Jerin Steele stories, Page 34
South Park’s O’Connor, North Catholic’s Foley capture WPIAL Class AA diving titles
Cole O’Connor saved his toughest dive for last and it paid off. The South Park senior trailed by five entering the final round, but successfully executed an inward double with a 2.8 degree of difficulty to score 46 points and vault himself to his first WPIAL Class AA diving championship...
Spencer leads way for Pine-Richland wrestling team
Pine-Richland wrestling made some big strides during the team portion of the season, and now the hope is it has set it up for success in an expanded individual season. That starts with defending WPIAL champ Cole Spencer, a Penn recruit who is No. 1 at 160 pounds in the...
New coach DeGregorio seeing good signs with Pine-Richland girls basketball team
When Kyle DeGregorio took over as coach of the Pine-Richland girls basketball team before this season, his first objective was establishing a culture. That culture has tenets that include growth, strengthening relationships between players on the court and developing an open line of communication and trust between players and the...
After setting school record, Pine-Richland’s Allen turns focus toward WPIAL success
Delaney Allen was exhausted as she climbed out of the pool after swimming her hardest in the 50-yard freestyle on Jan. 28 against North Allegheny when she started hearing screams of joy coming from her teammates. “I was so tired that when I ran that race that I didn’t even...
4 players from Pine-Richland state title football team accept walk-on offers
Pine-Richland football had four players accept preferred walk-on offers on Feb. 3, and each one has a unique story. Eli Jochem, the Rams’ record-setting wide receiver, is headed to Indiana to play at his mother’s alma mater. Caden Schweiger spent months recovering from injuries sustained in an ATV accident but...
Pine-Richland grad focuses on defense to earn starting role at Binghamton
Dan Petcash saw an opportunity and he took it. Going into his sophomore season at Binghamton, there were several openings in the lineup, so he spent the summer working on becoming a lockdown defender. That training has paid off and has led to Petcash, a Pine-Richland grad, getting starter’s minutes...
Mt. Pleasant girls hope to benefit from experience this season
At the high school level it’s a rarity for a team to have its entire roster back from the previous season, but it’s a welcomed reality for longtime Mt. Pleasant girls basketball coach Scott Giacobbi. The Vikings did not graduate anyone and bring back a group of five seniors and...
Mt. Pleasant boys basketball enters season under new leadership
T.J. Kravits had just finished his season coaching at Marion Center. Being a basketball fan, he looked at the schedule and decided to take a trip to Mt. Pleasant to see a game against Geibel. At the time he didn’t know he was seeing his future team play, but he...
Gateway hockey program focused on development
Gateway hockey coach Shawn Jesih sees a lot of potential in the freshmen and sophomores who make up the majority of the roster. So much so that before the season, he bumped the Gators up from the PIHL’s Tier 3 JV league to Tier 2 knowing it would be a...
Girls basketball preview: Senior trio set to lead Franklin Regional into new section
When reflecting on last season, Franklin Regional girls basketball coach Anthony Kobus pointed out five losses in section play by seven points or less. It was a product of having a young team with only one senior. Now the Panthers have a rotation of nearly a dozen girls who have...
Boys basketball preview: Franklin Regional to rely on deep group of returning guards
On paper, the 2019-20 Franklin Regional boys basketball season looked like a tale of two halves with a 7-2 run down the stretch to get into the postseason after 5-9 start, but it was more of a yearlong journey of growing up. The Panthers had only three returning players with...
Weather’s no problem for Mars boys soccer in PIAA semifinal victory
Mars boys soccer coach Chris Knauff said the ground was clear at his home five miles from the Mars Athletic Complex, so he was quite shocked to see a snow-covered field upon arrival. What didn’t surprise him was his team’s ability to adapt to the conditions and find a way...
Pine-Richland routs Peters Township, wins WPIAL championship in 5th classificationVideo
Pine-Richland already had WPIAL football titles in Class 2A, 3A, 4A and 6A, and after a dominant performance on Saturday, the Rams added 5A to the list. The top-seeded Rams rolled to a 35-0 win over Peters Township in the Class 5A championship game at North Allegheny’s Newman Stadium. Pine-Richland...
Clutch goal from Jayden Sharpless lifts North Catholic past Avonworth in Class 2A title game
In the early portion of Saturday’s WPIAL Class 2A championship game, North Catholic standout junior Jayden Sharpless said she was a little too amped up when she fired a free kick well over the goal from 30 yards out. The second time she got a free kick chance, Sharpless made...
Greensburg Central Catholic boys fight off Eden Christian upset bid in Class A quarterfinals
Ricco Ciccarelli could hear Greensburg Central Catholic coach Tyler Solis say, “I think you got it,” as his attempted cross kept curling closer and closer to the net. What started out as a pass intended for the far post turned into a perfect strike just under the crossbar and the...
North Catholic punishes Mt. Pleasant for mistakes in Class 2A matchup
As the clock was winding down late in the fourth quarter, Mt. Pleasant coach Jason Fazekas said to his assistants he felt like the score was a lot closer than the scoreboard indicated. Fazekas liked plenty of what his team did Friday night, but critical mistakes and missed opportunities were...
Forced into starring role, Brock Wilkins carries Kiski Area past Shaler
After two successful weeks of filling in for standout Kenny Blake at running back, Brock Wilkins was ready to go back to his role as a lead blocker Friday night. When Blake went down with an injury on his first carry, Wilkins was thrust right back into the spotlight. And...
North Hills pulls away from Kiski Area
In three plays, Kiski Area went from looking like it was going to be right back into its game with North Hills to having the momentum completely flipped. Down eight points early in the second half and facing a fourth and 3 at the North Hills’ 4-yard line, Kiski Area...
Avonworth makes smooth transition to Class 3A, blanks Quaker Valley
Coming off a historic season that culminated in a WPIAL Class 2A championship, Avonworth had a lot of great players to replace, including a 2,500-yard passer and a 2,300-yard rusher, as it moved up to Class 3A this fall. In their first chance to showcase their talents under the bright...
Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament girls win Pittsburgh Diocesan title
Two weeks ago, the eighth-grade girls basketball team at Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Natrona Heights did something no team in the long history of the school had done: win the Pittsburgh Diocesan title. Blessed Sacrament won the championship with a 39-17 victory in the Class B...
North Catholic girls fight off challenge from Central Valley in 4A second round
There’s an understanding among the North Catholic Trojanettes that they are going to get everyone’s best. They’re the top-ranked team in the state in Class 4A and were runners-up in last year’s state tournament, so when they take the court, they expect to have a battle on their hands. For...
Freeport confident heading into softball season with small but talented roster
When Freeport softball takes the field this year, there’s a good chance there will only be 11 players on the team. Don’t be fooled by the small roster, though. The Yellowjackets have a mix of veteran and young talent, and they expect to be in the mix for a section...
With Heilman on hill, Freeport has shot at another special season
Last season, Freeport baseball coach Ed Carr watched a team that consisted mainly of juniors grow up on the fly and exceed expectations. Led by Mercyhurst recruit Jarrett Heilman’s outstanding year on the mound, the Yellowjackets won a section title, made the WPIAL semifinals and qualified for the PIAA playoffs...
A-K Valley athletes of the week: Freeport’s Julia Cummings and Kiski Area’s Jack Blumer
Julia Cummings Class: Freshman School: Freeport Sport: Bowling Report card: Cummings was runner-up to Woodland Hills’ Johnna Hill at the Western Regional on Friday, losing in a roll off 58-28 after tying 201-201 after 10 frames. Cummings was one of six girls from the Alle-Kiski Valley to advance to the...
Fox Chapel baseball optimistic despite heavy turnover from last season
Fox Chapel will have to replace 11 seniors, six of their starting nine and most of the pitching staff from a team that went 10-8 and made the WPIAL playoffs, but Foxes coach Jim Hastings has some pieces returning and others coming through the pipeline to help offset the losses....
