Bill Beckner stories, Page 126
Westmoreland high school notebook: Hempfield senior signs with Duquesne
A torn ACL and the accompanying surgery cost Capri DeCaro her senior basketball season, but the injury did not ward off college suitors looking to recruit the Hempfield senior for track and field. A talented jumper, DeCaro signed last week to join the women’s program at Duquesne. She had one...
Norwin notebook: Wrestling team wins late-season tournament
The WPIAL team wrestling championship had already been decided, but that didn’t stop Norwin from beating up on opponents. The Knights won the Derry Duals on Feb. 12 in impressive fashion. They went 5-0 to take the title, defeating Meadville (47-19), Franklin Regional (46-22), Trinity (36-33), Derry (52-17) and Frazier...
Playoff berth breathes new life into Norwin boys basketball program
Norwin players and coaches sprinted toward center court and embraced one another. They soon were joined by some student fans who rushed the court after the final buzzer sounded. It had been a while since the Norwin boys basketball team, the program, felt something like this. Such energy and excitement...
Franklin Regional notebook: Panthers miss playoffs on tiebreaker
The Franklin Regional boys basketball team needed a win in its final Section 3-5A game of the season to get into the WPIAL playoffs, but neighboring Gateway spoiled the Panthers’ plans. Gateway won, 57-36, to send the Panthers into a three-way tie for third place in the section. The top...
Bailey Parshall tosses perfect game for Penn State softball
Senior softball left-hander Bailey Parshall channeled her inner WPIAL self on Friday. The Penn State senior out of Belle Vernon pitched the fifth perfect game in program history as the Nittany Lions defeated Florida International, 7-0, in the second game of a doubleheader in Miami, Fla. Parshall (2-1), who came...
Lincoln Park serves notice to WPIAL Class 4A bracket with rout of Yough
Defending champion Lincoln Park is getting healthy, and that is bad news for the WPIAL Class 4A bracket. With most of its rotation back together after an assortment of injuries throughout the season, the fifth-seeded Leopards, the highest-scoring team in the classification, put on an offensive show in the first...
Westmoreland WPIAL basketball playoff capsule for Feb. 18, 2022
Today’s game Boys Class 4A First round 12-Yough (13-9) at 5-Lincoln Park (15-6) 7 p.m. Friday Winner plays: Winner of 13-Central Valley (9-8)/4-North Catholic (17-3) Wednesday in quarterfinals Lay-up lines: Yough finished fourth in Section 3 behind third-seeded Belle Vernon, Uniontown and Elizabeth Forward. The Cougars have five straight wins...
Clarion hires Raymond Monica as football coach
Clarion filled its football vacancy Thursday by naming Raymond Monica head coach. The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference school did not retain Chris Weibel, who guided the Golden Eagles for seven seasons but saw the team finish 0-10 last year. Assistant Matt Hanhold served as interim head coach while Clarion looked...
With supporting cast thriving, Belle Vernon’s no 2-man show
Belle Vernon is miscast sometimes as a two-man basketball team. A two-man show. Now, senior Devin Whitlock and sophomore Quinton Martin are about as NBA Jam as you can get as a scoring pair, but they don’t do it all. Whitlock and Martin have an ensemble of role players with...
Westmoreland boys basketball notebook: Belle Vernon’s Salvino nears victory milestone
Somewhat in jest, Joe Salvino said there are two people who care more about his career win total than he does. “My scorekeeper and my wife,” the Belle Vernon boys basketball coach said with a laugh. “I’m not saying it doesn’t matter. It means I’ve won, but this is my...
Delaynie Morvosh sheds unsung label, makes major impact for Southmoreland
When teams yell “shooter!” while they’re defending Southmoreland, Delaynie Morvosh is usually surprised when she realizes they mean her. “It makes me feel good,” Morvosh said with a grin. “I have always been more of a defensive player.” The warning cry from opponents represents a sign of respect for Morvosh,...
Westmoreland girls basketball notebook: Latrobe’s Blair is double-double machine
When the ball goes up, Emma Blair is ready for it to come down. The Latrobe junior forward takes many would-be rebounders to task, firmly planting herself into a position to snare a missed shot and give the Wildcats a fresh chance at a putback or new possession. The 6-foot-1...
Latrobe, North Hills grads on watch list for small college player of the year award
Bryce Butler is having a career season at West Liberty and the country is watching. The 6-foot-5 sophomore guard out of Latrobe is on a national watch list for the Clarence “Bevo” Francis Award, which recognizes America’s top small-college basketball player. He joins teammate Pat Robinson III on the 50-player...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Saint Vincent’s Lauren Connors shines at PAC meet
Saint Vincent made quite a splash at the Presidents’ Athletic Conference women’s swimming and diving championships. Junior Lauren Connors won four individual championships and earned the meet’s most valuable performer, the first woman in team history to earn the honor. The Bearcats’ Josh Gurekovich, meantime, was named PAC coach of...
GCC boys keep an eye on OLSH as WPIAL playoff brackets revealed
Greensburg Central Catholic and Our Lady of the Sacred Heart will not meet again in the WPIAL Class 2A boys basketball championship game. No, their rematch will have to come in the semifinals after GCC was given the No. 4 seed in this year’s tournament. The Centurions (16-3) will play...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Belle Vernon grad Bailey Parshall reaches strikeout milestone
Penn State senior softball pitcher Bailey Parshall (Belle Vernon) returned from a injury rehab to make a start in the Nittany Lions’ season opener. She struck out 10 in seven innings and reached 400 career strikeouts as Penn State fell, 2-1, against No. 11 Missouri in eight innings. She gave...
Westmoreland high school notebook: Belle Vernon, Ligonier Valley honor teachers
Late-season basketball games are often platforms for special occasions. Senior night and youth recognition night are among them. But more schools are using the game times, where fans are gathered again, to get teachers noticed. Ligonier Valley and Belle Vernon are two local schools that celebrated teachers last week during...
Greensburg Central Catholic boys bounce back, clinch section title with rout of Jeannette
The Greensburg Central Catholic boys basketball team had its 20-game home winning streak end Friday night in a loss to Serra Catholic. It was the No. 2-ranked Centurions’ second defeat in three games. One way to make it all better and end the late-season slip? Blow out your rival on...
Westmoreland high school notebook: Ligonier Valley’s Hollick brings hockey sensibility
Jake Hollick is one of the top senior basketball players at Ligonier Valley this season. He is known for playing with a little bit of an edge. Well, there’s an explanation for that. Hollick also is a talented hockey player. But because Ligonier Valley does not have a team, he...
Soccer rivalry between Norwin, Penn-Trafford takes hit in realignment
A longtime soccer rivalry was sideswiped by the new enrollment numbers for the PIAA’s next two-year cycle. The ramifications will be felt from Turner Valley to the Bushy Run Soccer Complex. Norwin and Penn-Trafford have been playing in the same section since the 1990s, but the girls and boys teams...
Norwin notebook: Swimmer gets in on ground floor at Southern Indiana
Norwin senior Joey Testa moved from Katy, Texas, where she was a standout for Katy Aquatics in the AAA Junior Olympics. She still holds records there. But she earned her college scholarship as a Norwin Knight. Testa, who moved to the area in eighth grade, recently signed to swim at...
Franklin Regional standout Caden Smith seeking college football fit
Franklin Regional standout senior Caden Smith, a terrific three-sport athlete, wants to play football in college. Many consider him a Division I prospect, and some schools have inquired. But the 6-foot-4 wide receiver and safety doesn’t have any offers — yet. He was hoping to commit by national signing day,...
Norwin boys hold off Penn-Trafford, earn playoff spot for 1st time in 6 years
Norwin didn’t make a field goal in the fourth quarter, but that might have had something to do with the effort the Knights were putting in on the defensive end against visiting Penn-Trafford. It was, attack on defense, rest on offense and hold on tight from there. Or, maybe they...
Norwin’s Brianna Zajicek sinks near 70-foot buzzer-beater
Brianna Zajicek moved to point guard this season, so she has a different perspective on the game and new decisions to make. As she dribbled up the floor Thursday night at Penn-Trafford with the third-quarter clock ticking down to single digits, she made some magic happen. “I was trying to...
Westmoreland County boys basketball notes: Playoff field nearly set
The Westmoreland County WPIAL boys basketball playoff field is nearly complete. All that remains in Section 3-6A is the postseason fate of Hempfield and Norwin, who head into Friday night’s action tied for fourth place. Hempfield (6-13, 3-6) will finish section play at home Friday against Greensburg Salem (2-18, 0-9),...
