Bill Beckner stories, Page 90
Westmoreland Sports Club welcomes Pittsburgh Warriors hockey team to next meeting
The Westmoreland Sports Club will meet again 7 p.m. Thursday for its latest social event. This time, Sam Johnson and Dave Jackel of the Pittsburgh Warriors hockey team will speak to members and guests at Ferrante’s Lakeview in Greensburg. The Warriors are a team of disabled veterans. Johnson is a...
Westmoreland high school notebook: GCC soccer coaches step down
Greensburg Central Catholic is looking for head coaches for boys and girls soccer after the coaches from both programs resigned. Rob Fabean, who led the boys team after two seasons, stepped down and was hired last week to coach the Ringgold boys on a three-year contract. Kara Batey resigned after...
Westmoreland WPIAL basketball playoff capsules: Games for Monday, Feb. 20. 2023
BOYS Class 3A First round 10-Belle Vernon (10-11) at 7-Quaker Valley (14-6) 7 p.m. Monday, Quaker Valley High School, Leetsdale Winner plays: Winner of 15-Freeport (13-9)/2-Laurel Highlands (19-2) Thursday (time, site TBD) in quarterfinals Players to watch: Zion Moore, Belle Vernon; Joey Coyle, Quaker Valley Layup lines: Belle Vernon had...
Westmoreland high school athletes of the week: Week ending Feb. 19, 2023
Melina Stratigos School: Belle Vernon Sport: Swimming Year: Junior Claim to fame: Stratigos helped the Leopards to a 67-47 victory over Steel Valley as she won the 200-yard freestyle and 100-yard butterfly and swam legs of the winning 200 medley and 400 freestyle relay teams. She also won a pair...
Fast start lifts No. 5 OLSH to 1st-round win over Mt. Pleasant
Falling into an early hole in the WPIAL basketball playoffs is often a bad sign, especially for a lower seed. It certainly didn’t help Mt. Pleasant in its tournament opener. While the Vikings chipped away at a double-digit deficit, they spent the afternoon feeling remorseful about the opening minutes and...
Norwin notebook: Alex Thomas sparks streaking hockey team
The playoff-bound Norwin hockey team made it four wins in a row as the Knights batted away Indiana. Alex Thomas had three goals and an assist, and Dom Cerilli scored twice in a 5-2 victory for the Knights (14-4-1) on Feb. 9. Burmeister made 24 saves for Norwin, which welcomed...
Norwin pole vaulter lands with Division I track program at Northeastern
Pole vaulting was, in the beginning, nothing more than a harmless suggestion to Hannah Shaw. Now, it’s her passion. And it has landed her a spot with a Division I college program. Shaw, a senior at Norwin, will continue her track and field career at Northeastern, a Colonial Athletic Association...
Erica Gribble leads Greensburg CC to dominant win over California in WPIAL 2A 1st round
“Just go play.” That was the advice Erica Gribble gave herself as she prepared for the first high school basketball playoff game of her blossoming career. The Greensburg Central Catholic freshman guard didn’t flinch — nor did several of her teammates who tasted the WPIAL playoffs for the first time...
Westmoreland basketball playoff preview capsule for games of Feb. 18, 2023
WPIAL basketball playoffs Girls Class 3A First round 12-Mt. Pleasant (14-8) vs. 5-Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (16-6) Noon Saturday, AHN Arena, Peters Township Winner plays: Winner of 13-McGuffey (15-7)/4-Avonworth (15-5), Wednesday (time, site TBD) in quarterfinals Players to watch: Tiffany Zelmore, Mt. Pleasant; Emma Ficorilli, OLSH Layup lines:...
Ailing Yough girls come up short in preliminary round against Beaver Falls
Mikalah Chewning leaned over a trash can behind the Yough bench during the first half as she dealt with flu-like symptoms. Autumn Matthews left late in the third quarter with a possible concussion after she hit her head on the floor. Hailey Bock wasn’t as sharp around the rim as...
Westmoreland basketball playoff preview capsule for games of Feb. 17, 2023
Boys Class 5A First round 16-Penn-Trafford (7-15) at 1-Peters Township (18-3) 7 p.m. Friday, AHN Arena, Peters Township Winner plays: Winner of 9-Shaler (16-6)/8-South Fayette (13-9) on Wednesday (time, site TBD) in quarterfinals Players to watch: Tyler Freas, Penn-Trafford; Jack Dunbar, Peters Township Layup lines: Penn-Trafford went from last place...
Yough boys crank it up, carry 10-game winning streak into WPIAL Class 3A playoffs
Somebody turned up the volume at Yough. A season that began with promise, flirted with disappointment, then resurfaced as something special, has the Cougars boys basketball team back in WPIAL contention. A slow dance has kicked into a rumba around Herminie, where the Cougars (15-7) are section champions for the...
Monessen girls surge into playoffs as section champs, WPIAL contenders
Monessen was 2-4 and had just opened Section 2-A play with a loss at West Greene. But then, right as rain, the streak happened. The Greyhounds won 13 in a row, captured their first section title since 2012 and established themselves a contender in WPIAL Class A girls basketball. All...
Westmoreland basketball playoff preview capsule for games of Feb. 16, 2023
WPIAL basketball playoffs Girls Class 3A Preliminary round 17-Beaver Falls (9-11) at 16-Yough (10-11) 7 p.m. Thursday at Yough High School, Herminie Winner plays: 1-Shady Side Academy (20-2), noon Saturday at Fox Chapel High School Players to watch: Avina Norman, Beaver Falls; Laney Gerdich, Yough Layup lines: Beaver Falls clinched...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Saint Vincent women’s bowlers enter national rankings
Saint Vincent has a nationally ranked women’s bowling team. For the first time, the Bearcats are listed among the best teams in the National Tenpin Coaches Association Division II/III National Poll. SVC (31-2) checked in a No. 13 in the latest poll. The Bearcats’ .939 winning percentage is the top...
Norwin girls lead Westmoreland County contingent into playoffs as No. 3 seed
For most of December and even late into January, the Norwin girls looked like the favorite to win WPIAL Class 6A. The Lady Knights were ranked No. 1 for much of the basketball regular season, but a couple of losses to Upper St. Clair and North Allegheny put a dent...
GCC freshman Samir Crosby grabs Division I football offer
One Division I football scholarship offer often leads to many more for rising prospects. That could be the case for Samir Crosby, a freshman at Greensburg Central Catholic, who already is on the radar following a promising debut season. Crosby picked up his first high-level scholarship offer Monday, from the...
Breaking down the 2023 WPIAL girls basketball playoff brackets
A closer look at the WPIAL girls basketball playoffs, which begin with preliminary round games Thursday night: Class 6A Favorite: Upper St. Clair (19-2) has not lost in 2023 and takes a 13-game winning streak into the postseason. The Panthers reached the finals last year and lost to Mt. Lebanon...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Frye ties Seton Hill’s single-game scoring record
Don’t plan on leaving Seton Hill women’s basketball games early. You might miss the best part. The Griffins have been taking games down to the wire lately: Four recent games were decided by a total of 10 points. They knocked off IUP, 65-60, at home during their 100th anniversary celebration,...
Westmoreland high school notebook: George fills out football staff at Greensburg Salem
New Greensburg Salem football coach Ty George has filled out his staff of assistants for his debut season. George, a former Hempfield and Seton Hill standout, was an assistant under former Golden Lions coach Dave Keefer. He is retaining some of the former staff and bringing in some new faces....
Westmoreland athletes of the week: Southmoreland’s Maddie Moore, Norwin’s Adam Bilinsky
Maddie Moore School: Southmoreland Sport: Basketball Class: Senior Claim to fame: Moore poured in a career-high 28 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the Scotties to a 62-53 victory over Ringgold to snap a 19-game losing streak. She added 15 points in a 39-35 loss to Uniontown. “Maddie played...
PIHL announces January players of the month
Upper St. Clair played six games in January and senior forward Colin Ruffner scored in every one of them. His efforts earned him PIHL Class 3A Player of the Month honors for January. He joined Franklin Regional senior forward Matt Knizner (2A) and McDowell senior forward Braeden Martin (A) as...
Adam Bilinsky reaches milestone as Norwin eliminates Hempfield from playoffs
Adam Bilinsky was hoping his 1,000th point would come on a dunk. So were his family, friends and fans. After all, clips of some of his high-rising jams have gone viral. The slams have become his calling card. But the senior from Norwin — they call him “Bomber” — settled...
Franklin Regional girls basketball impressive in win vs. Belle Vernon
Franklin Regional did not qualify for the WPIAL girls basketball playoffs, but you would have thought the team won a championship after the final buzzer sounded Thursday night. The players yelled, squirted water bottles and giggled as they left the court. Whether it’s a case of a team peaking too...
Westmoreland County boys basketball notebook: Teams still fighting for playoff spots
A number of Westmoreland County teams still had a shot at the WPIAL boys basketball playoffs in the final week of the regular season. Friday night’s action will fill out the full list of qualifiers. County teams that already have clinched are Norwin (12-8) in 6A, Kiski Area (11-10) in...
