High School category, Page 335
Pine-Richland notebook: Basketball teams set for playoff openers
The Pine-Richland boys basketball team needed a tiebreaker, but the Rams will return to the playoffs after a one-year absence. The Rams received the No. 8 seed in the WPIAL Class 6A bracket and will travel to play top seed Mt. Lebanon on Feb. 23. Pine-Richland finished in a tie...
Pine-Richland celebrates winning 4th WPIAL gymnastics championship
The Pine-Richland gymnastics team brought little green foam fingers with “We’re No. 1” written on them to the WPIAL championships. After an unbeaten regular season, it was a sign of confidence that they could get the job done in the biggest meet of the year. As each team’s position was...
Riverview girls use time off to prepare for WPIAL quarterfinal matchup
With a No. 4 seed and a bye to the WPIAL Class A quarterfinals, the Riverview girls basketball players knew they were going to face a familiar foe as soon as the playoff brackets were released Feb. 12. It will be 12 days between their final regular-season game, a low-scoring...
Plum boys basketball turns attention to promising future
At the start of the season, Plum boys basketball coach Justin Walther said he felt his team was a playoff contender in Class 5A out of Section 2. While the Mustangs were competitive in a number of section games, a section win didn’t come until the section finale at Armstrong...
Norwin notebook: Grads make impact in women’s college basketball
Norwin girls basketball’s thumbprint continues to show up all over the college game. There are almost enough former Lady Knights to form a team at the next level. Here is a look at some of the women impacting Division III and NAIA programs, some of which are national tournament contenders:...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Feb. 17, 2024
High schools Basketball Boys WPIAL playoffs Class 6A Quarterfinals Friday’s schedule Times TBA Pine-Richland (7-15) at Mt. Lebanon (18-4); North Allegheny (11-11) at Baldwin (16-6); Canon-McMillan (10-12) vs. Central Catholic (14-8) at TBA; Butler (15-6) at Upper St. Clair (17-5) Class 5A First round Monday’s schedule Woodland Hills (9-13) at...
Burrell crowns 5 section champs, sends all 13 wrestlers through to WPIAL tournament
Burrell had five champs and advanced all 13 wrestlers to the WPIAL championships at the Class 2A Eastern Sectional tournament Saturday at Greensburg Salem. Cam Baker (107), Luca Rosa (121), Cooper Hornack (139), Isaac Lacinski (172) and Luke Boylan (215) won titles for the Bucs. Hampton led the way with...
High school roundup for Feb. 17, 2024: Maggie Spell scores 1,000th point in Shady Side Academy playoff win
Maggie Spell scored 23 points, hitting the 1,000-point mark for her career, to help No. 2 Shady Side Academy to a 53-42 victory over No. 15 Mohawk in a WPIAL Class 3A first-round girls basketball playoff game Saturday. Karis Thomas added 14 points for the Bulldogs (21-2). Erynne Capalbo led...
Westmoreland athletes of the week: Mt. Pleasant’s Olivia Kovach, Mt. Pleasant’s Dylan Pitzer
Olivia Kovach School: Mt. Pleasant Class: Sophomore Sport: Gymnastics Claim to fame: Kovach competed in the WPIAL championship meet for the second year in a row and won a gold medal in the balance beam with a score of 9.575. She also finished second in the all-around (37.450) and in...
A-K Valley athletes of the week: Knoch’s Jackson Bauman, St. Joseph’s Isabella Thomas
Isabella Thomas Class: Freshman School: St. Joseph Sport: Gymnastics Report card: St. Joseph freshman Isabella Thomas finished fourth out of 37 competitors in the all-around with a score of 34.850 in the Intermediate I division at the WPIAL gymnastics championships Feb. 10. Thomas placed eighth in bars (8.600), fourth in...
Norwin girls wrestling boasts 2 WPIAL champs in inaugural event
It was quite a day for the Norwin girls wrestling program Saturday at the first WPIAL girls wrestling championship at North Allegheny. The Knights crowned two champions and had three others advance to the PIAA West Regional on March 2 at Canon-McMillan. Sophomore Josephine Dollman became the school’s first WPIAL...
At WPIAL girls wrestling, Plum’s Claassen sisters keep promise to grandmother
Plum’s Claassen sisters kept their promise Saturday. They vowed to their ill grandmother, Marilynn Claassen, they would bring home medals from the first WPIAL girls wrestling championship at North Allegheny. Sophomore Alaina Claassen was going to present her with a gold medal, and freshman Addison Claassen was going to give...
‘It means we belong:’ WPIAL girls celebrate inaugural wrestling tournament
It was a day of firsts at the WPIAL girls wrestling championships Saturday at North Allegheny. Not only was this the inaugural season for girls wrestling across the state, the 13 winners are part of history. Canon-McMillan senior Valarie Solorio always will be known as the first girls WPIAL champion...
South Park advances by beating Mt. Pleasant in WPIAL opener
South Park knew who to turn to when it needed a jolt. When it came time to flip a WPIAL girls basketball playoff game in its favor. Junior point guard Brooke Paylo was the fifth-seeded Eagles’ rail to hold onto in a 37-21 first-round victory over No. 12 Mt. Pleasant...
A-K Valley high school notebook: Springdale alumnae Kropelak-Brownback going into UPJ Hall of Fame
Michelle Kropelak-Brownback, a standout track star at Springdale in the mid to late 1990s, is one of seven athletic greats who make up the 15th Athletics Hall of Fame class at Pitt-Johnstown. The six-time WPIAL champion and four-time PIAA place-winner showed her versatility at Pitt-Johnstown by competing in as many...
Keystone Oaks girls take down Burrell, get rematch with No. 1 Avonworth
Keystone Oaks will get another shot at No. 1 The Eagles, runners-up to Avonworth in Section 2-3A, got a game-best 15 points from junior Alayna Wagner and 12 more from senior Bailey Rieg in a 49-34 WPIAL first-round victory over Burrell on Saturday at South Park. Keystone Oaks, which improved...
Fox Chapel notebook: Swim team happy to bring large contingent to WPIAL meet
Expect the Fox Chapel presence at Pitt’s Trees Pool to be a strong contingent. The Foxes have hit a number of WPIAL Class 3A individual qualifying times and will be looking to push a number of athletes through to the state swimming championships. “It’s a super exciting time coming up...
Focus on defense, taking care of basketball propels Fox Chapel boys into playoffs
Will Siegel is proud of the role he plays on defense for the Fox Chapel boys basketball team, and Siegel and his teammates want to make sure they don’t waste their effort on one end with mistakes on the other. Avoiding turning the ball over on offense is paramount for...
Westmoreland County high school notebook: Camp planned to honor late Southmoreland coach
The legacy of “Fred” lives on at Southmoreland. Organizers have put together an event to not only help young football players improve their skills but also to honor the memory of a beloved coach. The Coach Ron “Fred” Frederick Memorial Youth Football Camp will be 10 a.m. to 1 p.m....
North Allegheny notebook: NA girls earn No. 3 seed for WPIAL playoffs
North Allegheny’s girls basketball team was awarded the No. 3 seed in Class 6A when the WPIAL playoff pairings were announced Feb. 12. The Tigers (20-2) will host No. 6 Upper St. Clair (12-10) on Thursday in the opening round. The winner advances to play the winner of No. 2...
North Allegheny boys put layoff to good use ahead of WPIAL playoffs
When other WPIAL basketball teams were probably prepping for their playoff openers, the North Allegheny boys took batting practice in the high school gym. They certainly had time to spare. That’s because North Allegheny and everyone else in the Class 6A bracket got a 10-day layoff before starting their postseason...
Drive to improve, helpful mentors lead Franklin Regional grad to Division I football
Gentle giant Max Leven had a goal when he left Franklin Regional, but for him to achieve that goal, he felt he needed some fine-tuning. If he was going to be ready to play NCAA Division I college football, the 6-foot-8, 285-pound Leven had to smooth out some rough edges....
Freshmen stood tall during Franklin Regional’s run to PIAA wrestling tournament
Franklin Regional wrestling ended the team portion of the season Feb. 10 on the mats at the Giant Center in Hershey. Thanks to a unique balance of seniors and some talented freshmen, the Panthers (22-3) made it to Day 3 of the PIAA Class 3A team tournament. While the Panthers...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Feb. 16, 2024
High schools Basketball Boys WPIAL playoffs Class 6A Quarterfinals Feb. 23 schedule Times TBA Pine-Richland (7-15) at Mt. Lebanon (18-4); North Allegheny (11-11) at Baldwin (16-6); Canon-McMillan (10-12) vs. Central Catholic (14-8) at TBA; Butler (15-6) at Upper St. Clair (17-5) Class 5A Preliminary round Friday’s result Woodland Hills 64,...
What to watch for in WPIAL sports on Feb. 17, 2024: Girls Class 3A teams step into spotlight
The opening weekend of the 2024 WPIAL basketball playoffs continues Saturday with the spotlight shining on all eight Class 3A girls opening-round contests. There will be a touch of déjà vu in the air in Greene County when Section 4 co-champion Waynesburg hosts Seton LaSalle at noon. The Raiders and...
