Bill Beckner stories, Page 40

Gateway calls its home gymnasium “The Swamp.” Latrobe walked onto the floor Tuesday night and sank the Gators and their No. 1 ranking. The Wildcats used an impressive start and some clutch defense down the stretch to stun the top-rated Gators, 63-60, in the upset of the year in Class...

Quarterback Jack Salopek found a new home for his final two years of college football. The Norwin graduate who entered the NCAA transfer portal in November announced he will sign with Elon (N.C.), an FCS program that plays in the Colonial Athletic Association. Salopek (6-foot-3, 186 pounds) said he felt...

With a steal and a left-handed finish with 1 minute, 30 seconds remaining, Olivia Pepple reached a personal milestone. When the final buzzer sounded, the senior guard from Penn-Trafford was happier to get a team win. Pepple scored her 1,000th career point as the Warriors pulled past visiting Latrobe, 51-40,...

Seton Hill is mourning the loss of men’s basketball coach Connor Laverty. The 25-year-old second-year assistant died Friday after a battle with lymphoma. Griffins head coach Ben Wilkins said Laverty combated the illness through five rounds of chemotherapy, but contracted hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis, a systematic inflammatory syndrome. The rare immune deficiency,...

With a reputation for scoring points in bunches, big things were expected of Melina Maietta at Pitt-Greensburg when the guard transferred from Coastal Carolina. The Greensburg Central Catholic alum has not disappointed. Maietta joined the UPG women’s basketball 1,000-point club in the team’s 98-53 loss to AMCC leader La Roche....

The itch to return to the gridiron was too strong for one of the better two-sport athletes to come out of Ligonier Valley in recent years. Haden Sierocky, a 2023 graduate, is shifting gears with not only the college he will attend but also the sport he will play. Initially...

Lauren Bell School: Latrobe Class: Junior Sport: Swimming Claim to fame: Bell won the 50- and 100-yard freestyles and swam a leg for the winning 200 medley and 200 freestyle relays as Latrobe edged past Derry, 94-90. In a 92-86 victory against Hempfield, she won the 100 butterfly, 100 backstroke...

During a brief pregame observance, senior players Cam Rowell and Cooper Rankin held a corner of the No. 44 Franklin Regional basketball jersey Tuesday night at midcourt as public address announcer Dean Berardinelli briefed fans about Caden Brush. A junior basketball player at Franklin Regional, Brush is battling leukemia, and...

With an electric atmosphere to usher in a new era, the Norwin girls wrestling team won its inaugural dual match as WPIAL program by toppling visiting Southmoreland, 45-18, on Jan. 3. Addison Elyes (112 pounds), Camden Reese (136), Avalin Barry (142), Jo Dollman (148), and Kavsyn Champion (155) all posted...

It wasn’t exactly a brotherly shove, but Adam Bilinsky admits having a chance to play basketball with his older sibling again played a key role in his decision on where to transfer. Bilinsky, who decided to exit Mercyhurst after playing in just nine games as a freshman, will join his...

Franklin Regional caught the attention of local boys basketball fans with its 10-1 start. The Panthers’ run has a lot to do with the play of a formidable tandem made up of seniors Cam Rowell and Cooper Rankin. The “R&R” duo has been fun to watch and helped elevate the...

This Gateway boys basketball team is inherently defensive and plays a halfcourt style with goals steeped in fundamentals and a touch of grit. The idea is to grind opponents down and make them work, then run lengthy sets and take care of the ball on the other end of the...

Down one of their best players and facing the top scorer in the WPIAL, Greensburg Central Catholic was sure not to ignore the signs when Clairton came to town in a 1 vs. 2 girls basketball matchup. Watch out for tired legs. Trap game ahead. Beware of Wade. Junior point...

Surging Franklin Regional found its way into the TribLive HSSN Class 5A rankings this week. The Panthers (11-1, 3-0), who have won six straight following a two-point loss to Class 6A Butler, took over the No. 4 spot. They are tied for first place in Section 3 with No. 1...

Zion Moore doesn’t consider himself one of the best basketball players in WPIAL Class 4A. “I’m the best player,” Belle Vernon’s leading man said with a stern look on his face that grew into a grin. With his high-tops tied tight, Moore clearly plays with confidence and carries a swagger...

A family man with a positive attitude, familiarity of the area and high expectations is primed to oversee athletics at Greensburg Salem. Drake D’Angelo, the current athletic director at Burrell, was hired Wednesday night and will stay closer to home to lead Golden Lions’ sports. He takes over for Dave...

With 10 WPIAL championships and two PIAA titles, Jeannette is renowned as one of the top football programs in Pennsylvania. But the Jayhawks’ reputation has made its way to the game’s promised land — Canton, Ohio. Three Jeannette legends who made their mark in the program and beyond will be...

From Dec. 2-15, Monessen’s girls basketball team scrimmaged each other so much they started to reach low levels of apathy. Three teams canceled games against them. The thumb-twiddling commenced. Stale practices needed creativity. “We were getting bored only having practices,” coach Janine Vertacnik said. “I tried some fun challenge things...

Greensburg Central Catholic is awaiting word on the playing status of senior leader Mya Morgan. The shooting guard and Cal (Pa.) commit injured her knee during the second quarter of Saturday’s 58-42 nonsection loss at North Catholic. She is expected to miss Wednesday’s game at Oakland Catholic and Thursday’s Section...

Colin Masten said he had been in a mini-slump of late. In basketball terms, that means he wasn’t making shots or producing much on the offensive end. “I didn’t play great,” he said. The Franklin Regional senior swingman, who was the team’s sixth man last year, picked a good time...

Greensburg Salem will vote to hire Drake D’Angelo as its athletic director, according to board agenda for Wednesday night’s meeting. D’Angelo is the current athletic director at Burrell and would take over at Greensburg Salem upon his release from the other Westmoreland County school. Dave Zilli, the retiring principal at...

Norwin has yet to lose to a WPIAL team this girls basketball season. Eight up, eight down. But no matter how much potential the Knights have, this collection of talent is a work in progress. A nonsection schedule that is as thorny as it is taxing has kept them sharp...

It wasn’t exactly a brotherly shove, but Adam Bilinsky admits having a chance to play basketball with his older sibling again played a key role in his decision on where to transfer. Bilinsky, who decided to exit Mercyhurst after playing in just nine games as a freshman, will join his...

Elle Snyder School: Latrobe Class: Senior Sport: Basketball Claim to fame: Snyder, a 5-foot-9 guard, announced last week her college commitment to Division I Evansville. She has helped lead the Wildcats to three straight wins, including 54-42 over Penn Hills and 55-24 over Connellsville. Against Penn Hills, she registered 29...

The Landon Sidun era is underway at Norwin. The highly touted freshman wrestler had his “hello, world” moment at one of the toughest tournaments in the country. Sidun won a championship at 114 pounds at the Powerade Tournament. He was named the event’s outstanding wrestler. Sidun (25-1) was carrying the...