High School category, Page 504
Amid coaching controversy, Steel Valley opens playoffs with win over McGuffey
Whenever Steel Valley’s Makhai Valentine glanced into the stands Monday night, he wasn’t looking for friends or family. That’s where his suspended head coach was sitting, five rows behind the team’s bench. Dale Chapman can’t coach the Ironmen in the playoffs, but he can attend their games and offer encouragement....
What to watch for in WPIAL sports on Feb. 21, 2023: Longtime rivals meet in 5A girls basketball
The curtain falls on the first round of the 2023 WPIAL playoffs Tuesday. Thirty-four years ago, the Penn Hills girls program was in the midst of one of the most impressive championship runs in WPIAL history. The Indians won seven straight WPIAL Class 4A crowns from 1986-1992. In the 1989...
Trib HSSN Girls Basketball Team of the Week for Feb. 20, 2023
The year before Megan Zitner took over as coach of the Burgettstown girls basketball team, the Blue Devils finished 3-19 in 2013. Ten years later, things have really changed for the Burgettstown hoops program. The Blue Devils have reached the postseason five straight years and are now 2-1 in WPIAL...
Trib HSSN Girls Basketball Player of the Week for Feb. 20, 2023
A team that wins its section outright and is victorious in 19 of 22 games during the regular season expect to be rewarded with a higher seed. It certainly doesn’t anticipate playing in the 8-9 first-round game. However, when the WPIAL released the Class 3A girls basketball brackets, Waynesburg found...
Jeston Beatty hits big shot in final seconds to send South Allegheny past Beaver
Over the last few seasons, South Allegheny has made a habit out of seeing late leads slip away only to respond in the final seconds and come away victorious. That was the case again Monday night. The No. 8 Gladiators saw a nine-point fourth-quarter lead slip from their grasp before...
Belle Vernon comes alive in decisive opening-round win over Quaker Valley
In a game where Belle Vernon’s Zion Moore scored 32 points to lead the Leopards over Quaker Valley, 81-55, in a WPIAL Class 4A first-round playoff matchup Monday night, coach Joe Salvino was impressed with his squad’s togetherness first and foremost. “It was a team effort and that’s what we...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Feb. 20, 2023
High schools WPIAL playoffs Boys Class 6A Quarterfinals Friday’s schedule Norwin (14-8) at New Castle (20-2), 7 p.m.; Butler (14-7) at Mt. Lebanon (15-7), 7 p.m.; Seneca Valley (9-12) at Upper St. Clair (14-8), 7 p.m.; Baldwin (12-10) vs. Central Catholic (13-9) at Gateway, 7 p.m. Class 5A Quarterfinals Wednesday’s...
High school roundup for Feb. 20, 2023: Hampton adapts without top scorer, handles Blackhawk
Robert Coll scored 16 points, Liam Mignogna added 14 and Eric Weeks contributed 13 as No. 4 Hampton opened its playoff run without leading scorer Peter Kramer with a 65-50 victory over No. 13 Blackhawk in the WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first round Monday night. Jacob Patton put up...
Experienced Deer Lakes runs past Ellwood City in boys Class 3A first round
Experience in a WPIAL playoff game can be the difference between a win or loss. Deer Lakes showed that Monday in a Class 3A first-round game against a young Ellwood City team. The senior-laden Lancers used a 15-0 run in the second quarter, sparked by their defense, and cruised to...
Highlands dominates Elizabeth Forward in Class 4A first round
The WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball playoffs are chock-full of contenders, and Highlands showed why it is one of them in its first-round game Monday night. The fifth-seeded Golden Rams held No. 12 Elizabeth Forward without a field goal for the first seven minutes and ended up with five players...
Yough boys roll to first-round win over Burrell in Class 3A
Yough knew if it was going to capture its first WPIAL boys basketball playoff victory in 18 years, it would have to exhibit self-discipline with the lead, show poise on defense and perhaps, above all, play together. “We had to show up,” junior guard Terek Crosby said. Yough did all...
St. Joseph’s girls storm to dominant first-round victory over Geibel
Junior Julie Spinelli hit a 3-pointer for St. Joseph just 14 seconds into Monday’s WPIAL Class A first-round girls basketball game with Geibel Catholic at St. Joseph’s Walter Dlubak Athletic Center. It was the start of a dominant performance by the fifth-seeded Spartans who rolled to a 64-26 victory over...
A-K Valley WPIAL basketball playoff capsules: Games for Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023
Girls WPIAL Basketball Playoffs Class 5A First Round 16-Plum (13-10) at 1-South Fayette (20-2) Tuesday, 8 p.m. at South Fayette High School, Bridgeville Winner plays: Winner of 9-Shaler (16-6) at 8-Penn-Trafford (15-7) on Friday in quarterfinals (site/time TBD) Players to watch: Pascale Olczak, Plum; Maddie Weber, South Fayette Layup lines:...
Pittsburgh Interscholastic Fencing Association regular season concludes Friday
The Fox Chapel boys fencing team scored two wins during Friday’s Pittsburgh Interscholastic Fencing Association matches at Allderdice High School, and the Foxes moved into a second-place tie with Peters Township and Shady Side Academy. Fox Chapel (5-2) beat North Allegheny, 6-3, and Winchester Thurston, 7-2. Aquinas Academy (3-4) was...
Westmoreland WPIAL basketball playoff capsules: Games for Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023
WPIAL basketball playoffs Boys Class 2A First round 13-Propel Braddock Hills (10-12) vs. 4-Greensburg Central Catholic (15-5) 6 p.m. Tuesday, Penn-Trafford High School, Harrison City Winner plays: Winner of 12-Burgettsown (13-9)/5-Eden Christian Academy (16-5) Friday (time, site TBD) in quarterfinals Players to watch: Ben Mayhew, Propel Braddock Hills; Tyree Turner,...
Perfect game part of special season for Valley freshman bowler Baxter Diehm
Baxter Diehm was on the cusp of a milestone Jan. 31 at Wildlife Lanes — a strike away from bowling a perfect 300 game. It was a pressure-packed situation for the Valley freshman. Diehm drilled the center pin and made history. “I just stood back and watched him,” Valley bowling...
A-K Valley Senior Spotlight: Leechburg’s Owen McDermott
For many seniors, the end of winter sports marks the closing of a chapter. But for senior multisport standout Owen McDermott, his participation with Leechburg athletics isn’t quite done yet. He’s about to start his final season with the baseball team. “I’m very emotional about my final season coming to...
Westmoreland County Senior Spotlight: Yough’s Mikalah Chewning
Coming into this season, the Yough girls basketball team hadn’t made the playoffs in 13 years. That streak never hit 14. This season, the Cougars finished 10-11 and earned a preliminary-round matchup with Beaver Falls in the WPIAL Class 3A bracket. The fact they earned a spot in the tournament...
Delmont coach shares her love of gymnastics
Renee Ruggeri, the original and sole owner of Ultimate Gymnastics in Delmont, has devoted almost her entire life to the sport she loves. She went from a hall-of-fame gymnastics career to a hall-of-fame coaching career. “The success I have had in my almost 40 years of coaching has been aided...
South Park football coach Marty Rieck resigns after 8 seasons
South Park football coach Marty Rieck, who won state titles with the Eagles as both a player and assistant coach, has resigned after eight seasons leading the program. His teams went 33-44 overall, qualified for the playoffs five times and once reached the WPIAL semifinals. South Park went 5-6 last...
Nationally ranked wrestlers among winners at Western Pa. Girls Championship
Three nationally ranked wrestlers were among the 13 champions crowned Sunday at the Western Pa. Girls Championship, an event that more than doubled in size since last winter. This was the second year for the tournament, which drew 81 athletes from WPIAL and City League schools to compete at North...
Trib HSSN boys basketball team of the week for Feb. 19, 2023
The Monessen boys basketball team had just orchestrated a smash hit of a regular season, finishing with 20 wins in 22 games and finishing with five straight wins after a 15-game winning streak earlier in the season. However, some were left scratching their heads when the Section 2 co-champ Greyhounds...
Trib HSSN boys basketball player of the week for Feb. 19, 2023
McKeesport boys basketball senior Travarese “Dunny” Rowe likes to entertain people. Whether with family and friends or on the basketball court, he doesn’t disappoint when he’s putting on a show. “I’m a little comedian here and there. I like making people laugh,” Rowe said. “I like putting a smile on...
High school sports scores, schedules for Feb. 19, 2023
High schools WPIAL playoffs Boys Class 6A Quarterfinals Friday’s schedule Norwin (14-8) at New Castle (20-2), 7 p.m.; Butler (14-7) at Mt. Lebanon (15-7), 7 p.m.; Seneca Valley (9-12) at Upper St. Clair (14-8), 7 p.m.; Baldwin (12-10) vs. Central Catholic (13-9) at Gateway, 7 p.m. Class 5A Quarterfinals Wednesday’s...
What to watch for in WPIAL sports for Feb. 20, 2023: Big night for 1st-round matchups
There are five days making up the first round of the 2023 WPIAL basketball playoffs, and Monday is the busiest. There are 21 boys and girls opening-round contests with the spotlights shinning on boys 4A, boys 3A, girls 6A and girls A. The lone 6A first-round girls basketball game has...
