Chris Harlan stories, Page 64

Thomas Jefferson was dethroned from its familiar spot atop the Big Eight this season, and two of the players most responsible received individual honors in all-conference voting. Belle Vernon senior Devin Whitlock was named offensive player of the year, and McKeesport junior Bobbie Boyd was named as the conference’s top...

Hampton celebrated its first conference title since 2014, an achievement recognized in all-conference voting. The Talbots had nine players earn first-team honors, including leading rusher Christian Liberto, a senior who scored 17 times and topped 1,100 rushing yards. Liberto was joined by teammates Benny Haselrig, Mike Witherup, Logan Rutledge, John...

Aliquippa outscored Parkway opponents 237-40 this fall, a regular-season dominance that was reflected in voting for the all-conference team. Fourteen Aliquippa players earned first-team honors in the Class 4A conference, including lineman Jason McBride, who was recognized on both sides of the ball. McBride was joined by teammates Jon Tracy,...

A dozen Penn-Trafford football players earned first-team all-conference honors from a Warriors team that went unbeaten in the Big East and won a WPIAL title Saturday. Their coach, John Ruane, was name the conference’s top coach. The first-team all-conference list included Penn-Trafford running back Cade Yacamelli, who starred in the...

Penn Hills brothers Julian and Jaden Dugger, a dynamic quarterback-receiver combination for the Indians, each earned first-team all-conference honors in the Class 5A Northeast. They were among seven Penn Hills players who earned first-team honors in a vote of conference coaches. Kiski Area also had seven first-team selections, Pine-Richland had...

Moon’s deep and talented senior class, which led the Tigers to the WPIAL finals for the first time since 1998, was well represented on the Allegheny 6 all-conference team. Eight Moon players — all seniors — earned first-team honors, and Ryan Linn was named the conference’s top coach after the...

Mt. Lebanon won its first WPIAL title in 21 years, and the undefeated Blue Devils were recognized for their season-long success with nine first-team spots on the all-conference team for Class 6A. Their coach, Bob Palko, also was honored. The all-conference list included Mt. Lebanon quarterback Joey Daniels, running back...

Small-school Aliquippa might be short on students, but nobody has more WPIAL football titles than the Quips. Despite playing three levels above its Class A enrollment, Aliquippa added an 18th title Saturday night by winning the Class 4A championship, an achievement the Quips called both “incredible and shameful.” Freshman running...

When Central Valley takes the field Saturday, this will be the third WPIAL championship appearance in a row for some of the team’s starters. So, they expected to be here. “It’s just another game,” said senior linebacker Matt Merritt, who’s already a two-time WPIAL champion. “It’s another game to prove...

Serra Catholic coach Jose Regus wore a hat at Heinz Field that said “battle,” a brand name of sportswear, but also one word that captures both his determination to coach and his defense’s relentlessness to win. Those battles are intertwined. Motivated by their coach’s health struggles, Serra Catholic forced nine...

WPIAL Class 3A football championship No. 1 Central Valley vs. No. 2 North Catholic Noon Saturday, Heinz Field On the air: TV: WPCW; Audio: TribHSSN.TribLive.com, WBVP-AM Winner plays: Winner of District 10 champion Grove City (10-2) vs. District 6 champion Martinsburg Central (13-0) in a PIAA semifinal Dec. 3 or...

Thanksgiving means family, food and football in the Harvey household, and as the youngest of eight kids, William Harvey grew up hearing stories from the time his oldest brother won a WPIAL title. This year, when the siblings gather in Mt. Lebanon for dinner and their annual turkey bowl, he...

PIAA football playoffs Quarterfinals Class 6A District 1 final: Coatesville at Garnett Valley, 7 p.m. Friday 12-1 St. Joseph’s Prep vs. 11-1 Freedom at Bishop O’Hara, 6 p.m. Friday 6-1 State College at 3-1 Harrisburg, 1 p.m. Saturday 10-1 McDowell at 7-1 Mt. Lebanon, 7 p.m. Friday Class 5A 10-1...

Welcome to Heinz Field. When Bishop Canevin and Moon last reached the WPIAL finals, Three Rivers Stadium still was standing on the North Short, but those teams’ will end their decades-long waits next weekend. Moon is returning to the WPIAL finals for the first time in 23 years, and Bishop...

Forcing the Aliquippa football team to play schools two, three or four times its size isn’t safe or fair, regardless of whether the Quips are winning those games, says the school district’s top administrator. Superintendent Phillip Woods wants the PIAA competitive-balance rule to be rewritten. Aliquippa will compete next weekend...

Central Catholic had about six weeks to devise a new strategy for stopping Alex Tecza, Eli Heidenreich and Joey Daniels, yet the three seniors and their Mt. Lebanon teammates proved undeniable. So, too, was the Blue Devils’ desire for a WPIAL title. Tecza alone rolled up more than 200 yards...

WPIAL Class 6A football championship No. 1 Mt. Lebanon vs. No. 2 Central Catholic 7 p.m. Saturday, Norwin On the air: TV: WPCW; Audio: TribHSSN.TribLive.com, 95.3 FM, 1020 AM Winner plays: McDowell in the PIAA quarterfinals Nov. 26 or 27 WPIAL titles: Mt. Lebanon 7 (1966, ’70, ’80, ’81, ’83,...

There was a time when Maura Mlecko was the freshman on North Allegheny’s cross country team, running at the state championship meet in Hershey for the first time. But like runners on that course, four years can go by fast. As a senior surrounded by freshmen, Mlecko was back in...

On one sideline will be Mt. Lebanon, the undefeated No. 1 seed in the WPIAL playoffs that is making its first championship appearance since 2000. On the other side is Central Catholic, a two-time defending WPIAL champion that reached the finals more often than not in the past decade. Which...

Heinz Field hadn’t been built the last time Moon made the WPIAL football finals, but the Tigers are headed there now. No. 1 seed Moon used a familiar combination of gritty defense, a physical running game and one long touchdown run to defeat No. 5 Penn Hills, 14-9, in a...

Carnegie Mellon’s journey in the NCAA football playoffs is over before it started. The university announced Friday that several football players tested positive for covid-19, so the team will withdraw from the NCAA Division III playoffs. The Tartans (8-2) were scheduled to play a first-round game Saturday against North Central...

A sign hanging inside Moon’s football stadium chronicles the milestone years in team history. One look at that board reminds the current Tigers that their team hasn’t reached the WPIAL finals in more than two decades. Yet this year’s roster, with a strong senior class, wants desperately to write 2021...

Citing personal reasons, title-winning North Allegheny swimming coach Patrick Wenzel resigned this fall after leading the WPIAL’s top program for eight years. The Tigers swept the WPIAL boys and girls titles in each of Wenzel’s eight seasons as coach, and the girls enter this winter as reigning state champions. To...

Athletes from dozens of Western Pennsylvania high schools will gather Wednesday morning at the Heinz History Center for the annual WPIAL Sportsmanship Summit, which will be streamed live on TribLive HSSN. This is the 12th year for the event, scheduled from 9:30 a.m. until noon. Former Steelers defensive lineman Brett...

North Allegheny will try for No. 5. Already a four-time defending state champion, the NA girls earned a trip to the volleyball state finals for the fifth year in a row after defeating rival Shaler, 3-1, in a PIAA Class 4A semifinal Tuesday night at Fox Chapel. The Tigers rallied...