Andrew John stories, Page 9

Marquell Smith School: Monessen Sport: Basketball Class: Senior Claim to fame: Smith, who is averaging 17 points this season, scored a game-high 24 to lead Monessen (10-12, 9-3) to a 52-48 win over West Greene in Section 2-A action Feb. 4. Smith scored 21 points in a 77-56 win over...

At the beginning of the season, Penn Hills boys basketball coach Dan DeRose knew what type of offense he was going to have this season but wasn’t sure how his defense would look. Late in the season, DeRose and the Indians feel like they’ve figured out the defensive end just...

Devin Whitlock School: Belle Vernon Sport: Basketball Year: Sophomore Claim to fame: Whitlock, who’s averaging 19 points and four assists, scored a game-high 32 points to lead Belle Vernon (15-5, 7-2) to a 79-62 win over South Park in Section 3-4A action Jan. 28. Whitlock scored 10 points for Belle...

Last season, the Penn Hills girls basketball team was on the doorstep to the WPIAL Class 5A championship game. This year, after all the seniors left, the Indians find themselves fighting for their WPIAL playoff lives down the stretch of the regular season. The Indians (8-11, 6-5), who have only...

With National Signing Day approaching, Penn Hills’ Tony Grimes took his turn at announcing where he will play the sport he has loved since he was 6. Grimes announced his verbal commitment to play football at Akron as a preferred walk-on via his personal Twitter account Jan. 27. Grimes will...

Ethan Tulenko School: Norwin Sport: Swimming and Diving Class: Senior Claim to fame: Tulenko won the boys 200-yard freestyle with the time of 1 minute, 41.81 seconds at the Westmoreland County Coaches Association swimming and diving championships Jan. 25 at Derry. Tulenko broke a three-year meet record (1:44.28) that was...

A pair of Kiski Area freshmen were excited to see where they stood compared to the top swimmers in Westmoreland County. Parker Sterlitz and Levi Hansen, who were the top two seeds in the boys 500 freestyle, finally got the experience they were looking for as they competed in the...

Heading into the Westmoreland County Coaches Association swimming and diving championships, Belle Vernon junior Ian Shahan and Mt. Pleasant senior Heather Gardner had their sights on reaching the record books. The pair certainly left their mark, combining to break three meet records and nearly broke a fourth Saturday at Derry....

In three of the last four years heading into this year’s diving competition, the Westmoreland County Coaches Association diving title resided with Latrobe’s Taylor Miller. After a year away from the Miller household, the gold medal returns as senior Jordyn Miller claimed her first county title Friday night at Derry,...

With National Signing Day fast approaching, some WPIAL football players are still announcing their verbal commitments. Penn Hills defensive tackle Derrell Porter added himself to the list Jan. 20, as he made a verbal commitment to play football at Dartmouth, a prestigious NCAA Division FCS Ivy League school. Porter was...

Last month, the Penn Hills girls soccer program saw midfielder Taylor Clayborn sign her letter of intent to attend Thiel. This month, midfielder Sierra Hankey announced she will attend Washington & Jefferson in the fall. Although Hankey knew she was planning to attend W&J when Clayborn signed her letter of...

Riley Comforti School: Southmoreland Sport: Basketball Class: Senior Claim to fame: Comforti, who is averaging 22.2 points and 7.1 rebounds this season, scored 31 points to lead Southmoreland (6-10, 3-3) to a 54-49 win over Frazier in Section 4-3A action Jan. 14. Comforti scored 26 points for the Scotties in...

When running back Tim Smith committed to Fairmont State during his senior season at Penn Hills, he knew he would have to compete for starting time with a crowded backfield. But after two years of battling for playing time, Smith has decided to transfer to Slippery Rock for a fresh...

After a rocky 5-2 start to the season, the Penn Hills boys basketball team put together a five-game winning streak. Senior point guard Kyree Hairston-Mitchell played a pivotal role in righting the ship through his consistent play. Penn Hills (10-2, 6-0) suffered a disappointing 59-57 loss to Central Catholic on...

Logan Summerhill School: Franklin Regional Sport: Basketball Class: Senior Claim to fame: Summerhill, who is averaging 19.9 points and 7 rebounds this season, scored 31 points to lead Franklin Regional (5-9, 2-4) to a 70-56 win over Indiana in Section 3-5A on Jan. 7. Summerhill shoots 53 percent from the...

A high school wrestling season is a long journey where wrestlers hope to peak toward the end of the season. Coach Jeremy Packer hopes the Penn Hills wrestlers will peak during a long postseason run. Junior Hunter Shields (9-4) has led the Indians with a pair of fourth-place finishes in...

In recent years, the Penn Hills bowling program has been one sided. This year is a different story as the Indians sit atop of the East section both in boys and girls bowling. The girls team hasn’t skipped a beat coming off a season where it qualified for the state...

Isaiah Vance School: Hempfield Sport: Wrestling Class: Sophomore Claim to fame: Vance (21-1) won his second Westmoreland County Coaches Association championship after defeating Greensburg Salem’s Billy McChesney by a 3-1 decision in the heavyweight final at Kiski Area on Jan. 4. “It was good. I felt pretty proud of myself....

Going into the season, Dan DeRose knew his Penn Hills boys basketball team was going to be tested with a tough regular season schedule. DeRose knew his team would be battle ready when it came to the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs thanks to a tough nonsection schedule as well. Off-the-court...

Gabe Willochell School: Latrobe Sport: Wrestling Class: Senior Claim to fame: Willochell (15-0), an Edinboro recruit, defeated two-time PIAA champion Alejandro Herrera-Rondon of Seneca Valley by a 2-0 decision to capture the 132-pound title Saturday at the Powerade Tournament at Canon-McMillan. “I thought I wrestled good. It was a tough...

The journey for the Penn Hills track program starts now as the group will utilize the indoor season to prepare for outdoor season in the spring. Seniors Eliza Brennan and Kemi Balogun, junior Faith Crawford and sophomore Miniya Pinnix headline the Indians’ team this season. Pinnix hopes to rebound from...

Zach Rocco School: Penn-Trafford Sport: Basketball Class: Senior Claim to fame: Rocco scored 28 points to lead Penn-Trafford (6-1, 1-0) to a 66-41 win over David Douglas (Ore.) on Dec. 19 in the KSA Events Classic in Orlando, Fla. Rocco scored 21 points in a 70-66 win over Uniontown in...

During his senior season, Daivon Stephens led the Penn Hills boys basketball team to the 2018 WPIAL Class 6A title, the program’s first title since 2003. Stephens’ performance earned him an offer from Eastern Michigan, where he later committed to attend last season. After getting minimal playing time at Eastern...

Heading into his freshman season at William & Mary, Hollis Mathis wasn’t sure how his game would translate to the collegiate level. A record-setting season provided answers to his doubts. Mathis, a 6-foot-2, 170-pound quarterback, threw for 976 yards and four touchdowns for William & Mary (5-7, 3-5) this season....