Other Local category, Page 23

Jess Lichota and Kaylyn Odelli grew up playing softball in Westmoreland County. Their paths occasionally crossed during scrimmages, and they had heard each other’s names mentioned. But it wasn’t until they were 150 miles from home that they formed a connection. Lichota (Penn-Trafford) and Odelli (Yough) are among the players...

The Swarthmore College women’s lacrosse team was on spring break recently in Clearwater, Fla. The Garnet took anything but a break, however, from their hot start to the 2023 season. And one of the team leaders for Swarthmore is Sewickley Academy graduate Elizabeth Zack, a 5-foot-7 sophomore attacker. In the...

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — On the surface, everything looks normal. There’s the East Palestine High School baseball team learning the finer points of baserunning at one edge of Reid Memorial Stadium. At the other, a handful of sprinters dart through the mild March air, the blue parachutes attached to their...

The Allegheny Valley YMCA wasn’t just well-represented at the district championship. The team made waves in the meet with record-breaking performances. Brody Petrak, 12, headlined the Allegheny Valley YMCA as he captured the 200-yard breaststroke title in the 11- and 12-year old division March 10-12 at the Pennsylvania YMCA West...

Spencer Lee’s bid for a fourth NCAA championship ended in one of the biggest upsets in college wrestling history Friday night. The Iowa senior and Franklin Regional grad was pinned by Purdue redshirt sophomore Matt Ramos, the fourth seed, with 1 second left in the 125-pound semifinals. The loss ended...

The next featured speaker for the Westmoreland Sports Club will be Chris LaSala, the associate athletic director for football administration at Pitt. LaSala, who will tackle the ever-changing college landscape that now allows athletes to make money and transfer freely with the use of a portal, will talk March 21...

University of Minnesota forward Logan Cooley, a native of West Mifflin, has been named as a finalist for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award, an honor that recognizes the top men’s player in college hockey. A total of 10 finalists were announced by the award’s committee on Wednesday. All 61 NCAA...

Fresh off competing in the collegiate national championships, Lower Burrell’s Austin Aikins is taking the next step in his fishing career. “I’m going to try to pursue it on a professional level right now,” said Aikins, who represented Bethel University in the Major League Fishing (MLF) College National Championships, Feb....

Aside from simply knowing where she was going to college, Alyssa Laukus was surrounded by unknowns when she arrived at Chatham. How would she adapt to her class schedule and student life? She was even more inquisitive as far as basketball went. “I didn’t quite know what to expect coming...

He used to have long hair that curled out from beneath his hat and covered the back of his neck. But Mark Goetz has been wearing his hair shorter since he turned professional. While his barber will await his return for another trim, Goetz’s livelihood will soon be about cuts...

Ally DeJidas is enjoying a strong start to her softball season with Mercyhurst. The Freeport graduate and Lakers senior pitcher/outfielder led the team in batting with a .528 (19 of 36) average through her team’s first 10 games. She collected four doubles, two home runs and eight RBIs as Mercyhurst...

Baking soda, salt, magnesium and water. Those are the ingredients for what Dan Petcash calls his “secret stuff.” The name is a nod to the movie Space Jam and it’s also a formula Petcash, a Pine-Richland grad, credits for his breakout year at Binghamton. “It sounds kind of funny, but...

The road to the Golden Gloves state and national finals begins Saturday with a loaded card at Gloria’s Gym in the Monroeville Mall. Both eliminations and championships will be a part of the 14-bout card and will feature Golden Gloves veterans and others new to the amateur tournament. Eleven of...

The Westmoreland Sports Club will meet again 7 p.m. Thursday for its latest social event. This time, Sam Johnson and Dave Jackel of the Pittsburgh Warriors hockey team will speak to members and guests at Ferrante’s Lakeview in Greensburg. The Warriors are a team of disabled veterans. Johnson is a...

Two years ago, as a sophomore at Bucknell, wrestler Darren Miller qualified for the NCAA Tournament at 133 pounds. Though he lost his first two matches to exit early, Miller relished his milestone moment and learned some important lessons. “What I learned most is that it’s a tough tournament,” the...

Norwin graduate Max McDowell will be with a new team this baseball season. The journeyman catcher, who will begin his eighth season in the minor leagues, will play for the Reading Fightin Phils, the Double-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. After spending most of last season with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRaiders,...

Premier Rugby Sevens, a top-tier women’s and men’s rugby organization in North America, has announced that the Pittsburgh Steeltoes Rugby Club will begin operation in 2023. The expansion franchise will host the PR7s 2023 Eastern Conference Finals at Highmark Stadium on July 23. The Steeltoes also will host an open...

Two Penn State University athletes have landed Name-Image-Likeness deals with WWE through its “Next In Line” program. WWE said this is its third class of 15 college athletes to join the program. This class includes Penn State athletes, two-time NCAA All-American wrestler Greg Kerkvliet and Nick Dawkins, a lineman for...

The Pittsburgh Passion women’s semi-pro football team on Monday released its 2023 season schedule. The Passion will play six games — three at home and three on the road — in the Women’s Football Alliance Pro National Division. They will open their season April 22 at longtime rival D.C. Divas....

There were thrilling wins. There were gut-wrenching losses. Records were set and broken. The 2022 local sports year had breakthrough moments and dominating performances, first-time champions, veteran leaders and next-level talent. Teams and individuals left their mark in a tapestry of memories. Here are the top 10 local sports stories...

Coaches often talk about leadership qualities in certain athletes. That might entail demonstrating a strong work ethic in practice. It might mean sacrificing individual glory for the good of the team. Or it could mean offering words of wisdom. John Carroll senior swimmer Rachel Halapchuk checks all of those boxes....

The Pennsylvania Golf Association Senior Player of the Year needs no introduction. Oakmont’s Sean Knapp has been winning local, state and national championships for decades, so his sixth straight award should come as no surprise. The Hannastown Golf Club member always finds a way to contend, and if he doesn’t...

Not only did Fox Chapel graduate Jake Pilarski agree to sign with an MLB team, he will join one of the sport’s premier franchises. Pilarski will sign a contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers and will report to the team’s minor-league training facility in February. Pilarski played for the Washington...