Bill Beckner stories, Page 102

Boys Class 3A First round 7-2 Franklin Regional (16-4) vs. 9-1 Cathedral Prep (17-1-1) 7:30 p.m. at Dollinger Field, Hagerty Family Events Center, Erie Winner plays: Winner of 6-1 Hollidaysburg/7-1 Hampton on Saturday (time, site TBD) Corner kicks: Franklin Regional is back in the state postseason for the third time...

Southmoreland girls soccer players wore blankets on the sideline Thursday night during the WPIAL consolation game against Shady Side Academy at Norwin. When it gets cold, you adjust. Just like when injuries happen, you adjust. Having players who aren’t at 100% doesn’t make coaches all warm and fuzzy. It’s how...

Mikayla Bisignani is up for one of the top awards in women’s college sports. The Greensburg Central Catholic graduate who had a strong combo swimming and track and field career at Johns Hopkins is one of nine finalists for the 2021 NCAA Woman of the Year Award. The award is...

Thomas Louisy hasn’t experienced the PIAA soccer playoffs as a high school coach. His Franklin Regional boys are teaching him something new with each step they take in the postseason. A couple of his players have plenty of playoff experience as the Panthers (16-4) get set to open the state...

Stunned and seemingly unsure what to do next, Norwin boys soccer players gathered at midfield and talked over a 1-0, season-ending playoff loss to North Allegheny in the WPIAL Class 4A quarterfinals. The home defeat was quite unexpected — the way it happened, where it happened and who it happened...

Norwin players and coaches were all smiles after their final football game of the season. They lingered long after they handled Hempfield, 27-7, on the road to finish 4-6 overall and 2-5 in the WPIAL Class 6A conference. “It’s a blessing to see,” senior quarterback Luke Levendosky said. “Our guys...

Three finalists have been announced for the third Moe Rosensteel Player of the Year Award, which recognizes the top player in WPIAL girls soccer. Moon junior midfielder Hailey Longwell, senior midfielder Kelsey Salopek of Steel Valley and junior forward Lucia Wells of North Allegheny are up for the award started...

Louie Kegerreis talked about taking a gap year to get ready to play at the highest level of college baseball possible. Turns out, he didn’t need it. The only reference to gap with this kid now might be the extra-base hits he delivers at the next level. Kegerreis, a recent...

Franklin Regional girls soccer coach Scott Arnold gathered his team together after a WPIAL 3A quarterfinal playoff game that was as emotionally draining as it was physically exhausting. Then, he tried to put a 2-1 shootout loss to South Fayette into perspective. “Strong emotions lead to strong memories,” Arnold said....

Shaken by a double dose of tragedy, Greensburg Central Catholic took the field on its first series Friday night with only five players, all of them linemen. The Centurions were flagged for a delay of game, but Our Lady of the Sacred Heart declined it. The moment was subtle yet...

The Greensburg Central Catholic girls soccer team will be without its head coach Friday night for the WPIAL Class A championship. Olivia Kruger went into labor Friday morning. She and her husband, Zak Kruger, are expecting their first child. GCC (15-1) will take on Steel Valley (17-3) at 6 p.m....

Greensburg Central Catholic is dealing with the unfathomable loss of two assistant football coaches. A pair of assistants died within five days of each other this week, leaving the Centurions stunned and saddened on the eve of their WPIAL playoff opener. Joseph Oslosky was killed Thursday in a vehicle accident,...

The thought of playing in the PIAA playoffs motivated Southmoreland. The program, after all, hadn’t been to the state tournament since 2009. The thought is now a reality. With a late, relentless surge, the Scotties rallied past Shady Side Academy, 3-2, in the WPIAL Class 2A consolation/PIAA play-in game Thursday...

Nobody told Greensburg Central Catholic’s girls soccer players a WPIAL repeat would come easy. The Centurions have found that out for themselves in the last two rounds of the Class A playoffs. For every finesse goal they have scored, teams have punched back and tailed them all the way to...

If there is one thing Rob Fabean wasn’t afraid to do when he took over the Greensburg Central Catholic boys soccer team, it was experimenting. He has been a soccer mad scientist, configuring systems that best fit his personnel against particular opponents. The formations he has used in games look...

Monessen wasn’t supposed to be a playoff team. Truth be told, many believed the Greyhounds would not recover from a 2020 season that saw roster numbers dip to new lows and the season end with three straight forfeits. But new coach Wade Brown has the Greyhounds, who were 0-7 last...

Girls Class A Championship 3-Steel Valley (17-3) vs. 1-Greensburg Central Catholic (15-1) 6 p.m. Friday, Highmark Stadium, Station Square, Pittsburgh Coaches: Bill Abraham, Steel Valley; Olivia Kruger, GCC How they got here: Steel Valley — Defeated 14-Riverview, 12-0; 6-Chartiers-Houston, 6-1; and 2-Springdale, 1-0; GCC — Defeated 16-Eden Christian, 9-0; 8-Riverside,...

A quickly scribbled together crib sheet that coaches drew up during the second overtime helped Franklin Regional extend its season. Although this wasn’t cheating. It was precise execution. The piece of paper had all the answers sophomore goalkeeper Aryan Selokar needed for the shootout session against Plum on Wednesday night...

Class 5A First round 12-Franklin Regional (3-7) at 5-Penn Hills (6-3) 7 p.m. Friday, Andrew Yuhas Stadium, Penn Hills Winner plays: At 4-Gateway (7-3) in the quarterfinals Nov. 12, 7 p.m. Franklin Regional can thank its thrilling, 41-40 comeback win over Latrobe for its playoff berth. The Panthers finished fourth...

Today’s game Girls Class 2A Consolation game Shady Side Academy (12-2-1) vs. Southmoreland (14-2-2) 6:30 p.m., Norwin Knights Stadium, North Huntingdon Notes: The winner takes third place in the WPIAL and advances to the PIAA tournament, which begins Tuesday, to play the District 10 champion. Shady Side Academy, a longtime...

Franklin Regional soccer standout Anthony DiFalco has had a decorated high school career. He’s won just about every individual award possible, from All-WPIAL and All-State honors to All-America status. He has two WPIAL championships, a runner-up finish and two PIAA semifinal appearances. Now, the gifted forward will get to play...

After winning its second women’s basketball conference championship last year, Saint Vincent is the favorite to repeat. The Bearcats begin the season No. 1 in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll. Saint Vincent, coached by Jimmy Petruska, now in his 12th season, finished 10-0 (7-0 PAC) in a shortened...

A championship in the spring is just as impressive as one in the winter, as Westminster showed last season. The Titans finished 11-1 in a truncated 2020 season and raised the trophy in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference. That run of success has the team on top of the PAC Men’s...

Carlo Denis said he heard a defender say, “Oh, no.” Seconds later, Greensburg Central Catholic was saying, “Oh, yes.” Denis, the Centurions’ standout junior forward, took a throw-in from junior Jacob Umbel as time ticked down in overtime Tuesday night. He then spun around a defender and touched the ball...

Cal U rose a spot to No. 3 in the latest American Football Coaches Association Top 25 poll, equaling the Vulcans’ highest ranking in the poll. The Vulcans (8-0, 5-0 PSAC), who are coming off a 42-14 win over Seton Hill, are one of four undefeated teams in Division II...