Jerin Steele stories, Page 3

A unique round of golf helped Pine-Richland grad Mike Van Sickle defend his title at the Falling Rock Classic at Nemacolin Woodlands on July 9. Van Sickle eagled all four par-5s in the final round of the two-day event to finish 5-under par and win by one stroke over Eddie...

It’s been a while since “Chelsea Dagger” blared out of the Highmark Stadium speakers, but the Pittsburgh Riverhounds players put their goal song on repeat Saturday night. After going six games and going nearly 600 minutes of playing time without scoring, the Hounds put together a barrage of goals to...

Paul Child’s name has been on the supporters section at Highmark Stadium since 2015, and, now, he has a place in the Pittsburgh Riverhounds Hall of Fame. An ambassador for soccer in Pittsburgh since his playing days with the Spirit in the 1980s and an original member of the Hounds’...

The anatomy of the latest Pittsburgh Riverhounds loss was similar to many on their current winless run that now has reached 11 in all competitions and 10 in the USL Championship. How it ended, however, may have been the most brutal moment so far. After a night of once again...

A new two-year cycle for WPIAL and PIAA sports brings some changes in section opponents for the winter athletics teams at Pine-Richland. New section alignments were announced by the WPIAL on June 18, and Class 6A in boys basketball jumped from 12 to 16 teams for the next two years....

The month of June has been pretty exciting for Isabelle Hoppe. Not only did she verbally commit to Pitt, but she also learned she’ll be a member of the USA Volleyball U19 national team. Hoppe, who will be a junior at Pine-Richland and one of the top women’s volleyball recruits...

Reflecting on her time at Kiski Area brought a realization of the rapid pace the high school years went by for Eliza Miller. “Everyone always tells you that it’s going to go by fast, but you really don’t believe it until you’re actually graduating,” Miller said. “You look back and...

Michael Braun had a couple of major goals he set for his junior year at Freeport. He wanted to earn a top 10 at states in cross country and a top five in track. Some challenges came his way, like a sprained ankle and tendinitis in his knee, but at...

Utter domination led to Ricky Thornton Jr. making history at Lernerville Speedway. Thornton won by over a dozen seconds to become the first driver to win back-to-back Firecracker 100’s and earned another $50,000 payday Saturday night in Buffalo Township. He took the lead from Mike Marlar on lap 45 and...

John Hughes had a season to remember at Springdale in 2023, winning the WPIAL batting title to go with 78 strikeouts on the mound. His encore was almost identical. Hughes backed up his junior season by hitting .558 this spring for the Dynamos with three homers, three doubles, two triples...

Drake Troutman and his group of young helpers are teens living out a dream. Troutman, 19, has been going up and down the road following the Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model tour with a crew of kids the same age or younger than him, and there have been some humbling...

There’s little doubt Jordan Wiegand loves soccer. So much so that he’s willing to tackle a rare coaching double. Already established as a WPIAL champion boys soccer coach at Pine-Richland, Wiegand now will lead the Rams’ girls program as well. He was hired as girls soccer coach at Pine-Richland’s school...

With tears in his eyes, Drake Troutman shook his head while he was standing in victory lane. The moment was washing over the 19-year-old native of Hyndman in Bedford County. He was a Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Dirt Series winner. Troutman took the lead for good on lap 9...

Every time Alex Ferree is on a racetrack, he helps carry on multiple legacies. There’s the legacy of his last name, which he shares with his hall of fame father Ed. There’s also the prestige of the #1 Cochran car he drives, which once was piloted by another hall of...

Ricky Thornton Jr. picked up right where he left off. The defending Firecracker 100 champion and current Lucas Oil Dirt Late Model Series points leader led flag to flag to claim one of the Twin 25-lap preliminary races Thursday night at Lernerville Speedway in Buffalo Township. Jonathan Davenport won the...

At 14 years old, Brock Pinkerous is much younger than most of the competitors he races against, but he’s already making his presence known. In his first super late model race last Friday at Lernerville Speedway, the teen from Ellenville, N.Y., led the first 17 laps of the feature. The...

The same issues are cropping up match after match for the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. They can’t score, and they give up untimely goals to their opponents. Over the weekend, it was two early goals against Hartford that put them in a hole. On Wednesday, it was an early second-half tally that...

Michael Norris has had some excellent years at Lernerville Speedway, but what he’s done so far this year may be his most impressive run yet. There have been six super late model races contested at the Buffalo Township track this year, and he has won five of them, including four...

Hailey Zeise spent the last year coaching in college at George Washington, but in her heart, she knew high school basketball was where she wanted to be. Seven years ago, Zeise helped lead North Allegheny to a WPIAL title and now she hopes to do the same as a coach...

TJ Squib’s motocross racing career started with his mother Tracy by his side in the pits at every race. Now every time he puts his helmet on and enters the starting gate, he does so to honor her memory. Tracy died in 2020, a little over a year into Squib’s...

South Fayette couldn’t have dreamed of a better start to Tuesday’s PIAA Class 2A boys lacrosse semifinal, but Mars got the ending it wanted. After seeing the Lions score the first five goals, Mars stormed back to squelch any upset hopes and earned a 20-10 victory at North Allegheny to...

Four wins in Section 2-3A might not seem like a lot to those that do not follow WPIAL boys volleyball closely, but for Pine-Richland, it signaled a gigantic leap in the right direction. Coming off a year in which the Rams went winless, they narrowly missed the playoffs, finishing fifth...

Calise Czekanski brings a boombox to the field so she and her Armstrong softball teammates can listen to music and get pumped up before every game. “They love their music, and they love it loud,” Armstrong coach Keith Shaffer said. “I know sometimes it irritates opponents, but our girls certainly...

For about 25 minutes following Saturday’s 2-1 loss to Indy Eleven, Pittsburgh Riverhounds coach Bob Lilley stood on the field at Highmark Stadium with his team huddled around him. Lilley said there were some pointed words, in what was very much a one-way conversation, because some of the same problems...

There’s been plenty of heartbreak over the last three years, but this time, Shelby Telegdy and the Elizabeth Forward softball team were not going to be denied. The top-seeded Warriors showed why they’ve been the favorite in WPIAL Class 4A softball all season. Their strong hitting, pitching and defense were...