High School category, Page 727
Freeport girls claim regional bowling title
Freeport qualified for the step-ladder finals of the Western Pennsylvania Regional girls team bowling championships Saturday in North Versailles by a narrow margin — just three pins. The rest of the field should have eliminated the Yellowjackets when they had the chance. Freeport knocked off third-seeded Penn-Trafford and second-seeded McKeesport...
Westmoreland Athletes of the Week for March 12, 2022
Olivia Cernuto School: Southmoreland Sport: Basketball Year: Junior Claim to fame: Cernuto recorded a double-double (18 points, 12 rebounds) to lead Southmoreland (19-5) to a 45-39 win over Tyrone in the opening round of the PIAA Class 4A playoffs on Mar. 9. “I was happy to see our confidence back....
‘Relentless’ Fox Chapel tops Allderdice in PIAA battle of district champions
With only one player taller than 6-foot-2, Fox Chapel maybe doesn’t look like a team built to outrebound many opponents. Too short? Too small? “The funny thing about Fox Chapel is, I know this not to be true,” Allderdice coach Devin Crummie said, “but other coaches will say … they...
Mt. Pleasant’s Dayton Pitzer claims 3rd PIAA title with 100th career pin
HERSHEY — A ritual for Dayton Pitzer after a match is to run sprints. Even after he captured his third PIAA Class 2A title with a first-period pin Saturday at Giant Center, Pitzer was in the hallway running. “I have to keep my cardio up for the (Pittsburgh) classic,” Pitzer...
Alle-Kiski Valley Athletes of the Week: Freeport’s Kira Schrecengost, Fox Chapel’s Tommy Healy
Kira Schrecengost Class: Freshman School: Freeport Sport: Swimming Report card: Schrecengost captured the 100-yard butterfly title at the WPIAL Class 2A championships last weekend at Trees Pool. She set a school record en route to winning the title with a time of 56.09. She has an older sister, Lexi, who...
Fusetti fuels Blackhawk’s offense in PIAA 2nd-round win against Southmoreland
Alena Fusetti knows she doesn’t have to be the main scorer on a team with so much depth and balance. But the Blackhawk sophomore had a green light and a feel for the rims Saturday, so she asserted herself in a PIAA Class 4A second-round playoff game. Fusetti poured in...
Burrell baseball team finds its feet in Class 4A
Going into last season and bumping up from Class 3A to Class 4A, the Burrell baseball team had no idea what to expect. Now, coach Mark Spohn has his Bucs ready to compete in one of the toughest sections in Class 4A, Section 1. “We moved up to 4A, and...
Defending baseball champ Franklin Regional returns plenty
Franklin Regional is not ready to loosen its grip on the WPIAL championship trophy just yet. The Panthers’ baseball team captured its third title last season, first since 2001, and made the PIAA playoffs before finishing 19-2. With eight seniors gone, you might expect a drop-off in talent and outlook....
Westmoreland high school notebook: Greensburg Salem honors coach Snider
Maybe the “Snider Mile” will become a thing in the future. Greensburg Salem will honor the memory of one of its top coaches and mentors by naming its track after longtime cross country and track & field coach Steve Snider. Snider died Feb. 28 after struggling with heart complications. He...
Avoiding injuries will be key for Burrell softball, which has small roster
If it seems like the Burrell softball team is filled with a lot of fresh faces this season, that’s because it is. The Bucs roster has 10 players, and five of them are freshmen. “They all play travel ball, and they played for a bunch of years,” coach Rick Nealer...
Como earns spot in AK Valley Hall of Fame after helping to build Burrell’s wrestling success
Chris Como lives and breathes Burrell wrestling. It has been that way since he started in the sport in junior high close to four decades ago. As a competitor through high school and college and continuing as a coach with the Bucs for the past 25 years, Como has promised...
Franklin Regional softball anticipates making run at section title with talented lineup
His softball team actually outdoors for a practice on the fourth day of preseason workouts, a day before a winter storm watch in the region, Jim Armstrong did a panorama of the mud-caked field at Franklin Regional. He squinted into the bright afternoon sunshine and smiled. “This is a sweet...
12 from WPIAL to wrestle for state titles in Class 3A finals
HERSHEY – The WPIAL is guaranteed at least two PIAA champions, but they’re hoping for more. The WPIAL advanced 12 wrestlers to the PIAA 3A championship finals Saturday night at the Giant Center after impressive wins in the semifinals. Finals begin at 7 p.m. The two weight classes with all-WPIAL...
PIAA announces sites, times for Tuesday’s basketball quarterfinals
The WPIAL is guaranteed to have a boys team in the Class 5A state championship with Laurel Highlands, New Castle, Gateway and Penn Hills all reaching the quarterfinals. They’ll pair off Tuesday in two matchups in a doubleheader at Robert Morris’ UPMC Events Center. New Castle plays Penn Hills at...
Norwin notebook: Wrestler brings home junior high state title
The Norwin wrestling program showcased some potential future standouts at the Pennsylvania Junior High Wrestling State Championships earlier this month at the Cambria County War Memorial in Johnstown. Landon Sidun brought home gold with his victory in the 107-pound weight class. He defeated Melvin Miller in the finals, 10-4, to...
WPIAL roller-coaster ride sends 4 Franklin Regional wrestlers to states
Franklin Regional wrestling coach Matt Lebe said the WPIAL Class 3A championships were like a roller-coaster ride of a two-day tournament. “We were good on Friday,” Lebe said. “Had a little letdown early Saturday, and then we finished strong.” As a result, the Panthers had four wrestlers qualify for the...
1st-year coaches take lessons from Franklin Regional basketball season
While their teams fell short of the WPIAL postseason, first-year basketball coaches Jesse Reed and Bernie Pucka saw new systems begin to take root and programs take on new personalities this winter. The boys finished 7-14 overall and 5-7 in section and lost out on a tiebreaker to make the...
Win total shows growth of Hampton hockey
The PIHL season can be a long five-month grind. Hampton’s schedule started Oct. 4 and ended Feb. 28. The Talbots switched from Class 2A to A during the PIHL offseason performance-based realignment as members of Varsity Northeast Division. Fox Chapel sailed through the division with a 19-0-1 record. Freeport, Plum...
Hampton maintains level of success during strong girls basketball season
The Hampton girls basketball team rang up one of the best regular seasons in school history. The Talbots did not lose a game in December, won 11 of their first 12 contests and captured seven of eight down the season’s home stretch. Balanced scoring and full-court defensive pressure sparked the...
After year away, Fox Chapel fencing team happy to be back on the strip
While the coronavirus pandemic knocked out a number of businesses and events, one sports program that survived is the Fox Chapel High School fencing team. After missing the 2021 season because of pandemic concerns, the boys and girls fencing teams returned to action in 2022. The boys team won the...
What to watch for in WPIAL sports on March 12, 2022: WPIAL, City League champs to clash
The second round of the PIAA boys basketball playoffs Saturday is highlighted by a clash of champions in Class 6A. WPIAL champion Fox Chapel is set to battle City League champion Allderdice at 2 p.m. at Peters Township. Allderdice comes into the game on a six-game winning streak while Fox...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for March 11, 2022
High schools Basketball Boys PIAA playoffs Class 6A Second round Saturday’s schedule Lower Merion (25-3) vs. Abington (17-11) at Bensalem, 5:30 p.m.; Scranton (22-2) vs. Garnet Valley (18-10) at Bethlehem Freedom, 3:30 p.m.; Roman Catholic (20-4) vs. Central Dauphin (18-5) at Coatesville, 3 p.m; Penn Wood (16-8) vs. Cheltenham (29-1)...
Miles Higgins of Ligonier Valley commits to UNC-Wilmington
Ligonier Valley senior Miles Higgins will aim for a WPIAL repeat this spring, but he’ll do so with his college plans firmly in place. Higgins committed to continue his track and field career at North Carolina Wilmington, a Division I program. The 6-foot-3 Higgins won the WPIAL Class 2A javelin...
Homer Center fights off Serra Catholic comeback bid in Class 2A 2nd round
After grabbing its largest lead of the night at the end of the third quarter, the Homer Center girls basketball team looked to have things under control in its PIAA Class 2A second-round contest against Serra Catholic. But the Eagles, like they did all night, fought and crawled their way...
High school roundup for March 11, 2022: Penn Hills’ state playoff run continues
Noah Barren scored 12 points, Daemar Kelly put up 11, and Penn Hills, the seventh seed out of the WPIAL, defeated East Stroudsburg South, 55-44, on Friday to reach the PIAA Class 5A boys basketball quarterfinals. Jaden Dugger netted eight points and had 12 rebounds for Penn Hills (20-5), which...
