Bill Beckner stories, Page 220
Westmoreland area hockey playoff capsules for games of Feb. 25,2019
Class A First round Greensburg Salem (5-13) vs. Montour (17-1) 7:15 p.m. Monday at Robert Morris Island Sports Complex, Neville Island Winner plays: Winner of South Park (11-6)/Sewickley Academy (9-9) on March 4 at Mt. Lebanon Ice Center. Goals for/against: Greensburg Salem, 65/139; Montour 181/47 About Greensburg Salem: The No....
GCC wide receiver Kurpiel lands unique walk-on offer with St. Francis (Pa.)
Greensburg Central Catholic senior Bryce Kurpiel is a unique case in the recruiting game. He had no scholarship offers for football, yet could end up on a Divison I-FCS roster next season. Here’s his story: Kurpiel, who is from Ligonier, wanted to attend a college that offered a five-year physician’s...
Defense leads Penn Hills girls past Franklin Regional
Penn Hills has been one of the top defensive girls basketball teams in the WPIAL all season. The spark that ignites the engine has been relentless, wall-to-wall pressure. Add that hassling style to a healthy lineup, and Penn Hills has the look of a title contender in WPIAL Class 5A....
Saint Vincent women win PAC title
Saint Vincent left no doubts about who is the best team in the Presidents Athletic Conference. The top-seeded Bearcats rolled to their first conference title with a 70-48 victory over No. 2 Washington & Jefferson on Saturday night at Carey Center in Latrobe. The Bearcats wrap up their first PAC...
Canon-McMillan cruises to upset victory over No. 2 Latrobe
Veteran Canon-McMillan coach Rick Bell had a few defensive strategies lined up for Latrobe, but it took him some time to decide which one to open with in Saturday afternoon’s playoff game. “On the bus ride over, that’s when I figured out what we’d do,” Bell said. “I figured, what...
Westmoreland high school notebook: Norwin’s Salopek draws more offers
Jack Salopek knows the recruiting process soon might be coming at him hot and heavy, like a rush linebacker in a Friday night conference game. But the Norwin junior quarterback is adjusting and seems prepared for the onslaught. “I think I’m handling it pretty well,” he said. “I try not...
Monessen boys set to take on No. 1 Vincentian in Class A semifinals
WPIAL boys basketball playoff preview Class A Semifinals No. 4 Monessen (15-8) vs. No. 1 Vincentian (15-7) 8 p.m. Monday at Peters Township Winner plays: Winner of No. 2 Cornell (19-3)/No. 3 Nazareth Prep (17-3) at 7 p.m. Thursday in championship at Petersen Events Center. Coaches: Dan Bosnic, Monessen; Tim...
Campus clippings: Norwin grad Patterson earns AMCC honors
This is what total domination in a swimming pool looks like. Senior Mark Patterson was named Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Swimmer of the Year for the second straight time. But that was a mere formality. What he did to earn the award is the impressive part. The Norwin graduate won...
No. 3 Moon boys push past Franklin Regional in Class 5A quarterfinals
Franklin Regional and Moon had to wait a few extra minutes to take the court Friday night while the crowd from the first game of the playoff doubleheader cleared out at West Allegheny. Moon wouldn’t get out of the Panthers’ way, either. In a matchup of defensive-minded teams, the third-seeded...
DiVito nets 32 points as No. 2 Cornell takes down Greensburg Central Catholic
Greensburg Central Catholic had no illusions about Cornell and its standout junior guard, Kaden DiVito. The Centurions knew the Raiders would present a challenge in the WPIAL Class A boys basketball quarterfinals, but some self-inflicted issues did not help their cause in a one-sided defeat that snowballed downhill. It was...
Franklin Regional quite familiar with Moon
Franklin Regional has developed a playoff connection with Moon in the WPIAL boys basketball playoffs. The Panthers (17-6), the No. 6 seed in Class 5A, will take on No. 3 Moon (18-4) again on Friday night at West Allegheny. Some will remember — others would like to forget — Franklin...
Westmoreland high school notebook: Jeannette gets another shot at Sewickley Academy
To Jeannette, it seems like Sewickley Academy is lurking around every corner at boys basketball playoff time. There seems to be no escaping the perennially strong Panthers. The teams will meet again at 8 on Friday night for the fourth straight postseason — the third time in four years in...
Westmoreland basketball playoff capsules: Games of Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019
Saturday’s games Boys WPIAL Class 6A Quarterfinals No. 2 Latrobe (18-2) vs. No. 7 Canon-McMillan (15-8) 3 p.m. Saturday at Norwin Winner plays: Winner of No. 3 Mt. Lebanon (19-3)/No. 6 Fox Chapel (16-7) on Wednesday in semifinals Coaches: Brad Wetzel, Latrobe; Rick Bell, Canon-McMillan Points scored/allowed: Latrobe, 71.4/60.9; Canon-McMillan,...
Derry denied elusive playoff win thanks to Blackhawk’s late surgeVideo
Neither Derry nor Blackhawk had school Wednesday because of the early morning snow storm. Their first-round boys basketball playoff game went on as scheduled, but Derry still ran into some tough sledding in its long-awaited return to the WPIAL postseason. The Trojans will have to wait a little longer for...
Hempfield’s Orischak commits to St. Francis (Pa.)
Another Hempfield softball player has committed early to a Division I college. Standout sophomore Ashley Orischak, a key designated hitter for the Spartans last season during their run to a third straight PIAA title and a WPIAL four-peat, gave a verbal commitment to St. Francis (Pa.). There, she plans to...
Westmoreland basketball playoff capsules: Games of Friday, Feb. 22, 2019
Boys Class 5A Quarterfinals No. 6 Franklin Regional (17-6) vs. No. 3 Moon (21-1) 8 p.m. Friday at West Allegheny Winner plays: Winner of No. 2 Penn Hills (19-3)/No. 7 Montour (15-8) Tuesday in semifinals Coaches: Steve Scorpion, Franklin Regional; Adam Kaufman, Moon Points scored/allowed: Franklin Regional 59.1/47.4; Moon, 64.2/46.3...
Westmoreland Campus Clippings: Local softball pitchers shine as freshmen
The adjustment period for a few area softball pitchers has been like their throwing speed on the radar gun: glove-popping fast. Freshmen Bailey Parshall, Meadow Uncapher and Dana Vatakis have jumped into the pitching circle with urgency and efficiency. The former Westmoreland County stars are taking the momentum from their...
St. Francis pitcher Meadow Uncapher named NEC Rookie of Week
Meadow Uncapher took a roundabout path to Division I softball, but St. Francis (Pa.) is glad the freshman pitcher found her way to Loretto. Uncapher, a former pitcher and infielder who won WPIAL and PIAA championships at Mt. Pleasant, won her first two starts for the Red Flash (5-4) and...
Peters Township boys use strong 2nd half to take down Penn-Trafford in 1st roundVideo
As 8 vs. 9 games go in basketball tournaments, teams are often evenly matched and produce tight games. Outcomes sometimes are as good as coin flips. Penn-Trafford and Peters Township couldn’t have played each other much closer in the first half Tuesday night in the WPIAL Class 6A first round....
Westmoreland high school basketball playoff capsules: Games of Thursday, Feb. 21, 2019
Boys basketball Class A Quarterfinals No. 7 Greensburg Central Catholic (17-6) vs. No. 2 Cornell (18-4) 8 p.m. Thursday at Peters Township Winner plays: Winner of No. 3 Nazareth Prep (16-3)/No. 6 Union (17-6) Monday in semifinals Coaches: Greg Bisignani, Greensburg CC; Bill Sacco, Cornell Points scored/allowed: Greensburg CC, 58.2/48.7;...
Experience pays for Franklin Regional in playoff win over Thomas Jefferson
In WPIAL basketball, playoff experience knows no bounds. Its importance can’t be overstated, its benefits can be immense. Franklin Regional only has one player with substantial experience from last year’s Class 5A runner-up finish in senior guard Nick Leopold. But experience will come with time for his teammates, who were...
Westmoreland basketball playoff preview capsules for Wednesday’s games
Boys Class 4A First round No. 10 Derry (12-7) vs. No. 7 Blackhawk (9-13) 8 p.m. Wednesday at North Allegheny Winner plays: No. 2 Ambridge (14-8) Saturday in quarterfinals. Coaches: Tom Esposito, Derry; Brooks Roorback, Blackhawk Points scored/points allowed: Derry, 57.8/56.6; Blackhawk, 60.8/58.4 Players to watch: John Kerr, Sr., F,...
Westmoreland campus clippings: Saint Vincent women secure top seed for PAC tourney
The Presidents’ Athletic Conference women’s basketball championship will go through Latrobe. Saint Vincent secured the top seed and home-court advantage for the tournament, set to run Monday through Saturday. The Bearcats (21-4, 15-1) get a double-bye — as does second-seeded Washington & Jefferson (18-7, 13-3) — to the semifinals, to...
Former Westmoreland softball pitchers take quickly to Division I game
The adjustment period for a few area softball pitchers has been like their throwing speed on the radar gun: glove-popping fast. Freshmen Bailey Parshall, Meadow Uncapher and Dana Vatakis all have jumped into the pitching circle with urgency and efficiency. The former Westmoreland County stars are taking the momentum from...
Penn State Behrend’s Mark Patterson dominates AMCC swim meet
This is what total domination in a swimming pool looks like. Senior Mark Patterson was named Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Swimmer of the Year for the second straight time. But that was a mere formality. What he did to earn the award is the impressive part. The Norwin graduate won...
