Bill Beckner stories, Page 55
USC head coach Lincoln Riley pays visit to Latrobe linebacker Alex Tatsch
College coaches are flocking to Latrobe to meet with junior football prospect Alex Tatsch. Normally, it’s an assistant coach who makes the trip to see the four-star linebacker in person. But on Tuesday, a head coach showed up to sit down with Tatsch. And he came a long way, as...
Westmoreland County freshmen making immediate impact on college hardwood
When Montevallo men’s basketball coach Anthony Komara came to Landon Butler and told the true freshman he would be starting in the season opener, Butler didn’t get sweaty palms. Even if the opponent was the defending NCAA Division II national champion, Nova Southeastern, the team his brother, Bryce, faced in...
Nick White approved as Franklin Regional boys soccer coach
Nick White was approved Monday as the boys soccer coach at Franklin Regional. White replaces Lukas Petersen, who resigned after two seasons. Franklin Regional finished 12-9 last season and made a run to the WPIAL Class 3A semifinals after a 2-1 victory over No. 3 seeded Moon. The Panthers were...
McKeesport fights off upset-minded Latrobe girls
Latrobe sold merchandise in the gym lobby Monday night. Hats, shirts, you name it. There were deals on orange-and-black Wildcats gear everywhere. The girls basketball team took an upset special deep into the second half against No. 3 McKeesport but couldn’t finish the deal in a 51-43 loss in Section...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Christiane Frye hits milestone for Seton Hill women
Seton Hill senior basketball player Christiane Frye scored her 1,000th career point as the Griffins (9-7, 6-4) rallied for a 66-62 victory Saturday over visiting Mercyhurst. Frye finished with 18 points, eight in the fourth quarter, while sophomores Helene Cowan (17), Abby Mankins (Greensburg Salem, 12) and Hallie Cowan (11)...
Westmoreland County athletes of the week: Franklin Regional’s Juliano Marion, Greensburg Central Catholic’s Erica Gribble
Erica Gribble School: Greensburg Central Catholic Class: Sophomore Sport: Basketball Claim to fame: A Division I college prospect who continues to impress, Gribble had another big week for GCC, which is ranked No. 1 in WPIAL Class 2A. She pumped in 23 points in a 62-53 win over Winchester Thurston,...
Westmoreland County high school notebook: Mt. Pleasant’s Lily King highlights WCCA swim meet
The Westmoreland County Coaches Association will host its final event of the winter with the swimming and diving championships Friday and Saturday at Derry. Last year, several meet records fell. Returning standout Lily King of Mt. Pleasant, a North Carolina State commit, is worth the price of a ticket. King,...
Norwin’s goal: ‘Swim fast and be hungry’
Norwin’s swimming teams are hoping to take the momentum of a pre-holiday run into the thick of the season schedule. The boys team had a 5-1 record and the girls were 3-3 as WPIAL section play was ramping up. “We (were) heading into the hardest part of the year over...
Franklin Regional boys win 2OT thriller over Shaler
Uncle Kevin would have been proud. Of a thrilling Franklin Regional win. Of a runaway second overtime by the Panthers in a playoff-like atmosphere. And most of all, of his nephew’s big shot. Franklin Regional guard Fin Hutchison lost his uncle, Kevin Sebunia, who lived three houses down from the...
Westmoreland County boys basketball notebook: Class 5A section loaded with contenders
Section 3 could be the most competitive lineup of teams in WPIAL Class 5A. That much is clear at the halfway point of the schedule. Latrobe gave the standings a rip-roaring jolt Tuesday night with a 63-60 win at No. 1-ranked Gateway. “You see how hard they play,” Gateway coach...
Sharpened by early-season gauntlet, Latrobe boys find their stride
When it came time to piece together the boys basketball schedule for this season at Latrobe, veteran coach Brad Wetzel stretched boundaries. The Wildcats traveled south, then north, looking to sharpen their skills against teams from beyond the depths of WPIAL territory. Seven of their first nine games were against...
Kiski Area grinds out section win over Penn-Trafford
Nail files and sandpaper serve a similar purpose to what Kiski Area’s 3-2 zone can do to teams. And, how the Cavaliers win sometimes. But their latest game took it to another level. Or, maybe down one. “Grind it out,” Cavaliers’ coach Corey Smith said. “That’s what you have to...
Greensburg Central Catholic girls weather storm without senior leader Morgan
When a player the caliber of Mya Morgan goes out with an injury, some teams might go into a five-alarm panic. The sky is falling. The season is over. We can’t win without her. But Greensburg Central Catholic isn’t some teams. Morgan, the team’s second-leading scorer and a Cal (Pa.)...
Westmoreland County girls basketball notebook: Greensburg Salem to honor Rick Klimchock’s milestone
A blend of basketball knowledge and open-mindedness in an always-changing game, along with dependable people around him and sustained longevity, carried Rick Klimchock to a milestone victory. “I’ve been in a constant love affair with hoops,” the Greensburg Salem girls basketball coach said. “It has lasted since 1978. No one...
Latrobe shocks No. 1 Gateway for program’s ‘biggest (win) in years’
Gateway calls its home gymnasium “The Swamp.” Latrobe walked onto the floor Tuesday night and sank the Gators and their No. 1 ranking. The Wildcats used an impressive start and some clutch defense down the stretch to stun the top-rated Gators, 63-60, in the upset of the year in Class...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Former Norwin QB Jack Salopek picks new school
Quarterback Jack Salopek found a new home for his final two years of college football. The Norwin graduate who entered the NCAA transfer portal in November announced he will sign with Elon (N.C.), an FCS program that plays in the Colonial Athletic Association. Salopek (6-foot-3, 186 pounds) said he felt...
With big 4th quarter, Olivia Pepple hits 1,000 points, leads Penn-Trafford past Latrobe
With a steal and a left-handed finish with 1 minute, 30 seconds remaining, Olivia Pepple reached a personal milestone. When the final buzzer sounded, the senior guard from Penn-Trafford was happier to get a team win. Pepple scored her 1,000th career point as the Warriors pulled past visiting Latrobe, 51-40,...
Seton Hill assistant coach Connor Laverty dies at 25
Seton Hill is mourning the loss of men’s basketball coach Connor Laverty. The 25-year-old second-year assistant died Friday after a battle with lymphoma. Griffins head coach Ben Wilkins said Laverty combated the illness through five rounds of chemotherapy, but contracted hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis, a systematic inflammatory syndrome. The rare immune deficiency,...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: GCC grad Melina Maietta surpasses milestone
With a reputation for scoring points in bunches, big things were expected of Melina Maietta at Pitt-Greensburg when the guard transferred from Coastal Carolina. The Greensburg Central Catholic alum has not disappointed. Maietta joined the UPG women’s basketball 1,000-point club in the team’s 98-53 loss to AMCC leader La Roche....
Westmoreland HS notebook: Ligonier Valley graduate Haden Sierocky returning to gridiron with Washington & Jefferson
The itch to return to the gridiron was too strong for one of the better two-sport athletes to come out of Ligonier Valley in recent years. Haden Sierocky, a 2023 graduate, is shifting gears with not only the college he will attend but also the sport he will play. Initially...
Westmoreland high school athletes of the week: Latrobe’s Lauren Bell and Penn-Trafford’s Tyler Funk
Lauren Bell School: Latrobe Class: Junior Sport: Swimming Claim to fame: Bell won the 50- and 100-yard freestyles and swam a leg for the winning 200 medley and 200 freestyle relays as Latrobe edged past Derry, 94-90. In a 92-86 victory against Hempfield, she won the 100 butterfly, 100 backstroke...
Westmoreland County high school notebook: Franklin Regional honors teammate with leukemia
During a brief pregame observance, senior players Cam Rowell and Cooper Rankin held a corner of the No. 44 Franklin Regional basketball jersey Tuesday night at midcourt as public address announcer Dean Berardinelli briefed fans about Caden Brush. A junior basketball player at Franklin Regional, Brush is battling leukemia, and...
Norwin notebook: Girls wrestling wins 1st dual meet; girls basketball faces tough schedule
With an electric atmosphere to usher in a new era, the Norwin girls wrestling team won its inaugural dual match as WPIAL program by toppling visiting Southmoreland, 45-18, on Jan. 3. Addison Elyes (112 pounds), Camden Reese (136), Avalin Barry (142), Jo Dollman (148), and Kavsyn Champion (155) all posted...
Transfer reunites Bilinsky brothers at Pitt-Johnstown
It wasn’t exactly a brotherly shove, but Adam Bilinsky admits having a chance to play basketball with his older sibling again played a key role in his decision on where to transfer. Bilinsky, who decided to exit Mercyhurst after playing in just nine games as a freshman, will join his...
‘R&R’ duo fills highlight reels, leads Franklin Regional to strong start
Franklin Regional caught the attention of local boys basketball fans with its 10-1 start. The Panthers’ run has a lot to do with the play of a formidable tandem made up of seniors Cam Rowell and Cooper Rankin. The “R&R” duo has been fun to watch and helped elevate the...
