High School category, Page 1287
Gateway softball looks to maintain momentum after playoff appearance
The Gateway softball team enjoyed a “turnaround season” of sorts in 2018. The Gators finished with a winning record, going 8-7 overall and 8-6 in Section 1-5A, tying for third place with Kiski Area. What can coach Scott Lewis do for an encore in his second year? “There is a...
Trio of senior letterman lead Gateway baseball into ’19 season
The Gateway baseball team is seeking a quadfecta, as the Gators are looking to qualify for the WPIAL playoffs for a fourth consecutive season. Gateway ended up 12-6 overall and finished third in Section 3-5A last year. The 12 victories were the most in a season since the 2009 squad...
Sophomore Szazynski bolsters Shaler Area tennis lineup
Participating in tennis in some form was always a likely choice for Shaler sophomore Cam Szazynski. Szazynski enjoys watching Rafael Nadal, viewing matches on television and keeping up with old and new players. Pedigree also had something to do with Szazynski picking up the sport about two years ago. “My...
Shaler boys basketball hopes standard set continues in future
Rob Niederberger does everything possible to get the Shaler boys basketball team exposure to different styles during the summer. That strategy helped the Titans make their first appearance in the PIAA playoffs in seven years an eventful one. Shaler took District 10 champion Meadville down to the wire before losing...
Chartiers Valley, Carlynton, Bishop Canevin softball have reasons for optimism
Bishop Canevin was the lone area team to make the WPIAL softball playoffs last season. This season, the Crusaders will try to make another run with a roster that looks very different. A new attitude is the theme at Chartiers Valley. Carlynton, meanwhile, returns an experienced team for third-year coach...
Tough loss at WPIBL championships helped spark victory at regional for Norwin bowlers
One lousy pin. That’s how the Norwin boys bowling team ended its season last year, falling one pin short at the Western Regionals and being denied a spot in the state tournament. The Knights are tired of hearing about it and instead of leaving anything to chance, Norwin went out...
Despite loss in PIAA tournament, Bishop Canevin girls reflect on special season
The Bishop Canevin girls basketball team suffered a roster shakeup in the postseason. The team lost one of its starting five in Alyssa Pollice. The junior guard transferred from Seton LaSalle last year but was ineligible for the postseason because of a new PIAA rule regarding transfers. The Crusaders put...
Thomas Jefferson boys volleyball hopes to battle for section title
Thomas Jefferson’s senior-laden boys volleyball team ended up 5-5 in section play last season. The Jaguars are aiming to improve on that record in 2019. “Our main goal is to fight for the section championship,” coach Frank Staffen said. “We lost a lot of starters (10) from last year, but...
Brentwood baseball team young but optimistic
Brentwood’s baseball team was hit hard by graduation last spring. Only one senior and two other starters return. “I guess you could say this is a rebuilding year,” coach Greg Perdziola said. “We are very young and inexperienced at the varsity level. With that being said, I still feel we...
Gabe Dominick receives TJ’s Breisinger Award
Gabe Dominick hopes to be a key member of the Thomas Jefferson boys volleyball team this season. A first-year defensive specialist/outside hitter, Dominick also made his mark as a starter on the Jaguars’ football team. The TJ senior recently was presented with the Breisinger Award at the football team’s postseason...
Penn-Trafford girls bowlers show improvement with regional tournament victory
Every coach wishes for the best and wants his or her team to do well, but Penn-Trafford bowling coach Bud Cummins never thought his girls bowling team would wind up being one of the best in the state when the season started. His bowlers proved the long-time coach wrong. “They...
Despite roster rebuild, Penn Hills boys make run to PIAA playoffs
Heading into the boys basketball season, Penn Hills was coming off the program’s first WPIAL championship since 2003 with a revamped roster. Coach Dan DeRose was unsure of what he had with his team after losing a lot of key contributors to graduation. The Indians (20-5, 12-0) ended up having...
Pine-Richland hockey earns bid to national tournament
The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League is comprised of 56 teams across four separate classifications. Out of those teams, only one finished the 2018-19 regular season without a loss in regulation time — Pine-Richland. For their efforts this season, the Rams (20-0-1) were selected to participate in the USA Hockey Division...
Loaded Pine-Richland baseball squad stresses team dynamic
The Pine-Richland baseball team enters the 2019 season boasting a roster bursting at the seams with talent and experience. The senior class alone has four players who will be at the Division I programs: Troy LaNeve (Vanderbilt), Matt Wood (Penn State), Josh Johnson (Kent State) and J.D. Armstrong (High Point)....
Plum volleyball hopes to take step forward this season
Plum’s boys volleyball team hopes the rebuilding project is a quick one. The Mustangs finished 2-12 last year while laying a foundation for this season. With only four seniors graduated from that team, there is more experience on the court this spring. “Things are going pretty well, so far. We...
Plum boys lacrosse to field one of most talented teams in program history
After six years of being a varsity sport, dropping in WPIAL classification, getting a feeder program in place that is starting to churn out young talent, the Plum boys lacrosse team is finally poised to deliver a little payback and start winning some matches. It’s finally the Mustangs’ time to...
North Allegheny seniors bow out in 2nd round of states
Shots didn’t fall for North Allegheny girls basketball in the second round of the PIAA Class 6A playoffs. While the lack of offense led to a 41-32 defeat against defending state champion Upper Dublin last Tuesday at Chambersburg, it didn’t change much for the Tigers. North Allegheny, which led its...
Franklin Regional celebrates 3 finalists at PIAA wrestling tournament
Franklin Regional sophomore Carter Dibert capped his second PIAA wrestling championship by standing on the top of the podium March 9 at the Giant Center in Hershey. Dibert used a five-point move early and defeated Seneca Valley sophomore Dylan Chappell, 7-2, to win the 106-pound title. While Dibert celebrated titles,...
Hampton wrestling has many positives to pull from season
Last year, the Hampton wrestling team burst on the scene with a 20-win season. But this year’s “sophomore slump” wasn’t the result of less talent. Better yet, coach Chris Hart feels it built character. The team lost six starters to injury, with a handful of others missing late-season action. Still,...
Hampton hockey season remembered for big moments
If the Hampton hockey team experienced a range of emotions after its 4-1 playoff defeat at the hands of Latrobe, it probably is because the season featured a full range of highs and lows. Emotional overtime wins against undefeated teams. Heartbreaking one-goal losses. Two three-game winning streaks. Two three-game losing...
Monessen softball team takes aim at return trip to WPIAL final
To say the Monessen softball team still hasn’t moved on from last season’s heartbreaking loss to rival West Greene in the WPIAL Class A championship game is a gross understatement. The wounds from that game have turned into scars, but the fire in the bellies of the Greyhounds continues to...
Monessen baseball motivated by postseason defeats
Tough losses can do one of two things, divide a team or bring a team together. After suffering consecutive postseason losses to the same team to end the last two seasons, Monessen baseball coach Bill Matush feels like the 2019 Greyhounds are galvanized and have finally bonded as a team....
Cedar Crest bowlers sweep state singles titles
Western Region champion Shannon Small of Plum reached the stepladder playoffs at the state singles bowling tournament Friday at 222 Dutch Lanes in Ephrata. But her stay was short after falling in the opening round, 201-198, to Governor Mifflin’s Alyssa Breidegam. Cedar Crest’s Paige Boyd went on to claim the...
5 things to watch in the PIAA girls basketball quarterfinals
Last week, 35 girls basketball teams from the WPIAL began their quest for state gold. Through two rounds of the 2019 PIAA postseason, the field has been sliced and diced to only 10 remaining teams from the district headed into the state quarterfinals. That number is guaranteed to be cut...
Penn-Trafford’s Kalik takes 9th at PIAA Class AAA diving championships
WPIAL diving champion Paige Kalik, a senior from Penn-Trafford, led the WPIAL contingent with a ninth-place finish at Friday’s PIAA Class AAA competition. Kalik was 17th after the first round of five dives before moving up to 10th heading into the final round. She ended the event with 401.10 points,...
