Josh Rizzo stories, Page 35
Inexperienced Penn Hills roster getting crash course in boys volleyball
Penn Hills boys volleyball coach Jay Mitlo has asked his players to accept mission impossible. Fortunately for him, players like senior outside hitter Brayden Mallory have happily accepted the challenge. The Indians’ coach has asked a team that only features six returning players with varsity experience to cram for a...
Penn Hills rugby team exposing more players to sport in program’s 2nd season
Matt Rosemeyer is excited to see what the Penn Hills Big Red rugby program will be able to able to accomplish in year two. With the Big Red’s roster composition, Rosemeyer will likely see a big difference between games one and two of their schedule. Many of his players from...
Stop the Violence alumni game aims to bring people together
Two torn Achilles tendons gave Wilkinsburg’s Taz Williams the hint. Williams, who co-organizes the Stop the Violence Alumni Shootout, decided to retire from playing in the 2022 event. Not that it’s an admission that the 39-year-old still can’t play. It’s a sign the interest revolving around participating has skyrocketed. Many...
Shaler’s Brooks Blasko looking to carve his own piece of wrestling history
Brooks Blasko has the benefit of having two people who left a legacy in wrestling to help guide his career. Blasko, who is 13 and a seventh grader at Shaler Area Middle School, was inspired to start wrestling at age 6 by his grandfather “Jumpin” Johnny DeFazio, who wrestled professionally...
Penn Hills track and field looks to benefit from larger roster
The Penn Hills indoor track team had a strong winter. With some reinforcements in tow, Indians coach Lee Zelkowitz believes the spring squad may be able to have even more success. Penn Hills will have about 30 more athletes out for the team compared to last spring, with the numbers...
Penn Hills softball teams confident of better season in 2022
There were things for Kiera Mack to be happy with despite a loss to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in a scrimmage last Wednesday. While Penn Hills’ softball team fell behind early, the Indians didn’t fold. They were able to make a comeback before losing. “I think that will...
Penn Hills coach reflects on growth, chemistry that led team to PIAA quarterfinals
Penn Hills boys basketball didn’t have the most experience coming into this season. The Indians only had one returning starter — junior guard Daemar Kelly — who had a similar role on last year’s team. The 2021-22 Indians needed Jaden Dugger, Julian Dugger, George Mitchell and Noah Barren all to...
Penn Hills baseball hoping strong finish carries over to 2022
Rodney Stubbs could see some of the progress from the strong ending to Penn Hills’ baseball team’s season last year carrying into 2022. The Indians won their final three games last season to finish 5-13 overall and 3-9 in Section 2-5A play. This year, Stubbs, who coaches the Indians, emphasized...
Deer Lakes baseball using last season’s shortcomings as motivation
Josh Tysk doesn’t want the Deer Lakes baseball team to lament missed opportunities. The Lancers saw the Section 3-3A title slip away late last season after a pair of one-run losses to eventual champion Derry. “We want to close games better,” Tysk said. “We were right there and didn’t close...
Deer Lakes softball team leans on experience from last season’s playoff run, healthy Guthrie
There are many ways to play softball, but playing with a cast on her wrist isn’t the type of adversity Deer Lakes senior outfielder Lydia Guthrie wanted to deal with again. Guthrie’s 2021 season was abbreviated because of a gym class injury. She didn’t get fully healthy until the Lancers’...
Greensburg Central Catholic baseball seeks to defend section title and disappointing finish
Greensburg Central Catholic senior pitcher/infielder Zach David is driven by what kind of player he could be fully healthy. When he got surgery to repair a torn UCL last October, the doctor told David there was a chance it could have been torn for two years. David’s injury likely will...
All-state pitcher Emma Henry, Greensburg Central Catholic softball eye next step
Emma Henry went into last season with the Greensburg Central Catholic softball team not knowing what to expect. After losing her freshman season to the covid-19 pandemic, Henry expected there to be a learning curve. However, she proved to be a quick study, earning Class A second-team all-state honors in...
Penn Hills grad’s swimming career hits high note at Edinboro
Edinboro’s Stephanie Sipple doesn’t like to slap the water at the end of races. During her swimming career, the Penn Hills graduate couldn’t remember doing it many times. However, after placing fourth at the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference championships in February in the 100 fly, Sipple let some emotion out....
Penn Hills road warriors savor upset win in state playoffs
Penn Hills coach Chris Giles dismissed the idea that the PIAA should try to tailor the Class 5A state playoff brackets to limit travel. Despite a travel mishap following the game, Giles enjoyed what 476-mile trek provided for the Indians. Packed into a gym with little support, Penn Hills, which...
Penn Hills wrestler hits reset button, earns spot in WPIAL tournament
Not placing at the Allegheny County Wrestling championships earlier this season didn’t sit well with Penn Hills sophomore Aidan Pham. The 189-pound Indians sophomore wrestler decided to refocus on training after bowing out quicker than he hoped. “It made me work harder,” Pham said. “I believed I had more potential...
Penn Hills boys basketball takes stock after WPIAL loss to Highlands
Penn Hills boys basketball Chris Giles was ultimately unconcerned with how the WPIAL chooses to determine which teams go to the state basketball playoffs. It doesn’t matter if it is the follow-the-leader system in place now or if there is a play-in tournament like there was previously. When it comes...
Playoff berth shows how far young Riverview girls basketball team came
Maddie Deem looked around during the preseason and quickly realized her role for the Riverview girls basketball team was going to be different. In the past, the 5-foot-6 senior guard had plenty of other players to look up to. But this year, the Raiders were looking up to Deem, who...
Mt. Pleasant’s Dayton Pitzer dominates en route to title at Class 2A Southwest Regionals
Complacency never is a problem for Mt. Pleasant senior wrestler Dayton Pitzer. “I don’t think I’m at a point where I’ve been bored with wrestling,” Pitzer said. “I think there’s always room for improvement. I think working hard in the practice room with teammates and stuff and learning new moves...
Burrell’s Hornack navigates tough road at PIAA Class 2A Southwest Regional
Quaker Valley’s Logan Richey shot was quick, and Burrell’s Cooper Hornack found himself defending furiously in the first period of a 120-pound bout Saturday at Peters Township High School. The PIAA Class 2A Southwest Regional match between the two served as a reminder for Hornack how much more difficult things...
Penn Hills swim team looking to improve with more time in pool
Entering this season, Penn Hills swimming coach Nick Page wanted to see the Indians make solid progress throughout the year. With the makeup of the preseason roster, Penn Hills wasn’t going to be a team that won many meets or qualified a ton of swimmers for the WPIAL Class 3A...
Penn Hills notebook: Shot putter’s strong indoor season continues
Having already qualified for the state indoor track championship didn’t mean Angelo Allen was done stacking up strong results. The Penn Hills senior thrower’s distance of 57 feet, 5 inches won him the Tri-State Track Coaches Association title Feb. 19 at Edinboro University. Allen, who has the top throw in...
Vegas trip a rewarding experience for Pittsburgh Elite youth flag football teams
Changing venues for the NFL Flag Bowl didn’t sour the experience for members of the Pittsburgh Elite flag football program. Instead, having the event moved from Los Angeles to Las Vegas provided some good opportunities for the four teams that qualified. The Pittsburgh Elite team, which featured 9U, 11U, 12U...
Shaler swimmer finds success in pool, open water
Circumstance didn’t keep Noah Long out of the water. Opportunities to swim inside were limited by the pandemic, so the Shaler junior decided to try an open water event. Moraine State Park holds monthly races during the summer, and Long signed up in 2020 to give it a go. Long...
Shaler hockey team overcomes slow start to get back in playoff race
Shaler’s push for the hockey playoffs was one that seemed distant at the start of the year. The Titans lost seven of their first nine games, including four losses by four goals or more. But Shaler shook that off and found its footing, running off five consecutive wins to get...
Allderdice boys look to fend off upset-minded Brashear in City League championship game
Devin Crummie, a Central Catholic graduate, never played for a City League championship, but is well aware of the importance. Crummie, now in his third year as Allderdice head coach, yearns to help his kids earn the feeling he heard so much about growing up in the city. “There’s a...
