Penn-Trafford Star category, Page 3
Late Trafford Elementary teacher prioritized connection with students
Shannon Dornauer recalls how Trafford Elementary School teacher Mike Martinelli knew how to make all of his students feel welcome in his classroom. “I just remember him being very friendly and outgoing. He always made everybody feel very included and comfortable,” said Dornauer, 37, of Latrobe. “Back in elementary school,...
Penn Township hosts annual fall festival
Penn Township held its annual fall festival Sept. 19 to 21 at Municipal Park. Attendees enjoyed live music performances, carnival rides and games, food and crafts. A parade marched down Route 130 in the morning on Sept. 20 and fireworks lit up the sky above Municipal Park later that evening....
Penn Township Police chief retires, reflects on 30-year career in department
John Otto’s interest in policing began as an elementary student. “One day walking to school, there was a police car parked outside of Harrison Park Elementary School, and that caught my attention,” the Penn-Trafford graduate said. “I remember looking inside the car from the sidewalk … and I was mesmerized...
Penn-Trafford notebook: Warriors doubles team wins section title
The doubles team of senior Annabelle Aquino and sophomore Elle LeJeune captured the Section 1-3A title Sept. 25. The pair defeated Latrobe’s Carlin Bukovac and Allison Massaro 6-7 (9), 6-4 and 6-4 in the semifinals. They rallied from a 4-1 deficit in the second set. They then breezed past the...
Eastern Pittsburgh suburban real estate transactions for the week of Sept. 28, 2025
Monroeville Michael Strauss sold property at 2684 Third St. to Luan Castro and Violet Tonelli for $299,900. Lynden Group LLC sold property at 829 Cottonwood Drive to Stephen and Heidi Zupanc for $206,500. Estate of Frank Sabino Jr. sold property at 1341 Foxboro Drive to Ranjan and Naba Godwami for...
Penn-Trafford Hockey Club disbands junior varsity team, cites low participation
Three weeks into the season, Penn-Trafford’s junior varsity hockey team disbanded because of low participation. Following tryouts in April, about 10 players were placed on the junior varsity roster, according to parent Michael Broker of Penn Township. “Having that few of kids, it’s really not ideal, because there’s injury, people...
Penn-Trafford boys soccer team topples 1st-place Belle Vernon
Penn-Trafford is getting big goals after halftime and has an early handle on the back half of section play. The Warriors are starting to look like a second-half soccer team, and that is just fine with senior midfielder Cooper Geyer. He, well, seconds that notion. “We can be a second-half...
PT’s Pizza Palace marks more than 3 decades in Level Green
Jon Ledwich spent his high school years working at PT’s Pizza Palace along Murrysville Road in Penn Township — walking the quarter mile from his childhood home on Shady Drive to deliver pizzas and hand out fliers. The restaurant, one of a handful of small businesses in its Level Green...
Latrobe girls soccer forges tie for 2nd by beating Penn-Trafford
Latrobe needed one shining moment. Somehow, Emerson Shine delivered it. The junior midfielder made something out of nothing with 3 minutes, 54 seconds to play in overtime, taking on three defenders and rocketing a shot past Penn-Trafford goalkeeper Alannah Hall to give the Wildcats a 1-0 victory Wednesday night at...
Penn-Trafford strikes for upset over No. 5 Franklin Regional
Penn-Trafford has taken on a sneaky personality competing in boys soccer Section 3-3A. The Warriors play a physical style and rely on sound, exacting defense to create opportunities. Despite their slightly above .500 record and a high number of unlucky bounces that have stunted them some offensively, they can creep...
Penn-Trafford grad Chloe Bonson making a formidable Carnegie Mellon women’s cross country team even stronger
When she entered Carnegie Mellon’s master’s degree program after graduating from Allegheny in three years, Chloe Bonson knew she would get a top-notch academic experience. Turns out the athletic experience should be pretty bountiful, too. Bonson, a Penn-Trafford graduate, helped the Allegheny women win the Presidents’ Athletic Conference cross country...
Penn-Trafford notebook: Nick Turowski sparks West Virginia golf team
West Virginia University sophomore and Penn-Trafford grad Nick Turowski shot 3-under-par to finish in fifth place and lead the Mountaineers to a third-place finish at the Gopher Invitational at Windsong Farm Golf Club in Independence, Minn., on Sept. 15. Turowski recorded rounds of 74-66-70—210 to post his second top five...
Eastern Pittsburgh suburban real estate transactions for the week of Sept. 21, 2025
ALLEGHENY COUNTY Churchill Pasadena Partners LLC sold property at 261 Churchill Road to Tyler and Sabrina Sofia McCoy for $532,400. Tarek Alsaied sold property at 3336 Longbow Drive to Ali Sinan Saglam and Kelly Lenhart for $400,000. Edgewood David Ryan Lyle Flores sold property at 257 Maple Ave. to Thomas...
Teamwork saved girl’s life in Penn Township blaze, fire chief says
Teamwork helped avert a tragedy last month at a Penn Township house fire. Firefighters and paramedics worked together to get a young girl out of the burning building to safety, the Harrison City fire chief said Friday. “It was teamwork. There were so many people who played an integral role,”...
Penn-Trafford rebounds with dominant performance vs. Kiski Area
Coming off a tough loss to Woodland Hills last week, the expectation was for Penn-Trafford to rebound at home against a struggling Kiski Area team. The Warriors (4-1, 1-1) wasted no time putting up 35 points in the first half en route to a 42-0 drubbing of the Cavaliers (1-4,...
CNX pursues new permits for 2 Penn Township gas wells, Protect PT prepares for response
Environmental nonprofit Protect PT may have to start over in its decade-long effort to shut down a Marcellus shale gas well development along First Street in Penn Township. The state Environmental Hearing Board ruled in June against Protect PT, which two years ago appealed permit renewals for unconventional natural gas...
Penn-Trafford launches youth cross country, track and field program
Basketball, soccer, flag football, wrestling — Greg Shogan’s 6-year-old son, Connor, has tried out almost every youth sport available to him. Wrestling has become a favorite. But when it came to the other sports, the part Connor enjoyed the most was not the game itself, Greg Shogan said. “When he...
Route 22 side streets in Murrysville will close for signal-control repairs
Drivers in Murrysville will be detoured briefly on Friday, as work crews repair a traffic signal control box that was damaged in a crash where Manor and Mellon roads meet Route 22. Murrysville Chief Administrator Michael Nestico said crews will begin repairs around 7:30 a.m. Friday morning. The work is...
Greensburg Civic Theatre kicks off 74th season with ‘Seussical’
If the “Seussical” musical was a person, it would surely be related to Mallory Grantz’s Monroeville family. “This is the fifth time in our family that one or more of us has been involved in ‘Seussical,’” said Grantz, 39, who will direct a production of the show to kick off...
Norwin downs Penn-Trafford to take sole possession of top spot in section
Substitutions, set pieces and strength fit the alliteration theme as Norwin continued a streak. The newly ranked team in the TribLive Class 4A girls soccer rankings played to its strengths in an impressive 3-0 victory over rival Penn-Trafford to run its winning streak to five and take over first place...
Penn-Trafford notebook: Senior golfer finishes in top 10 at WCCA tournament
Penn-Trafford senior Jake Lenart shot a 4-over 76 and finished ninth at the annual Westmoreland County Coaches’ Association golf tournament. Lenart was the low scorer for the Warriors at the Latrobe Elks Golf Course on Sept. 11. Junior Rylie Kiste shot an 80 and tied for 15th. Senior Austin Dzurko...
Penn-Trafford field hockey hoping to finish strong
It has not been the start Penn-Trafford field hockey coach Cindy Dutt wanted, but the veteran coach of more than 20 years is confident her team will improve. The Warriors are 2-3-1 and have been dealing with all sorts of injuries — center-mid Sarah Ley is dealing with an upper...
Eastern Pittsburgh suburban real estate transactions for the week of Sept. 14, 2025
ALLEGHENY COUNTY Churchill Elvia Cluley sold property at 5 Barton Drive to National Resident Nominee Services Inc. for $1 (state deed transfer stamps indicate a value of $395,000). Dolce V Investments LLC sold property at 3811 Henley Drive to Kathryn Fitzgerald for $405,000. Edgewood Jonathan Wilson sold property at 206...
Scoop Smith’s electrifying kickoff-return TDs boost Woodland Hills past Penn-Trafford
It was a crazy start to Friday’s WPIAL Class 5A Big East Conference opener. The game, which featured two top-five teams, began with some electrifying plays. It was one that saw the teams combined to score four touchdowns in 40 seconds, which included two kickoff returns by Scoop Smith. The...
Records don’t tell the tale of Class 5A showdown between Woodland Hills, Penn-Trafford
Do not look at last week’s Woodland Hills score and think Penn-Trafford is expecting an easy game Friday. It is better to think the opposite. Woodland Hills (1-2) dropped a 58-20 decision to Class 6A’s top team, Central Catholic, but Wolverines coach Brian Tarrant felt his team did a lot...
