High School category, Page 35
No. 2 Imani Christian overcomes mistakes to knock off No. 3 North Catholic
When a team commits 18 penalties, throws two interceptions, and has five snaps sail over the quarterback’s head, it usually does not overcome those mistakes. But to No. 2 Imani Christian’s credit, it shrugged off the slow start and got the finish it wanted, putting up 36 unanswered points to...
Central Catholic defense clamps down on North Allegheny in Class 6A heavyweight fight
For the first time in the all-time series between Class 6A powers, North Allegheny didn’t reach the end zone against Central Catholic on Friday night. Western Michigan commit Angelo Pugliano led the Central Catholic defense, tallying two sacks, as the Vikings tamed the Tigers, 21-6. UNC commit Ashton Blatt and...
Thomas Jefferson pulls out victory over Belle Vernon in game of missed opportunities
It doesn’t always have to be pretty in the game of football. Sometimes you just have to find a way to win. That’s exactly what Thomas Jefferson did on The Beach at James Weir Stadium. The Jaguars’ Zach Villa recovered a fumble by Belle Vernon quarterback Curty Wade with just...
Southmoreland stays perfect, holds off Derry in penalty-filled game
The Southmoreland and Derry football teams did not wait for mid-June to celebrate flag day. The teams combined for 27 penalties (Derry 14 and Southmoreland 13) during their WPIAL Class 3A Interstate Conference battle Friday. But it was two Southmoreland touchdowns in the first quarter and a solid defense that...
Clairton routs Jeannette, brings to mind dominant Bears teams of past
“Bout Dat” might be making a comeback at Clairton. Maybe it never left. The saying made famous by the great Bears teams of the 2010s still shows up on fans’ orange-and-black T-shirts. They still remember that epic 66-game winning streak. “You look at what we have, this is one of...
Coury, Perkins help Burrell edge East Allegheny; Purdue makes game-saving interception
With East Allegheny driving down the field, Burrell’s Liam Perdue made a bobbling, game-saving interception to seal the Bucs’ 29-28 win in Section 2-3A victory Friday. “I think we all did great as a team,” Perdue said. “We fought in the end, and we battled together. I just got lucky...
Freeport scores early, often to defeat Valley, run record to 6-0
A pair of WPIAL Class 3A football teams continued to streak in opposite directions Friday night as Freeport stayed unbeaten, and Valley remained without a victory. The Yellowjackets settled matters early, scoring all their points in the first quarter of a 42-7 victory to ensure a running clock in the...
Tevin Owen-Cratsenberg scores 4 TDs as Highlands runs away from Deer Lakes
Last year, Highlands led Deer Lakes by two touchdowns at halftime before the Lancers rallied for a one-point win. There was no dramatic Deer Lakes comeback victory this season. The Golden Rams led by three scores at halftime Friday in an Allegheny 7 Conference clash with the Lancers at Golden...
Hempfield strikes before half to build lead, beat Canon-McMillan
Football is a game of momentum, and when teams can capture it and build on it, big results will follow. On Friday night at Spartan Stadium, the Hempfield Spartans used a 24-point second quarter to not only build momentum but capture it for the game in a 38-27 win against...
Aven Shirley moves under center, helps lead Kiski Area past Franklin Regional
If Aven Shirley didn’t seem uncomfortable under center Friday night at Richard J. Dilts Field, it was because he already developed many of the skills to do the job. Shirley, a 6-foot-2 senior wide receiver, was far from a fish out of water when he was asked to lead Kiski...
Firmstone leads Mt. Pleasant to mercy-rule victory over Yough
Mt. Pleasant football fans might start calling quarterback Dane Firmstone “Great Dane” after Friday’s game against Yough. Firmstone was involved in three first-half touchdowns as the Vikings opened Interstate Conference play with a dominant 41-7 victory. All but two minutes of the first half were played in Yough territory, with...
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...
2 schools request opponents show mercy with shorter quarters — 5 things to watch in Week 5
Forty-eight minutes is the length of a typical WPIAL football game, but at least one contest this week will be notably shorter. Fox Chapel and Baldwin each asked their opponents this week to show mercy and reduce the length of their conference games Friday night, though Baldwin later rescinded its...
High school sports scores, schedules for Sept. 25, 2025
High schools Cross county Thursday’s results Boys Division I Section 5 Blackhawk 27, Hopewell 29 New Castle 23, Blackhawk36 Girls Division I Section 5 Blackhawk 15, New Castle 50 Blackhawk 15, Hopewell 50 Field hockey Thursday’s results Class 3A Mt. Lebanon 6, Hempfield 1 Pine-Richland 3, North Allegheny 0 Class...
High school roundup for Sept. 25, 2025: Seton LaSalle takes down Waynesburg in Century Conference
Kymarr Freeman ran the ball 11 times for 121 yards and two touchdowns and Deondre Hill ran nine times for 84 yards and a score as Seton LaSalle rode its run game to a 41-14 Class 2A Century Conference win over Waynesburg (2-4, 0-2) on Thursday night. Will Martin and...
Allegheny Six rivals Peters Township, Upper St. Clair won’t ease into conference slate
The biggest games usually arrive a little later in the season, but Peters Township and Upper St. Clair won’t be easing into their conference schedules this year. The South Hills rivals meet in an Allegheny Six opener Friday night. “It doesn’t matter if it’s Week 7 or Week 8 or...
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...
Trib HSSN don’t miss high school football matchups for 2025 Week 5
Welcome to Week 5 of the 2025 WPIAL football regular season and the midway point of the regular season. Friday night finally marks the start of section play for five district conferences, the Class 5A Allegheny 6, the Class 3A Interstate and all three Class 4A conferences. In the first...
From offseason work to early-season success, Springdale boys soccer works toward playoff goals
Heading into the 2025 season, Springdale boys soccer coach Mario Liberati and the Dynamos had some work to do. A year after going 14-5 and suffering a shootout loss to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in the WPIAL Class A quarterfinals, the Dynamos were tasked with replacing 10 seniors...
Westmoreland County high school football notebook: Jeannette understands assignment vs. powerful Clairton
Jeannette wants nothing more than to shake off a 36-27 loss to Leechburg, but the schedule doesn’t get any easier this week with vaunted Clairton invading McKee Stadium. In fact, it gets much harder. The second-ranked Bears (3-1, 2-0) are averaging 51.5 points. They beat Serra Catholic, 79-0, Greensburg Central...
Through the years: 40 years ago, Fox Chapel had no answers for Kiski Area
Each week throughout the high school football season, the Valley News Dispatch will take a look at the players, coaches and events that shaped our scholastic legacy. Kiski Area’s Asayan Jordan scored all four Cavaliers touchdowns Sept. 28, 1985, in a 28-0 victory at Fox Chapel. The Kiski Area defense...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Sept. 24, 2025
High schools Field hockey Wednesday’s results Class 2A Fox Chapel 2, Latrobe 0 Football Thursday’s schedule WPIAL Class 2A Century Waynesburg Central at Seton LaSalle, 7 p.m. City League Allderdice at Westinghouse, 7 p.m. Friday’s schedule WPIAL Class 6A Canon-McMillan at Hempfield, 7 p.m. Central Catholic at North Allegheny, 7:30...
What to watch for in high school sports for Sept. 25, 2025: City League powers to collide
Week 5 of the high school football season begins with two games Thursday, including one of the biggest contests in the District 8 regular season. It has been nearly 10 years since the last time a City League football championship game was played that did not include Westinghouse or Allderdice....
High school roundup for Sept. 24, 2025: Ari Beck’s goal stands up as South Park wins nail-biter
Ari Beck scored the winning goal to lift South Park (12-0, 8-0) to a 1-0 victory over Belle Vernon (7-3-1, 5-2-1) in a matchup of the top two teams in the Section 1-2A girls soccer standings Wednesday night. Armstrong 3, Woodland Hills 1 – Callie Adkins scored all three goals...
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...
