High School category, Page 1198
South Park football gets key conference victory over Keystone Oaks
With the game deadlocked in the middle stages of the third quarter at Dormont Stadium, visiting South Park faced a fourth-and-1 from its 45-yard line. Fifth-year coach Marty Rieck gambled, and it paid off. Junior tailback Nate May got not only the needed yard but 54 more as he raced...
No. 2 South Fayette races past Greensburg Salem
Greensburg Salem was fully aware of how good South Fayette can be after losing twice to them a season ago. But being prepared for the defending WPIAL champs is far different from stopping them. South Fayette, the No. 2 team in Class 4A, leaned on its running game to score...
Knoch gets past rival Highlands to stay undefeatedVideo
Knoch got off to a slow start in the first half, but its undefeated season is still alive. Led by another solid showing from Matt Goodlin, who finished with 96 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries, the No. 5 Knights cruised to a 24-0 Northwest Eight Conference victory over...
Elizabeth Forward comes alive in second quarter to down Freeport
What initially looked like it could be a close game turned into convincing win for Elizabeth Forward on Friday night. The Warriors (3-0, 3-0) turned it on in the second quarter and didn’t look back, scoring four straight touchdowns to roll to a 31-13 win over Freeport (0-3, 0-3). “When...
No. 4 Penn Hills forces 6 turnovers in 14-7 victory over MarsVideo
The halftime adjustment for Penn Hills’ defensive line seemed almost counter-intuitive: Try not to rush into the backfield too quickly. “We’re normally like rockets. We go,” said senior Sqy Featherstone, a three-year starter. “But in this particular game, against this team, we had to slow it down, key in and...
Jeannette gives coach Roy Hall his 100th career win in rout of Avella
Before the first quarter was over, Jeannette’s Roy Hall had a pretty good idea he was about to record the 100th victory of his coaching career Friday night. The Jayhawks scored five touchdowns in the first nine minutes of the game at McKee Stadium, rolling to a 54-0 nonsection win...
More All-America honors for Gateway swimmer Livingston
Gateway senior Olivia Livingston is determined to do as well in the classroom as the pool, and it has paid off with a national swimming award. Livingston, 17, was named to the 2018-19 USA Swimming Scholastic All-America Team, the second year she was honored. To earn the title, athletes must...
Gateway golf teams enjoying successful seasons
Abigail Secrist is a four-year starter on the Gateway girls golf team. For Gators coach Andrew Estok, it’s been an enjoyable time. “This is my fourth year being the girls coach, and it has been awesome,” Estok said, “with my booster parents supporting me each year, and especially with the...
Thomas Jefferson girls volleyball returns plenty of offense
Thomas Jefferson girls volleyball coach Ron Kelly exudes confidence, and with good reason. TJ won its seventh consecutive section title and finished as the WPIAL Class AAA runner-up last season. Many of last year’s starters are back. “This year’s team will be really good,” Kelly said. “We will be built...
TJ, Brentwood show second half superiority
Two area football teams won huge Week 2 conference games, both on their home turf. Thomas Jefferson roared to a 34-7 victory against rival Belle Vernon, while Brentwood rallied to win a 34-23 decision against rival Seton LaSalle. TJ and Brentwood combined to outscore their opponents by a 49-0 margin...
Baldwin’s Brain earns top marks in starting assignment
Colton Brain has stepped into a starting role at quarterback for the first time at Baldwin. The Fighting Highlanders faced Butler at Art Bernardi Stadium in a Week 1 nonconference matchup. Brain, a junior filling in for an injured Mason Stahl, who is a third-year starter, led the Class 5A...
Brentwood volleyball hopes to contend with new lineup
The starting lineup for the Brentwood girls volleyball team will look different this season. With only one returning starter — 5-foot-10 senior hitter Mandy Race — the Spartans are facing an enormous renovation project. “Although we lost six senior starters from last year, we are having an exciting time with...
Sewickley Academy girls golfers join the boys team
After a successful two-year playoff run, Sewickley Academy girls golf has been blended with the boys team. Nancy Means, who coached the girls, said there were not enough girls to field a team. The Panthers have only two girls back from last season, when they placed second in the WPIAL...
Sewickley Academy, Quaker Valley among WPIAL’s top golf teams
The high school golf regular season has made the turn, and there are two familiar names atop the Section 9-AA leaderboard: Sewickley Academy and Quaker Valley. The Panthers remain every bit the program that has won the past six WPIAL titles with an unbeaten 7-0 section record through Sept. 11,...
Penn-Trafford volleyball craves return to WPIAL playoffs
The Penn-Trafford girls volleyball team has been a consistent presence in the WPIAL playoffs over the last decade. The Warriors have been in the postseason eight of the previous 10 years. But after failing to advance last year, Penn-Trafford has focused on not falling short two seasons in a row....
Penn-Trafford girls golfers set sights on section repeat
Despite losing three starters, the Penn-Trafford girls golf team is off to a strong start. The Warriors were 5-1 overall and 4-0 in Section 3-AAA play, their only loss coming to defending WPIAL Class AAA champion North Allegheny. Junior Lauren Barber and senior Skyler Jefairjian return from last season’s section...
First-year coach has reloaded Pine-Richland volleyball team humming
First-year Pine-Richland volleyball coach Hanna Ayhan already has a firm grasp on the level of talent that this season’s squad possesses, and she has a clear vision of what the team is capable of. That’s due, in large part, to her familiarity with the program. After spending two seasons as...
Balanced attack leading Norwin girls soccer
Norwin’s girls soccer team is hoping to rediscover its championship recipe this fall. So far, the Knights believe they have the right ingredients. Balancing them has been the key for the Knights, who opened the year with four wins, including three in Section 3-4A play. Norwin outscored its opponents, 18-1....
Norwin girls golfers polishing short-game skills
The Norwin girls golf team does a lot of things well on the course. But the team has one weakness — the short game. “I have five girls who can get from the tee to the green,” Norwin coach Mike Buscemi said. “But when they get near the green, they...
It’s fairways and greens for Franklin Regional girls golf team
Franklin Regional’s girls golf team is growing — larger and stronger. The Panthers are off to a good start to the season at 5-2 (4-1 in Section 3-AAA), but there are more positives than just the overall record for a team on pace for its third consecutive postseason berth. This...
SSA cross country team mixes youth, experience
After her team went 7-2 and placed seventh at the WPIAL championships last season, Shady Side Academy cross country coach Sue Whitney has a lot of holes to plug. “We were hit hard by graduation with six seniors leaving the team,” she said. “We will miss their leadership and experience...
With revamped roster, SSA ready to run
Despite losing four of his top seven runners to graduation, cross country coach Paul Ejzak is hopeful Shady Side Academy will have a solid season. Last year, the team finished with an 8-3 record and claimed fifth place in the WPIAL championships. “The leadership of our co-captains, Alex Reuter and...
The Herald Spotlight Athlete: Shady Side Academy’s Josh Castro
Josh Castro, a junior on the Shady Side Academy football team, helped the Indians to a 2-0 start. In a 27-0 win over Valley, the 6-foot-2, 195-pound QB threw three TD passes and ran for another score. He has been playing football since he was 6 and hopes to continue...
Pine-Richland field hockey racking up big wins
The Pine-Richland field hockey team is only a handful of games deep into its 2019 season but has still managed to topple some of the toughest programs that Western Pennsylvania has to offer. The Rams (5-0, 1-0) have knocked off North Allegheny, Norwin and North Allegheny — all top five...
Plum boys golfers focus on shaving strokes
It’s been a tough season in the win-loss department for the Plum boys golf team, going up against section rivals and perennial powers Fox Chapel, Central Catholic and Franklin Regional. In golf, though, success can be measured in different ways. One way for Mustangs coach Brian Dunaway to track progress...
