Michael Love stories, Page 112
PSAC suspends competitions for fall semester
The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference announced Wednesday morning it is suspending all conference athletic events and championships through the fall semester because of the ongoing covid-19 pandemic. The conference said it plans to shift fall sports to the spring semester if a return to competition can be done safely. The...
Penn State’s Sean Clifford named to Davey O’Brien Award watch list
Sean Clifford, Penn State’s junior quarterback, is one of 30 quarterbacks in Division I football named to The Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award watch list released Tuesday. The award is presented annually by the Davey O’Brien Foundation to the nation’s best college quarterback. It is the oldest national quarterback award,...
Freeport International Baseball Invitational set to start next week
Next week’s Freeport International Baseball Invitational is still a go, and roughly two dozen teams are ready to take part in games at four area fields. Because of the ongoing covid-19 pandemic, the week of activities, in some respects, will have a different feel from past tournaments, said FIBI vice...
3 Pitt players named to Bednarik watch list
Only three Division I college football programs have three players on the 2020 Bednarik Award Watch List released Monday. Pitt is one of them, joining defending national champion LSU and USC. Selected to the list from the Panthers are safety Paris Ford, defensive end Patrick Jones II and defensive tackle...
Kiski Area grad Kuhn ramps up for senior season with Slippery Rock football
The accolades poured in for Chad Kuhn after the 2019 college football season. The Kiski Area graduate, a rising redshirt senior defensive end at Division II Slippery Rock, earned first-team All-PSAC West and Division II College Coaches Association honors and second-team All-American recognition from the D2CCA and Associated Press. Kuhn...
Lower Burrell’s Caliguri to be honored at martial arts legends awards ceremony
Lower Burrell’s Frank Caliguri has been honored many times for his contributions to martial arts at the local, regional and national levels. He will be recognized again Saturday evening as the American Martial Arts Alliance Foundation will pay tribute to him during this weekend’s online convention. The AMAAF legends awards...
Carnegie Mellon athletes show disappointment, understanding after fall seasons canceled
Mia Hartman was focused on a return to competition this fall. A rising junior at Carnegie Mellon, the Kiski Area graduate put in a lot of mileage over the past couple of months toward a return to the Tartans women’s cross country team after missing her sophomore season because of...
Pitt, ACC to delay start of fall competitions
Six athletic teams at Pitt will experience a slight delay in the start of fall competition. The Atlantic Coast Conference announced Thursday that the season starts for each of its Olympic sports at its 15 members schools will be no earlier than Sept. 1. The delay includes all exhibition and...
Big East Youth Football League cancels 2020 fall season
Mike Martin was excited when Ar-Ken Youth Football and Cheer, which represents Arnold and New Kensington in Westmoreland County, agreed to join the Big East Youth Football League. “We were pumped up,” said Martin, the organization’s president. “At the end of the day, we felt the decision was the best...
Carlynton’s Nathan Milsom honored by Athletic Administrator’s Association
Nathan Milsom loves to challenge himself. The athletic director in the Carlynton School District for more than a decade fills his plate with his duties with the Cougars athletic program, work as the president of several conferences, his involvement with the WPIAL basketball committee and as the veteran head coach...
Gateway players glad to compete in thriving summer baseball league
Born out of the cancellation of the spring high school season and the summer American Legion schedule, the Monroeville Gators, a group of players from Gateway and one from South Fayette, have mixed the fun of playing summer baseball with a focus on winning games in the Western Pennsylvania Baseball...
Slippery Rock, IUP ranked in preseason top 25 football polls
A pair of Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division football rivals are ranked in the Division II top 25 by a pair of national college preview magazines. Slippery Rock is No. 9 in the Street & Smith’s poll and No. 11 in the Lindy’s Sports rankings. Both preseason lists were...
Umpire comes through with keepsake after Plum Little League trip to Cooperstown was canceled
As winter turned to spring, Noah Rhoades looked to the upcoming Plum baseball season with excitement. Getting back on the field and playing with his friends gave him a renewed energy. Plans also included a trip to New York this summer as part of this year’s Plum Cooperstown team. But...
The Meadows suspends onsite race wagering; live racing continues without spectators
The Meadows Casino Racetrack Hotel in Washington County announced Friday that onsite race wagering temporarily will be suspended starting at 11:59 p.m. Friday night. Live racing at the 5/8-mile harness track will continue, though public access to the racetrack and racing operations will be prohibited. Live harness racing currently is...
Teenage racing phenom Heim comes to Western Pa. for 1st time
More than a decade ago, Ray Heim tore it up on the asphalt racing track at Lanier National Speedway in Braselton, Ga., and the Pittsburgh area native, who lived in West Deer and Verona and graduated from Riverview, enjoyed numerous top finishes. His son, Corey, watched on at the track...
Shady Side Academy discontinues use of Indians mascot
The Shady Side Academy Indian mascot, in use since 1936, will be discontinued effective immediately, the school announced Wednesday. The school’s Board of Trustees voted unanimously Tuesday evening to discontinue the use of the mascot. Board of Trustees chairman Jonathan Kamin, a 1991 Academy graduate, said the recent discussion and...
Minor League Baseball season canceled for 2020
Hopes for Minor League Baseball in 2020 officially ended Tuesday as Major League Baseball announced that it will not provide its affiliated teams with players amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The move affects more than 150 such clubs, including Pittsburgh Pirates affiliates in Indianapolis (Class AAA) and Altoona (Class AA)....
Former Freeport lineman Doug Goodman going into Edinboro hall of fame
Doug Goodman is more than 40 years removed from his time at Edinboro University. But the Freeport graduate and Fighting Scots football and track and field standout recently has spent a lot of time reminiscing about his collegiate accomplishments. Goodman, a 1977 Edinboro graduate, is the elder statesman of the...
Plum bats stay dangerous in WPBL victory
A six-run fifth inning turned out to be the difference for Plum in an 11-7 victory over the Independent Players in Western Pennsylvania Baseball League action Monday at Valley High School. It was the second time in as many games to start the season that Plum (2-0, 2-0) tallied 11...
Getting chance to play is great, but Plum’s WPBL team gunning for a title, too
Denny Ayres is getting ready to attend West Virginia with a mechanical and aerospace engineering course of study. College baseball is not in his plans. He hoped successful high school and American Legion seasons would be part of his final year before moving on to Morgantown. Those plans were dashed...
Valley News Dispatch girls athlete of the year: Shemanski leaves lasting legacy at Freeport
From the time she stepped on the soccer field at Freeport in fall of 2016 to when she put on her Yellowjackets girls basketball uniform for the final time this season, Sidney Shemanski was a difference maker. As a freshman, she became a starter in basketball and soccer, helping lead...
Leechburg’s Andre Carter takes over athletic director post at challenging time
When Andre Carter came to Leechburg in August 2018 to coach the girls basketball team, he noted player development as one of his strengths. Now, as he gets ready to take over as the athletic director after Mark Jones announced he is retiring after 15 years in the position, the...
Western Pa. Baseball League gives Summer Rams seniors last chance to take field together
Highlands baseball coach Jeff Campbell was heartbroken knowing his players were not going to have their high school season when schools were shut down in late March in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The disappointment continued when the American Legion season was scrapped. But when the Western Pennsylvania Baseball League...
Tanner Nulph, Summer Rams prevail in WPBL opener
Tanner Nulph first helped the Summer Rams at the plate in Wednesday evening’s Western Pennsylvania Baseball League game at Valley High School. The rising Highlands junior then brought it home from the mound in his team’s 4-3 victory over the Independent Players. Nulph drove in three runs with a single...
Lernerville set for Firecracker 100 festivities
After a long coronavirus hiatus and a successful 2020 season debut last Friday, Lernerville Speedway turns to an annual tradition as it hosts the 14th annual World of Outlaws Late Model Series Firecracker 100 Weekend. The three days of racing begins Thursday and runs through to Saturday’s main event that...
