Bill Beckner stories, Page 45
Westmoreland County high school notebook: Franklin Regional cornerback pops up on Division I radar
Jaymier Austin transferred to Franklin Regional when he was a freshman, leaving Penn Hills to play at another WPIAL Class 5A program. “It’s felt like home ever since,” Austin said. While the scenery changed, the expectations did not. Colleges probably would have found the budding football prospect wherever he played....
4th Tre Cunningham Memorial Basketball Tournament is biggest yet
Tre Cunningham’s memory gleams on in Jeannette, and the summer varsity basketball tournament in his name keeps growing because of it. The fourth annual Tre Cunningham Memorial Basketball Tournament, presented by the Jeannette Educational Foundation, is set for June 20-22 at Jeannette High School and Jeannette McKee Elementary. “This is...
GoFundMe posted for former Norwin football player Josiah Pastories, who was killed in auto accident
A GoFundMe page is set up for the family of Josiah Pastories, a Norwin graduate and former football player and wrestler who was killed in a one-vehicle accident Thursday morning in northern Butler County. Donations can be made here. Pastories, who was 19, was traveling to his welding job when...
30 years ago, Arnold Palmer played his final U.S. Open and Ernie Els reigned at Oakmont
The 124th U.S. Open started Thursday morning at Pinehurst. Thirty years ago, South African Ernie Els won the national championship at famed Oakmont Country Club, another historic venue in the USGA anchor rotation that will host the event again in 2025 for a record 10th time. Els, who has back-to-back...
Newly armed with scholarships, Westmoreland County Community College basketball attracting top local recruits
A boost in classification and the ability to offer athletic scholarships for the first time is allowing Westmoreland County Community College to cast a much wider net in the local basketball recruiting game. Players who once were untouchable are now willing to give the junior college path a look. “It...
Longtime assistant promoted to 1st head coaching job with Yough boys
Yough on Tuesday night promoted junior varsity coach Will “Boo” Sherbondy to head varsity boys basketball coach. Sherbondy, a Yough alum, was a longtime assistant to Jim Nesser, who resigned after six seasons leading the Cougars. Nesser retired from teaching after 38 years. Sherbondy is well known in local basketball...
Greensburg man, 77, sinks 2 holes-in-one in same round
Bob Ross wasn’t enjoying any happy little trees as he played the first three holes during his golf league last week at Mt. Odin Park. Not many courses open with three par 5s. “I wasn’t playing too well,” Ross said. “I think I was two over par going to No....
Rosters announced for new Western PA Senior Softball All-Star Game
Rosters are set for the inaugural Western PA Senior Softball All-Star Game at 8 p.m. June 18 at Plum. It will be Black vs. Gold in a matchup of the WPIAL’s top graduating players. Phil DiLonardo and Julie DiLonardo of Plum, and Jenna Muncie of Avonworth will coach the Black...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Norwin grad makes Pan Am wrestling team
Norwin alum Kurtis Phipps qualified to wrestle in the U23 Pan American Championships on June 21-22 in Rionegro, Colombia. The Bucknell senior qualified in Geneva, Ohio, by reaching the 61kg finals of the U23 Freestyle Nationals. Phipps went 5-0 and advanced to the best-of-three finals before losing twice to Ohio...
Westmoreland County high school notebook: WCCA hands out scholarships
The Westmoreland County Coaches Association announced its latest scholarship winners. The 2024 Nicholas Pecoraro Memorial will go to Mikaela Shine of Derry, Noah Mulac of Norwin is the recipient of the Robert Van Atta Memorial Scholarship and Breann Poole of Southmoreland will take home the Dr. Larry Sellitto Memorial Scholarship....
Palmer Jackson wraps up decorated career at Notre Dame
When Palmer Jackson tapped in for par on the ninth hole at Omni La Costa North Course in Carlsbad, Calif., at the end of May, he brought an end to a shining college golf career at Notre Dame. Now, the talk about turning professional can officially begin. The grad student...
IUP baseball earns 3rd straight win at Division II College World Series
Turning away elimination for a third straight time in the NCAA Division II College World Series, surging IUP baseball pushed on and now sits one win away from the national championship game. Elijah Dunn, a Norwin product, went 2 for 4 with a home run, double, four RBIs and two...
PAC moving to 2 divisions next year in 3 sports
The NCAA Division III Presidents’ Athletic Conference will split into two divisions for men’s and women’s basketball, and women’s volleyball beginning in 2025. The conference will be 12 schools strong with the addition of Hiram, which returns to the league in 2025-26. There will be two, six-team divisions — North...
PIAA Class 5A baseball quarterfinals preview: Penn-Trafford vs. Hollidaysburg
PIAA baseball playoffs Class 5A Quarterfinals Penn-Trafford (21-3) vs. Hollidaysburg (15-6) 4 p.m. Thursday at Sargents Field at Point Stadium, Johnstown First round: Penn-Trafford 3, Lower Dauphin 2; Hollidaysburg 4, Franklin Regional 2 Winner plays: Winner of Monsignor Bonner (18-8)/Bethel Park (16-7-1) Monday in semifinals (time, site TBD) Coaches: Lou...
Former Latrobe state champ takes on head coaching job in NCAA Division I tennis
From a high school and college star to a 10-year professional and now a budding college coach, Joelle Kissell has experienced success at just about every level of tennis. The Latrobe graduate and Hostetter native is about to embark on her newest venture. Kissell is taking her knowledge of the...
Terrelle Pryor, Dick Hoak, Joe Mucci to enter National High School Football Hall of Fame
A hall of fame enshrinement ceremony this weekend one state over will include three Jeannette football legends. Late coach Joe Mucci and former star quarterbacks Dick Hoak and Terrelle Pryor will be inducted in the National High School Football Hall of Fame during a ceremony Saturday at Umstattd Hall at...
Penn-Trafford baseball team enjoying PIAA playoff ride
The Road Warriors are ready for their next excursion. But is their bus? When Penn-Trafford was preparing to leave Myrtle Beach at the beginning of what has been a historic baseball season, the team bus broke down and the Warriors were left standing by for a ride. What was another...
Penn-Trafford baseball warms up in time to win PIAA opener
Maybe Penn-Trafford expected a slow start in the PIAA baseball playoffs. A shaky defense that allowed two unearned runs gave that impression early in Monday’s game. But that didn’t keep the WPIAL champion Warriors from winning their state tournament opener. You can keep your WPIAL hangovers. There is only one...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Franklin Regional’s Palmer Jackson caps NCAA career
When Palmer Jackson tapped in for par on the ninth hole at Omni La Costa North Course in Carlsbad, Calif., last weekend, he brought an end to a shining college golf career at Notre Dame. Now, the turning-professional talk officially can begin. The grad student and Franklin Regional product tied...
Westmoreland County PIAA softball playoff capsules: Games for Monday, June 3, 2024
PIAA softball playoffs Class 5A First round Penn-Trafford (15-6) at Central Mountain (14-5) 4:30 p.m. Monday Winner plays: Winner of Latrobe (11-12)/Armstrong (18-3) Thursday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD) Players to watch: Ella Mains, Penn-Trafford; Cora Myers, Central Mountain Extra bases: Penn-Trafford hits the road for the state tournament after...
Penn-Trafford softball team hopes to follow in footsteps of 2019 state champs
Penn-Trafford senior catcher Mack Keenan remembers watching the team bus follow a fire truck escort back to Harrison City in 2019 after the Lady Warriors softball team won the PIAA championship. The town showed up to greet the state champs. Of course, Keenan was just an impressionable middle schooler then,...
Season turns out unforgettable for Bailey Snowberger, Norwin softball team
Leadoff hitter Bailey Snowberger doubled to open the WPIAL 6A softball championship Friday at Cal (Pa.). After she scored the game’s first run, a teammate said, “congratulations” as Snowberger returned to the dugout. “I’m like, what do you mean?” Snowberger said. “I didn’t know what she was talking about.” The...
Return to state playoffs a learning experience for Latrobe softball
There were a lot of empty seats on the Latrobe softball team bus Tuesday after the Wildcats lost to Penn-Trafford in the WPIAL Class 5A third-place game at Gateway. The reason was several players decided to drive home with family instead of going home with the team. But the Wildcats...
Westmoreland County high school notebook: Southmoreland star picks Pitt-Greensburg
Ty Keffer has been a dynamic, three-sport athlete at Southmoreland. He has lit up the scoreboard in basketball, pulled in leaping catches in football and struck out numerous batters in baseball. But the athletic Keffer’s top sport is basketball, and he has decided to extend his playing career at a...
Westmoreland County high school athletes of the week: Penn-Trafford’s Cam Ponko, Hempfield’s Peyton Murray
Cam Ponko School: Penn-Trafford Class: Junior Sport: Softball Claim to fame: Ponko helped the Warriors clinch third place in WPIAL Class 5A as she went 2 for 3 with two RBIs in a 4-1 victory over Latrobe in the consolation game. A third baseman, Ponko is slashing .500/.549/.968 with nine...
