Andrew John stories, Page 10
Westmoreland athletes of the week: Mt. Pleasant’s Jake Johnson and Latrobe’s Rachel Ridilla
Jake Johnson School: Mt. Pleasant Sport: Basketball Year: Senior Claim to fame: Johnson, who averages 16.8 points, scored 19 points to lead Mt. Pleasant (4-1) to a 56-43 win over Waynesburg in nonsection action on Dec. 13. Johnson scored 15 points twice — in a 55-51 win at Greensburg Salem...
North Hills’ Hillegas motivated by loss in PIAA semifinals
North Hills’ senior Sam Hillegas seemed to be on his way to a third PIAA Class AAA title last season. However, Hillegas suffered his first loss of the season in the state semifinals, denying him a chance to become a state champion all four years. The Virginia Tech recruit has...
Penn Hills swimmers start fresh under new coach
The Penn Hills swimming program has a fresh, new look this year. A familiar last name isn’t on the roster for the first time in many years, and a new coach has taken over for the Indians. Nick Page, a 2013 Penn Hills alum, will lead the team after Cheryl...
Penn Hills’ Clayborn to continue soccer career in college
Several Penn Hills girls soccer players have gone on to play at the collegiate level in recent years. Midfielder Taylor Clayborn is the most recent Indian to make her college decision. After careful consideration, Clayborn committed to Thiel on Dec. 5. This moment has been something Clayborn has dreamed about...
Westmoreland athletes of the week: Yough’s Gamal Marballie and Greensburg Salem’s Abby Mankins
Gamal Marballie School: Yough Sport: Basketball Year: Junior Claim to fame: Marballie scored 22 points to lead Yough (2-0) to a 48-44 win over Brownsville in the Brownsville Tournament on Dec. 6. Marballie led Yough with 16 points in a 48-45 win over Chartiers-Houston on Dec. 7. “It means a...
Penn Hills grad Sherron Schifino bursts onto scene at Point Park
After a year away from basketball, Sherron Schifino has reappeared on the Pittsburgh basketball scene, this time at Point Park. Schifino, a 2017 Penn Hills graduate, has acclimated himself quite well in his first year at Point Park (4-4) under head coach Joe Lewandowski. In the early going, Schifino leads...
North Hills girls ready to tackle difficult challenges
When Jim Dudas accepted the head coaching job for the North Hills girls basketball team, he knew it was going to be a challenge. He didn’t know the challenge to implement his system and culture would be impacted by the injury bug. Dudas, who was named the Indians head coach...
Penn Hills girls expect to ride defense this season
Last season, the Penn Hills girls basketball team was on the doorstep of the WPIAL Class 5A championship game with a senior-led team. This season, the Indians will look to reach the WPIAL title game with a junior-heavy team. Penn Hills, which finished 20-5 overall and 12-0 in Section 1-5A...
Inexperienced North Hills boys roster turns to speed, tenacity to compete
The North Hills boys basketball team will lean on its up-tempo style of play to overcome a lack of size and experience. The Indians, who went 6-16 overall and 1-9 in Section 1-6A last season, will feature two seniors and four sophomores in their starting lineup this season. Senior Logan...
Penn Hills boys should be hard to guard
Penn Hills coach Dan DeRose believes he has his best offensive team since taking over as head coach in 2015. If the Indians want to win another WPIAL title under DeRose, like they did in 2018, Penn Hills will need to figure it out on the defensive end of the...
Penn Hills defense piles up postseason awards
Even though their season ended earlier than they expected, Penn Hills football players were well represented when it came to postseason honors. The Indians (10-2, 7-0) saw their season end with a 35-20 loss to McKeesport in a WPIAL Class 5A quarterfinal Nov. 8. However, 20 Penn Hills players and...
Penn Hills grad Adia Brisker hits ground running at Niagara
When Adia Brisker committed to play basketball at Niagara last fall, she didn’t think she would find herself in the starting lineup as a freshman. However, when the Purple Eagles wrapped up camp, Brisker was part of the starting five for Niagara’s season opener at St. Bonaventure. In her first...
Youth football program hopes to grow, thrive in Penn Hills
Building a sustainable athletic program starts at the roots. The Penn Hills Midget Football Association is looking to create deeper roots in the community under new leadership. It has gotten off on the right foot after their Baby Scouts team captured the Western Pennsylvania Youth Athletic Association title in the...
New coach promises change for Penn Hills baseball program
Rodney Stubbs, who has been involved with Penn Hills baseball for the past four seasons, is looking to change the program’s culture as he takes over as head coach this coming spring. Stubbs, who was the assistant coach the last two seasons, was officially named head coach after the Penn...
Westmoreland H.S. athletes of the week: Greensburg Central Catholic’s Carlo Denis and Franklin Regional’s Aly Kindelberger
Carlo Denis School: Greensburg Central Catholic Sport: Soccer Class: Freshman Claim to fame: Denis, who has 24 goals on the season, scored three times to lead Greensburg Central Catholic (17-3-1) to a 6-1 win over Iroquois in the first round of the PIAA Class A playoffs Nov. 5. “I think...
Undefeated Washington blanks Freedom to reach Class 2A semifinals
Heading into Friday night, Washington was one of only three undefeated teams left in the WPIAL. No. 1 Washington (12-0) remained undefeated behind a power run game and a tough defense in a 28-0 win over No. 8 Freedom (8-4) in the WPIAL Class 2A quarterfinals at Big Mac Stadium...
Strong pass rush, team speed lead game-changing Penn Hills defense
Since he took over as coach at Penn Hills in 2017, Jon LeDonne has made sure his defenses set the tone on the field. This season, a strong defense has been mandatory since the Indians offense isn’t as potent as last year’s. The Indians defense has responded to the challenge...
Penn Hills’ Gregory brothers making waves at LaSalle
Norm and Isaiah Gregory have been on the same swim team for most of their lives. The Penn Hills natives will look to make this year count as they swim on the same team one final time at LaSalle. Norm, a senior, and Isaiah, a junior, are looking to improve...
Westmoreland County high school athletes of the week: Franklin Regional’s Garrett Beaver, Norwin’s Katelyn Kauffman
Garrett Beaver School: Franklin Regional Sport: Soccer Year: Senior Claim to fame: Beaver scored the game-winning goal to lift No. 1 Franklin Regional (19-0-1) to a 2-1 win over No. 7 West Allegheny in the boys WPIAL Class AAA championship on Nov. 2 at Highmark Stadium. “It was an amazing...
Just like last year, Penn Hills opens playoff run with decisive win over Latrobe
Last season, Penn Hills defeated Latrobe in the first round the Class 5A playoffs on its way to WPIAL and PIAA titles. This season, the No. 3 Indians started their title defense with another first-round matchup against the Wildcats. Penn Hills (10-1) had the same result as last year, defeating...
Penn Hills runners gain experience at WPIAL meet
With a young, inexperienced and shorthanded lineup, the Penn Hills boys cross country team wrapped up its season at the WPIAL Class AAA championships Oct. 24 at Cal (Pa.). Junior Hunter Shields and freshman Austin Stuchul finished 185th and 186th in 20:35 and 20:36, respectively, to lead the Indians. The...
Penn Hills fall sports athletes earn all-section honors
All-section honors were awarded to Penn Hills fall sports athletes in soccer and girls volleyball recently. The Indians had five athletes from boys and girls soccer and girls volleyball receive all-section honors from the PA Big 56 this season. Junior forward Maya Wofford headlined the list of athletes, as she...
Penn Hills offense answers challenge, tops North Hills
At halftime, Penn Hills coach Jon LeDonne challenged his offense. The message was heard loud and clear as the Indians scored two second-half touchdowns and Penn Hills defeated North Hills, 21-7, on Friday night. With the victory, No. 3 Penn Hills (9-1, 7-0) ran the table in the Class 5A...
Penn Hills takes lessons from volleyball season
Heading into the season, the Penn Hills girls volleyball team was expecting to improve on its seven-win season a year ago. However, everything changed immediately in their first match. The season started off promising when the Indians won the first game, 33-31, against Section 3-AAAA champion Norwin. But in the...
Howard bolsters Penn Hills rushing attack
During the WPIAL playoffs, a successful team will need to lean on a strong running game to advance deep in the tournament. Throughout the season, the Penn Hills football team has worked to establish a run game after the graduation of Terry “Tank” Smith. Coach Jon LeDonne has leaned on...
