High School category, Page 1098
Marinchak leads Ligonier Valley to 3rd straight Heritage Conference title
Michael Marinchak’s high school basketball days are numbered, but they won’t soon be forgotten. The Ligonier Valley standout has scored more than 1,500 career points and enjoyed some memorable victories in the past four seasons at the District 6 school. With the Rams set to join the WPIAL next season...
Jeannette stops Serra Catholic, takes section title
Jeannette won the battle on the glass and made its free throws down the stretch Friday night, holding on for a 56-53 victory over Serra Catholic to become the outright champion of Section 2-2A. A potential game tying 3-pointer by the Eagles’ Jayden Mertz with 10 seconds remaining just missed....
PIAA team wrestling tournament: Waynesburg reaches state finals
All Waynesburg junior Wyatt Henson was focused on was winning his match Friday at the Giant Center. He didn’t realize that his major decision victory clinched his team’s win against District 11 power Bethlehem Catholic. The Raiders (15-0), who are making their first trip to the PIAA Class AAA Team...
Upper St. Clair boys end Fox Chapel’s bid for undefeated regular season
Upper St. Clair missed its first 12 shots from 3-point range Friday night at Fox Chapel. But once the Panthers starting hitting, there was no stopping them as Upper St. Clair spoiled the Foxes’ bid for an undefeated regular season 61-46 before a capacity crowd and a playoff atmosphere. Fox...
Franklin Regional boys punch ticket to playoffs with win over Kiski AreaVideo
Sometimes, it’s not always how you start, but how you finish that matters. That statement has rung true for the Franklin Regional boys basketball team (11-11, 8-6) this season, and it rang even louder Friday night. The Panthers overcame a slow first quarter and cruised to a 72-55 victory over...
Gaffney, playoff-bound Hempfield keep rival Latrobe from WPIAL postseason
Mikey Gaffney thought Hempfield had a playoff team last year, but the Spartans fell short of reaching the WPIAL boys basketball postseason. A 25-point loss on the final night of the season to rival Latrobe, a perennial playoff team, only rubbed salt in the wound. “I feel like I let...
South Side boys keep playoff hopes alive with win over Burgettstown
The South Side boys basketball team came into its final section game needing a win and some help to qualify for the WPIAL playoffs. The Rams (11-10, 6-6) took care of their end of the bargain, routing Burgettstown (6-16, 2-10), 70-26, in Burgettstown. Now, South Side haa to hope Our...
Shegog’s buzzer-beating layup lifts Gateway over Plum for Section 2-5A titleVideo
The winner-take-all game Friday between Gateway and Plum for the girls Section 2-5A championship wasn’t the prettiest, but the Gators gladly accepted the outcome. Junior forward Dynasty Shegog converted a layup at the buzzer, completing a full-court rush coming out of a timeout, to lift Gateway to a 31-29 victory...
Quartet of Knoch divers hope to make ripple at WPIALs
Aryanna Napora set a goal at the beginning of her high school career to qualify for the PIAA Class AA diving championships all four years. After earning trips to states as a freshman and sophomore with fourth- and sixth-place finishes, respectively, at the WPIALs, the Knoch diver placed eighth last...
Gateway girls relay team breaks 24-year-old pool record
The Gateway girls 200-yard medley relay set a pool record recently, snapping a mark that had lasted 24 years. The record time (1 minute, 51.15 seconds) was set Jan. 23 by senior Olivia Livingston and sophomore Summer Raymer along with freshmen Ayva Harris and Morgan Holmes in a section meet...
Gateway fall sports teams see significant changes with WPIAL realignment
The Gateway fall sports programs received a shakeup when WPIAL officials announced the district’s classification and sectional realignment Jan. 20. Not every autumn sport was affected at Gateway, but the teams that were saw significant change. The WPIAL championship-defending football team will see additions and subtractions to Class 5A as...
Players from basketball families star for Thomas Jefferson hockey team
Both families have rich histories in Western Pennsylvania high school basketball, particularly in the South Hills. Dan Holzer is in his 25th season coaching the boys team at Upper St. Clair. He was a three-year starter at Thomas Jefferson and 1983 graduate. He also played at Alliance. Lisa Fairman is...
Dedication pays off for Thomas Jefferson competitive spirit team
Dedication and determination are just two of the traits that drive the West Jefferson Hills School District cheer program. Cheer season begins following tryouts in June. Practices generally last two hours, and most of the girls spend additional hours in private lessons, open gyms and camps. “These girls also attend...
Captains help Baldwin competitive spirit team find championship form
Outstanding teams require exceptional leadership. Meet the captains of the Baldwin competitive spirit cheerleading squad, which won the WPIAL Class AAA championship for the first time in school history. The Highlanders, who placed fifth in the large division Jan. 11 at the PIAA finals in Hershey, are led by the...
Quaker Valley wrestling team celebrates 1st PIAA playoff berth
A year after finishing fourth in the WPIAL Class AA team tournament, the Quakers finished one place better this season and earned the program’s first PIAA tournament berth. “It was a great run,” Quaker Valley sophomore Patrick Cutchember said. “From the beginning of the year, one of our goals was...
Pine-Richland swimmers ready for WPIAL meet
With only a couple of meets left to before the WPIAL Class AAA swimming championships, Pine-Richland is solidifying its list of athletes who have earned qualifying times for their respective events. And this season, coach Pete Barry is optimistic about the prospect of his swimmers bringing home medals. “It’s going...
Pine-Richland boys secure big win heading into playoffs
Heading down the home stretch of the regular season, the Pine-Richland boys basketball team had a WPIAL Class 6A playoff spot locked up. Still, the Rams did not lack for motivation as they entered their Section 1-6A finale at Central Catholic. The extra vigor that the Rams brought to the...
Coach Zach Skrinjar’s passion drives Fox Chapel boys basketball
Now in his 11th season as coach of the Fox Chapel boys basketball team, Zach Skrinjar remains one of the most successful and underrated coaches in the WPIAL. His teams have qualified for the WPIAL playoffs eight times, and he has won over 160 games. This year’s team was undefeated...
Decade’s best WPIAL finals: Girls basketball No. 10
There were a lot of changes to the WPIAL basketball championships over the last 10 years. They expanded from two days to three days and from eight boys and girls finals to a dozen championship games. The district also switched venues, moving from the Palumbo Center at Duquesne to the...
Trib HSSN Boys Swimmer of the Week: Northgate’s Cooper Groll
In his first swim of his first WPIAL Class AA championship meet at Pitt’s Trees Pool two years ago, Cooper Groll landed in the record books. Then a freshman, Groll anchored the Northgate boys 200-yard medley relay to a WPIAL championship in a record time of 1 minute, 37.77 seconds....
Trib HSSN Girls Swimmer of the Week: North Allegheny’s Olivia Kisow
In her four events at last year’s WPIAL Class AAA championship meet at Pitt’s Trees Pool, Olivia Kisow stood on the medals podium after each one. Swimming the breaststroke leg, she helped the North Allegheny 200-yard medley relay earn a runner-up finish, and she swam the third leg in the...
PIAA team wrestling tournament: Burgettstown bows out
HERSHEY — Burgettstown’s first trip to the PIAA team wrestling tournament was memorable, but the Blue Devils wanted more. District 3 champion Hamburg (18-1) used a quick start and rolled to a 46-26 victory in the first round of the Class AA consolations Friday morning at the Giant Center. The...
North Catholic boys running full speed ahead into playoffs
North Catholic is coming into the playoffs running, that much is for sure. Making sure they keep running deeper into March is the Trojans’ challenge this postseason. The Trojans have zipped up and down the court to the tune of a WPIAL-leading 78.6 points per game and an 18-2 record,...
PIAA team wrestling tournament: Slow start costs Burrell in quarterfinals
HERSHEY — Burrell wrestling coach Josh Shields said he doesn’t measure his wrestlers by wins or losses. He measures by the type of effort they give during their matches. Shields gave his team high marks Friday after Burrell split its matches at the PIAA Class AA team championship at Giant...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Feb. 6, 2020
Basketball Boys Thursday’s results WPIAL Class 3A Section 4 Washington 51, McGuffey 30 Nonsection Penn-Trafford 73, Hollidaysburg 67 District 8 City League Allderdice 2, Obama Academy 0 (Obama Academy forfeits) Perry 50, Carrick 44 Westinghouse 2, Brashear 0 (Brashear forfeits) Independent SWCAC Cheswick Christian at Beaver County Christian (n) Friday’s...
