High School category, Page 899
Knoch baseball hitting peak heading into final section series
Every coach hopes to start his time at a program with a win, but new Knoch baseball coach Bradley Bestic had to suffer through three losses before a 5-2 victory over Deer Lakes. After going 35-9 in three years at Vincentian Academy and winning both a WPIAL and PIAA title...
Before becoming NFL Draft star, Kyle Pitts clashed with WPIAL champion in Hershey
If tight end Kyle Pitts is the first non-quarterback selected Thursday night in the NFL Draft, Gateway football coach Don Holl won’t be surprised. Four years ago, Gateway was tasked with stopping Pitts and his Archbishop Wood teammates in the 2017 state championship in Hershey. Pitts, then a senior committed...
Offense helps Derry baseball team overcome slow start, get into contention
In between a pair of covid shutdowns — one that is going on now — the Derry baseball team discovered something about itself: It can flat-out score runs. Derry (5-3, 3-2) jumped right into Section 3-3A play, losing its first two-game series to Valley. But it was quick to rebound,...
4 WPIAL boys basketball players earn all-state honors in Class 4A
Lincoln Park senior Dakari Bradford and North Catholic senior Andrew Ammerman, whose teams clashed last month in the WPIAL finals, were among four WPIAL boys basketball players earning all-state honors Thursday in Class 4A. Bradford, Ammerman and Quaker Valley junior Adou Theiro all were named the the second team on...
Washington softball forfeits remaining games, hopes for better seasons ahead
Washington hopes to build up its softball program in years to come, athletic director Mike Bosnic said Thursday, but this spring’s season will end after only one game. The softball team will forfeit the remainder of its schedule. “We feel that the program is headed in the right direction,” Bosnic...
WPIAL releases playoff field for team track and field championships
Will four team track and field district title streaks continue in May, or will the lost 2020 season lead to new champions being crowned next month? Hempfield boys in Class AAA and South Park girls in Class AA are looking to win a second straight championship. The Riverside boys in...
WPIAL releases boys tennis playoff brackets
The year 2019 was a historic postseason in WPIAL boys team tennis. Fox Chapel won a fourth straight district championship in Class AAA, tying Upper St. Clair (twice) for the second most consecutive WPIAL Class AAA team tennis crowns, trailing only Mt. Lebanon. The Blue Devils won five straight titles...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for April 28, 2021
High schools WPIAL Baseball Wednesday’s results Class 5A Section 1 Latrobe 12, Kiski Area 2 Section 4 Bethel Park 13, Connellsville 0 Class 3A Section 3 Ligonier Valley 5, Valley 3 Class 2A Section 2 Shenango 7, Laurel 2 Nonsection Burgettstown 10, Avella 0 Fox Chapel 8, Shady Side Academy...
What to watch for in WPIAL sports for April 29, 2021: Peters Township volleyball faces test
Two years ago, Bethel Park won the boys volleyball Section 1-AAA title and advanced all the way to the WPIAL finals before falling to North Allegheny, 3-0. Also two years ago, Peters Township tied for fourth place in the same section with Upper St. Clair but lost the tiebreaker and...
Trib HSSN state baseball rankings for April 28, 2021
There were more changes to the 2021 Trib HSSN state baseball rankings this week, just not as many as last week. Four of the six classifications saw two teams drop out and two new entries to the state top 5. Class 6A and 2A kept a clean slate with no...
WPIAL clinched for April 28, 2021: Softball elites punch tickets to playoffs
The regular season is winding down in WPIAL softball as teams are down to a week and a half of section games remaining. Much like high school baseball, some teams are now in catch-up mode due to covid-related issues while at least one program, Sto-Rox softball, has shut down for...
Latrobe baseball showcases power in section victory over Kiski Area
Throughout the season, Latrobe coach Matt Basciano has talked to his players about improving certain aspects of their play each time out. Most recently, he has asked the Wildcats to improve at the plate. Over the past two days, his players have answered the call, scoring a combined 22 runs...
High school roundup for April 28, 2021: West Allegheny softball makes statement
Adriana Vicari-Baker hit a two-run home run in the second inning to spark West Allegheny to a 5-4 victory over Chartiers Valley in a battle of top teams in Section 4-5A softball Wednesday afternoon. Emily Nolan hit a two-run double in the third for West Allegheny (10-2, 7-1). Marie Kinchington...
Franklin Regional, South Park duos win school’s 1st WPIAL doubles titles
There were a lot of similarities to the two winning WPIAL doubles teams. First, they were their school’s first doubles teams to win a WPIAL title. Franklin Regional’s squad won the Class AAA title and South Park’s duo the Class AA title. Each team had a right-hander and left-hander, which...
A-K Valley softball notebook: Highlands set for showdown with Burrell
When the Highlands softball team suffered a 14-4 loss to Freeport in its Section 1-4A opener at home April 9, the Golden Rams could have looked ahead to the next matchup with the Yellowjackets. But the focus for the team, coach Jen Koprivnikar said, stayed in the short term. As...
Burrell ace Armstrong whiffs 17 in win over Greensburg Salem
Katie Armstrong said she “drew a blank” when she tried to remember the Greensburg Salem softball lineup and hitter’s tendencies when she and her Burrell teammates faced the Golden Lions for a second time. “Because it was so long ago,” she said. “As the game went on, though, I started...
WCCA track and field championship moved to Saturday
Westmoreland County Coaches’ Association officials decided Wednesday to postpone Thursday’s track and field championship because of the threat of inclement weather. The meet will be moved to Saturday at Latrobe Memorial Stadium with a starting time of 9 a.m. Instead of splitting the boys and girls, which was planned for...
Hard-hitting Apollo-Ridge softball in WPIAL playoff mix
The Apollo-Ridge softball team was on the wrong side of a perfect game Monday against Ligonier Valley junior standout Maddie Griffin. But rather than wallow in the wake of the setback, Vikings coach John Kinnamon said his team was laser-focused and ready to prepare for the next contest. Apollo-Ridge has...
Westmoreland softball notebook: Latrobe’s Tallman sisters flying high
The Tallman sisters, Jordan and Jenna, hope to take the Latrobe softball team to new heights this season, their last together as high school teammates. But they have been reaching for the sky for some time now — several months, in fact — as they seek to become certified pilots....
Hempfield softball team starting to show look of contender again
It would seem Hempfield has a lifetime pass in the WPIAL softball rankings, a permanent perch maybe, among the elite. When the Spartans, who have won five straight championships in the league’s largest classification, do not appear in the Class 6A top five, something must be off. The preseason No....
Kiski Area wrestler Sammy Starr commits to Navy
Kiski Area’s Sammy Starr can finally take a deep breath. He’s found his next home. After a long and hectic recruitment process that included mulling over options, filling out applications and looking for just the right place, Starr recently committed to the Naval Academy in Annapolis to continue his wrestling...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for April 27, 2021
High schools Baseball Tuesday’s results Class 6A Section 1 Pine-Richland 13, Allderdice 3 North Allegheny 11, Butler 0 Central Catholic 2, Seneca Valley 0 Section 2 Hempfield 11, Canon-McMillan 1 Mt. Lebanon 7, Baldwin 5 Norwin at Upper St. Clair, ppd. Class 5A Section 1 Franklin Regional 11, Gateway 0...
High school roundup for April 27, 2021: Shaler strikes back, splits with West Allegheny
Brady McGuire and Luke Beran hit RBI singles during a five-run sixth inning to help Shaler to a 7-1 baseball victory over West Allegheny on Tuesday, splitting a Section 3-5A series. Alec Englemore went 2 for 2 with a double and two RBIs for the Titans (9-4, 6-2). Devan Zirwas...
What to watch for in WPIAL sports on April 28, 2021: Class 5A softball supremacy at stake
Could it be a passing-of-the-torch type of moment when three-time defending Class 5A district softball champion West Allegheny hosts Chartiers Valley? The Colts-Indians matchup is one of several big softball games on the Wednesday schedule around the WPIAL. West Allegheny is 6-1 in Section 4-5A, 9-2 overall, has won six...
Ex-Pine-Richland coach Kasperowicz meets with team, says he’s ‘not done fighting’ for job
Embattled former Pine-Richland football coach Eric Kasperowicz met with his 2020 state championship team for an emotional outdoor ring ceremony on Tuesday evening. Kasperowicz was informed by the school district in an April 14 letter that his contract would not be renewed due to “incidents of hazing, ‘rites of passage,’...
