Paul Schofield stories, Page 64
PIAA wrestling committee considering WPIAL proposal to change state qualifying process
Here’s a lesson everyone has heard: Don’t always believe what you read on social media. After the PIAA Wrestling Steering committee met March 30, reports surfaced that the committee was considering going to four classifications. WPIAL committee member Frank Vulcano Jr. said that wasn’t even discussed, and a lot of...
Penn-Trafford wrestler Hohman goes out on a high note
Penn-Trafford’s Troy Hohman didn’t reach his goal of being a PIAA Class 3A champion, but the senior did end his high school career on a high note. In winning the seventh-place match at the PIAA championship March 13 at Giant Center in Hershey, Hohman earned his 100th career victory. He...
2022 Valley News Dispatch Wrestling All-Stars
Calio Zanella Burrell, fr., 113 pounds 2021-22 record: 29-15 Overall record: 29-15 Helped the Bucs reach the WPIAL Class 2A team finals. He placed fifth in the WPIAL tournament and qualified for the PIAA Southwest Regional, where he went 1-2. He was one of the better freshmen in the A-K...
2022 Tribune-Review Westmoreland County Wrestling All-Stars
Ty Kapusta Franklin Regional, so., 106 pounds 2021-22 record: 32-9 Career record: 43-15 The Panthers sophomore finished third in the WPIAL and fourth in the PIAA in Class 3A. He reached the state semifinals before falling to Bethlehem Catholic’s Nathan Desmond. His biggest win in the state tournament was a...
Mt. Pleasant’s Dayton Pitzer named Tribune-Review Westmoreland County Wrestler of Year for 3rd time
Mt. Pleasant senior Dayton Pitzer finished off quite a wrestling career by becoming a three-time WPIAL and PIAA Class 2A champion. The Pitt commit did it in impressive fashion, pinning his way to the title with 12 consecutive falls. He made into the second period during the run just once...
Franklin Regional hockey suffers heartbreaking loss in Penguins Cup final
“Heartbreaking” is the best word to describe the feelings of the Franklin Regional hockey team. The Panthers were 17 minutes away from their third Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League Class 2A Penguins Cup title. They were leading No. 1 seed Thomas Jefferson by four goals after playing two dominating periods. But...
Youthful Yough softball team expecting big season
A coach with a roster filled with sophomore and freshmen should be full of uncertainty. Not Yough softball coach Art “Dutch” Harvey. He is excited about the upcoming season. Harvey has only one senior and one junior on his 13-player roster. “The goal is to contend of the WPIAL (Class...
Finding pitchers will be key if Yough baseball team is to succeed
When Yough opens the baseball season Friday against Jeannette, the biggest thing Cougars coach Craig Spisak will be looking at is who will compose his pitching staff. Yough graduated its top two pitchers — Vinny Martin and Sean Royer — so Spisak is searching for who will compile the most...
Pitt recruits dominate state team for Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic
Three future Pitt wrestlers were among the 13 selected for Team Pennsylvania at the annual Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic slated for Friday at Peters Township. Four WPIAL wrestlers, three winning PIAA titles, are featured on the team that will take on Team USA at 8 p.m. Three-time WPIAL and PIAA champion...
Neshannock edges Bishop Canevin to win PIHL Division 2 title
Gio Valentine went end-to-end and scored a power play goal with 9 minutes, 23 seconds left and Neshannock defeated Bishop Canevin, 2-1, in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League Division 2 championship Tuesday at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry It was the second consecutive title for Neshannock (15-4-2), while...
Thomas Jefferson rallies past Franklin Regional to win Class 2A Penguins Cup title in OT
Scotty Allan picked a great time to score his first goal of the playoffs. Allan scored 46 seconds into overtime, and Thomas Jefferson rallied for the second time in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League playoffs to defeat Franklin Regional 6-5, in the Class 2A Penguins Cup championship game Tuesday at...
Penn-Trafford softball team is reloading for another title run
If the Penn-Trafford softball team’s first scrimmage was any indication, the power lost by graduation will be minimal. The Warriors pounded out seven home runs against Plum, which surprised coach Denny Little. Penn-Trafford isn’t rebuilding. It’s just reloading. “We still have girls who have power,” Little said. “We have some...
Finding pitchers to replace 6 who graduated key for Penn-Trafford baseball team
Most baseball coaches would be concerned after the bulk of their pitching staff graduated. But not Penn-Trafford coach Dan Miller. He is excited to see what players are ready to step up and fill the holes left by the six graduates: Riley Bellan, Trevor Wilson, Tyler Hoover, Zach Hoffman, Tommy...
Franklin Regional learns lesson, returns to finals
The Franklin Regional hockey team learned a valuable lesson when it played South Fayette in the PIHL Class 2A semifinals March 15: don’t underestimate your opponent. Despite routing the Lions, 7-2, during the regular season, the Panthers (18-2) faced a different foe and needed some late-game heroics to pull out...
Mt. Pleasant baseball team ready to see ‘what happens’
The Mt. Pleasant baseball team missed the WPIAL Class 3A baseball playoffs last season by one game. The Vikings look to change that this season. Mt. Pleasant coach Chris Firmstone said he’s optimistic about his team. The Vikings were 6-7 overall and 3-7 in Section 3-3A a year ago. Ligonier...
Despite turnover, Mt. Pleasant softball looking to defend WPIAL, PIAA titles
Mt. Pleasant softball coach Chris Brunson said he’d be doing his team a disservice if he didn’t expect big things from them. So the goals for the Vikings are simple: win the section, qualify for the WPIAL playoffs, win another WPIAL title and then a second consecutive PIAA title. Mt....
With Griffin back, Ligonier Valley softball team looks to make another run
Ligonier Valley’s first season in the WPIAL was a memorable one for the softball team. The Rams (22-3) won their section, reached the WPIAL Class 2A semifinals and made it to their first PIAA championship, losing to Line Mountain, 1-0, in nine innings. “Us being new to the WPIAL and...
New Ligonier Valley baseball coach has high expectations
Ligonier Valley has a new man coaching the baseball team, and he brings a lot of experience. Jason Bush, who is the coach of the Latrobe American Legion team and was an assistant at Chatham, takes over after Brett Marabito resigned to become an assistant principal at Ligonier Valley. Bush...
TJ’s Bilski nets hat trick, FR’s Knizner scores OT winner in Penguins Cup semifinals
Thomas Jefferson scored four second-period goals, including a hat trick by Colby Bilski, and skated past Penn-Trafford, 6-2, in the PIHL Cup Class 2A semifinals Tuesday at the Robert Morris University Island Sports Center. . The victory puts the Jaguars in the Penguins Cup championship game against Franklin Regional on...
Hempfield baseball ready to make another run after reaching WPIAL finals
If there was one thing that stood out about the 2021 Hempfield baseball team, it was solid pitching. With the WPIAL’s new pitching rules, playing section games on back-to-back days, the Spartans had the luxury of being deep on the mound. Hempfield finished 16-9 overall and tied with Norwin with...
New leader, same expectations for Hempfield softball team
While there will be a new captain running the Hempfield softball ship this season, first-year coach Tina Madison said the expectations of the program will remain the same. Madison replaces legendary coach Bob Kalp, who retired after the 2021 season after coaching the Spartans for the past 25 seasons and...
2 from WPIAL earn silver medals at state girls wrestling championships
The 2022 MyHouse Pennsylvania Girls High School State Championship was held Sunday at Cumberland Valley High School. The tournament drew nearly 300 wrestlers from 115 schools. The WPIAL had two second-place finishers: Canon-McMillan’s Chloe Ault (136 pounds) and North Allegheny’s Leyna Rumpler (148). Five others earned medals for finishing in...
Burrell’s Hornack finishes fourth, Kiski Area’s Morlacci sixth at PIAA wrestling tournament
HERSHEY — It was an up-and-down PIAA Class 2A wrestling championship for Burrell sophomore Cooper Hornack. There were many highs and a few lows as Hornack ended the tournament with a fourth-place finish in the 120-pound weight class. He dropped a 1-0 decision to Bald Eagle Area junior Coen Bainey....
Latrobe’s Kilkeary, Waynesburg’s Church celebrate 2nd wrestling titles
HERSHEY — Again, the WPIAL showed its might at the PIAA Class 3A wrestling championships. The WPIAL had seven champions, the most by any district in the state, and a total of 33 earned medals over the three-day tournament at Giant Center. Winning their second PIAA titles were Latrobe junior...
Mt. Pleasant’s Dayton Pitzer claims 3rd PIAA title with 100th career pin
HERSHEY — A ritual for Dayton Pitzer after a match is to run sprints. Even after he captured his third PIAA Class 2A title with a first-period pin Saturday at Giant Center, Pitzer was in the hallway running. “I have to keep my cardio up for the (Pittsburgh) classic,” Pitzer...
