Bill Beckner stories, Page 103
Westmoreland County high school notebook: Franklin Regional’s Bunker commits to Villanova
At first, Aiden Bunker exchanged emails with Villanova to gauge the school’s interest in his swimming talents. Then, he visited the campus, saw the pool and knew it was the backdrop for his future. Bunker, a senior at Franklin Regional, will continue his career with the Wildcats, swimming individual medleys...
WPIAL girls golf championship preview
WPIAL Class 3A girls golf championship, final round When: Tuesday Where: Valley Brook Country Club, McMurray Defending champion: Marissa Malosh, South Fayette Who moves on?: The top seven finishers advance to the PIAA championship Oct. 17-18 at Penn State University. Tee times Chip shots: A new, 36-hole format is in...
WPIAL Class 2A boys golf championship preview
WPIAL Class 2A boys golf championship, final round When: Tuesday Where: Oakmont Country Club Defending champion: Brian McDonnell, Eden Christian Who moves on?: The top 18 finishers advance to the PIAA championship Oct. 17-18 at Penn State University’s Blue Course, State College. Tee times Chip shots: Neither Derry nor Brownsville...
Westmoreland high school athletes of the week: Week ending Oct. 2, 2022
Lily Fenton School: Latrobe Sport: Volleyball Year: Senior Claim to fame: Fenton, a standout setter, led unbeaten Latrobe to wins over Armstrong, Indiana and Highlands. She had 42 assists and nine digs in a 3-2 win over Armstrong, added 45 assists and six kills in a 3-2 win over Indiana,...
WCCA will hold inaugural all-star volleyball event in November
The Westmoreland County Coaches Association is adding an event to its fall/winter schedule. The first WCCA All-Star Volleyball Match will be Nov. 22 at Ligonier Valley. It will feature top senior players on East and West teams. Team selections and rosters will be announced closer to the event. Ligonier Valley...
Westmoreland high school football notebook: GCC works RPO to perfection
The run-pass option can be effective, but it relies on timing between the quarterback and his running backs and receivers and blocking schemes that clear space to allow for a clean exchange or throw. Greensburg Central Catholic quarterback Tyree Turner made several “RPOs” work to perfection in the Centurions’ 34-18...
Hempfield softball standout Heisler gives verbal commitment to Penn
Hempfield junior softball player Peyton Heisler will continue her playing career in the Ivy League. Heisler, who played left field and did some pitching last season for the Lady Spartans, announced a verbal commitment to Penn. She said she was recruited an a utility player and pitcher. An Ivy League...
Norwin notebook: Boys soccer team speeds up after slow start
The Norwin boys soccer team is all about streaks this season. The Knights lost three in a row early on but quickly recovered to win five in a row and climb back into the WPIAL playoff race in Section 2-4A. Not that the Knights ever considered themselves “out” of it....
Murrysville notebook: Franklin Regional boys soccer rounding into form
Lukas Petersen said he needed time to get to know his team, his players and his opponents. He was, after all, hired in August to be the Franklin Regional boys soccer coach. About four weeks into his first year, the Panthers are finding their rhythm and adapting to Petersen’s system....
GCC uses big plays to upset Clairton, get 1st win over Bears since 2001
No Greensburg Central Catholic team had beaten Clairton since 2001. This Greensburg Central Catholic team: Hold my Gatorade. Big-play GCC scored on its first offensive snap to ignite one of its biggest upsets in recent years Friday night, a 34-18 victory over the visiting third-ranked Bears in a game that...
Franklin Regional boys soccer earns tough victory over Penn-Trafford
Coming off such a thrilling — and emotionally draining — upset victory against No. 1 Plum, Franklin Regional was hoping Penn-Trafford would not be a “trap game” Thursday night. “That’s something we talked about happening,” Panthers boys soccer coach Lukas Petersen said before the game. It was something the Panthers...
Westmoreland County high school football notebook: GCC looks to knock off king Clairton
Pieces of paper with “1998” written on them were plastered all over the Greensburg Central Catholic locker room this week. The rumor going around Carbon was that ‘98 was the last time GCC beat Clairton. It motivated players and coaches, fired them up. That year is close, but the Centurions...
Springdale girls soccer team trips Greensburg CC after going a player down in final minute
Playing 10-on-11 didn’t sit well with Springdale. The thought of being a girl down in overtime against Greensburg Central Catholic in an emotional section game that pitted 1 vs. 2 made the Dynamos nervous. So sophomore Brooke Taliani took that nervous energy and made sure the game ended in regulation...
Norwin boys soccer getting its swagger back, getting into thick of Class 4A picture
Call it conditioned experience. That is what five Norwin senior soccer players are getting — and honing — with each game they play this season. The players’ fast growth from JV a year ago to key varsity contributors has the Knights on a hot streak, back in the thick of...
Westmoreland boys soccer notes: GCC not letting up on offense
Greensburg Central Catholic boys soccer coach Rob Fabean said before the season he was going to let his players score as many goals as they wanted. Green light all around. Last year, he called off the dogs when a player hit three goals. But the Centurions are letting it rip...
Franklin Regional boys soccer team knocks off top-ranked Plum
The Franklin Regional boys are playing their best soccer of the season. Just ask Plum. The fifth-ranked Panthers went on the road Tuesday night and upset the top-ranked Mustangs, 1-0, avenging an earlier Section 3-3A loss while extending their winning streak to seven and ending Plum’s 26-game unbeaten streak in...
Westmoreland campus clippings: GCC grad Sam Nemeth making plays at IUP
Sam Nemeth is getting more involved in the offense this season for the IUP women’s soccer team. The junior midfielder is becoming the scoring threat and facilitator she was when she played at Greensburg Central Catholic. Nemeth had a career day for the Crimson Hawks (2-1-3) in a 4-2 PSAC...
Westmoreland girls soccer notebook: Norwin looks for turnaround to keep playoff streak alive
Diane Metzger played for Norwin, so the second-year coach knows about the school’s rich tradition in girls soccer. Since the program began in the mid-1980s, the team has never missed the WPIAL playoffs. But Norwin is 2-8-2 overall and sits sixth out of eight teams in Section 1-4A at 2-6...
Undefeated Mt. Pleasant girls soccer team in rare form
A 3-5-2 formation is somewhat rare in high school girls soccer. It takes a strong midfield presence, versatile wing-backs and a blend of speed and patience to execute the shape in its intended sense. But Mt. Pleasant coach Rich Garland knew he had all of those riches in a young,...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Jeannette grad Marcus Barnes making impact at William & Mary
Coming out of Jeannette, Marcus Barnes was known for his glue-like hands and football instincts. His father, Johnnie Barnes, played in the NFL for the Pittsburgh Steelers and San Diego Chargers. If the ball was thrown Marcus Barnes’ way, he was probably going to catch it, no matter if he...
Belle Vernon softball pitcher Kolowitz makes verbal commitment to St. Francis (Pa.)
Belle Vernon senior Olivia Kolowitz became more familiar with the recruiting game last fall when she joined the Ohio Outlaws travel softball team. As her pitching improved on an ascending plane, so did her stock as a prospect. Suddenly, college programs knew her name. Her mind was opened to a...
Westmoreland high school notebook: Golfers set for new WPIAL format
WPIAL golfers this week will be part of a significant format change to the individual postseason. For the first time, the championship tournaments will be 36 holes and played over a week at two courses. The scores from the two rounds will be cumulative. Essentially, the semifinal rounds were eliminated...
Add volleyball coach to list of duties for busy Southmoreland AD Boring
Dan Boring’s life is anything but, well, boring. The Southmoreland athletic director wears many hats in Scottie Land, and he added another one this fall, leaving people asking, “How does he do it all?” Boring, who has been the school’s wrestling coach for the last five years and teaches freshman...
Westmoreland HS football notebook: Hempfield win among program’s best
With 5,000-plus sardined into Spartan Stadium, Hempfield pulled off one of its biggest football wins in at least four decades Friday night with a 28-17 victory over defending WPIAL and PIAA Class 5A champion Penn-Trafford, which had just moved into the No. 1 spot in the TribLive HSSN rankings. Hempfield...
Westmoreland high school athletes of the week: Week ending Sept. 25, 2022
Rylin Bugosh School: Mt. Pleasant Sport: Soccer Year: Sophomore Claim to fame: Bugosh had back-to-back hat tricks as the unbeaten Lady Vikings (7-0, 4-0) defeated rivals Yough, 5-0, and Mt. Pleasant, 6-1. The quick-footed forward added an assist in each game for the second-ranked team in WPIAL Class 2A. She...
