Chris Harlan stories, Page 88
Clairton cancels Week 4 football game with Bishop Canevin
Clairton football practices are shut down until next week over covid-19 concerns and Saturday’s game against Bishop Canevin was canceled, the school announced Wednesday night. The actions were taken in response to “several athletes showing symptoms that may be related to covid-19,” said a message on the school’s website, calling...
5 things we learned in Week 3: Drop in classification lifts WPIAL teams to 3-0 starts
After years battling as one of the smallest WPIAL schools in Class 5A football, Chartiers Valley this season became one of the largest in 4A — a move that’s had an immediate impact. The proof is in the standings. Coach Dan Knause’s team is 3-0 this year after going 3-7...
WPIAL Football Rankings for Week 3
Class 6A 1. North Allegheny, 2-0, 2 2. Central Catholic, 2-1, 1 3. Seneca Valley, 2-0, 3 4. Canon-McMillan, 1-1, 4 5. Baldwin, 1-0, 5 Out: none Class 5A 1. Pine-Richland, 2-0, 1 2. Gateway, 2-0, 2 3. Peters Township, 2-0, 3 4. Woodland Hills, 3-0, 4 5. Upper St....
Young North Hills boys soccer team looking to build
With almost two dozen sophomores and freshmen on the roster, North Hills boys soccer coach Jared Steigerwald has focused this fall on teaching fundamentals. Start small and work bigger. “We’re working on a lot of combinations in small spaces,” Steigerwald said. “Square drills with up, back and goes, putting it...
North Allegheny answers questions with victory over top-ranked Central CatholicVideo
North Allegheny’s Khalil Dinkins knew there were questions about his untested football team entering Friday’s game with rival Central Catholic. Now, they’ve got answers. Dinkins scored two touchdowns in a little more than a minute Friday night, the second on a 40-yard interception return as the second-ranked Tigers pulled away...
5 things to watch in Week 3: WPIAL No. 1 vs. No. 2 in largest classifications
It’s one vs. two, twice. The WPIAL has a pair of top-ranked matchups on the Week 3 football schedule with No. 2 Gateway visiting No. 1 Pine-Richland in Class 5A and No. 2 North Allegheny facing No. 1 Central Catholic in 6A. Both start at 7 p.m. Friday. The Class...
Central Catholic’s Eddy Tillman gets home-field advantage vs. North Allegheny
Central Catholic’s football team doesn’t have a home field, but running back Eddy Tillman will be close to home Friday night. The top-ranked Vikings are hosting No. 2 North Allegheny at Graham Field in Wilkinsburg, which is a short walk from Tillman’s home. The senior has fond memories of his...
WPIAL football playoffs will have 8-team brackets in most classifications
WPIAL football teams can start counting their Gardner Points now, because some will need them to break ties in about five weeks. The PIAA finalized its state playoff brackets Wednesday, the key piece of information the WPIAL needed to determine its postseason football format. Here’s what is known: WPIAL Class...
PIAA adopts slimmed-down state playoff brackets for fall sports
The state playoffs are now a win-and-get-in scenario. The PIAA board approved slimmed-down state playoff brackets Wednesday that include only the champion from each district. Championship events for individual sports also were reduced to smaller fields. The brackets are a positive sign the PIAA plans to crown state champions this...
Gov. Wolf’s veto of House Bill 2787 stands as state House override falls short
To the dismay of many high school sports fans, Gov. Tom Wolf’s veto of House Bill 2787 will stand. The state House on Wednesday fell short of the two-thirds majority vote needed to override Wolf’s veto with only 130 in favor of the override and 71 opposed. The House had...
WPIAL schools start allowing more spectators as governor’s limits become voluntary
Gov. Tom Wolf would prefer schools adhere to his gathering limits at sports events, but acknowledged Tuesday they’re not legally binding “at least for the moment.” A week ago, the state’s gathering limits of 250 individuals outdoors and 25 indoors were ruled unconstitutional by a federal judge. On Tuesday, a...
WPIAL chooses alternate site for cross country championships
Cross country runners who competed last week in the Red, White and Blue Classic got an early look at the WPIAL championship course. The WPIAL board agreed Monday to move its championship meet to White Oak Park in White Oak, likely on Oct. 28-29. WPIAL administrators visited the site last...
Gov. Wolf vetoes House Bill 2787, leaving high school sports spectators in limbo
Gov. Tom Wolf followed through on his promise Monday and vetoed legislation that would have let school districts set their own attendance limits for sports. Now what? The primary sponsor of the bill, state Rep. Mike Reese, said he expects the General Assembly to override Wolf’s veto and give schools...
5 things we learned in Week 2 of high school football
With Friday night’s win over Mt. Lebanon, a team Canon-McMillan hadn’t defeated in 12 years, the Big Macs bolstered their playoff chances. Well, maybe. At this point, just assuming there is a postseason is risky, but nobody can describe with certainty what the WPIAL playoff picture for Class 6A might...
WPIAL football rankings for Week 2
Ranking, record and previous week’s ranking: Class 6A 1. Central Catholic, 2-0, 1 2. North Allegheny, 1-0, 2 3. Seneca Valley, 1-0, 3 4. Canon-McMillan, 1-1, NR 5. Baldwin, 1-0, 5 Out: Mt. Lebanon (0-1, 4) Class 5A 1. Pine-Richland, 2-0, 1 2. Gateway, 2-0, 2 3. Peters Township, 1-0,...
Under new leadership, North Hills girls soccer optimistic for success
Rick Kabbert was leery he’d face some skepticism. When Kabbert was hired this summer to coach North Hills girls soccer, he became the team’s third head coach in four seasons, all promising to turn around a struggling program. Witnessing yet another coaching change could discourage a roster that won only...
Top-ranked Pine-Richland wastes no time in victory over No. 4 Upper St. ClairVideo
Pine-Richland quarterback Cole Spencer had the football in his hands so often Friday night that he felt like he’d left a half-dozen touchdowns on the field. The five they scored were plenty. Top-ranked Pine-Richland runs an up-tempo attack yet still dominated time of possession in a 34-13 win over No....
Wolf administration asks schools to voluntarily enforce gathering limits
The updated guidance for high school sports and spectators promised by Gov. Tom Wolf was a no-show Friday. Instead, the state Department of Education released an afternoon statement encouraging schools “to voluntarily enforce the 25-person indoor and 250-person outdoor gathering limitations while all of us wait for the court to...
5 things to watch in Week 2: Seneca Valley among 7 teams ready for delayed openers
Tired of making each other black and blue, Seneca Valley’s football players want to hit somebody not wearing blue and black. After enduring a summer longer than expected, the Raiders and six other WPIAL teams can make their season debuts this week. Covid-19 cancellations kept them idle in Week 1,...
Baldwin cancels 2 football games after coach tests positive for covid-19
Baldwin shut down all football activities for at least 14 days after a member of the coaching staff tested positive for covid-19, the school announced Thursday. As a result, the Highlanders must cancel their next two games. They were scheduled to visit North Allegheny on Friday and host Canon-McMillan in...
Attendance limits force Neshannock football mother to experience ‘worst fear’ from afar
Landon Shaffer’s parents were allotted one ticket for his high school football game, so his mother resorted to watching a video stream on her cell phone. “You look for little identifying things because it’s so small to tell who’s who,” Veronica Shaffer said. “It’s hard to see.” The first two...
West Greene-California football game postponed over covid-19 concerns
Covid-19 concerns caused West Greene to postpone Friday’s football game against California. The positive case was unrelated to West Greene’s football team, coach Brian Hanson said, but the situation led administrators to shut down the school building for a few days out of caution. The Pioneers were scheduled to visit...
Gov. Wolf: Schools will receive updated guidance on sports spectators this weekVideo
The state Department of Education will release updated guidance this week regarding spectators at interscholastic sporting events, Gov. Tom Wolf said Wednesday. The new guidelines come in response to Monday’s federal court ruling that declared Wolf’s gathering limits unconstitutional. Wolf had imposed a 250-person restriction on outdoor gatherings and a...
State lawmakers urge Gov. Wolf to sign bill, let schools set spectator limits for sports
A bipartisan group of state lawmakers gathered Wednesday and urged Gov. Tom Wolf to sign House Bill 2787, legislation that lets individual schools set spectator limits for sports. The governor received the bill Friday. “You’ve said at press conferences that you want to work with the Legislature. Here’s a golden...
5 things we learned from WPIAL Week 1: Smattering of fans an ‘eerie’ atmosphere
WPIAL football looked familiar, but it certainly sounded quieter than ever. There were no student-section chants when Upper St. Clair senior Jaden Keating scored twice Friday night because crowd sizes are severely limited by covid-19 constraints. He wasn’t too bothered. “My No. 1 supporter is my mom,” Keating said. “I...
