Paul Schofield stories, Page 109
Norwin boys go to 3-0 with win over BaldwinVideo
Norwin basketball coach Buddy Valinsky couldn’t ask for a better start to the 2019-20 season. The Knights’ first-year coach, who came from Allderdice in the offseason to replace Lynn Washowich, saw his team improve to 3-0 with a 56-48 victory over a young Baldwin team Monday at the Mike Rettger...
Franklin Regional wrestler Dibert ready to defend state titleVideo
Franklin Regional junior Carter Dibert knows winning another PIAA wrestling title won’t be easy, but he’s ready to tackle the challenge. He got off to a good start Saturday at the Eastern Area Wrestling Invitational at Gateway by easily winning the 126-pound weight class. He won the state title at...
Hempfield grad Maddie Holmberg off to good start at Penn State
Penn State senior Maddie Holmberg kicked off the indoor track and field season in impressive fashion. The 2015 Hempfield grad won the pentathlon at the Bison Opener at Bucknell on Friday. Maddie Holmberg begins the indoor season by winning the pentathlon event with 4075 points!#WeAre #PSUTF pic.twitter.com/M5tC1b5RxY— Penn State Track...
Nazareth Prep boys roll over Ligonier Valley with strong second half
This wasn’t how Ligonier Valley boys basketball coach John Berger envisioned the season-opener. The Rams opened Friday at Derry’s Chuck Smith Tip-Off Classic and got drilled by reigning WPIAL Class A champion Nazareth Prep, 89-52. Nazareth Prep, which got 35 points from senior Will Taylor, outscored Ligonier Valley, 57-23, in...
Ligonier Valley officially welcomed back to WPIAL
It’s official. Ligonier Valley has returned to the WPIAL after spending the past 50 years in District 6. The PIAA Board of Control on Wednesday voted unanimously, 31-0, to allow Ligonier Valley to leave District 6 and join the WPIAL. It was the final piece of a five-step process started...
Mt. Pleasant puts pieces in place to take a run at Burrell in WPIAL Class AA wrestling
It’s been 13 years since a team other than Burrell as captured a WPIAL Class AA team title. That was Mt. Pleasant in 2006. In fact, the Vikings also won in 2005 and 2003 under then-coach Mark Mears, currently the Director of Transportation and Athletics at Latrobe. Winning a title...
WPIAL Class AA wrestlers to watch
Top returning Class AA wrestlers State champions Wrestler, School (Yr., Wt., Last year’s record, career record) Thayne Lawrence, Frazier (sr., 160, 29-3, 96-11) Dayton Pitzer, Mt. Pleasant (so., 182, 42-1, 42-1) PIAA placewinners Joey Fischer, South Park (jr., 106, 38-2, 73-10) 4th Ryan Michaels, Elizabeth Forward (sr., 113, 43-2, 78-8)...
WPIAL Class AA preseason team wrestling rankings
WPIAL Class AA preseason team rankings Team (2018-19 record) 1. Burrell (13-4) The Bucs return 11 starters, including state placewinners Ian Oswalt and A.J. Corrado. 2. Quaker Valley (15-7) The Quakers returns 11 starters, including PIAA qualifier Conner Redinger. 3. Burgettstown (12-2) The Blue Devils return eight starters, including PIAA...
Hempfield wrestling team shooting for top spot in WPIAL Class AAA
Hempfield Area wrestling coach Tommy Dolde isn’t keen on rankings, especially when his team is the one ranked No. 1 in the preseason. He’d rather see returning WPIAL Class AAA champion Kiski Area seeded first. “They are No. 1 in my mind until someone beats them,” Dolde said. “Kiski is...
WPIAL Class AAA wrestlers to watch
Top wrestlers returning Class AAA State champions Wrestler, School (Yr., Wt., 2019 Record, Overall) Carter Dibert, Franklin Regional (so., 106, 41-2, 73-12) Alejandro Herrera-Rondon, Seneca Valley (jr., 113, 48-1, 94-9) x-Sam Hillegas, North Hills (sr., 132, 41-1, 118-2) Gerrit Nijenhuis, Canon-McMillan (sr., 170, 44-3, 134-16) x-state champion in 2017, 2018...
Important dates for the 2019-20 high school wrestling season
2019-20 Important Dates Dec. 6-7 Chartiers-Houston Tournament Cumberland Valley Classic, Mechanicsburg Eastern Area Wrestling Invitational at Gateway Hickory Invitational, Sharon Dec. 7 Hampton Duals McDowell Trojan Duals, Erie Dec. 13-14 King of the Mountain, Lock Haven Milford, Del. Invitational Mountain Ridge (Md.) Invitational Penn Cambria Panther Holiday Tournament, Cresson Walsh...
WPIAL Class AAA preseason team wrestling rankings: Hempfield lineup loaded
2019 team rankings Class AAA Team (2018-19 record) 1. Hempfield (13-3) The Spartans return 10 starters, including PIAA qualifiers Ethan Berginc (120), Ty Linsenbigler (138), Dillon Ferretti (220) and Isaiah Vance (285). 2. Kiski Area (19-1) The Cavaliers return 10 starters, including PIAA placewinners Jack Blumer (160) and Nick Delp...
Rebuilding Ligonier Valley girls hope to ‘learn how to compete’
There was a reason that Ligonier Valley girls basketball coach Tim Gustin scheduled Punxsutawney for his team’s first preseason scrimmage. He wanted to show his young team what he’d like them to become. Punxsutawney romped through District 9 last season by going 21-0. The Chucks’ only loss was to Blackhawk...
Quick Ligonier Valley boys look to make a run to another district titleVideo
You won’t see Ligonier Valley police chief John Berger handling out any speeding tickets in the Ligonier Valley High School gymnasium this winter. That’s because speeding is allowed by the boys basketball team when it is playing for Berger, who also is the boys coach. If Ligonier Valley wants to...
UPG men’s basketball to honor program’s top teams, players Saturday
When Pitt-Greensburg plays host to Penn State-Behrend on Saturday, the athletic department will also honor four teams and their players. The four teams — squads from 1969-70,1998-99, 1999-2000 and 2004-05 — and former players who made their mark within the program will be recognized beginning at 12:30 p.m. with a...
Greensburg Salem grad Darius Doty ends Westminster career with big game
Westminster senior Darius Doty ended his collegiate football career with the best game of his career on Saturday. The defensive end and Greensburg Salem graduate helped Westminster defeat SUNY-Morrisville, 35-24, in the Eastern College Athletic Conference’s Clayton Chapman Bowl. Doty led the Titan defense with eight tackles, a career-high six...
Seton Hill volleyball earns berth to NCAA Tournament
The Seton Hill women’s volleyball earned a berth in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional Tournament for the third consecutive season and fifth time in school history. The Griffins (19-10) received a No. 7 seed and will face No. 2 Gannon (27-6) on Dec. 5 at Wheeling Jesuit, which will...
Pitt wrestling upsets No. 7 Lehigh
In a match that came down to criteria No. 3, Pitt outscored No. 7 Lehigh in total points and came away with a 19-18 upset victory in a wrestling match Sunday. Panther heavyweight Demetrius Thomas defeated Jordan Wood, 10-6, in the final bout to tie the score at 18-18. Both...
For Jeannette girls basketball, ‘It starts with believing’
Jeannette girls basketball coach Jonathan Bass has high expectations for his team. Even though Jeannette finished 4-17 last season and graduated its best player, Dymond Crawford, Bass feels the team has a chance to contend for a playoff spot in Section 2-2A. The reason for Bass’s optimism is he expects...
Jeannette boys basketball plans to contend in Class 2AVideo
Midway through last season, the Jeannette boys basketball team was mired in a three-game Section 2-2A losing streak. The Jayhawks were on the verge of falling out of playoff contention if they didn’t right the ship. That was about the time Jeannette coach Adrian Batts decided to make a change...
Rule allows multiple wrestlers to compete at same weight class
The high school wrestling season kicks off Dec. 6 with a few rule changes. Teams, with permission from tournament directors, will be allowed to enter two wrestlers in a weight class from the same school if the 16-man bracket isn’t full. Canon-McMillan athletic director Frank Vulcano said the Chartiers-Houston, Cumberland...
Bishop Carroll, Heritage Conference reach agreement
With Ligonier Valley on the verge of moving to the WPIAL, pending PIAA approval, the Heritage Conference and Bishop Carroll have come to a two-year agreement in football. The announcement was made in a news release by Bishop Carroll principal Lorie Ratchford and Heritage Conference president Jody Rainey. The Heritage...
No. 1 Penn State wrestling team falls to No. 6 Arizona State
The Arizona State wrestling team received a forfeit win at 184 pounds Friday, which helped the Sun Devils upset No. 1 Penn State, 19-18, in a dual match in Tempe, Ariz. The loss snapped Penn State’s streak of 60 dual wins that dated to the end of the 2014-15 season....
Young Greensburg Salem girls basketball looks for playoff return
To reach the WPIAL Class 4A playoffs for the second consecutive season, third-year coach Rick Klimchock must find a scoring punch. The Golden Lions finished 12-11 last season and ended the campaign with a 51-37 postseason loss to McKeesport. Gone from that team through graduation is Megan Kallock, who averaged...
Greensburg Salem boys out to surprise opponentsVideo
A late-season losing streak of seven games derailed plans of a second consecutive WPIAL playoff appearance for the Greensburg Salem boys basketball team. The Golden Lions were 3-4 in Section 1-5A and were in line for a playoff run until a couple injuries occurred. “We were down to six or...
