High School category, Page 443
2023 HSSN football position-by-position breakdown: Scouting the offensive line
TribLive HSSN will break down the top players at one position per day until Week Zero. Here’s a look at the top offensive linemen for the 2023 season. 1. Ryan Cory Pine-Richland Senior, 6-4, 290 Pine-Richland had one of the state’s best running attacks last season, and the blocks Cory...
High school sports scores for Aug. 18, 2023
High schools Golf Friday’s results Boys Class 3A Section 1 Penn-Trafford 203, Armstrong 217 Medalist: Nick Turowski (PT), 38 Section 3 North Allegheny 186, North Hills 210 Medalist: Jake Watterson (NA) Section 4 Franklin Regional 203, Kiski Area 212 Medalists: Jose Balza Jr. (FR), 38; Dylan Matenkosky (KA), 38 Plum...
Clairton seeking donations to renovate 93-year-old football stadium
Before next football season, Clairton’s nearly century-old stadium could undergo a major renovation with new seats, locker rooms and restrooms, artificial turf, modern lighting and a brickwork entrance. But first, organizers need to raise $3 million in donations, a campaign announced Friday as the high school team held media day...
Bill Hand returns to Riverside sidelines as Panthers aim to contend in MAC
More than two decades since the last time they had a chance to welcome their new head coach with the phrase, the Riverside football team is ready to again say, “Aloha, Mr. Hand.” A longtime coach and teacher in the Riverside School District, Bill Hand is about to begin his...
New Brighton ready to move forward after challenging season
When a team goes winless like New Brighton did last season, it has two options. Players can either burn the memory into their brains and use it as motivation or they can burn the game tapes and immediately turn the page. Lions coach Tony Caltury decided to take a little...
Neshannock continues quest for elusive WPIAL championship
If traffic is light, a trip from Neshannock to Cleveland takes less than 90 minutes, so maybe it makes sense for the Lancers to take on a motto catcher Jake Taylor made famous in the movie “Major League.” (Albeit with one word left out in polite company.) I guess there’s...
Mohawk in good position after ups and downs of 2022 season
At this time a year ago, the Mohawk football team was grappling with the effects of a hazing incident that resulted in disciplinary action for multiple students and forced the cancellation of the Warriors’ first two regular-season games. Fast-forward to the present. “We’re focused on the current season,” Mohawk coach...
Western Beaver driven to erase memory of disappointing finish to 2022
Forgive the Western Beaver football team if it comes into the 2023 season with a chip on its shoulder. For a couple of months, last season was going exactly as planned. With quarterback Xander Lefebvre leading the way, the Golden Beavers got off to a 7-1 start. Then, in Week...
New coach hopes to guide Freedom to success
It was mid-March when Ron Balog took the reins of the Freedom football team. It’s been full-speed ahead since. The former Quaker Valley head coach who spent last season as an offensive coordinator at North Catholic wanted to make sure his team was prepared despite the late start to the...
Ellwood City ready to take next step in program turnaround
Ellwood City got rid of a losing stigma last season, and now the Wolverines are aiming to take the next step in the program’s turnaround. They snapped a 27-game losing streak in Week 2 last season with a 46-6 victory at Carlynton. It was the longest skid among WPIAL teams,...
Roster full of offensive weapons helps Beaver Falls reload
Beaver Falls coach Nick Nardone has no idea who is going to end up as the top rusher and receiver for his team this fall. He’s kind of psyched about that. “It’s not, ‘I have no idea because we have no talent,’” Nardone said. “It’s, ‘I have no idea because...
Ligonier Valley junior lineman Sam Caldwell assumes leadership role
Ligonier Valley football coach Roger Beitel smiled when he learned what junior center Sam Caldwell said about himself and the upcoming season. Caldwell is one of two starters returning for the offense. He became the starting center early during his sophomore season. He has taken ownership of the position and...
Isaiah Gonzalez relishes role as quarterback of Kiski Area defense
Isaiah Gonzalez earned a baptism by fire as a freshman when he stepped into the varsity lineup at cornerback against Penn Hills when then-senior and one of Kiski Area’s top players that year, Kenny Blake, was out with injury. “That was a challenging game for him to be put in...
2023 HSSN football position-by-position breakdown: Scouting the wide receivers
TribLive HSSN will break down the top players at one position per day until Week Zero. Here’s a look at the top wide receivers for the 2023 season. 1. Peter Gonzalez Central Catholic Senior, 6-3, 200 Gonzalez’s size, athleticism and strong hands make him a big-play threat who opponents have...
Saturday’s scrimmage schedule in WPIAL football
Training camps officially began Monday for all 127 WPIAL, City League and independent teams in Western Pennsylvania. That week concludes for all with a scrimmage. The second week of camp ends with most team’s playing a Week Zero game Friday, Aug. 25 or Saturday, Aug. 26, while a few schools...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Aug. 17, 2023
High schools Golf Thursday’s results Boys Class 3A Section 3 Seneca Valley 184, Butler 197 Medalists: Tyler Garvin (SV) 34, Hunter Swidzinski (B) 37 Section 6 Peters Township 195, Baldwin 257 Medalists: Ben Miller (PT) 37, Mac Dempsey (B) 47 Section 7 South Fayette 203, Moon 215 Class 2A Section...
Yough aims to build on positives from last season
Ben Hoffer was part of a Yough football team that won three conference titles and compiled 24-15 record. Since then, only the 2013 team has had a winning record at 6-5. It was also the last time Yough made the playoffs. As Hoffer begins his second season at his alma...
Steel Valley gets back to work in defense of WPIAL title
In his 34th season as a head coach, Ray Braszo lifted the WPIAL championship trophy for the first time last November when Steel Valley beat Beaver Falls in the Class 2A finals. How did he celebrate that momentous achievement once practice began again in August? “You start all over and...
With young roster, Ligonier Valley works to come together quickly
Since Roger Beitel became football coach at Ligonier Valley 20 years ago, he has taken his squad to a team camp at Shippensburg University in July. Who can argue with his success? Beitel’s record is 148-63 and the Rams have qualified for the playoffs, either PIAA District 6 or WPIAL,...
Enthusiasm grows at Imani Christian with numbers up, talent abundant
Imani Christian’s practices look different this summer than last, largely because there are twice as many players. The Saints have around 30 on the roster nowadays, which gives coach LaRoi Johnson confidence the program can make a big jump in his second year there. “My guys played well and did...
Burrell ready to run back into WPIAL playoffs
While some WPIAL offensive attacks look to incorporate both ground and air assaults, Burrell often loads up its tanks with the hopes of steamrolling opponents. The Bucs rushed for more than 3,000 total yards last year as they battled through Allegheny Conference play to a berth in the WPIAL Class...
Apollo-Ridge aims to gain experience in a hurry
When asked to appraise his team’s expectations for this season, Apollo-Ridge coach John Skiba didn’t pull any punches. “We will be young and inexperienced,” he said. But he was quick to add that the future is bright as several talented newcomers, he said, will join the few returning starters from...
Highlands’ Aaran Randolph likely to grab more headlines this fall
Aaran Randolph had quite an introduction to A-K Valley football fans. When they opened their newspaper Saturday morning Oct. 1, 2022, the Game of the Week headline read: “RUNNING RAM: Randolph’s 5 scores lead Highlands past Mars.” What the Golden Rams faithful already knew, many across Western Pennsylvania then discovered...
2023 HSSN football position-by-position breakdown: Scouting the running backs
TribLive HSSN will break down the top players at one position per day until Week Zero. Here’s a look at the top running backs for the 2023 season. 1. Quinton Martin Belle Vernon Senior, 6-3, 205 The Penn State recruit scored 31 times last season, including 22 rushing touchdowns, as...
Deep backfield gives Latrobe options in running game
When teams prepared to play Latrobe last season, their focus was on stopping bruising running back Robert Fulton. No. 3 was a big problem. With Fulton gone, though, the Wildcats’ rushing attack will branch out like a spider vein. “That’s the nature of high school sports,” Latrobe coach Ron Prady...
