Chris Harlan stories, Page 9
Johnstown arena to host PIAA team wrestling, competitive spirit championships from 2026-28
State champions in team wrestling and competitive spirit will be crowned in Johnstown for the next three years. The PIAA announced 1st Summit Arena at Cambria County War Memorial will host the championships for the 2025-26, 2026-27 and 2027-28 school years. Championship venues for other winter sports were announced last...
Transgender girl can qualify for state track championships, PIAA says, citing judge’s order
The PIAA will let a transgender girl compete in the state track and field championships next week if the Eastern Pennsylvania student qualifies, the PIAA’s top administrator said Friday. The state association for high school athletics changed its policy in February to classify students by “sex” rather than “gender” in...
Waynesburg’s Tyler Groves settles in after rocky start, shuts down Freeport in Class 3A
Waynesburg pitcher Tyler Groves gave up a triple, a double and a single to consecutive batters in the first inning Thursday night, but that wasn’t a sign of things to come. Rather, Freeport got one hit the rest of the way as Groves dug in. The senior right-hander pitched a...
Mohawk distance runner Jaxon Schoedel, other record-breakers live up to hype at WPIAL meet
Mohawk’s Jaxon Schoedel’s teammate turned into his hype man at the WPIAL track championships, shouting his name as the senior climbed atop the medals stand for the second time. Schoedel could only laugh. The Penn State recruit was understandably the center of attention after breaking WPIAL Class 2A championship meet...
Laurel sprinter Tori Atkins makes history with unprecedented WPIAL 4-peat
The drawstring in Tori Atkins’ warmup pants was maybe the toughest opponent the Laurel sprinter faced in her four years at the WPIAL track championships. It’s a freshman year story that the senior can laugh about now as a 10-time champion. Atkins cemented her track legacy Wednesday by winning four...
WPIAL track preview: Laurel sprinter could make history with ‘quadruple-double’
Record breakers, repeat winners and rain? Here are some storylines to follow when the WPIAL track and field individual championships are held Wednesday at Slippery Rock University. The meet starts at 11 a.m. Again and again and again … and again? Laurel sprinter Tori Atkins can achieve a WPIAL first...
WPIAL postpones Tuesday’s baseball, softball games; some quarterfinal sites announced
The WPIAL has moved all of Tuesday’s baseball and softball playoff games to Thursday because of rain. The day’s schedule had included first-round games in Class A, 2A and 3A for both sports. Games were rescheduled at the same sites and times. The WPIAL also announced quarterfinal sites and times...
WPIAL delays decision about Moon basketball transfers’ eligibilityVideo
The basketball eligibility of Moon transfers Jackson and Brody Bauman won’t be decided until next month. The WPIAL board on Monday voted to delay a decision until its next meeting. The Bauman brothers transferred from Knoch to Moon after their father, Alan, resigned in April as Knoch boys basketball coach....
Breaking down the 2025 WPIAL baseball playoffs
Class 6A Favorite: North Allegheny is the defending champion and owns a record nine WPIAL titles. The Tigers have relied on a trio of college-bound seniors in pitchers Jackson Walsh (Gannon), Nico Varlotta (North Alabama) and Nate Persinger (Cal, Pa.). The three have combined for 111 strikeouts in 84 1/3...
WPIAL announces pairings for 2025 baseball playoffs
North Allegheny was the only defending champion to draw a No. 1 seed Friday when the WPIAL released brackets for the upcoming baseball playoffs. The Tigers were seeded first in Class 6A. The other top seeds went to Pine-Richland in 5A, Indiana in 4A, Riverside in 3A, Neshannock in 2A...
2025 WPIAL bracketology: Chris Harlan, Don Rebel forecast the baseball playoff pairings
The 2025 WPIAL baseball playoffs are set with 80 teams, including five of the six champions from a year ago — North Allegheny, Penn-Trafford, Avonworth, Seton LaSalle and Bishop Canevin — hoping to defend their crowns. Seton LaSalle and Bishop Canevin are looking to three-peat this spring. The postseason begins...
WPIAL reveals brackets for 2025 softball playoffs
Reigning WPIAL softball champions Neshannock and Elizabeth Forward start their title defenses as favorites to repeat. The Lancers in Class 2A and the Warriors in 4A were among the teams earning No. 1 seeds in playoff brackets released Thursday by the WPIAL. The other top seeds went to Hempfield in...
Mt. Lebanon, South Fayette draw top seeds in 2025 WPIAL boys lacrosse playoffs
Two-time reigning boys lacrosse champion Mt. Lebanon will start its latest title defense as the No. 1 seed in the WPIAL playoffs. The Blue Devils (12-4) drew the top spot in WPIAL Class 3A, and South Fayette (17-0) was seeded first in 2A in brackets released Thursday. The playoffs start...
Mars, Pine-Richland earn No. 1 seeds in 2025 WPIAL girls lacrosse playoffs
Two-time defending champion Mars was picked as the favorite to win another WPIAL girls lacrosse title in playoff brackets revealed Thursday. Mars (15-1) received the No. 1 seed in Class 2A, and Pine-Richland (15-2) drew the top spot in 3A. The playoffs start Monday and Tuesday with first-round games, leading...
Norwin takes home 2 trophies from WPIAL 3A team track and field championships
The Norwin boys hadn’t won a WPIAL team track title in almost 50 years, but senior hurdler Ryan Schiller had hungered for one for months. A title and maybe a steak dinner. “I made a bet with some friends,” he said. “I told them they were going to have to...
Texas Tech recruit Greg Minnick, battalion of live arms have Indiana primed for playoffs
Indiana pitcher Greg Minnick was offered a chance to see the red rocks of West Texas while in geology class last spring. It started with a telephone call. A Texas Tech assistant baseball coach was on the other end, offering the hard-throwing right-hander a scholarship to pitch in Lubbock. He...
WPIAL puts 19 on all-state boys basketball teams
The WPIAL had 19 boys basketball players earn all-state honors Sunday, and two were voted as the player of the year for their PIAA classifications. Neighborhood Academy senior Courtney Wallace was named as the top player in Class A, and Aliquippa’s Josh Pratt earned the honor for 3A in a...
WPIAL softball rankings: Week ending May 4, 2025
Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. Seneca Valley, 14-2, 2 2. Hempfield, 18-1, 1 3. North Allegheny, 12-7, 3 4. Pine-Richland, 12-6, 4 5. Canon-McMillan, 10-8, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Penn-Trafford, 15-1, 1 2. West Allegheny, 13-4, 5 3. Shaler, 12-4, 3 4. North Hills, 14-3, 4...
WPIAL baseball rankings: Week ending May 4, 2025
Class 6A Rank, Team, W-L, Last 1. North Allegheny, 12-6, 1 2. Seneca Valley, 11-6, 3 3. Canon-McMillan, 13-5, 4 4. Norwin, 12-7, 2 5. Butler, 10-7, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Shaler, 12-4, 1 2. Pine-Richland, 15-2, 2 3. Plum, 15-2, 3 4. Bethel Park, 14-4, 5 5....
Not just a ‘Single-A’ athlete: California long jumper Lee Qualk clears 23 feet for Baldwin Invite gold
California’s Lee Qualk rushed for 383 yards in a football game last fall, and on Friday posted another extraordinary number when he long jumped more than 23 feet. If his football stats weren’t already enough, there’s no denying his athleticism now. “That’s what I absolutely love about track,” said Qualk,...
As Baldwin Invite’s meet director, Rich Wright strives to honor late coach Ed Helbig
On the night before the Baldwin Invitational, track coach Rich Wright talked with longtime friend Ed Helbig on the drive home from the stadium. The two Baldwin coaches had run the event for years as a terrific tandem. Helbig died in August after a difficult battle with esophageal cancer, but...
Forgot about Scoop? Woodland Hills sprinter reintroduces himself at Baldwin Invitational
Scoop Smith is confident he’s still the fastest man in the WPIAL, even if the speedy Woodland Hills junior hadn’t had a chance to show everybody lately. “If they forgot about me, they forgot about me,” Smith said. “I’ll wake them up at Wips.” Sidelined for a month with a...
Lincoln Park freshman basketball player Damar Johnson recovering after drive-by shooting
Lincoln Park boys basketball coach Mike Bariski said he couldn’t imagine anyone wanting to hurt Damar Johnson, a freshman standout who was shot in the arm Wednesday night in Farrell. “I can’t even understand who wouldn’t like him,” Bariski said. “A kid with braces. Always smiling. Fifteen years old. Come...
Clutch outing from pitcher Carson Franc delivers section title to Avonworth
An 0.68 ERA is proof that Avonworth pitcher Carson Franc has had other great outings, but his coach called this one his best yet. “Under the circumstances, you have to,” Antelopes coach Jeff Bywalski said. In a battle for the section title, Franc tempted batters to chase high fastballs while...
WPIAL postpones team track semifinals to Wednesday
The WPIAL has postponed the team track and field semifinals to Wednesday because of unfavorable weather Tuesday. Sites and times remain the same. The winner from each semifinal site advances to the WPIAL team finals May 6 at West Mifflin. The North Allegheny girls (Class 3A) and Quaker Valley girls...
