Michael Love stories, Page 76
Wild Things to host Frontier League All-Star Game
The all-stars of the Frontier League will be coming to Wild Things Park in July. Both the league and the team announced Monday morning a week-long slate of activities leading up to the all-star game July 20. “The Washington Wild Things are planning a truly unprecedented minor-league baseball all-star game...
Alle-Kiski Valley WPIAL basketball playoff capsule for Feb. 28, 2022
Monday’s game Boys Class 5A semifinals 5-Highlands (18-6) vs. 1-Laurel Highlands (23-0) 8 p.m. at AHN Arena, Peters Township Winner plays: Winner of 6-Gateway (15-5)/2-New Castle (22-1) in championship game at 8 p.m. Friday at Petersen Events Center. Layup lines: Highlands is hoping to punch its ticket to a WPIAL...
St. Joseph girls relish another shot at Aquinas after upset
The St. Joseph girls basketball team will get another crack at Aquinas Academy as the Section 3-1A rivals do battle at 6 p.m. Monday at North Hills in the WPIAL semifinals with a trip to Petersen Events Center on the line. Most playoff pundits and other observers probably thought the...
Gateway swimmers chasing medals at WPIAL championships
Before competing in college at Youngstown State, Summer Raymer has one final chance to make her mark on the biggest high school stages in Pennsylvania. The Gateway senior distance swimmer, who will compete in both the 200- and 500-yard freestyles and the 200 and 400 free relays at the WPIAL...
Young Gateway lineup ‘trending in right direction’
The Gateway junior varsity hockey team finished its regular season Feb. 14 with a tough 3-2 loss to Mt. Lebanon. It completed a 3-10-3 run, and while that record might not look inspiring at face value, coach Shawn Jesih said a closer look reveals marked improvement for a roster with...
Plum’s Kvortek celebrates PA Classic all-around title
Sarah Kvortek returned to the top of the podium in the Intermediate I (Gold) division at the WPIAL gymnastics championships Feb. 12 at Moon High School. The Plum junior claimed her second WPIAL individual title in as many seasons — this time on vault — and added a silver medal...
PIAA-playoff bound Knoch beats Montour in WPIAL Class 4A semifinals
The Knoch girls basketball team will play in the WPIAL Class 4A semifinals for the second straight season. After a 15-day break from competition, the No. 3 Knights opened the playoffs in the quarterfinals Friday night and scored a 67-48 home victory over No. 6 Montour. “We had our two...
Fox Chapel freshman has eyes on PIAA diving qualification
Jackson Hagler quickly established himself as a qualifier for the WPIAL Class AAA diving championships. With that berth already secured, the Fox Chapel freshman continued to work on his craft, and he recorded a season-best score of 247.95 at a section meet with Penn Hills on Jan. 20. Now, he...
Gateway’s Passalinqua aims for success at WPIAL diving championships
Noah Passalinqua established himself as a major player in Class 3A boys diving throughout the season, and now he hopes to make his mark on a championship stage. The Gateway junior will make his WPIAL meet debut Saturday at North Allegheny High School. He is seeded seventh overall with goals...
A-K Valley WPIAL basketball playoff preview capsules: Games of Friday, Feb. 25, 2022
BOYS Class 4A Quarterfinals 7-Pine-Richland (12-11) at 2-Fox Chapel (21-1) 7 p.m. Friday Winner plays: Winner of 6-Butler (13-9)/3-Central Catholic (17-5) Tuesday in semifinals (site and time TBD) Layup lines: Pine-Richland had no trouble with No. 10 Bethel Park in a 64-41 first-round victory. Joey Dudkowski, who came into the...
Montour shakes off rust, pulls away from Burrell in Class 4A quarterfinals
The Montour boys basketball team is moving on. The Spartans, the No. 2 seed in the WPIAL Class 4A playoffs, overcame an early challenge from No. 7 Burrell in Wednesday’s quarterfinal matchup and went on to a 70-50 home victory. The game was Montour’s first in 12 days. Burrell came...
A-K Valley WPIAL basketball playoff preview capsules: Games of Thursday, Feb. 24, 2022
BOYS Class 5A Quarterfinals 5-Highlands (17-6) at 4-Penn Hills (18-4) 7 p.m. Thursday Winner plays: 8-Hampton (13-10) at 1-Laurel Highlands (22-0) Monday in semifinals (site and time TBD) Layup lines: Highlands is coming off a dominating 76-40 victory over Albert Gallatin in the first round Monday. Jimmy Kunst scored 24...
Plum trio set to represent Boyce Gym in Golden Gloves bouts
Salvatore “Dom” Sheffo started sparring with his uncle a little over a year ago. “We would hit pads for fun,” said Sheffo, 17, a senior at Plum High School. The former Mustangs wrestler took the relaxed sparring sessions and turned it up a notch in August as he began training...
Alle-Kiski Valley WPIAL basketball playoff capsules for Feb. 23, 2022
Wednesday’s games Boys Quarterfinals Class 4A 7-Burrell (14-8) at 2-Montour (18-4) 7 p.m. Wednesday Winner plays: Winner of 11-Freeport (13-9)/3-Belle Vernon (18-3) in semifinals on Saturday (site and time TBD) Layup lines: Burrell kicked off the WPIAL playoffs in successful fashion Friday with a 63-42 victory over No. 10 Elizabeth...
St. Joseph girls halt playoff losing streak
The St. Joseph girls basketball team is back in the WPIAL postseason win column. The youthful Spartans, with just one senior on their roster, halted a three-game playoff losing streak dating to 2018 with a 45-37 victory over Mapletown on Monday in a Class A first-round game at Gateway High...
Alle-Kiski Valley WPIAL basketball playoff capsules for Feb. 22, 2022
Boys First round Class 2A 9-Sto-Rox (11-7) at 8-Springdale (11-11) 7 p.m. Tuesday Winner plays: Winner of 1-Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (19-0)/16-Chartiers-Houston (9-13) on Friday in quarterfinals (site, time TBD) Layup lines: Sto-Rox finished in third place in Section 2 behind co-champions Fort Cherry and Carlynton. The Vikings...
A-K Valley WPIAL basketball playoff capsules for Feb. 21, 2022
Monday’s games Boys First round Class 5A 9-Kiski Area (15-7) at 8-Hampton (12-10) 7 p.m. Monday Winner plays: Winner of 1-Laurel Highlands (21-0)/16-Woodland Hills (8-14) on Thursday in quarterfinals Layup lines: Kiski Area already tripled its win total from a year ago under first-year coach Corey Smith, who played for...
Gateway grad Evan Whiteside claims PAC title, advances to NCAA tournament
Evan Whiteside is on a roll. The Gateway graduate and 125-pound starter in the Thiel College wrestling lineup is enjoying a breakout first collegiate season. He hopes the momentum built throughout the season, including the Presidents’ Athletic Conference title won Feb. 12, will lead him to big things at Friday...
First trip to PIAA meet memorable for Plum competitive spirit squad
The Plum competitive spirit team made a long journey this season from a spring and summer of training all the way through to its first appearance on biggest high school stage for the sport in Pennsylvania. Along the way, coach Amanda Anderson, in her fifth season with Plum, said the...
Plum trio blazing trail for girls wrestling in district
High school girls wrestling in Pennsylvania is gaining momentum on a weekly basis. In December, North Allegheny and Canon-McMillan faced off in the first-ever girls dual match between WPIAL schools. At around the same time, Kiski Area became the 31st school in Pennsylvania to sign on to the movement to...
Gateway girls hope strong finish provides momentum for next season
Despite not having the entire season it wanted, the Gateway girls basketball team finished on a positive note with three wins over its final four games. The finish was something coach Curtis Williams hoped to see and was something the returning team members can build on going into the offseason....
Excitement growing for WPIAL swimming’s return to Pitt
When Penn-Trafford swim coach Dave Babik took over as the WPIAL swimming and diving chairman at the start of this school year, he knew he would have a lot on his plate. Near the top of that list was the when, the where and the format for the upcoming WPIAL...
Deer Lakes boys get playoff win in final seconds
Justin Brannagan’s final field-goal attempt in the final home game of his varsity career ended up being a shot he will remember for the rest of his life. His Deer Lakes teammates, coaches, classmates and the rest of the Lancers faithful who witnessed Friday’s WPIAL Class 4A first-round game against...
A-K Valley WPIAL basketball playoff capsules for Feb. 18, 2022
Boys Class 4A First round 9-Blackhawk (12-9) at 8-Deer Lakes (15-5) 7 p.m. Friday Winner plays: At 1-Quaker Valley (20-0), 7 p.m. Wednesday in quarterfinals Lay-up lines: At 7-7, the Cougars finished fourth in competitive Section 2, behind Quaker Valley, Montour and Lincoln Park. They lost three of four games...
Knoch girls basketball seniors gear up for final ride
Maddie Boyer, Mackenzie McGraw and Lily Hawk have been friends and basketball teammates since fourth grade. The three Knoch seniors admit they have come a long way on a journey that has brought them to a last hurrah and a chance to make history before they graduate. “It’s been a...
