High School category, Page 1110
Surging Norwin girls basketball team finds right balance
The Norwin girls basketball team was the top scoring offense in WPIAL Class 6A through 14 games, and the Knights ranked second in scoring average against. For coach Brian Brozeski, attitude is the reason for Norwin’s success. Sets and strategy are important, too, but what has stood out to Brozeski...
WPIAL playoff spot remains in reach for Franklin Regional girls basketball team
“Young” is the word encircling the Franklin Regional girls basketball program this season. The Panthers ended the first half of section play the way they started the season — with back-to-back wins. With 13 underclassmen on the roster, Franklin Regional defeated Hampton, 47-36, and Kiski Area, 45-27, to climb to...
Shady Side Academy swimmers set for challenging stretch drive
The Shady Side Academy swim teams are hoping to parlay a strong finish to the regular season into a successful foray into the WPIAL playoffs. As of Jan. 20, the girls were 4-2 overall and 2-0 in the section while the boys were 5-1 and also 2-0 in section meets....
Burrell football coach Shawn Liotta leads national team to International Bowl win
Burrell football coach Shawn Liotta is known around the WPIAL for his creative offensive mind. But over the past few years, Liotta has started to gain attention at the national level. Aaron Ingram, the director of the U.S. national team, has been trying to get Liotta involved with the USA...
College floor, atmosphere attract teams for ‘Shootout at Seton Hill’
Each March for the past few years, when teams get their section schedules for the following WPIAL season, Allen Deep begins to plan out his list of high school basketball showcase events. The event director with Hoops for a Cure often gets numerous requests from teams to play in the...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Jan. 23, 2020
Basketball Boys Thursday’s results WPIAL Class A Section 3 Greensburg Central Catholic 86, Aquinas Academy 65 Nonsection Gateway 74, Norwin 46 Knoch 78, Deer Lakes 58 Obama Academy 63, Imani Christian 60 District 6 Heritage Ligonier Valley 81, Homer-Center 60 United 72, Saltsburg 62 West Shamokin 53, Purchase Line 50...
High school roundup for Jan. 23, 2020: Mohawk’s Karly McCutcheon sets school 3-point record for second straight game
In a span of a few days this week, Mohawk senior Karly McCutcheon left no doubt that she’s one of the top long-range shooters in WPIAL girls basketball. On Thursday night, McCutcheon made a school record nine 3-pointers to lead No. 1 Mohawk (16-1, 10-0) to a 85-36 victory over...
Busy night of WPIAL boys basketball littered with key games on Friday
It has been six years since the Thomas Jefferson boys basketball team finished with a winning record. Barring a collapse, the Jaguars will finish this season with a winning record and possibly a lot more. In 2014, the Jaguars finished 23-4 and reached the district semifinals, where they lost to...
Gateway girls grind out win over Armstrong
Armstrong girls basketball coach Kirk Lorigan joked that he started looking in the stands for James Naismith, because it felt like the cylinder hoops at Gateway’s gymnasium were replaced with peach baskets. Gateway coach Curtis Williams summed up the way the offense went for either team succinctly by saying it...
Last second shot by Mt. Lebanon’s Ashleigh Connor hands No. 1 Bethel Park its first loss
In Mt. Lebanon’s two-point loss to Imhotep Charter on Saturday in the MLK Showcase at Woodland Hills, Blue Devils sophomore Ashleigh Connor hit the front rim on a 3-pointer that would have won the game at the buzzer. After the game, Blue Devils coach Dori Oldaker told Connor it wouldn’t...
Perri Page beats buzzer as Chartiers Valley fends off Thomas Jefferson upset bid
Every possession was bound to matter when Thomas Jefferson and Chartiers Valley met Thursday night. TJ head coach Lisa Fairman and Char Valley coach Tim McConnell were both aware of that. It came down to the final seconds of a Section 1-5A showdown, and the Colts found a way to...
Freeport girls run win streak to seven, top Burrell to clinch playoff spot
The Freeport girls basketball team hasn’t lost since a Jan. 2 setback at North Catholic. The Yellowjackets ran their winning streak to seven games Thursday with a 61-33 Section 1-4A victory at Burrell and remained on a roll heading into Monday’s rematch with the Trojanettes. “I was pleased with the...
Westmoreland boys basketball notebook: Depth boosts Franklin Regional
Franklin Regional has more depth than it did at the start of the season, and the longer bench could be what gets the Panthers into the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs. The Panthers (8-9, 5-4), who have won four in a row and five of their last six, have been using...
Balanced scoring effort leading Leechburg boys down the stretch
The Leechburg boys basketball team has been experiencing a bit of success over the past few seasons, and it could be partly attributed to the contribution from a core group of players. Seniors Jake Blumer and Connor McDermott, along with junior point guard Dylan Cook, have given the Blue Devils...
A-K Valley boys basketball notebook: 4 teams starting to find rhythm
Teams began the second half of section play this past week and hope to peak at the right time. Heading into Thursday night’s games, four boys basketball teams from the Alle-Kiski Valley are on winning streaks of three games or more. Fox Chapel (16-0) has dominated all season, with all...
Hard-working Jeannette boys basketball team soaring after slow start
Apparently, there are no actual days off at Jeannette. The boys basketball team did not have practice Monday as coach Adrian Batts gave his players a long weekend. Yet a number of them funneled into the gym after school to get some shots up. They even pulled out the seldom-used...
Slow starts hamper Shaler girls basketball team
Cornelious Nesbit wanted the Shaler Area girls basketball team’s Jan. 20 loss to Butler to serve as a spark. If the Titans want to a spot in the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs, they had to learn from their loss to the Golden Tornado. Avoiding slow starts is a must. Shaler...
Defensive pressure helps Shaler reach top of Section 3 standings
Each game requires Shaler Area senior Chris White to rely on his powers of observation. When an opponent is bringing the basketball up the floor, White looks for keys on how to separate them from it. Being out front of the Titans’ press is an opportunity to generate offense. “It’s...
South Fayette swim team makes best of canceled invitational
The South Fayette swimming and diving teams traveled to south-central Pennsylvania for the Big 8 Invitational meet Jan. 17, where they competed against only two schools, including one from their backyard. The girls dominated with 649 points. Central York and West Allegheny placed second and third. The boys came in...
North Allegheny freshman Christina Shi already one of WPIAL’s elite divers
North Allegheny freshman Christina Shi is such an accomplished diver, Tiger diving coach Patti McClure forgets how young she is. Shi placed fourth in the 2018 USA Diving Junior National Championships in the 12-13 girls 1-meter final. She was a regional champion in the 14-15 girls 1-meter and platform events...
Strong leadership puts Hampton spirit squad back on the mat
The Hampton competitive spirit squad has been affected by coaching changes the past two seasons. Last year, it didn’t field a competition team and only cheered at varsity events. But dedication from a strong senior class and a committed new coach, Kathy Long, has the team heading back to nationals....
Chartiers Valley girls basketball player Aislin Malcolm shows poise beyond years
If Aislin Malcolm had any ideas about going through high school as a two-sport athlete, they were quashed at an early age. Basketball always has been her primary sport, but she also played soccer as a youngster. Her brother, Cian, five years older, similarly played lacrosse as his primary sport...
Penn Hills’ Derrell Porter commits to play football at Dartmouth
With National Signing Day fast approaching, some WPIAL football players are still announcing their verbal commitments. Penn Hills defensive tackle Derrell Porter added himself to the list Jan. 20, as he made a verbal commitment to play football at Dartmouth, a prestigious NCAA Division FCS Ivy League school. Porter was...
Penn Hills midfielder Sierra Hankey headed to Washington & Jefferson
Last month, the Penn Hills girls soccer program saw midfielder Taylor Clayborn sign her letter of intent to attend Thiel. This month, midfielder Sierra Hankey announced she will attend Washington & Jefferson in the fall. Although Hankey knew she was planning to attend W&J when Clayborn signed her letter of...
Kiski Area freshmen to square off at WCCA swim meet
Freshmen Parker Sterlitz and Levi Hansen are no strangers to head-to-head competition as the Kiski Area teammates grew up battling each other at various club meets. “Levi and I go way back with racing,” Sterlitz said. “We were up there as the top two most of the time.” Sterlitz and...
