Michael Love stories, Page 103
Highlands’ Slepak gives baseball verbal commitment to Division I Mount St. Mary’s
The day after Thanksgiving, Highlands junior Jett Slepak gave thanks for the opportunity to make a verbal commitment to the baseball program at Division I Mount St. Mary’s. “This is a great opportunity for me,” Slepak said of the Maryland school, which is a member of the Northeast Conference and...
Plum swim teams ready to navigate season
Anticipation for the Plum boys and girls swim teams always is at a high level this time of the year. The swimmers, coach Shawn Haupt said, ramp up training efforts to meet team and individual goals and expectation. Covid safety concerns delayed the start of Plum’s winter athletic seasons —...
Springdale AD Davis retiring after 21 years leading Dynamos athletics
The Springdale football team took on California to open the 1999 football season. It was the first game for any Dynamos team or individual that fall, and it also marked the first game in the tenure of athletic director Ray Davis. It was a special time for the 1977 Springdale...
Plum’s Proviano named Valley News Dispatch Girls Soccer Player of the Year
Valley News Dispatch Girls Soccer Player of the Year Gina Proviano Sr., MF, Plum Gina Proviano remained hopeful there would be a fall high school sports season amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, but the Plum senior girls soccer standout knew nothing was for sure as many athletic teams throughout the...
A-K Valley cross country all-star teams announced
After a fall season like no other, area cross country coaches came together recently to celebrate the athletes who competed on some of the biggest stages in the WPIAL and beyond with the sixth edition of the Alle-Kiski cross country all-star teams. The coaches review selection criteria such as performances...
Girls basketball preview: After successful run, high expectations remain for Cheswick Christian
Cheswick Christian Academy girls basketball coach Jacque Willis said it was hard to put into words how special last season was for the program. “The girls were in the situation where their beloved head coach (Clinton Blazevich) was going through a very serious condition where he needed a heart transplant,...
Boys basketball preview: Large senior class set to guide Cheswick Christian
When veteran Cheswick Christian Academy boys basketball coach Todd Rosio assessed his team’s 2019-20 season, he saw improvement from the players but knew they were not satisfied with their record. “The team is looking to take a step forward this year,” said Rosio, who enters his 27th season at the...
Boys basketball preview: Burrell confident improvement is around cornerVideo
The Burrell boys basketball team won just one game last year, although it came close to adding to the win total on several occasions. Second-year coach Mike Fantuzzo sees a bright future in a collection of returning players, including four starters, and some newcomers as the Bucs seek to turn...
Girls basketball preview: Young Burrell lineup eager to show how much it’s improved
Allison Fisher is ready. The Burrell junior guard is excited for what her team, still youthful but experienced at the varsity level, can do this season. No one graduated from last year’s team, which battled in and out of a loaded Section 1-4A and finished 3-18 overall and 2-12 in...
Boys basketball preview: After breakthrough season, Apollo-Ridge steps up in class
The Apollo-Ridge boys basketball team is moving on up. After a successful 2019-20 season that saw the Vikings earn a trip to the WPIAL Class 2A playoffs, an experienced roster will test its mettle in Class 3A this winter. Coach Greg Fox said the new section, with the likes of...
Girls basketball preview: Longtime coach returns to guide talented Apollo-Ridge roster
Ray Bartha is back on the bench for the Apollo-Ridge varsity girls basketball team. His first tenure, which ended in 2010, lasted 34 years and included 536 wins, 11 section championships, 23 appearances in the WPIAL playoffs and a WPIAL Class AA title in 1991. Now, Bartha is leading a...
PIHL juggling schedule amid covid restrictions
When the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League began its season earlier this month, league officials prepared themselves for several possible scenarios. With covid safety protocols in place sent down from the governor’s office, area school districts and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, play began with the knowledge that covid...
Presidents’ Athletic Conference announces plans for spring semester competition
The Presidents’ Athletic Conference on Friday announced tentative plans for seasons affected by the coronavirus pandemic to return to competition during the spring 2021 semester. “We are planning for winter and spring intercollegiate athletic competition, including resumption of postponed fall sports. Across the conference, our teams have been training and...
North Allegheny girls volleyball hopes PIAA finals experience pays off against Unionville
North Allegheny is going after its fourth consecutive PIAA Class 4A girls volleyball championship and seventh overall in program history. District 1 champion Unionville is in the state finals for the first time. Tigers coach Heidi Miller said while her team has the advantage in experience for Saturday’s 6 p.m....
PSAC will permit swimming, cross country to stage league championships
The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference on Thursday announced it will permit league championships to take place in women’s and men’s swimming and cross country. The decision comes after the recent conference board of directors votes to cancel mandated regular-season schedules and championships for all fall and winter sports. The board...
Carnegie Mellon athletics cancels winter sports seasons
Carnegie Mellon athletics announced Thursday it has canceled intercollegiate competition for the winter season because of ongoing concerns with the coronavirus pandemic. In a statement from the athletic department, Tartans athletic teams also will not resume play any sooner than March 1, 2021. The decision affects the schedules for both...
Promising season ends with one-point loss for Gateway football
Gateway’s bid for a second straight WPIAL Class 5A championship and third title in four seasons came to an end by the slimmest of margins in the semifinals Nov. 6. The Gators and Peters Township now have played two one-point games the past two years. Last year, Gateway won 21-20...
Gateway’s Emma Kennedy commits to Slippery Rock for softball
Emma Kennedy is a rock behind the plate for her high school and club softball teams. Now, the Gateway senior hopes to be rock solid for The Rock at the next level. Kennedy will soon realize a dream of playing college softball. She finalized a commitment last Wednesday to join...
Plum athletes ready to take next step in athletic careers
Each year, when the NCAA’s National Letter of Intent early-signing period for Division I and II athletes begins, Plum finds itself at the forefront with several signees. This year is no exception as numerous athletes finalized their decisions last week. Included in that were three who signed with Division I...
Plum celebrates successful fall sports season with 4 section, conference titles
Only two WPIAL schools had their football, girls volleyball, boys soccer and girls soccer teams capture section or conference titles during the fall 2020 season. Plum was one of those two, as the Mustangs squads joined North Catholic in accomplishing that feat. “I am just so happy for all the...
Alle-Kiski Valley players make next-level commitmentsVideo
A little over a year ago, Makayla Jackson verbally committed to join the women’s volleyball team at Pitt. The Plum senior made that decision final Wednesday as she signed with the Panthers. “It felt like forever,” said Jackson, who help lead the Mustangs this fall to their first section championship...
‘Little school in Saxonburg’ joins state tennis elite during Knoch’s memorable season
Of all the Class AA girls tennis teams in the state of Pennsylvania, only three played in this year’s PIAA team tournament and also had representatives in the state singles and doubles brackets. Two of them were District 10 champion Villa Maria Academy and District 9 champion St. Marys. The...
South Fayette lineman Ryan O’Hair chooses Miami (Ohio)
Ryan O’Hair received his 13th Division I offer last Wednesday from Miami (Ohio). On Monday evening, the 6-foot-8, 293-pound senior lineman from South Fayette made the Red Hawks his choice. O’Hair announced his verbal commitment on Twitter just a few minutes after informing a small gathering of family and friends...
As emotion of final loss fades, Plum girls soccer team revels in special season
The emotion was etched on the faces of the Plum girls soccer players and coaches in the moments after the final buzzer sounded Saturday afternoon at North Allegheny’s Newman Stadium and Mars laid claim to its second consecutive WPIAL Class 3A championship. Tears could not be hidden as they realized...
Luke Whisel paces Gateway runners at soggy WPIAL championship race
An unprecedented season for the Gateway cross country teams, altered at every turn because of the coronavirus pandemic, concluded Oct. 30 at the WPIAL championships at White Oak Park. Considering changes to the race format in the weeks leading up to the meet, as well as weather challenges, coach Tom...
