Bill Hartlep stories, Page 36
Waynesburg to ride talented backfield in Tri-County West
The Waynesburg backfield will have some familiar faces in it this fall; they just might not be lined up in the same places. Senior Caleb Shriver will shift from quarterback to tailback, as junior Darnell Johnson moves back under center after recovering from a knee injury that cost him his...
Trib HSSN rewind: A look back at the 2018-19 competitive spirit season
It was a repeat performance for three teams at the WPIAL competitive spirit championships in January. After claiming district titles in 2018, Bethel Park, Elizabeth Forward and Chartiers-Houston again stood atop the podium at the 2019 championship meet. Bethel Park edged Butler by less than half of a point on...
Looking back at the WPIAL’s state champions for 2018-19
PARADE OF CHAMPIONS Here’s a look at state champions from the WPIAL during the 2018-19 school year: Boys basketball Moon (5A) Lincoln Park (3A) Girls basketball Peters Township (6A) Chartiers Valley (5A) Competitive spirit Bethel Park (small division) Butler (coed division) Boys cross country North Allegheny (3A) Greensburg Salem (2A)...
Knoch’s Amanda Fischer named Valley News Dispatch Softball Player of the Year
2019 Valley News Dispatch Softball All-Stars Player of the Year Amanda Fischer, Junior, Pitcher, Knoch Amanda Fischer was one of the WPIAL’s top pitchers this spring. It’s no coincidence her Knoch Knights were one of the district’s top softball teams. The junior right-hander was 13-3 with a 1.73 ERA and...
Penn-Trafford baseball seeks storybook ending at PIAAs
Dan Miller gathered his Warriors in right field at Wild Things Park moments after they watched Pine-Richland receive the WPIAL Class 6A championship trophy. The Rams were celebrating, taking photos and dousing coaches with ice water after a 7-2 victory Thursday that clinched the program’s sixth title. It was in...
WPIAL revises baseball, softball championship schedule for Thursday
Mother Nature wreaked havoc on the WPIAL softball and baseball championships Wednesday afternoon. Thunderstorms and heavy rain drenched the fields at Peterswood Park, forcing WPIAL officials to postpone two softball title games until Thursday. Weather delays nearby at Wild Things Park also led officials to move the third game of...
WPIAL Class 2A softball final preview: Frazier vs. Laurel
WPIAL Class 2A softball championship No. 5 Frazier (17-3) vs. No. 3 Laurel (19-2) Noon, Thursday at Peterswood Park Coaches: Don Hartman, Frazier; Frank Duddy, Laurel Players to watch: Logan Hartman, Jr., P, Frazier; MacKenzie Latess, Sr., 3B, Laurel WPIAL titles: Frazier 1 (2017); Laurel 1 (2018) How they got...
WPIAL Class A softball final preview: West Greene vs. Union
WPIAL Class A softball championship No. 1 West Greene (18-4) vs. No. 3 Union (12-5) Noon Wednesday at Peterswood Park Coaches: Billy Simms, West Greene; Doug Fisher, Union Players to watch: Jade Renner, Jr., P, West Greene; Halaena Blakley, So., P, Union WPIAL titles: West Greene 3 (2016, ‘17, ‘18);...
WPIAL Class 3A softball finals preview: Avonworth vs. Keystone Oaks
WPIAL Class 3A softball championship No. 1 Avonworth (19-2) vs. No. 6 Keystone Oaks (13-4) 2:15 p.m. Wednesday at Peterswood Park Coaches: Jenna Muncie, Avonworth; Mark Kaminski, Keystone Oaks Players to watch: Sarah Helffrich, Sr., P, Avonworth; Sophia Piatt, Sr., 2B, Keystone Oaks WPIAL titles: Avonworth 0; Keystone Oaks 0...
WPIAL Class 5A softball finals preview: Connellsville vs. West Allegheny
WPIAL Class 5A softball championship No. 4 Connellsville (16-6) vs. No. 10 West Allegheny (11-7) 4:30 p.m. Wednesday at Peterswood Park Coaches: John Burd, Connellsville; Mindi McFate, West Allegheny Players to watch: Mia Burd, Sr., P, Connellsville; Britney Wilson, Jr., C, West Allegheny WPIAL titles: Connellsville 1 (1997); West Allegheny...
WPIAL Class 2A baseball final preview: Seton LaSalle vs. Serra Catholic
WPIAL Class 2A baseball championship No. 4 Seton LaSalle (18-2) vs. No. 2 Serra Catholic (20-2) 2:30 p.m. Wednesday at Wild Things Park Coaches: Mike Wagner, Seton LaSalle; Brian Dzurenda, Serra Catholic Players to watch: Drew Lafferty, Fr., P, Seton LaSalle; Mark Black, Jr., C, Serra Catholic WPIAL titles: Seton...
WPIAL Class 3A baseball final preview: Steel Valley vs. Hopewell
WPIAL Class 3A baseball championship No. 4 Steel Valley (12-8) vs. No. 2 Hopewell (15-5) 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Wild Things Park Coaches: Pat Loughran, Steel Valley; Mike Shuleski, Hopewell Players to watch: Mason Haley, Sr., P, Steel Valley; Jake McGovern, Jr., P, Hopewell WPIAL titles: Steel Valley 1 (2014);...
WPIAL Class 5A baseball final preview: Shaler vs. Laurel Highlands
WPIAL Class 5A baseball championship No. 5 Shaler (14-7) vs. No. 6 Laurel Highlands (14-6) 2:30 p.m. Tuesday at Wild Things Park Coaches: Brian Junker, Shaler; Scott DeBerry, Laurel Highlands Players to watch: Hunter Boyan, Jr., P/C, Shaler; Justin Brestensky, Jr., OF, Laurel Highlands WPIAL titles: Shaler 4 (1964, ‘80,...
Westmoreland baseball preview capsules: Games of Wednesday, May 22, 2019
Wednesday’s games Baseball Class 6A 1-Penn-Trafford (17-3) vs. 4-North Allegheny (16-5) 3:30 p.m. at Fox Chapel Winner plays: Winner of No. 2 Pine-Richland (16-4) and No. 3 Bethel Park (15-3) in the championship May 29 at Wild Things Park Coaches: Dan Miller, Penn-Trafford; Andrew Heck, North Allegheny Players to watch:...
Breaking down the 2019 WPIAL softball playoffs
Here’s a breakdown of the 2019 WPIAL softball playoffs: Class 6A Favorite: The top seed in a unique eight-team bracket, North Allegheny opened the season with nine straight victories and finished in a three-way tie for the Section 2 title with Norwin and Hempfield. Norwin and NA swept Hempfield, and...
WPIAL softball rankings for week of May 5, 2019
Here are this week’s Trib HSSN softball rankings: Softball Class 6A Team, record, previous 1. Baldwin, 11-3, 2 2. Bethel Park, 11-3, 1 3. Canon-McMillan, 10-4, — 4. North Allegheny, 12-5, 3 5. Norwin, 11-5, 4 Out: Seneca Valley (12-5, 5) Class 5A 1. Penn-Trafford, 15-0, 1 2. Trinity, 12-2,...
WPIAL softball rankings for week of April 28, 2019
Here’s a look at this week’s Trib HSSN WPIAL softball rankings: Class 6A 1. Bethel Park, 10-1, 1 2. Baldwin, 9-2, 4 3. North Allegheny, 11-3, 2 4. Norwin, 8-4, 3 5. Seneca Valley, 10-4, 5 Out: None Class 5A 1. Penn-Trafford, 12-0, 1 2. Hampton, 12-0, 2 3. Trinity,...
WPIAL softball rankings for week of April 21, 2019
Here are this week’s WPIAL softball rankings: Softball Class 6A Team, record, previous 1. Bethel Park, 9-0, 2 2. North Allegheny, 10-2, 1 3. Norwin, 8-3, 5 4. Baldwin, 8-2, 3 5. Seneca Valley, 9-3, 4 Out: None Class 5A 1. Penn-Trafford, 10-0, 1 2. Hampton, 9-0, 3 3. Latrobe,...
WPIAL softball rankings for week of April 14, 2019
Here’s a look at this week’s WPIAL softball rankings: Softball Class 6A 1. North Allegheny, 8-0, 3 2. Bethel Park, 7-0, 4 3. Baldwin, 7-1, 5 4. Seneca Valley, 7-2, 1 5. Norwin, 6-2, — Out: Canon-McMillan (5-4, 2) Class 5A 1. Penn-Trafford, 7-0, 2 2. Latrobe, 8-1, 1 3....
WPIAL softball rankings for week of April 7, 2019
Here’s a look at this week’s WPIAL softball rankings: Softball Class 6A 1. Seneca Valley, 6-0, 1 2. Canon-McMillan, 5-1, 2 3. North Allegheny, 4-0, 3 4. Bethel Park, 5-0, — 5. Baldwin, 5-1, — Out: Hempfield (3-3, 4), Norwin (3-2, 5) Class 5A 1. Latrobe, 7-0, 2 2. Penn-Trafford,...
WPIAL softball rankings for week of March 30, 2019
Rankings Softball Class 6A Team, record, previous 1. Seneca Valley, 5-0, 2 2. Canon-McMillan, 3-1, 5 3. North Allegheny, 2-0, — 4. Hempfield, 1-2, 1 5. Norwin, 2-1, 3 Out: Baldwin (3-1, 4) Class 5A 1. West Allegheny, 2-0, 1 2. Latrobe, 4-0, 2 3. Penn-Trafford, 2-0, 4 4. Trinity,...
Trib HSSN preseason softball rankings for week of March 24, 2019
Trib HSSN preseason rankings Softball Class 6A 1. Hempfield (24-3) 2. Seneca Valley (12-6) 3. Norwin (12-8) 4. Baldwin (13-6) 5. Canon-McMillan (10-7) Class 5A 1. West Allegheny (23-3) 2. Latrobe (13-5) 3. Albert Gallatin (14-5) 4. Penn-Trafford (16-4) 5. Trinity (13-8) Class 4A 1. Mt. Pleasant (19-2) 2. Yough...
WPIAL Class A softball preseason breakdown
West Greene is coming off back-to-back WPIAL and PIAA titles and finds itself again as the favorite in Class A. Led by a loaded senior class, the Pioneers are “hungry,” according to coach Bill Simms and won’t be “satisfied with past accolades.” That’s unfortunate news for Pioneers’ opponents in Class...
WPIAL Class 2A softball preseason breakdown
Laurel edged Frazier, 1-0, in the WPIAL Class 2A softball title game a year ago to win its first championship. Chartiers-Houston and Mohawk also were WPIAL semifinalists and reached the PIAA playoffs. Mohawk advanced all the way to the state title game before falling to Upper Dauphin. All are expected...
WPIAL Class 3A softball preseason breakdown
History was made a year ago when Southmoreland captured the WPIAL Class 3A softball title for the first time. The Scotties went on to reach the PIAA semifinals to complete their best season. So what will they do for an encore? Can South Park avenge that title-game defeat? What other...

