High School category, Page 1044
Mt. Pleasant baseball wins, secures playoff berth for county tournament
Mt. Pleasant doubled its win total for the season Sunday in the Westmoreland County American Baseball League by playing its most complete game of the season. Backed by the strong pitching of Joe Shrum and the timely hitting of Jonas King, Jeremiah Kitz and Shrum, Mt. Pleasant defeated West Hempfield,...
Football players pine for usual 7-on-7 tournaments
Brett Birch is a regular on the 7-on-7 football travel circuit. The incoming junior wide receiver at Jeannette plays for 412 Elite out of Pittsburgh, an independent organization that went to tournaments in Michigan and Delaware before its schedule was shut down over coronavirus concerns. Still, “I feel like I...
Kiski Area, Freeport baseball honor senior classes with one final matchup
The Kiski Area and Freeport baseball seniors grew up playing against each other, and when the coronavirus pandemic canceled their final high school season earlier this year the two teams didn’t think they’d get an opportunity to face off again. On Friday night at Freeport’s James E. Schwartz Memorial field,...
Central Catholic’s Elliot Donald, nephew of Aaron, says he’ll enroll at Pitt
Surprising no one, Central Catholic defensive tackle Elliot Donald announced Friday he will enroll at Pitt next year, joining a program where his uncle Aaron was one of the most celebrated players in school history. In Due Time ?? | DIRECTED BY @prospectmedia_ ? pic.twitter.com/9xOPMVNACM— Elliot Donald (@ElliotDonald3) July 24,...
With allegations behind him, Nick Lackovich returns as Aliquippa boys basketball coach
This was more than a job opportunity for Nick Lackovich, who was rehired Thursday as Aliquippa’s boys basketball coach. To him, this felt like vindication. Lackovich resigned as the Quips coach in 2016 when a dog-fighting investigation led to child pornography charges against him. Eight months earlier, he had celebrated...
American Junior Golf Association coming back to Southpointe
The AJGA (American Junior Golf Association) is coming to Southpointe Golf Club on Aug. 2-6. This is the second consecutive season Southpointe will host the AJGA Junior presented by Dick’s Sporting Goods. A field of 78 boys and girls, ages 12-19, will compete in a 54-hole event. There will be...
No locker rooms at halftime? PIAA readies sport-specific guidelines for fall
The PIAA will release sport-specific guidelines for teams, coaches and officials next week, a key step in the return-to-play process for high school athletics. PIAA executive director Bob Lombardi described the guidelines as “things to consider while getting ready for competition.” They’ll reinforce social distance, mask wearing and sanitation, but...
Aquinas Academy fencer Sam Everson wins Western Pennsylvania Positive Athlete award
When the Western Pennsylvania Positive Athlete award winners were announced earlier this month, Aquinas Academy’s Sam Everson was honored as the boys alternative sport recipient. Everson was the team captain of Aquinas’ fencing team, and the rising junior was named the Team MVP this past season after recording a bout...
Central Catholic running back Eddy Tillman announces 1st Division I offerVideo
Central Catholic running back Eddy Tillman, a 2,000-yard rusher last season, received his first Division I college offer this week. The 5-foot-8, 165-pound rising senior announced an offer Tuesday from Valparaiso. He already held Division II offers from Slippery Rock, Clarion, Seton Hill, Mercyhurst and Notre Dame College. Tillman rushed...
Football refs could be wearing masks, gloves and using hand-held whistles if there is a season
Referees could be wearing masks and gloves and using hand-held whistles in high school football games if proposed guidelines become the norm, and the PIAA moves forward with football season. A local official said the possible uniform additions for those wearing stripes could take effect this fall if there is...
Flipped? Condensed? Overlapped? Options aren’t ideal if PIAA seasons need altered
There are days when Aaron Albert coaches football in the morning, sprints to his real estate job for a few hours and then heads to the ballpark for evening baseball. It’s hectic, but it sure beats sitting at home. “Life went from nothing for a lot a months to everything...
North Catholic striker Jayden Sharpless makes verbal commitment to Georgia State
Last November, rising junior Jayden Sharpless was helping North Catholic win its first WPIAL title with a golden goal free kick in double-overtime. North Catholic’s Jayden Sharpless ends the game with a beautiful free kick from about 25 yards out. The Trojans capture their first #WPIAL title in school history....
Ex-treasurer of West Allegheny hockey boosters accused of stealing $40,000 from club
An Oakdale woman accused of writing herself more than $40,000 worth of checks from the hockey booster club of which she was treasurer has been trying to pay back the money to no avail, according to her defense attorney. Jennifer Layden, 42, was charged in late June with one count...
WPIAL swimmers earn NISCA All-American laurels
Several WPIAL swimming standouts recently were honored as All-Americans by the National Interscholastic Swimming Coaches Association for times recorded during the 2019-20 season. The lists are compiled based on individual and relay times recorded at sanctioned high school meets during the season and submitted by the programs during the application...
Trinity’s Courtney Dahlquist commits to Big South champion CampbellVideo
The Campbell women’s basketball roster is dotted with players from North Carolina and Virginia down to Florida, fitting for a team in the Big South. Trinity’s Courtney Dahlquist will add a northern flair. The 6-foot-3 rising senior committed Monday to Campbell, a Division I program in Buies Creek, N.C. Nicknamed...
Pine-Richland wide receiver Eli Jochem adds 1st Division I offerVideo
Pine-Richland’s Eli Jochem, one of the WPIAL’s top receivers, announced his first Division I offer Monday from Fordham. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound rising senior ranked third among WPIAL players last season in receptions (71) and receiving yards (1,065). He scored 14 touchdowns for Pine-Richland, the runner-up in WPIAL Class 6A. Fordham...
Minus international players, FIBI forges ahead with full schedule of baseball
For nearly four months, Freeport International Baseball Invitational officials closely monitored updates on the coronavirus pandemic. All the while, the 26th annual event, set to begin Tuesday and continue through Saturday, remained alive. Now, on the eve of the start of a full slate of games involving nearly two dozen...
PIAA approves winter championship sites for next 4 seasons
Get your Hershey’s chocolate ready. The PIAA basketball and wrestling championships are staying at Giant Center for at least four more seasons. The PIAA board approved winter championship sites for the 2020-21 through 2023-24 seasons this week with no changes. Both the team and individual wrestling tournaments return to Giant...
PIAA approves kicking game, scrimmage options for sub-varsity football teams
Middle school, junior high and junior varsity football coaches can eliminate kickoffs and punts this season, or turn their games into scrimmages, if they choose. The PIAA board approved a plan Wednesday that provides flexibility for coaches looking to teach rather than compete. The proposal was adopted as a one-year...
Heavily recruited Peters Township safety Donovan McMillon commits to FloridaVideo
At this time last summer, Peters Township safety Donovan McMillon didn’t have a single Division I football offer. That changed in a hurry. As college coaches watched his junior film, McMillon’s stock rose as quickly as any recent WPIAL recruit, drawing offers from more than 50 schools. Now, it was...
New coach brings enthusiasm, swagger to Monessen football programVideo
Poised to lift the Monessen football program back to prominence, new coach Shane Swope is bringing the strength of a construction worker, the tact of an architect and the touch of an artist to a program in need. “There is no reason we can’t be up there with the likes...
Face-covering fundraiser to benefit Belle Vernon soccer’s Sasko Tournament
Face coverings, as mandatory and maligned as they are these days, don’t have to be dull. The masks, meant to guard against the spread of covid-19, can be jazzed up with a little creativity. Belle Vernon is using them as a fundraiser for its premier early-season soccer tournament. Proceeds from...
2 WPIAL rising sophomores add basketball offers from MinnesotaVideo
Minnesota women’s basketball coach Lindsay Whalen, a former Olympian and WNBA star, is recruiting two of the WPIAL’s top rising sophomores. North Allegheny’s Jasmine Timmerson and Indiana’s Eve Fiala each added a Gophers offer Friday. The two are AAU teammates on the Western Pa. Bruins, who competed last weekend at...
Neighboring states delay fall sports, but PIAA says ‘our folks don’t want that’
Pennsylvania is surrounded on three sides by states that already have delayed the start of fall sports, a list New York joined late this week. But the PIAA isn’t taking cues from its neighbors. “We’re not following Maryland. We certainly are not following New Jersey,” PIAA executive director Bob Lombardi...
Soccer success helps Greensburg CC put best foot forward in Class A Trib Cup competition
The Greensburg Central Catholic boys and girls soccer teams played for WPIAL gold on Nov. 1 and earned a split decision with the GCC girls settling for silver and the boys winning gold. However, when it came to 2019-20 Class A Trib Cup, it was a unanimous decision in favor...
