Paul Schofield stories, Page 33
Quick start sparks Franklin Regional wrestling to win over Ringgold
A quick start was the perfect recipe for the No. 4 Franklin Regional wrestling team in its Section 3-3A first-place showdown against Ringgold on Wednesday. The unbeaten Panthers (12-0, 2-0) got a pin from senior Ty Kapusta at 127 pounds to start the match, which was followed by a win...
WPIAL wrestling notebook: Dual meet season heating up
Now that we’ve begun a new year, wrestling’s dual meet season will heat up over the next four weeks. There are some key matchups to begin the year Wednesday. In Class 3A, Ringgold (14-1) will visit unbeaten No. 4 Franklin Regional (11-0) in the Section 3 opener. Penn-Trafford grad and...
WPIAL wrestling rankings: Week of Jan. 1, 2024
WEEK 3 2023-24 Class 3A Top 10 Team (This year’s record) Last week’s rankings 1. Trinity (4-0) 1 2. Connellsville (2-0) 2 3. Canon-McMillan (2-0) 3 4. Franklin Regional (11-0) 4 5. North Allegheny (8-2) 5 6. Norwin (8-4) 6 7. Plum (5-2) 7 8. West Allegheny (6-0) 8 9....
Trio looking to join elite list at WCCA wrestling tournament
Three wrestlers have the opportunity to become part of an elite group with victories this weekend at the 71st annual Westmoreland County Coaches’ Association tournament. Latrobe junior Luke Willochell, Hempfield senior Eli Carr and Franklin Regional senior Juliano Marion could join the list of 45 others as three-time county champions....
Norwin’s Sidun wins Powerade title, keeps WPIAL’s streak of champions alive
Persistence and hard work in the wrestling room were big reasons why Norwin freshman Landon Sidun won the 114-pound weight class Saturday at the Powerade Wrestling Tournament. Sidun (25-1) was carrying the torch for the WPIAL and extended the district’s streak of having at least one champion to 57 consecutive...
4 WPIAL wrestlers reach semifinals at Powerade Wrestling Tournament loaded with talent
Connellsville wresting coach Bill Swink has been coming to the Powerade Wresting Tournament since his dad brought him when he was in elementary school and the event was held at Hamer Hall at Cal (Pa.). That was in the 1970s. “It was a great tournament back then,” Swink said. “It’s...
Derry freshmen shine at Southmoreland Holiday Wrestling Classic
Two Derry freshmen turned in quite a performance at the 2023 Southmoreland Holiday Wrestling Classic on Thursday. Both won titles with impressive victories and helped the Trojans to a fourth-place finish. Corry, from District 10, won the team title. United was second and Somerset was third. The Trojans had three...
WPIAL team and individual wrestling rankings for week of Dec. 25, 2023
Team rankings Class 3A Team (This year’s record) Last week’s rankings 1. Trinity (4-0) 1 2. Connellsville (2-0) 2 3. Canon-McMillan (2-0) 3 4. Franklin Regional (11-0) 4 5. North Allegheny (8-2) 5 6. Norwin (8-4) 6 7. Plum (5-2) 7 8. West Allegheny (6-0) 8 9. Latrobe (3-2) 9...
Wrestling notebook: Girls ready to take big stage at PoweradeVideo
The seeds for the first Powerade Girls Wrestling tournament were released, and only two girls from the WPIAL — Laurel senior Alexis Brua (124 pounds) and Canon-McMillan junior Natalie Rush (190) — earned top seeds. The girls (high school, junior high and elementary) and non-varsity boys (junior varsity, junior high...
Norwin wrestler Landon Sidun looking to make noise in Powerade Tournament
The name is Landon Sidun. If you don’t know who he is, you will. The Norwin freshman is one of the top new faces in the WPIAL this season. He is a wrestler in the Spencer Lee and Gavin Teasdale mold. Sidun is already making a name for himself. He...
Hempfield’s Dylan Firmstone commits to Penn State baseball
A good summer playing baseball for Flood City Elite helped Hempfield junior Dylan Firmstone get seen and receive a scholarship offer from Penn State. Firmstone turned that offer into a commitment Wednesday. He cannot officially sign until his senior season. “I liked the new coaches and the direction they want...
Trib HSSN team and individual wrestling rankings for Dec. 19, 2023
Team rankings Class 3A Team (This year’s record) Last week’s ranking 1. Trinity (3-0) 2 2. Connellsville (1-0) 3 3. Canon-McMillan (0-0) 1 4. Franklin Regional (10-0) 5 5. North Allegheny (7-2) 7 6. Norwin (7-3) 8 7. Plum (4-2) 6 8. West Allegheny (5-0) 10 9. Latrobe (3-2) 9...
Wrestling notebook: Southmoreland tournament getting bigger, better
While the Powerade Wrestling Tournament continues to bring in nationally ranked teams and receives top attention, the Southmoreland Holiday Classic continues to grow and get stronger. This year’s tournament at Southmoreland features its largest and most competitive field (38 teams) in the 24-year history of the event. The tournament will...
Derry wrestlers rally from early deficit to knock off rival Latrobe
It might have just been a nonsection wrestling match Monday at Derry, but for the Trojans, beating neighboring rival Latrobe meant a lot. The Trojans won seven of 12 bouts and got pins from freshman Mason Horwat (160 pounds) and senior Nathan Barkley (189) to upset the Wildcats, 31-25. Derry...
Lee defeats Megaludis to win Senior National Freestyle title
It was a battle of Franklin Regional High School graduates Sunday in the finals of the Senior National Men’s Freestyle Championship in Fort Worth, Texas. Spencer Lee, a 2017 grad, defeated 2011 grad Nico Megaludis, 6-2, in the finals. Lee had two first-period takedowns and added another takedown in the...
Penn-Trafford swimmers off to strong start
Penn-Trafford’s swimming teams are off to a good start to the 2023-24 season. The Water Warriors own wins against Gateway and Greensburg Salem, and coach Dave Babik has been impressed in the early going. “Our win over Gateway is indicative of the strides we have made with our returning swimmers...
2023 TribLive Westmoreland County high school football all-stars
First team Da’sjon Craggette Southmoreland, RB, Sr. The senior turned in a brilliant season. He rushed for 1,462 yards and scored 19 touchdowns. He also caught five passes for 122 yards. Samir Crosby Greensburg Central Catholic, WR/QB/DB, So. This super sophomore caught 31 passes for 623 yards, rushed for 634...
Westmoreland athletes of the week: Derry’s Nate Papuga, Greensburg Salem’s Kaitlyn Mankins
Nate Papuga School: Derry Class: Senior Sport: Basketball Claim to Fame: The 6-foot-1 senior guard is averaging 30 points in helping Derry to a 5-1 start. He has scored 30 or more points in four games. Why is Derry off to a hot start? We’re playing together. We’re jelling as...
Franklin Regional swimming team has new coach, youthful squad
Franklin Regional has a new swimming coach, and he’s inherited a young team. Dan Taylor, who recently coached at Fox Chapel, takes over for Vic Santoro, who resigned after the 2022-23 season. Taylor is a teacher in the Franklin Regional School District at the middle school. He once served as...
Frazier grabs win vs. Southmoreland without state champ Lawrence
Frazier won a wrestling match Wednesday and did it without three-time PIAA Class 2A champion Rune Lawrence. The fourth-ranked Commodores recorded seven pins and defeated Southmoreland, 44-33, in a Section 2 battle for first place. Lawrence weighed in and was dressed for the match, but he was there to root...
High school wrestling notebook: Burrell has 3 champions, finishes 2nd in Tennessee
Burrell completed in the McCallie (Chattanooga, Tenn.) Invitational and returned home with three champions and a second-place team finish. Winning titles for the Bucs were Cam Baler (113 pounds), Cooper Hornack (144) and Issac Lacinski (175). Baker defeated Axel Ritchie of McCallie, 5-2, in the finals. Baker had a pin...
WPIAL wrestling rankings for the week of Dec. 11, 2023
Class 3A Top 10 Team (This year’s record) Last week’s ranking 1. Canon-McMillan (0-0) 1 2. Trinity (3-0) 2 3. Connellsville (1-0) 3 4. Waynesburg (0-0) 4 5. Franklin Regional (5-0) 5 6. Plum (3-2) 6 7. North Allegheny (2-1) 7 8. Norwin (7-3) 8 9. Latrobe (2-1) 9 10....
Belle Vernon football team celebrates 2nd straight state title, looks ahead to possible 3-peat
Belle Vernon returned home from Mechanicsburg on Saturday night after winning its second PIAA Class 3A title and partied one last time this year at “The Beach” (James Weir Stadium). The team received a fire truck parade to the stadium, where it rang the victory bell one last time before...
Penn-Trafford baseball making strides in offseason, wins fall league title
With the graduation of the team’s top two pitchers, Nolan Marasti and Dylan Grabowski, Penn-Trafford baseball coach Lou Cortazzo knew he had to get some younger pitchers some work. So Cortazzo got the Warriors into two leagues, played 31 games (going 27-4) and ended up winning the West Penn Fall...
Penn-Trafford’s Antolena Damico hitting all the right notes for future in golf, dentistry
Things are starting to line up for Penn-Trafford senior Antolena Damico. She recently committed to play golf at Washington & Jefferson College and pursue a degree in dentistry. She wants to be an orthodontist and plans on majoring in biology and chemistry. Damico, who carries a 4.6 grade point average,...
