Michael Love stories, Page 86

Whether it was a sprint or a more measured pace, Zachary Zornan-Ferguson was able to shine in his WPIAL swimming championship debut Sunday at Upper St. Clair High School. The Fox Chapel freshman recorded a pair of second-place finishes in opposite events: the 50-yard freestyle and 500 free. He first...

For the Plum girls basketball team, joy at winning the program’s first playoff game since 2002 on March 1 turned to disappointment the next day as covid issues forced the Mustangs to bow out of the WPIAL Class 5A tournament ahead of a first-round matchup against No. 2 Chartiers Valley....

When Sarah Kvortek placed fifth on bars at last year’s WPIAL individual gymnastics championships at Moon High School, her sights quickly were set on soon rising to the top of the medals podium. The Plum sophomore fulfilled that title goal Feb. 27 as her return to WPIALs brought championship gold...

Josh Matheny never thought he would be in position to win a WPIAL swimming championship in his home pool. But the Upper St. Clair senior, the three-time defending Class AAA boys champion in the 100-yard breaststroke, will have that chance Sunday as the meet comes to Upper St. Clair High...

Fox Chapel walked the line in the fourth quarter of Thursday’s WPIAL Class 5A first-round girls basketball game against Penn Hills. All nine of the Foxes’ points over the final eight minutes came on free throws. It was enough to produce a 39-34 victory over the Indians and send them...

After a pair of regular-season losses to Section 3-3A rival Shady Side Academy, the Apollo-Ridge boys basketball team hoped the third meeting would be the charm Thursday in a WPIAL first-round game at Fox Chapel. But the No. 3 Bulldogs (14-2) didn’t let the 14th-seeded Vikings taste postseason victory at...

Fox Chapel’s Talia Bugel made the most of her freshman swimming season. That included two individual medals — a third in the 100-yard backstroke and a sixth in the 50 freestyle — at the WPIAL Class AAA championships. Now a sophomore, Bugel is back in both and highly seeded for...

Here’s a look at Friday’s WPIAL basketball playoff games involving A-K Valley teams: Boys Quarterfinals Class 6A 7-North Allegheny (16-6) at 2-Fox Chapel (19-2) 6 p.m. Friday Coaches: Dan DeRose, North Allegheny; Zach Skrinjar, Fox Chapel Winner plays: Winner of 6-Pine Richland (12-5) at 3-Hempfield (12-5), 6 p.m. Tuesday About...

Here’s a look at Thursday’s WPIAL basketball playoff games involving A-K Valley teams: Boys First round Class 4A 11-Burrell (9-9) at 6-Central Valley (10-5) 6 p.m. Thursday Coaches: Mike Fantuzzo, Burrell; Brandon Ambrose, Central Valley Winner plays: Winner of 19-Beaver (2-16) at 3-Montour (12-7), 6 p.m. Monday About Burrell: After...

Survive and advance. That is what the Mt. Pleasant girls basketball team did Tuesday evening in a WPIAL Class 4A first-round game against No. 6 Freeport. The No. 11 Vikings rallied from six points down in the fourth quarter to force overtime. They outscored the Yellowjackets 7-0 in the extra...

For just the second time in program history, the Plum girls basketball team owns a WPIAL playoff victory. Behind a game-high 19 points from senior Kennedie Montue, the Mustangs pulled away from Lincoln Park for a 44-31 WPIAL Class 5A preliminary-round victory Monday at Plum. “We knew Lincoln Park was...

In one week, the Freeport boys lacrosse team begins practice, and junior Garrett King with be there ready to work. “Lacrosse is so much fun for me,” the Yellowjackets multisport athlete said. “It is a change of pace from football. There’s so much running, and it keeps me in great...

Gateway boys and girls swimmers are making final preparations for Sunday’s WPIAL Class AAA championships at Upper St. Clair. After a month and a half of meets and numerous qualifying attempts, the Gators found out last week where they would be situated for both individual and relay events. A number...

For the first time in the nearly two decades of the Pennsylvania State Football Coaches Association’s East-West Classic, there will be two games celebrating many of the state’s top players. One game will involve the smaller schools — Classes A-3A — with the other featuring talent from Classes 4A-6A. Gateway...

WPIAL’s Finest almost was the finest in the nation. The 3,200-meter relay grouping of Greensburg Salem’s Quintin Gatons, Knoch senior Mike Formica, Riverside senior Colby Belczyk and Deer Lakes junior Carson McCoy finished second in the championship race Saturday at Adidas Nationals in Virginia Beach, Va. The team, which came...

In November, the Presidents’ Athletic Conference released a return-to-competition plan for the spring 2021 semester. Plum graduate Maria Lawhorne, a senior on the women’s basketball team at Washington & Jefferson, was encouraged as she completed remote-learning classes for the fall semester. “It was challenging and definitely not something I was...

The Plum boys and girls swim teams are making final preparations for this weekend’s WPIAL Class AAA and AA championships at Upper St. Clair High School. After a month and a half of meets and numerous qualifying attempts, the Mustangs swimmers found out last week where they would be situated...

Willie Thrower established himself as a top-level quarterback at New Kensington High School in the 1940s before making his mark in college at Michigan State and making history as the first Black quarterback in the NFL. More than a half century after he worked to break color barriers in the...

The Robert Morris women’s basketball team saw its season come to a close Thursday night with a 68-54 loss to Northern Kentucky in the first round of the Horizon League Tournament. The ninth-seeded Colonials held an 11-10 lead after the first quarter, but No. 8 NKU used a 13-2 run...

Thomas Jefferson’s Nick Johnson edged Freeport’s Mark Livingston by four pins to capture the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Bowling League boys singles championship Wednesday at AMF Mt. Lebanon Lanes. Johnson, the No. 2 seed for the bracketed playoffs, rolled a 195 in the finals to Livingston’s 191. The Jaguars junior made...

When Kalleigh Nerone took the court for her second varsity game Jan. 11, the freshman guard at Highlands found herself going up against a unique opponent. As the Golden Rams faced Section 1-4A rival Knoch, Nerone matched up for the first time with her step-sister, Knights sophomore standout Nina Shaw....

Deer Lakes last played a game Feb. 9 at North Hills. Shortly thereafter, the Lancers went on a covid pause, halting practices and games until they were able to return to the court earlier this week. Coach Dave Petruska said his players are excited to be back and have put...

The WPIAL swimming psych sheets for the Class AA and Class AAA championship meets March 6-7 at Upper St. Clair High School have been released on WPIAL.org. The swimming committee met Wednesday morning to assemble the lists — the top 16 entries for individual events and top 12 for relays...