Chris Harlan stories, Page 76
WPIAL bracketology: Don Rebel, Chris Harlan take an early look at baseball playoff pairings
The real brackets for the 2021 WPIAL baseball playoff will be revealed at 3 p.m. Friday on TribLive HSSN. Who’ll draw the No. 1 seeds? Which teams get a first-round bye? Here’s a look at what the WPIAL bracket would look like if HSSN’s Don Rebel and Chris Harlan were...
Butler boys, girls dominate at WPIAL Class AAA team finals
As Butler runner C.J. Singleton neared the finish line, the junior wondered how close his nearest 800-meter challenger was, so he took a quick glance behind him. “You’re usually not supposed to look back,” he admitted afterward. But it’s understandable. Butler’s top runners rarely had anyone out in front of...
WPIAL reveals updated postseason plans for spring sports playoffs
If covid-related cancellations leave section standings unsettled, the WPIAL will have its steering committees determine which teams make the playoffs this spring. That was one of the changes revealed Monday when the WPIAL announced updated postseason plans for baseball, softball, lacrosse and boys volleyball. In a letter to schools, the...
A year after high jumping at home, Beaver’s Emma Pavelek worried another season was doomed
Emma Pavelek had never been to a chiropractor before this past week and was skeptical one could help her painful foot. She’d been diagnosed with a sprain but after five weeks, her injury wasn’t getting any better. So, what did she have to lose? “He felt my foot for one...
Shady Side’s Melissa Riggins wins twice at Baldwin Invite despite facing ‘worst wind’
The weather app on Melissa Riggins’ smartphone misled her a little. “For some reason, I never check the wind,” she said with a laugh. “I’m like, ‘Oh, 53 degrees, that shouldn’t be that bad.’” It wasn’t good. Yet the talented Shady Side Academy senior fought through steady winds and some...
WPIAL softball rankings | May 8, 2021
Class 6A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. Bethel Park, 13-0, 1 2. Norwin, 12-2, 3 3. Mt. Lebanon, 8-4, 4 4. Hempfield, 9-5, 2 5. Canon-McMillan, 7-7, NR Out: Seneca Valley (9-7, 5) Class 5A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. West Allegheny, 11-2, 2 2. Penn-Trafford, 11-4, 1 3. North...
WPIAL baseball rankings | May 8, 2021
Class 6A Rk, Team, W-L, Last 1. North Allegheny, 15-2, 2 2. Hempfield, 12-6, 5 3. Norwin, 11-3, 1 4. Butler, 11-5, 4 5. Mt. Lebanon, 9-6, NR Out: Seneca Valley (10-7, 3) Class 5A Rk, Team, W-L, Last 1. Franklin Regional, 13-0, 1 2. Bethel Park, 13-2, 2 3....
North Allegheny’s Akindele among WPIAL’s top sprinters
When North Allegheny sprinter Lola Akindele broke the 60-second barrier in the 400 meters, she was elated. “That was definitely my biggest (statistical) goal of the season and something I really wanted to see for myself because I was always so close,” she said. “Having done that, it was such...
North Journal notebook: North Allegheny’s Morningstar named Gatorade Player of the Year
North Allegheny senior Paige Morningstar was named the state’s Gatorade Volleyball Player of the Year after leading the Tigers to a fourth consecutive PIAA title last fall. Morningstar is the third North Allegheny player to win the award, joining sister Meg Morningstar (2014-15) and Abby Miller (2018-19). The award was...
West Mifflin senior, PIAA favorite Dontae Lewis sweeps hurdles at Baldwin Invitational
Some hurdlers have tunnel vision on the track, focused solely on their lane and uninterested in their competitors. That’s not Dontae Lewis. The West Mifflin senior and reigning WPIAL hurdles champion likes to know who he’s running against. He looks at the entries, studies the times and measures up his...
North Allegheny’s Paige Morningstar named state’s Gatorade Volleyball Player of the Year
Six years after her sister won the award, North Allegheny senior Paige Morningstar was named the state’s Gatorade Pa. Volleyball Player of the Year. The 2020-21 award was announced Thursday. A 6-foot setter and Louisville recruit, Morningstar led North Allegheny to an 18-0 record last fall and the program’s fourth...
WPIAL has big decisions to make this week about baseball, softball playoffs
Will higher-seeded baseball and softball teams host playoff games this spring or could the WPIAL use neutral sites as usual? That’s one question from a list the WPIAL wants to answer this week when the baseball and softball committees meet online Thursday and Friday. The WPIAL also must decide what...
WPIAL rules 1 Birch brother eligible, other brother ineligible after hearing
The WPIAL handed Gateway transfers Brett and Brad Birch a good-news, bad-news scenario. Older brother Brett, a junior, is eligible to play football for the Gators next fall, but younger brother Brad, a freshman, remains ineligible, WPIAL executive director Amy Scheuneman said. The WPIAL held a combined hearing Monday for...
Ousted coach Eric Kasperowicz apologizes to Pine-Richland administrators in letter
In a letter asking to be rehired, ousted football coach Eric Kasperowicz apologized to Pine-Richland’s school board and administration for his “attitude and behavior” during a contentious late-March interview. “In hindsight I understand the significance of that meeting,” he wrote of a March 29 interview with high school administrators. “The...
WPIAL sees 2 players make Class 6A boys basketball all-state team
Butler’s Devin Carney and Fox Chapel’s Eli Yofan earned all-state honors Saturday when the Pa. Sports Writers All-State Team for Class 6A boys basketball was announced. Carney earned first-team honors and Yofan was named to the third team. Both are juniors. The all-state teams for PIAA schools were announced one...
WPIAL softball rankings | May 1, 2021
Class 6A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. Bethel Park, 10-0, 1 2. Hempfield, 8-3, NR 3. Norwin, 9-2, 2 4. Mt. Lebanon, 8-4, 3 5. Seneca Valley, 8-6, NR Out: Pine-Richland (6-6, 4), North Allegheny (6-7, 5) Class 5A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. Penn-Trafford, 9-3, 1 2. West Allegheny,...
WPIAL baseball rankings | May 1, 2021
Class 6A Rk, Team, W-L, Last 1. Norwin, 10-1, 1 2. North Allegheny, 13-2, 2 3. Hempfield, 10-5, 5 4. Seneca Valley, 10-4, 3 5. Butler, 9-5, 4 Out: none Class 5A Rk, Team, W-L, Last 1. Franklin Regional, 11-0, 1 2. Bethel Park, 10-2, 3 3. South Fayette, 12-2,...
North Hills’ Robert Dickerson has aspirations of football/baseball career in college
As a two-sport star who hits home runs and scores touchdowns, North Hills’ Robert Dickerson hears the occasional Kyler Murray reference. Older generations go to Deion Sanders or Bo Jackson as their football-baseball icon. Dickerson may smile at those comparisons, but he certainly takes both sports seriously. If the junior...
4 WPIAL boys basketball players make Class 5A all-state team
Chartiers Valley senior Brayden Reynolds and Laurel Highlands sophomore Rodney Gallagher earned first-team honors when the Pa. Sports Writers All-State Team for Class 5A boys basketball was announced Friday. In all, four WPIAL players made the list. Trinity senior Mike Dunn made the second team. New Castle junior Mike Wells...
Before becoming NFL Draft star, Kyle Pitts clashed with WPIAL champion in Hershey
If tight end Kyle Pitts is the first non-quarterback selected Thursday night in the NFL Draft, Gateway football coach Don Holl won’t be surprised. Four years ago, Gateway was tasked with stopping Pitts and his Archbishop Wood teammates in the 2017 state championship in Hershey. Pitts, then a senior committed...
4 WPIAL boys basketball players earn all-state honors in Class 4A
Lincoln Park senior Dakari Bradford and North Catholic senior Andrew Ammerman, whose teams clashed last month in the WPIAL finals, were among four WPIAL boys basketball players earning all-state honors Thursday in Class 4A. Bradford, Ammerman and Quaker Valley junior Adou Theiro all were named the the second team on...
Washington softball forfeits remaining games, hopes for better seasons ahead
Washington hopes to build up its softball program in years to come, athletic director Mike Bosnic said Thursday, but this spring’s season will end after only one game. The softball team will forfeit the remainder of its schedule. “We feel that the program is headed in the right direction,” Bosnic...
Serra Catholic hires Matt Bacco as girls basketball coach
Serra Catholic has a new girls basketball coach for the first time in years. Matt Bacco was hired to replace Bill Cleary, who retired after 34 seasons and more than 600 wins, the school announced Wednesday. A 1997 Serra Catholic graduate, Bacco previously coached the South Fayette girls for 10...
State’s all-time winningest boys basketball coach earns all-state honor in 3A
Weeks after winning a boys basketball state title, Loyalsock also dominated the all-state team for PIAA Class 3A. Loyalock’s Ron Insinger was named the classification’s top coach and senior Idris Ali earned player of the year honors Wednesday when the Pa. Sportswriters All-State Team was announced. No WPIAL or City...
Undefeated OLSH tops Class 2A boys basketball all-state team
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart’s perfect season just keeps getting a little better. Chargers junior Jake DiMichele, senior Dante Spadafora and coach Mike Rodriguez all drew statewide recognition Tuesday when the Pa. Sports Writers All-State Team for Class 2A boys basketball was announced. In all, four WPIAL players earned...
