Bill Beckner stories, Page 141
Westmoreland high school notebook: Flamingos ‘flock’ to area for Belle Vernon fundraiser
Plastic pink flamingos have been showing up in yards around Belle Vernon, but for good reason. The Belle Vernon girls soccer team isn’t out to prank anyone. It’s quite the opposite, in fact. It is all part of a fundraiser that is back for a second straight year. Money raised...
High-scoring DiFalco diversifies his game for Franklin Regional boys soccer team
It was like time stopped for a few seconds, and Anthony DiFalco was controlling the dials. The rolling boil that was the Franklin Regional offense that night against Greensburg Salem became a gentle simmer as DiFalco slowed the pace briefly to set up another scoring opportunity. Junior Jake Zimmerman took...
Westmoreland H.S. football notebook: GCC coach reflects on ‘all-around great day’
Friday will be quite unforgettable for Greensburg Central Catholic first-year coach Marko Thomas. On Friday morning, he and his wife, Kerri, welcomed their fourth child — all boys — into the world. Devin was born at 9:11 a.m. By the time 9:11 p.m. rolled around, Thomas was coaching his Centurions...
Southmoreland’s female running back, Lilly Wasmund, scores TD in win over Derry
The play simply was called, “Lilly.” Southmoreland put it in place Thursday at practice, running it once as a rehearsal in case junior Lilly Wasmund had the opportunity to run it in Friday night’s home game against Derry. Wasmund was up to the task when her number was called with...
Franklin Regional notebook: Connor Donnelly settles into starting QB role
Franklin Regional settled on a starting quarterback — for now. The Panthers started Connor Donnelly in Week 4 when it hosted Bethel Park, and coach Lance Getsy hoped to stick with the senior under center. The QB carousel had been turning in Murrysville since the preseason, a feeling-out process for...
Norwin notebook: Knights boys soccer climbing Class 4A rankings
Norwin coach Scott Schuchert thinks his team is rounding into form, both on the scoreboard and across the lineup. “We’re finding our identity,” he said after a recent 4-1 victory over Penn-Trafford that kept the third-ranked Knights undefeated in Section 3-4A. “Our back line guys have really played well for...
Hampton routs Greensburg Salem in battle for first place
Greensburg Salem and Hampton are from different counties, separated by about 40 miles, but they play in the same conference. The teams were a lot further apart when they met in a first-place matchup Friday night. No. 5 Hampton dominated the Golden Lions, showing its speed and depth on both...
Division I interest growing for Belle Vernon’s Devin Whitlock after statement win
Devin Whitlock is doing everything he can to land Division I college offers. Now, the colleges are starting to bite. As they say, the film doesn’t lie. Whitlock, the dynamic senior quarterback/defensive back at Belle Vernon whose game-winning run against Thomas Jefferson went viral, attracted attention from at least two...
Latrobe girls soccer after sweep of Norwin: ‘We’re the real deal’
Regan Reilly funneled the soccer ball to the middle of the attack, but shifted gears and sent a pass wide and through a pack of Norwin defenders closing in around her. There, waiting out of the corner of her eye, was Ella Bulava. When the ball touched her foot, she...
Westmoreland football notebook: BVA’s Whitlock, Laurel Highlands’ Gallagher similarly electric, effective
A few months ago, people lined up to watch Devin Whitlock and Rodney Gallagher play basketball against each other in a local summer league. On Friday night, fans can buy a ticket to see them go head-to-head on the football field. It’s a main attraction in a matchup of unbeaten...
Westmoreland County don’t miss high school football matchups for 2021 Week 5
Class 6A Hempfield (2-3, 0-2) at 5-Canon-McMillan (3-2, 1-1) 7 p.m. Friday, Canon-McMillan Stadium, Canonsburg Hempfield allowed 45 or more points for the third time this season as it fell to No. 2 Mt. Lebanon, 48-14. The Spartans trailed 45-0 at the half. Jake Phillips threw second-half touchdown passes to...
Westmoreland County girls soccer notebook: Yough star jumps at Robert Morris offer
McKenzie Pritts said the college where she will continue her soccer career checked all the boxes. The standout junior forward from Yough made a verbal commitment over the weekend to Robert Morris. Pritts leads the Cougars, who are ranked No. 2 in WPIAL Class 2A, with 12 goals. “It’s a...
Westmoreland County boys soccer notebook: Pieces fitting together for Norwin
Norwin coach Scott Schuchert thinks his team is rounding into form, on the scoreboard and across the lineup. “We’re finding our identity,” he said after a recent 4-1 victory over Penn-Trafford that kept the third-ranked Knights undefeated in Section 3-4A. “Our back-line guys have really played well for us. We...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Saint Vincent routs Thiel in PAC football
Saint Vincent was met with little resistance in its third football game of the season as the Bearcats cruised past Thiel, 41-7, to move to 2-1 overall and 1-1 in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference. Brady Walker threw for 275 yards and three touchdowns, freshman Billy Beck scored two touchdowns and...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Westminster’s Powell nets late winner
Mackenzie Powell made her first college goal count. The freshman at Westminster, who played at Penn-Trafford, scored with just eight seconds remaining to lift the Titans to a 1-0 victory over Oberlin. Her big performance earned her the PAC Rookie of the Week. Powell has played in seven games, with...
Mt. Pleasant tennis player Emily Marne on target in another sport
From the moment Emily Marne looked through a scope and fired a blast of air at a target from about 33 feet away, she knew rifle was going to be her sport. “I asked, ‘Can I try that out?’ ” said Marne, who plays No. 2 singles for the Mt....
Yough girls soccer program loaded once again
As sure as the sun comes up each day, Yough has been a WPIAL girls soccer playoff team under coach Dann Appolonia. The Cougars have made the district postseason every season since 2010. Appolonia took over in 2012. And here’s the thing with his teams: Just when they look like...
Westmoreland High School notebook: WPIAL golf finals on horizon
The WPIAL individual golf postseason winds into the semifinal rounds for Class AAA while Class AA players are preparing to play for WPIAL championships. The boys Class AAA semifinals will be Monday at Willowbrook Country Club in Apollo. Westmoreland area qualifiers include Nick Turowski and Chase Crissman of Penn-Trafford; Owen...
Belle Vernon’s Sassak igniting boys soccer team
In the fall, Daniel Sassak likes to add some noise and school spirit to the Belle Vernon student section at football, girls soccer and girls volleyball games. The rest of the time, the senior gives that same student section something to cheer about at boys soccer games. Like that memorable...
Westmoreland high school football notebook: Norwin, Derry on opposite sides of forfeit/no-contest rule
Call it a WPIAL dichotomy, the concept of forfeits and no-contests in covid-19 times. Two area teams are on separate sides of the issue after they had to cancel games because of covid protocols. Norwin was dealt a loss without playing, and Derry was not penalized for sitting out. Norwin...
Devin Whitlock’s thrilling last-second TD ‘most meaningful run he’s ever made’ for Belle Vernon
It needs a nickname, that dazzling touchdown run by Devin Whitlock. That 40-yard mad dash with 4.5 seconds remaining Friday night that lifted No. 2 Belle Vernon past No. 1 Thomas Jefferson, 28-21, at James Weir Stadium. That viral scoring play lit up social media and sent the Jaguars packing....
Norwin tennis team off to strong start behind ‘seasoned’ lineup
With the largest and most experienced team she has 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 to...
Norwin notebook: Knights girls soccer rebounds after early loss
Norwin girls soccer coach Diane Metzger isn’t panicking. After all, it’s only one game. The first-year coach knew Latrobe was talented and could be the team to beat in Section 3-4A when her Knights visited the Wildcats for the section opener. Latrobe scored two first-half goals and held off Norwin...
Franklin Regional notebook: Panthers golfers advance to semifinals
Three Franklin Regional golfers advanced through the first level of WPIAL boys qualifying on the road to the district championship. Zach Abdallah (71), Nolan Shilling (75) and Jeff Anderchak (76) all achieved the designated target score of 79 in the Section 4-AAA tournament at Murrysville Golf Club to advance to...
Labuda, Reese return to lineup, fuel Mt. Pleasant victory over Southmoreland
Teams that won’t give one another the pleasure of using their real names, “Alverton” met “Norvelt” on Friday night in a throwback game that first put down roots in 1964. The advantage went to Norvelt … ahem … Mt. Pleasant, in the latest chapter of the longtime rivalry. Big-time advantage....
