High School category, Page 1282
North Catholic girls hope defense shines against Bethlehem Catholic
North Catholic’s girls basketball team is known for its offensive production — and rightfully so. With three 1,000-point scorers in Tess Myers, Kylee Lewandowski and Dani Short, the Trojanettes, who have the WPIAL’s second-best offense at 67.4 points per game, can light up the scoreboard. However, the team boasts one...
PIAA Class 5A boys championship breakdown: Moon vs. Archbishop Wood
PIAA Class 5A boys basketball championship Moon vs. Archbishop Wood 8 p.m., Friday at Giant Center, Hershey TV: PCN Radio: WBVP-AM/TribLive HSSN Moon (26-2) Coach: Adam Kaufman No., Name, Pos, Ht., Yr. 3, Jioni Smith, G, 6-2, Sr. 5, Donovan Johnson, F, 6-6, Jr. 10, Austin Ryan, G, 5-11, Sr....
PIAA Class 6A girls championship breakdown: Peters Township vs. Garnet Valley
PIAA Class 6A girls basketball championship Peters Township vs. Garnet Valley 6 p.m., Friday at Giant Center, Hershey TV: PCN Radio: WJPA-FM/TribLive HSSN Garnet Valley (29-1) Coach: Joseph Woods No., Name, Pos., Ht., Yr. 1, Morgan Falcone, G, 5-6, Sr. 20, Emily McAteer, F, 6-0, Sr. 21, Madison McKee, F,...
WPIAL title escaped Moon’s grasp, but PIAA championship now within reach
Moon faced a crossroads after the WPIAL finals, a moment when its basketball season could have gone many different directions. The Tigers had just lost a 16-point second-half lead and the WPIAL Class 5A title, a devastating disappointment that saw them leave Petersen Events Center in tears. Was that too...
Shaler Area softball makes move to Class 5A
Tom Sorce didn’t want any hopeful Shaler softball players doomed by the pressure of a 72-hour performance. The second-year coach let all 36 players who tried out know conditioning and weightlifting would be a part of the process. Sorce said he felt people bought in. “That was the extraordinary part,”...
Shaler Area notes: Unified bocce team competes at state competition
The Shaler unified bocce team wrapped up its season last Wednesday at the state championships in Hershey. The Titans lost their two matches in pool play to North Penn Liberty and Henderson. “The experience at states was a thrill for athletes, partners and families,” Shaler coach Gina Chmielewski said. “We...
Signal Item area baseball teams look to continue run of playoff berths
All three area baseball teams — Bishop Canevin, Carlynton and Chartiers Valley — made the WPIAL playoffs last season. But none lasted past the quarterfinals. They will look to rectify that this season. A look at each team: Bishop Canevin The Crusaders are under the direction of first-year coach Bill...
Injuries slow Hart’s bid for state championship
Hampton wrestling coach Chris Hart preaches it: You always can take more from a loss from a win. The Hampton wrestling team suffered plenty of losses this season, many of them injuries. Some of its top talent, such as state qualifier Ty Kocak and WPIAL-title hopeful Dawson Dietz, were unable...
Hampton baseball to rely on small, talented senior class
When first-year coach Kellen Wheeler sat down his five baseball seniors after he accepted the job last winter, he had a message: They’re going to play, and they’re all going to lead. Wheeler is the third coach of Hampton baseball in less than a year. After Gary Wilson stepped down...
Talented senior class helped guide Penn Hills girls basketball to PIAA tournament
After an early exit in the WPIAL playoffs last season, the Penn Hills girls basketball program had its sights on a championship run with a talented, veteran team. The Indians (17-8, 11-3) were almost able to accomplish their goal of competing for a WPIAL Class 5A championship. However, they fell...
Penn Hills girls bowlers build off state tournament appearance
It’s been five years since the Penn Hills girls bowling team qualified for the state team championships. In a team effort, the Indians qualified for the event this season. The Indians, who placed eighth in 2014, finished in 12th place with 2,982 total pins at the tournament March 16 in...
North Allegheny swim team revels in PIAA 3-peat
The North Allegheny boys swimming team got the three-peat at the PIAA Class AAA championship meet March 15-16 at Bucknell with some new faces. “The path to a state title is always different,” senior and Pitt recruit Jerry Chen said. “We lost some big point scorers and relay members, but...
High school scores, schedules for March 21, 2019
High Schools Baseball WPIAL Friday’s schedule Nonsection Beaver Falls at Neshannock, 4:30 p.m.; Blackhawk at Ellwood City, 4:30 p.m.; Butler vs. Knoch at Kelly Auto Park in Butler, 4 p.m.; California at Carmichaels, 4:30 p.m.; Chartiers Valley at Seneca Valley, 4 p.m.; Cornell at Carrick, 4 p.m.; Frazier vs. Beth-Center...
It will be mom vs. son as Petruskas face off in Cager Classic All-Star game
No one ever picked up an easy win around the Petruska household, and those who were lucky enough to do so know they earned it. It didn’t matter what type of game Mars girls basketball coach Dana Petruska was playing with her sons, she never let them win and nothing...
St. Joseph softball seeking 3rd straight WPIAL playoff appearance
St. Joseph is coming off the two most successful softball seasons in school history, campaigns that established the Spartans as a high-caliber playoff team in WPIAL Class A, and they come into the spring with an important goal. But instead of talking a third consecutive playoff appearance, or a push...
St. Joseph baseball team motivated to reach postseason
The smallest margin possible kept St. Joseph from reaching the WPIAL baseball playoffs last season, an excruciating result for a program that last reached the postseason at the turn of the millennium. Given that several regulars return, the Spartans aren’t forgetting that result. Nor do they wish to repeat it....
WPIAL Class A softball preseason breakdown
West Greene is coming off back-to-back WPIAL and PIAA titles and finds itself again as the favorite in Class A. Led by a loaded senior class, the Pioneers are “hungry,” according to coach Bill Simms and won’t be “satisfied with past accolades.” That’s unfortunate news for Pioneers’ opponents in Class...
WPIAL Class A baseball preseason breakdown
In the world of Class A baseball in 2018, the Royals were kings. After winning a state championship in 2016, Vincentian Academy captured its first WPIAL championship last May and then added a second PIAA crown in June. Union tied Vincentian for the Section 1-A title, and then the Scotties...
Former Penn-Trafford, Norwin football coach John Yaccino dies at 78
Former Penn-Trafford and Norwin football coach John Yaccino died suddenly in Florida on Wednesday. He was 78. He was reportedly playing golf near his Ponte Vedra Beach home when he fell ill, according to Hazleton Standard-Speaker Sports Editor Dave Seamon. Yaccino last coached in 1999 at Hazleton, where he was...
Vincentian falls to Philadelphia’s Sankofa Freedom Academy in PIAA Class A finalVideo
HERSHEY — While preparing for the state finals, Vincentian Academy coach Tim Tyree studied two separate game films of Sankofa Freedom Academy. “One in which they really shot the ball well,” Tyree said, “and one in which they didn’t.” To his dismay, Sankofa’s sharp-shooting version showed up Thursday at Giant...
Robert Morris commit Garver set to lead Ligonier Valley softball
She throws a wicked curveball, a high-speed fastball and a rise that leaves batters swinging at air. The work ethic is there, so is the dedication. When “Eugene” is pitching, the Ligonier Valley softball team likes its chances. “Eugene” is junior Jane Garver, a Robert Morris commit, who was given...
Pieces in place for Ligonier Valley baseball
There are batters at the top of the order with speed who regularly get on base and cause problems. There are run-producing bats in the middle of the order. Ace pitchers? Yep, there are a couple of those. The players are tested by a challenging regular-season schedule that includes perennial...
Don Rebel: District 12 continues decade of basketball dominance
It really has been a decade of dominance. Since joining the PIAA, District 12 schools have left their mark on many sports, but none more impressive then what they have accomplished on the hardwood. District 12 is made up of schools from the Philadelphia Public League and Philadelphia Catholic League....
Peters Township’s trip to Hershey was 6 years in the making
When Peters Township girls basketball coach Bert Kendall took over the program in the 2013-14 season, the Indians were coming off a winless campaign in Section 2-4A and only managed to win six games. “We had to instill a winning culture and instill a lot of changes in our work...
PIAA Class A boys championship breakdown: Vincentian vs. Sankofa Freedom
PIAA Class A boys championship Vincentian Academy vs. Sankofa Freedom Academy 2 p.m., Thursday at Giant Center, Hershey TV: PCN Vincentian Academy (20-8) Coach: Tim Tyree Jr. No., Name, Pos., Ht., Yr. 1, Nate Cullo, G, 5-8, Jr. 5, Alex Griggs, G, 6-0, So. 22, Matt McDonough, G, 5-10, Fr....
