Chris Harlan stories, Page 68
5 things to watch: Class 6A football teams 1 win away from WPIAL finals
No player on Mt. Lebanon’s football roster was yet born the last time the Blue Devils reached the WPIAL finals. That was 21 years ago. But top-seeded Mt. Lebanon, along with the three other Class 6A semifinalists, is only one win away from a trip to the WPIAL championship game....
Hampton hopes to make noise vs. defending WPIAL champ Thomas Jefferson
The sound of a train horn punctuates Hampton home games, thanks to an ardent Talbots fan at a nearby home. It’s one of the WPIAL’s loudest touchdown traditions. “I didn’t know about it my first year and it scared the hell out of me,” said coach Jacque DeMatteo, who’s in...
Coaches announce 2021 WPIAL field hockey all-stars
Days after winning WPIAL titles, the Pine-Richland, Penn-Trafford and Shady Side Academy field hockey teams had another reason to celebrate Wednesday. Combined, the three WPIAL champions had 15 players honored as WPIAL all-stars. The all-stars were chosen by a vote of coaches, who also identified an All-WPIAL team. Class 3A...
3 WPIAL field hockey champions to host PIAA openers Tuesday
No Western Pennsylvania field hockey team has reached the PIAA finals in the sport’s 47-year history, but three WPIAL squads will try as they start their state tournament quest Tuesday. The PIAA on Sunday announced sites and times for first-round games in the three classifications. All first-round games are Tuesday....
Sites, times announced for PIAA girls volleyball tournament
The North Allegheny girls volleyball team will begin its quest for a fifth consecutive state title at home Tuesday. The PIAA on Sunday revealed brackets for the upcoming state tournament, which includes a dozen WPIAL teams in the four classifications. All first-round games are Tuesday. North Allegheny, a four-time defending...
PIAA announces sites, times for state soccer playoff openers
The PIAA revealed sites and times for first-round matchups in the state soccer playoffs and all eight WPIAL champions have home games. All first-round games are Tuesday. Among the boys matchups, Seneca Valley will host Hempfield of District 3 at 5 p.m., Hampton hosts Hollidaysburg at 6:30 p.m., Grove City...
5 things we learned: Home-field advantage didn’t guarantee wins in WPIAL 1st round
There are high school football stadiums in Western Pennsylvania where visiting teams rarely win. New Brighton walked into one of those daunting places Friday night and confidently won. The Lions, seeded 13th in the WPIAL Class 2A bracket, celebrated a dramatic victory over No. 4 Washington, 21-20, in overtime. As...
Freshmen runners help North Allegheny boys, girls again sweep WPIAL titles
The starting line at a cross country championship can be a stressful scene for first-timers, yet North Allegheny’s freshmen clearly weren’t fazed. With five ninth-graders making their WPIAL championship debuts, the NA boys and girls swept the Class 3A team titles Oct. 28 at Cal (Pa.). In fact, two of...
Long passes let No. 11 Peters Township upset North Hills in WPIAL playoffsVideo
In many ways, Peters Township quarterback Sam Miller epitomizes his football team. Like others on the Indians roster, Miller entered his senior season as a starter with limited experience, missed some time with an injury and wasn’t nearly the impact player in August that he is right now. As he’s...
5 things to watch: First-round byes create new twist for WPIAL football playoffs
Byes, byes, byes. The WPIAL football playoff brackets have a different look this season with the addition of 15 first-round byes. Which begs the question: Do coaches want a week off at this time of year? With a laugh, Clairton coach Wayne Wade said he’d answer that question after next...
North Hills, Peters Township hope to out-perform their seeds in ‘wide open’ 5A
The No. 11 is listed next to Peters Township’s name on the WPIAL football brackets, but the Indians sure don’t feel like a double-digit seed. “If you look at the No. 1 seed, we went toe to toe with them,” coach T.J. Plack said. “And the No. 2 seed, we...
WPIAL football likely down to 7 teams in 6A as PIAA releases 2022-23 parameters
The WPIAL’s largest football classification — 6A — is likely getting smaller again. The PIAA released updated classification parameters Tuesday for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years, and the numbers indicate the WPIAL will have only seven football teams in 6A next season. The PIAA parameters list the top and...
Breaking down the 2021 WPIAL football playoffs
Class 6A Favorite: Mt. Lebanon hasn’t won a WPIAL title or reached the finals since 2000, but the Blue Devils seem ready to end that drought. The senior trio of QB Joey Daniels, WR Eli Heidenreich and RB Alex Tecza lead an offense that averages 37.6 points — best in...
WPIAL reveals football playoff brackets, surprises with No. 1 seed in 2A
In the span of a year, Steel Valley went from a one-win season to the No. 1 seed in the WPIAL football playoffs. The Ironmen rebounded from a 1-5 record a year ago to win the Allegheny Conference title this fall with an undefeated record. That comeback story earned Steel...
Unsung line coach has helped North Allegheny win battles in trenches for 3 decades
Who decided that the running backs and wide receivers are called skill-position players? North Allegheny line coach Mike Buchert strongly disagrees. “When we divide up, they’ll say, ‘Skill guys over here and linemen over there.’ I get my guys together and say, ‘There are no if, ands or buts about...
2021 WPIAL bracketology: Don Rebel, Chris Harlan predict football playoffs
For the second year in a row, football coaches won’t crowd into a Green Tree ballroom to see the WPIAL playoff brackets announced. Instead, the brackets will be revealed in a video livestream at 6 p.m. Saturday on TribLive HSSN. While we wait for the official brackets to be released,...
Nijhay Burt carries No. 5 Steel Valley past Serra Catholic to clinch Allegheny Conference title
WPIAL rushing leader Nijhay Burt was averaging 2 yards a carry on his first 10 tries Friday night, yet nobody this season has frustrated the Steel Valley star for an entire game. Serra Catholic tried to be the first. “I know a lot of people on the team look up...
5 things to watch in Week 9: Winner-takes-all matchups in 2 WPIAL conferences
Serra Catholic hasn’t celebrated a conference title since 2007, and the 14 seasons since included some lean years for the Eagles. The team went winless in 2012 and endured one-win seasons in 2013 and ’14. Yet, with the program turned around in coach Jose Regus’ fifth season, Serra Catholic is...
5 things we learned in Week 8: Laurel Highlands’ Rodney Gallagher delivers again in must-win game
Laurel Highlands’ Rodney Gallagher has delivered many times before in must-win situations, but those often had him holding a basketball in his hands. Friday’s challenge was a little different for the star junior. If Laurel Highlands intended to make the WPIAL football playoffs, the Mustangs had to win at Trinity....
Trib HSSN high school football rankings: Oct. 23, 2021
Class 6A Rk, Team, W-L, Last 1. Mt. Lebanon, 9-0, 1 2. Central Catholic, 7-2, 2 3. North Allegheny, 6-3, 3 4. Seneca Valley, 6-3, 4 5. Canon-McMillan, 4-5, 5 Out: none Class 5A Rk, Team, W-L, Last 1. Moon, 9-0, 1 2. Penn-Trafford, 7-2, 2 3. Pine-Richland, 5-4, 3...
Brownsville leaving WPIAL football for independent schedule
Leaving WPIAL football was an idea Brownsville athletic director Scott Roebuck once was adamantly against, but now he agrees that drastic move is the best chance to save the program. With the team mired in a 21-game losing streak, the Brownsville school board voted Thursday to follow the lead of...
Rare defeat helped North Allegheny girls volleyball players refocus
The winning streak had stood at 57 section victories when the North Allegheny girls volleyball team saw its unbeaten run stunningly end this season. Yet, that 3-0 loss to Shaler in late September might be exactly what the defending WPIAL and PIAA champion Tigers really needed, said their first-year coach,...
No. 1 Moon shuts out Bethel Park, clinches Allegheny Six title
Moon has a fondness for physical football, clock-consuming drives and 225-pound running backs. It’s a combination that worked again Friday night. But with their usual big-bodied back limited by an injury, tight end/defensive end Ben Bladel became the team’s battering ram and scored the first points in a 30-0 victory...
5 things to watch in Week 8: Home field at stake for WPIAL 1st round and quarterfinals
There’s no place like home, especially in the playoffs. This fall that home-field advantage is a bigger factor than usual since the WPIAL decided to extend that perk to higher-seeded teams for both first-round and quarterfinal games. The WPIAL informed schools this week. So, a matchup like Friday’s between Fox...
Winless a year ago, Bethel Park challenges Moon for conference title in Allegheny Six
A year after going winless, the Bethel Park football players have a chance this week to call themselves champions of the Allegheny Six. This, without question, is the team’s biggest game in quite a while when No. 1-ranked Moon (8-0, 3-0) hosts Bethel Park (5-3, 3-0) at 7 p.m. Friday,...
