Bill Beckner stories, Page 112
Penn-Trafford softball notebook: Warriors have shot at redemption
The beauty of the state softball playoffs for many WPIAL teams lies in the chance for redemption. Lose to someone in the WPIAL championship; beat them in the PIAA tournament. Erase the past and advance at the same time. Penn-Trafford (20-3) gets another shot at Armstrong (22-4), the team that...
PIAA Class 5A softball semifinals capsule: Penn-Trafford vs. Armstrong
Monday’s game Penn-Trafford (20-3) vs. Armstrong (22-4) 2 p.m. at Mars Centennial School field, Mars Winner plays: Winner of 2-1 Pittston Area (23-0) vs. 1-2 Oxford (10-5) in championship, 4 p.m. Thursday at Penn State Coaches: Denny Little, Penn-Trafford; Doug Flanders, Armstrong Players to watch: Cam Ponko, Fr., 3B, Penn-Trafford;...
Westmoreland HS notebook: Special honor for Norwin’s Rosado Guindin
Norwin senior Sebastian Rosado Guindin knew he was in the running for a unique award, but he was a little taken aback when his name was called. “Yes, I was a surprised when I won,” he said. Rosado Guindin won the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Sports Most...
Penn-Trafford softball uses fluid lineup to great playoff success
Unsatisfied by his team’s offensive output in the first round of the PIAA playoffs, Penn-Trafford softball coach Denny Little decided to tweak his batting order for the quarterfinals. Not that it was anything new for Little, who has snapped the lineup in half, bent it this way and that and...
Going from the pitch to track, Franklin Regional grad Ryan Beard became an All-American at Westminster
Ryan Beard was a key cog in Franklin Regional’s run to the first of back-to-back WPIAL Class 3A soccer championships in 2018. The midfielder was recruited to play at Westminster College. But growing concerns over multiple concussions — six that were diagnosed, including one in the PIAA quarterfinals against Cathedral...
Norwin notebook: Paralympian chosen to promote sport of goalball
A dynamic goal scorer and Paralympian, Calahan Young has made his mark in the sport of goalball. Now the Irwin native and Norwin graduate will be a diplomat for the game he loves. The U.S. Association of Blind Athletes, the national governing body for goalball in the Paralympics, named Young...
Norwin senior honored as Pittsburgh area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce MVP
Norwin senior Sebastian Rosado Guindin knew he was in the running for a unique award but was a little taken aback when his name was called. “Yes, I was surprised when I won,” he said. Rosado Guindin won the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Sports Most Valuable Player...
Basketball tournament honoring Tre Cunningham’s memory continues to thrive in Jeannette
Steve and Tracy Bone Cunningham again were showered with warm memories of their son as the three-day Tre Cunningham Memorial Basketball Tournament reached its midpoint Friday night at Jeannette High School. The second annual event honors the memory of Tre Cunningham, a three-sport star at Jeannette who was killed in...
Small ball, miscues propel Penn-Trafford into PIAA Class 5A semifinals
FAYETTEVILLE — Fundamentals, no matter what time of the season they are or are not executed, carry immense meaning for softball teams. Simple ground balls. Pop-ups. Sacrifice bunts. They all can add up. And they are magnified in the state playoffs because they can make or break seasons. Penn-Trafford used...
Sophomore slugger makes name for herself in middle of Penn-Trafford lineup
Mackenzie Keenan has a number of nicknames. The sophomore softball player at Penn-Trafford has been called “Chuck” and “Chunk” for reasons that can’t altogether be explained around the clubhouse. “We always call her, ‘Line-drive Mack,’” Warriors coach Denny Little said. “Everything she hits is a frozen rope.” Keenan, pronounced ka-nan,...
Westmoreland County PIAA softball playoff capsule for June 9, 2022
Class 5A Quarterfinals Penn-Trafford (19-3) vs. Southern Lehigh (19-6) 3:30 p.m. Thursday at Norlo Park Softball Complex, Fayetteville Winner plays: Winner of Central Mountain (21-2)/Armstrong (21-4) on Monday in semifinals (time, site TBD) Extra bases: Penn-Trafford didn’t hit like it can in the first round, sending 14 pop-ups into the...
Penn-Trafford lineman Joe Enick verbally commits to Central Michigan
A steady stream of scholarship offers have followed Joe Enick since late March. More were likely to come this summer. But the football lineman from Penn-Trafford decided it was time to highlight his favorite one. Enick gave a verbal commitment to play at Central Michigan of the Mid-American Conference. The...
GCC softball team comes up 1 hit short in PIAA 1st round
DUBOIS — Greensburg Central Catholic’s defense was sharp behind junior pitcher Emma Henry all afternoon in the PIAA Class A softball playoff opener. But there was one ball they couldn’t catch, and it doomed the Centurions’ season. DuBois Central Catholic senior Emma Suplizio blasted a two-out, three-run homer in the...
Jeannette grad Gio Vonne Sanders to play at Western Michigan
With two years of eligibility left to give a team, Gio Vonne Sanders is set to live out his dream. The former Jeannette and St. Francis (Pa.) football standout announced he has made a verbal commitment to Western Michigan of the FCS Mid-American Conference. Sanders, a 5-foot-11, 185-pound defensive back,...
Latrobe grad Jake Biss to play pro basketball in The Netherlands
By the time the second week of August rolls around and summer starts to wind toward fall, Jake Biss will also be ready to change seasons — and uniforms. He will be on his way to The Netherlands to begin his professional basketball career. Biss, a former Latrobe and Shippensburg...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Belle Vernon’s Bailey Parshall named All-American at Penn State
Bailey Parshall capped a career season in the pitching circle at Penn State with an All-American nod. The senior from Belle Vernon was selected to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-American Third Team. She is just the fifth Penn State softball player to be named an All-American, and the first...
Westmoreland PIAA softball playoff capsules: Games for Monday, June 6, 2022
Class 5A First round Penn-Trafford (18-3) vs. Twin Valley (17-8) 4 p.m. Monday at Twin Valley Winner plays: Winner of Southern Lehigh (15-4)/Shippensburg (19-5) on Thursday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD) Extra bases: Penn-Trafford is the WPIAL runner-up after falling to Armstrong, 6-5, in the championship game. The Warriors rallied...
Dual-powered approach working for Southmoreland softball team
Using two pitchers wasn’t always in the cards for Southmoreland softball, especially come playoff time. But when sophomore Maddie Brown began to experience tightness in her back, coach Todd Bunner turned to senior Maddy Cyphert. Both girls saw time in the WPIAL Class 3A semifinal loss to Avonworth (3-0), then...
Penn-Trafford not shaken after WPIAL title-game loss, refocuses on PIAA playoffs
A mixture of stunned numbness and grace-in-defeat omitting from their faces, Penn-Trafford players and coaches posed for their runner-up photo but didn’t have to force smiles. There weren’t many tears shed. And there was even some giggling as people bunched up in rows and glared at cellphone cameras. “We’re not...
Westmoreland notebook: GCC, Penn-Trafford, Southmoreland in PIAA softball playoffs
The PIAA softball playoff field is set and three local teams will begin play Monday. All three will have lengthy road trips. WPIAL Class 5A runner-up Penn-Trafford (18-3) will play at Twin Valley (17-8), the District 3 runner-up, at 4 p.m. In Class 3A, Southmoreland (14-4) visits Bald Eagle (10-5),...
Greensburg Central Catholic’s Marquez plays for late father
A silver, heart-shaped locket dangles from a necklace Isabela Marquez is wearing. Every so often, it catches a shaft of sunlight coming through the window in a lonely Greensburg Central Catholic gymnasium as she talks about her late father. Her voice echoes. Sniffles and sighs are interrupted by little chuckles...
Franklin Regional grad Michael Kemerer to wrestle, coach with New York-based club
A nagging shoulder injury stunted his progress in his final collegiate wrestling season, but Michael Kemerer is moving on to his next venture in the sport. The former Iowa and Franklin Regional standout has joined the Spartan Combat RTC, a world-class training outfit in Ithaca, N.Y. Spartan Combat RTC specializes...
Norwin notebook: Baseball, softball standouts earn all-section honors
Norwin athletes once again made their mark in the WPIAL’s two largest classifications this spring. The Big 5/6 Conference, which covers Class 6A and 5A athletics, had its all-section banquet May 25 and announced its top players in baseball and softball. Section 2-6A baseball’s first team included seniors Jack Whalen...
Jenna Clontz belts WPIAL-winning walk-off homer as Armstrong tops Penn-Trafford
Moments after the game ended, Armstrong fans lugged a giant boom-box radio onto Lilley Field and turned up the music, bobbing their heads to the thumping beat. Junior left fielder Jenna Clontz had just performed one of the program’s greatest hits. This was the “hoopla” Penn-Trafford coach Denny Little warned...
Expect offensive outburst when Armstrong, Penn-Trafford clash for WPIAL 5A title
Offense could be on full blast when Penn-Trafford and Armstrong meet Friday ( game was postponed Thursday due to weather) in the WPIAL Class 5A softball championship. So could the volume coming from at least one of the dugouts. “If you think you’re going to see a shutout, you’re crazy,”...
