Bill Beckner stories, Page 79

Norwin played lockdown defense on another opponent, only that opponent looked quite different than the one the Knights expected to see Monday night. Norwin ran away with a 59-21 nonsection girls basketball victory at Latrobe, but the host Wildcats were missing their centerpiece: 6-foot-1 standout Emma Blair. The Knights (5-0)...

The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League announced its November players of the month. In Class 3A, Bethel Park senior forward Christian Strang claimed top honors after scoring a pair of goals in November. Strang, who has battled illness and injury, has seven points (5 goals, 2 assists) this season for the...

He scored the first nine points of the game for Saint Vincent and delivered a one-handed dunk. But the basket Shemar Bennett will remember most from a recent victory is the one that put him in the Bearcats’ record book. The 6-foot-6 grad student forward scored on a layup through...

A pair of local players made the Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association All-State teams in the two largest classifications. Penn-Trafford senior outside hitter Kate Schall was selected in Class 4A, and Latrobe senior setter Lily Fenton was a 3A pick. Schall helped guide the Warriors to the WPIAL semifinals. She finished...

The buzzword around the Norwin wrestling team this preseason was leadership. Coach Kyle Martin was searching for movers and shakers to guide the Knights this year — and into the future. “The expectation is always to be leaders in the wrestling room, leaders in the classroom, leaders in life,” Martin...

The Norwin girls basketball team sprinted out of the gates to open the season. The Lady Knights captured the championship at the Indiana tip-off tournament. Defense and balanced scoring have been staples in the program, and both shined through in a pair of wins. Norwin defeated Marion Center, 61-27, then...

There weren’t any slam dunks, and fast breaks were at a minimum. But Norwin isn’t judging wins on looks these days. Save your flash and frills. The Knights are 4-0. “We’ll take it,” coach Lance Maha said. “We’re happy to get a win against a good, athletic team like that.”...

You don’t have to lose to learn. Latrobe coach Brad Wetzel had that to say after his team won a back-and-forth shootout against Greensburg Central Catholic on Saturday in the Westmoreland County Coaches Association Boys Basketball Showcase. The young Wildcats continue to learn how to win. They made pivotal adjustments...

Tiffany Zelmore School: Mt. Pleasant Sport: Basketball Class: Senior Claim to fame: A fourth-year starter for the Vikings, Zelmore scored her 1,000th career point during the opening weekend of the season. She scored 32 points and reached the milestone in Mt. Pleasant’s 63-21 victory over Ringgold. The 5-foot-11 forward made...

Justin Johns could feel T.J. Watt’s pain. Literally. The pair of linebackers shared a similar injury — and a similar comeback story. Johns, a junior at Washington & Jefferson, tore his pectoralis muscle months before Watt did, while lifting weights in the offseason. Like the Pittsburgh Steelers’ pass rusher who...

After the postgame handshake line dispersed, Cam Rowell grabbed the microphone at the scorer’s table and shouted into it, “Go Panthers!” The junior guard was excited after leading his team to a 59-41 victory over Carlynton on Friday night in the Panthers’ opening game of the 19th Mike Rettger Tournament...

Give Frank Muccino a pass for missing Southmoreland’s basketball game Saturday. He has a state championship to win. Muccino, the Scotties’ head boys basketball coach, also is an assistant with the Belle Vernon football team, which will take on Neumann-Goretti on Saturday at Cumberland Valley for the PIAA Class 3A...

Alonzo Wade always has three words in the back of his mind, whether he is lining up wide for a pass route or posturing to make a play at outside linebacker. “Always be ready,” the Belle Vernon sophomore football player said. That mantra has rung true across the roster this...

Lance Maha wanted to diversify the Norwin boys basketball schedule when he took over the program last year. The coach’s end game always was to sharpen his team’s teeth on the defensive end of the floor to boost offensive opportunities on the other. “We want to be a good half-court...

The Westmoreland County Coaches Association will welcome 16 boys basketball teams for its annual showcase Saturday at Hempfield and Jeannette. There will be four games at each site, with corresponding times. The schedule for Hempfield: Derry vs. Southmoreland, noon; Burrell vs. Monessen, 1:30 p.m.; Ligonier Valley vs. Hempfield, 3; Kiski...

Tiffany Zelmore reached 1,000 career points, and the Mt. Pleasant senior did so in fewer games than most who achieve the milestone. Mt. Pleasant only played 20 games during Zelmore’s freshman and sophomore seasons and has only made the playoffs once during her career. So she has scored over 1,000...

Two games is a small sample size. But to Hempfield, it can reveal a lot. With hiked-up expectations this season based on success in the offseason, Hempfield won its first two games for a sweep at the Fayette County Tournament at Connellsville. “We played with a lot of energy throughout...

Tori Sydeski is often the last girl out of the gym at Norwin basketball practices. “I don’t count how many shots. I just like to end on a make,” the senior guard said. Sydeski didn’t light up the scoreboard — no one did in this game — but the Knights’...

Mike Evans continues to build momentum toward a new college stop. The wide receiver, who entered the NCAA transfer portal and left West Virginia after a short stay, has five Division I offers. The latest is from Alabama State of the Southwestern Conference. The others are from Florida A&M, Georgia...

Robert Kennedy will play his final season of college football in a different uniform. The former Jeannette star announced he is leaving Old Dominion after two seasons. A redshirt junior safety, Kennedy entered the NCAA transfer portal for a third time and plans to play as a grad transfer next...

Mt. Pleasant’s Lily King is one of the best returning swimmers in the WPIAL this season. The sophomore looks to be in top form. King qualified for the 2024 Olympic Trials after an impressive time in the 50-meter freestyle at the Toyota U.S. Open Championships at Greensboro Aquatic Center in...

Norwin is trying to develop a defensive identity early in the season. The fact that said development has come with two wins in two games is a bonus that second-year coach Lance Maha will gladly take. “We want to be a good halfcourt defensive team,” Maha said. “When we share...

As the offense built from the back, slowly at first and then picking up speed, Sara Felder ran wide like a receiver in football. When the pink-shoed senior forward took the ball and turned on her speed, few teams could keep up with her. There were times when she drew...

When Greensburg Central Catholic needed a goal over the top, it knew whose number to call. Carlo Denis combined speed and a knack for finding space in opposing defenses, giving the Centurions a scoring machine who caused matchup problems for back lines all over WPIAL Class A. The senior forward...

Hailey Longwell had nothing to lose this season. How could she? Her team went a perfect 24-0. The Moon standout powered a run to WPIAL and PIAA championships as the Tigers dropped a class to 3A and dominated. For her efforts, Longwell is the TribLive HSSN Girls Soccer Player of...