High School category, Page 1166
WPIAL position-by-position breakdown: Scouting the linebackers
The top linebackers in the WPIAL and City League always include some of the area’s best all-around athletes. They often are two-way players who are standout stars on defense and also make an impact on offense. For instance, Aliquippa’s Zuriah Fisher caught a touchdown and a pair of 2-point conversions...
Uniontown football team on quest to rebound from winless season
After a nightmarish winless season, Uniontown’s Cedric Lloyd is determined to get the Red Raiders program back on track. Uniontown was 0-10 last season, 0-8 in the Class 3A Big East Conference. The Red Raiders yielded an average of 56.5 points. “We were very young last year, and we’re young...
Freeport hopes to reload for another playoff run
Last year, the Freeport football team came close to putting its stamp on a Class 3A Big East Conference championship. The Yellowjackets lost to Derry in overtime, and they had the lead late in the fourth quarter against Elizabeth Forward before the Warriors rallied for the winning score. Derry and...
With Shoaf gone, Yough looks to spread the wealth on offense
Much to the chagrin of the Yough football program, the Dustin Shoaf era is over, and it’s time for new players to take the football and carry it into the future. “We’re going to miss Shoaf, but we have some good guys coming back,” Yough coach Scott Wood said. “Our...
Mt. Pleasant eyes return to winning ways
A stretch of productive seasons that began shortly after the turn of the century earned Mt. Pleasant repeated postseason trips before the Vikings’ fortunes went south the past two years. In other words, it’s time to refocus. “We want to make sure the culture is right after our disappointing year...
WPIAL runner-up Derry turns focus to future after special season
Derry coach Tim Sweeney doesn’t like to look back. He’s all about the present. He doesn’t want his team to live on the Trojans’ past success. In 2018, Derry reached the WPIAL Class 3A championship game at Heinz Field. Even though the Trojans lost to Aliquippa, the experience gave the...
Deer Lakes adopts ‘why not us?’ mantra in quest for playoff berth
Tim Burk is a Deer Lakes guy through and through, so he took great pride in watching the Lancers’ boys soccer team make a run to the state championship game and the boys basketball team win the first PIAA playoff game in school history and advance to the quarterfinals. Now...
After near misses, North Catholic focused reaching championship game
When you come as close to playing for a championship as North Catholic football has only to see it slip away, it’s hard not to look back at the small moments that swayed the game. Two years ago, it was a tight, 19-14 loss to Washington in the Class 2A...
Burrell vows to ‘play fast,’ push the tempo
When the Burrell offense takes the field this season, don’t blink, because you might just miss the entire offensive series. Second-year coach Shawn Liotta wants to light up the scoreboard and “play fast,” a saying that has been established as this year’s team motto. “We want to push the tempo,”...
New A-K Valley quarterbacks face challenge of leading their offenses
Quarterback is one of the most complicated positions in football, and it takes a special type of player to bear all of the responsibilities that make an offense successful. Throughout the offseason, nine coaches from the Alle-Kiski Valley were tasked with finding a new player to fill those needs in...
Westmoreland County linemen pass ‘the eye test’ in recruiting process
Ligonier Valley senior Michael Petrof has a photo of himself standing next to Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald. And while no one is comparing Petrof with the former Penn Hills and Pitt standout, the fact Petrof (6-foot-2, 275 pounds) is taller than the best player in the NFL...
The Birdie predicts Alle-Kiski Valley football records
The opening week of high school football is right around the corner, and The Birdie is fired up after his return trip to Pittsburgh following a long vacation. “There’s nothing better than this time of year. I’m ready for football,” he said. “But man, that trip was hard on these...
The Birdie predicts records for Westmoreland County football teams
Westmoreland County’s high school football expert spent a sizzling summer day at Kennywood Park when the TribLive High School Sports Network recognized its Top 25 preseason team. The big, wooden arrow was not pointing at him for once, so he blended in. Nobody knew who he was as he scaled...
Fort Cherry pushes on after season-ending knee injury to starting QB
A lot of different factors influence where athletes line up for the Fort Cherry football team. Unfortunately for Rangers coach Jim Shiel, attrition is one of the largest influences on his team over the past two seasons. Long before Fort Cherry steps on the field for its opener Aug. 30...
Apollo-Ridge girls soccer aims for postseason victory
In just five years, the Apollo-Ridge girls soccer team has made major strides, including three straight trips to the WPIAL playoffs. Matt Ross has been the program’s only coach, and he’s expecting more success this season with nine starters returning. “We sure have made a lot of headway,” Ross said....
Record-setting running back Goodlin returns to lead Knoch
At the end of last season, Knoch’s Matt Goodlin was alone at the top of the school’s single-season rushing leaderboard. Goodlin set a standard with 1,461 yards for the 5-5 Knights. That’s saying something when one considers the fine tradition of Knoch running backs, from Russ Kroneberg to A.J. Pagano...
Leechburg/Apollo-Ridge boys soccer co-op readies for debut
History will be made Aug. 31. That’s the day the new Leechburg/Apollo-Ridge co-op boys soccer team makes its debut in a match against Ellwood City. It also will mark the first time all local high schools will have boys soccer in one form or another. That’s a far cry from...
Monessen’s Mizerak ‘consummate student-athlete,’ earns college attention
Though his junior season doesn’t start until Friday, Monessen left tackle Mark Mizerak Jr. has been getting plenty of attention from college recruiters. The 6-foot-4, 288-pound standout has other immediate goals, such as getting the Greyhounds another conference title and keeping up his 4.0 status in the classroom. “It’s good...
WPIAL position-by-position breakdown: Scouting the defensive linemen
Some years it’s at cornerback. Sometimes it’s the linebackers. This year, the largest collection of WPIAL and City League star power could be at defensive line. Westinghouse’s Dayon Hayes, Central Catholic’s A.J. Beatty and Elliot Donald and West Mifflin’s Nahki Johnson have major-college offers from across the country. Among Pennsylvania...
Trinity looking to climb back into WPIAL football playoffs
Jon Miller is embarking on his fifth season as Trinity’s football coach. Miller and the Hillers are looking for a return to the WPIAL playoffs after missing out last season. “We have a veteran team coming back, with some nice younger skill,” Miller said. “We are hoping to be much...
Thomas Jefferson focused on regaining title
New high school. New year. New rivalry. The grand opening was Aug. 18 for the newly built $95 million, 300-square-foot Thomas Jefferson High School. TJ’s first football game will take place Aug. 23 against Canon-McMillan at home. Classes begin Aug. 26. After breezing through the 2018 regular season and plowing...
New Laurel Highlands football coach Kolesar has steep hill to climb
The goal is simple for new Laurel Highlands coach Rick Kolesar. Get to the playoffs and win a game. It’s something many schools take for granted, but the school has never won a WPIAL playoff game in 10 outings, dating to 1989. Laurel Highlands began operations in 1966 after a...
Indiana building for future around young players
Most would have forgiven Brandon Overdorff if his team didn’t make much noise last year. He took over the program just before the summer with barely enough time to learn all of his players’ names, let alone implement a system into a one-win team the year before. But a reinvigorated...
Despite losing key starters, Beaver looks to keep building
Following an adjustment period, Beaver football hopes it is more acclimated to Class 4A football. The Bobcats, which moved up a classification during last summer’s PIAA realignment, finished with a respectable 7-4 record in 2018, falling in the quarterfinals to Belle Vernon. “What we’ve found is that every (Class 4A)...
New Ambridge coach Phillips wants to boost interest, rebuild program
Don Phillips knew he was in for a challenge when he accepted the head coaching job at Ambridge. But that is what excites him. Ambridge has struggled mightily over the last three seasons, with a 1-28 record. That led to Terry George stepping down and Phillips, a well-known coaching figure...
