High School category, Page 442
Springdale ready to show improvement after winless campaign
The graduation of 16 seniors from Springdale’s 2021 Class A quarterfinal-qualifying team left a void from which it was tough to recover. The 2022 Dynamos battled through youth and inexperience — only three seniors dotted the roster — and the season ended with the Dynamos at 0-10. But many of...
Energy, enthusiasm, winning help Riverview grow roster
Riverview won four games in 2022, the most victories for the program since 2015 when it also won four times. The mission for a veteran group of Raiders players — only four seniors graduated from last year’s team — is to take that next step. Energy, enthusiasm and optimism, coach...
Leechburg aims to maintain new standard of success
The last two years of Leechburg football have been the program’s best in four decades. There were back-to-back postseason appearances after a 32-year absence and a playoff win at their home venue, Veterans Memorial Field, for the first time ever in 2021. Now some of the key members of the...
Jeannette program beginning to regain footing
Asked if he was satisfied after a three-win season that saw Jeannette finish fourth in the Eastern Conference and make the WPIAL Class A football playoffs, second-year coach Tommy Paulone paused. “Pleased? Disappointed? I’d say I’m in the middle — slightly miserable,” Paulone said. “We gave away two games. I...
New coach to rely on playmakers at Greensburg Central Catholic
As a former defensive coordinator at Sacred Heart, Mercyhurst and Gannon, and a defensive backs and linebackers coach at St. Francis (Pa.) and Marist, it is clear where JT Thompson’s passion lies in football. “I am all about defense,” said Thompson, the first-year coach at Greensburg Central Catholic. “It’s what...
With roster loaded with skill, Clairton planning to return to WPIAL championship picture
Call it what you want, football in shorts or touch football, but Clairton coach Wayne Wade sees some value in 7-on-7 tournaments, so his Bears spend the summer competing in them. They entered six this year, reached the finals five times and won their division at Pitt’s camp. The Bears...
Junior QB Floyd ready to take up leadership role for Leechburg football team
Behind one of the end zones of Leechburg’s Veterans Memorial Field sits a garage with a gigantic Blue Devil logo painted on it. That’s just one many examples dotted around the community showing how much pride is taken in Leechburg athletics. That pride is not lost on junior quarterback Jayden...
Experienced line spells good news for Mt. Pleasant offense
This is a story about mutual respect and admiration, an examination of the tight bond of high school football teammates at Mt. Pleasant. There are cornerbacks and safeties. Outside and inside linebackers. Quarterbacks and linemen. Offensive linemen, that is. Speaking of which, Mt. Pleasant takes an abundance of experience into...
St. Joseph standout hoopster Spinelli picks Frostburg State
Julie Spinelli has one more high school basketball season remaining at St. Joseph, and she has set expectations high herself and her team, which returns every player from last year’s WPIAL Class A semifinalist. She also has her eyes focused on her future beyond high school as she now knows...
The Birdie writes a sweet column to kick off football season in the A-K Valley
The Birdie Last season: 99-18 (84.6%) As the 2023 high school football season is about to begin, The Birdie can’t play favorites. It’s important for journalists to be objective, which is something an ink-stained wretch as venerable as The Birdie surely knows. Or does he? “Yeah, I’ve got a favorite...
Battle within the battle: A-K Valley defenses have challenge of facing various schemes, formations
Legendary Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant once said, “Offense sells tickets. Defense wins championships.” There are many examples in the history of football at all levels where a balanced offense and defense is key to bringing home a title. But one needs not look any further than last year’s...
New coaches, who share connections, set to lead prolific Westmoreland County programs
When Mike Brown was coming out of Penn-Trafford, a Division II college program took a particular liking to his skills as a defensive back. The school was Mercyhurst, and Brown went on to play four years in Erie for the Lakers. The man who recruited him was assistant coach JT...
After a long offseason, the Birdie is ready to stick to football and Westmoreland County picks
The Birdie Last season: 107-29 (78.7%) His feeble body is healing fine, thanks for asking. The Birdie, who became bored without football, was roughed up this offseason. There is no way to sugar-coat it. First, he was thrown off a local basketball team’s charter bus for trying to go to...
2023 WPIAL Class 6A football breakdown: New coaches add intrigue to competitive fieldVideo
Nearly half of the teams in the WPIAL’s largest classification have new football coaches in 2023. Now before launching an investigation into the coaching landscape in the district, keep in mind, there are only five teams in Class 6A. The two coaches who stepped away are quite significant. Terry Totten...
2023 WPIAL Class 5A football breakdown: Reaching postseason no easy taskVideo
In WPIAL Class 5A, there’s no room for error. Penn Hills knows that as well as anyone after ending last season disappointed. The Indians tied for second in the Northeast Conference, yet missed the playoffs on tiebreakers. They had even celebrated a regular-season win over eventual state champion Pine-Richland, but...
2023 WPIAL Class 4A football breakdown: Aliquippa begins quest for 3-peatVideo
No team has three-peated as WPIAL champion in Class 4A since the WPIAL went to six classifications in 2016. Thomas Jefferson won back-to-back titles in 2016 and 2017, but South Fayette stopped the Jaguars’ attempt for a third straight in 2018. TJ again won titles in 2019 and 2020, but...
2023 WPIAL Class 3A football breakdown: Belle Vernon heavily favored to repeatVideo
If you ask any coach which team is considered the best in WPIAL Class 3A, the unanimous choice is returning WPIAL and PIAA champion Belle Vernon. The Leopards (12-2) return a roster full of starters from a squad that defeated Avonworth, 24-7, in the WPIAL finals and Philadelphia’s Neumann-Goretti, 9-8,...
2023 WPIAL Class 2A football breakdown: Graduation leaves road to Acrisure wide openVideo
Last season, the WPIAL Class 2A playoffs were a star-studded affair. Take a quick look at the four teams that reached the semifinals and the resumes of their quarterbacks. • WPIAL champion Steel Valley had Cruce Brookins, who led the district with 34 rushing touchdowns and is now at Pitt....
2023 WPIAL Class A football breakdown: Strength of Big 7 Conference on displayVideo
It’s popular coachspeak to say that a meat-grinder conference schedule prepares teams for the postseason. Last season, that appeared to be absolutely accurate in the WPIAL Class A Big 7 Conference. Laurel won the conference with a 6-0 record and earned the No. 2 seed for the Class A playoffs...
2023 HSSN football position-by-position breakdown: Scouting the tight ends
TribLive HSSN will break down the top players at one position per day until Week Zero. Here’s a look at the top tight ends for the 2023 season. 1. Brandon London Shaler Senior, 6-3, 240 Shaler’s two biggest wins last season were over playoff qualifiers Franklin Regional and Woodland Hills,...
After losing playmakers to graduation, expectations remain high at Sto-Rox
Ever notice how Aliquippa never really has a rebuilding year? “We graduated a lot of seniors. Going to be lucky to go 5-5,” said no Quip ever. Sto-Rox coach Marvin Mills is a former Aliquippa assistant, which explains how he’s approaching this season, his second with the Vikings. “I still...
Keystone Oaks eyes deep playoff run with veteran roster
Keystone Oaks will look for another deep playoff run as most of its starters return from a team that advanced to the WPIAL Class 2A quarterfinals last season. The Golen Eagles bring back seven starters on each side of the ball, including senior Clinton Robinson, who was named to the...
New coaching regime looks to get Brentwood back to playoffs
Brentwood’s football team finished 2-4 in the Class 2A Century Conference last season and 3-7 overall. Longtime coach Kevin Kissel resigned. Nick Caponi, who served as an assistant under Kissel for 18 years, fulfilled a lifelong dream by taking over. “So far, the coaching staff has loved how hard the...
Westmoreland high school notebook: Latrobe girls soccer coaches take on 1st season as husband and wife
Jamie Morrison and Ross Campbell will begin their eighth season together as coaches of the Latrobe girls soccer team. This will be their first season, however, as wife and husband. The couple got married in June, nearly a decade after they met during a pick-up soccer game at Hempfield Park....
Peter Kramer leads senior-heavy Hampton boys golf team
The Hampton boys golf team is looking to turn experience into exultation. The senior-ladened Talbots return five of their top six golfers from a 6-11 team and entered the 2023 season with lofty expectations. The nine-player roster consists of eight seniors and one junior, making it the most seasoned group...
