Michael Love stories, Page 82

When Monroeville resident Jamee Kovacs sees her son, Caleb, having fun in a swimming pool, her heart is filled with excitement and also the desire to give him more opportunities in the water. That was the main impetus for Kovacs, a board member with the Monroeville Marlins Swim Club, to...

The Gateway cross country teams have a lot on their plate in the early portion of the season, and coach Tom LaBuff said workouts and challenging competition are helping the boys and girls runners gauge where they are in their progression and also set goals for the end of the...

Moon senior Mia Cochran truly has the hang of the White Oak Park cross country course. The Moon senior and two-time WPIAL and PIAA Class 3A champion defended her Red, White & Blue Class 3A title Saturday, holding off Morgantown (W.Va.) junior Irene Riggs by three seconds. Cochran won with...

The Riverview boys cross country team finished second to Winchester Thurston at last year’s WPIAL Class A championships at White Oak Park. But the Raiders were not able to advance to the PIAA meet as covid restrictions reduced the number of state Class A qualifiers from the WPIAL from four...

The Plum cross country teams are regular attendees of the season-opening Gateway Invitational at Boyce Park. The Mustangs, junior Connor Pivirotto said, fared well on the always-tough course Sept. 4 and felt it was a springboard for both teams to bigger things this fall. “I think overall, our teams had...

Something had to give Friday as the Plum and Fox Chapel football teams both hoped to get into the win column after coming up empty over the first two weeks. The Mustangs struck first in the nonconference game at Plum, but the Foxes weathered the early punch and went on...

The Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Softball League began its varsity season last Sunday with a pair of doubleheaders, and game action involving the 12 teams continues Sunday at six fields around the Pittsburgh region. Peters Township and Bethel Park each are 2-0 after sweeps of Mt Lebanon and Seneca Valley, respectively....

Dean Cecere Riverview, Sr., RB/LB/SS The Raiders senior hopes to pick up Friday against Carlynton where he left off two weeks ago against Shady Side Academy. Cecere carried the ball 18 times for 133 yards and a touchdown. Riverview returns to action after last week’s game with Chartiers-Houston was postponed...

Nonconference Class 3A No. 2 Avonworth (2-0) at Freeport (1-1) 7 p.m. Friday, Freeport Area Athletic Stadium, Sarver Freeport got into the win column Friday and captured the inaugural Pike Trophy with a 28-14 victory over Knoch. The Yellowjackets led 26-0 at halftime and held off a Knights’ second-half rally....

The Leechburg boys soccer and girls volleyball teams postponed games through this weekend. The girls volleyball team, which opened its season at the Deer Lakes tournament last Saturday, didn’t play its scheduled Section 4-A opener against Springdale on Tuesday, and Thursday’s section matchup with Riverview also was postponed, said athletic...

It has been nearly two years since the Riverview boys and girls varsity soccer teams played games that counted in the WPIAL. That stretch, which included the entire 2020 season when low numbers prevented the teams from competing, came to an end when the Riverview boys faced section foe Eden...

The Freeport football team takes on Avonworth at home Friday, and the Yellowjackets will honor local veterans and celebrate RED Friday. A Remembering Everyone Deployed ceremony will be during pregame festivities starting at 6:30 p.m. Local veterans will take the field to be honored, and residents of the Mechling Shakley...

It was a busy opening weekend to the 2021 season for many WPIAL girls volleyball teams with dual-match and tournament action. The Western PA Volleyball Coaches Association released its Week 1 Top 10 poll Monday morning, and North Allegheny (Class AAAA), Montour (Class AAA), North Catholic (Class AA) and Bishop...

Riverview graduate Michael Komaniak didn’t waste any time delivering the dramatic for the Washington & Jefferson men’s soccer team. The senior forward and team captain tallied the winning goal in the 89th minute to lift the Presidents past Point Park, 3-2, in the season opener last Wednesday. Komaniak also scored...

Week 3 in the Western Pennsylvania Youth Football League is in the books, and teams in nine divisions from all three classifications took to the field. For more information on the league, including schedules and standings, visit wpyfl.org. CLASS AAA Division I (5th-6th grade) Seneca Valley 31, Norwin 0 Washington...

When Kayla Taylor arrived in Monroeville in July as the new head coach of the Gateway girls volleyball team, she wasn’t familiar with much in the program, including its players. But in the time since then, including the past couple of weeks of preseason practices and scrimmages, she has gotten...

Kenny Nieser heads to the tennis courts at Gateway High School each time hoping to see improvement from his youthful girls team. So far this season, he said, his players are getting a return on their investments. “We have a good group of girls who have shown up and worked...

It’s been nearly two years since the Riverview boys and girls varsity soccer teams played games that counted in the WPIAL. That stretch, which included the entire 2020 season when low numbers prevented the teams from competing, came to an end when the Riverview boys faced section foe Eden on...

With the loss of eight seniors, including six who played major roles, from last year’s Section 1-3A championship team, Plum girls volleyball coach Kelsey Bonk knew coming into this season there would be a lot of competition for starting spots in the rotation. That competition through offseason workouts and into...

Last year’s Freeport and Knoch football game was canceled amid the plethora of schedule changes because of the covid pandemic. The teams resumed their rivalry Friday at Knoch Knights Stadium, and the Yellowjackets raced to a four-touchdown lead at halftime before holding off a Knights comeback attempt for a 28-14...

In the Western Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association’s preseason poll for Class AAA, four of the top six girls teams in the rankings are the ones who finished in a four-way tie for last year’s Section 5-AAA title. Leading the way is No. 2 Freeport, which won its 16th straight section...

Calvin Heinle Kiski Area, Sr., WR/CB An all-conference selection last year who led the Cavaliers in receptions and receiving yards is back after recovering from a torn meniscus. Coach Sam Albert played Heinle sparingly in Friday’s Week Zero win over Butler, but he expects Heinle to carry a bigger load...

Nonconference Apollo-Ridge (0-1) at Class 2A No. 2 Avonworth (1-0) 7 p.m. Friday, Lenzner Stadium, Ohio Township Last year’s matchup, slated for Owens Field in Apollo, was canceled amidst covid schedule changes. Apollo-Ridge hopes to bounce back from Friday’s season-opening 28-22 home loss to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart....

The Riverview football team will not play its nonsection game at Chartiers-Houston on Friday. “We are experiencing multiple cases of covid-19 on the varsity football team. After numerous conversations with the Allegheny County Health Department, we have decided to suspend football practices and games from Aug. 30 (Monday) until Sept....

For the 18th time in program history, the Fox Chapel girls soccer team brought home a section championship in 2020, edging WPIAL power Norwin by two points for the Section 3-4A crown. While a sizeable group of contributing seniors moved on — including All-WPIAL performers in goalkeeper Sammi Dunlap and...