High School category, Page 505
Boord’s record 3-pointers help McKeesport girls sink Penn-Trafford
As each three-pointer splashed down and each smile curled up larger than the last, Malina Boord closed in on a record she had longed to break. As mere mortals around her shook their heads with the same disbelief she displayed in a few shoulder shrugs, the McKeesport senior broke that...
Southmoreland’s Henry Miller rocks PIAA competition with pair of gold-medal swims
A perk of being the No. 1 seed for a PIAA swimming finals heat is getting to pick the walk-up music that is played while the eight finalists make their way to the starting blocks. Southmoreland senior Henry Miller had that opportunity twice Wednesday evening as he was the top...
Fox Chapel defeats Norwin, Kiski beats Greensburg Salem in PIHL semis
Fox Chapel is hoping the third trip to the PIHL finals is a charm. The top-seeded Foxes reached the Penguins Cup Class A finals for the first time since 1997 by defeating returning champion Norwin, 7-3, on Wednesday at Robert Morris University’s Island Sports Center. Fox Chapel never has won...
Deer Lakes jumps on Loyalsock Township, rolls into PIAA quarterfinals
ALTOONA — Albie Fletcher makes no secret about where his loyalty lies. “We’re excited to keep our community following us,” Deer Lakes’ first-year boys basketball coach and 1993 school alum said Wednesday night in the moments after the Lancers advanced to the PIAA Class 3A quarterfinals for the second time...
Freeport’s Kira Schrecongost, other A-K Valley swimmers face best, score medals at PIAA meet
Freeport sophomore Kira Schrecongost and South Park junior Katie Jackovic know the power of Bedford junior Leah Shackley. Schrecongost placed third in the girls Class 2A 100-yard butterfly with a time of 56.16 seconds Wednesday at the PIAA swimming championships at Bucknell. Jackovic was second in a time of 55.51....
Central Catholic’s PIAA bracket busted by son of Penn State basketball coach
EBENSBURG — State College’s Braeden Shrewsberry didn’t accompany his father to the NCAA tournament, but the son of Penn State’s basketball coach created his own moments of March Madness. He busted Central Catholic’s bracket in the process. Shrewsberry scored 15 of his game-high 26 points in the fourth quarter and...
Deer Lakes looks to carry momentum into PIHL semifinal matchup with Ringgold
Deer Lakes finished off the regular season strong, defeating Neshannock and Bishop Canevin in back-to-back games to end up with a 16-2 record, second-best in PIHL Varsity D2 hockey. That momentum continued into the playoffs when the Lancers defeated Carrick, 6-0, to advance to a semifinal matchup with Ringgold at...
Knoch girls keep Blackhawk offense in check, but Cougars prevail in PIAA 2nd round
For three quarters Knoch scrapped, clawed and hounded Blackhawk on defense while making enough shots to keep a lead. That defensive effort carried over into the fourth, but a long dry spell on the offensive end doomed the Knights’ chances of pulling an upset. The Cougars held the Knights to...
Ohio State recruits Vinny Kilkeary, Rocco Welsh headline Pittsburgh Classic rosters
Ohio State recruits Vinny Kilkeary of Latrobe and Rocco Welsh of Waynesburg headlined the WPIAL wrestlers named to the Pennsylvania wrestling team in the annual Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic. The team featuring some of the best from the state will battle a star-studded United States squad Saturday, March 25 at Peters...
Westmoreland softball preview: Teams infused with young talent
Decked out in practice uniforms, a new custom put in place by coach Tina Madison and her staff, Hempfield had a structured look during a practice last week as softball players fielded sharp grounders and ran bases in a dimly lit auxiliary gym. Large snowflakes fell outside. That can mean...
A-K Valley baseball preview: Neighbors ready to rekindle section rivalries
Burrell, Deer Lakes, Freeport and Valley will try to rekindle some old rivalries in a new baseball section this spring. After two years in Class 4A, Burrell and Freeport return to Class 3A for the 2023 season. They will compete in Section 3 with fellow A-K Valley schools Deer Lakes...
North Catholic’s Maggie Foley collects 3rd silver medal in PIAA Class 2A girls diving
North Catholic senior Maggie Foley had gold on her mind Wednesday afternoon at the PIAA Class 2A girls diving championships at Bucknell University. She finished runner-up the past two years to Marple Newtown graduate Alexandra Pastris. But the Pitt commit’s rise to the top of the podium was cut off...
PIAA sets sites, times for Friday basketball quarterfinals
The PIAA basketball playoffs hits the midway point with the quarterfinals on Friday featuring Class 5A, 4A and A boys along with 6A, 3A and 2A girls third-round games. Here are the sites and times for the state quarterfinals on Friday on The Road to Hershey. Boys 5A Penn Hills...
WPIAL swimmers earn No. 1 seeds for PIAA Class 2A finals
The WPIAL will be well represented Wednesday afternoon and evening in the championship finals at the PIAA Class 2A swimming championships at Bucknell University. On the girls side, the Mt. Pleasant 200-yard medley relay of sophomore Kiersten O’Connor and seniors SaraJo Gardner, McKenna Mizikar and Reegan Brown (1:48.29); King in...
2023 WPIAL Class 4A baseball preseason breakdown
It’s a realignment year in WPIAL baseball and once again, the higher classifications have taken a hit. While Class 6A is down one team from the last two-year cycle, Class 5A is down one whole section after shrinking from 25 teams to 19 teams for the 2023 and 2024 seasons....
2023 WPIAL Class 4A softball preseason breakdown
Beaver’s softball team has won two straight WPIAL Class 4A championships in addition to capturing the 2021 PIAA title and finishing last season as state runners-up. Things will look a bit different without dominating pitcher Payton List in the circle for the Bobcats. She is now at Virginia Tech after...
What to watch for in WPIAL sports on March 15, 2023: Central Catholic to face stern test from State College
The Road to Hershey continues Wednesday with more PIAA second-round basketball action. Class 6A district champions collide at Central Cambria as WPIAL winner Central Catholic (17-9) goes up against District 6 champ State College (24-2) at 6 p.m. The Little Lions have won 10 consecutive games since losing to District...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for March 14, 2023
High schools Basketball Boys PIAA playoffs Class 6A Wednesday’s schedule Second round Chambersburg (16-11) vs. Archbishop Wood (17-8) at Cedar Crest, 7:30 p.m.; North Penn (19-8) vs. Coatesville (19-9) at Pottstown, 7:30 p.m.; Parkland (19-9) vs. Garnet Valley (18-9) at Geigle Complex, 6 p.m.; Lower Merion (22-4) vs. Roman Catholic...
Despite defensive shadow, Rodney Gallagher leads Laurel Highlands into PIAA quarterfinals
Laurel Highlands coach Rick Hauger’s practices can include some junk defenses, maybe a diamond-and-one or triangle-and-two, but the Mustangs don’t use them in games. Instead, he wants his offense to solve them. Rodney Gallagher faced one of those combination schemes Tuesday night and still scored a game-high 28 points as...
High school roundup for March 14, 2023: North Allegheny, Norwin girls win to set up 4th showdown
Jasmine Timmerson dropped 19 points and Kellie McConnell finished with 18 to lead North Allegheny to a 57-34 victory over Mt. Lebanon in the PIAA Class 6A girls basketball second round Tuesday night. The Tigers (22-5) jumped out to a 10-point halftime lead and never looked back. Jenny Smith scored...
Armstrong dethrones Thomas Jefferson, South Fayette finishes Latrobe in PIHL semifinals
There will be a new PIHL Penguins Cup champion in Class 2A. Thomas Jefferson felt short in its bid for a repeat by suffering a 7-2 loss at the hands of Armstrong in the semifinal round at the RMU Island Sports Center on Tuesday. The top-seeded River Hawks (18-3-0) recorded...
Lincoln Park fends off Highlands to advance to PIAA Class 4A quarterfinals
The last time Lincoln Park and Highlands met, back in the WPIAL semifinals, the Leopards couldn’t stop hitting outside shots. Their 23-point win was the largest margin of victory in the postseason so far for the recently crowned Class 4A district champs. The game and matchup were much different Tuesday...
After big lead slips away, Greensburg C.C. girls erupt in 4th quarter to defeat Maplewood
SLIPPERY ROCK — Greensburg Central Catholic allowed a double-digit lead to disappear in the third quarter by giving up a 16-4 run. During a timeout, coach Chris Skatell seemed unfazed by the huge momentum shift. “I told the girls this is where we want to be. Tied game with eight...
3rd meeting between Greensburg Salem, Kiski Area hockey teams will determine Class A finalist
Greensburg Salem and Kiski Area are no strangers to each other on the ice. The teams will square off for the third time this season Wednesday night, with the winner earning a spot in the Class A Penguins Cup final. Their semifinal is at 9 p.m. at RMU Island Sports...
North Allegheny, Seton LaSalle atop 2023 preseason Western Pa. coaches boys volleyball poll
Five-time defending WPIAL champion North Allegheny is the preseason favorite to defend its Class 3A boys volleyball title, according to a poll of coaches in the Western Pa. Volleyball Coaches Association. The Tigers, who also have won four straight PIAA championships, are followed in the poll by Shaler, Seneca Valley,...
