Other Local category, Page 56
Former Seton Hill WR Leatherbury signs with Arizona Cardinals
Shane Leatherbury, who played one season at Seton Hill in Greensburg, is set to embark on a professional football career. Leatherbury, who was a freshman for the Griffins in 2015, signed a free agent contract with Arizona Cardinals. After a year in Greensburg, Leatherbury transferred to Towson. There, the Salisbury,...
Beadling SC joins the Girls Academy League
Beadling SC, an established soccer club in Western Pennsylvania, is starting to gain traction as one of the top clubs in the country. On Friday, Beadling announced that it would be joining the newly formed Girls Academy League as a part of its inaugural Mid-America conference for the upcoming 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...
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....
Ligonier racer Garrett Smithley experiences iRacing successVideo
Over the past two months, sports leagues around the world have had to find a way to adapt because of the the coronavirus pandemic. Most leagues have suspended play. Some have brainstormed ways to restart their seasons, and others have come up with completely new ways to play their sports...
Long-snapper Michael Pifer hopes for NFL Draft call
Could a surprise pick in the NFL Draft be … wait for it … a local long-snapper? Michael Pifer is one of the best at the position in the country, and the former Navy standout could hear his name called in the mid- to-late rounds or perhaps draw a free...
David ‘Rooster’ Fleming: Hazelwood legend, CFL star signed with Steelers out of high school
Rooster Fleming would have been a Hazelwood legend — if not for his cocksure nickname then for signing straight out of Gladstone High School to play for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Rooster befriended Paul Martha and roomed with Joe Namath, scored on a record 108-yard touchdown and won weightlifting competitions into...
Monroeville’s Ahmad Matour hopes for shot at Mr. Olympia title
Ahmad Matour hopes to compete in the Mr. Olympia bodybuilding competition in September. The 26-year-old Monroeville resident and native of Jordan punched his ticket to the prestigious annual competition in Las Vegas with a strong showing last month at the Arnold Classic in Columbus, Ohio. But as the coronavirus pandemic...
PA West Soccer Association cancels spring season
Another sports league has been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. On Wednesday night, the Pennsylvania West State Soccer Association’s Youth Board decided because of different contributing factors surrounding the state-at-home order issued in Pennsylvania, the 2020 spring soccer season has been canceled. “Our youth board decided to cancel a...
American Legion baseball season canceled by state commander
American Legion baseball season officially was canceled across Pennsylvania on Monday, but Jason Bush isn’t ruling out playing games later this summer. The Region 7 director and president of District 31 in Westmoreland County is trying to organize a one-year league that could provide the players a welcomed return to...
Local fighter Khama Worthy disappointed by UFC cancellation
UFC president Dana White received a great deal of criticism for being the last major professional sports figure to resist canceling events because of the coronavirus pandemic. He didn’t call off UFC 249, which was scheduled for Saturday, until last Thursday. None of that criticism came from local fighter Khama...
Displaced marathoners hope to reach their goals virtually
In Erin Donahue’s mind, 2020 was the year it would happen. She had been training diligently. She felt good. She would reach her goal to complete the Pittsburgh Marathon in under four hours. Donahue, a distance runner since her days at Blackhawk, had been running at least 30 hours a...
Hempfield’s Christian Gorscak becomes junior hockey star, wins NAHL MVP in Johnstown
Johnstown Tomahawks coach Mike Letizia had plenty of words to describe Hempfield product Christian Gorscak. Humble, determined, talented, confident, consistent, coachable, leader. Now you can add two more words — most valuable. Gorscak was named MVP of the North American Hockey League last week, capping off a coronavirus-shortened season where...
Lernerville Speedway cancels opening night races
Dirt-track racing season will have to wait, as the coronavirus outbreak has halted another part of the local sports world. Lernerville Speedway in Sarver canceled its opening-night festivities, which were scheduled for April 24. Test and tune sessions scheduled for April 10 and 17 also were canceled. “With respect to...
Frontier League, Washington Wild Things postpone start of season
The Frontier League announced Wednesday that the start of its season will officially be delayed by the coronavirus pandemic. The Washington Wild Things, members of the league since 2002, were scheduled to open their season May 15-17 with a three-game series against the New York Boulders in Rockland County, N.Y....
Moon Township’s Khama Worthy pursuing UFC dreams even as global pandemic rages
As event after event was wiped off the professional sports docket by the coronavirus pandemic, one entry remained as if it had been scribbled on the calendar in permanent marker. UFC 249. April 18. Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Tony Ferguson. It is one of the biggest fights of the year in...
Penguins Elite’s Cooley named to U.S. National Team
Eleven years ago, Logan Cooley began playing hockey in Sidney Crosby’s Little Penguins program. After years of training and improvement, Cooley will get a chance to compete with some of the top players in the country. The forward from West Mifflin has been named to the U.S. National Team Development...
Shut out by the Pittsburgh Marathon, three friends plan after-hours run near North Park
Jeff Gleason anticipated the first question — “How stupid are you guys?” — before it could be asked. Perhaps that’s a bit harsh, until you’re made aware that Gleason and his buddies, Wayne Kurtz and Bill Thompson, are planning to run a self-styled Pittsburgh Marathon, starting out at 1 a.m....
Swin Cash’s induction into Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame delayed until 2021
McKeesport’s Swin Cash must wait another year for her induction into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame’s Board of Directors and Management team announced Tuesday that the 2020 induction ceremony scheduled for June 13 has been postponed because of the coronavirus outbreak and will be rescheduled...
Alle-Kiski Valley Hall of Fame banquet canceled
Member of the Alle-Kiski Valley Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2020 will be recognized for their accomplishments. Just not this year. The 51st annual induction ceremony, scheduled for May 16, was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. The inductees will be honored at next year’s banquet, set for May...
Local Little Leagues can do little but hope season isn’t lost to coronavirus outbreak
Picture clouds of dust behind a tractor dragging the infield. The smell of freshly cut outfield grass. A perfectly lined batter’s box and baselines. Half a dozen coaches crowding the diamond, offering instruction, encouragement or correction. Cheers from parents, grandparents and siblings in crowded bleachers. In the middle of it...
Sewickley swimmers find consolation after state meet called off
Members of the Sewickley Valley YMCA swimming team like to go for treats at the Penn State Berkey Creamery after competing in the Pennsylvania YMCA championship. When this year’s meet was called off because of concerns over the possible spread of the coronavirus, Sea Dragon coach Paula Kwalick planned a...
Penn-Trafford swimmer disappointed by canceled YMCA meet
After setting two district records, Greensburg YMCA swimmer Patton Graziano looked forward to competing in the Pennsylvania YMCA State Swimming Championship at Penn State. But the meet was canceled because of concerns over the possible spread of the coronavirus. “I am very disappointed I don’t have a chance to swim,”...
No banquet this year, but YWCA announces sportswomen of the year winners
The YWCA of Westmoreland County canceled its annual awards banquet set for April 7 because of the coronavirus outbreak and has closed its doors until at least April 1. But that did not stop the organization’s tradition of recognizing some of the top female athletes and teams in the county....
With USL Championship season suspended, Riverhounds set to meet challenges
Originally suspended for 30 days, the 2020 USL Championship season has now been extended through May 10 because of health concerns surrounding the spread of the coronavirus, the USL Championship’s Board of Governors announced Wednesday. Even after the original postponement, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds still held practices in order to stay...
