Bill Beckner stories, Page 140
Hempfield’s Daniel Sierk commits to Bucknell
If you have seen Hempfield play this season, then you’ve watched No. 50 blow up opposing plays for the Spartans. You can’t miss Daniel Sierk. The senior just continuously shows up at defensive end. He has been one of the top pass-rushers in Class 6A. More colleges are showing interest...
Westmoreland campus clippings: FR grad Brooke Horvath fuels fast start for Westminster women’s soccer
Freshman forward Brooke Horvath has played a key role for the Westminster women’s soccer team, which is off to a fast start. The Franklin Regional graduate has pumped in six goals and dealt out four assists for the Titans, who were 5-0-1 heading into the week. Horvath had two-goal games...
Westmoreland County senior spotlight: Southmoreland’s Taylor Klingensmith
Southmoreland has blossomed into one of the more potent offensive girls soccer teams in the WPIAL. The Scotties’ Big 3 of Taylor Klingensmith, Kendall Fabery and Olivia Cernuto have combined for 24 of the team’s 31 goals. Maybe they should have a catchy nickname like, “TKO.” Klingensmith would prefer another...
Westmoreland H.S. notebook: Norwin girls tennis living up to expectations
With the largest and most experienced team she has had since taking over at Norwin in 2018, girls tennis coach Diane Pesarsick has even larger expectations for the Knights this fall. Norwin, which has 23 girls in its program — 11 varsity, six of whom are seniors — is looking...
Season-opening loss sharpens focus for Greensburg Central Catholic boys soccer
The first game of the season in any sport is important. But, just the same, it can seem quite meaningless. Even when a No. 1-ranked team gets sideswiped right out of the gates? The Greensburg Central Catholic boys soccer team, fresh off back-to-back WPIAL Class A titles and PIAA runner-up...
Trib HSSN soccer rankings for week of Sept. 19, 2021
Girls Class 4A Rank Team Record Last rank 1. North Allegheny (5-0) 2 2. Seneca Valley (4-1-1) 3 3. Peters Township (2-1-1) 1 4. Moon (3-0) 5 5. Butler (5-0) 4 Class 3A 1. Mars (4-0-1) 1 2. Plum (5-0) 2 3. Montour (4-1) 3 4. Hampton (4-2) NR 5....
Westmoreland high school football notebook: Southmoreland opens it up
Southmoreland is developing a reputation for having an exciting offense. The fourth-ranked Scotties were at it again Friday night as they improved to 3-1 with a 33-19 win over South Allegheny in the Class 3A Interstate Conference opener. They are averaging 38.3 points across their three wins, using a spread...
Runners of varying experience levels mix together on Norwin cross country teams
As experienced and trail tested as the girls cross country team is at Norwin, the boys team is just as inexperienced. But this could have the makings of a nice yin and yang situation for coach Brian Fleckenstein and the Knights. Fleckenstein doesn’t just see the boys blending into the...
Norwin notebook: Former Knight leads Pitt’s women’s soccer to record scoring surge
Redshirt junior Emily Harrigan helped the Pitt women’s soccer team to its largest margin of victory in program history. Harrigan, a former Norwin star who has rediscovered her roots in Pittsburgh since transferring from Rutgers, scored two goals — the first two of the game — in a 7-0 victory...
Senior quarterback leads Jeannette to feel-good win over Riverview
Moral victories mean very little to the Jeannette football program. But in this out-of-the-norm season for a program that has fallen on hard times, the little things matter. A first down here. A pass completion there. A touchdown is like finding gold. Things that used to be so natural and...
Imani Christian-Greensburg Central Catholic football game canceled
Down to 12 healthy players after a stomach virus hit the Imani Christian football team this week, the Saints called Greensburg Central Catholic to cancel tonight’s football game at GCC. Imani Christian coach Cliff Simon said the situation is not related to covid-19. The team already is dealing with low...
Yough ties No. 2 Southmoreland; Scotties lose star forward Cernuto
A tie is worth one point in the standings, but Southmoreland and Yough didn’t want to settle on a 0-0 result Thursday night in their Section 3-2A girls soccer clash. Both WPIAL semifinal teams from a season ago wanted to keep playing. The draw still had its share of highlights...
Jeannette players band together, show determination
The most trying season in Jeannette football history, one fraught with the unthinkable at every turn, doesn’t seem to be dampening the spirit of the players. In fact, the team might be getting closer with each challenging week. Hard to fathom, right? You might call the Jayhawks a “band” of...
Westmoreland County high school football notebook: GCC shuffles quarterbacks
There might be a quarterback competition at Greensburg Central Catholic. Or maybe the Centurions have found another way to attack opponents. Greensburg Central Catholic made a switch at quarterback last week to spark a lethargic offense in a 33-7 win at Apollo-Ridge. Sophomore Tyree Turner came in for junior Nate...
Westmoreland girls soccer notebook: Latrobe ready to ‘exceed expectations’
Hello, Latrobe. The Wildcats pulled a stunner Tuesday night with a 2-1 win over visiting Norwin in the section opener, surging into the conversation as a contender in Class 4A with the statement win. A mostly young team — six seniors, five juniors, five sophomores and six freshmen — is...
Westmoreland boys soccer notebook: Fewer practices makes perfect for Greensburg Central Catholic
Practice doesn’t make perfect. At least that is the case at Greensburg Central Catholic. First-year boys soccer coach Rob Fabean thinks teams can practice too often and overexert energy in between games, which, he believes, is counterproductive — and even costly. It’s not that GCC has low numbers. That is...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Penn-Trafford grad Hilty delivers winning goal for Allegheny
Senior Ryan Hilty (Penn-Trafford) scored the winning goal in the 76th minute as the Allegheny men’s soccer team edged past Marietta, 3-2. It was the first score of his career. Cal (Pa.): Sophomore midfielder Zach Vanek (Hempfield) scored his second goal of the season, on a penalty kick, in a...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Seton Hill, St. Vincent football start season hot
It’s mid-September and neither Seton Hill nor Saint Vincent has lost a football game. Seton Hill looks like it is going to grind its way to victories this season, and that will do just fine for a program looking to turn a corner. The Griffins improved to 2-0 with a...
Freshmen provide spark for emerging Mt. Pleasant girls soccer team
A wide-eyed bunch of freshmen are eager to make Mt. Pleasant a WPIAL contender in girls soccer. But don’t expect them to wait to make their mark. They are hungry now, ravenous and ready to soak up every crumb of game experience that comes their way. Four freshmen started in...
Hempfield alum Monica Burns to coach at Alderson Broaddus
Monica “Mo” Burns used to think about what coaching might be like, but she didn’t fully entertain the idea when she was in college. She was too busy breaking records at Wheeling Jesuit a few years ago. But now the profession has Burns’ full attention. The former Hempfield standout was...
Westmoreland notebook: Southmoreland softball standouts earning recognition
WPIAL Class 3A semifinalist Southmoreland had a young softball lineup last season. It lost only three seniors to graduation. Among the roster were a talented crop of freshmen, 10 of them in fact, including power-hitting shortstop Amarah McCutcheon and pitcher Madison Brown. Both are making inroads to college softball through...
WPIAL boys and girls soccer rankings: Sept. 12, 2021
WPIAL soccer rankings Girls Class 4A Rank Team Record Last rank 1. Peters Township (2-1-1) 1 2. North Allegheny (1-0) 2 3. Seneca Valley (3-0-1) 3 4. Butler (4-0) 5 5. Moon (2-0) 4 Class 3A 1. Mars (4-0-1) 1 2. Plum (3-0) 2 3. Montour (3-0) 5 4. Franklin...
Soccer Jordan Taylor gets Jeannette boys soccer to think big
Vanity is not among Jordan Taylor’s chief concerns when he tries to put another goal in the net for the Jeannette soccer team. If he can score in a squiggly line instead of flowing cursive, so be it. If force takes a backseat to finesse, then more power to him....
Westmoreland H.S. football notebook: Ligonier Valley finding home in WPIAL
Ligonier Valley might have a WPIAL membership like all of the other football teams in District 7. Member since: 2020. But the Rams are missing a couple of things many of those other schools have: artificial turf and home games. One of the few teams left in Westmoreland County with...
Norwin girls volleyball motivated to find success
Years ago, Norwin’s girls volleyball program was the standard bearer for WPIAL championships. The Knights won 13 straight WPIAL titles from 1973-86, then added two more in ’88 and ’89. This year’s team might not be considered a title contender. Then again, 14th-year coach Mary Ellen Ferragonio is still trying...
