High School category, Page 146
Cheswick Christian Academy seeking to go back-to-back as champs in the SWCAC
For the second time in the past 10 years, the Cheswick Christian Academy boys basketball team is playing in a third straight Southwestern Christian Athletic Conference championship game. Previously, the Chargers reached the SWCAC final from 2015-17, winning the title in 2015. This year’s iteration of the team is looking...
WPIAL sets semifinal sites, times for 2025 basketball playoffs
The WPIAL has set semifinal sites and times for all 24 basketball semifinals. The round starts Saturday with games in Class A and 4A boys and Class 3A and 5A girls. The semifinals continue Monday and Tuesday. Boys basketball Class 6A Monday’s games 1-Upper St. Clair (21-2) vs. 5-Central Catholic...
23 WPIAL, City League football players picked for 2025 Big School East-West Game
Five offensive and five defensive linemen were among the 23 WPIAL and City League football players selected for the 2025 PSFCA Big School East-West Game this spring. The roster was announced Friday. The Pennsylvania Scholastic Football Coaches Association organizes two East-West all-star games each year, one for small schools (Class...
Westmoreland County basketball notebook: Greensburg Central Catholic girls looking for playoff heroes to emerge
Greensburg Central Catholic has a formidable scoring tandem in junior guards Erica Gribble and Jayla Peterson. But the second-seeded Centurions (19-5) know they will likely need a third player – or more — to step into a scoring role as they move ahead in the WPIAL 3A playoffs. “One-hundred percent,”...
Westmoreland County basketball playoff preview capsules for Saturday, Feb. 22, 2025
Boys Class 4A Semifinals 4-Avonworth (18-5) vs. 1-Belle Vernon (19-4) 3 p..m. Saturday at Peters Township Winner plays: Winner of 3-Beaver (19-4)/2-North Catholic (18-5) at 9 p.m. Feb. 27 in championship at Petersen Events Center Players to watch: Rowan Carmichael, Avonworth; Trevor Kovatch, Belle Vernon Layup lines: Avonworth is through...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Feb. 20, 2025
High schools Basketball WPIAL playoffs Boys Class 6A Quarterfinals Thursday’s results Upper. St. Clair 63, Woodland Hills 41 Central Catholic 52, Fox Chapel 45 New Castle 64, Butler 43 Mt. Lebanon 64, Imani Christian 61 Semfinals Monday’s schedule Upper. St. Clair (21-2) vs. Central Catholic (14-9); New Castle (20-3) vs....
What to watch for in WPIAL sports on Feb. 21, 2025: Penn-Trafford looking for another upset
Welcome to the final night of elite eight WPIAL basketball action with the quarterfinal focus on boys Class 5A and 3A and girls Class 6A and 2A. In the eight-year history of Class 5A, never has one of the top two seeds in the boys bracket not advanced to the...
High school roundup for Feb. 20, 2025: North Catholic, Oakland Catholic girls win to set up semifinal showdown
Brady Wehner scored 18 points to lead No. 3 North Catholic to a 41-25 victory over No. 6 South Park in the WPIAL Class 4A girls basketball quarterfinals Thursday night. The Trojanettes (21-3) broke open a close game with a 22-3 third quarter. Bella Stromberg led the Eagles (16-6) with...
Geibel Catholic holds off West Greene in Class A quarters to run winning streak to 15
Meeting for the third time this season, second-seeded Geibel Catholic and seventh-seeded West Greene squared off in the quarterfinals of the WPIAL Class A playoffs Thursday night at Geibel. Just like the previous two meetings, the Gators got the better of the Pioneers. Geibel knocked off West Greene, 60-48, to...
Mt. Lebanon makes big plays late to beat Imani Christian in Class 6A quarterfinals
Liam Sheely scored 22 points, including 14 points and a key 3-pointer in the second half, to lead Mt. Lebanon to a 64-61 victory over Imani Christian in the WPIAL Class 6A quarterfinals Thursday night. “There’s never a time in the game where I’m thinking, ‘Oh, we’re gonna lose this...
Upper St. Clair shakes off slow start, rolls past Woodland Hills into Class 6A semifinals
At first glance, it would appear the 13-day layoff for WPIAL Class 6A boys basketball top seed Upper St. Clair played a role in the very slow start to its quarterfinal playoff game against visiting Woodland Hills on Thursday. Whatever the case, the Panthers were able to find their scoring...
Clairton’s balanced attack thwarts St. Joseph’s upset hopes in Class A quarterfinals
When it comes to postseason basketball, lower-seeded teams traveling on the road are looking to play spoiler, while neutral fans might be supporting them. When No. 6 St. Joseph came to No. 3 Clairton in WPIAL Class A quarterfinal girls basketball action Thursday night, there was no upset to be...
Jeannette catches fire, rallies past OLSH in Class 2A quarterfinals
Jeannette fell behind by double figures at halftime and faced a 16-point deficit late in the third quarter. The Jayhawks’ WPIAL playoff run was fading fast, along with their hopes for a championship. But then Jayce Powell and his teammates heard the noise. “The fans fired us up,” Powell said....
Central Catholic finds spark in 4th quarter to win defensive struggle with Fox Chapel
Central Catholic and Fox Chapel combined for five points in the first 5 minutes Thursday night, hinting at the struggle between two of the WPIAL best big-school defenses. They were tied midway through the fourth. A tie-breaking 3-pointer by Central Catholic’s Christian Williams sparked a late run for the Vikings,...
Lucas Stanley comes up clutch as Union knocks off top-seeded Greensburg Central Catholic
Greensburg Central Catholic tried to limit Union leading scorer Lucas Stanley with a box-and-one defense. And for most of the game, the strategy worked. But big-time players can still rise to the occasion. Stanley buried a 3-pointer with 1 minute, 35 seconds left for a one-point lead, added a clutch...
Hempfield junior Ashley Bensur captures WPIBL girls singles title
Hempfield junior Ashley Bensur averaged 205 over five games Thursday to claim the WPIBL girls singles championship at AMF Mt. Lebanon Lanes. After qualifying second with a 628 series, Bensur beat Norwin’s Kali Siegel in the semifinals, 189-181, then defeated Thomas Jefferson freshman Annalise Williams in the finals, 207-157. Bensur,...
PIAA eliminates transgender athlete policy, changes language to comply with Trump’s executive order
The PIAA eliminated its one-sentence transgender athlete policy and changed language in its handbook to no longer ask member schools to determine those students’ “gender” but rather their “sex.” The changes were approved Wednesday by the PIAA board to comply with an executive order signed Feb. 5 by President Donald...
2025 WPIAL wrestling championship preview
WPIAL Boys Individual Wrestling Championship Class 3A When: Friday and Saturday Where: Canon-McMillan High School Times: First round 5 p.m. Friday. Action resumes at 10 a.m. Saturday with second consolation round. Semifinals are at 11:30 a.m. and the finals at 3:30 p.m. Returning champions from 2024: Nicholas McGarrity (107) Peters...
Quest for 4th title by Latrobe’s Luke Willochell headlines WPIAL wrestling championships
Earlier this season, Latrobe senior Luke Willochell became the second wrestler in school history to become a Westmoreland County Coaches’ Association four-time champion. He joined Tom Bell (1961-64) on the exclusive list. Bell was the first wrestler from the county to achieve that goal, which has since been matched by...
Belle Vernon’s Matt Humbert resigns as football coach
One of the mantras the Belle Vernon football team follows under Matt Humbert’s leadership is “rejecting comfort.” Humbert embraced it Thursday. The longtime Leopards mentor announced his resignation as football coach after meeting with his players to inform them of his decision after the school day. He said he will...
West Mifflin poised to hire former assistant B.J. Pugh as football coach
B.J. Pugh, a former West Mifflin quarterback and current teacher in the district, is expected to be hired Thursday as football coach at his alma mater. The school board agenda lists Pugh as the recommended candidate. A 1995 graduate, Pugh teaches elementary school and has coached a variety of West...
17 WPIAL football all-stars chosen for 2025 Small School East-West Game
WPIAL title-winning South Park teammates Eric Doerue, Troy Cunningham and Kenyan Brown were among 17 WPIAL football players chosen to compete in the PSFCA Small School East-West Game this spring. The roster was announced Thursday. The Pennsylvania Scholastic Football Coaches Association organizes two East-West all-star games each year, one for...
Westmoreland County basketball playoff preview capsules for Friday, Feb. 21, 2025
Girls Class 6A Quarterfinals 8-North Allegheny (9-12) at 1-Norwin (13-7) 7 p.m. Friday Winner plays: Winner of 5-Butler (11-10)/4-Canon-McMillan (13-8) on Tuesday (time, site TBD) in semifinals Players to watch: Maddie Williams, North Allegheny; Kendall Berger, Norwin Layup lines: North Allegheny gets a rematch with Norwin after falling to the...
Westmoreland County basketball notebook: Penn-Trafford thrives as gritty underdogs
Penn-Trafford coach Doug Kelly had referred to his team as the “road warriors” several times this season. Kelly does not play up the underdog role but rather looks to unleash the “dog” in his boys basketball teams. Dog and grit are two of his favorite words when talking about the...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Feb. 19, 2025
High schools Basketball WPIAL playoffs Boys Class 6A Quarterfinals Thursday’s schedule Woodland Hills (12-11) at Upper. St. Clair (20-2), 7 p.m.; Central Catholic (13-9) at Fox Chapel (16-6), 8 p.m.; Butler (16-6) at New Castle (19-3), 7 p.m.; Mt. Lebanon (16-7) vs. Imani Christian (13-7) at Montour, 7:30 p.m. Class...
