Chris Harlan stories, Page 116

When the PIAA increased the baseball pitch count from 100 to 105 last summer, that change affected only the playoffs. That discrepancy between regular-season and postseason rules has caused confusion and already cost one WPIAL team a win. Laurel notified Neshannock on Wednesday that it would forfeit their game from...

Moon junior Donovan Johnson won a state basketball title this winter as one of the best players in the WPIAL, but his eligibility for next season is in question. High school athletes are allowed only six seasons of interscholastic basketball after sixth grade under PIAA rules, and the WPIAL board...

After hurling a 97-mph fastball, reliever Nick Burdi clutched his pitching arm just above the right elbow, fell to his knees and stared down at the PNC Park mound. At that awful moment, which forced Burdi to walk off in tears, an ugly night for the Pittsburgh Pirates bullpen became...

Bryan Reynolds’ major league debut didn’t draw as much fanfare as teammate Cole Tucker’s, a former first-round draft pick of the Pittsburgh Pirates. But he quickly has shown his worth. “One of them is like chasing a roadrunner,” manager Clint Hurdle said of Tucker. “The other guy is the sheepdog...

Seven months removed from surgery, Gregory Polanco insisted his recovery isn’t just a little ahead of schedule. “A lot,” said Polanco, who was activated Monday from the injured list, clearing the way for the Pittsburgh Pirates right fielder to make his much-anticipated season debut. “I can’t describe how happy I...

Woodland Hills junior Josh Rawlings, a football recruit with more than two dozen offers, announced Sunday a Top 8 list of favorites that included Pitt. Also among his favorites were East Carolina, Indiana, Iowa State, Minnesota, Syracuse, Vanderbilt and Virginia. However, Rawlings added: “This list is not final. Recruitment still...

Butler basketball star Ethan Morton was named to USA Today’s All-Pennsylvania team — one of two honors the junior received this week. Morton also was recognized by MaxPreps as one of the nation’s top juniors. Joining Morton on the All-Pennsylvania team were Abington’s Eric Dixon, Roman Catholic’s Hakim Hart, Kennedy...

Baseball rankings Class 6A 1. Pine-Richland, 10-3, 1 2. Penn-Trafford, 11-1, 4 3. Seneca Valley, 8-3, 2 4. Bethel Park, 8-2, — 5. North Allegheny, 7-5, 5 Out: Norwin (6-4, 3) Class 5A 1. West Allegheny, 9-1, 1 2. Franklin Regional, 9-1, 2 3. Hampton, 7-4, — 4. Shaler, 8-3,...

The PIAA administration is watching closely as a state legislator wades into the public vs. private debate, but it would rather see its own competitive-balance efforts given time to work. “If you asked us as a staff, we don’t have any interest in segregating the membership,” PIAA associate executive director...

Westinghouse junior Dayon Hayes is becoming the hottest City League football recruit in years. The 6-foot-3, 235-pound defensive lineman announced a scholarship offer Friday from Penn State, a few weeks after visiting State College. Hayes, who received a Pitt offer in February, now lists a dozen FBS or FCS offers....

Greensburg Salem senior Malia Anderson ran the fastest time in the state this season to win the girls 800 meters Thursday at the Butler Invitational. The Georgetown recruit won in 2:13.36, which puts her atop the early-season Pennsylvania rankings, according to Milesplit stats. The state’s previous best was a 2:14.97...

Seneca Valley athletic director Heather Lewis is the only newcomer voted onto the WPIAL board of directors this year in election results revealed Wednesday. Nine of the 10 incumbents seeking at-large seats won reelection, each for another one-year term. The results were announced during the WPIAL annual meeting at the...

Aliquippa junior Zuriah Fisher is popular with ACC and Big 10 football coaches. The 6-foot-3, 230-pound linebacker announced scholarship offers this week from Michigan State, Virginia and Purdue — giving him six from the Big 10 and four from the ACC. Both Pitt and Penn State already have offered him....

The WPIAL board voted Wednesday to hold an eligibility hearing for West Mifflin sophomore Nahki Johnson. The football standout transferred from Steel Valley in December and his former school’s administration didn’t approve the transfer paperwork, WPIAL executive director Tim O’Malley said. Johnson’s football coach at Steel Valley, Rod Steele, was...

Penn Hills, Pine-Richland and Butler will receive more than $5,000 apiece from the WPIAL as part of its annual share-back program from playoff gate ticket revenues. In all, more than 100 schools have a check in the mail. But the WPIAL won’t be sharing as much as hoped because attendance...

The WPIAL softball championships are headed to Peterswood Park in Peters Township next month. The WPIAL planned to return to Cal (Pa.), but Lilley Field remains under renovation and unavailable. So the WPIAL board voted Wednesday to pick Peterswood over bids from Pitt, Seton Hill and Upper St. Clair’s Boyce...

The WPIAL announced the 20 winners of its annual scholar-athlete scholarship contest. Each receives $1,000 and will be honored at a banquet May 13 at the DoubleTree in Green Tree. The 10 girls winners are Blackhawk’s Mady Aulbach, Freeport’s Allison DeJidas, Fox Chapel’s Marisa Hardiman, West Greene’s Madison Lampe, Shady...

Peterswood Park in Peters Township will host the WPIAL softball championships next month. The WPIAL planned originally to use Cal (Pa.), but Lilley Field remains under renovation and unavailable. So, the WPIAL board voted unanimously Wednesday to choose Peterswood over bids from Pitt, Seton Hill and Upper St. Clair’s Boyce...

Bill Sinning has overseen WPIAL officials since 2006, but the retired basketball referee will leave that task to someone else next year. Sinning informed the PIAA that he won’t seek an eighth term as the Male Officials Representative for District 7. His current two-year term ends June 30, 2020. “It’s...

From Dave Wannstedt to Jason Pinkston, Baldwin and Pitt have had a number of links through the years. Sophomore lineman Dorien Ford gave a nod to that shared history Tuesday when he announced he’d received a scholarship offer from Pitt. Along with his tweet was a picture of Pinkston from...

Seneca Valley junior Josh Kaltenberger, one of the state’s top centers, is quickly approaching a dozen Division 1 football offers. His latest came this week from FCS schools Columbia and Robert Morris. The 6-foot-5, 285-pound lineman is ranked as Pennsylvania’s fifth-best prospect in the 2020 class, according to 247Sports.com. The...

Undefeated record, WPIAL championship, state championship and national ranking. Peters Township accomplished almost everything a girls basketball team can in one season. The Indians, who went 30-0, finished this season ranked No. 24 nationally in the USA Today Super 25 rankings released this week. Peters Township was the only Pennsylvania...

Two WPIAL sophomores were ranked this week among the nation’s top football recruits by 247Sports in the websites list of 2021 prospects. Central Catholic’s Elliot Donald was ranked No. 38 and Gateway’s Derrick Davis was No. 41. They were among eight Pennsylvania recruits to make the 247-player list. Donald (6-2,...

Waynesburg javelin thrower Scott Benco took over the top spot in the state rankings with a 192-foot, 6-inch toss Saturday, a distance that also ranks him among the nation’s best this season. The senior earned the personal-best at the Tri-State Track Coaches Association Outdoor Championship in West Mifflin. Benco’s throw...

Paul Chryst left Western Pennsylvania five years ago, but the former Pitt coach still recruits the WPIAL. Central Catholic sophomore Elliot Donald, one of the state’s top recruits for 2021, announced an offer Friday from Chryst’s staff at Wisconsin. The scholarship offer was the 12th for Donald, a 6-foot-2, 230-pound...