Bill Beckner stories, Page 171
Underclassmen growing up quickly for Norwin football
Class 6A football can make a team grow up quickly in the WPIAL. Playing younger players is not always ideal but doing so, whether it be out of necessity or because of merit, can pay dividends down the road when underclassmen are more accustomed to the varsity level. Norwin has...
Franklin Regional golfers savor WPIAL championship round at Oakmont
Brooke Horvath and Caroline Tragesser have played numerous rounds of golf together at various courses. But the duo from Franklin Regional were in for a new experience when they qualified for the WPIAL Class AAA individual championship. Already key contributors to the Panthers’ section-title run and a trip to the...
Franklin Regional earns crucial win over LatrobeVideo
Franklin Regional isn’t ready for its playoff streak to end. The seniors, in particular, want this touch-and-go season to keep going. Trevor Brncic threw for 203 yards and three touchdowns, Colton Johns rushed for 102 yards and Jerraine Turner returned a kickoff 84 yards for a touchdown as the Panthers...
Derry calls off next week’s football game with Burrell after more positive covid tests
Derry postponed next week’s football game at Burrell over growing covid-19 concerns. The Interstate Conference game will tentatively be played Oct. 30 if the teams do not qualify for the WPIAL Class 3A playoffs. The Trojans had already canceled Friday night’s home game against East Allegheny after Derry closed down...
Westmoreland County high school football notebook: Covid-19 halts momentum
Covid-19 has found its way into Westmoreland County schools, and the virus has caused four local football programs to shut down. Penn-Trafford, Hempfield, Derry and Southmoreland shelved team activities and canceled games this week, causing disruptions in preparation and a halt in momentum with only two weeks left in the...
Elizabeth Forward’s Chase Whatton chooses MAC school from long list of college offers
Chase Whatton said he would make his college decision public on Wednesday afternoon and he held true to his word. The sought-after senior tight end and defensive end from Elizabeth Forward narrowed his choices to seven programs and revealed his top one on social media. Whatton, an all-state defensive end...
Westmoreland boys soccer notebook: Kennedy’s return sparks Latrobe boys
Tom Kennedy returned to coach boys soccer at Latrobe this season and immediately aimed to simplify things. “In the system I used to run at GCC, it was easy,” Kennedy said. “It’s about knowing your responsibility and the players having accountability. You can’t have a breakdown. You need people to...
‘Bar has been raised’ for Belle Vernon boys soccer team
More of a formality than a confetti-filled celebration, the observance of Belle Vernon’s second section title in as many years was different. It was all business when the Leopards clinched their fifth section title. Maybe that’s because this is a boys soccer team with more on its mind than section...
Westmoreland County don’t miss high school football matchups for Week 6
Class 6A Norwin (1-4, 1-4) at No. 2 Mt. Lebanon (2-2, 2-2) 7 p.m. Friday, Mt. Lebanon Stadium, Mt. Lebanon Norwin scored the opening touchdown against No. 1 North Allegheny, but couldn’t keep up with the Tigers’ skill and depth in a 49-13 loss. Connor Chrisman and Noah Vogel caught...
Mars girls, Peters boys move up in national soccer rankings
Mars has not lost a girls soccer game in almost two years. The defending WPIAL and PIAA Class 3A champions have won 46 straight regular-season matches dating to 2017. That’s an awful lot of winning, a feat even worthy of national attention. Mars once again caught the eye of the...
Southmoreland girls soccer uses second-half surge to roll past Mt. Pleasant
Sitting on a precarious one-goal lead, Mt. Pleasant kept giving visiting Southmoreland chances early in the second half. That is about the last thing a team wants to do against the upstart Scotties. Sophomore forward Olivia Cernuto had a hat trick and an assist, and junior midfielder Taylor Klingensmith added...
Westmoreland County girls soccer notes: Yough ‘won’t be an easy out’ in playoffs
Yough knows what it feels like to be a favorite in girls soccer. Last year, the Cougars had one of the WPIAL’s most high-powered offenses and rode it to their first district championship game appearance — and a PIAA playoff berth. But this season, Yough isn’t as prominent in the...
Norwin, Franklin Regional among fresh faces at WPIAL team golf championships
Norwin switched home courses for boys golf about five years ago. Nothing against Irwin Country Club, the Knights just wanted a layout more comparable to the ones where their section foes play. So they moved to Youghiogheny Country Club near McKeesport. It was a few more miles down the highway...
Westmoreland Campus Clippings: WCCC women’s cross country wins again
This is starting to get repetitious. But the Westmoreland County Community College women’s cross country team wouldn’t have it any other way. The Wolfpack made it four wins in four races this fall as they captured the Lynx Invitational, hosted by Carroll Community College, in Westminster, Md. WCCC took the...
Greensburg Central Catholic girls soccer builds unity
Olivia Kruger did not see a need to change much stylistically when she took over the Greensburg Central Catholic girls soccer team. This ensemble knows how to win. Kruger knew she had an abundance of talent and just wanted to make sure the team had chemistry, along with the proper...
Saint Vincent connection in Florida as Kayla Slovenec joins DP Harris’ staff at St. Thomas
Women coaching and officiating among men is becoming more common at all levels of basketball, from high school to the pros. A local woman is following that trend. Former Saint Vincent and Fox Chapel basketball standout Kayla Slovenec has been named a graduate assistant coach at St. Thomas University in...
Hempfield, Derry football games called off after positive covid tests
Three more WPIAL football games were canceled because of covid-19 cases. Hempfield was supposed to play at Central Catholic, Derry was set to host East Allegheny and Apollo-Ridge planned to play at Serra Catholic, but those games will not happen Friday night. Hempfield will close through Friday after three students...
Trib HSSN WPIAL boys and girls soccer rankings for Oct. 12, 2020
Here’s a look at this week’s Trib HSSN WPIAL boys and girls soccer rankings. Records are through Saturday’s games. Girls soccer Class 4A Team, record, previous 1. Fox Chapel, 10-1, 1 2. Butler, 8-1, 2 3. Peters Township, 5-1, 3 4. Norwin, 6-2-1, NR 5. North Allegheny, 7-2, 4 Out:...
Westmoreland H.S. notebook: Norwin golf shooting for spot in championship
The WPIAL boys golf postseason shifts to team competition starting Monday with semifinal tournaments. The Class AAA tournament has a fresh name: Norwin. The Knights have not been to the playoffs in at least 23 years but returned behind a talented lineup that includes top scorers Logan Divald, Sal Cerilli,...
Westmoreland high school football notebook: Cancellation upends Penn-Trafford’s routine
Asked for his initial thoughts on the cancellation of Sunday night’s game at Gateway, Penn-Trafford coach John Ruane answered succinctly. “Depressing.” The Class 5A Big East heavyweights initially had their matchup postponed because Gateway had to cease operations after an athlete tested positive for the coronavirus. With Gateway returning from...
Norwin volleyball eyes extension of strange covid-19 season
Norwin senior volleyball player Brooke Gast still is adjusting to covid-19 times, where few fans, if any, are permitted in gymnasiums, and rally points hit gym floors with a pronounced echo. Substitutes wait in outside hallways until they are called into matches. There are masks, temperature checks and daily covid...
Norwin notebook: Football team puts seven-game skid in rearview mirror
A seven-game losing streak is no more for the Norwin football team. The Knights took care of No. 5-ranked Baldwin, 28-12, in Week 4 as senior Nick Fleming completed 10 of 16 passes for 203 yards and two touchdowns, and also ran for a score. Senior Connor Chrisman had five...
Franklin Regional’s ‘Super’ Mario Sarnic happy to be back on field
As Mario Sarnic lay motionless on the cold turf at Franklin Regional’s Panther Stadium, sound sucked from the complex, lights twinkling from a waiting ambulance, time stood still for the wide receiver and defensive back. “I looked up and saw my friends and the look on their faces wasn’t good,”...
Southmoreland defense swarms Yough in shutoutVideo
Southmoreland turned a potential shootout into a shutout. The Scotties showed up in a big way defensively, forcing four turnovers and putting together a balanced offensive gameplan on the way to handling Yough, 24-0, in a Class 3A Interstate Conference game Friday night at Cougar Mountain Stadium in Herminie. Senior...
Covid cases force Penn-Trafford to cancel game with Gateway
It doesn’t seem like Penn-Trafford and Gateway are meant to play football against each other this season. Their Class 5A Big East Conference first-place showdown, which was rescheduled to be played Sunday night in Monroeville, has been canceled because Penn-Trafford has shut down over covid-19 cases. The game will not...
