Bill Beckner stories

A surprise semifinal matchup Tuesday night will mark the fourth meeting of the season between a pair of Westmoreland County baseball teams. No. 4 seed Norwin (13-8) will take on No. 8 Hempfield (9-12) at 7 p.m. at Boyce-Mayview Park in Upper St. Clair for a spot in the WPIAL...

Though his playing career appears to be entering its twilight years, Austin Butler’s coaching career is just stepping into the jump circle. Butler, the former Latrobe basketball star who played for two Division I programs and professionally overseas, was hired Monday night to be the next coach at Hempfield. Butler,...

Put the ball in play. It sounds simple enough, and Norwin believes it is the key to overtaking Seneca Valley in the WPIAL 6A semifinals. The Knights (10-11) will take on No. 2 seed Seneca Valley (15-3) and ace flamethrower Lexie Hames at 4 p.m. Tuesday at North Allegheny for...

Usually, it is Latrobe finding ways to win one-run baseball games. But it was top-seeded Pine-Richland that captured some late drama against the Wildcats on Monday in the WPIAL Class 5A quarterfinals, using a last-inning rally to win its second straight one-run game and advance in the playoffs. Drew Boivin...

If Warren Schaeffer can achieve his dream, so can anybody from Greensburg Central Catholic. The former Centurions star’s meteoric rise in the Colorado Rockies’ coaching ranks has caught the attention of the current team just in time for the WPIAL Class A playoffs. Schaeffer, who helped lead GCC to a...

WPIAL softball playoffs Class 3A Quarterfinals 7-Southmoreland (10-7) vs. 2-Mohawk (13-5) 3 p.m. Monday at Montour Winner plays: Winner of 6-McGuffey (11-5)/3-Ellwood City (10-8) Wednesday in semifinals (time, site TBD) Players to watch: Zoey Murphy, Southmoreland; Lydia Cole, Mohawk Extra bases: Southmoreland, a perennial playoff contender, rallied several times to...

After a spike in interest for the boys underclassmen games, organizers of the Roundball Classic all-star basketball weekend decided to add girls games this year. “We’ve had a fabulous response,” lead organizer Allen Deep said. The showcase games will feature top players in grades nine through 11 who play in...

It is just a matter of time before girls flag football is a fully sanctioned PIAA sport, complete with district and state championships. Latrobe is one of the local club teams preparing to field a team in the WPIAL for 2025-26. It appears to be in good standing with the...

Austin Butler used to enjoy playing basketball against Hempfield. The high-scoring guard from Latrobe had some intense games against the Spartans. Now, he could be coaching them. According to the school board agenda for Monday’s meeting, Hempfield will vote to hire Butler as boys basketball coach. If approved, the 26-year-old...

Watching Anthony Grippo bat for Greensburg Central Catholic is an event. It starts before he even steps over the chalk and into the box. His routine is detailed. There is the little hip wiggle and the double-chop motion he makes toward right-center field —he assures pitchers don’t want his spray...

The Pittsburgh Riveters put the finishing touches on their first roster a day before the pre-professional women’s soccer team kicks off its inaugural season. Riveters SC continued to build with local players from the Riverhounds Development Academy, adding Aris Lamanna (Franklin Regional), Mackenzie Dupre (Upper St. Clair) and Aleena Ulke...

The darlings of the WPIAL 6A softball playoffs are at it again. And underdog Norwin has “Smiley Miley” to thank for its latest upset. Junior Miley Harrison wasn’t even sure if she would play in the Knights’ playoff opener, but she came up clutch when her name was called to...

WPIAL softball playoffs Class 6A Quarterfinals 6-Norwin (9-11) vs. 3-North Allegheny (12-7) 2 p.m. Wednesday at Fox Chapel Winner plays: 2-Seneca Valley (15-3) in semifinals Players to watch: Diem Wardzinski, Norwin; Sammy Plotsko, North Allegheny Extra bases: Norwin made an unforeseen run to the finals last year as a No....

Former Greensburg Central Catholic girls basketball player Brittany Stawovy was hired as an assistant women’s basketball coach at Division III Washington & Lee in Lexington, Va. Stawovy coached the last two years at Kenyon after two years as a graduate assistant at Division II Seton Hill, where she earned a...

WPIAL softball playoffs Class 3A First round 5-Mt. Pleasant (11-5) vs. 12-Keystone Oaks (8-8) 5 p.m. Tuesday at Waynesburg University Winner plays: 4-Avonworth (14-4) in quarterfinals Players to watch: Gia Stanek, Mt. Pleasant; Kennadi Smith, Keystone Oaks Extra bases: Mt. Pleasant, led by first-year coach Paul Reho, won the Section...

John DePalma’s message to his girls before Derry took the field for the WPIAL softball playoffs was simple. “It’s just softball,” the coach said. But there is softball, and there is playoff softball, and Derry still is relatively new to the latter. After all, the Trojans had only one playoff...

The Colorado Rockies’ firing of longtime manager Bud Black means a former WPIAL product will try to get the club back on track. Warren Schaeffer, a native of Vandergrift and a Greensburg Central Catholic alum, was named interim manager Sunday. He had been the third base coach since 2023. Schaeffer,...

Uniontown’s new football coach is Tim Bukowski, who was the lead man at Southmoreland for three seasons before resigning in December. He replaces Keith Jeffries, who stepped down after four seasons and a 15-20 record. Bukowski spent seven seasons overall with Southmoreland, four as an assistant, and helped the Scotties...

With the WPIAL Class 3A track and field championships approaching, several Franklin Regional athletes went to the Pine-Richland Invitational to stay sharp. Sean Cartwright finished fifth in the 110-meter hurdles in 14.86 seconds to pace the Panthers. The boys 400-meter relay came in eighth (44.39). Caroline Shirley was the top...

The Norwin softball team is headed to the WPIAL 6A playoffs again. The Knights (8-10) finished 8-8 in section and had one nonsection game left, at Class 5A No. 1 Penn-Trafford on May 8, before the postseason. Norwin picked up late-season wins over Mt. Lebanon and North Hills after snapping...

It is rare, but it does happen. The WPIAL usually steers clear of matching section opponents in the first round of the playoffs. Rematches are better suited for the latter rounds, the league believes. But an exception was made for the Class 4A softball tournament. And nobody was more surprised...

The WPIAL will announce seedings and pairings for the softball playoffs Thursday afternoon. Westmoreland County is a hotbed for softball talent and like most years will be well-represented in the postseason. Local qualifiers include Hempfield and Norwin in Class 6A; Penn-Trafford, Franklin Regional and Latrobe in 5A; Derry, Greensburg Salem...

The WPIAL will announce baseball playoff seedings and opening-round pairings Friday. The local field of qualifiers is just about set. It includes: Norwin and Hempfield in Class 6A; Penn-Trafford, Latrobe and Franklin Regional in 5A; Belle Vernon, Derry and Greensburg Salem in 4A; Mt. Pleasant and Burrell in 3A; and...

A breakthrough season in the circle led conference coaches to circle her name on the ballot. Seton Hill rookie pitcher Shelby Telegdy was named the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West Division Freshman of the Year. A dual-threat who did more than get batters out, Telegdy went 12-9 with a 3.32...

The Norwin girls track and field team made quick work of its opponents in the WPIAL Class 3A semifinals to continue an impressive run of success. The Lady Knights advanced to the finals for the eighth straight time since 2017. There was no season in 2020. This could be the...