Paul Schofield stories, Page 12
Kiski School hires former Greensburg CC, Saint Vincent football coach
The Kiski School announced Tuesday that Aaron Smetanka is the school’s new football coach. Smetanka previously coached at Saint Vincent College and Greensburg Central Catholic. Kiski School is a Westmoreland County private school located in Saltsburg. Smetanka took over as coach at Saint Vincent on Dec. 5, 2018. His six-year...
WPIAL Class 3A wrestlers have tougher road to Hershey
If wrestlers from the WPIAL in Class 3A want to compete in the PIAA championships in Hershey this year, they have an extra tournament to compete in. The PIAA consolidated the Southwest and Northwest Regions to form the West Region for the next two years. The WPIAL wrestlers must compete...
2025 regional wrestling preview capsules
Boys Class 3A West Region Where: Canon-McMillan High School When: Friday and Saturday Times: Friday — preliminary round, quarterfinals and first consolation round, 5 p.m. Saturday — second consolation round, 9 a.m.; semifinals and third consolation round, 10:30 a.m.; fourth consolation round, 12:30 p.m.; finals and third- and fifth-place matches,...
Penn-Trafford prepares for Penguins Cup playoff run
Penn-Trafford’s ice hockey team did not end the regular season exactly how it wanted, but first-year coach Brian Zagorac was proud of his team’s effort. The Warriors were hoping to cap the regular season with wins against Latrobe and first-place Fox Chapel. They got a 3-1 win against Latrobe but...
Penn-Trafford notebook: Warriors qualify for PIAA tournament
No matter what happens during the final week of the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs, the Penn-Trafford boys and girls basketball teams have already punched their tickets to the PIAA tournament, which begins March 7-8. The boys qualified by upsetting No.2 Baldwin, 60-45, in the first round Feb. 18. The Warriors...
Latrobe’s Luke Willochell among 10 defending champs to reach WPIAL Class 3A finals
The finals are set for the WPIAL Class 3A individual wrestling championships after a couple of battles in Saturday’s semifinals at Canon-McMillan. The finals and placement matches begin at 3:30 p.m. The best semifinal came at 189 pounds where Central Catholic junior Nez Green outscored Latrobe sophomore Hunter Snyder, 16-15,...
FR’s Titus Colangelo pulls off upset, Kiski Area’s Mark Gray hits milestone at WPIAL Class 3A wrestling
Even though he hadn’t beaten Norwin freshman Coleton Klipa in five tries this season, Franklin Regional sophomore Titus Colangelo did not consider the victory over his section rival in the WPIAL Class 3A quarterfinals Friday an upset. Colangelo has wrestled against Klipa enough times over the years to know what...
Lucas Stanley comes up clutch as Union knocks off top-seeded Greensburg Central Catholic
Greensburg Central Catholic tried to limit Union leading scorer Lucas Stanley with a box-and-one defense. And for most of the game, the strategy worked. But big-time players can still rise to the occasion. Stanley buried a 3-pointer with 1 minute, 35 seconds left for a one-point lead, added a clutch...
2025 WPIAL wrestling championship preview
WPIAL Boys Individual Wrestling Championship Class 3A When: Friday and Saturday Where: Canon-McMillan High School Times: First round 5 p.m. Friday. Action resumes at 10 a.m. Saturday with second consolation round. Semifinals are at 11:30 a.m. and the finals at 3:30 p.m. Returning champions from 2024: Nicholas McGarrity (107) Peters...
Quest for 4th title by Latrobe’s Luke Willochell headlines WPIAL wrestling championships
Earlier this season, Latrobe senior Luke Willochell became the second wrestler in school history to become a Westmoreland County Coaches’ Association four-time champion. He joined Tom Bell (1961-64) on the exclusive list. Bell was the first wrestler from the county to achieve that goal, which has since been matched by...
Latrobe cools off Kiski Area to end playoff drought
Two streaks ended Tuesday in the opening round of the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs. First, Latrobe ended its playoff drought. And secondly, Kiski Area saw its 12-game winning streak end. Senior Max Butler scored 18 of his team-high 26 points in the first half, and Latrobe defeated Kiski Area, 59-51,...
Wrestling notebook: Hempfield’s Kapusta returns with a bang after injury layoff, quick rehab
When Nico Kapusta injured his left elbow during a preseason wrestling tournament in October at Edinboro, he was told by his doctor (James Bradley) that recovery time would be six months. He resigned himself to the notion that his junior season at Hempfield would be lost. His dad, Brian, who...
Trib HSSN high school wrestling rankings for Feb. 18, 2025
Class 3A 107: 1. Nick McGarrity (32-4), so., Peters Township; 2. Zach Rehak (32-6), so., Thomas Jefferson; 3. Beau Fennick (32-6), fr., Franklin Regional; 4. Tommy Gretz (31-7), so., Connellsville; 5. Michael Johnson (34-6), fr., West Allegheny. 114: 1. Nico Kapusta (9-0), jr., Hempfield; 2. Dylan Barrett (28-3), jr., Penn-Trafford;...
Penn-Trafford notebook: Wrestler Dylan Barrett in hunt for WPIAL title
Penn-Trafford junior wrestler Dylan Barrett is a two-time WPIAL placewinner and PIAA qualifier. If things go as planned Feb. 15, Barrett should enter the WPIAL Class 3A championship Feb. 21-22 at Canon-McMillan as the favorite at 114 pounds. Peters Township sophomore Nicholas McGarrity, who defeated Barrett in overtime for the...
Penn-Trafford hockey looking for strong finish
After Hempfield spoiled the Penn-Trafford hockey team’s senior night Feb. 3, the Warriors needed a bounce back game, especially with the start of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League Penguins Cup playoffs starting in a few weeks. And what better way to get ready for the playoffs than play the two...
Kiski Area’s Ava Golding 1 of 5 to win 2nd WPIAL girls wrestling titlesVideo
Kiski Area junior Ava Golding knew she’d be in for a battle in the 136-pound final against Connellsville senior Janayah Nobles. And it took overtime to defeat Nobles and claim her second WPIAL girls wrestling championship title Saturday at North Allegheny. Golding (27-0) used an escape and takedown during the...
Franklin Regional wrestlers come up short at PIAA team tournament, turn attention to individual success
Franklin Regional coach Matt Lebe and his wrestlers left Altoona unsatisfied after competing in the PIAA Class 3A team tournament Feb. 8. The Panthers went 1-2, dropping close matches to Nazareth, 32-29, and Connellsville, 28-22. They defeated Central Mountain, 39-11, to finish the team season 19-2. And while they were...
Norwin trio getting serious ahead of WPIAL girls wrestling championships
There is a change in attitude of the three girls from Norwin as they prepare for Saturday’s WPIAL wrestling championships at North Allegheny. This year, the young ladies are putting in the extra work at practice, going to club workouts and some went to Fargo, N.D., to improve their style....
High school wrestling notebook: Postseason heats up with individual tournaments
High school wrestling across the commonwealth makes a big with switch this weekend with the start of the individual tournaments. Instead of wrestling for their team and teammates, which they’ve done for the past 10 weeks, wrestlers compete for themselves. The ultimate goal for many is to wrestle March 8...
Trib HSSN high school wrestling rankings for Feb. 11, 2025
Team rankings Class 3A Team (Record), Last week 1. Connellsville (15-3), 2 2. Franklin Regional (19-2), 1 3. Norwin (16-3), 3 4. Thomas Jefferson (12-2), 4 5. Bethel Park (12-2), 5 6. North Allegheny (15-3), 6 7. Kiski Area (14-5), 7 8. Latrobe (10-6), 8 9. Fox Chapel (11-4), 9...
Penn-Trafford gets past Latrobe in matchup of top teams in PIHL Class 2A
Brock Bienemann scored two goals and goaltender Tyler Funk made 33 saves as Penn-Trafford defeated Latrobe, 3-1, in a PIHL Class 2A battle Monday at Palmer Imaging Arena in Delmont. The victory gives the second-place Warriors (14-3-1) 45 points, while the Wildcats (13-3) are in fourth with 39 points. Fox...
Penn-Trafford’s Emily Valenta looking for big finish at WPIAL rifle championships
Even though the Penn-Trafford rifle team graduated 13 seniors, coach Diana Cholock expected a good season. But things did not turn out as she hoped. The Warriors had a tough campaign, which ended Feb. 6. They went 2-9 overall and 1-7 in Section IV. “It was not a good season,”...
Penn-Trafford notebook: P-T hockey gets split in return to ice
The Penn-Trafford hockey team returned to action after a two-week break and picked up an 8-1 victory at Armstrong on Jan. 30. But things did not go as well Feb. 3 against Hempfield. The Spartans rallied to stun the Warriors, 6-5. Against Armstrong, the Warriors broke a tie in the...
Connellsville wrestling team finishes 3rd in PIAA Class 3A tournament
ALTOONA — Connellsville wrestling coach Bill Swink told his team if it didn’t win the PIAA Class 3A team championship, he would be satisfied with third place. The Falcons, after dropping a hard-fought, 29-23 decision to Bethlehem Catholic, battled to reverse their WPIAL championship loss to Franklin Regional, 28-22, and...
Connellsville looks sharp, Franklin Regional falls in PIAA Class 3A wrestling quarterfinals
ALTOONA — Franklin Regional saw its dream of winning a PIAA Class 3A wrestling championship slip away Friday. District 11 runner-up Nazareth rallied from an early deficit, won a couple of 50/50 matches and defeated the WPIAL champions 32-29 at Altoona Area High School Field House. The Panthers (18-1) drop...
