High School category, Page 59
Longtime WPIAL head coach Sam Albert happy to help as assistant at Pine-Richland
When Sam Albert stepped down at Kiski Area shortly after the 2024 season and ended a three-decade run as a head coach at stops that included Valley, Butler, Freeport and Highlands, he said he had plans to serve as an assistant somewhere. That somewhere is Pine-Richland. Albert has joined Rams...
After track success, senior jumps at chance to lead Highlands back to playoffs
Jahmar Wright bridged the gap between the majority of his junior season and the lead-up to his senior year with strong performances at the WPIAL and PIAA Class 3A track and field championships in May. Wright, a senior at Highlands and one of the top returning talents for the Golden...
Countdown to Kickoff ’25: 26 WPIAL teams have new coaches this fall
The WPIAL football coaching pendulum continues to swing between a lot of offseason changes and not as many new sideline generals. Prior to the 2023 season, there were 26 head coaching changes. Last year was a lot less with only 17. This offseason saw 26 new football coaches hired to...
A-K Valley football notebook: Longtime broadcasters change teams for 2025 season
After 25 years of calling Highlands sporting events, Mike and Mike have taken their talents across the Allegheny River. The longtime broadcast team of Mike Choma and Mike Pavlik will be in the press box calling Burrell football games this fall. Starting with Saturday’s scrimmage, the pair plans to livestream...
2025 Trib HSSN football position-by-position breakdown: Scouting the offensive line
TribLive HSSN will break down the top players at one position per day until Week Zero. Here is a look at the top offensive linemen for the 2025 season. 1. Jimmy Kalis Central Catholic Junior, 6-7, 285 Kalis earned first-team all-conference honors as the starting left tackle for a Central...
Greensburg C.C. seeking new basketball coach after Christian Hyland resigns
Christian Hyland is stepping down as boys basketball coach at Greensburg Central Catholic after six successful seasons. Hyland, a former GCC point guard who took the job at age 23 after three years as an assistant to Greg Bisignani, said his decision was multifaceted but did not want to get...
2025 WPIAL high school football preview
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As game grows on him, Latrobe senior becomes top lineman
Football wasn’t for Lucas Kolenc in the beginning. It was hard. A chore. About as fun as roofing or pouring concrete in extreme heat. He tried the game as a middle schooler and, by all accounts and with no sugar coating, he hated it. “I didn’t feel like I belonged,”...
Greensburg Salem seeking another run to playoffs
For one of the WPIAL’s all-time winningest programs, Greensburg Salem has seen more than enough losing in recent years. Following a head-turning 7-4 record in 2024, perhaps the culture is changing again. “We’re trying to get back to winning football games and get back to the playoffs,” coach Ty George...
Strong junior class driving Derry’s hopes for a successful season
Despite that five-game skid, Mike Arone is not deterred. Forget the season-ending implosion, Derry’s fourth-year coach insists. And while thoughts of another season-turned-bad linger, Arone is hopeful the Trojans will rally. “The 11 guys we put on the field on offense, the 11 on defense and the 11 on special...
Despite young roster, Yough aims to continue progressing
Ben Hoffer feels his team is set to take a step forward as he begins his fourth season as Yough’s football coach. The most wins Yough has had since 2013 — when the team went 6-5 and won the school’s only playoff game — was four in 2016. In the...
Coaching change, player movement do not deter Southmoreland from playoff goal
Editor’s note: Trib HSSN will publish team-by-team previews for one conference per day until the start of the high school football season Aug. 22. Due to production schedule conflicts, the Elizabeth Forward preview will be published later this month. There is a new car smell to the Southmoreland football program....
Expanded roster bolsters Mt. Pleasant’s chances in Interstate Conference
Things are looking up for Mt. Pleasant football coach Jason Fazekas and his program. The Vikings roster expanded to nearly 60 players this summer, which is encouraging for a Class 3A program. The other encouraging thing is Fazekas must only replace six starters from the 2024 team that went 3-2...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Aug. 13, 2025
High schools Golf Wednesday’s results Boys Class 3A Section 1 Indiana 189, Hempfield 205 Medalists: Ryan Bell (I) 36; Mats Martz (H) 38 Latrobe 189, Kiski Area 222 Medalists: Jeremy Lazarchik (L) 34; Max Mottura (KA) 35 Section 2 Belle Vernon 199, McKeesport 233 Medalist: Jordan Mocello (BV) 35 Albert...
Countdown to Kickoff ’25: Innovative playoff format enters 2nd season
This will be the second season of the innovative WPIAL football playoff format. The trusty old abacus was retired last fall when it came to figuring out wild card playoff teams. The WPIAL football steering committee decided which schools qualified for the district playoffs as wild cards instead of using...
After breakout season, Jeannette receiver Jayce Powell ready for encore
Jayce Powell has been stealing scenes in Jeannette football games since he broke into the starting lineup as a freshman. Deep routes, posts, seam shots, catch-and-runs. He’s done it all. Last year, he broke through. He grabbed 57 receptions for 1,023 yards and 10 touchdowns, averaging a brow-raising 17.9 yards...
2025 Trib HSSN football position-by-position breakdown: Scouting the tight ends
TribLive HSSN will break down the top players at one position per day until Week Zero. Here is a look at the top tight ends for the 2025 season. 1. TJ Sabatucci Canon-McMillan Senior, 6-2, 225 Sabatucci was voted a first-team all-conference tight end in Class 6A two years in...
2-way playmaker Drew Ross leading the charge for confident Freeport
Drew Ross is comfortable sitting in the pocket, surveying the field and delivering a strike to any one of several receiving targets in Freeport’s passing game. He also is ready to have his number called and use his feet to get yardage and move the sticks. Defensively, he’s set to...
Valley confident in ability to improve this season, build program
Valley coach Mark Adams would be the first to agree that the Vikings had a disappointing 2024 season. Valley was winless, with its closest loss being a crushing 38-35 defeat to Riverview in its second game. However, Adams would also agree that Valley can turn the program around because of...
Imani Christian vows to again contend for championships
When asked about his team’s goals for the season, Imani Christian coach LaRoi Johnson said the team wants to win a state championship. It is a short response, yet it sufficiently describes what the Saints have been working toward since their 14-6 defeat against Avonworth in the WPIAL Class 3A...
Highlands working to adapt offense, keep playoff streak going
Highlands was one quarter away from a trip to last year’s WPIAL Class 3A semifinals. The Golden Rams led No. 1 Imani Christian by nine at the end of the third quarter, but the Saints erupted in the fourth and raced past Highlands for a 31-17 win. While that heartbreaking...
Coming off playoff berth, strong offseason, Freeport building momentum
The Freeport football team returned to form in 2024. After a 2023 season that saw the Yellowjackets win just three games and suffer a rare playoff miss, last year’s team grew and learned from its tough fortunes, finished third in a strong Allegheny 7 Conference and returned to the WPIAL...
East Allegheny focused on erasing 1-9 memory
East Allegheny wishes it could forget that awful record, but the returning players and coaches won’t. Besides, they really can’t. One win and nine losses. “We went 1-9 last season,” Wildcats coach Frank Cortazzo lamented. “We don’t want to do that again.” Frankly, who would? “It’s sort of been the...
Veteran players committed to keeping winning culture growing at Deer Lakes
The Deer Lakes football program has forged a culture of winning the past couple of years, which has resulted in trips to the WPIAL playoffs and a great deal of excitement among many in the Lancers athletic community. Tim Burk, Deer Lakes’ eighth-year head coach, said the team members gearing...
1st-year coach looks to get Burrell back to WPIAL playoffs
Winds of change swept through the Burrell football program in the offseason. Shawn Liotta, the Bucs coach for seven seasons who led the program to three WPIAL playoff appearances during his tenure, stepped down in December to enter the Arena Football coaching ranks. Dom Girardi, quite familiar with high school...
