Bill Beckner stories, Page 21
Westmoreland County high school notebook: Jeannette’s Kymon’e Brown draws 1st offer
Jeannette football standout Kymon’e Brown is expected to see increased college recruiting attention as the clock ticks toward his senior season. Brown, a quarterback and defensive back, received his first NCAA Division I offer last week as Navy reached out. The TribLive Westmoreland Player of the Year last fall helped...
Greensburg Central Catholic girls pull away from Cambria Heights after tight 1st half
Ask them about the slow start. They’ll tell you how they finished. Fresh off back-to-back championships, Greensburg Central Catholic avoided the proverbial WPIAL hangover by knocking off eight days worth of rust, relying on its star power and finally accelerating past Cambria Heights, 61-31, in a PIAA Class 3A first-round...
Greensburg Central Catholic boys have unfinished business in state playoffs
Greensburg Central Catholic might always wonder what if, but, for now, the boys basketball team is dialed in to what still could be. The Centurions (23-3) were the No. 1 seed in the WPIAL Class 2A playoffs but were upset by No. 8 Union, 44-42, in the quarterfinals. GCC already...
Westmoreland County PIAA basketball playoff capsules for March 8, 2025
Boys Class 2A First round Mercyhurst Prep (19-7) at Jeannette (23-2) 1 p.m. Saturday District seeds: Jeannette 7-1; Mercyhurst Prep 10-3 Winner plays: Winner of 9-3 Clarion Limestone (16-10)/6-2 Northern Cambria (14-12) on Wednesday in second round Players to watch: Tanner Ashton, Mercyhurst Prep; Kymon’e Brown, Jeannette Layup lines: Mercyhurst...
Westmoreland County PIAA basketball playoff capsules for March 7, 2025
PIAA basketball playoffs Boys Class 5A First round Latrobe (20-6) at Exeter Township (14-11) 7 p.m. Friday District seeds: Latrobe 7-6; Exeter Township 3-2 Winner plays: Winner of 7-7 Moon (19-7)/6-1 Greater Johnstown (24-1) Tuesday in second round Players to watch: Ian DeCerb, Latrobe; Jayden Ware, Exeter Township Layup lines:...
Westmoreland County basketball notebook: GCC’s Erica Gribble proves to be comfortable on big stage
Greensburg Central Catholic junior point guard Erica Gribble has the uncanny ability to treat any place she plays basketball as “just another court.” Just like she can make any date on the schedule “just another game.” Whether it’s the compressed confines of her team’s home floor, an obscure road game...
Latrobe boys seek milestone win for coach Brad Wetzel
Set to travel more than 400 miles round-trip Friday for its PIAA Class 5A boys basketball playoff opener, Latrobe has another number on its mind. The number 300 is more significant to the Wildcats, the sixth-place team from the WPIAL who will play their first state playoff game since 2017....
Norwin girls hope to find momentum in state tournament
Though Norwin did not repeat as WPIAL champions, one could argue the Knights still have momentum going into the PIAA postseason. They did, after all, rally from 13 down to take a three-point lead late in the fourth quarter against Upper St. Clair on Saturday in the Class 6A girls...
Jeannette looks to ride defense, rebounding in PIAA tournament
Jeannette had just won its second WPIAL championship and first since 2008, but the players weren’t tired. Far from it, in fact. “I want to start states tomorrow,” sophomore guard Markus McGowan said. The Jayhawks wanted the crew at Petersen Events Center to leave the lights on. “Let’s play tonight....
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Former Mt. Pleasant coach Chris Brunson wins 1st games at Waynesburg
Waynesburg started the Chris Brunson era with a pair of wins. Brunson, the former championship-winning coach at Mt. Pleasant, won his first two games as Waynesburg’s new softball coach, 3-2 and 14-0 (5 innings) over Penn State Altoona. Sophomore third baseman Brynn Charnesky (Southmoreland) had a double and RBI in...
Westmoreland basketball notebook: PIAA sites revealed for local teams
The PIAA announced first-round times and sites for the state tournaments, which begin Friday and Saturday across the commonwealth. The area’s three WPIAL champions will host opening games. The Belle Vernon boys (21-4) will welcome Farrell (12-11), the fifth-place team from District 10, at 7 p.m. Friday in the Class...
Belle Vernon boys hope to extend Salvino’s final season with state tournament run
On the doorstep of retirement but not quite ready to knock on the door with the PIAA playoffs to come, Joe Salvino still doesn’t crave attention. Not after another WPIAL championship. Not after four decades of winning. Not after the sendoff of sendoffs. In fact, simplicity has been a part...
Norwin notebook: Knights track and field teams win indoor titles
The Norwin boys and girls indoor track and field teams are champions for the first time. Both won titles at the Tri-State Track and Field Coaches Association championships at the Edinboro Bubble. Ryan Schiller won the 60-meter dash in 8.14 seconds, Luke Simpson was first in the mile in 4...
Upper St. Clair battles past Norwin to win 1st WPIAL girls basketball title since ’08
Upper St. Clair finally broke through to win another championship, for Pete’s sake. Coach Pete Serio, denied titles in two of the last three years as the Panthers were stricken by injuries to star players — most recently Rylee Kalocay — was able to celebrate with his team after a...
Westmoreland County high school notebook: Norwin celebrates indoor track titles
The Norwin boys and girls indoor track and field teams are champions for the first time. Both won titles at the Tri-State Track & Field Coaches Association Championships last weekend at the Edinboro Bubble. Ryan Schiller won the 60-meter dash in 8.14 seconds, Luke Simpson was first in the mile...
Greensburg Central Catholic girls ready to lace ’em up in state tournament
A reporter asked some Greensburg Central Catholic girls basketball players in a postgame news conference if the shoes they wore in the WPIAL championship were new. The entire team wore aqua-green Nike high-tops at Petersen Events Center on Thursday night when they celebrated their second straight title. “No, we’ve had...
Jeannette overwhelms Union to win school’s 2nd WPIAL boys basketball title
Jeannette received new shoes for the WPIAL Class 2A boys basketball championship. The Jayhawks beat the socks off of Union to win their first title in 17 years. Playing an up-tempo style from the beginning, third-seeded Jeannette started quickly, owned the fast break and used balanced scoring and pressure defense...
Norwin girls expect tense tussle with Upper St. Clair in WPIAL Class 6A finals
The celebration was short after Norwin won its WPIAL semifinal over Canon-McMillan on Tuesday night in Mt. Lebanon. Veteran coach Brian Brozeski, who has been through many postseason runs, made sure his team boarded the bus with perspective after a 42-26 win that saw the Knights fend off a late...
2025 WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball championship breakdown: Norwin vs. Upper St. Clair
WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball championship No. 1 Norwin vs. No. 2 Upper St. Clair 5 p.m. Saturday, Petersen Events Center On the air: Video livestream: NFHS Network; Audio: Trib HSSN WPIAL titles: Norwin 3 (2024, ’15, ’16), Upper St. Clair 6 (2008, ’03, 1996, ’94, ’93, ’73) Norwin (15-7)...
Erica Gribble pours in 31 points to lead Greensburg Central Catholic girls to 7th WPIAL titleVideo
Taking a break from her scoring barrage, Erica Gribble zipped a wide, cross-court pass down the baseline to a waiting Jayla Peterson in the far corner. Peterson calmly drained a 3-pointer to tie the score with 1 minute, 35 seconds remaining. Seconds later, Peterson completed a three-point play to give...
Alumni funds new Ja 2 sneakers for Jeannette boys to wear in WPIAL championship game
Jeannette will lace up new basketball sneakers for the WPIAL title game. Alumni donated money to buy the boys team new Nike shoes for making it to the Class 2A championship game, the Jayhawks’ first appearance in the finals since 2015. Jeannette (22-2) plays Union (19-6) at 5 p.m. Friday...
Jeannette boys to put playoff wisdom to ultimate test in WPIAL championship game
Sixth man Lonnie Greene was out last year with a leg injury and couldn’t contribute to the Jeannette boys basketball team. You can bet it irked him, too. But the 6-foot-4 senior forward is healthy now and playing his best heading into the WPIAL finals. He doesn’t intend to come...
2025 WPIAL Class 2A boys basketball championship breakdown: Union vs. Jeannette
WPIAL Class 2A boys basketball championship No. 8 Union vs. No. 3 Jeannette 5 p.m. Friday, Petersen Events Center On the air: Video livestream: NFHS Network WPIAL titles: Union 1 (2003); Jeannette 1 (2008) Union (19-6) Coach: Mark Stanley Projected starting lineup No., Name, Ht., Cl., Pos. 1, Maddox Thompson,...
Jeannette coach entering WPIAL finals: ‘I want to win one for our district’
His voice long gone, Adrian Batts let the moment wash over him after his Jeannette boys basketball team ripped off a 20-point win in the WPIAL Class 2A semifinals Monday at jam-packed Fox Chapel. This one was special. “What an amazing effort, lot of grit,” Batts said. “Everything we talked...
2025 WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball championship breakdown: Belle Vernon vs. North Catholic
WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball championship No. 1 Belle Vernon vs. No. 2 North Catholic 9 p.m. Thursday, Petersen Events Center On the air: Video livestream: NFHS Network WPIAL titles: North Catholic 5 (2020, ’17, ’16, ’10, ’09); Belle Vernon 1 (1978) Belle Vernon (20-4) Coach: Joe Salvino Projected starting...
