Michael Love stories, Page 138

LEWISBURG — David Manelis wanted to move up the ladder during Saturday’s PIAA Class AAA boys diving championships at Bucknell. The Fox Chapel sophomore placed 10th last year, and this time around, he had designs on improving from his ninth seed. Manelis, the fourth-place finisher at WPIALs three weeks ago,...

LEWISBURG — Penn-Trafford senior Logan Sherwin hoped to snag a top-eight medal in his first opportunity to compete at the PIAA Class AAA state diving championships. He stayed close to the top eight throughout the 11-dive meet before finishing ninth with 420.65 points Saturday afternoon at Bucknell University. Sherwin was...

Last year’s PIAA Class AAA boys diving champion, Chambersburg’s Nick Cover, moved on because of graduation, and that opened the door for several from across the state to ascend to the top of the line. Emmaus junior Brendan McCourt was the one who broke through. With 542.75 points, McCourt captured...

LEWISBURG — Several WPIAL swimmers are set to compete for state gold on Day 2 of the PIAA Class AAA swimming championships at Bucknell University. The morning preliminaries began with Mt. Lebanon’s Trinity Ward and Gateway’s Olivia Livingston earning the fourth and fifth seeds, respectively, in the 100-yard freestyle. North...

LEWISBURG — Of the 12 Class AAA swimming state titles earned Thursday on Day 1 of the PIAA championships at Bucknell University, seven were collected by WPIAL individuals or relays. The winning started with the Mt. Lebanon girls 200-yard medley relay and ended about four hours later when the North...

Hempfield senior Gavin Mayo was denied a trip to Thursday’s championship finals in the boys PIAA Class AAA 50-yard freestyle by the slimmest of margins. He swam a time of 21.03 seconds in his preliminary heat. The eighth-place finisher produced a 21.02, sending Mayo to the consolation finals by one...

LEWISBURG — Zoe Skirboll was confident she could go under two minutes in the finals of the 200-yard individual medley Thursday at the PIAA Class AAA swimming championships at Bucknell University. The Fox Chapel freshman recorded a time of 2 minutes, .25 seconds in finishing second at WPIALs on Feb....

WPIAL diving champion Paige Kalik, a senior from Penn-Trafford, led the WPIAL contingent with a ninth-place finish at Friday’s PIAA Class AAA competition. Kalik was 17th after the first round of five dives before moving up to 10th heading into the final round. She ended the event with 401.10 points,...

The championship heats are set for Friday’s boys and girls events at the PIAA Class AAA swim meet at Bucknell University. Several from the WPIAL are seeded in the top eight and are in contention for state gold. Top girls seeds include the Mt. Lebanon 200-yard medley relay (Hannah Morelli,...

LEWISBURG – The WPIAL produced four more state champions Thursday at the PIAA Class AA swim meet at Bucknell University. Robert Spekis, a senior from Belle Vernon in his final high school race, brought home gold in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 56.63. “It was such a great...

LEWISBURG — Deer Lakes junior Adam Morrison was right next to a pair of history making swims in the boys 500-yard freestyle at the PIAA Class AA swimming championships Thursday at Bucknell University. Marian Catholic senior Danny Berlitz edged Clearfield junior Luke Mikesell for the state title by 45 one-hundredths...

LEWISBURG — Ian Shahan enjoyed the feeling of winning his first PIAA Class AA championship so much he went out and picked up another. On Wednesday, the Belle Vernon sophomore secured the state title in the 100-yard butterfly. He returned Thursday in the 100 freestyle, set the pace in the...

LEWISBURG — North Catholic junior Kyle Maziarz has repeated as PIAA Class AA boys diving champion. He edged club teammate and WPIAL champion Andrew Cestra from Beaver by less than three points (447.55 to 444.85). Maziarz, the WPIAL champion last year as a sophomore and the runner-up to Cestra at...

A group of WPIAL swimmers punched tickets to the PIAA Class AA Day 2 championship finals set for Thursday evening at Bucknell University. Karen Siddoway, a senior from Northgate-Avonworth, will attempt to win her second individual state title as she is the top seed for the finals in the 100-yard...

LEWISBURG — Northgate-Avonworth’s Karen Siddoway trailed Northern York senior Kate Luft for most of the girls Class AA 200-yard freestyle final Wednesday evening at Bucknell University. But Siddoway, a senior, made her move over the final 50 and passed Luft right before the wall to secure her first state championship....

LEWISBURG — Adam Morrison swam in the consolation finals of the 200-yard freestyle at last year’s PIAA Class AA championships and finished 15th. The Deer Lakes junior wanted more, and results during the season, including his runner-up finish in 1 minute, 42.52 seconds in the event at WPIALs, indicated he...

LEWISBURG — Ian Shahan started Wednesday’s evening session of the PIAA Class AA swimming championships with his Belle Vernon teammates in the boys 200-yard medley relay. The quartet finished fifth, and Shahan found himself on the medals podium. But the sophomore wasn’t done. Shahan returned in the 100 butterfly and...

There will be a new state champion in the girls Class AAA 100-yard breaststroke. Last year’s champion, Olivia Paoletti from Avon Grove in District 1, graduated. Fox Chapel freshman Zoe Skirboll plans on having a lot to say about who will ascend to the top of the podium Saturday at...

Ringgold senior Anna Vogt, the two-time WPIAL champion in Class AA girls diving, added a state championship to her high school portfolio Wednesday afternoon at Bucknell. The top seed led from beginning to end to topple the 24-diver field. Vogt, third at states last year, is the third WPIAL diver...

The championship heats are set for Wednesday’s boys and girls events at the PIAA Class AA swimming meet at Bucknell University, and several from the WPIAL are in contention for state gold. Northgate senior Karen Siddoway is the top seed in the girls 200-yard freestyle. She swam a 1:52.66 in...

Rachel Halapchuk is a four-time WPIAL medalist with two each in the 100-yard butterfly and 100 backstroke. The Springdale senior posted a pair of eighth-place individual finishes at WPIALs earlier this month. But she didn’t want her high school career to conclude without an opportunity to swim at the PIAA...

The Deer Lakes softball team was denied a seventh straight section title last spring and suffered a WPIAL first-round exit, an uncharacteristically early exit for the Lancers after advancing to the WPIAL title game five times in the previous six seasons. But veteran coach Craig Taliani said his team improved...

Graduation hit the Deer Lakes baseball team hard the past two seasons. A combined 19 players moved on, including nine from last year’s squad that posted an 11-9 record and qualified for the WPIAL playoffs for the third year in a row and eighth time in nine seasons. But with...

The Pittsburgh Riverhounds on Saturday revealed the five individuals who constitute its inaugural hall of fame class. Enshrined are former players Justin Evans and David Flavius, founder and former owner Paul Heasley, the organization’s first-ever vice president and general manager Dave Kasper and first-ever head coach John Kowalski. Evans, a...

The Indiana University of Pennsylvania men’s basketball team held Mercyhurst under 50 points and claimed the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference championship with a 56-49 victory Sunday afternoon. The Crimson Hawks (29-2) finished off the Lakers (23-7) about an hour after the IUP women won their PSAC title with a 72-57...