Bill Beckner stories, Page 66

Mt. Pleasant native Ben Wilkins, the new men’s basketball coach at Seton Hill, is already getting positive results out of program that has lacked them in recent years. The Griffins are 2-0 so far after wins against Notre Dame (Ohio) and Alderson Broaddus. It is their first 2-0 start since...

At the start of the playoffs, coach Rich Garland posed a question to his girls soccer players at Mt. Pleasant. “I said, ‘Do you want to just play, or do you want to do something special?’ ” the coach said Monday night as he oversaw a low-key practice in 33-degree...

Kason Harrell’s professional basketball career lives on. Many players in his situation feel like they are alone on an island as they chase down their dream. Harrell, a Hempfield graduate who has been training vigorously in the offseason, literally will be on an island in his next venture. He signed...

Today’s games Girls Class 2A Semifinals Mt. Pleasant (21-2) vs. General McLane (15-5-1) 7 p.m. Wednesday at Slippery Rock High School, Slippery Rock Winner plays: Winner of 3-1 Wyomissing (21-1)/4-1 Central Columbia (23-0) in championship, 10 a.m. Saturday at Eagle View Middle School, Mechanicsburg. District finish: Mt. Pleasant 7-2; General...

As expected, six finalists were announced for the fourth Bill Fralic Memorial Award, which honors the top senior football interior lineman in the WPIAL. But more news came out of Monday morning’s press conference at The Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum at Heinz History Center. Mainly that the museum will now...

The women’s soccer team at Pitt-Greensburg made some more room for postseason awards as it played in the NCAA Division III Tournament. UPG, which fell 6-1 to Case Western Reserve over the weekend in the first round, swept the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference hardware. Senior forward Ashley Lucas was the...

Boys soccer season ended early with no local teams advancing past the WPIAL quarterfinals. But several players were recognized on the All-WPIAL lists that came out last week. Among them was Greensburg Central Catholic senior forward Carlo Denis, who was named the Class A player of the year by the...

Norwin hockey coach Mike Robinson sometimes finds himself watching Alex Thomas instead of coaching him. But, at last, Robinson has a front-row seat along the boards to watch the dynamic forward perform for the defending PIHL Class A champions. “He has this way of making guys look silly,” Robinson said....

Hunter Jurica can hit long drives. He considers Loretto a relatively short drive from Derry. The opportunity to continue his golf career at a college not far from home was too good to pass up, so the senior standout and WPIAL champion made a verbal commitment to Saint Francis (Pa.)...

Another day, another rematch for Greensburg Central Catholic in the state soccer playoffs. After taking down section opponent Springdale, 3-1, in Saturday’s PIAA quarterfinals, GCC (15-5) will get another shot at WPIAL champion Freedom (19-4) in the Class A semifinals at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Gateway’s Pete Antimarino Stadium in...

Seven teams from the WPIAL remain in the hunt for state soccer titles. They will continue postseason runs Tuesday in the PIAA semifinals. The most notable girls matchup for local fans is a WPIAL finals rematch between Moon (22-0) and Mars (19-1). The teams will play at 6:30 p.m. at...

Morgan Gesinski School: Mt. Pleasant Year: Freshman Sport: Soccer Claim to fame: With her team clinging to a one-goal lead, Gesinski was fouled at the top of the box and calmly sank the penalty kick to give Mt. Pleasant some breathing room on the way to a 2-0 victory over...

Ligonier Valley football players sat quietly in the pitch black of a locker room with no power Friday night at Reeves Field on the campus of Geneva College. “When it’s game time, I take all their cell phones,” Rams coach Roger Beitel said. “So they were sitting in the dark...

An early deficit might dampen a team’s spirits in the state soccer playoffs. It incentivized Greensburg Central Catholic on Saturday against rival Springdale. The Centurions’ play picked up. Scoring opportunities opened. And they chased down their reward: a fourth consecutive trip to the semifinals. Sophomore Riley Kerr scored two goals,...

Colleges have a soccer pipeline going to Franklin Regional, and the recruits are producing at the next level. Sophomore Blake Cooper has been one of the top offensive threats in the AMCC for Penn State Behrend. The midfielder had a team-best 10 goals and six assists for 26 points through...

Girls soccer talent is bubbling over in Westmoreland County, as evidenced by postseason playoff runs, career scoring milestones and Division I commitments. The proof also lies in the All-WPIAL list, which was released last week. Norwin senior Reagan Casper was one of 17 defenders to make the list. Mt. Pleasant,...

Tasked with running a hurry-up offense, the likes of which they had never seen before, Ligonier Valley and Beaver Falls had to pack up and move their WPIAL Class 2A football game to another site Friday night shortly after warm-ups when a blown transformer caused a power outage at Geneva...

The WPIAL Class 2A quarterfinal football playoff game between Ligonier Valley and Beaver Falls has been moved from Geneva College to Blackhawk High School. Kickoff was delayed after a tree fell into a transformer and caused a power outage at Geneva. With power not set to come on until after...

Today’s games Class 2A Quarterfinals Mt. Pleasant (20-2) vs. Fort LeBoeuf (15-1-2) Noon, Wright Field at Newman Stadium, North Allegheny Winner plays: Winner of 9-1 Clearfield (21-1)/10-2 General McLane (14-5-1) Tuesday in semifinals (time, site TBD) District finish: Mt. Pleasant 7-2; Fort LeBoeuf 10-1 First round: Mt. Pleasant 2, Bedford...

Today’s game Class A PIAA quarterfinals Greensburg C.C. (14-5) vs. Springdale (17-4) Noon, Norwin Knights Stadium, North Huntingdon Winner plays: Winner of 9-1 Karns City (18-4)/7-1 Freedom (18-4) Tuesday in semifinals (time, site TBD) District finish: Greensburg Central Catholic 7-3; Springdale 7-2 First round: Greensburg Central Catholic 3, Windber 2...

The Western Pennsylvania Soccer Coaches Association announced its All-WPIAL lists for each classification. Here are this year’s selections, along with players and coaches of the year: Class 4A Anthony Bellino, Sr., F, Canon-McMillan Cadan Bennett, Jr., GK, Pine-Richland John Paul Brach, Sr., F, Fox Chapel Will Bruno, Sr., F, Seneca...

With only two seniors in the starting 11, one might think Mt. Pleasant lacks veteran leadership. That this team is just a bunch of whiz kids running around aimlessly. But that could not be farther from the truth for the Vikings (20-2), who sit two wins away from a trip...

As if playing Springdale for a third time this season wasn’t enough to pique their interest, the site for Saturday’s PIAA Class A girls soccer quarterfinal has Greensburg Central Catholic and coach Kara Batey beaming. The WPIAL section rivals will play at Norwin Knights Stadium in North Huntingdon. “I can’t...

Finalists for the fourth Bill Fralic Award will be announced Monday at a special press conference. For the first time, the announcement will come from the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum at the Heinz History Center, where William P. Fralic Foundation organizers and WPIAL officials will unveil the top candidates for...

When Ron Prady took over the Latrobe football program, he already knew many of the players because he teaches in the district. One was John Wetzel, his sophomore quarterback. “We have a lot of faith in Johnny,” Prady said. “We trust him to run the offense. He can take off,...