Paul Schofield stories, Page 79
Hempfield faces District 1 power Spring-Ford in PIAA Class 6A quarterfinals
Every high school athletic team faced some sort of adversity this year. It varied from the coronavirus to injuries to wild weather. Hempfield baseball had its share of injuries to key players. But the Spartans battled through those problems and are in the PIAA Class 6A quarterfinals for the second...
Local golfers come up short in U.S. Open qualifying
There won’t be any Western Pennsylvania golfers in the 121st U.S. Open this month. There were 11 players with local ties that played in Monday’s U.S. Open Sectionals across the country and their efforts came up short. The players competed at five sites for the chance to participate in the...
Mt. Pleasant softball overcomes adversity, defeats Bald Eagle Area
Some teams would have collapsed if faced with adversity before a big game. Mt. Pleasant used it as a rallying cry. When Vikings senior third baseman Haylie Brunson dislocated her finger on her throwing hand in pregame warm-ups, it stunned her teammates and forced her coach, also her dad, Chris...
Cutrell, DeNunzio twins capture Westmoreland County 3-man scramble
The annual Westmoreland 3-man scramble was held May 29, and, despite tough weather conditions, the trio of Arnie Cutrell, Ron DeNunzio and David DeNunzio shot a 14-under-par 58 at the Madison Club to win the title. An eagle on No. 18 proved to be the difference. The trio edged Brian...
Hempfield baseball’s PIAA journey begins in Erie against McDowell
Tim Buzzard and his Hempfield Area baseball team are starting to get used to extended seasons. This is the third time in eight seasons the Spartans have qualified for the PIAA playoffs, and their hope the journey takes them two more weeks and ends with a trip to State College....
Westmoreland PIAA baseball capsules for June 7, 2021
PIAA baseball playoffs Monday’s games Class 6A 7-2 Hempfield (15-8) vs. 10-1 McDowell (14-6) 1 p.m. at Mercyhurst University Coaches: Tim Buzzard, Hempfield; Mark Soboleski, McDowell Winner plays: Winner of 3-1 Wilson (22-2)/1-5 Spring-Ford (18-3) game, Thursday at a site and time to be determined in the quarterfinals Players to...
Bushy Run Legion off to good start
Bushy Run American Legion opened the season with two come-from-behind victories. They defeated Hempfield East, 4-1, on June 1 and downed West Hempfield, 6-4, on June 2. The weekend tournament at Latrobe they were in was postponed because of inclement weather. “Any time you start the season 2-0, you can’t...
Penn-Trafford’s volleyball season ends in PIAA playoffs
The Penn-Trafford boys volleyball team’s appearance in the PIAA Class AAA playoffs ended June 1 after a first-round loss against District 3 runner-up Northeastern. The Warriors dropped a 3-0 decision by scores of 25-20, 25-22 and 25-22. Penn-Trafford reached the PIAA tournament by defeating rival Hempfield in the WPIAL consolation...
Franklin Regional baseball team sets new goals as PIAA playoffs begin Monday
This isn’t the Franklin Regional baseball team’s first foray into the PIAA playoffs. The 2019 team, which some of the current players were part of, reached the quarterfinals before losing to Lampeter-Strasburg. The Panthers are 3-4 all-time in the PIAA playoffs, 3-1 in the opening round. The 2019 team defeated...
Derry wrestling coach Mike Weinell resigns
Derry is looking for a new wrestling coach after Mike Weinell resigned Thursday. Weinell coached at Derry for 19 years, the last 11 as the head coach. During that span he coached eight state champions, two as an assistant, as well as 10 PIAA finalists, and his team made the...
Seton Hill baseball team looks for World Series title
Will the third time be the charm for Seton Hill baseball coach Marc Marizzaldi? He sure hopes so. Seton Hill qualified for the College World Series for the third time, the second time in NCAA Division II, by winning the Atlantic Regional on May 30. The Griffins made the NAIA...
Shenango stuns Seton LaSalle for 1st WPIAL baseball title
Shenango senior Gabe Yanssens accused Seton LaSalle players of talking too much smack on social media before Wednesday’s WPIAL Class 2A baseball championship game. He figured the best way to shut them up was to beat them, and that’s what Yanssens did. His two-run, two-out single in the top of...
Franklin Regional gets walk-off win over Bethel Park in Class 5A title game
Andrew Muraco took it personally when Bethel Park coach Pat Zehnder decided to intentionally walk Louie Kegerreis with a runner on second base in the bottom of the seventh inning to get to him in the WPIAL Class 5A championship. So the Franklin Regional senior made Bethel Park pay. He...
WPIAL Class 2A baseball championship preview: Seton LaSalle vs. Shenango
Baseball Class 2A 1-Seton-La Salle (21-2) vs. 2-Shenango (19-2) 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at Wild Things Park, Washington Road to the finals • Seton LaSalle — In three playoff wins, Seton-La Salle, the Section 4-2A champ, has outscored its opponents 32-0. The Rebels blanked Serra, 12-0, in the semifinals. • Shenango...
Golf notebook: WVU’s Goetz named to All-Region team
West Virginia senior Mark Goetz was named to the Division I PING All-Midwest Region Team, announced by the Golf Coaches Association of America. Goetz is the second player in school history named to the PING All-Midwest Region Team. Matthew Sharpstene earned the same honor in 2019. The Greensburg native and...
Penn-Trafford Star notebook: Little, Vecchio named scholar/athlete finalists
Seniors Emma Little and Chase Vecchio were two of the 12 finalists for the Westmoreland County Scholar/Athlete Award on May 25. The award, hosted by Judge John J. Driscoll, was presented at the 65th annual banquet at Ferrante’s Lakeview Lounge. The winners were Mt. Pleasant’s Haylie Brunson and Burrell’s Ian...
Penn-Trafford trio earns WPIAL track medals
To qualify for the PIAA Class AAA Track and Field Championships, athletes must finish in the top four of their events or meet the state qualifying standards if they finish in the top eight. Penn-Trafford senior Julia Hauck earned a trip to the May 29 state meet at Shippensburg University...
Hempfield’s Norris wins gold medal; Spartans girls place 2nd
SHIPPENSBURG — A little more than three inches kept Dan Norris from winning two gold medals at the PIAA Class AAA track and field championships Saturday. Norris kept the Hempfield tradition of great throwers going when he won the discus with a personal-record throw of 195 feet, 10 inches. It...
Moon’s Mia Cochran claims PIAA titles in 1,600, 3,200
SHIPPENSBURG – Mia Cochran’s legs went numb during the final three laps of the PIAA Class AAA 3,200-meter run Saturday morning. But it didn’t stop the Moon junior from running away with the title. Cochran pulled away West Chester Henderson junior Jenna Mulhern during the final 800 meters to capture...
Franklin Regional’s Todero wins WPIAL triple jump
When Franklin Regional senior Rayna Todero was a sophomore, she came into the WPIAL track and field championships seeded No. 1 in the triple jump. But New Castle freshman Maria Owens came out of nowhere and won the event. There were no surprises this season. Todero protected her No. 1...
Greensburg CC’s Corinn Brewer grabs 3 medals at state meet
SHIPPENSBURG – Corinn Brewer walked away from the PIAA Class AA Track and Field Championships on Friday happy but not satisfied. The Greensburg Central Catholic junior earned three medals at Shippensburg University’s Seth Grove Stadium: a second in the pole vault, a fifth in the 800-meter run and a seventh...
Gold doesn’t rust in the rain for Riverside runner Colby Belczyk, relay teammates
SHIPPENSBURG — It started raining at the PIAA Class AA Track and Field Championships on Friday with three events left, and that was OK with Riverside senior Colby Belczyk. “I love the rain. All my personal records are in the rain,” Belczyk said after winning the 800 and anchoring the...
South Park sprinter Maddie Raymond finally wins PIAA gold
SHIPPENSBURG – South Park senior Maddie Raymond finally did it. She won a state title. Raymond won the 100-meter dash at the PIAA Class AA Track and Field Championships on Friday after finishing fifth as a freshman, second as a sophomore and having her junior season wiped out by the...
Brownsville distance ace Jolena Quarzo joins sister as PIAA champion
SHIPPENSBURG — Brownsville sophomore Jolena Quarzo started the PIAA Class AA Track and Field Championships on a good note for the WPIAL. Quarzo won the first event of the meet, the 3,200-meter run, with a time of 10:30.93. Her sister Gionna won the 3,200 the last time the PIAA held...
Busy day awaits Hempfield’s Elizabeth Tapper at PIAA track and field meet
Talk about having a busy Saturday at the PIAA track and field championships. Hempfield sophomore Elizabeth Tapper is competing in three events, and although none are running, she will be going back and forth between the pole vault pit and discus throwing area at Seth Grove Stadium Saturday. Competition begins...
