Jerry DiPaola stories, Page 160

It turns out the Robert Morris women’s team’s victory Sunday in the Northeast Conference Tournament championship game wasn’t the last at the North Athletic Complex. The men’s team will host Cornell at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the first round of the CollegeInsider.com Tournament (CIT). The North Athletic Complex is the...

No matter how hard he tried, dutifully attending practice every day for four years at Latrobe, Ron Schirf never could master the game of football. But Schirf had another talent that got him into college and onto a national platform. He was that school’s best wrestler in the 1950s (the...

The ACC’s move from an 18- to a 20-game conference schedule means games that matter most occur sooner next season, and that includes Pitt’s 2019-2020 opener Nov. 6 against Florida State at Petersen Events Center. The date is nearly two months earlier than the opening to the 2019 conference schedule...

When Duke visited the Petersen Events Center last year to play Pitt, Jeff Capel couldn’t wait to get there. Then a Duke assistant and now the head coach at Pitt, Capel carried with him a bag of Duke gear he wanted to give to Dick Groat, one of the greatest...

In a move intended to help grow Pitt’s brand among its 19 sports in terms of what matters in big-time college athletics — corporate sponsorships and multimedia rights — the university’s athletic department signed a long-term deal Thursday with JMI Sports, a collegiate marketing firm. The new agreement is set...

It turns out the men of Robert Morris aren’t finished playing basketball. School officials announced Thursday that the team has accepted an invitation to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament (CIT). The Colonials (17-16) lost to Fairleigh Dickinson, 66-62, last Saturday in a Northeast Conference semifinal game. Fairleigh Dickinson went on to earn...

There’s an empty spot on the wall in Edwin Gonzalez’s office at Bishop Loughlin High School in Brooklyn, N.Y. Next to it is a photo of former Pitt guard Ronald Ramon. If Gonzalez has his way, Justin Champagnie, the most recent member of Pitt’s 2019 recruiting class, will be joining...

When Dick Groat got the news not long ago that this will be his last season offering analysis of Pitt basketball games on the radio, he didn’t immediately think about what he was losing. His thoughts first turned to his broadcast partner of 40 years, Bill Hillgrove. The two comprise...

Did anyone notice the halftime score Tuesday night when Pitt defeated Boston College, 80-70, in the first round of the ACC Tournament? Boston College scored the first seven points of the game, but Pitt was dominant for the remainder of the first half and went to the locker room at...

Sincere Carry bowed to a difficult truth Tuesday. “I probably should have rested,” he said. But Duquesne’s freshman point guard wasn’t apologizing for playing eight days after having arthroscopic surgery on his left knee Feb. 26. He had the doctor’s blessing, and he couldn’t endure watching another game from the...

Pitt players, coaches and fans won’t offer Boston College sympathy, but perhaps there’s another team in worse shape than the Panthers heading into the first round of the ACC Tournament. Pitt already shoved Notre Dame into last place with a 56-53 victory Saturday at Petersen Events Center. Next up is...

The ACC is loaded with talented teams, with five of them ranked among the top 15 in the Associated Press poll and three — Virginia, North Carolina and Duke — legit Final Four hopefuls. Guess what? Pitt won’t meet any of those five if it’s fortunate enough to play two...

With his young Duquesne team beaten down by injuries and facing adversity at the most crucial time of the year, Keith Dambrot is looking for answers. “I guess I better go to church more often or something,” he said. Duquesne concluded the regular season Saturday night, losing 78-67 to Dayton...

Pittsburgh Pirates pitching couldn’t solve the Minnesota Twins’ hitters Saturday in a 10-1 loss in Bradenton, Fla. Starter Clay Holmes allowed three hits and three runs — two earned — in three innings, and reliever Keone Kela had a horrific inning in the fifth, giving up four hits and four...

Jeff Capel had several reasons to smile Saturday. The final score, obviously, felt good for Pitt’s first-year coach. Pitt stopped a 13-game, nearly two-month losing streak with a 56-53 victory against Notre Dame at Petersen Events Center, escaping last place in the ACC. Now, the Panthers (13-18, 3-15) enter the...

Dan Burt didn’t expect sleep to come easily Friday night. “I’m sure the adrenaline will keep me up,” Duquesne’s women’s coach said. But after the Dukes pounded Saint Louis, 72-51, in an Atlantic 10 quarterfinal before 1,009 at Palumbo Center, Burt can be sure of this: “When you play like...

Duquesne freshman forward Amari Kelly will miss the rest of the season after injuring his knee Wednesday night in the Dukes’ 85-75 loss at Saint Louis. Kelly, 6-foot-9, is the second member of Duquesne’s freshman class and front line to suffer a season-ending knee injury. Austin Rotroff, 6-10, was injured...

Many seniors who reach the end of their careers might wistfully ponder what it would be like to play one more season in college. Don’t include Pitt’s Jared Wilson-Frame in that group. He’s actually thinking bigger than that. He would gladly turn back the calendar and re-live all four of...

Penn State women’s basketball coach Coquese Washington, who led the Lady Lions to three consecutive Big Ten regular-season championships from 2012-2014, was relieved of her duties Friday after 12 years on the job. Penn State athletic director Sandy Barbour said Washington is leaving the program under a mutual agreement with...

Pitt is on its way to a third consecutive losing season for the first time since 2000, but there is still an important matter to resolve Saturday. The Panthers (12-18, 2-15) can escape last place in the ACC by defeating Notre Dame (13-17, 3-14) at Petersen Events Center. A victory...

Duquesne seniors Chassidy Omogrosso and Kadri-Ann Lass, who have led the Dukes into the quarterfinals of the Atlantic 10 Tournament, were honored Thursday as the conference released its women’s basketball postseason honors. Omogrosso, a Blackhawk graduate, was named to the A-10 second team. Lass, a native of Estonia, was selected...