Paul Schofield stories, Page 53
Butler’s Drew Griffith sets course record at Tri-State cross country event
Butler junior Drew Griffith was hoping to set the course record at Cal (Pa.) during the Tri-State Cross Country Invitational on Thursday. He thought he missed the mark by five seconds. Well, he was mistaken. He broke the course mark by nine seconds after he ran a 15:32.56 in the...
Rocco Salvitti fires 4-under par round to lead Central Catholic to PIAA Class 3A title
Central Catholic captured the team’s third PIAA Class 3A boys golf championship Wednesday at Penn State’s White Course. The Vikings also won in 2016 and ’18. Senior Rocco Salvitti, who finished second in the PIAA individual tournament Tuesday, led the way for the Vikings by shooting 4-under-par 68. The Vikings...
Westmoreland County football players to watch in 2022 Week 8
Jake Gedekoh Belle Vernon, Jr., RB Gedokoh rushed for two touchdowns in a win against Mt. Pleasant last week. He has rushed for 266 yards and has scored nine touchdowns this season. He has five touchdowns in the past two games and blocked a punt against Greensburg Salem. Lane Golkosky...
With playoffs on horizon, Southmoreland prepares for another test in No. 3 Belle Vernon
The WPIAL playoffs don’t begin for another two weeks, but for the Southmoreland football team, they started Oct. 14 with a victory over Greensburg Salem. The Scotties all but officially clinched their fourth trip to the postseason and, after a 40-year absence, will qualify for a third time in four...
Westmoreland County don’t miss high school football matchups for 2022 Week 8
Class 5A Big East Hempfield (5-3, 1-2) at Plum (3-5, 1-3) 7 p.m. Friday, Mustangs Stadium, Plum The Spartans try to end a three-game losing streak to save their playoff hopes. They fell to Franklin Regional, 56-21, last week. Plum saw its playoffs hopes end with a 35-21 loss at...
Central Catholic’s Salvitti places 2nd in PIAA golf tourney
The WPIAL golfers were shut out of first-place titles at the PIAA championships for a second consecutive year. The best finish in Class 3A was by Central Catholic senior Rocco Salvitti, who placed second in Class 3A to Dylan Ramsey of Cedar Crest. Ramsey shot a two-round 4-under-par 140. He...
Central Catholic’s Salvitti and Penn-Trafford’s Turowski chasing PIAA golf gold
If Central Catholic senior Rocco Salvitti and Penn-Trafford junior Nick Turowski hope to capture PIAA Class 3A golf titles, they have work to do during the final round Tuesday. Salvitti, the 2022 WPIAL champion, and Turowski, who won the WPIAL title in 2021, trail Cedar Cliff’s Dylan Ramsey, who shot...
Penn-Trafford notebook: Junior runner takes 2nd at WCAA cross country meet
There was no holding back by Penn-Trafford junior Amelia Barilla at the Westmoreland County Coaches’ Association girls cross country championships on Oct. 12. Barilla knew if she wanted to win the title at Westmoreland County Community College, she had to keep pace with Kiski Area junior Eliza Miller, and for...
Franklin Regional runner pleased to improve finish at WCCA cross country meet
Franklin Regional senior Paityn Blakley improved on her finish from a year ago at the Westmoreland County Coaches’ Association cross country meet on Oct. 12 but not her time. Still, Blakley wasn’t disappointed with her overall performance. Blakley finished sixth in a time of 20:11.7 and was Franklin Regional’s top...
Franklin Regional trounces Hempfield to clinch at least a share of Big East title
Franklin Regional clinched at least a share of the WPIAL Class 5A Big East Conference title Friday by playing nearly a perfect football game. The Panthers (5-2, 4-0) scored on their first five possessions and rolled to a 56-21 victory against Hempfield to celebrate senior night. It was the Panthers’...
Mt. Pleasant, North Allegheny girls added to PIAA golf tournament
The PIAA announced Friday that the WPIAL will be getting two additional girls qualifiers for the state team tournament Wednesday at Penn State. Mt. Pleasant in Class 2A and North Allegheny in Class 3A have been added to the field. They will join the two WPIAL champions — Greensburg Central...
Greensburg Central Catholic girls win 8th consecutive WPIAL Class 2A golf title
The Greensburg Central Catholic girls golf team continued its dominance in the WPIAL championship. Junior Izzy Aigner shot a 3-over-par 75 to lead the Centurions to their eighth consecutive WPIAL Class 2A title Thursday on the Red Course at Cedarbrook Golf Course in Rostraver. The boys Class 2A title came...
Kiski Area’s Sam Plazio, Eliza Miller claim WCCA cross country titles
It was quite a day for the Kiski Area cross country program. For the first time in school history, the county champions were both Cavaliers. Freshman Sam Plazio stunned the field by winning the boys race, and junior Eliza Miller won her second consecutive girls race. The Kiski Area boys...
Westmoreland County football players to watch in 2022 Week 7
Gino Caesar Hempfield, Sr., RB He rushed for 146 yards and a touchdown in a loss to Seneca Valley. He’s rushed for 636 yards and 12 touchdowns this season. He also has caught 10 passes for 166 yards. Blake Revoir Derry, So., QB The sophomore has completed 29 of 81...
Franklin Regional looks to stay on top, clinch conference title
What a difference two weeks have made in the high school football landscape across Westmoreland County. Hempfield was the talk of the town after its historic run to open the season. The Spartans were 5-0 for the first time in 50 years after defeating reigning WPIAL and PIAA Class 5A...
Hempfield cross country program is a family affair
When the Westmoreland County Coaches’ Association cross country meet is run Wednesday, it will be a family affair for the Hempfield program. Actually, it’s a family affair every time for the Spartans. That’s because there are six sets of brothers and sisters on the squad. There are the Blahovec triplets...
Penn-Trafford hockey creating early-season buzz
There is a buzz swarming around the Penn-Trafford hockey team as it begins the season. That’s because the Warriors return numerous starters who helped the team finish the 2021-22 season with a 15-4 record and a spot in the PIHL semifinals before falling to eventual champion Thomas Jefferson. The Warriors...
Young Franklin Regional hockey team learning the ropes
It was a tough season opener for the Franklin Regional hockey team. The young Panthers allowed four power-play goals and dropped a 7-3 decision to Armstrong on the first night of PIHL play Oct. 3. Franklin Regional got goals from senior forward Tim Bricker, sophomore defenseman Liam Copeland and senior...
Big plays help Franklin Regional blank Norwin, set up showdown with Hempfield
Franklin Regional didn’t play a perfect game Friday at Norwin. But the Panthers made enough big plays to defeat the Knights, 35-0, spoiling their homecoming at Norwin Stadium. Senior running back Zach Bewszka rushed for 166 yards and scored on runs of 23 and 68 yards, and junior Ayden Hudock...
Central Catholic’s Rocco Salvitti wins elusive WPIAL golf title
When you’re considered the top golfer in the WPIAL, you’re always favored to win a title. Central Catholic senior and Canonsburg native Rocco Salvitti had come up short in three previous attempts until Thursday in the Class 3A championship. Salvitti got tired of people asking why he hadn’t won a...
Westmoreland County football players to watch in 2022 Week 6
Zach Bewszka Franklin Regional, Sr., RB The senior scored two touchdowns as the Panthers rallied to defeat Plum, 31-28, last week. His 82-yard kickoff return for a score to start the second half began the rally. Bewszka has rushed for a team-high 527 yards and three touchdowns. He’s caught four...
Mt. Pleasant, Elizabeth Forward set to battle for top spot in Interstate Conference
No one should be surprised by the success of the Elizabeth Forward football team this season. The undefeated Warriors returned numerous four-year starters who have won the past two WPIAL Class 3A Interstate Conference titles and reached the WPIAL championship game in 2020. Mt. Pleasant coach Jason Fazekas said upsetting...
Westmoreland County don’t miss high school football matchups for 2022 Week 6
Class 5A Big East Franklin Regional (3-2, 2-0) at Norwin (1-5, 0-2) 7 p.m. Friday, Norwin Knights Stadium, North Huntingdon After a tough, 42-41 loss to Shaler in double overtime, Franklin Regional rebounded with a comeback victory over Plum, 31-28. Ayden Hudock had five receptions for 136 yards and a...
South Fayette’s Marissa Malosh, Quaker Valley’s Eva Bulger repeat as WPIAL girls golf champions
It was repeat Tuesday at the WPIAL girls golf championships at Valley Brook Country Club. South Fayette senior Marissa Malosh breezed to her second consecutive Class 3A title by shooting 5-over-par 77 and finishing the 36-hole event with a six-shot lead over Seneca Valley junior Lihini Ranaweera. In addition, Quaker...
Penn-Trafford notebook: Nick Turowski in position to take shot at WPIAL repeat
Despite not putting his best, Penn-Trafford junior Nick Turowski put himself in great position to capture his second consecutive WPIAL Class 3A golf championship. Turowski shot a 2-over par 73 during the first round of the championship at Champion Lakes Golf Course near Bolivar and finds himself two strokes behind...
