Chris Harlan stories, Page 49

Quaker Valley senior Adou Thiero committed Sunday to play basketball for Kentucky and coach John Calipari, who also coached Thiero’s father at Memphis in the early 2000s. Thiero chose the Wildcats over offers from Pitt, Maryland and Xavier, having visited all four schools in the past month. He announced his...

The PIAA’s largest boys basketball classification is often dominated by Eastern Pennsylvania teams, but three WPIAL players made the all-state team for Class 6A. Butler senior Devin Carney, a 25-point scorer headed to Duquesne, earned first-team honors in a statewide vote of sportswriters. Carney is a four-year starter who finished...

The WPIAL has been around for more than 100 years, but the organization was exclusively for boys until Ruth Ann Burke and some like-minded colleagues insisted that must change. It was the late 1960s, and interscholastic girls sports still were an afterthought in high schools, with limited opportunities arranged by...

Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. North Allegheny, 12-5, 1 2. Mt. Lebanon, 11-7, 3 3. Norwin, 9-7, 4 4. Pine-Richland, 9-8, 5 5. Butler, 9-5, 2 Out: none Class 5A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Peters Township, 14-1, 1 2. Bethel Park, 12-2, 3 3. West Allegheny, 12-4,...

Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Mt. Lebanon, 11-3, 2 2. Hempfield, 10-2, 1 3. Pine-Richland, 11-2, 3 4. Bethel Park, 7-6, 5 5. North Allegheny, 10-5, 4 Out: none Class 5A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Penn-Trafford, 13-1, 1 2. Armstrong, 15-2, 4 3. Trinity, 15-2, 3 4....

Connor Smith likes to experiment with his pitch grips, so when his favorite MLB pitcher shared a splitter setup on a podcast, the North Allegheny right-hander had to give it a try. Smith already throws a splitter, but he wanted one that could fool batters like Kevin Gausman’s does. “It’s...

A cold rain drenched everyone at the Baldwin Invitational, but Quaker Valley hurdler Nora Johns was among those not too bothered by the wet weather. “Honestly, it wasn’t as bad as I’d thought,” she said. “There was a nice breeze. It wasn’t too warm. And the rain wasn’t too hard,...

New Castle and Laurel Highlands combined for one of the most competitive WPIAL finals in recent memory, a matchup decided in double overtime by two last-second free throws. Laurel Highlands (27-1) celebrated the WPIAL title that day, but New Castle (27-3) went on to finish as the state runner-up. The...

Adou Thiero and Markus Frank formed a dynamic duo for Quaker Valley, which celebrated the most successful boys basketball season in school history this winter. The two Quakers and their coach added another reason to celebrate Friday. Thiero and Frank each earned first-team all-state honors in a statewide vote of...

Steel Valley junior Makhai Valentine, who ranked among the WPIAL’s top scorers this winter, earned first-team all-state honors Thursday when the Class 3A awards were announced. The 30-point scorer was one of four WPIAL players recognized in a statewide vote of sportswriters. Earning third-team honors were South Allegheny’s Bryce Epps,...

Time is running out for shot clock advocates. The PIAA basketball committee reviewed statewide survey results Tuesday and decided a shot clock should not be added to high school games in Pennsylvania, likely ending that debate for now. The committee voted 9-5 to keep the status quo, a recommendation the...

The WPIAL postponed its team track semifinals to Wednesday because of an unfavorable weather forecast Tuesday that included afternoon rain and possible thunderstorms. The semifinals instead will start at 3 p.m. Wednesday at the same host sites. Butler, Norwin, North Allegheny and South Fayette are hosts for the 3A semifinals...

Bishop Canevin celebrated the school’s first boys basketball state title this winter and the Crusaders were rewarded for that accomplishment again Tuesday. Canevin seniors Jaden Gales and Kevaughn Price each earned first-team all-state honors and Gino Palmosina was named the state’s top coach in PIAA Class A. Price averaged 15...

Jake DiMichele went three years without a loss as Our Lady of the Sacred Heart won its second state title this winter and tied a state record with a 68-game winning streak in a historic season. DiMichele, a senior, finished his high school career as the second-leading scorer in WPIAL...

The boys basketball all-state teams will be announced one classification per day this week starting with non-PIAA schools. Westtown senior Dereck Lively, who led the prep school near West Chester to the Pennsylvania Independent Schools Athletic Association title this winter, tops this group as the Non-PIAA Player of the Year....

Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Hempfield, 9-1, 1 2. Mt. Lebanon, 8-3, 2 3. Pine-Richland, 9-2, 4 4. North Allegheny, 9-4, NR 5. Bethel Park, 5-6, 3 Out: Seneca Valley (6-6, 5) Class 5A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Penn-Trafford, 12-1, 5 2. North Hills, 11-1, NR 3....

Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. North Allegheny, 9-4, 2 2. Butler, 8-4, 1 3. Mt. Lebanon, 9-7, 4 4. Norwin, 7-6, NR 5. Pine-Richland, 7-7, 5 Out: Upper St. Clair (8-4, 3) Class 5A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Peters Township, 12-1, 1 2. West Allegheny, 10-3, 2...

There’s a new high school football league in Western Pennsylvania sponsored by the Pittsburgh Steelers and created entirely for girls. North Allegheny was one of six WPIAL schools to field a team this spring for a flag football pilot program for girls in grades 9-12, with Ambridge, Ellis School, Moon,...

Twenty-one WPIAL girls basketball players earned all-state honors Thursday, and Neshannock’s Luann Grybowski was named Class 2A Coach of the Year after leading the Lancers to a state championship this winter. Nine WPIAL players earned first-team honors, including Neshannock teammates Neleh Nogay and Mairan Haggerty, who guided the Lancers to...

The James Madison softball program Tuesday was mourning the death of sophomore catcher Lauren Bernett, a South Fayette graduate who helped the Dukes reach the College World Series a year ago. “Our hearts are aching, hearing the news of the loss of one of our student-athletes,” university president Jonathan Alger...

WPIAL board president Scott Seltzer will take over as executive director this summer, replacing outgoing director Amy Scheuneman as the league’s top administrator. The WPIAL board met Monday and voted to hire Seltzer, the assistant superintendent at Chartiers Valley and a familiar voice in the WPIAL office. Seltzer has served...

Pitt, Penn State and West Virginia remain in the hunt for Laurel Highland’s Rodney Gallagher, the state’s top football recruit in the 2023 class. Gallagher announced a “Top 8” list Sunday that included the Panthers, Nittany Lions and Mountaineers, along with Notre Dame, Oregon, Oklahoma State, Texas and Virginia Tech....

Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Hempfield, 7-0, 1 2. Mt. Lebanon, 5-3, 4 3. Bethel Park, 4-4, 2 4. Pine-Richland, 5-2, 3 5. Seneca Valley, 5-4, NR Out: North Allegheny (7-3, 5) Class 5A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Trinity, 10-1, 5 2. Armstrong, 7-1, 1 3. Fox...

Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Butler, 8-2, 1 2. North Allegheny, 6-3, 2 3. Upper St. Clair, 6-2, 3 4. Mt. Lebanon, 7-6, 4 5. Pine-Richland, 5-6, NR Out: Norwin, 4-6, 5 Class 5A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Peters Township, 10-0, 3 2. West Allegheny, 9-1, 2...

Boys basketball coach Gino Palmosina is a candidate for a job elsewhere, so he resigned Thursday from alma mater Bishop Canevin, where he won WPIAL and state titles this winter. Palmosina said he resigned “to explore another opportunity,” but for now declined to say where he might be headed next....