Michael Love stories, Page 22
Freeport bounces back from tough loss to earn runaway victory over Burrell
Freeport rallied but came up just short in its Allegheny 7 Conference opener last week at Deer Lakes. But there was no hangover from that game for the Yellowjackets on Friday at home against rival Burrell. Freeport led by four touchdowns at halftime and added on in the second half...
Plum fends off Norwin in spirited battle for section top spot
Round one goes to Plum. In a physical and spirited battle for first place in Section 1-4A, the Mustangs scored three first-half goals, which stood up through a Norwin second-half rally in a 3-2 win Thursday evening at Mustangs Stadium. Plum, ranked No. 3 in WPIAL Class 4A by Trib...
A-K Valley high school football players to watch for 2024 Week 4
Player of the week Nick Odom Plum, sr., RB/DL Plum was looking for a spark to its season as it was 0-3 heading into its Northeast Conference opener against Shaler last Friday. Odom helped provide that lift. He carried the ball 21 times for 123 yards and two touchdowns in...
Burrell, Freeport resume rivalry with conference implications on the line
Separated by classification the past two years, the Freeport and Burrell football teams have reunited in the Class 3A Allegheny 7 Conference and are set to resume a rivalry that extends to the 1960s and a pair of WPIAL playoff clashes. The Bucs won the first two meetings in the...
Freeport scores in overtime to top Burrell in section clash
Eighty minutes weren’t enough to decide Monday’s WPIAL Section 2-2A girls soccer clash between rivals Freeport and Burrell at Buccaneer Stadium. Freeport sophomore Cam Woods scored the winner with 8 minutes, 14 seconds left in the first overtime to end a game rife with dazzling scoring chances and equally dazzling...
Gateway football team looks to overcome early adversity
The Gateway football team was able to weather adversity over the first two weeks of the season, from injuries to key players and facing two of the top Class 6A teams in the state. But Gators coach Don Holl said strides were made through those first two weeks — losses...
Gateway girls volleyball leans on large senior class under 1st-year coach
Erica Bosh was hired as Gateway’s girls volleyball head coach in August, right before preseason practices started. She said the initial meeting with the team was positive, and it set the tone for what everyone wanted to accomplish. “We have eight seniors, so we have a lot of good leadership...
Alle-Kiski Valley high school football notebook: Plum finally gets in win column
Last year, Shaler spoiled Plum’s 2-0 start by handing the Mustangs a 28-14 nonconference loss in Week 2. When the offseason alignments came out and Plum and Shaler both were placed in the Class 5A Northeast Conference, the Mustangs knew they had a guaranteed chance to avenge the setback. The...
Riverview runners off to strong start despite early-season injuries
There were high expectations coming into the 2024 season for the Riverview boys and girls cross country teams. Six Raiders boys runners returned from a team which captured the WPIAL Class A title last year and finished as the state runner-up in Hershey. The Riverview girls, the 2023 WPIAL runners-up...
Versatile Plum girls volleyball players look forward to host tournament
Every third or fourth Saturday in September, one can expect a packed Plum High School gym with volleyballs flying all over the place. This Saturday will be no exception as the Mustang girls’ volleyball team again will host its annual tournament and welcome a dozen teams for a full day...
Leechburg’s Jayden Floyd rushes for 5 TDs as Blue Devils rout Riverview to stay unbeaten
Riverview came to Leechburg’s Veterans Memorial Field on Friday hoping to halt a six-game losing skid to the Blue Devils in Eastern Conference play. But Leechburg wouldn’t hear of it. The Blue Devils held a four-touchdown lead at halftime, added on in the third and fourth quarter and came away...
Fox Chapel runner Ethan Vaughan repeats as champion at Kiski Area Invitational
With temperatures in the mid 70s, sunny skies, and a light breeze, runners from close to 40 teams from the Alle-Kiski Valley, Westmoreland County, throughout the WPIAL and City League, and from District 10 and District 6 descended on Northmoreland Park on Friday to test their mettle at the Gingerbread...
No. 3 Springdale girls soccer beats No. 1 Riverview in overtime
Scoring opportunities were at a premium Wednesday evening when cross-river rivals Riverview and Springdale met in a matchup of two of the top three ranked girls soccer teams in WPIAL Class A. The No. 1 Raiders and No. 3 Dynamos played nearly 90 physical and intense minutes on Springdale’s home...
A-K Valley high school football players to watch for 2024 Week 3
Player of the week Alex Clawson Apollo-Ridge, jr., QB/DB Despite an 0-3 start to the season, the Vikings have been competitive, and Clawson, a first-year starter at quarterback, has been a big part of the work toward getting that first victory. Clawson has completed 48 of 69 passes for 631...
‘Nothing else really needs to be said’: Deer Lakes aims to buck history in meeting with Freeport
Deer Lakes will attempt to start a season 4-0 for only the second time in school history. Standing in the Lancers’ way is a Freeport team riding a wave of momentum after its two-day victory over Quaker Valley. The rivals know all about each other as consistent opponents, both in...
Undefeated Riverview, Springdale collide in latest chapter of girls soccer rivalry
When last the Riverview and Springdale girls soccer teams met, the Raiders outlasted the Dynamos in a PIAA Class A quarterfinal classic at Plum en route to the state title game in Mechanicsburg. The win for Riverview completed a three-game season sweep. Coming back this season, a goal of the...
On cusp of reaching UFC, Plum grad Justin Patton to fight at Brawl in the Burgh 23
Justin Patton is on a roll in his professional mixed martial arts career. The 2012 Plum graduate has won six of his last seven fights and is on the doorstep of making it to the Ultimate Fighting Championships. He faces the No. 3-ranked featherweight in Pennsylvania, Ryan Cafaro, at 247...
Gateway’s Kairell McCoy eyes strong finish to high school cross country career
Kairell McCoy ran competitive cross country meets for the first time while in middle school and has taken steps up the ladder ever since. Now the Gateway senior is hoping his final varsity season is his best yet. As a veteran on a young Gators team, McCoy wants to make...
Freeport takes control early, tops Quaker Valley in continued game
It took an extra day, but Freeport was able to take care of its business against Quaker Valley at Freeport Area Athletic Stadium. The teams returned to the field Saturday morning after lightning forced officials to postpone the game after only six minutes Friday evening. The Yellowjackets rolled from the...
Freeport-Quaker Valley football game postponed to Saturday
Mother Nature didn’t allow the Freeport and Quaker Valley football teams to play much of their nonconference game Friday night at Freeport Area Athletic Stadium. The teams were 5 minutes, 48 seconds into the contest when lightning first was spotted by game officials. The teams were ushered off the field...
Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Softball League begins 2024 season
The Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Softball League kicked off its 2024 season Sunday afternoon with four doubleheaders. Mt. Lebanon swept its way past Baldwin by a combined 34-5. North Allegheny and Bethel Park, Seneca Valley and Shaler, and Hempfield and Plum all split their opening two-game sets. Montour and West Allegheny...
Freeport girls soccer earning respect early in season
The members of the Freeport girls soccer team took part in a light workout Thursday afternoon, less than 12 hours after producing a convincing 3-0 victory over Shady Side Academy in an early-season Section 2-2A clash at Freeport Area Athletic Stadium. “We had some calf cramp issues at the end...
A-K Valley high school football players to watch for 2024 Week 2
player of the week Colt Sprankle Knoch, jr., QB/DB The Knights didn’t get the results they were hoping for in a Week Zero loss to Kiski Area, but their fortunes turned around last Friday when they returned to the field. Sprankle was a main cog in the engine that produced...
Familiar foes Freeport, Quaker Valley hope to gain momentum after early-season losses
The Freeport and Quaker Valley football teams are no strangers to one other. Friday’s 7 p.m. kickoff at Freeport Area Athletic Stadium will mark the third time in as many seasons the Quakers and Yellowjackets will meet in nonconference play. Freeport hopes to continue its dominance in the recent series...
Kiski Sports Hall of Fame’s newest class spans decades
When Brent Kennedy found out he would be enshrined as a member of the Kiski Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2024, thoughts immediately turned back to when he made his mark on the Cavaliers cross country, track and field and soccer teams. His successes, he said, were made all...
