Bill Beckner stories, Page 115

Franklin Regional coach Bobby Saddler did not ride the team bus, instead driving separately to what turned out to be his team’s final baseball game of the 2021 season. He had to transport canopies in his pick-up truck. The coach watched as the Panthers’ caravan pulled out of the lot...

Ryan Hayden is stepping down as athletic director at Jeannette after two years on the job. Hayden, 29, will continue to teach sixth grade in the district. A Hempfield graduate and former Seton Hill baseball player, Hayden wants to pursue a master’s degree, possibly get a principal certification and also...

PIAA softball preview Class 3A Championship Mt. Pleasant (20-3) vs. Mid Valley (22-2) 1:30 p.m. Friday, Beard Field, Nittany Lion Softball Park, Penn State University, University Park Coaches: Chris Brunson, Mt. Pleasant; Michael Piercy, Mid Valley Players to watch: Courtney Poulich, Sr., 1B, Mt. Pleasant; Maranda Runco, So., P, Mid...

Each grapefruit the Mt. Pleasant softball team smashes out of the park seems to go farther than the last. It’s obvious this team likes home runs. Juicy home runs. With eight dingers — as they like to call them in softball circles — the Vikings (20-3) have shown a flair...

Mt. Pleasant softball coach Chris Brunson has been receiving dozens of phone calls and texts from fellow coaches and colleagues in the area with good luck wishes, salutes and plaudits. Longtime Hempfield coach Bob Kalp was among them, as was Penn-Trafford coach Denny Little. Both know something about winning PIAA...

Lexis Shawley became such a regular with Allegheny Health Network that the medical system decided to use her in one of its commercials. Shawley, the senior catcher for the state finals-bound Mt. Pleasant softball team, has had multiple surgeries — six of them over a five-year period to be exact...

Devin Whitlock reeled in his first Division I football scholarship offer, and he hopes it will be the first of many to come. The multi-talented rising senior at Belle Vernon announced an offer from Youngstown State, an FCS program that often tries to cast a net over the WPIAL to...

With a playing resume that is, in the words of NBC Sports’ Gary Koch, “Better than most,” Rachel Rohanna Virgili is going to try her hand at coaching. The LPGA touring pro, who starred at Ohio State and Waynesburg High School, was named head women’s golf coach at Waynesburg University....

Ellie Coffield knows a little something about repeat performances. The recent Mars graduate led her high school soccer team to back-to-back WPIAL and PIAA Class 3A championships to cap an amazing prep career. Now, she is the recipient of the Gatorade Pennsylvania Girls Soccer Player of the Year for the...

The Washington Wild Things added a local pair to their roster Tuesday, announcing the signings of former Norwin and Pitt standout Connor Perry and Ben Vicini, a West Shamokin and Seton Hill product who just played in the NCAA Division II College World Series. Perry, who most recently played in...

One of the top hitters in the country at the junior college level, Tommy Kegerreis was a bright spot for the Westmoreland County Community College baseball team this spring. The freshman outfielder from Franklin Regional was recognized for his upstart season by being named to the American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings...

LORETTO — This must be what they mean at Mt. Pleasant when they say, “Row, Vikes.” The Mt. Pleasant softball team left no doubt that it belongs in the state championship, flexing its offensive muscles like it did in the WPIAL finals on the way to a dominating, 13-0 win...

The best softball teams usually are the most self-critical at this time of year. The way aluminum-pinging Mt. Pleasant has been playing, a slightly off-kilter day can raise some concerns and make coaches and players reevaluate some things. That is what occurred Friday when Mt. Pleasant (19-3) won its PIAA...

It’s all about the red, white and blue for Lexi Puskar. For one more game, Lexi Puskar will wave the Mt. Pleasant flag and its colors. After that, it’s all about the Stars and Stripes. Puskar, a senior softball player at Mt. Pleasant, delayed her departure to the Army National...

PIAA softball playoffs Class 2A Semifinals Ligonier Valley (21-2) vs. Union City (20-1) 2:30 p.m. Monday at Slippery Rock University Coaches: Mark Zimmerman, Ligonier Valley; Jerry VanZandt, Union City Players to watch: Ruby Wallace, So., Ligonier Valley; Cyaira Zielinski, Sr., Union City Winner plays: Winner of Line Mountain/Williams Valley (21-4)...

Maddie Holmberg did not ask for an extra year of college track and field, but she took advantage of the one she was afforded. And she capped her decorated college career with more accolades. A grad student at Penn State and a Hempfield alum, Holmberg finished sixth in the heptathlon...

For John Giansante, it is all about rhythm. From his pre-event routine in the triple jump, to his preparation for playing the violin at a musical competition, he has a purposeful focus. The senior from Norwin is taking his duality to the college level. He will compete for the Seton...

For John Giansante, it is all about rhythm. From his pre-event routine in the triple jump, to his preparation for playing the violin at a musical competition, he has a purposeful focus. The senior from Norwin is taking his duality to the college level. He will compete for the Seton...

Ty Bilinsky went from thinking it might be time to throw his basketball shoes over the telephone wires to merging back into the fast lane to a possible college career. The Norwin senior, who encountered several health issues over the winter and missed most of his final high school season,...

A pair of college players dueled for the 18th R. Jay Sigel Match Play title Thursday. While only one could raise the trophy, one thing was clear: The game’s future is in good hands. Notre Dame rising junior Palmer Jackson, the former PIAA champion from Franklin Regional, held off Patrick...

Mt. Pleasant was primed to add to its lead in a PIAA Class 3A softball quarterfinal Thursday afternoon when the sky darkened, lightning struck and heavy rain pelted the field at Norwin. After a delay of about 1 hour and 40 minutes and the grass outfield unplayable, officials decided to...

Derek Orndorff is getting to be a regular on ESPN. The Seton Hill senior did it again, making another spectacular sliding catch in center field Tuesday night during the Division II College World Series in Cary, N.C. to once again make SportsCenter’s Top Plays. This time he checked in at...

Even with a pandemic shadowing their every move, Franklin Regional sports teams have found a way to flourish this school year. While 2020-21 has left many schools feeling glum, Franklin Regional has had plenty of fun. The baseball team won its first WPIAL championship since 2001 with a thrilling, 2-1...