Paul Schofield stories, Page 93

Christian Zilli made himself known Friday in his return to football at Hempfield after taking two seasons off. The senior basketball and baseball player threw for one touchdown and ran for another to help Hempfield defeat rival Norwin, 28-14, in the WPIAL Class 6A opener for both squads. The season...

Greensburg Salem graduate Paul Matthews has joined the Ave Maria University men’s basketball staff as an assistant coach. Ave Maria is located in Florida. “I am ecstatic to join the Ave Maria community and Coach Copeland’s staff,” Matthews said in a release. “I believe that Ave Maria is an incredible...

At the midpoint of WPIAL golf season, the Penn-Trafford boys team was in the thick of the Section 1-AAA race after defeating Latrobe and Indiana. After losing to Norwin in a first-place showdown Sept. 10 to fall to 4-2, the Warriors were just behind the Knights (5-1) and Indiana (4-1)....

Travel baseball and softball teams have a reputation for swiping players from community teams and leaving the local leagues scrambling for talent. But not at Penn-Trafford. The Penn Township rec leagues have found ways to thrive and keep players home. Those players have also found great success in recent seasons....

Zach Cernuto Southmoreland, sr., QB Cernuto is a four-year starter who has thrown for 3,731 yards by completing 257 of 493 passes with 34 touchdowns and 31 interceptions. He lost his top receivers from a year ago and will break in a few new ones, including returning tight end Anthony...

When Jeannette dropped to Class A in 2014 and was placed in the Eastern Conference, the final game of the regular season against Clairton was for the conference title. Thanks to the coronavirus, that won’t happen again this season. Because of adjustments to the WPIAL schedule brought on by the...

Before the Albert Gallatin School District decided to merge the district’s three high schools in 1987, its football teams were competitive. Albert Gallatin won two WPIAL titles and German Township one. Fairchance-Georges was also competitive but didn’t win titles or conference championships. It’s been a struggle for the southern Fayette...

When Butler Area School Board members voted to leave the WPIAL for District 10 in football, they did it with a plan. Give third-year coach Eric Christy an opportunity to build up a program that has made the WPIAL playoffs once since Christy graduated from Butler in 1999. “Butler football...

When the Uniontown Area School District voted to cancel football and soccer seasons this fall back on Aug. 4 because of the fear of the coronavirus, football coach Cedric Lloyd accepted the decision. But athletes and parents did not and they wanted the district to reconsider. The district did last...

Clairton returned to the top of Class A in 2019, and with numerous key starters returning, many feel the Bears are the team to beat in 2020. Clairton coach Wayne Wade agrees. He also agrees Class A got a little stronger with the addition of Burgettstown, Shenango and Carmichaels, all...

Mt. Pleasant returned to the WPIAL playoffs for the first time since 2016 last year and the 26th time in school history. While the Vikings dropped a 42-6 decision to eventual WPIAL Class 3A champion Central Valley, the goal of making the playoffs was achieved. The Vikings won three of...

Southmoreland was the big story during the first half of the 2019 football season. The Scotties were unbeaten at 5-0 and qualified for the WPIAL playoffs for the first time since 1979. Yep, the Scotties ended a 40-year drought. They were the talk of the town and had Scottdale, Everson,...

A few weeks ago, I approached my boss and asked him if it was OK to write about my experience playing in a golf event that I covered. With his blessing, I paid my entry fee and headed to the Latrobe Elks Golf Course with my 16 handicap Aug. 23...

Wayne Wade doesn’t need any motivation to prepare his football team for the 2020 season. That’s because the Clairton Bears have a chip on their shoulder. “Our season ended a little early last year,” Wade said. “We lost to Farrell in the PIAA Class A semifinals in a game we...

One thing is for sure about the Imani Christian Academy football program: They’re in good hands with veteran coach Cliff Simon taking over. The school’s athletic director took over March 13 after previous coach Ron Heard became an assistant principal at Woodland Hills. Simon’s job won’t be easy. He’s inheriting...

Jeannette was flying high nine games into the 2019 season. But consecutive losses to the WPIAL Class A finalists ended what Roy Hall hoped would be another title run. Jeannette fell to eventual WPIAL champion Clairton in the Eastern Conference finale and then lost to Sto-Rox in the opening round...

Ligonier Valley, the WPIAL’s newest member, didn’t depart the district five decades ago and make its way back this season in a straight line. There were many twists and turns along the way. When the school left the WPIAL for the Mountain Conference on Dec. 12, 1968, it wasn’t an...

A new chapter in Ligonier Valley history starts Sept. 11. Ligonier Valley returns to the WPIAL after spending the past 50 years playing football in District 6, including the past five seasons as one of the most dominant teams in Class 2A. The Rams went 60-7 over the span, including...

Times are changing these days because of the coronavirus. That means changing minute by minute. Because of covid-19 issues, several schools have made adjustments to their football schedules. Kiski Area paused football activities until Sept. 10 due to a coronavirus exposure issue. Elizabeth Forward pushed back the start of in-person...

Injuries have proven costly to the success of the Franklin Regional football program the past few seasons. The Panthers usually have the players to compete with anyone in Class 5A as long as they stay healthy. That hasn’t occurred recently. Franklin Regional went 4-5 in 2019, suffering its first losing...

As Brandon Overdorff begins his third season as coach at Indiana High School, he’s starting to see an improving future. “When I took over, our numbers were in the 30s,” Overdorff said. “Now we’re close to 60, and I’m excited about the future. The offseason was really good until the...

When Ligonier Valley joined the WPIAL, it was eager to play new opponents. What it didn’t expect was an open date on the schedule, which was created when the WPIAL decided to shorten the season because of coronavirus concerns. That grew to two open dates when Summit Academy decided not...

Don’t look for West Greene to be one-hit wonders, or in this case two-hit wonders Second-year coach Brian Hanson sees a bright future at the school located southwest of Waynesburg in Greene County. West Greene rode a powerful running game featuring Ben Jackson (Army) and Kolin Walker (Waynesburg) to consecutive...

Ed Woods is in his second season as football coach at California High School. It’s been a difficult two seasons in the terms of preparing his squad. He was hired late in the process before the 2019 season, and the coronavirus has cut into his preparation for the 2020 season....