High School category, Page 5
Butler gives ace Kyle Casteel ample run support in Class 6A semifinal win over Norwin
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What turned out to be a dream first inning for Butler was a nightmare start for Norwin that finished its season. After spotting the Knights a one-run lead, the Golden Tornado played long ball and scored five runs in the bottom of...
Powerhouse Shaler fends off challenge from South Fayette to win 4th straight WPIAL volleyball title
The Shaler boys volleyball program arrived at the top of the WPIAL boys volleyball mountain four years ago. Coach Paul Stadelman set the expectation that the Titans would stay there. It was an emphatic proclamation from a coach demanding high standards. While the faces and names have changed, Stadelman again...
Plum track team looks to carry momentum from memorable WPIAL meet into states
The Plum boys track and field team enjoyed one of the more successful days in program history at the WPIAL Class 3A championships last week. Mustangs athletes earned eight PIAA qualifications, led by four gold and two silver medalists. Now, they will lead the Alle-Kiski Valley contingent — which includes...
Unbeaten GCC outduels Serra Catholic, earns spot in WPIAL Class A championship game
Greensburg Central Catholic’s baseball playoff game was given a noon start Wednesday to accommodate the school’s graduation later in the day. Several Centurions will try to add championship rings to their class rings. Senior pitcher Alec Martin repeatedly worked out of trouble and showed command in his first playoff start,...
Imani Christian star Gabe Jenkins picks Colorado
Imani Christian star Gabe Jenkins plans to play for Coach Prime. The 6-foot-2, 185-pound junior has committed to Colorado, 247Sports.com reported Wednesday. Jenkins, who also plays quarterback for the Saints, is a four-star recruit rated the 10th-best junior prospect in Pennsylvania and 30th best safety prospect in the country, according...
A-K Valley campus clips: Freeport grad has stellar senior season for Pitt-Greensburg
Autumn Powell enjoyed a standout spring at the plate and in the pitching circle for a Pitt-Greensburg softball team that made it to the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference semifinals before losing to top-seeded Penn State Behrend. The Freeport graduate and senior with the Bobcats was selected to the conference’s first...
Junior Nick Hilty boldly going where no Leechburg athlete has gone before
Nick Hilty made history at last week’s WPIAL Class 2A track and field championships at Slippery Rock University. With his fifth-place finish in the boys discus, the junior multi-sport standout became the first Leechburg athlete ever to qualify for the PIAA championships. Hilty, who will throw at 12:30 p.m. Friday...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for May 19, 2026
High schools Baseball WPIAL playoffs Class 6A Semifinals Wednesday’s schedule Butler (18-3) vs. Norwin (13-8) at North Hills, 4 p.m.; Canon-McMillan (16-5) vs. North Allegheny (13-7) at Washington & Jefferson, 7 p.m. Class 5A Quarterfinals Tuesday’s results Montour 3, Pine-Richland 2 Upper St. Clair 10, Moon 9 South Fayette 11,...
What to watch for in WPIAL sports on May 20, 2026: A new opponent enters playoffs: rain
For a week and a half, weather has not been a factor in the WPIAL baseball and softball playoffs. Sure, the mercury has swung from temps in the 40s last week to near 90 degrees Monday. However, the wet stuff has stayed away … until Wednesday. In fact, there is...
Elizabeth Forward comes alive in 6th inning to pull away from pesky Derry
After Derry hit its second home run in the top of the sixth to pull ahead of top-seeded Elizabeth Forward in their WPIAL quarterfinal battle Tuesday, veteran coach Harry Rutherford had a simple message for his team. “They’re No. 1 for a reason, and that’s what I told them: ‘Act...
High school roundup for May 19, 2026: 12th-seeded Upper St. Clair roars into 5A baseball semifinals
Brooks York went 2 for 3 with four RBIs, including the go-ahead run-scoring single in the top of the seventh inning, to lead No. 12 Upper St. Clair to another upset in the WPIAL Class 5A baseball bracket, defeating No. 4 Moon in the quarterfinals 10-9 on Tuesday. Nico D’Orazio...
Thomas Jefferson rallies past Bethel Park to delay coach’s retirement
Tim Vickers is retiring as a teacher in the Steel Valley School District, and he and his wife have already purchased a house in Florida where they will be moving this summer. His high school baseball coaching days are also concluding, but his Thomas Jefferson team just earned him two...
South Park baseball shuts down Freeport, earns spot in WPIAL Class 3A semifinals
The South Park baseball team saw its run to a WPIAL title last year come to a sudden halt at Plum High School with a 2-1, nine-inning loss to eventual WPIAL champ Riverside in a Class 3A semifinal classic. There was no such heartbreak when the Eagles returned to Plum...
Ellwood City uses 3-run rally in 7th inning to get past Burrell in Class 3A baseball quarters
Jake Biskup couldn’t recall if it was a loopy curveball or loopy fastball. Whatever the case, Biskup belted the pitch for the winning hit, extending Ellwood City’s season and causing the Wolverines to be a loopy bunch as they celebrated afterward. Biskup’s walk-off single capped a three-run seventh inning as...
Hempfield no-hits Canon-McMillan, cruises into WPIAL Class 6A title game
Senior pitcher Julia Varhola isn’t a regular in the Hempfield batting order, but she is always ready to dig in and hit. “We’ll see her hitting in practice, and she’ll drive one and give me that look, like, I’m ready,” Spartans coach Tina Madison said. “She wants to be in...
Behind another gem from Aubrey Shaffer, Thomas Jefferson blanks Plum
Aubrey Shaffer continued her mastery on the mound in the WPIAL playoffs Tuesday for Thomas Jefferson. And oh, what a masterful performance it was. The junior right-hander who hasn’t allowed an earned run in two playoff games this season pitched her second consecutive three-hitter and struck out 12 to lead...
South Fayette outscores Penn-Trafford in Class 5A slugfest
Anyone expecting a pitchers’ duel between No. 10 South Fayette and No. 2 Penn-Trafford would have been disappointed. The teams put on an offensive display, as South Fayette pounded out 17 hits and Penn-Trafford 12. For the second consecutive game, R.J. Borgesi drove in the winning run as South Fayette...
Cinderella North Hills races past Penn-Trafford into Class 5A semifinals
Whether they were in the batter’s box or in the field, North Hills looked almost unstoppable Tuesday afternoon. The 11th-seeded Indians put together a complete performance, grabbing an early lead and never letting up in an 8-1 upset victory over No. 3 Penn-Trafford in the WPIAL Class 5A softball quarterfinals....
Westmoreland high school baseball notebook: Derry hopes to continue riding wave into title game
Max Doherty, Cason Long and the rest of the Derry baseball team are trying to put into perspective what they have accomplished. After Monday’s quarterfinal win over Hampton at Plum, they were trying to comprehend that it has been 42 years since Derry last played in a WPIAL baseball semifinal....
A-K Valley WPIAL baseball playoff capsule for Wednesday, May 20, 2026
WPIAL Baseball Playoffs Class 2A Semifinals 4-Riverview (14-6) vs. 1-Fort Cherry (17-1) 4 p.m. Wednesday at Gateway Winner plays: Winner of 2-Neshannock (17-3)/3-South Side (15-3) in championship game May 26 of 27, EQT Park, Washington (time TBD) Players to watch: Owen Orbich, Riverview; Tyler Wolfe, Fort Cherry Extra bases: Riverview...
Westmoreland WPIAL softball playoff capsule for Wednesday, May 20, 2026
Class 3A Semifinals 7-Keystone Oaks (16-4) vs. 3-Mt. Pleasant (14-4) 3 p.m. Wednesday at Norwin Winner plays: Winner of 4-Ellwood City (9-5) / 1-South Park (18-1) in championship May 27 or 28 at Lilley Field, Cal (Pa.), California (time TBD) How they got here: Keystone Oaks: Defeated 10-Deer Lakes, 6-0,...
Westmoreland WPIAL baseball capsules for Wednesday, May 20, 2026
Class 6A Semifinals 4-Norwin (13-8) vs. 1-Butler (18-3) 4 p.m. Wednesday at North Hills, West View Winner plays: Winner of 2-Canon-McMillan (16-5) / 3-North Allegheny (13-8) on May 26 or 27 in championship at EQT Wild Things Park, Washington (time TBD) Players to watch: Trevor Vitsas, Norwin; Trent Best, Butler...
Sewickley Academy bumping up to Class 4A as WPIAL announces section alignment for next 2 basketball seasons
Four reigning WPIAL champions will be changing classifications as the WPIAL announced its section alignments for the next two school years Tuesday. Sewickley Academy, the Class 2A champ that ignited the latest round of private vs. public debate in PIAA basketball with a star-studded lineup this past season, will voluntarily...
High school scores, summaries and schedules for May 18, 2026
High schools Baseball WPIAL playoffs Class 6A Quarterfinals Monday’s results Butler 3, Mt. Lebanon 2 Norwin 4, Central Catholic 3 Canon-McMillan 16, Seneca Valley 1 North Allegheny 2, Hempfield 0 Semifinals Wednesday’s schedule Butler (18-3) vs. Norwin (13-8); Canon-McMillan (16-5) vs. North Allegheny (13-7) Class 5A Quarterfinals Tuesday’s schedule Pine-Richland...
What to watch for in WPIAL sports on May 19, 2026: High-scoring 5A rivals collide
The quarterfinals conclude with four games each in WPIAL 5A and 3A baseball and 5A and 4A softball along with the Class 6A softball semifinals on another busy Tuesday. The WPIAL has promised no pyrotechnics show after a second-round doubleheader at Ross Memorial Field as the W&J Sports Complex in...
