Paul Schofield stories, Page 38

The only thing that slowed down the Hempfield football team’s offense Friday was a lightning delay at the end of the first half. Play was stopped with 1 minute, 58 seconds left in the first half because of lightning in the area. The game was called at 9:15 p.m. after...

Greensburg Salem junior wide receiver Cody Rubrecht was having the game of his life to open the 2021 football season against Hempfield. He caught nine passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns and helped the Golden Lions to a touchdown lead. But late in the third quarter after catching a...

You couldn’t have asked for a better finish to the Westmoreland County Golf Association’s Senior Amateur on Wednesday. It came down to the final hole for the second consecutive year. After rallying from a two-shot deficit after 18 holes, Arnie Cutrell used consecutive birdies on Nos. 13, 14 and 15...

Here are Westmoreland County’s high school football players to watch for Week Zero. Jackson Hutter Mt. Pleasant, Jr., RB/MLB The junior is expected to be more of an offensive threat in 2022 after averaging 7.1 yards per carry as a sophomore. He scored one touchdown and had a catch for...

It’s only one game on the schedule, the first of the season. And in the grand scheme of things, it won’t impact conference standings for either team. But bragging rights will again be on the line between the football players, students and communities from Hempfield and Greensburg Salem. The 2022...

It was not a surprise to Penn-Trafford football coach John Ruane that Daniel Tarabrella had a fantastic junior season, helping the Warriors win their first WPIAL and PIAA Class 5A titles. “His desire is through the roof,” Ruane said. “He wants to be great, he wants to be on a...

As if Robbie Labuda wasn’t busy enough. Now the top running back for the Mt. Pleasant football team wants to add soccer to his packed schedule. It would be his fourth sport in high school. He already plays basketball and runs track. “I want to try to help them win...

It was quite a way for the 2021 Penn-Trafford football team to celebrate the school’s 50th anniversary: winning its first WPIAL and PIAA Class 5A championships. The Warriors capped a memorable season with a thrilling, 17-14 overtime victory over Imhotep Charter at Hersheypark Stadium on Dec. 10, 2021. And while...

A changing of the guard in WPIAL Class 3A football will occur in 2022 and Belle Vernon, a Class 4A finalist last year, is favored to be the top team to replace three-time WPIAL champion Central Valley. That’s because Central Valley is moving up to Class 4A after dominating Class...

Ligonier Valley football coach Roger Beitel is now the elder statesman of coaches in Westmoreland County with the retirement of Jeannette’s Roy Hall. But during practice, he allows the players to play different genres of music as background noise. Entering his 19th year as coach at the school, Beitel might...

Roger Beitel begins his 19th year as head football coach at Ligonier Valley, and he hopes the 2022 season isn’t as bizarre as 2021. The fact that Ligonier Valley finished 8-3 and made the WPIAL Class 2A playoffs for the first time is amazing with the amount of injuries the...

Mt. Pleasant’s starting quarterback from 2021 won’t be lining up behind center this season. That’s because Mt. Pleasant coach Jason Fazekas is pleased with the progress that sophomore Cole Chatfield has made in the offseason which allows him to utilize the talent of Tyler Reese in different ways to benefit...

What do you do with the best athlete on your football team? If you’re Greensburg Salem coach Dave Keefer you make him your quarterback. That’s what Keefer is doing this season with senior Cody Rubrecht. Arguably the top wide receiver returning in the WPIAL, Rubrecht was dangerous every time he...

Class 3A boys THE FAVORITE Central Catholic The Vikings, who lost to Fox Chapel by one shot in the WPIAL finals, return five of six starters. They also lost in the PIAA championship in a playoff. WATCH OUT FOR Peters Township The Indians return five of six starters, including three...

Penn-Trafford junior Nick Turowski will be attempting to do something that has only been done eight times in 85 years of the WPIAL Class 3A golf championship: go back to back. In fact, the last time someone won consecutive titles was by Pine-Richland’s Mike Van Sickle in 2003-2004. Other notable...

When Kyrie Miller, Justin Flack and Justin Huss were playing football in high school in Westmoreland County, they torched opposing defenses. Now the trio is doing the same in the NCAA Division III Presidents’ Athletic Conference. Miller starred at Ligonier Valley, where he rushed for 3,742 yards and 58 touchdowns...

One thing a person can’t see is the size of a football player’s heart. At 5-foot-6, 125-pounds, not many people would fear Greensburg Salem senior Jerome Wallish. But don’t be fooled: Wallish isn’t afraid of a challenge. In fact, he relishes it. “You have to keep putting the work in,”...

Westmoreland County’s five new high school football coaches had an uneventful first day of training camp. Players usually are greeted with hot, humid weather, but Monday was cool and damp. Things went so smoothly at Derry that Mike Arone gave his team an early dismissal. “It was a good day,”...

Penn-Trafford boys golf coach Andy Rizzardi said he’s set some lofty goals for his team. Not only does he want his Warriors to defend their Section 1-3A title and qualify for the WPIAL playoffs, he wants them to reach the WPIAL team finals. It would be a first in school...

Franklin Regional football coach Lance Getsy can’t wait to unveil junior Ayden Hudock on opposing defenses this season. The coach did so when the multipurpose threat was healthy during his sophomore season. “People got a small glimpse of Ayden last year,” Getsy said. “Some nagging injuries slowed him down, but...

The 2022 Pony League World Series begins Friday with two games and two fun contests for the players. Home run hitting and fastest runner contests will be held 11 a.m. Two games and opening ceremonies will be held in the evening beginning at 5:30 p.m. A full field of 10...

Penn-Trafford football coach John Ruane is faced with something he’s never encountered before: preparing a team to defend a WPIAL and PIAA Class 5A championship. It’s a challenge Ruane will embrace. Penn-Trafford celebrated the school’s 50th anniversary by winning its first WPIAL and PIAA titles last season. Now Ruane said...

Injuries to two key players derailed Franklin Regional’s 2021 football season. But those injuries could provide a boost to the 2022 campaign. Those injuries forced then first-year Franklin Regional coach Lance Getsy to play more freshmen and sophomores than he wanted. The Panthers finished with a disappointing 3-8 record, which...

If anything was learned about the Bushy Run American Legion and Penn-Trafford Junior American Legion programs in 2022, it’s that the future is bright and the programs remain strong. Both teams had successful campaigns this summer. Bushy Run finished second in the District 31 American Legion regular season, third in...

When the 2022 Pony League World Series begins Aug. 12, things will be back to normal. After the 2019 tournament was cancelled by covid-19, the 2020 version had only eight teams. A full field of 10 teams, including three international teams, will be converging on Washington County next week. The...