Chris Harlan stories, Page 18
Breaking down the 2024 WPIAL football playoffs
Class 6A Favorite: Central Catholic has finished as the WPIAL runner-up two years in a row, but the Vikings enter this year again as title favorites. They have reached the final 10 of the past 11 years. First-year starting quarterback Jy’Aire Walls has passed for 1,729 yards and 19 touchdowns....
Class 4A seeds raise eyebrows as WPIAL releases brackets for 2024 football playoffs
“Shocked and surprised.” That’s how the coach of three-time defending champion Aliquippa felt when the WPIAL revealed football playoff brackets Saturday. The Quips received a No. 4 seed in a Class 4A bracket that looked a lot different than what coach Vashawn Patrick and some others around the WPIAL had...
WPIAL bracketology: Don Rebel, Chris Harlan forecast 2024 football playoff pairings
Outside of wild cards, the 2024 WPIAL playoff field is set. In the new playoff format, wild card teams are no longer determined by Gardner Points or WPIAL tiebreaker points. So now, 16 additional teams will have to wait until Selection Saturday before the district football committee makes its decisions...
Beaver knocks off Avonworth, creates 3-way tie for Western Hills title
Beaver won its first conference title in almost two decades, but coach Cort Rowse didn’t care to ponder whether this was the biggest win in recent history. “Tonight, it is,” he said. That’s all that mattered to him. Fourth-ranked Beaver forced a three-way tie for the Class 3A Western Hills...
5 things to watch in Week 9: New wild card approach puts playoff hopes in WPIAL football committee’s hands
In most other years, Friday’s finale between Hopewell and North Catholic might be considered almost a play-in game. The winner would finish fourth in the Western Hills Conference and head to the playoffs, while the loser stays home. South Fayette vs. Moon in the Allegheny Six might’ve had the same...
Avonworth seeks another outright Western Hills title but Beaver can force 3-way tie
Which WPIAL football team has the longest conference winning streak now that Aliquippa’s has ended? That would be Avonworth, which hasn’t lost to a conference foe since 2021. The Antelopes have quietly won 18 in a row. “I joke around that we don’t get any love … but we’re doing...
WPIAL bracketology: Don Rebel, Chris Harlan forecast 2024 football playoff pairings
The 2024 WPIAL football playoff field is taking shape with 35 teams having already clinched a spot entering Week 9. But this year’s qualifying process is a little different. There are more wild card teams than ever: 16. And the WPIAL will no longer use tiebreaking formulas such as Gardner...
State legislators support in-depth study of PIAA policies, structure, finances
State legislators have voted to launch a comprehensive review of the PIAA. The “current status, management, structure, policies and finances” of the high school athletic association will be studied by the state Legislative Budget and Finance Committee under a House resolution passed Tuesday. The legislation instructed the committee to issue...
5 things we learned in Week 8: Might WPIAL’s longest playoff drought be nearing its end?
Carlynton football hasn’t had many chances to celebrate in recent years, a harsh reality that coach John Tortorea doesn’t hide from his players. In fact, the second-year coach often reminds them how the Cougars own the WPIAL’s longest active playoff drought. The team last reached the postseason in 2001, years...
WPIAL high school football rankings: Week ending Oct. 20, 2024
Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Central Catholic, 7-2, 1 2. North Allegheny, 8-1, 2 3. Seneca Valley, 3-5, 3 4. Canon-McMillan, 3-6, 5 5. Mt. Lebanon, 2-7, NR Out: Hempfield (3-6, 4) Class 5A 1. Upper St. Clair, 9-0, 2 2. Pine-Richland, 7-1, 1 3. Peters Township, 8-1,...
2-point gamble pays off as No. 2 Montour tops No. 1 Aliquippa, earns Parkway Conference title
Montour wasn’t playing for overtime. When running back Caden Halajcio scored with 31 seconds left Friday night to put the Spartans within one point of Aliquippa, there was no debate about what to do next. “Coach Lou huddled us up and said, ‘I put all of my trust in you,’”...
Montour wants to disrupt Aliquippa’s 5-year dominance in Parkway Conference
The Parkway has a reputation as one of the WPIAL’s tougher conferences, but Aliquippa seems to have tamed it. Since joining Class 4A in 2020, the Quips have won 27 consecutive conference games and four straight Parkway titles. They’ll try for their fifth in a row Friday when No. 1...
5 things to watch in Week 8: WPIAL playoffs seem to have started for some teams
There are two weeks left in the regular season, but Mt. Lebanon coach Greg Perry told his team that their playoffs start Friday. Many other WPIAL teams can surely relate. The Blue Devils see a narrow path to the playoffs despite a 1-7 record, but they’re among a group of...
Imani Christian says ‘unique quirk’ in enrollment process may have violated PIAA transfer rules
A “unique quirk” in the enrollment process for Imani Christian students may have led to a violation of PIAA transfer rules, said the school, which is the subject of a WPIAL investigation. The WPIAL board on Monday voted to launch an investigation into “possible recruiting violations and administrative and institutional...
Westinghouse, USO football players face suspensions for City League semifinals
The Westinghouse and USO football teams must play shorthanded in the City League semifinals because of their game-ending altercation last Friday. At least half of Westinghouse’s roster is likely ineligible and USO could be missing around 10 players, a Pittsburgh Public School spokesperson said Tuesday. Their regular season finale was...
Ringgold completes investigation, allows football team to resume season
An investigation into alleged misconduct by Ringgold football players was completed and the team can resume its season, the school district announced Monday. In a letter addressed to the Ringgold community, superintendent Randall Skrinjorich said Ringgold School District Police and the Washington County District Attorney’s Office “conducted a thorough investigation...
WPIAL launches investigations into Baldwin, Imani Christian over ‘possible recruiting violations’
The WPIAL has launched separate investigations into the Baldwin and Imani Christian athletic departments over potential recruiting violations. The board voted Monday to empower WPIAL executive director Scott Seltzer to conduct the investigations. He said the allegations stemmed from information gained in previous eligibility hearings involving Baldwin football and Imani...
Teams can compete in additional regular season contests under WPIAL policy change
WPIAL wrestlers can compete in more matches than usual starting this winter, and teams in other sports might see their regular season schedules increase as well. The WPIAL board on Monday voted to make some in-season “conference championships” exempt from the contest limits set by the PIAA for regular season...
Wrestling standout Dylan Pitzer remains ineligible following WPIAL hearing
Wrestling standout Dylan Pitzer, a WPIAL runner-up last winter, remains ineligible for his junior season after a hearing Monday at the league office in Scott. The WPIAL board found that Pitzer’s transfer from Mt. Pleasant to Derry was athletically motivated, said WPIAL executive director Scott Seltzer. As a result, Pitzer...
5 things we learned in high school football Week 7: Class 2A has new look
In some WPIAL football classifications, the names near the top of the conference standings don’t change too much from year to year. But take a look at Class 2A. With two weeks left in the regular season, the three conference leaders are Ellwood City (7-0), Seton LaSalle (7-0) and South...
WPIAL football rankings: Week ending Oct. 13, 2024
Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Central Catholic, 6-2, 1 2. North Allegheny, 7-1, 2 3. Seneca Valley, 3-4, 4 4. Hempfield, 3-5, 3 5. Canon-McMillan, 2-6, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Pine-Richland, 7-0, 1 2. Upper St. Clair, 8-0, 2 3. Peters Township, 7-1, 4 4. Bethel...
Run-heavy Upper St. Clair takes to air for winning points in showdown with Bethel Park
The goldfish maybe isn’t the most intimidating of animals, but that’s the one Upper St. Clair’s Charlie Bywalski was thinking about Friday night. Not a shark. Not a whale. A goldfish. “It’s always about ‘Be a goldfish,’ ” said Bywalski, a senior wide receiver and defensive back. “Coach Junko says,...
5 things to watch in Week 7: Undefeated conference foes battle in 7 key WPIAL matchups
Call them the “Super 7” of Week 7. The WPIAL schedule includes seven matchups Friday night between teams with undefeated conference records. With only three weeks left in the regular season, these are games that can catapult or crush a team’s conference title hopes. The list includes: • Upper St....
High-scoring Bethel Park offense brings balance into Allegheny Six clash with Upper St. Clair
The WPIAL’s highest-scoring offense has gone all season without arguably its best player, but that’ll change Friday. Bethel Park wide receiver Ryan Petras has recovered from shoulder surgery and is expected to make his season debut against rival Upper St. Clair, yet the Black Hawks seem like they’ve hardly missed...
Ringgold calls off football game vs. Thomas Jefferson, investigates ‘alleged incidents of misconduct’
Ringgold has called off Friday’s football game while investigating unspecified allegations “that involve members of the football team.” The Rams were scheduled to host Thomas Jefferson in a Big Six Conference game. Ringgold superintendent Randall Skrinjorich confirmed the district’s decision, saying in an email: “Currently the game is postponed.” In...
