘for real’
When he talks in casual conversation or even in interviews, Brad Birch likes to finish a lot of sentences with the words, “for real.” “I’m not that interesting of a kid, to be honest,” he said sheepishly. “I just want to play football and win games. For real.” Birch, a...
Ligonier Valley girls soccer team not apologizing for unique path to playoffs
When a clerical error made Apollo-Ridge ineligible for the WPIAL Class A girls soccer playoffs, there was a wide-eyed newcomer waiting to fill the vacancy. First-year WPIAL member Ligonier Valley (3-10, 2-7 Section 1-A) might have found its way into the district tournament as an innocent bystander, but the Rams...
Westmoreland girls soccer notebook: Latrobe clinches playoff spot in style
Latrobe earned a hard-fought, 2-1 victory over Penn-Trafford last Thursday night to clinch a spot in the WPIAL girls soccer playoffs from Section 3-4A. What a way to extend the season. The win carried extra meaning because Latrobe hadn’t beaten the Warriors since 1995, when some of the current players’...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Saint Vincent to host ’22 NCAA women’s volleyball finals
Saint Vincent will serve as the host program for the 2022 NCAA Division III women’s volleyball championship Nov. 17-19 at Duquesne’s UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. The 2018 championship also was played at Duquesne at the then-A.J. Palumbo Center. It marked the first time a Presidents’ Athletic Conference member was selected to...
Trib HSSN WPIAL boys and girls soccer rankings for Oct. 19, 2020
Here’s a look at this week’s Trib HSSN WPIAL boys and girls soccer rankings. Records are through Saturday’s games. Girls soccer Class 4A Team, record, previous 1. Fox Chapel, 11-1, 1 2. Butler, 9-1, 2 3. Peters Township, 9-1-1, 3 4. Norwin, 7-2-1, 4 5. North Allegheny, 7-2, 5 Class...
Westmoreland high school notebook: Franklin Regional’s Kimmich has chance for double titles
There were days this fall when Luke Kimmich would play in a nine-hole golf match after school, change clothes and be back in time to join the boys soccer team for a practice or game. The senior from Franklin Regional pulled double-duty and handled it with the best of the...
Mt. Pleasant tennis standouts double up as softball stars
They are used to singles and doubles … and triples and home runs. But we’re talking tennis here, not softball. Mt. Pleasant has found success in both sports, and many of the same names have made that happen. In a unique case, the Vikings had three Division I softball players...
Westmoreland H.S. football notebook: Hempfield copes with sudden end to season
Hempfield players had no clue they were playing their final football game of the season two Friday nights ago at Baldwin. The seniors had no idea it would be their last high school game, period. Hempfield had some recent covid-19 cases in school and initially planned to pause athletics for...
Norwin notebook: Trip to WPIAL finals a 1st for Knights golfers
Norwin switched home courses for boys golf this fall. Nothing against Irwin Country Club, it was just that the Knights wanted a place more comparable to the places where their section foes play regularly. So, they moved to Youghiogheny Country Club near McKeesport. It was a few more miles down...
Underclassmen growing up quickly for Norwin football
Class 6A football can make a team grow up quickly in the WPIAL. Playing younger players is not always ideal but doing so, whether it be out of necessity or because of merit, can pay dividends down the road when underclassmen are more accustomed to the varsity level. Norwin has...
Franklin Regional golfers savor WPIAL championship round at Oakmont
Brooke Horvath and Caroline Tragesser have played numerous rounds of golf together at various courses. But the duo from Franklin Regional were in for a new experience when they qualified for the WPIAL Class AAA individual championship. Already key contributors to the Panthers’ section-title run and a trip to the...
Franklin Regional earns crucial win over LatrobeVideo
Franklin Regional isn’t ready for its playoff streak to end. The seniors, in particular, want this touch-and-go season to keep going. Trevor Brncic threw for 203 yards and three touchdowns, Colton Johns rushed for 102 yards and Jerraine Turner returned a kickoff 84 yards for a touchdown as the Panthers...
Derry calls off next week’s football game with Burrell after more positive covid tests
Derry postponed next week’s football game at Burrell over growing covid-19 concerns. The Interstate Conference game will tentatively be played Oct. 30 if the teams do not qualify for the WPIAL Class 3A playoffs. The Trojans had already canceled Friday night’s home game against East Allegheny after Derry closed down...
Westmoreland County high school football notebook: Covid-19 halts momentum
Covid-19 has found its way into Westmoreland County schools, and the virus has caused four local football programs to shut down. Penn-Trafford, Hempfield, Derry and Southmoreland shelved team activities and canceled games this week, causing disruptions in preparation and a halt in momentum with only two weeks left in the...
Elizabeth Forward’s Chase Whatton chooses MAC school from long list of college offers
Chase Whatton said he would make his college decision public on Wednesday afternoon and he held true to his word. The sought-after senior tight end and defensive end from Elizabeth Forward narrowed his choices to seven programs and revealed his top one on social media. Whatton, an all-state defensive end...
Westmoreland boys soccer notebook: Kennedy’s return sparks Latrobe boys
Tom Kennedy returned to coach boys soccer at Latrobe this season and immediately aimed to simplify things. “In the system I used to run at GCC, it was easy,” Kennedy said. “It’s about knowing your responsibility and the players having accountability. You can’t have a breakdown. You need people to...
‘Bar has been raised’ for Belle Vernon boys soccer team
More of a formality than a confetti-filled celebration, the observance of Belle Vernon’s second section title in as many years was different. It was all business when the Leopards clinched their fifth section title. Maybe that’s because this is a boys soccer team with more on its mind than section...
Westmoreland County don’t miss high school football matchups for Week 6
Class 6A Norwin (1-4, 1-4) at No. 2 Mt. Lebanon (2-2, 2-2) 7 p.m. Friday, Mt. Lebanon Stadium, Mt. Lebanon Norwin scored the opening touchdown against No. 1 North Allegheny, but couldn’t keep up with the Tigers’ skill and depth in a 49-13 loss. Connor Chrisman and Noah Vogel caught...
Mars girls, Peters boys move up in national soccer rankings
Mars has not lost a girls soccer game in almost two years. The defending WPIAL and PIAA Class 3A champions have won 46 straight regular-season matches dating to 2017. That’s an awful lot of winning, a feat even worthy of national attention. Mars once again caught the eye of the...
