Josh Rizzo stories, Page 40

Sierra Ricci knows this isn’t the type of year she can ease back into the lineup. The defensive specialist for the Shaler Area girls volleyball team is returning to the lineup after missing last season with an ACL tear. But because of covid-19, the Titans will only play Section 1-4A...

Olivia Wilkins didn’t want to come into her senior tennis season unprepared. She took private lessons a few days a week over the summer to prepare for the daunting task of taking over the No. 1 singles spot on the Shaler Area girls tennis team. Wilkins knew taking the top...

Michael Heinl thought there might be a chance everything would be normal. The 149-pound Washington & Jefferson senior wrestler already had made the trip with teammate Hunter Neely to the NCAA Division III national championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. But Heinl found out less than 24 hours before the tournament...

Tom Sorce knows the current world environment isn’t making high school sports likely to happen this spring. But the third-year Shaler Area softball coach hopes the Titans will get a chance. Following strong workouts and tournaments in the fall and spring, Sorce thought Shaler had potential. The Titans, who saw...

Zach Hartung isn’t what you would call an experienced wrestler. Before the past two years, the Shaler Area freshman’s experience primarily consisted of unsanctioned matches with his brother. Hartung, who competes at 252 pounds, has shown considerable progress during his two-year career. He recently placed eighth at the Pennsylvania junior...

Shawn Pilyih had an inkling the Shaler Area girls bowling team clinched its first appearance at the state championships. The Titans coach came to the sudden realization when the results were delivered to him. “I was the tournament director,” Pilyih said. “I didn’t know until they handed me the sheet...

Julian Batts showed steady improvement over the course of his four years with the Long Island men’s basketball team. While the school underwent a significant change — the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds were rebranded as the LIU Sharks after a merger with C.W. Post — Batts felt he stayed the same....

Anyone willing to come along for the ride will be welcomed by Robert Morris men’s basketball coach Andy Toole. With their 86-66 Northeast Conference Tournament semifinal win over Long Island University on Saturday, the top-seeded Colonials earned an opportunity to close their first season at UPMC Events Center by winning...

Lydia Nebiolo provided Shaler Area’s Keith Simmons with extra motivation for next year following her performance at the WPIAL Class AAA championships Feb. 27-28 Saturday at Trees Pool. The Titans junior swimmer missed going to states by less than five seconds in the 200- and 500-yard freestyle events. That’s the...

Cam Mbalo has an idea of what he wants to do with his first memento from his senior season. The Shaler Area senior triple jumper received a gold watch following his PTFCA indoor state championship winning leap of 48 feet, 1 ½ inches Feb. 29 at Penn State. “I’m definitely...

All six Mohawk girls basketball players who attended the press conference following the WPIAL Class 3A girls basketball championship game couldn’t help but talk over each other. The Warriors were brand new to all the pomp and circumstance surrounding playing in a title game Saturday morning at the Petersen Events...

Bella Pilyih knew the margin of error for the Shaler Area girls bowling team to reach the step-ladder portion of the WPIBL championships was going to be thin. The senior wanted to make sure her team reached the Western Regionals. Pilyih made the most of her opportunity, starting with six...

Building a program wasn’t easy for coach Rob Niederberger. After several seasons in which the Shaler Area boys basketball team struggled to earn victories, Niederberger and his players righted the ship. The Titans fell short of reaching the PIAA Class 5A playoffs for the second straight season after Chartiers Valley...

Becoming a standout in track and field wasn’t the initial intention for North Allegheny senior Casey Burton. Finding success in the sport — Burton’s accomplishments earned her an opportunity to attend Princeton — was a byproduct of her hard work. At first, Burton was hoping to use the sport as...

Having something to look forward to is something Shaler Area indoor track coach Shawn Ryan stressed before the TSTCA Championships last weekend. The indoor track season doesn’t involve competing in many venues. But qualifying for states provides an opportunity for a trip to State College and a boost heading into...

Any simmering problems the Shaler Area boys basketball team picked up during a rough stretch to end the season didn’t linger into the first round of the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs. The Titans built a 14-point lead by halftime and moved past Gateway, 48-43, last Monday at North Hills. Shaler...

The Shaler Area indoor track and field team continues to show progress as it moves toward the postseason. Mayah Charity turned in a personal best in the 200-meter dash last week, finishing in 27.51 seconds. Charity’s time gave her the second-best time in program history. David Kondraciuk also ran a...

Emily Cavacini wishes the Shaler Area girls basketball team could have found a way into the WPIAL Class 6A playoffs. The Titans were undone by a few slow starts and wrapped up their season 9-13 overall and 6-8 in section. Their section mark left them one game short of tying...

Things were admittedly bleak for Shaler Area senior Blake Kucharski and teammates. Heading into the holiday break, the Titans hockey team didn’t have much to show in the win column. Losing 10 of their first 11 contests had Kucharski, an assistant captain, and Shaler searching for answers. “I think we...

The North Allegheny girls basketball team showed it can play fast and slow in a 60-42 victory against section rival Norwin on Tuesday night. The Tigers (15-3, 10-1) have won four straight and are tied atop Section 1-6A partly because of their flexibility, something that coach Spencer Stefko said comes...

Time is running out for the Shaler Area swimmers to earn times needed to reach the WPIAL Class AAA championships. Titans coach Keith Simmons would have liked to see some of his swimmers hit the times earlier, but he said sometimes it takes an extra sense of urgency to push...

Norwin’s Jayla Wehner found solace in the possibility of having another meeting with the North Allegheny girls basketball team down the road. The Knights were held to a season low in points and shot 2 of 13 from beyond the arc in the first half of a 60-42 road loss...

Cornelious Nesbit wanted the Shaler Area girls basketball team’s Jan. 20 loss to Butler to serve as a spark. If the Titans want to a spot in the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs, they had to learn from their loss to the Golden Tornado. Avoiding slow starts is a must. Shaler...

Each game requires Shaler Area senior Chris White to rely on his powers of observation. When an opponent is bringing the basketball up the floor, White looks for keys on how to separate them from it. Being out front of the Titans’ press is an opportunity to generate offense. “It’s...

Eloise Facher had a subdued reaction to Shaler Area track and field coach Shawn Ryan’s news. The Titans freshman impressed during her debut in early January at a track meet at Youngstown State. Facher ran the second-fastest time in school history in the 60-meter dash by finishing in 8.18 seconds....