Bill Beckner stories, Page 31
Westmoreland County high school notebook: Tyler Caterino to lead Belle Vernon boys soccer
Belle Vernon’s new boys soccer coach is a former Mon Valley standout. Tyler Caterino was hired last week to lead the Leopards. The former Monessen and Westminster standout is just 25. He coached one season in the WPIAL, last year with the California boys, a playoff team. Caterino is a...
Greensburg Central Catholic girls rely on defense, Avery Jones’ scoring to reach WPIAL final
It looks like Greensburg Central Catholic found its third scoring option. And a defensive edge to go along with it. Sophomore Avery Jones helped carry some of the offensive load by scoring a career-high 14 points, and No. 2 seed GCC clamped down defensively to hold No. 3 Our Lady...
Norwin notebook: Knights earn all-section basketball honors
The Big 5/6 Conference, which recognizes accomplishments of the two largest classifications in the WPIAL, announced its all-section basketball teams. Seniors Kendall Berger and Averi Brozeski of Norwin were selected to the first team in Section 2-6A, while their coach, Brian Brozeski, was tabbed coach of the year. Norwin senior...
Bella Furno’s hot shooting leads Norwin girls past North Allegheny in Class 6A quarterfinals
She might have been ill, but Bella Furno didn’t show it. Truth be told, the Norwin senior guard had visiting North Allegheny feeling a little queasy as her 3-pointers — 6 out of 8 — splashed through the nets Friday night in top-seeded Norwin’s 52-30 victory in the WPIAL Class...
Westmoreland County basketball notebook: Greensburg Central Catholic girls looking for playoff heroes to emerge
Greensburg Central Catholic has a formidable scoring tandem in junior guards Erica Gribble and Jayla Peterson. But the second-seeded Centurions (19-5) know they will likely need a third player – or more — to step into a scoring role as they move ahead in the WPIAL 3A playoffs. “One-hundred percent,”...
Westmoreland County basketball playoff preview capsules for Saturday, Feb. 22, 2025
Boys Class 4A Semifinals 4-Avonworth (18-5) vs. 1-Belle Vernon (19-4) 3 p..m. Saturday at Peters Township Winner plays: Winner of 3-Beaver (19-4)/2-North Catholic (18-5) at 9 p.m. Feb. 27 in championship at Petersen Events Center Players to watch: Rowan Carmichael, Avonworth; Trevor Kovatch, Belle Vernon Layup lines: Avonworth is through...
Jeannette catches fire, rallies past OLSH in Class 2A quarterfinals
Jeannette fell behind by double figures at halftime and faced a 16-point deficit late in the third quarter. The Jayhawks’ WPIAL playoff run was fading fast, along with their hopes for a championship. But then Jayce Powell and his teammates heard the noise. “The fans fired us up,” Powell said....
Westmoreland County basketball playoff preview capsules for Friday, Feb. 21, 2025
Girls Class 6A Quarterfinals 8-North Allegheny (9-12) at 1-Norwin (13-7) 7 p.m. Friday Winner plays: Winner of 5-Butler (11-10)/4-Canon-McMillan (13-8) on Tuesday (time, site TBD) in semifinals Players to watch: Maddie Williams, North Allegheny; Kendall Berger, Norwin Layup lines: North Allegheny gets a rematch with Norwin after falling to the...
Westmoreland County basketball notebook: Penn-Trafford thrives as gritty underdogs
Penn-Trafford coach Doug Kelly had referred to his team as the “road warriors” several times this season. Kelly does not play up the underdog role but rather looks to unleash the “dog” in his boys basketball teams. Dog and grit are two of his favorite words when talking about the...
Westmoreland County boys basketball notebook: GCC’s Christian Hyland recalls hectic moments of ’24 playoffs
Christian Hyland did an interview after Monday’s first-round playoff win over Laurel with a special guest in his lap, his pint-sized daughter, Nova. Well-behaved and quiet, the 11-month-old sat still as her father, the coach of the Greensburg Central Catholic boys basketball team, discussed a 67-42 win that moved the...
Cool, collected Thomas Jefferson knocks off unbeaten Penn-Trafford in Class 5A quarters
A nine-point fourth quarter lead was gone. One of their star players fouled out in the closing minute of regulation. And their undefeated and higher-seeded opponent went on a sudden heater. Essentially, Thomas Jefferson’s check engine light came on as a lively WPIAL Class 5A girls basketball quarterfinal turned toward...
Westmoreland County basketball playoff preview capsules for Thursday, Feb. 19, 2025
Boys Class 2A Quarterfinals 8-Union (17-6) vs. 1-Greensburg Central Catholic (21-2) 6 p.m. Thursday at Shaler Winner plays: Winner of 5-Northgate (14-9)/4-Neshannock (20-2) on Monday (time, site TBA) in semifinals Players to watch: Lucas Stanley, Union; Brady O’Rourke, Greensburg Central Catholic Layup lines: Union, a Class A program for decades...
Noah Felentzer leads Southmoreland boys to 1st playoff win since 2017
Southmoreland’s front man wanted another show, and he got it. “This felt like it was going to be a special night,” high-scoring junior guard Noah Felentzer said. “We wanted to keep the band together.” Now comes the encore. Before fouling out, Felentzer scored a playoff career-high 31 points, including 12...
Westmoreland County girls basketball notebook: Norwin good at playing waiting game
Norwin has sat idle many times before in the WPIAL girls basketball playoffs, and this year is no different. The defending WPIAL Class 6A champion Knights (13-7) finally will open the postseason Friday night at home against rival North Allegheny (9-12) in the WPIAL quarterfinals. The 6A tournament is starting...
Westmoreland County basketball playoff preview capsules for Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2025
Boys Class 4A Quarterfinals 8-Elizabeth Forward (18-5) at 1-Belle Vernon (18-4) 7 p.m. Wednesday Winner plays: Winner of 4-Avonworth (17-5)/5-Knoch (17-6) in semifinals Saturday (time, site TBD) Players to watch: Cy Herchelroath, Elizabeth Forward; Zion Moore, Belle Vernon Layup lines: Elizabeth Forward collected its first playoff win since 2014, 61-56...
Greensburg Central Catholic boys get off to fast start in beating Laurel to open Class 2A playoffs
All in all, Greensburg Central Catholic looked the part in its tournament opener as the No. 1 seed in the WPIAL Class 2A boys basketball playoffs. A fast start fueled by full-court pressure and ball movement propelled the host Centurions to a commanding lead on the way to a 67-42...
Westmoreland WPIAL basketball playoff preview capsules: Games for Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025
WPIAL basketball playoffs Tuesday’s local games Boys Class 5A First round 9-Latobe (18-4) at 8-Kiski Area (15-6) 7 p.m. Tuesday Winner plays: Winner of 16-Franklin Regional (11-11)/1-Montour (21-1) Friday (time, site TBD) in quarterfinals Players to watch: Max Butler, Latrobe; Colin Keller, Kiski Area Layup lines: Latrobe is back in...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Saint Vincent’s Jaden Gales hits career milestone
Junior Jaden Gales came back to Saint Vincent to rejoin his former teammates and make more memories with the men’s basketball team. While he was at it, he pocketed a milestone. Gales, a 6-foot-7 forward, scored his 1,000th career point in the Bearcats’ 78-62 victory over Waynesburg, his team’s sixth...
Westmoreland H.S. athletes of the week: Mt. Pleasant’s Olivia Kovach and Jeannette’s Markus McGowan
The Westmoreland County Athletes of the Week is presented by Smail Kia. Look for the tags and look for the savings at Smail Kia in Greensburg. Olivia Kovach School: Mt. Pleasant Class: Junior Sport: Gymnastics Claim to fame: Kovach narrowly won the all-around title at the WPIAL gymnastics championships, outscoring...
Westmoreland WPIAL basketball playoff capsules: Games for Feb. 17, 2025
WPIAL basketball playoffs Monday’s games Girls Class 4A First round 10-Belle Vernon (11-11) at 7-Central Valley (14-7) 7 p.m. Monday Winner plays: Winner of 15-Hampton (10-11)/2-Oakland Catholic (19-3) on Thursday (time, date TBD) in quarterfinals Players to watch: Saylor Lee, Belle Vernon; Nyah Hayes, Central Valley Layup lines: Belle Vernon...
Westmoreland high school notebook: Big 5/6 dotted with county players
The Big 5/6 Conference, which recognizes accomplishments of the two largest classifications in the WPIAL, announced its all-section basketball teams. The undefeated Penn-Trafford girls were rewarded with John Giannikas earning coach-of-the-year honors in Section 2-5A and junior Torrie DeStefano earning the section’s player of the year. DeStefano joined seniors Kamryn...
Bethel Park stuns Franklin Regional, which comes up short after furious rally
An enormous fourth-quarter comeback fizzled into a crushing defeat for the Franklin Regional girls basketball team as its first playoff appearance in six years ended with a near miss. A mid-game sigh turned into a ray of hope for the Panthers, but it ended in tears. The fifth-seeded Panthers, section...
Change to man-to-man defense allows Franklin Regional boys to run away with 1st round victory over Indiana
With Indiana up early and an uncomfortable few minutes starting to fester for Franklin Regional, coach Jesse Reed put his team on pause and made a switch. It was more like he flipped a switch. “We came out in a zone,” Reed said. “We went back to our man (-to-man),...
Colleen Rosensteel, Olympian from Greensburg Central Catholic, among newest inductees in Pa. sports hall of fame
Seven-time PIAA track and field gold medalist Colleen Rosensteel, who went on to compete in Olympic judo, is going into the Robert “Tick” Cloherty Western Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame. The Greensburg Central Catholic and University of Florida alum is one of the most decorated athletes to...
Westmoreland County boys basketball notebook: Norwin ready for rematch
Section rematches in the first round usually are taboo for the WPIAL basketball steering committee. But they bent the rules slightly this year when building the playoff brackets. There are only two eight-team sections in 6A, which limits what the committee can do with matchups. But the WPIAL said it...
