Michael Love stories, Page 6
Alle-Kiski Valley high school football notebook: Leechburg gets back on high-scoring path
Leechburg left Apollo-Ridge’s Owens Field with a bad taste in its mouth after a close Week Zero loss to the rival Vikings that saw the home team rally with 13 unanswered points in the second half. But the Blue Devils were able to use the 20-16 loss as motivation to...
Young Riverview boys soccer team gets early-season experience
The Riverview boys soccer team didn’t have to wait to be tested as it opened the season Aug. 22 at the Indiana tournament. The Raiders, featuring a mix of seasoned talent and several newcomers, including freshmen, in the starting lineup and coming off the bench, needed a rally to overcome...
South Park offense continues to produce in victory over Deer Lakes
The South Park football team got a measure of payback and remained undefeated on the young season Friday night at Deer Lakes’ Lancers Stadium. The Eagles, who lost just twice last season with one of the defeats coming at the hands of the Lancers on their home field, got three...
Plum boys soccer off to strong start ahead of section play
The Plum boys soccer team is known for its strong play and success at its annual season-opening kickoff tournament. The Mustangs’ two games Aug. 22-23 against Shaler and North Hills were no exception. They topped the Titans, 3-0, and then captured the tournament title by rolling past the Indians, 4-0....
A-K Valley high school football players to watch for 2025 Week 1
Player of the week John Nonnenberg Plum, Jr., QB/DB Junior John Nonnenberg fronted the Plum quarterback group last year by throwing for more than 500 yards and six touchdowns. Wanting to take that next step in the Mustangs offense this season, he is off to a strong start. Nonnenberg got...
WPIAL champ South Park to visit Deer Lakes with revenge in mind
South Park lost just once last year en route to the WPIAL Class 2A championship. The only blemish through its first 13 games? A 35-22 home loss to Deer Lakes. “They took care of business against us last year, and we took that and used that as a positive piece...
Burrell grad Ruggeri makes successful transition from gymnastics to powerlifting
Sophia Ruggeri showed strength and power while winning awards as an accomplished gymnast, reaching the highest levels of club performances while also starring as a member of her high school team at Burrell. Now, she is making her mark in a different arena. Ruggeri has immersed herself in the world...
Fox Chapel girls soccer standout Emily McKee makes verbal commitment to Pitt
Several Division I women’s soccer programs connected with Emily McKee throughout her recruiting journey. It gave the Fox Chapel junior and team captain a lot to think about. But in the end, McKee, an all-section, All-WPIAL, and all-state selection who powered the Foxes program to much success in her first...
A-K Valley girls volleyball preview: St. Joseph confident of another deep playoff run
It was an all-Alle-Kiski Valley final at the Deer Lakes volleyball tournament Saturday as St. Joseph, for the second year in a row, topped the host Lancers for the championship. Spartans coach Ann McCarthy was pleased with her team’s performance to kick off the season, one that she and her...
Gateway girls volleyball reloads in quest for another postseason berth
Erica Bosh likes the way her Gateway girls volleyball team has come together. The second-year coach says the team, with a trio of returning starters and others ready to step up into bigger varsity roles, should be in the mix again for a spot in the WPIAL Class 3A playoffs....
Gateway golfers building toward individual improvement
Gateway boys golf coach Paul Doonan understands where his team stands compared to some others in Section 5-3A and beyond. With a few players who have varsity experience and a majority still getting more familiar with the game, competing for wins in matches is not the main goal right now....
A-K Valley high school football notebook: Mixed results for new coaches in season debuts
Three head coaches made their debuts with new teams Friday, and two of them went head-to-head in a Week Zero nonconference clash. Colyn Haugh topped TJ Wiley as Kiski Area shut out Knoch, 21-0, at Richard Dilts Field at Kiski Area High School. Haugh said it felt good to be...
Experienced group returns to lead Plum girls volleyball
After a four-year run which included consecutive WPIAL playoff appearances and two section championships, the Plum girls volleyball team fell short last season of qualifying for postseason play. The Mustangs slipped to 3-7 in section matches in their move up to Class 4A, placing fifth behind playoff qualifiers Hempfield, Penn-Trafford...
Plum boys golf recovers from graduation loss to contend in Section 4-3A
Keith Nonnenberg understood what the impact of losing four golfers to graduation after a strong run of success the past couple of years would have on the Plum boys golf team. Wes Lorish, one of the top golfers in the state through last season, moved on to Marshall. Tim Pease...
Apollo-Ridge turns tables on Leechburg, scores late for comeback victory
In last year’s Week Zero rivalry game between Leechburg and Apollo-Ridge, the Blue Devils rallied from a touchdown behind in the fourth quarter to score a five-point victory. Friday night, the Vikings returned the favor. Trailing by nine in the third quarter, Apollo-Ridge fought back, scoring the final 13 points...
Thousands of youth soccer players geared up for 28th annual Plum Kick-Off Classic
The largest youth soccer tournament in Pennsylvania is set for its 28th edition this weekend. Tournament director Jamie Stewart said Plum Area Youth Soccer and PA West are excited to host the Plum Kick-Off Classic and will welcome teams from neighboring communities and throughout the region. “We are right around...
A-K Valley high school football players to watch for 2025 Week Zero
Players to watch Amos Glenn Freeport, Sr., RB The Yellowjackets tailback hopes to have the same type of game against Indiana on Friday as he did in a breakout performance last year against the Indians. In that 30-7 victory, Glenn carried the ball 23 times for 167 yards as Freeport’s...
Rivalry battle kicks off 2025 season for Leechburg, Apollo-Ridge
Last year, the Leechburg and Apollo-Ridge football teams played down to the wire in their annual season-opening clash. The Blue Devils trailed the Vikings by a touchdown in the fourth quarter at Veterans Memorial Field before rallying for 12 points to earn a 19-14 Week Zero win in the rivalry...
A-K valley girls high school soccer preview: Deer Lakes ‘shooting for higher ground’
The Deer Lakes girls soccer team made a number of long trips for section matches last season and faced a few unfamiliar foes. But the Lancers powered through their schedule and fashioned a runner-up finish to Mt. Pleasant in Section 4-2A at 8-2. They also made it to the WPIAL...
Riverview QB Connor Kmetz returns from injury-interrupted season bigger, stronger, faster
Connor Kmetz was perfect. In the first half of last year’s victory over Valley, the Riverview quarterback completed all nine of his pass attempts for 125 yards and three touchdowns as the Raiders led 21-12 at the break of what turned out to be a 37-35 victory. However, Kmetz was...
Riverview confident focus on process, not results, will pay off
Trevor George saw the potential of last year’s Riverview football team and what the Raiders wanted to do: Stack victories in and out of Eastern Conference play, finish with a winning record and make the WPIAL playoffs. Those goals ended up not being reached as the Raiders finished 3-6 overall,...
A-K Valley football teams leaning on their lines this season
Nick Anderson felt confident at the start of last season. The 6-foot-4, 275-pound sophomore was a young pup playing on a veteran Kiski Area offensive line with four senior starters. But his first-year varsity status didn’t keep him from shining in the spotlight as he made his mark for a...
WPIAL Class 4A preview: Star-studded McKeesport among contenders to Thomas Jefferson’s throne
Thomas Jefferson found itself in familiar territory last year. The Jaguars finished the regular season undefeated and went into the WPIAL Class 4A playoffs as the No. 1 seed. They then topped West Allegheny and Aliquippa in the quarterfinals and semifinals before upending McKeesport, 28-7, in the title game at...
Apollo-Ridge aims to bounce back after 1-win season
Apollo-Ridge took its lumps in and out of Allegheny Conference play last year. The Vikings won just one game out of nine, with the lone triumph a conference victory by three points over Ligonier Valley in the season finale. But with the struggles, veteran head coach John Skiba said, came...
Longtime WPIAL head coach Sam Albert happy to help as assistant at Pine-Richland
When Sam Albert stepped down at Kiski Area shortly after the 2024 season and ended a three-decade run as a head coach at stops that included Valley, Butler, Freeport and Highlands, he said he had plans to serve as an assistant somewhere. That somewhere is Pine-Richland. Albert has joined Rams...
