Bill Beckner stories, Page 130

The Norwin community is rallying around senior basketball player Ty Bilinsky, who has missed some time because of health issues. The boys basketball team wore #TyStrong shirts in pregame warmups Friday night at Hempfield, and shirts like the team wore are being sold to raise money for the Bilinsky family....

Norwin continues to churn out college baseball talent. What else is new? This year’s roster, which the Knights can’t wait to roll out in the spring, especially after last season was canceled, is loaded top-to-bottom with talent. Elijah Dunn is the latest prospect to make a commitment to a NCAA...

Sunday is the beginning of Catholic Schools Week, and the Diocese of Greensburg is recognizing the remarkable fall sports season Greensburg Central Catholic had in 2020. While tiptoeing around a global pandemic and growing covid-19 numbers in Westmoreland County, GCC managed three WPIAL championships, a WPIAL runner-up and a trio...

Maria Brush wants to be a physician’s assistant. That much was clear when she looked into pursuing a degree in her preferred field at Seton Hill. Basketball would be a bonus if she could somehow make both worlds work simultaneously. The Franklin Regional senior will get that opportunity next year...

Anthony Giansante could have tapped out. When Western Kentucky pulled his football scholarship offer several months back, and a few other offers went by the wayside, the senior from Norwin had to regroup and essentially start over. He continued to cast lines to college coaches, posting videos of his workouts,...

St. Francis bagged a package deal Friday, landing football commitments from Penn-Trafford’s Frye twins — Mason and Nate. The siblings were recruited as defensive backs and will join the program as preferred walk-ons. “It is honestly super exciting to be able to go to the same program,” Mason Frye said....

Joe Fiedor is that player in practice who never slows down. A constant ball of energy. “I like to play fast and go to the paint,” the Hempfield junior guard said. “I am always going.” A 6-foot guard, Fiedor spent much of the night slashing through the lane and attacking...

Matt Metrosky had a few NCAA Division II options on his plate when he picked up a surprise offer from a familiar Division I program Thursday. It had him saying, “H2P,” with emphasis. The senior lineman from Greensburg Central Catholic suddenly has a chance to be a preferred walk-on with...

Southmoreland doesn’t have a true rival in girls basketball. Belle Vernon might be the closest thing. “It’s always rough when he play here,” Southmoreland junior forward Gracie Spadaro said about Belle Vernon’s gym. Fourth-ranked Southmoreland wasn’t itself in the early going Thursday night as it struggled to run offensive sets,...

When Greensburg Central Catholic lost by a point to Jeannette earlier this month, 47-46, the Centurions took some stock in themselves and re-racked. The defeat, however early in the season it was, did not demonstrate the Centurions’ best traits. You might even call it an anomaly, second-year coach Christian Hyland...

Greensburg Salem is the only active boys basketball team in the WPIAL that has not played a game this season. Summit Academy also is 0-0 but opted to forego the season. All told, Greensburg Salem has lost 27 days to covid-19 shutdowns, including the mandatory three-week pause of high school...

It wasn’t all that long ago Max Kaminsky was celebrating a WPIAL golf championship as a freshman at Serra Catholic, the first ninth-grade boy to win a district title. Or, when he was qualifying for NAIA nationals as a long-hitting frontman at Point Park. His game matured fast and so...

Yough is showing steady improvement and the proof is in the numbers. Especially one gigantic, glaring number: 99. That was how many section games the Cougars had lost in a row before they finally broke through last week. Yes, they almost lost 100 consecutive section games dating to 2013. Coach...

Jim Nesser liked what he saw from Terek Crosby from the moment the promising freshman first laced up his basketball shoes and took the court at Yough. Nesser has coached at a few area schools over a lengthy career, coming full circle at Yough — his first stop in 1988...

Three rising stars in the WPIAL Class of 2024 were named to the MaxPreps All-America Freshman football team. Belle Vernon running back, receiver and defensive back Quinton Martin, Central Catholic tight end/linebacker Anthony Speca and Jeannette quarterback Brad Birch were among the 48 national selections for offense and defense. All...

Not everyone gets a deal with Mark Cuban on “Shark Tank.” But Penn-Trafford business teacher Kim Stefkovich managed to reel in the television show’s most popular shark for her administration and management class — with little effort. This time Cuban, the billionaire businessman from Mt. Lebanon who owns the NBA’s...

Robert Kennedy is on the move again. The former Jeannette football standout is leaving East Carolina and will transfer to Old Dominion in Norfok, Va. Kennedy, a 5-foot-10, 183-pound safety, played in five games last season as a junior, recording 13 tackles and three pass breakups for East Carolina. He...

First place goes to North Allegheny — for now. Penn-Trafford will get another shot at the revered Tigers later this season, but the Lady Warriors will be looking for a better start to the second half than the one they encountered Monday night in a hype-filled home game. Top-ranked North...

Seton Hill has high expectations in men’s lacrosse after the team’s season was cut drastically short in 2020. The Griffins begin the season ranked fifth in the Nike/US Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Top 20. They return their top nine scorers and goalkeeper from a team that was 6-0 last season when...

Dane Anden could hardly believe the news. “When I told him, he was ecstatic,” Belle Vernon football coach Matt Humbert said. “He was really excited.” The news was that Pitt has more than the rumored lukewarm interest in the Leopards senior running back, who was a key cog in last...

John Altieri is headed for a college wrestling career at Clarion. But the Norwin senior has some unfinished business in his final prep season. Milestones often are part of the build-up to WPIAL and PIAA success. Altieri reached one earlier this season when he captured his 100th career victory. The...

Hempfield is neither shying away nor hiding from the Class 6A boys basketball rankings. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. No downplaying going on here. The Spartans are embracing their first visit to the Tribune-Review top five since 2015. “I made a copy of the rankings and passed them out...