Bill Beckner stories, Page 61
McKeesport’s Matt Miller takes over girls basketball team
Matt Miller is the head football coach at McKeesport, but he is also the girls basketball coach — at least for now. Miller was named the acting coach of the Lady Tigers after the resignation of coach Amy Gumbert. The reason for her resignation is unclear, but McKeesport athletic director...
Westmoreland athletes of the week: Hempfield’s Amelia Droste, Derry’s Jacob Hauser
Amelia Droste School: Hempfield Class: Sophomore Sport: Bowling Claim to fame: Droste has been a key part of Hempfield’s team. The Spartans won the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Bowling League title last season and are once again contenders in Class 3A. Droste rolled a 247 and 224 to lead the Spartans...
Derry boys mount comeback to defeat Mt. Pleasant
Derry calls its style of play “Run and Jump.” “We like to get out and go,” freshman forward Stanley Rajkovich said. A third-quarter run allowed the Trojans to jump ahead to stay in their second meeting of the season against Mt. Pleasant. Chaos tends to favor the Trojans, who turned...
Norwin’s Luke Denny commits to Division I Lehigh for football
When his first football scholarship offer came in, Luke Denny was overcome with emotion. “I called my grandparents crying,” the Norwin senior said. “It was like, this is really happening.” But that offer came during the regular season — Week 4 vs. Woodland Hills — and it was from Division...
Westmoreland County high school notebook: Norwin runner makes Division I commitment
Rosemary Gaydos became the latest Norwin track and field athlete to commit to a Division I college program. Gaydos will continue her distance-running and cross country career at St. Francis (Pa.) in Loretto. She has lettered every year in cross country, track and field and swimming. Her personal-best times are...
Norwin notebook: Knights runner makes Division I college choice
Rosemary Gaydos became the latest Norwin track and field athlete to commit to a Division I college program. Gaydos will continue her distance-running and cross-country career at St. Francis (Pa.) in Loretto. Gaydos has lettered every year in cross country, track and field and swimming. Her personal-best times are 19...
Belle Vernon runs past Southmoreland in stat-filled ‘track meet’
Given room to run, Belle Vernon feasted on transition points and loaded up the stat sheet Friday night, ringing up a season high for points in an 85-73 victory at Southmoreland in Section 3-4A boys basketball. Junior 6-foot-6 forward Tommy Davis and junior guard Trevor Kovatch had career scoring nights,...
Westmoreland County boys basketball notebook: Seton Hill to host weekend showcase
Some good basketball could be in store on “The Hill” this weekend. The Shootout at Seton Hill, expanded to two days because of its popularity, will be Saturday and Sunday at Seton Hill’s McKenna Center. There will be 11 showcase games over the weekend, eight boys and three girls. The...
Stacking wins nothing new for Monessen boys
It is late January, and the WPIAL basketball regular season is headed for its final two weeks. That can mean only one thing: another winning streak for Monessen. The Greyhounds (12-2, 4-1), like they have the past two seasons, strung together another tapestry of wins along their chase to another...
Norwin girls earn emotional victory over North Allegheny, complete season sweep
Norwin could have given the game ball to any number of players after an impressive 64-44 win over rival North Allegheny. Junior Kendall Berger had 21 points and made 11 of 12 free throws Thursday night in North Huntingdon. Sophomore Ava Christopher scored 10 and helped sustain a key fourth-quarter...
Down to 4 healthy players after car crash, Jeannette girls basketball team cancels game
Jeannette’s girls basketball team had to cancel Wednesday night’s game at Geibel because it had only four healthy players. Two Jeannette players — Venicia Vignoli and Adrianna Allison — are out with lingering injuries sustained in a car accident Jan. 15. Jeannette’s coach, Anna Leonard, the mother of Vignoli and...
Westmoreland County girls basketball notebook: Norwin, North Allegheny ready for another high-stakes showdown
Two of the top teams and rivals in WPIAL Class 6A girls basketball will meet for the second time this season Thursday night when North Allegheny visits Norwin in Section 1. Norwin (13-3, 5-0) is ranked No. 2 and North Allegheny (14-1, 4-1) No. 3 in the TribLive HSSN rankings....
1st-year Latrobe girls coach stresses defense as key to earning playoff spot
It is a point of pride for the first-year coach at Latrobe, and it makes her eyes light up when it shows itself in key moments, when it is executed properly. “It” is defense. And Latrobe girls basketball coach Mackenzie Livingston teaches it, preaches it and demonstrates it. She thinks...
Greensburg Central Catholic boys edge Serra Catholic in thriller
Braden Riley’s eyes widened as the ball popped loose from Owen Dumbroski’s grasp. The Greensburg Central Catholic guard ripped away a steal with 3.1 seconds, then made 1 of 2 free throws as the No. 2-ranked Centurions edged Serra Catholic, 61-59, in a tight Section 3-2A boys basketball game Tuesday...
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...
