Josh Rizzo stories, Page 31

The Penn Hills girls golf team had to wait 14 years after Mallory Ruhling qualified before sending another competitor to the WPIAL finals. Lucy Brayton, who broke the streak last season, made sure the Indians didn’t have to suffer through another long wait. By shooting an 83 at the Murrysville...

Penn Hills senior midfielder Kari Holt easily found solace after the Indians battled through the rain in a 4-0 loss last Wednesday to Section 3-3A foe Plum. The Indians were playing with a roster only featuring three substitutes. Plum, which is off to a 7-0 start and has played in...

There was no use lamenting an opportunity lost for Shaler setter Tia Bozzo. With the specter of covid-19 restrictions hanging heavy over last season, the Titans were happy to be able to play. Missing out on the PIAA Class 4A playoffs due to a truncated playoff bracket — only the...

Stopping the Shaler football team’s offense requires doing some thinking. Opponents expecting the same old thing may be caught in some of the window dressing. By revitalizing the presentation, the Titans have made themselves a difficult group to prepare for. Shaler, which got off to a 2-2 start, scored 100...

Low numbers forced Penn Hills cross country coach Lee Zelkowitz to make some audibles with the schedule. The Indians passed on competing in the Red, White & Blue Invitational at White Oak Park and instead opened by competing in the Gateway Invitational at Boyce Park. “That’s the hardest course they...

Penn Hills football coach Jon LeDonne and his coaching staff worked hard prepping to play Woodland Hills on Sept. 17 at home. The Indians coaching staff also were tasked with keeping the players focused despite recent events in the community. No fans were allowed in Yuhas-McGinley Stadium last Friday and...

The Penn Hills girls tennis team already has shown an increased acumen for having competitive matches. Indians coach Richard Parks hopes this trend will lead to more victories in individual matches as well as for the team. Penn Hills is off to a 1-3 start, including a 5-0 sweep of...

The path to the WPIAL Class 3A boys soccer playoffs is a road the Penn Hills boys team is working on paving. The Indians have found ways to avoid letting potholes sink the early part of their schedule. Playing without senior Lenny Duncan, Penn Hills found a way to score...

Taylor Slaughter has inspiration every time she heads into the Penn Hills girls volleyball team’s locker room. Before the season, Indians coach Jay Mitlo had the members of the team write their goals on sticky notes and they all put them up on the wall. For what Milto describes as...

Playing at Oakmont Country Club was more than enough to keep Penn Hills junior Lucy Brayton motivated. Brayton became the first Penn Hills girls golfer to qualify for WPIALs in 14 years last season and spent the time since fine-tuning her game. Now that Brayton set a new standard for...

Preparing to become ironwomen started early in the Penn Hills girls soccer team’s training camp. No one would be left behind. Indians coach Ashley DeVito noticed when a player was dragging behind on running laps, a few teammates went and ran extra laps to encourage each other to keep up....

Senior middle hitter Rachel Burton understands the expectations for the North Allegheny girls volleyball team. With 88 victories in their last 89 matches, including an 18-0 mark last season that culminated in the Tigers’ fourth straight PIAA Class 3A title, no one in the program wants to see the train...

Mapletown football coach George Messich believes this year’s team is the most motivated group he’s had during his time at the school. The Maples, who finished 2-5 last season, return nine starters on offense and defense leading into its season-opener against Avella at home. “Our goal every year is to...

Brent Baker won’t necessarily have to build from the ground up as he takes over the Jefferson-Morgan football program. The first-year head coach spent the past three years as an assistant coach and worked at all levels of the program. Baker has been an assistant coach at three programs —...

Carmichaels won its first five games last year before dropping two in a row to end the season. Most years, the Mikes, who tied for second place in the Tri-County South Conference with a 5-2 record, would have been heading to the WPIAL Class A playoffs. But with spots limited...

Imani Christian coach Cliff Simon knows numbers in his program are unlikely to ever be high. The Saints will have between 16 to 20 players when they play Monessen on Sept. 3 to open the season. That’s why Simon has used the term gladiator football since he took over before...

Annamarie Armenti piled in the car Aug. 10 with her mom Sarah and boxing coach Chris Williams to make a 62-mile trek from Pittsburgh to Youngstown, Ohio. With less than a year of experience boxing, and at an age group and weight class that doesn’t feature much female competition, traveling...

Making the transition to coach Waynesburg’s football team wasn’t something Aaron Giorgi was apprehensive about for long. The players Giorgi inherited took any lingering apprehension away shortly after camp started. “The kids have been working hard and made the transition easier for me personally,” said Giorgi, who was the head...

The Pittsburgh Elite flag football program earned an opportunity for a new experience. By winning the 9U, 11U and 12U tournaments Aug. 1 at the Valley Forge Championships in Conshohocken, the program will have an opportunity to compete at the NFL Flag Bowl on Feb. 4-6 in Los Angeles. The...

Luke Cignetti and the Shaler football team are ready to show everyone their offense may have a little more zip this season. The junior running back is excited for the Titans to demonstrate their new wrinkles. “We seem to be clicking and firing on all cylinders,” Cignetti said. “As long...

Luke Pugliese doesn’t anticipate having to wait until the Penn Hills football team opens Class 5A Northeast Conference play in early October to find out what kind of team the Indians have. The Penn Hills senior offensive lineman sees the challenges lurking from day one. Penn Hills will have scrimmages...

Sustaining the momentum Woodland Hills started to build last season isn’t something senior Deontae Williams takes lightly. The Wolverines went 5-3 and returned to the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs after a one-year absence, losing to eventual finalist Peters Township in the first round. “We started lifting in January and February...

Seventh-year Penn Hills girls soccer coach Ashley DeVito is always up for an opportunity to keep her team engaged in the offseason. Once the mask restrictions were eased earlier this summer, DeVito was contacted by the Deer Lakes girls soccer coach and invited to participate in a tournament. The Indians...

Playing for the Pittsburgh Hardball Academy provided Anthony Sciulli with a chance to play travel baseball he may not have otherwise had. Sciulli, a Chatham commit and 2021 Penn Hills graduate, has always played on more than one baseball team. When Penn Hills didn’t have a American Legion team, he...

Daemar Kelly told Penn Hills basketball coach Chris Giles his goal was to play AAU basketball for Team Final in Philadelphia. Giles had a friend whose son played on one of their younger teams. He was able to put Kelly in touch with the coaches. Then Kelly, who has offers...