Chris Harlan stories, Page 20
PIAA adopts girls flag football as sanctioned high school sport statewide
Flag football is officially a sanctioned sport for Pennsylvania high school girls, meaning the WPIAL and PIAA soon will be crowning champions. The PIAA board voted Wednesday to add flag football to its growing catalog of sports. This vote was the third and final needed to complete the PIAA’s emerging...
WPIAL notebook: Wrestling teams want in-season tournaments exempt from PIAA contest limit
If WPIAL wrestling teams get their wish, some in-season tournaments no longer will count toward their 22-contest limit set by the PIAA. The WPIAL board will consider a request to reclassify events such as the Midwestern Athletic Conference Tournament and the Tri-County Athletic Directors Tournament as “league championships,” and therefore...
Clairton reveals ‘Tyler Boyd Stadium’ as new name for high school football field
Not only is Clairton’s football stadium getting new turf, new bleachers and new lights, it also has a new name: Tyler Boyd Stadium. A 2013 graduate now playing in his ninth NFL season, Boyd had a legendary high school career at Clairton and remains rooted in his hometown. He was...
5 things we learned in high school football Week 3: Rare low-scoring tilts draw attention
Don’t call for maintenance. The scoreboard at South Park’s stadium wasn’t malfunctioning Friday night, nor was the one at Franklin Regional, even if they both had a 0-0 score in the fourth quarter. There were zeroes on Ringgold’s scoreboard in the third quarter, as well. In a football era often...
WPIAL football rankings: Week ending Sept. 15, 2024
Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. North Allegheny, 4-0, 1 2. Central Catholic, 2-2, 2 3. Seneca Valley, 1-2, 5 4. Norwin, 2-2, 3 5. Canon-McMillan, 1-3, NR Out: Hempfield (1-3, 4) Class 5A 1. Peters Township, 4-0, 1 2. Pine-Richland, 3-0, 2 3. Upper St. Clair, 4-0, 3...
Missing its top 3 running backs, Pine-Richland fends off North Hills in Northeast opener
The Pine-Richland roster lists Jalen Neals as a wide receiver, but the versatile junior had a hint that his coaches were planning a position change. At least for one game. “I was at the JV game and coach was like, ‘Jalen, make sure you know the running back plays for...
Season-ending knee injury sidelines Alabama recruit Fiona Mahan as Avonworth chases 4th straight WPIAL title
Fiona Mahan continues to guide Avonworth on its quest for a fourth straight WPIAL girls soccer title, but the senior has taken on a new role after a season-ending knee injury. Mahan, an Alabama recruit and one of the WPIAL’s top talents, will have surgery in a couple of weeks...
North Hills rides momentum of 3-0 start into conference opener vs. Pine-Richland
North Hills is off to its first 3-0 start in five years, early-season success that coach Pat Carey credits to the snaps his seniors logged over a couple of tough seasons. The team went 4-6 last year and 3-8 in 2022, but Carey had today’s seniors on the field for...
5 things to watch in Week 3: Conference openers arrive for many WPIAL football teams
WPIAL schedule-makers gave everyone at least a couple of warm-ups to start the schedule. Now, the majority of WPIAL teams will jump into conference play. Seventy-eight of the WPIAL’s 116 teams play a conference opener here in Week 3. That accounts for teams in 12 of the 17 conferences, including...
Aliquippa requests court-appointed mediator to settle football lawsuit vs. PIAA
The PIAA has until Friday to decide whether it wants to resolve its legal battle with Aliquippa School District through mediation. Aliquippa attorney Tina Miller on Tuesday asked a Beaver County judge to appoint a mediator to settle its lawsuit. However, PIAA attorney Rochelle Koerbel said the state association was...
5 things we learned in Week 2 of WPIAL football: Ringgold finally gets back in win column
Ringgold was ready to snap the longest active losing streak in the WPIAL when the Rams went for two in overtime a week ago. But the gamble failed in a heartbreaking 14-13 loss. The streak grew to 27 games. “I was down in the dumps,” first-year coach Robert Heller said....
Trib HSSN WPIAL football rankings: Week ending Sept. 8, 2024
Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. North Allegheny, 3-0, 1 2. Central Catholic, 1-2, 2 3. Norwin, 2-1, 3 4. Hempfield, 1-2, NR 5. Seneca Valley, 0-2, 5 Out: Canon-McMillan (0-3, 4) Class 5A 1. Peters Township, 3-0, 1 2. Pine-Richland, 2-0, 2 3. Upper St. Clair, 3-0, 3...
North Allegheny boys soccer focused on unfinished business
A WPIAL title slipped away on penalty kicks and a trip to the state finals fell two rounds short. It’s easy to understand why “unfinished business” was the motto North Allegheny’s boys soccer team adopted this year. In this, coach Manuel Montero’s third season, the Tigers want to accomplish more....
Central Catholic forgets about 0-2 start with mercy rule win over Woodland Hills
The PA announcer at the Wolvarena encouraged fans to travel home safely and never talk about this game again. Central Catholic left the stadium pleased to have quieted talk about its winless start. Vikings quarterback Jy’Aire Walls passed for two touchdowns and rushed for two more, the defense was dominant...
5 things to watch in Week 2: NFL encroaches on Friday night high school football tradition
The storied tradition of Friday night football adds another chapter this week with high school games all across Pennsylvania. But might a game played in South America keep some fans home, especially on the other side of the state? That’s in question because the NFL has scheduled a rare Friday...
Transfer Devin Harris eligible to quarterback Penn Hills in WPIAL playoffs
If Penn Hills makes the football playoffs as the Indians hope, quarterback Devin Harris is eligible to lead them. The WPIAL has granted postseason eligibility to Harris, a junior who transferred from Shady Side Academy, said WPIAL executive director Scott Seltzer. The WPIAL held postseason eligibility hearings Tuesday for Harris,...
Wrestling standout Dylan Pitzer ineligible after transfer from Mt. Pleasant to Derry
Wrestling standout Dylan Pitzer, a WPIAL runner-up last winter, could miss his junior season after transferring from Mt. Pleasant to Derry. The WPIAL on Tuesday tentatively denied him eligibility in wrestling for one year based on transfer paperwork submitted by the schools, WPIAL executive director Scott Seltzer said. Mt. Pleasant...
5 things we learned in high school football Week 1: Weather throws teams for loop
Thunderstorms barreled into Allegheny and Beaver counties Friday night causing lengthy lightning delays at games from Aliquippa to Avonworth. Nearly a dozen games were suspended, and many never finished. “About five minutes into halftime, it just opened up and people were running everywhere to get to some cover,” said West...
WPIAL football rankings: Week ending Sept. 1, 2024
Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. North Allegheny, 2-0, 1 2. Central Catholic, 0-2, 2 3. Norwin, 2-0, 3 4. Canon-McMillan, 0-2, 4 5. Seneca Valley, 0-2, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Peters Township, 2-0, 1 2. Pine-Richland, 2-0, 2 3. Upper St. Clair, 2-0, 3 4. Woodland...
North Allegheny girls volleyball chasing 8th straight PIAA title
Here is an easy way to put a state championship streak in perspective. Molly Robertson and Alicia Mokube, who started for North Allegheny in the PIAA finals last fall, were in elementary school when the girls volleyball team’s streak started. That was seven years ago, meaning the two current sophomores...
Peters Township punishes McKeesport with defense, running game
Peters Township knows a little about running the football, too. Hosting a McKeesport team that usually thrives on the ground, Peters Township ran the ball close to 50 times and mixed in some quarterback draws Friday night in a 42-7 nonconference win that ended with a running clock. The Indians,...
Peters Township draws matchup with McKeesport’s triple-option in Week 1 nonconference clash
McKeesport runs an offense that’s rather unique in the WPIAL, leading opponents to scheme up new ways to defend against the triple-option. That uniqueness would seem to benefit the Tigers most weeks, but it also can put them at a scouting disadvantage when breaking down video of opponents. Many teams...
Kraft Heinz, Aliquippa breaking ground on athletic, academic center near school’s football stadium
A year after Aliquippa announced a partnership with Kraft Heinz, the two will break ground Friday on a new athletic and academic center near the school’s football stadium. The center will include offices, an indoor training facility, a locker room, weight room and a collaborative workspace for students, athletes and...
5 things to watch in Week 1: Aliquippa’s new coach debuts in battle of state champions
Some coaching jobs come with more pressure than others. Consider that Aliquippa’s Vashawn Patrick is the new head coach of a team coming off a state championship season, and his first game is against another defending state champion. There is no easing into his job. Aliquippa hosts Belle Vernon at...
‘He related to everybody:’ Friends, coaches, athletes mourn Baldwin track and field coach Ed Helbig
Ed Helbig didn’t need to yell or get loud to motivate his athletes, yet the longtime Baldwin coach’s voice was certainly the biggest in WPIAL track and field. A Baldwin track coach for 49 years and chairman of the WPIAL committee overseeing the sport, Helbig died Tuesday. His calming demeanor...
