Andrew John stories, Page 8
Penn Hills goes back to basics after early season losses
Penn Hills football captured the WPIAL and PIAA Class 5A championships two seasons ago and found itself back in the WPIAL playoffs last season. This season got off to a bumpy start as the Indians opened with two nonconference losses. Even after being outscored 53-13 in the first two games,...
Greater Pittsburgh Aquatic Club growing in numbers, enthusiasm
When Becca Rice was introduced to the Greater Pittsburgh Aquatic Club, she had no interest in putting her coaching hat on. But after the head coaching position was offered, Rice couldn’t resist the itch. When Rice took over a few years ago, the GPAC had around 30 kids involved in...
Penn Hills girls volleyball looks to develop new leaders this season
With the departure of a handful of seniors, sophomore outside hitter Sarah Miller will not only be called upon to excel on the court but will be asked to fill a leadership role on Penn Hills volleyball team. Penn Hills, which only won three matches last season, dropped from Section...
Return of rivalries energizes Penn Hills girls soccer program
The Penn Hills girls soccer program is optimistic heading into the season as the Indians look to see how their mix of seasoned veterans with an influx of young talent will fare against new competition. The Indians, who finished with 5-11-2 overall and 1-10-1 in Section 3-AAAA last season, will...
Interest in Penn Hills boys soccer on the rise
The Penn Hills boys soccer team might not have experienced success in recent years in the win column. However, the Indians believe they’ve turned the corner as interest in the program is at its highest in recent times. The Indians, who finished 2-7 overall and 1-13 in Section 3-AAA action...
Penn Hills softball has building blocks in place for possible playoff run
Even though the Penn Hills softball program hasn’t reached the WPIAL playoffs in over a decade, the Indians remain optimistic that this year could end their 13-year playoff drought. Penn Hills, which finished 5-10 overall and 5-9 in Section 2-5A action last season, will have a healthy mix of upperclassmen...
Penn Hills baseball turns to Stubbs for new direction
With a new coach and a focus on the fundamentals, the Penn Hills baseball team has its sights on the WPIAL playoffs after only winning three games last season. Rodney Stubbs, who has been involved with the program for the past four season, replaces Jerry Cammuso as the coach after...
Penn Hills basketball programs learn tough postseason lessons
Heading into the WPIAL playoffs, the Penn Hills boys basketball team had a six-game winning streak and earned the No. 1 seed in the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs. However, the success was short-lived as the Indians fell, 62-60, to eventual WPIAL champion Laurel Highlands, the eighth seed, in the quarterfinals...
Westmoreland athletes of the week: Latrobe’s Vinny Kilkeary and Southmoreland’s Olivia Cernuto
Vinny Kilkeary School: Latrobe Sport: Wrestling Class: Freshman Claim to fame: Kilkeary (30-7) pinned No. 1 seed Cathedral Prep’s Jake Vandee in overtime at 6 minutes, 31 seconds to capture the 106-pound title at the PIAA Class AAA championships March 7 in Hershey. Kilkeary finished as the WPIAL runner-up to...
Greensburg Central Catholic baseball turns focus to fundamentals under new coach
Last season for the Greensburg Central Catholic baseball team ended earlier than expected. With a new coach and new outlook, the Centurions want refocus on making their accustomed deep runs in the WPIAL and PIAA playoffs. Tom Appleby takes over as coach after Dennis Reist’s departure. Reist went 40-22 in...
Pieces in place for Greensburg Central Catholic softball
The Greensburg Central Catholic softball team made a return trip to the WPIAL playoffs in 2019, a nice bounce back from a one-win season. Now, the Centurions will look to take the next step by making a deep playoff run. They feel the right parts — pitching and young talent...
Penn Hills swimming pair turns in impressive WPIAL championship showing
The last few seasons, the Gregory brothers — Norman, Isaiah and Kimani — mainly have represented Penn Hills at the WPIAL Class AAA swimming and diving championships. However, a few other Indians swimmers wanted to let the WPIAL know the program offers more than the Gregory brothers. The two Penn...
Penn Hills athletes compete at state indoor track championships
Heading into the Pennsylvania Track and Field Coaches Association state indoor championship, Lee Zelkowitz was hopeful for strong performances from the handful of Penn Hills athletes who qualified. However, it wasn’t their day. Sophomore Miniya Pinnix was the Indians’ top finisher as she finished 11th in the 800-meter run in...
Westmoreland high school athletes of the week: Belle Vernon’s Ian Shahan, Mt. Pleasant’s Heather Gardner
Ian Shahan School: Belle Vernon Sport: Swimming and diving Class: Junior Claim to fame: Shahan, who has won five WPIAL events in his career, won the 100-yard freestyle for the second year in a row at the WPIAL Class AA swimming and diving championships Feb. 28 at Pitt’s Trees Pool....
Penn-Trafford bowlers eager for regional tournament
Penn-Trafford didn’t participate in the WPIBL team tournament, but the Warriors were well-represented at the individual tournament, which was Feb. 19-20. The Warriors sent five girls and three boys to the WPIBL individual tournament, and four girls and two boys qualified for the Western Regional tournament March 6 at North...
Penn Hills wrestling shows postseason progress
Heading into the season, Jeremy Packer was hopeful the Penn Hills wrestling program could be well-represented at the WPIAL Class AAA individual tournament this season. Packer worked his magic as he has gotten his wrestlers prepared to peak at the right time of the season as three Indians qualified for...
Penn Hills track team has successful indoor season
After a rebuilding season last year, the Penn Hills indoor track and field team will have a handful of athletes represent the program at the Pennsylvania Track and Field Coaches Association State Indoor and Field championship. The Indians had four athletes and a relay team qualify for the state meet...
Rochester, West Greene to square off again in WPIAL Class A girls title tilt
It’s starting to become an annual reunion for two Class A schools in the WPIAL girls basketball playoffs. This year will mark the fourth year in a row Rochester and West Greene will meet in the playoffs and the second year in a row in the championship game. No. 1...
West Greene girls edge Sewickley Academy, earn return trip to WPIAL Class A finals
At the beginning of the season, West Greene had its sights on returning to The Pete to avenge its loss to Rochester in last year’s WPIAL Class A championship game. There was one more hurdle the Pioneers needed to clear before they could get another title shot. It was a...
Westmoreland high school athletes of the week: C.J. Turek and Erika Sherbondy
C.J. Turek School: Norwin Sport: Bowling Year: Senior Claim to fame: Turek bowled a 279 to capture the boys singles title at the WPIBL championships Feb. 19 at Sims Lanes in Beaver Falls. Turek finished fourth in the qualifying round after bowling a 635 series. At the WPIBL team championships...
Avonworth girls push past South Park into WPIAL semifinals
The Avonworth girls basketball team understood that if it wanted to return to the WPIAL Class 3A semifinals, the Antelopes would have to play to their strength — their size. The No. 5 Antelopes (18-6) did exactly that as they jumped out to a 13-point lead at halftime and never...
Penn Hills grad, 20, gets early start on football coaching career
In recent weeks, Jayvin Turner has been reaching out to WPIAL athletic directors via email to gauge their interest in hiring a young assistant coach for their football program. One of those programs was Riverview, which recently hired Carlynton alum Trevor George as head coach. After his information was passed...
Penn Hills bowlers look ahead to regionals after stumble at WPIBL tournament
The Penn Hills bowlers weren’t pleased with their most recent performance at the WPIBL team championships. However, after the boys and girls teams secured the automatic bid by winning the East Section during the regular season, Penn Hills will look to rebound at the Western Regional tournament March 7. At...
Westmoreland high school athletes of the week: Latrobe’s Cole Ferri and Penn-Trafford’s Corina Paszek
Cole Ferri School: Latrobe Sport: Hockey Class: Senior Claim to fame: Ferri, who is tied for the second in Class AA with 46 points, recorded his fourth hat trick of the season and added an assist to lead Latrobe (15-1-1) to a 6-3 win over Hempfield on Feb. 13. Ferri,...
Penn Hills standouts Snell, Bennett make college choices
Before National Signing Day, the Penn Hills football program already knew two players had made their college commitments. By the end of the day, another two players signed their letters of intent to continue their football careers. Safety Aakeem Snell signed with Lackawanna College and cornerback Dylan Bennett signed with...
