Paul Schofield stories, Page 102
Longtime girls tennis coach retires as Hempfield gets fall coaching staffs in order
Hempfield Area School District is looking for a couple fall sports coaches. The jobs opened when girls tennis coach Jerry Way retired and girls soccer Adam Shaffer resigned. Hempfield is also looking for a new athletic director after Greg Meisner resigned in April. Rick Bowen is acting as interim athletic...
Powerade Wrestling Tournament grows to 55 teams for 2020
The Powerade Wrestling Tournament is billed as one of the top high school competitions in the country. And the 54th annual tournament, scheduled for Dec. 29-30 at Canon-McMillan High School, again will feature some of the top wrestlers east of the Mississippi River. The tournament has grown to 55 teams,...
Belle Vernon senior duo focuses on future
Editor’s note: This is the first in an 18-part series profiling nominees for the Westmoreland County Scholar-Athlete Excellence Awards. Belle Vernon senior track star Hannah Seitzinger was looking forward toward one more attempt at being a WPIAL and PIAA 400-meter dash champion. But the coronavirus pandemic ended her senior year...
Hempfield track coach Ron Colland receives Ferranti Award
Ron Colland has been involved in track and field for more than 60 years, the past 38 as a coach at Hempfield. And while Colland, 72, has retired as a social studies and world cultures teacher and spends time with his family near Phoenix, he returns to Pennsylvania in late...
Despite social distancing regulations, area golfers happy to be back on courseVideo
Jim Dunn felt like a little kid anticipating the first day of school. It didn’t matter temperatures were in the upper 40s and low 50s and light rain fell, the 83-year-old Murrysville native couldn’t wait to play his first round of the season. At 8 a.m. Friday, Dunn walked to...
Senior Spotlight: Norwin senior track athlete keeping chin up before heading to Bucknell
Editor’s note: Each day, Trib HSSN will spotlight WPIAL spring athletes whose senior years were cut short by the coronavirus pandemic. Matt Federovich is dealing with stay-at-home coronavirus restrictions, well, the best he can. The Norwin senior would be in the middle of an exciting track season if it weren’t...
Golf Pass on sale to benefit American Cancer Society
The American Cancer Society has sponsored the Pennsylvania Golf Pass Booklet for more than 20 years. The booklet includes more than 60 golf courses from across the state this season, and senior community development manager Jen Barron is hoping to have more than 100 courses in 2021. “In 2013, we...
PIAA considers dropping weight class as wrestling rule changes are made
The National Federation of State High School Associations announced 11 rule changes on Tuesday, none involving the reduction of weight classes. But that was the No. 1 topic discussed Wednesday when the PIAA wrestling steering committee met as a group via Zoom. The PIAA wresting committee is proposing to cut...
Courses will open, but golfers will have new guidelines during pandemic
Golfers itching to hit the links Friday will see many changes. It’s going to be a little different, but nothing that should make rounds less enjoyable. The Pennsylvania Alliance for Golf sent out a list of safe reopening guidelines for golf courses. Similar guidelines are on the Western Pennsylvania Golf...
Senior Spotlight: Latrobe’s Wetzel grits teeth through shutdown
Editor’s note: Each day, Trib HSSN will spotlight WPIAL spring athletes whose senior years were cut short by the coronavirus pandemic. Sadie Wetzel wasn’t in a good mood Tuesday. The Latrobe senior just wasn’t feeling it until she went and did a track workout for college. Having a stay-at-home order...
While golfers rejoice, courses in a rush to get ready
Golfers are rejoicing all over Pennsylvania after Gov. Tom Wolf announced Monday he was allowing courses across the state to open Friday. While most golfers have been eagerly awaiting a chance to hit the links and cursing every wasted beautiful day away from the fairways and greens, course managers, pros...
Sunnehanna Amateur moved to July
If everything goes as planned and things start to get back to somewhat normal because of the coronavirus pandemic, the 67th annual Sunnehanna Amateur will be held, but a month later than usual. One of the top amateur tournaments in the country, which has featured a Who’s Who list of...
Latrobe umpire Jansen Visconti waiting for MLB to startVideo
If Jansen Visconti had his way, he’d be calling balls and strikes in Chicago on Monday instead of fishing for trout on Fourmile Run in Ligonier. Fishing is a new sport Visconti has picked up since MLB shut down the 2020 season March 13 because of the Coronavirus. Who knows...
Hempfield senior Lukas Kissell vaults into new sport: Skeleton
Lukas Kissell was helping Hempfield win a WPIAL Class AAA team track title a year ago. And if things were normal today, the senior would be trying to help the Spartans win another title. “I was looking forward to the outdoor season,” Kissell said. “I had a good indoor season,...
Little League programs planning for possible start to season
There is a chance Little League International will have baseball and softball seasons — just a lot later than usual. Little League International sent a bulletin to district administrators Friday, instructing leagues to hold off until May 11 before launching a season. Leagues usually have started by now, but the...
Seton Hill wrestling adds recruits in Class of 2020
Seton Hill wrestling coach Brian Tucker is finishing up his recruiting class for 2020, and it features 11 wrestlers, including eight from WPIAL schools. Heading the list are Greensburg Salem’s John Meyers and Ian Ewing, Canon-McMillan’s Jimmy Baxter, Latrobe’s Ricky Armstrong, Thomas Jefferson’s Brendan Finnerty and Elizabeth Forward’s Etha Cain....
Latrobe native Sean Knaus named Ligonier Country Club pro
Latrobe native Sean Knaus grew up working on a golf course. In his senior year in high school, the 2008 graduate won the Class AAA Section 1 title at Latrobe Elks Golf Club, where he worked. Knaus recently was hired as head golf professional at Ligonier Country Club to replace...
John Klinchock takes over as Sunnehanna Country Club golf pro
John Klinchock never thought he would leave Ligonier Valley Country Club. He was the head golf professional for 22 years, and his family was enjoying life in the eastern Westmoreland County borough. But things changed in November. Sunnehanna Country Club in Johnstown was looking head golf professional and hired Klinchock....
Westmoreland Scholar/Athlete committee announces excellent group; banquet on holdVideo
Will the 64th annual Westmoreland Scholar/Athlete banquet be held this year? Westmoreland Judge John J. Driscoll sure hopes so. The annual banquet was supposed to be April 28 but has been postponed. “We’re hoping we can hold something in June or July,” Driscoll said. “Right now, we’re in the process...
Former Franklin Regional wrestler Michael Kemerer working toward another shot at national title with Iowa
When Michael Kemerer learned he wouldn’t get a chance to become an NCAA champion, like every Division I wrestler who qualified for the event, there was disappointment. The Iowa redshirt senior had unfinished business and was looking for an individual title for himself and a team title for the Hawkeyes...
Latrobe searching for wrestling coach after Ciotti resigns
Mike Ciotti knew early in the season this was going to be his last as Latrobe’s wrestling coach. Ciotti was newly married and lived in Fox Chapel. The trip to Latrobe during the winter was draining. “I was basically away from my wife for six months,” Ciotti said. “I didn’t...
Derry hopes to hire football coach within month
When Derry hired Tim Sweeney as its football coach in 2013, athletic director Brett Miller considered it a home run. Sweeney took a struggling program and made it a winner, which brought excitement back to Friday nights in eastern Westmoreland County. But Miller knew with that success and Sweeney’s desire...
Southmoreland softball hopes to make run at another title
When Southmoreland softball coach Todd Bunner addressed his team March 12, they talked about the future and hoped the 2020 season would continue in the near future. Around the state, the season is on pause until at least April 1 because of coronavirus. If the season continues, there is a...
Govern sees improvement in Southmoreland baseball team
Southmoreland baseball coach Al Govern calls himself old school. He likes to preach fundamentals. That’s why he’s excited for the 2020 season to resume so he can see how much his team has improved in one year under his training. Because of the coronavirus, Gov. Tom Wolf and the PIAA...
Ligonier Valley sophomore Beitel invited to elite football camp
Ligonier Valley sophomore Nick Beitel was invited to the EXOS Select 50 instructional football showcase, which will take place in May in either Houston or Frisco, Texas. Beitel, the son of Ligonier Valley football coach Roger Beitel, will be evaluated by current NCAA/NAIA coaches and NFL alum. The morning session...
