High School category, Page 318
A-K Valley high school basketball playoff preview capsules for Feb. 19, 2024
WPIAL basketball playoffs Boys Class 5A First round 9-North Hills (12-9) at 8-Fox Chapel (12-10) 8 p.m. Monday Winner plays: 1-Moon (19-3)/17-Woodland Hills (9-13) on Thursday in quarterfinals (time, site TBD) Section finish: North Hills 3rd, Section 4; Fox Chapel 2nd, Section 2 Players to watch: Eric James, North Hills;...
Allderdice girls top Obama Academy to claim City League championship
Allderdice guard Bailey White was worried things may be going south Sunday afternoon. The Dragons’ were ice cold in the first quarter of the City League girls basketball championship game against Obama Academy at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse. White missed her first four shots, while Allderdice missed 14 of its first...
WPIAL announces playoff sites, times for Wednesday’s basketball quarterfinals
The WPIAL has scheduled a slate of quarterfinal doubleheaders for Wednesday in the next round of the basketball playoffs. The classifications in action are 4A boys, A boys, 2A girls and 3A girls. Wednesday’s schedule includes five rematches of section teams: Montour vs. Avonworth, Rochester vs. Carlynton and Neighborhood Academy...
Inspirational Quaker Valley swimmer motivates teammates
The Quaker Valley swim program honored its seniors Feb. 8 at the Sewickley Valley YMCA. One girl, Mia Hrabovsky, received notable recognition for her contributions to the program over the past four years. Hrabovsky, 18, has Down syndrome. But it hasn’t stopped her from developing into an integral member of...
Gateway freshman Aliya Rassiane looks forward to WPIAL championship debut
The WPIAL swimming championship meet at Pitt’s Trees Pool is fast approaching, and Gateway freshman Aliya Rassiane’s excitement for her first opportunity to compete against the best in the district grows with every workout in the pool. Rassiane has produced times this season to put her among the top competitors...
Gateway boys refocus ahead of WPIAL playoffs
The Gateway boys basketball team came within one win of claiming a Section 3-5A co-championship. But the Gators had to settle for second to Franklin Regional as the regular-season concluded and they transitioned to preparation for the WPIAL playoffs, which began Monday against a familiar foe in Penn Hills. Rogers...
Quaker Valley basketball teams reach playoff goals
Oumou “Mimi” Thiero was a dominant force for the Quaker Valley girls team during the 2023-24 regular season. In fact, the 6-foot-4 sophomore guard/forward proved to be one of the leading players in the WPIAL. “Mimi has been excellent,” QV coach Ken Johns said. “She gets a lot of attention...
Penn-Trafford’s Valenta sisters on target at WPIAL rifle championships
When Penn-Trafford senior Carlee Valenta won the school’s first WPIAL rifle title, she did it while facing difficult obstacles. But thanks to coach Diana Cholock and assistant Dale Emerick she posted her best career score of 200-19x with nine center shots. Her previous best was 200-14x with three centers. “It...
Penn Hills senior celebrates 1,000-point milestone, playoff return
Hannah Pugliese didn’t want to think about the chase for 1,000 points. Until about midway through this season, the Penn Hills girls basketball team senior didn’t think it was possible anyway. Pugliese, who has signed to play basketball at Slippery Rock next season, became more aware of the possibility as...
Penn Hills notebook: Fate brings Indians, Gateway together again
The Penn Hills and Gateway boys basketball programs may have been separated when the WPIAL realigned the sections, but the neighbors and rivals still found that fate couldn’t keep the pair apart. The Indians finished the regular season with a 14-7 overall record and were 6-4 in Section 2-5A play....
Pine-Richland notebook: Basketball teams set for playoff openers
The Pine-Richland boys basketball team needed a tiebreaker, but the Rams will return to the playoffs after a one-year absence. The Rams received the No. 8 seed in the WPIAL Class 6A bracket and will travel to play top seed Mt. Lebanon on Feb. 23. Pine-Richland finished in a tie...
Pine-Richland celebrates winning 4th WPIAL gymnastics championship
The Pine-Richland gymnastics team brought little green foam fingers with “We’re No. 1” written on them to the WPIAL championships. After an unbeaten regular season, it was a sign of confidence that they could get the job done in the biggest meet of the year. As each team’s position was...
Riverview girls use time off to prepare for WPIAL quarterfinal matchup
With a No. 4 seed and a bye to the WPIAL Class A quarterfinals, the Riverview girls basketball players knew they were going to face a familiar foe as soon as the playoff brackets were released Feb. 12. It will be 12 days between their final regular-season game, a low-scoring...
Plum boys basketball turns attention to promising future
At the start of the season, Plum boys basketball coach Justin Walther said he felt his team was a playoff contender in Class 5A out of Section 2. While the Mustangs were competitive in a number of section games, a section win didn’t come until the section finale at Armstrong...
Norwin notebook: Grads make impact in women’s college basketball
Norwin girls basketball’s thumbprint continues to show up all over the college game. There are almost enough former Lady Knights to form a team at the next level. Here is a look at some of the women impacting Division III and NAIA programs, some of which are national tournament contenders:...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Feb. 17, 2024
High schools Basketball Boys WPIAL playoffs Class 6A Quarterfinals Friday’s schedule Times TBA Pine-Richland (7-15) at Mt. Lebanon (18-4); North Allegheny (11-11) at Baldwin (16-6); Canon-McMillan (10-12) vs. Central Catholic (14-8) at TBA; Butler (15-6) at Upper St. Clair (17-5) Class 5A First round Monday’s schedule Woodland Hills (9-13) at...
Burrell crowns 5 section champs, sends all 13 wrestlers through to WPIAL tournament
Burrell had five champs and advanced all 13 wrestlers to the WPIAL championships at the Class 2A Eastern Sectional tournament Saturday at Greensburg Salem. Cam Baker (107), Luca Rosa (121), Cooper Hornack (139), Isaac Lacinski (172) and Luke Boylan (215) won titles for the Bucs. Hampton led the way with...
High school roundup for Feb. 17, 2024: Maggie Spell scores 1,000th point in Shady Side Academy playoff win
Maggie Spell scored 23 points, hitting the 1,000-point mark for her career, to help No. 2 Shady Side Academy to a 53-42 victory over No. 15 Mohawk in a WPIAL Class 3A first-round girls basketball playoff game Saturday. Karis Thomas added 14 points for the Bulldogs (21-2). Erynne Capalbo led...
Westmoreland athletes of the week: Mt. Pleasant’s Olivia Kovach, Mt. Pleasant’s Dylan Pitzer
Olivia Kovach School: Mt. Pleasant Class: Sophomore Sport: Gymnastics Claim to fame: Kovach competed in the WPIAL championship meet for the second year in a row and won a gold medal in the balance beam with a score of 9.575. She also finished second in the all-around (37.450) and in...
A-K Valley athletes of the week: Knoch’s Jackson Bauman, St. Joseph’s Isabella Thomas
Isabella Thomas Class: Freshman School: St. Joseph Sport: Gymnastics Report card: St. Joseph freshman Isabella Thomas finished fourth out of 37 competitors in the all-around with a score of 34.850 in the Intermediate I division at the WPIAL gymnastics championships Feb. 10. Thomas placed eighth in bars (8.600), fourth in...
Norwin girls wrestling boasts 2 WPIAL champs in inaugural event
It was quite a day for the Norwin girls wrestling program Saturday at the first WPIAL girls wrestling championship at North Allegheny. The Knights crowned two champions and had three others advance to the PIAA West Regional on March 2 at Canon-McMillan. Sophomore Josephine Dollman became the school’s first WPIAL...
At WPIAL girls wrestling, Plum’s Claassen sisters keep promise to grandmother
Plum’s Claassen sisters kept their promise Saturday. They vowed to their ill grandmother, Marilynn Claassen, they would bring home medals from the first WPIAL girls wrestling championship at North Allegheny. Sophomore Alaina Claassen was going to present her with a gold medal, and freshman Addison Claassen was going to give...
‘It means we belong:’ WPIAL girls celebrate inaugural wrestling tournament
It was a day of firsts at the WPIAL girls wrestling championships Saturday at North Allegheny. Not only was this the inaugural season for girls wrestling across the state, the 13 winners are part of history. Canon-McMillan senior Valarie Solorio always will be known as the first girls WPIAL champion...
South Park advances by beating Mt. Pleasant in WPIAL opener
South Park knew who to turn to when it needed a jolt. When it came time to flip a WPIAL girls basketball playoff game in its favor. Junior point guard Brooke Paylo was the fifth-seeded Eagles’ rail to hold onto in a 37-21 first-round victory over No. 12 Mt. Pleasant...
A-K Valley high school notebook: Springdale alumnae Kropelak-Brownback going into UPJ Hall of Fame
Michelle Kropelak-Brownback, a standout track star at Springdale in the mid to late 1990s, is one of seven athletic greats who make up the 15th Athletics Hall of Fame class at Pitt-Johnstown. The six-time WPIAL champion and four-time PIAA place-winner showed her versatility at Pitt-Johnstown by competing in as many...
