High School category, Page 1233
WPIAL golfers invited to national high school tournament
Several of the top WPIAL golfers from the fall 2018 season will compete at the National High School Golf Association’s inaugural High School Golf National Invitational on June 27-28 at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. The boys and girls fields for the invitation-only tournament were...
George Guido: Public/private legislation stirs controversy
It didn’t take long for State House Bill 1600 to get into committee and to generate controversy. HB 1600 was offered last week by state Rep. Aaron Bernstine (R-Beaver/Butler/Lawrence). The bill would create separate PIAA playoffs for public and private high school teams. Besides holding separate playoffs, the bill would...
A-K Valley athletes honored at Positive Athlete Awards
When Gregory Guzzo was 13, he was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, and open-heart surgery was needed to correct the issue. The recent Valley graduate was given a renewed opportunity at life, and he didn’t want to waste it. Guzzo was told he couldn’t take part in contact sports,...
QB Kyle Silk looking for ‘fresh start’ after transferring to Ligonier Valley
Ligonier Valley might have a new quarterback to play behind its massive and college-coveted offensive line this fall. Incoming senior Kyle Silk has transferred to Ligonier Valley and is on the Rams’ roster. Silk was a Class A all-state second-team selection last year as an athlete at United. Silk (6-foot-2,...
WPIAL declares Belle Vernon multi-sport standout Devin Whitlock ineligible
Multi-sport standout Devin Whitlock, who transferred from Monessen to Belle Vernon after his freshman year, was ruled ineligible by the WPIAL. The WPIAL made its decision Monday based solely on the transfer paperwork, which Monessen’s administration did not approve, said WPIAL executive director Tim O’Malley. Whitlock can request an eligibility...
Positive Athlete Pittsburgh honors student-athletes with scholarships, awards
The Sen. John Heinz History Center and Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum provided the setting Monday evening for the eighth annual Positive High School Athlete Awards. Student-athletes representing 30 boys and girls high school sports from throughout western Pennsylvania, along with two coaches and North Allegheny High School, were recognized and...
Trib HSSN Softball Player of the Week lifts team to state title
The final Trib HSSN Softball Player of the Week for the 2019 season is Frazier junior Logan Hartman, who was the winning pitcher and contributed offensively as the Commodores won their first PIAA softball championship. “Words can not describe this feeling,” said Don Hartman, Frazier coach and Logan’s father. “The...
Trib HSSN Baseball Player of the Week shines in PIAA playoffs
The Trib HSSN Baseball Player of the Week is Serra Catholic freshman Nico Eremic, who contributed from the clean-up spot in a PIAA semifinal win and a championship game loss. “Wow, this year was a Cinderella story,” Serra Catholic coach Brian Dzurenda said. “The whole team philosophy changed from past...
North Catholic’s Tess Myers follows family tradition, commits to Duquesne
Four decades after her father committed to Duquesne, North Catholic’s Tess Myers committed Monday to play basketball for the Dukes. The 5-foot-10 guard from Lower Burrell, who ranks among the WPIAL’s top 2020 girls basketball recruits, chose Duquesne from more than a dozen offers, including Colorado, Temple, St. Joseph’s and...
Kiski Area’s Hepler tests mettle against nation’s top freshmen throwers
C.J. Hepler emerged this spring as one to watch for the future of throwing events in the WPIAL and beyond. The Kiski Area rising sophomore was the lone freshman to compete in the discus at the WPIAL Class AAA championships last month at Slippery Rock, and he placed 12th overall...
Moon’s Donovan Johnson remains ineligible after WPIAL denies waiver request
The WPIAL denied Donovan Johnson’s waiver request Monday, leaving the Moon basketball star ineligible for his senior season. PIAA eligibility rules limit students to six seasons of a sport after sixth grade. The WPIAL decided previously that Johnson already had reached that limit because he repeated the eighth grade and...
Final Trib HSSN state softball rankings for 2019 season
Six softball teams were crowned state champions last week at Penn State, leaving them at the head of the class in the final edition of the Trib HSSN state softball rankings. Three WPIAL traveled to State College in search of a PIAA title, and two returned with gold. While Elizabeth...
Final Trib HSSN state baseball rankings for 2019 season
State champions have been crowned as another season comes to an end with the final edition of the Trib HSSN PIAA baseball rankings. No WPIAL teams won a state title as Beaver and Serra Catholic finished as runners-up. Teams from six different district won state titles in 2019 as Souderton...
Final Trib HSSN baseball, softball power rankings for 2019
The 2019 WPIAL baseball and softball seasons are in the books, but not before a final edition of the weekly Trib HSSN Power Rankings. Pine-Richland is your top team in baseball, and Elizabeth Forward ends the season at No. 1 in softball. Only two district teams won PIAA championships this...
Mars’ Michael Carmody, WPIAL’s top-ranked football recruit, commits to Notre Dame
Almost two years to the day that Robby Carmody committed to Notre Dame basketball, his younger brother Michael committed Sunday to play football for the Fighting Irish. Mars lineman Michael Carmody chose Notre Dame from more than two dozen offers including Pitt, Penn State and West Virginia, along with Auburn,...
Westmoreland high school notebook: First-time softball champions come up big defensively
Penn-Trafford and Frazier softball teams had a lot in common when they won PIAA softball titles on Friday at Penn State’s Beard Field. Not only were they the school’s first state titles, they did it by making big plays on defense. Penn-Trafford won the Class 5A title, a 5-3 win...
Fox Chapel lacrosse All-American Childs eager to get started at Hofstra
When Graham Childs joins the Hofstra men’s lacrosse team in the fall, he will bring many memories from his time playing for Fox Chapel. His high school resume includes more than 50 victories, playoff triumphs and several section and WPIAL all-star selections. Childs recently added one of his biggest honors...
Chartiers Valley’s Megan McConnell commits to Duquesne
Chartiers Valley’s Megan McConnell, who saw brothers T.J. and Matty both play Division 1 basketball, continued the family tradition Saturday when she committed to Duquesne. McConnell will be a senior in the fall. The 5-foot-7 guard, playing for her father, first-year girls coach Tim McConnell, led Chartiers Valley to a...
Like father, like son: Loughran family celebrates 2 generations of WPIAL champion coaches
Many fathers will receive gifts on their day ranging from power ties to power tools. In the Loughran household, a #1 Dad T-shirt would be appropriate for father or son. Last month, Patrick Loughran, the younger of two sons of Tom and Dink, guided Steel Valley to a WPIAL Class...
Firefighter parade greets state champion Penn-Trafford softball teamVideo
As the Penn-Trafford girls softball team returned home Friday night after winning their first PIAA title, they were greeted with flashing red lights and sirens as they approached Westmoreland Country Club. There is nothing like waking up the neighborhood at 11 p.m. with the commotion as they drove to the...
Seneca Valley lineman Josh Kaltenberger commits to Purdue
Seneca Valley’s Josh Kaltenberger received his first Power 5 offer Tuesday from Purdue. Three days later, the 6-foot-5, 280-pound center committed to the Boilermakers. Kaltenberger announced his decision Friday on Twitter, saying “I know this was a quick decision, but I know this is where God wants me. There is...
West Mifflin’s Nahki Johnson among 5 scheduled for WPIAL hearings Thursday
Football standout Nahki Johnson, who transferred from Steel Valley to West Mifflin in December, will have his eligibility decided Thursday in a hearing at the WPIAL office. Johnson, a 6-foot-3, 220-pound defensive end, will be a junior in the fall. He already lists scholarship offers from Pitt, Penn State, West...
Great defensive play gives Frazier softball school’s 1st PIAA team championship
UNIVERSITY PARK — Frazier was in danger of losing the PIAA Class 2A championship game at Penn State’s Beard Field. Brandywine Heights, from District 3, had runners on second and third with one out. It was decision time for Frazier softball coach Don Hartman. He intentionally walked Alexis Didlinger to...
Hale, Koenig earn Baldwin athletic scholarship awards
Macy Hale and Jared Koenig appear to be two-of-a-kind. Both multiple-sport athletes, they capped their senior year at Baldwin by reeling in top academic awards at the all-sports banquet May 17 at the high school auditorium. Hale and Koenig landed the 2019 Scholarship Award from the Baldwin Whitehall Schools Athletic...
Max Shaw cements legacy as one of Thomas Jefferson’s best athletes
Team and individual MVP honors are not recognized at Thomas Jefferson at the end of a school year. But there is little doubt two-sport standout Max Shaw rates among the best — and toughest — athletes in school history. Shaw, a 6-foot, 195-pound senior football player and wrestler, will continue...
