High School category, Page 197
Greensburg CC girls volleyball looking to complete goal with state championship
When the Greensburg Central Catholic girls volleyball set goals for the 2024 season, winning a PIAA title was not one of them. “They wanted to reach the WPIAL championship game and win,” GCC coach Erin Salas said. “Now they have reset those goals. They want to win the PIAA title.”...
Trib HSSN game-by-game playoff previews for 2024 Week 12
The third weekend of the WPIAL football playoffs brings more clarity than confusion. Semifinal Friday consists of eight final four matchups to determine the finalists in Class 5A, 3A, 2A and A next week. Championship Saturday consists of two district title games that will crown winners in Class 6A and...
Through the Years: 87-yard run sparked Freeport to playoff win in ’84
Each week throughout the high school football season, the Valley News Dispatch will take a look at the players, coaches and events that shaped our scholastic history. Freeport scored a pair of second-half touchdowns, including Jim Charlton’s decisive 87-yard run midway through the fourth quarter, to defeat Serra Catholic, 14-6,...
2024 PIAA Class 3A boys soccer championship preview: Moon vs. Radnor
Radnor (20-3) vs. Moon (25-0) 10 a.m. Friday at Eagle View MS, Mechanicsburg On the air: PCN-TV Seeds: Radnor 1-1; Moon 7-1 How they got here: Radnor defeated Kennard Dale, 3-0, in the first round; Archbishop Ryan, 4-1, in the quarterfinals; and Dallas, 3-0, in the semifinals. Moon beat Lampeter...
2024 PIAA Class A boys soccer championship preview: Bentworth vs. Lancaster Mennonite
PIAA Class A boys soccer championship Lancaster Mennonite (16-3-3) vs. Bentworth (22-0) 4 p.m. Friday at Eagle View MS, Mechanicsburg On the air: PCN-TV Seeds: Lancaster Mennonite 3-2; Bentworth 7-1 How they got here: Lancaster Mennonite defeated Calvary Christian, 2-0, in the first round; Wyoming Seminary, 2-1, in the quarterfinals;...
Veteran coach aims to get most out of Deer Lakes girls
Dana Petruska feels back at home for a couple of reasons. Being in a high school gym working with high school basketball players is a natural environment for Petruska, who’s amassed more than 500 wins in her 35-year career, and she’s doing so in a familiar spot. After taking some...
Westmoreland County high school football notebook: Colleges taking note of Penn-Trafford running back Tasso Whipple
Penn-Trafford senior Tasso Whipple is beginning to experience the college recruiting process. Some in his circle might say it’s about time. Whipple, a 6-foot-1, 190-pound running back and outside linebacker raked in two college offers this week, from a Division I and II program. His first D-I offer came in...
Greensburg Central Catholic girls move up in class while hunting for another WPIAL title
Greensburg Central Catholic won’t get to defend its WPIAL 2A girls basketball championship. In view of the fact it was bumped up in classification, it will be ring-chasing in Class 3A. The Centurions were subject to the PIAA’s competitive balance formula — based on two consecutive PIAA semifinal appearances and...
With deep roster, Greensburg Central Catholic boys have WPIAL title hopes
With the most seniors he’s had and what could be his deepest rotation, Greensburg Central Catholic boys basketball coach Christian Hyland expects his team to make another postseason run. Another championship run could lie ahead. “We want to get back to the finals and get another shot,” Hyland said. “There...
Coaches from variety of backgrounds come together to lead Jeannette on playoff run
Jeannette first-year assistant football coach Dustin Shoaf is a school teacher at Yough, his alma mater and a place where he is the all-time leader in rushing yards. He also works on his family’s farm, so he knows an interesting crop when he sees one. Like the crop of coaches...
2-time defending WPIAL champion Deer Lakes hopes to keep train rolling
Winning consecutive WPIAL championships not only adds to the trophy case at the high school, but it also creates the potential for a self-sustaining foundation. Deer Lakes boys basketball coach Albie Fletcher has seen that come to fruition after the Lancers won WPIAL titles each of the last two years,...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for Nov. 13, 2024
High school Field hockey PIAA tournament Championship At Cumberland Valley Saturday’s schedule Class 3A Villa Maria Academy (24-1) vs. Conestoga (21-3), 3 p.m. Class 2A Northern York (22-3) vs. Warwick (22-1), 1 p.m. Class A Boiling Springs (20-5) vs. West Perry (23-0), 11 a.m. Football WPIAL Class 6A Championship Saturday’s...
4 Mt. Pleasant swimmers sign with Division I programs
Mt. Pleasant swimming coach Sandy Felice has had swimmers sign NCAA Division I scholarships before. But not four in one year. On the first day of the early signing period Wednesday, seniors Lily King (N.C. State), Joseph Gardner (Pitt), Kierstin O’Connor (Connecticut) and David Mutter (Alabama) inked their scholarships. “This...
Despite graduation losses, Cheswick Christian boys set goals high
It was mission accomplished last season for the Cheswick Christian Academy boys basketball team. After losing in the Southwest Christian Conference title game at the end of the 2022-23 season, last year’s seniors made it their sole objective to get back and win. “It was a great experience for everyone...
Cheswick Christian girls basketball team looks to build off last season’s division title
The Cheswick Christian Academy girls basketball team knows what it’s about, and that’s functioning as a five-person unit instead of relying on a few stars to get victories. With a small roster, like this season’s that is dominated by sophomores, freshman and grade-schoolers, embracing that team mentality can go a...
Trib 10: 3 pairs of power-ranked teams to clash this weekend
The power-ranked teams flexed their muscles again in the second weekend of the WPIAL football playoffs with nine of the 10 winning and advancing to Semifinals Friday or Championship Saturday. The only team ousted was the team that was on top of the Trib 10 for the first month-plus of...
PIAA football postseason set to commence
The journey to Cumberland Valley kicks off this weekend with the start of the 2024 PIAA football playoffs. It’s a merger of the district and state playoffs. Most districts will be hosting their championship or semifinals on Friday or Saturday, while other district champions have been crowned and the focus...
Perfect season within reach for 2 WPIAL teams at PIAA boys soccer championships
Two WPIAL boys soccer teams are headed east on Friday to play for state gold in the 2024 PIAA boys soccer championships. Both Moon in 3A and Bentworth in Class A are not only in search of their first state championship in boys soccer, they are also one win from...
Championship field set for 2024 PIAA girls soccer finals
With three rounds in the books in the 2024 PIAA girls soccer playoffs, only one team from the WPIAL is still alive heading into the state finals. With Mars, Quaker Valley and Seton LaSalle all falling in the semifinals, only Springdale in Class A will be representing District 7 and...
3 WPIAL teams to vie for PIAA girls volleyball championships
Eight years ago, the WPIAL had three teams win PIAA girls volleyball championships as North Allegheny in Class 4A, Knoch in 3A and Freeport in 2A all brought home state gold in 2017. The district will try to match that record success as three teams from the WPIAL are headed...
Strong returning cast sparks optimism in Franklin Regional girls program
The thought of hanging a section banner on the wall brings a smile to Bernie Pucka’s face. It almost makes him giddy. He hunts pheasant and deer, but he would love to bag a section. “That would be … incredible,” the fourth-year coach of the Franklin Regional girls basketball team...
The Birdie gives props to Jeannette’s last men standing, makes semifinal pick
Last week: 3-0 (100%) Season: 101-34 (74.8%) And then there was one. The Birdie is good at predicting high school football, but if you’d have asked him in the summer which Westmoreland County team would be the last one standing, he would not have said Jeannette. But give the gridiron...
Upset-minded Jeannette to face toughest task yet in top-seeded Fort Cherry
If Jeannette can turn back Fort Cherry early like it has its past several opponents, the Jayhawks could have a shot at dethroning the top-seeded and defending WPIAL football champion Rangers. The halftime score could reveal whether the Jayhawks have a puncher’s chance, if the Class A kick seekers’ season...
New-look roster to write next chapter for Franklin Regional boys basketball
The word “almost” gets thrown around a lot when people talk about the 2023-24 Franklin Regional boys basketball program. The Panthers almost beat Moon in the WPIAL Class 5A championship game. They almost rallied to put a scare into powerhouse Imhotep Charter in the PIAA championship, their first trip to...
Seneca Valley football coach Ron Butschle steps down after ‘difficult year’
Citing a “negativity” around the program, Ron Butschle resigned Tuesday as Seneca Valley’s football coach, saying his exit might give the team a fresh start. This was Butschle’s second stint as the Raiders head coach starting in 2017. The team went 39-42 in the past eight seasons and reached the...
