Chris Harlan stories, Page 103
2 WPIAL football realignment proposals would cut down on travel
WPIAL football teams will play games closer to home next season, one way or another. The WPIAL revealed two football realignment options Wednesday night, one that keeps the current six-classification format and another that would change things drastically. But either option would eliminate many of the long bus rides schools...
WPIAL football realignment: Small tweaks or major overhaul? Schools will decide
The WPIAL revealed two football realignments options Wednesday night, one that only tweaks the current format and another that would change the landscape drastically. Now, WPIAL schools must choose. Football coaches and administrators gathered in the North Hills Middle School auditorium Wednesday to discuss conference and schedule options for the...
Ethan Morton’s triple-double leads Butler past rival Pine-Richland in OTVideo
Ethan Morton’s 3-point shot wasn’t falling and Pine-Richland’s defense didn’t allow many layups, so Butler’s star prevailed instead with free throws. He took 18. He made 17. Morton finished with 33 points, 23 rebounds and 12 assists at home Tuesday night as No. 2 Butler defeated No. 4 Pine-Richland, 88-84,...
Butler high jumper ranks 2nd nationally after TSTCA indoor opener
Butler high jumper Sami Taoufik started his TSTCA indoor track season Saturday with an early-season victory that has him ranked second nationally. The senior cleared 6 feet, 8 inches and was among 14 WPIAL athletes that won individual events at the TSTCA opener in Edinboro. Indoor track season is just...
Trib WPIAL boys basketball rankings: Week ending Jan. 5, 2020
WPIAL rankings Boys basketball Class 6A 1. Fox Chapel, 10-0, 1 2. Butler, 7-4, 2 3. Mt. Lebanon, 8-3, 3 4. Pine-Richland, 8-2, 4 5. Upper St. Clair, 10-1, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Penn Hills, 6-2, 1 2. Trinity, 9-2, 2 3. Shaler, 7-3, 3 4. Mars, 6-2,...
Trib WPIAL girls basketball rankings: Week ending Jan. 5, 2020
WPIAL rankings Girls basketball Class 6A 1. Bethel Park, 8-0, 1 2. Norwin, 7-2, 3 3. North Allegheny, 6-1, 2 4. Upper St. Clair, 6-2, 4 5. Mt. Lebanon, 8-2, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Chartiers Valley, 9-0, 1 2. Woodland Hills, 7-2, 4 3. Trinity, 7-2, 2 4....
2010s TribLive HSSN All-Decade Football Team: Coaches
The WPIAL awarded 48 football titles during the past decade and most of them went to the same 10 coaches. Combined, Bill Cherpak, Eric Kasperowicz, Mark Lyons, Tom Nola, Bob Palko, Joe Rossi, Terry Totten, Wayne Wade, Art Walker and Mike Zmijanac collected 34 WPIAL titles. The rest of the...
2010s TribLive HSSN All-Decade Football Team: Defense
When the NFL playoffs arrive this weekend, three WPIAL defensive stars from the past decade will be in uniform, a testament to the football talent Western Pennsylvania produces. But that’s not what earned them their recognition here. As high school players, Thomas Jefferson’s Chase Winovich, Woodland Hills’ Quinton Jefferson and...
Struggling Butler football program leaving WPIAL for independent schedule
Worried that years of losing will force its program to someday fold, Butler decided it won’t play WPIAL football next season and instead will put together an independent schedule. The school notified the WPIAL on Friday, Butler athletic director Bill Mylan said. The team endured its second consecutive 0-10 season...
2010s TribLive HSSN All-Decade Football Team: Offense
The 2010s were a record-setting decade for WPIAL football teams, with career, single-season and single-game record books rewritten more than once. When the decade dawned, no WPIAL passer had broken the career 7,000-yard barrier. None had thrown for 3,000 yards in a season. Nobody had touched 500 yards in a...
Trib WPIAL girls basketball rankings: Week ending Dec. 29, 2019
WPIAL rankings Girls basketball Class 6A 1. Bethel Park, 7-0, 1 2. North Allegheny, 6-0, 2 3. Norwin, 5-2, 3 4. Upper St. Clair, 4-2, 4 5. Mt. Lebanon, 6-2, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Chartiers Valley, 7-0, 1 2. Trinity, 7-1, 2 3. Thomas Jefferson, 6-1, 3 4....
Trib WPIAL boys basketball rankings: Week ending Dec. 29, 2019
WPIAL rankings Boys basketball Class 6A 1. Fox Chapel, 8-0, 3 2. Butler, 5-3, 1 3. Mt. Lebanon, 6-2, 2 4. Pine-Richland, 6-2, 4 5. Upper St. Clair, 8-1, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Penn Hills, 5-2, 1 2. Trinity, 6-2, 2 3. Shaler, 5-3, 3 4. Mars, 6-2,...
Class 2A all-state football: Avonworth’s Duke Johncour named Coach of the Year
Fresh off their team’s first PIAA championship appearance, two Avonworth players earned all-state honors Saturday and Duke Johncour was named Pennsylvania’s Coach of the Year in Class 2A. Antelopes running back Jax Miller and lineman Josh Elm were among six WPIAL players named all-state in a vote of Pennsylvania football...
Class 4A all-state football: 4 Thomas Jefferson players selected, Cherpak voted top coach
Thomas Jefferson’s quarterback, top running back, wide receiver and lineman all earned all-state honors Saturday, statewide recognition for winning WPIAL and PIAA titles with an undefeated 16-0 record. Additionally, Jaguars coach Bill Cherpak was chosen as the Class 4A Coach of the Year in the vote of Pennsylvania football writers....
Class 6A all-state football: Central Catholic leads WPIAL with 4 players
Central Catholic senior Jonathan Opalko twice made game-winning field goals in the playoffs and had a school-record 54-yarder in the regular season, kicks that earned him all-state honors Saturday. Opalko was one of four Central Catholic players named all-state in a vote of Pennsylvania football writers. The Albany recruit was...
Class A all-state football: West Greene’s Ben Jackson named Pa. Player of the Year
West Greene’s Ben Jackson became the first player in WPIAL history to rush for 3,000 yards in a single season, an achievement that earned him accolades this fall. On Friday, Jackson added another when he was named as the state’s Class A player of the year in a vote of...
Class 3A all-state football: Central Valley leads WPIAL teams with 4 honoreesVideo
WPIAL champion Central Valley, which returned to the PIAA finals for the first time in five years, was rewarded Friday with four all-state selections. Among the Warriors honored were brothers Reed and Sean FitzSimmons, who solidified the team’s strong defense. Reed, a senior, was the middle linebacker. Sean, a sophomore,...
Class 5A all-state football: Peters Township, Gateway, Moon claim multiple spots
WPIAL finalists Gateway and Peters Township combined Friday to fill five spots on the Class 5A all-state team led by Gators junior Derrick Davis, who was picked for the second consecutive year. Peters Township had three players earn all-state honors in a vote of Pennsylvania football writers: senior Josh Casilli...
Trib WPIAL boys basketball rankings: Week ending Dec. 22, 2019
WPIAL rankings Boys basketball Class 6A 1. Butler, 5-1, 1 2. Mt. Lebanon, 5-1, 2 3. Fox Chapel, 6-0, 3 4. Pine-Richland, 4-2, 4 5. Upper St. Clair, 6-1, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Penn Hills, 5-1, 2 2. Trinity, 5-1, 4 3. Shaler, 5-2, 3 4. Mars, 5-2,...
Trib WPIAL girls basketball rankings: Week ending Dec. 22, 2019
WPIAL rankings Girls basketball Class 6A 1. Bethel Park, 6-0, 1 2. North Allegheny, 5-0, 2 3. Norwin, 4-2, 4 4. Upper St. Clair, 3-2, NR 5. Mt. Lebanon, 4-2, 5 Out: Peters Township (3-3, 3) Class 5A 1. Chartiers Valley, 5-0, 1 2. Trinity, 6-1, 2 3. Thomas Jefferson,...
Western Pa. football recruits make official commitments during early signing period
The early signing period for Division I football recruits arrived Wednesday and high school seniors across Western Pennsylvania took to social media to reveal their official commitments. FBS and FCS recruits can sign a National Letter of Intent through Friday or wait until the traditional signing period Feb. 5. The...
Transfers will force Aliquippa football to Class 4A, pending appeal to PIAA
Aliquippa ranks among the smallest football schools in the WPIAL, with only four more boys than Jeannette and nine fewer than Shenango. But while those two schools will play in Class A next fall, the PIAA on Monday informed Aliquippa that it must compete in Class 4A against the likes...
WPIAL denies Butler request to join District 10 in football
Mired in a 20-game losing streak, Butler’s football team asked to leave the WPIAL and join District 10, but that request was denied by the WPIAL board Monday. Letting a school move just one sport to a different PIAA district would set a bad precedent, WPIAL executive director Tim O’Malley...
Missouri wrestling champion Wyatt Henson eligible for WPIAL, PIAA tournaments
Waynesburg transfer Wyatt Henson, a Missouri state wrestling champion, was ruled eligible Monday for the WPIAL and PIAA tournaments this winter. The WPIAL initially ruled Henson ineligible for the postseason under a PIAA rule that targets all transfers. But the WPIAL decided Monday that the junior qualified for a postseason...
WPIAL executive director Tim O’Malley retiring, board promotes Amy Scheuneman
The WPIAL will have a change in leadership this summer. WPIAL executive director Tim O’Malley is retiring June 30 after 14 years as the district’s top administrator and will be replaced by Amy Scheuneman, the associate executive director. The WPIAL board accepted O’Malley’s resignation letter Monday and voted to promote...
