Josh Rizzo stories, Page 30
Fox Chapel notebook: Hot goalie ends hockey team’s season
The Fox Chapel hockey team saw a surprising end to its season in the PIHL Class A Penguins Cup championship game March 20. The Foxes lost to Kiski, 4-1, at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex. Fox Chapel, which finished the season 20-3, defeated the Cavaliers by a combined score of...
Penn Hills softball looking forward to enjoying home-field advantage
Penn Hills softball coach Ashley Banner and the Indians softball team are grateful for the school district’s maintenance staff. Thanks to the staff putting plenty of long hours between the end of softball season last year and this March, Penn Hills was able to prepare a softball field for the...
Playoff run, WPIAL championship build legacy for Penn Hills players
Penn Hills boys basketball coach Chris Giles and the players on the team had an opportunity to create permanent memories. Winning the Class 5A WPIAL championship gave everyone something to hold on to. The Indians’ season came to an end March 17 in Sharon with a 68-54 loss to Cathedral...
Young Fox Chapel softball team works to build confidence
Alina Stiger may feel anxiety about other things, but the Fox Chapel senior welcomes the anxious feeling softball can provide. The Foxes shortstop/center fielder is one of two seniors on the team this season. With a roster breakdown that features 15 freshmen and sophomores and seven upperclassmen, Fox Chapel will...
Mars’ Olivia Donnelly beats rival in hot shot competition at Cager Classic skills event
Olivia Donnelly and Hattie McGraw had an opportunity to settle an old Butler County rivalry Friday night at Highlands. Donnelly, a Mars senior, and McGraw, a Knoch senior, were paired against each other in the finals of the girls hot-shot competition at the Cager Classic, with Donnelly prevailing. Both programs...
Former Penn Hills player set to lead Indians boys volleyball team
Will Piccolino doesn’t have to worry about relating to coaching high school athletes. The first-year Penn Hills boys volleyball coach still plays competitively and must relate to his younger teammates. Piccolino, who graduated from Penn Hills in 2008, is a student at Carlow University and plays for its men’s volleyball...
Penn Hills dictates style of play during PIAA playoff run
The Penn Hills boys basketball team doesn’t have to worry about scoring style points. The Indians brand of basketball, whether playing fast or slow, is most concerned with the end result. In the second round of the PIAA Class 5A basketball tournament, Penn Hills had to scratch and claw to...
Revenge sweet for Fox Chapel hockey team in Penguins Cup playoffs
Fox Chapel’s hockey team knew the setting was the same, but the Foxes found the magic to produce a different result March 15 at RMU Island Sports Complex. Fox Chapel, which lost to Norwin in the PIHL Class A Penguins Cup semifinals last season, avenged that loss and advanced to...
Fox Chapel baseball hopes offseason adjustments lead to section success
Dom Cassol enjoyed that the Fox Chapel baseball team took a different approach to training for the 2023 season. With an inexperienced group of pitchers returning, the Foxes wanted to make sure that they were able to help everyone grow together. “We switched things up,” said Cassol, who is a...
Imani Christian slams Farrell, setting up anticipated rematch with Union
Imani Christian boys basketball coach Omar Foster valued seeing his program take the next step. The Saints fought through early foul trouble and poor shooting Friday night, but they ultimately overwhelmed District 10 champion Farrell, 80-50, in the PIAA Class A quarterfinals. “Last year, we lost in the quarterfinals to...
Penn Hills boys learn from past losses to climb all the way to top of WPIAL mountain
Make no mistake, Penn Hills senior guard Noah Barren appreciated the pomp and circumstance. The Indians boys basketball team was treated to the full cycle of congratulations after winning its sixth WPIAL title. Penn Hills, which beat Peters Township, 70-65, on March 2 at Pitt’s Petersen Events Center to win...
Penn Hills baseball sets simple goal: Playoffs
Rodney Stubbs made the goal for the Penn Hills baseball team a succinct one. “I better get in the playoffs this year,” Stubbs said. Stubbs, who stated the goal with a laugh, believes some of the upgrades the program was able to make will help the Indians out. Penn Hills,...
Fox Chapel swimmer leaves seed time in dust in dominant performance at WPIAL meet
Fox Chapel swimming coach Dan Taylor was more than pleased with how sophomore Christian Dantey attacked the 200 freestyle at the WPIAL Class 3A championships at Trees Pool. Coming in seeded fifth with a qualifying time of 1 minute, 44.54 seconds, Dantey blew away the field and won his first...
Fox Chapel boys battle their way into PIAA tournament field
Asher White knew that Fox Chapel basketball wasn’t going to be the same before this season started. The 6-foot-3 sophomore forward would need to be one of many players who needed to step into roles to make sure the Foxes were on the right track. “Last year, I played very...
Penn Hills enjoys home-court advantage, routs DuBois in state playoff opener
Noah Barren was happy to be comfortable on a snowy night in Penn Hills. During the Indians’ run through the state playoffs last season, Penn Hills scored a first-round upset on the other side of the state, then got stranded on the side of the road on their way home...
Developmental season for Penn Hills wrestling ends with near-misses for WPIAL hopefuls
Penn Hills wrestling spent the season in a developmental phase, trying to build self-confidence on the roster and give kids a chance to qualify for the WPIAL Class 3A championship tournament. The Indians, though, faced a daunting task by seeing its inexperienced roster having to navigate through a sectional field...
New aggressive style leads to success on mat for Fox Chapel junior
Alexander Kaufmann started having fun with wrestling again when he decided to change things up. The 152-pound Fox Chapel junior spent this season trying to press the pace and make opponents match his tempo. Kaufmann, who says he spends a lot of time reflecting on matches, was the lone Foxes...
Fox Chapel notebook: Boys basketball battles back to make PIAA playoffs
Getting punched in the gut several times hasn’t deterred the Fox Chapel boys basketball team. The Foxes closed the season on a three-game losing streak and backed into the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs. After opening the playoffs with a win over Thomas Jefferson, the Foxes lost 67-62 to North Hills...
With love of swimming rekindled at Edinboro, Penn Hills grad heads to nationals
Stephanie Sipple didn’t make the move from the NCAA Division I level at Cleveland State to Division II at Edinboro would because it might make it easier for her to qualify for nationals. After years of high-level training, Sipple went to Cleveland and saw her enjoyment for the sport fade....
Penn Hills swimmers go to great lengths to lower times
Clark Leonard, Anthony Sipple, Anthony Collins and Luke Hoolahan were all disappointed they didn’t shave any time off their WPIAL Class 3A 200 freestyle relay qualifying time during a last-chance meet Feb. 18 at Chartiers Valley. But Penn Hills swimming coach Morgan Bush knew there were other opportunities. The meet at...
Penn Hills girls make big strides between 1st and last game
The Penn Hills girls basketball had the misfortune of starting and ending the season against the same team. But the good news for the Indians was that getting a second chance at McKeesport in the first round of the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs meant that they found a way to...
Fox Chapel notebook: Troutman sets stage for outdoor track season
Fox Chapel’s Anna Troutman is setting the table well for her outdoor track season. The Foxes picked up a number of medals at the final Tri-State Track Coaches Association Indoor Championship meet. Troutman was the only athlete headed to State College for the state indoor track championship. She set the...
In-your-face style carries Fox Chapel hockey into Penguins Cup playoffs
Fox Chapel goalie Joe Rattner believes the Foxes have a reputation among PIHL Class A hockey teams: Fox Chapel is willing to dig in and do the dirty work when games get tough. The goal for the Foxes, who will play in the PIHL quarterfinals when the playoffs begin in...
Allderdice boys slam Obama Academy for City League championship
Major Rainey’s dunk that put an exclamation point on Allderdice’s City League boys basketball championship victory Sunday fit the game’s flow perfectly. Rainey’s alley-oop slam off a pass from Ethan Anish came a possession after a Rainey dunk attempt went rattling off the back iron and back to center court....
Obama Academy girls stifle Allderdice for another City League championship
Allderdice’s plan to outlast and tire out Obama Academy’s larger lineup sputtered at the same roadblock. The Dragons’ attempts to reach the rim Sunday at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse during the City League girls basketball championship game were snuffed out by 5-foot-8 Eagles forward Kimaya Williams. She finished with 12 points,...
