Other Local category, Page 17
Greensburg YMCA gymnasts capture national titles, medals
Greensburg YMCA gymnasts scored big at this year’s YMCA-USA national championships in Cincinnati. Emma Rost of Greensburg captured national titles in two events. Rost claimed gold medals in the level 4 vault and floor exercises. She also won a bronze medal in the all-around and placed sixth on the bars....
Dek hockey returns to Latrobe with new rink at Legion Keener Park
Brothers Tripp, 6, and Deekin Nolan, 5, hit the dek Saturday morning to brush up on their hockey skills. They were among about 20 area kids who got to try out the new Greater Latrobe Parks and Recreation dek hockey rink that had its grand opening at Legion Keener Park...
Participation, excitement growing within Gateway Midget Football and Cheerleading Association
Last fall was a banner season for the Gateway Midget Football and Cheerleading Association. All four of its football teams — flag (ages 5-6), Termites (7-8), Mites (9-10) and Midgets (11-12) made the Big East Youth Football League playoffs. The Termites, Mites and Midgets advanced to the semifinals. “We’re not...
Author Bill Viola Jr. of North Huntingdon urges readers to ‘earn black belt in life’
From inception to completion, Bill Viola Jr.’s latest book, “Common Sensei: How To Earn a Blackbelt in Life” didn’t necessarily have a core audience. Sure, the martial arts crowd was interested because of their vast knowledge of the collective and awareness of influential people in the business, such as Viola....
District golf notebook: Katie Miller Gee wins 2nd WGAWP amateur
Hempfield alum and girls golf coach Katie Miller Gee made sure the fourth time was the charm. After three straight runner-up finishes at the Women’s Golf Association of Western Pennsylvania Amateur Championship, Miller Gee returned to the winner’s circle, capturing her second title at the event Tuesday at Sunnehanna Country...
Ross Township’s Nathan Smith to captain 2025 U.S. Walker Cup team
An exemplary amateur golfer in the Pittsburgh area for decades, Nathan Smith can cross another accomplishment off his career bucket list. And this is a big one. Smith, a Brookville native who lives in Ross Township, was selected by the United States Golf Association to captain the 2025 U.S. Walker...
Norwin’s Max McDowell promoted to Triple-A with Phillies
For the third straight season, Max McDowell will be on the doorstep of a major league call-up. A Norwin alum and eighth-year minor leaguer, McDowell received a promotion Monday when he was elevated to the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs, the Triple-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. The 29-year-old catcher played...
Former WPIAL golf standouts from Fox Chapel, Plum set to play U.S. Amateur
A pair of former WPIAL golf standouts will play in a USGA event for the first time. Fox Chapel graduate Gregor Meyer and Plum alum Andrew Reynolds finished 1-2 to advance out of a recent qualifier for the 123rd U.S. Amateur Championship set for Aug. 14-20 in Colorado. Meyer, who...
Avonmore’s Ben Britton takes 2nd at powerlifting championships
Avonmore’s Ben Britton drove 16 hours to Lafayette, La., to compete in the 2023 USPA powerlifting championships last month. He certainly made the trip worthwhile. Weighing just less than 162 pounds and competing in the 165-pound weight class, Britton pulled 534.6 pounds in the deadlift portion of the championships. He...
Knoch grad Kennedy Christy hopes to play another big role as Juniata defends its D-III volleyball title
Even as it was happening, even as she and her teammates were jumping around the floor at Duquesne’s UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, the notion of winning a national championship didn’t seem real to Kennedy Christy. The Knoch grad and then-junior on the Juniata women’s volleyball team had — in front of...
Monroeville Junior Legion team completes best season in program history at state tournament
After league and regional tournaments where it won six of nine games, the Monroeville Junior Legion team set its sights on making some noise at the Pennsylvania state tournament in Berwick. Things started well with a win in its first game, but a pair of losses in the double-elimination event...
Penn-Trafford Junior Legion finishes 2nd at state tournament
Oh so close. The Penn-Trafford Junior American Legion baseball team finished second at the Pennsylvania State Championships, falling 1-0 to Upper Perkiomen in the finals Aug. 2 at Berwick. It was Upper Perkiomen’s first title in 41 seasons. It lost to Murrysville in the 2022 finals and lost to Connellsville...
Fox Chapel grad to take lessons learned at Marines leadership course back to Bloomsburg tennis team
Fox Chapel graduate Lexi Quackenbush volunteered for an intense, six-week lesson on what it means to be a good teammate — the Platoon Leaders Class with the Marine Corps in Quantico, Va., this summer. She hopes to take some of those lessons back with her to Bloomsburg University, where she...
Florida high school coaching legend Vince Zappone, a Greensburg native, dies at 93
Chaminade-Madonna Prep is known for having an elite high school football program in Florida. It has the state championships and high-level talent to prove it. It’s even based in a city called Hollywood, which only adds to the glitz. But the Lions weren’t always King Football in the Sunshine State....
West Point girls add another Little League title; Penn-Trafford juniors fall in state championship
West Point added its 38th Pennsylvania Little League softball title Wednesday. Jocelyn Luft singled home twin sister Jayelyn Luft with the winning run in the bottom of the sixth inning as West Point edged Williamsport, 2-1, in the 11U girls championship at Wellsboro. Jayelyn Luft was the winning pitcher. The...
Summer youth basketball program enlivens New Kensington
There have been shoot-arounds and pickup games on the new basketball courts at the Barnes Street Playground for a couple of months since they officially opened in the spring. Ian Benson said he believes the current Kings & Queens of the Court summer youth basketball program at the park is...
International field lined up for PONY League World Series in Washington
Eight teams have qualified with two more to be decided this week as anticipation grows for the 71st Dick’s Sporting Goods PONY League World Series on Aug. 11-16 in Washington, Pa. The world will be watching as four U.S. Zone winners, the host team from Washington County, the host area...
Penn-Trafford Junior Legion reaches championship game
Penn-Trafford Junior Legion baseball team kept its championship hopes alive on Tuesday by defeating Lower Southampton, 9-3, in the state tournament at Berwick. Penn-Trafford must defeat Upper Perkiomen twice Wednesday to earn the title. Upper Perkiomen defeated Penn-Trafford, 6-4, on Monday. Upper Perkiomen reached the championship game by defeating Back...
West Point 11U softball reaches finals; Penn-Trafford Junior Legion falls
The West Point 11U girls softball team is one victory away from clinching the league’s 38th state title. Monday, the Luft twins, Jocelyn and Jayelyn, led West Point to a 9-1 victory against Williamsport in the semifinals at Wellsboro. Jayelyn Luft twirled a one-hitter, striking out 12 and allowing one...
Weather can’t cloud success of Freeport International; 2024 plans already in works
The Freeport International Baseball Invitational wasn’t immune to Mother Nature’s adverse weather conditions as lightning Friday and rain Saturday dampened the momentum of a week’s worth of youth baseball at a half-dozen fields in the Alle-Kiski Valley. Chuck Sarver, president of the Freeport International, said despite the temporary rough weather,...
Kevin Fajt wins Westmoreland County amateur for 3rd consecutive year
Kevin Fajt made it a three-peat July 23 by winning his sixth Westmoreland County Golf Association amateur title and third in a row. The South Greensburg mayor and Hannastown Golf Club member edged Willowbrook Country Club member Andrew Reynolds by two strokes on the tough Willowbrook course. Fajt shot a...
Penn-Trafford advances to semifinals of Junior Legion state tournament
It was the Ethan Septak show for the Penn-Trafford Junior baseball team Sunday at the Pennsylvania Junior Legion state tournament. Septak tossed a one-hitter and helped his cause with three hits, including two doubles, to lead Penn-Trafford to a five inning 11-1 victory against Saegertown at Berwick. Logan Matrisch had...
West Point Little League, Penn-Trafford Junior Legion teams post state wins
West Point’s 11-year-old girls softball team and the Penn-Trafford Junior Legion baseball team were victorious Saturday in state tournament action. West Point used a 15-run first inning to defeat Lower Merion, 17-0, in the Pennsylvania Little League 11U tournament at Wellsboro. Penn-Trafford scored five runs in the seventh inning to...
Cannibal wins $350,000 Adios Pace for the Orchids at Hollywood Casino at The Meadows
Cannibal raced through the Lightning Lane to win by a head in the 57th edition of the $350,000 Delvin Miller Adios Pace for the Orchids on Saturday at Hollywood Casino at The Meadows. Cannibal and driver Yannick Gingras finished in 1 minute, 49 seconds, edging Redwood Hanover and Seven Colors....
West Point 11U girls open state tournament with win
West Point 11U girls’ softball team opened the Pennsylvania Little League state tournament with a 4-1 victory against the Cambridge/Conneaut Lake/French Creek Valley/Saegertown All-Stars Friday at Wellsboro. Braylyn Graft’s three-run double in the top of the sixth inning snapped a 1-1 score. Winning pitcher Jayelyn Luft struck out 13 while...
