Ray Fisher stories, Page 52

Brendan O’Malley is one of the most talented, dedicated and well-respected track and field athletes in the region. His athleticism was on full display April 6 at the 15th annual South Hills Classic held on a pleasant, sunny day at Baldwin Stadium. O’Malley, a senior, won four events, taking first...

Norwin’s girls lacrosse team worked diligently on fundamentals last year. This season, the Knights are more fundamentally sound, splitting their first four decisions to start 2-2. “The other coaches and I are extremely pleased with the team’s performance this season,” coach Drew Polczynski said. “Because we had so many players...

Offense was the name of the game at the Junior Roundball Classic held recently at Seton LaSalle. The East Region all-star squad won the 2019 championship, defeating the South and North in the two-night event. The two teams clicked for a total of 23 field goals from 3-point range East-North...

The Baldwin baseball team is aiming to make a stronger playoff push this season despite losing 10 seniors to graduation from last year’s club. The Highlanders started out 0-4 and 1-8 in 2018, then went 5-3 down the home stretch to end up 6-11 overall. “We expect to be improved...

Milan Yekich is in his first season as head coach of the Baldwin boys volleyball program. But his background in the sport goes back to his grade school days. Yekich started playing volleyball as a fifth-grader at St. Elizabeth. He continued his career through middle school and high school, and...

The Norwin girls have advanced to the WPIAL Class AAA final four in track and field in 13 of the past 14 years. “The expectations for both the girls and boys are always the same,” coach Brian Fleckenstein said. “Win all the section meets, win the Westmoreland County team title,...

Notebook items in and around the Thomas Jefferson High School campus: • The senior class has hit double digits. No less than 10 seniors have signed letters of intent for college, where they will continue their academic/athletic careers. They include Darius Barrett (Clarion/football), A.J. Meshanko (California, Pa./soccer), Jenna Clark (Yale/basketball),...

Planning began last June for the inaugural Baldwin Whitehall Youth Flag Football League. Now, it’s close to becoming a reality. The flag program is the initiative of Baldwin Whitehall Athletic Association Football and Cheer and is targeted for youngsters ages 5 to 14. Age divisions will be 7U, 9U, 11U...

March Madness for Thomas Jefferson meant a trip to the WPIAL girls basketball finals and historic run to the PIAA semifinals. It was the first time the team went that deep into the state playoffs. The Jaguars finished 22-8 overall, which included 3-1 records in the WPIAL and PIAA tournaments....

First-year coach Tim Vickers and his staff are looking to turn around the fortunes of the Thomas Jefferson baseball program. TJ finished 6-14 last season, coming in sixth place in Section 3-5A. The Jaguars are hoping to rebound behind four returning starters. “We have been working on every single facet...

Brentwood will field one of the younger high school softball teams in Western Pennsylvania this season. The Spartans have 10 freshmen and one first-year sophomore looking to fill the gaps made by the graduation of four seniors from last year’s playoff squad. “Our team is very young but very eager,”...

Back-to-back. It has a nice ring. It’s what the Baldwin inline hockey team rung up in 2018-19. Baldwin won its second consecutive Pennsylvania Interscholastic Roller Hockey League HS2 title recently, defeating Pine-Richland, 2-1, in a three-game championship series. The Highlanders won Game 1 6-2, dropped the second game 2-0 and...

One of Zoey Wilson’s goals for this season was to follow in her brother’s footsteps, but her season was plagued by injuries. Zoey Wilson, a senior on the Hempfield girls swimming team, specializes in the 200-yard freestyle. Her brother, Zane, had a decorated swimming career for the Spartans from 2013-17....

High expectations. After finishing as the WPIAL Class 5A runner-up and reaching the PIAA final four last season, that’s what the Thomas Jefferson softball team has for 2019. The Jaguars have dropped to 4A this season and lost only one starter to graduation. “Our expectations are always to reach the...

The seniors on the Thomas Jefferson hockey team wrung out heralded career numbers in their time. Counting the regular and postseason, the five seniors attained 60 wins in their careers at TJ. “That’s the highest total from any group to graduate from the program in my nine years of coaching,”...

The reconstruction project continued — and flourished — for the Brentwood girls basketball program. In her first five years at the helm, coach Rachel Thomas guided the Spartans to 15-7, 11-10, 13-9, 17-6 and 18-8 records, advancing to the WPIAL playoffs all five years. This season, Brentwood finished with a...

Baldwin has won four consecutive section titles in softball. The Highlanders, with new coach Gina Fuchs, expect more of the same in 2019. “Our expectation is to come out and compete every game, and to compete for a section title,” said Fuchs, who has stepped up from her assistant’s role...

Slowly but surely, the Baldwin hockey program is climbing up the ranks in the PIHL. “Last season, when we moved up from A to AA, we missed the playoffs by a point,” coach Justin Glock said. “This year, we made the playoffs and won our first playoff game. “Next season,...

It sounds like a distinguished law firm: Shaw, Weber & Co. Max Shaw and Alex Weber certainly have enjoyed distinguished seasons and careers with the Thomas Jefferson wrestling program. The two senior matmen advanced to the PIAA Class AAA tournament in Hershey off their performances at the recent WPIAL championships....

The Gateway softball team enjoyed a “turnaround season” of sorts in 2018. The Gators finished with a winning record, going 8-7 overall and 8-6 in Section 1-5A, tying for third place with Kiski Area. What can coach Scott Lewis do for an encore in his second year? “There is a...

The Gateway baseball team is seeking a quadfecta, as the Gators are looking to qualify for the WPIAL playoffs for a fourth consecutive season. Gateway ended up 12-6 overall and finished third in Section 3-5A last year. The 12 victories were the most in a season since the 2009 squad...

With the Carlow women’s basketball season completed, Seton LaSalle graduate Delaney Daly has her sights on her summer schedule. Daly, a 5-foot-7 junior and NAIA All-American guard for the Celtics, averaged 11.5 points, 3.5 assists and 3.5 steals this season. Her focus now is on her impending trip to Europe....

Thomas Jefferson’s senior-laden boys volleyball team ended up 5-5 in section play last season. The Jaguars are aiming to improve on that record in 2019. “Our main goal is to fight for the section championship,” coach Frank Staffen said. “We lost a lot of starters (10) from last year, but...

Brentwood’s baseball team was hit hard by graduation last spring. Only one senior and two other starters return. “I guess you could say this is a rebuilding year,” coach Greg Perdziola said. “We are very young and inexperienced at the varsity level. With that being said, I still feel we...

Gabe Dominick hopes to be a key member of the Thomas Jefferson boys volleyball team this season. A first-year defensive specialist/outside hitter, Dominick also made his mark as a starter on the Jaguars’ football team. The TJ senior recently was presented with the Breisinger Award at the football team’s postseason...