Bill Beckner stories, Page 195

Two WPIAL boys champions and three girls runners-up from Westmoreland County will open the PIAA soccer playoffs Tuesday. The boys teams will play in WPIAL territory. Franklin Regional (19-0-1), fresh off back-to-back WPIAL Class 3A titles, will take on District 9 champion Bradford (15-5) at 8 p.m. at North Allegheny....

Yough is looking for a softball coach — again. Kelsey Kuhns was hired less than a month ago to lead the Cougars, but her stay was brief. Kuhns resigned to take a full-time teaching position in another district. Yough athletic director Tom Evans said the job will be reposted. Kuhns...

And then there were four. The opening night of the high school football postseason began with 12 Westmoreland County teams, but only four advanced Friday. Three teams — WPIAL Class 5A top seed Penn-Trafford (10-1), Class 4A No. 3 Belle Vernon (9-1), and Ligonier Valley (11-0) in District 6 —...

Hit the sweet spot. That’s what raced through Franklin Regional senior Garrett Beaver’s mind as the soccer ball deflected off a defender and landed squarely in front of him. When West Allegheny could not clear the ball after a Franklin Regional shot attempt, Beaver reared back and ripped the rebound...

Derry just needed a Chance in overtime. First-year sophomore kicker Chance White, moments after watching his counterpart from visiting Beaver Falls miss an extra point, calmly knocked his opportunity through the uprights to lift fourth-seeded Derry to a thrilling 28-27 victory over No. 5 Beaver Falls in a WPIAL Class...

Anthony DiFalco plays soccer with a low-key demeanor, but his advanced skills are unintentionally flashy at times. DiFalco appreciates talent because he exudes it, so even he is impressed with what his team has done so far this season. The Franklin Regional sophomore forward marvels at the 16 shutouts and...

There has been a change at the top of the Greensburg Central Catholic baseball team. Dennis Reist resigned as coach of the Centurions after three seasons and Tom Appleby, Reist’s assistant and the school’s former softball coach, was named as his replacement. Reist left to become the head baseball coach...

In Greensburg Central Catholic’s last boys soccer game, Ricco Ciccarelli took a delicate pass off the foot of teammate Carlo Denis and ripped a shot past the Springdale goalkeeper for the go-ahead score. The GCC junior then sprinted toward his sideline, made a sharp U-turn and ran to the far...

Nathan Roby ran for 189 yards in a game against North Allegheny on Oct. 11. It was an impressive performance against a WPIAL heavyweight — a career night, even. At the time. Compared to what the Hempfield senior running back had in store, it was pedestrian. Roby was just getting...

With a stiff wind whipping at their backs — the same wind Norwin had in the first half but could not take advantage of — North Allegheny made the conditions work in its favor to win the school’s first WPIAL girls soccer championship. The Tigers scored twice after halftime and,...

Greensburg Central Catholic first-year football coach Bret Colbert mentioned recently he was eager to see West Greene senior running back Ben Jackson play, even as a casual observer, to see what all the hype is about. Jackson has rushed for a WPIAL-best 2,711 yards and a league single-season record 46...

Yough is looking for a softball coach – again. Kelsey Kuhns was hired less than a month ago to lead the Cougars, but her stay was quite brief. That is because she resigned to take a full-time teaching position at West Allegheny. Yough athletic director Tom Evans said the job...

Who ever said no to free football? Seton Hill will welcome fans into its gates with free admission for Saturday’s game at Greensburg’s Offutt Field. It will be Fan Appreciation Day for the Griffins (2-5), who host No. 19 IUP (7-1) starting at noon in a PSAC West matchup. Gates...

The Norwin girls soccer team returned to the WPIAL championship for the fourth time in five years and will go for its fifth district title Thursday night when it faces North Allegheny in the Class AAAA final at Highmark Stadium. But the top-seeded Knights (18-1) have made their latest playoff...

Two area wrestlers who were All-Americans at Pitt-Johnstown last year will open the season ranked No. 1 in NCAA Division II Super Region I. Senior Chris Eddins, a Greensburg Salem graduate and two-time national champion, is No. 1 at 149 pounds, while redshirt senior Devin Austin (Penn-Trafford) has the top...

Zac Gordon used to play tight end in youth football, even some center, before coaches thought it would be better to put the ball in his hands. Novel idea. Gordon scored 60 touchdowns in two seasons for the Franklin Regional Midget Football Association’s Leopards and led the team to a...

Class 5A: FIRST ROUND No. 16 Fox Chapel (4-6) at No. 1 Penn-Trafford (9-1) 7 p.m. Friday at Warrior Stadium On the air: TribHSSN.triblive.com Winner plays: Winner of No. 8 North Hills (6-4)/No. 9 Upper St. Clair (6-4) Last week: Shaler 27, Fox Chapel 20; Penn-Trafford 21, Franklin Regional 0...

Greensburg Central Catholic senior Nate Ward not only is one of the top soccer players in the WPIAL, but he also is the kicker for the Centurions football team. Since both teams have a playoff game Friday night, he had a choice to make. The soccer team plays in the...

Ashley Davis returned a few weeks ago to resume coaching the Greensburg Central Catholic girls soccer team following a break for maternity leave. What she saw when she came back surprised her. Impressed her, even. Bri Guy, who took over the team at the start of the season and remains...

The WPCC champion Westmoreland County Community College women’s cross country team ran to its second Division III Region XX team championship over the weekend at Hagerstown Community College. Freshmen Brooke Bertovich and Jenna Hildenbrand (Norwin) paced WCCC by finishing second (23 minutes, 18.6 seconds) and fourth (23:36.7), respectively, to earn...

Jeannette alum Robert Kennedy hopes to be proof that a JUCO product can make it to the next level. The Lackawanna sophomore defensive back could be on his way. Kennedy continued to produce in the Falcons’ secondary, intercepting two more passes and returning one for a touchdown in a 48-18...

Jessica Nemeth said the final play seemed like it was in slow motion. “I ran in to get the cross first, and I had this sense of clarity,” the Greensburg Central Catholic junior midfielder said. “I one-touched it and it went in and we’re going to the championship. “It’s the...

The Burns sisters will not get to play against each other on the basketball court this season, but the Hempfield graduates will be watching each other’s progress with great anticipation. Michelle Burns is a junior guard at Point Park who made the All-River States Conference preseason team. She was a...

A pair of WPIAL soccer players were selected to play in the High School All-American games set for Dec. 7 in Orlando, Fla. Six district players were nominated but only Greensburg Central Catholic senior midfielder Nate Ward and Gateway senior goalkeeper Madisyn Neundorfer made the cut. Neundorfer is one of...

WPIAL girls soccer playoffs Semifinals Class AAAA 1-Norwin (17-1) vs. 5-Seneca Valley (13-3-2) 8 p.m. Monday at North Allegheny Winner plays: Winner of 2-Peters Township (17-1-1)/3-North Allegheny (15-2-1) in championship (time, date TBD) at Highmark Stadium Coaches: Leslie Kaminski, Norwin; Mark Perry, Seneca Valley Players to watch: Lacey Bernick, Jr.,...