High School category, Page 412

It was technically a Class 4A vs. 5A nonconference matchup, but it was more like a clash of two old rivals as West Allegheny and South Fayette collided Friday night. The former foes in the Allegheny Six conference came into the game after opening-week wins, and it was the Lions...

Four goals. It wasn’t so much about how they happened, but that they happened. Then again, Latrobe players and coaches have come to expect such a performance from Robin Reilly. The junior midfielder had not played a competitive game in two months when she took the field for the first...

The last time North Allegheny and Canon-McMillan faced off was during one of the rainiest days of the year last November. Friday night, there wasn’t a cloud in a sky, but the Tigers still rained on the Big Macs’ parade. Logan Kushner ran for 167 yards on just 13 carries,...

Mt. Lebanon thought they’d won and then were sure they’d lost, so the surprised smile junior Noah Schaerli showed afterward summed up Friday’s win perfectly. “It was unbelievable,” said Schaerli, who caught an 8-yard touchdown pass in overtime to secure Mt. Lebanon’s 19-16 win over host Bethel Park in a...

Two goal-line stands and two third-quarter touchdown runs by Kyle Dupill helped Franklin Regional defeat Latrobe, 28-21, in a heart-thumping nonconference battle Friday at Memorial Stadium. It might have been a nonconference game, but these two Westmoreland County foes battled like it was for a conference title. The Panthers (1-1)...

Defending WPIAL and PIAA Class 3A champion Belle Vernon earned a convincing road win to begin its title defenses Friday night. Penn State recruit Quinton Martin finished with four touchdowns, and Belle Vernon’s tenacious defense refused to allow a score in a 40-0 victory over Laurel Highlands in nonconference action....

Greensburg Central Catholic was hoping Bishop Canevin would be rusty because the highly touted Crusaders did not play a game or scrimmage last week. The Crusaders were, especially early. But they recovered from the groggy start and a slew of penalties, using a huge push up front and some GCC...

The spotlight on a pair of Westmoreland County running backs with 200-yard games last week during the opening night of high school football shifted Friday night to Southmoreland’s Da’sjon Craggette. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound senior ran every which way again, finishing with 193 yards and three touchdowns to lead the visiting...

Football can be a game of inches. This was certainly the case when Highlands traveled to Blackhawk for a nonconference matchup Friday night. With Highlands holding a 20-13 lead with more than seven minutes remaining in the game, Blackhawk faced a fourth-and- goal at the 5-yard line. The Golden Rams...

The Mark Adams era of Valley football is officially underway, and if the Vikings defense plays anything like it did Friday night against Apollo-Ridge, the folks of New Kensington will be proud. The Vikings (1-1, 0-0) controlled the line of scrimmage for all but one drive in an 18-7 victory....

Last year’s matchup between Burrell and Deer Lakes went to overtime before the Bucs pulled out a six-point victory. An extra session wasn’t needed Friday in the latest edition of the series between the area rivals. Deer Lakes scored three times in the first half, added two TDs in the...

Before its matchup with Penn-Trafford, the Class 4A No. 3 McKeesport added a play to its offensive repertoire that coach Matt Miller did not know if they would use. That play: a halfback pass. Not only did the Tigers use it, but they used it to perfection. That play also...

Freeport coach John Gaillot wasn’t going to kick to South Allegheny standout Cameron Epps under any circumstances. So, on the opening kickoff Yellowjackets kicker Cole Troutman executed a pooch kick, and Freeport recovered. It was an inadvertent spark to total domination. The Yellowjackets went on to score on three straight...

For the first time since 1997, the Connellsville Falcons are 2-0 to start a football season. Behind the running of Bruce Giles and a defense that only seemed to get tougher as the game wore on, the Falcons defeated Hempfield, 28-7, on Friday evening. Giles carried the ball 26 times...

New head coaches. Rosters hurt by graduation. Bethel Park and Mt. Lebanon came into this football season with similar situations. “I think there’s a lot of people who thought we maybe would be a little bit down this year from where we were last year because of graduation,” said first-year...

One of the best ways many describe Win Palmer is that he was a gentleman’s gentleman. Palmer, athletic director at Sewickley Academy for the past 22 years, died Thursday at Allegheny General Hospital at age 65 from cardiovascular complications. . Palmer left an indelible mark on the Sewickley Academy and...

Not only is Aliquippa’s new football stadium named Heinz Field, but like its North Shore namesake, the Red Zone should be popular. When the Quips cross the 20-yard line, the stadium’s new LED lights will flash red, Aliquippa athletic director Jennifer Damico said. The first game at the new stadium...

High schools Field hockey Thursday’s results Section 3A Mt. Lebanon 2, North Allegheny 1 Norwin at Allderdice, (n) Pine-Richland 12, Hempfield 0 Nonsection Penn-Trafford 5, Shady Side Academy 2 Football Thursday’s result City League University Prep 66, Carrick 0 Friday’s schedule WPIAL Class 6A Section 1 Canon-McMillan at North Allegheny,...

Nathan Katari recorded his first career hat trick, leading North Allegheny to a 3-1 victory over rival Pine-Richland in Section 1-4A boys soccer Thursday night. Dante Accamando made two saves to earn the win for the Tigers (4-0, 2-0). Mark Cashman scored for the Rams (1-3, 0-2). Beaver 1, Mohawk...

Plum is finding different ways to score goals this soccer season. It doesn’t have to be pretty. It can even be boring, as long as the ball goes in the net. The fourth-ranked Mustangs did enough to claim a 1-0 shutout in a chippy Section 3-3A matchup against neighboring Franklin...

Most of the district teams knocked off the rust, buckled the chin straps tight and began the 2023 high school football season last week in Week Zero. However, there were still a handful of teams that went old school and decided to play a second scrimmage and wait to officially...

Golfers will say there are just some courses that fit their game the best. Latrobe Elks Golf Course is one of those courses for Penn-Trafford senior Nick Turowski. The West Virginia commit captured his second Westmoreland County Coaches’ Association boys golf title Thursday by shooting a 4-under-par 68. He also...

Each Friday throughout the high school football season, the Valley News Dispatch will take a look back at the games, players and events that have shaped local scholastic history. In his first varsity start, Apollo-Ridge sophomore Brian Newton ran for 221 yards and three touchdowns to give the Vikings a...

John Jablunovsky and Da’sjon Craggette ran wild in their season openers, each rushing for more than 200 yards as their teams won. The speedsters will square off this week as Ligonier Valley (1-0) hosts Southmoreland (1-0) in nonconference action. You want track speed? You’ll get it with these two. This...

High schools Cross county Wednesday’s results Nonsection Boys Hampton 15, Mars 47 Girls Hampton 24, Mars 32 Field hockey Wednesday’s result Nonsection Penn-Trafford 1, Peters Township 0 Thursday’s schedule Section 3A Mt. Lebanon at North Allegheny, 7 p.m. Norwin at Allderdice, 3:15 p.m. Pine-Richland at Hempfield, 6 p.m. Nonsection Shady...