Chris Harlan stories, Page 45
Rodney Gallagher scores 29, Laurel Highlands tops rival Uniontown in 2OTs
The scouting report on Rodney Gallagher says that if he gets enough late-game chances, he’ll usually make opponents pay. Uniontown stopped his layup at the end of regulation and rejected his runner late in the first overtime Friday night, but Gallagher wasn’t done. The senior started the second OT with...
Central Catholic’s Debaba Tshiebwe follows brotherly advice, posts double-double to defeat Butler
Advice from an older brother can be valuable, especially when your brother is the top college basketball player in the country. Just ask Central Catholic senior Debaba Tshiebwe, whose big brother Oscar is a star for Kentucky. The younger Tshiebwe, himself listed at 6-foot-7, says he has adopted some brotherly...
WPIAL girls basketball rankings: Week ending February 5, 2023
Class 6A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. Upper St. Clair, 17-2, 1 2. North Allegheny, 14-4, 2 3. Norwin, 17-3, 3 4. Mt. Lebanon, 14-6, 4 5. Chartiers Valley, 10-7, NR Out: Butler (10-9, 5) Class 5A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. South Fayette, 17-2, 1 2. Oakland Catholic, 18-2,...
WPIAL boys basketball rankings: Week ending February 5, 2023
Class 6A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. New Castle, 17-2, 1 2. Central Catholic, 11-8, 2 3. Butler, 14-5, 4 4. Upper St. Clair, 12-8, 5 5. Mt. Lebanon, 13-4, 3 Out: none Class 5A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. Penn Hills, 15-2, 1 2. Peters Township, 16-3, 2 3....
Isaiah Boice’s quick recovery helps No. 1 New Castle defeat No. 2 Central Catholic
Isaiah Boice planned to celebrate New Castle’s section title by drinking lots of chocolate milk, the bone-healing beverage he credits for his quick recovery. “Maybe a couple of gallons,” Boice said with a laugh Friday night, after the No. 1-ranked Red Hurricanes clinched at least a share of the Section...
State rep proposes legislation that would allow PIAA to crown separate public, private champs
The PIAA has maintained that splitting public and private schools into separate playoffs is prohibited under a state statute from 1972, but new legislation could rewrite that law. State Rep. Scott Conklin (D-Centre) announced plans Thursday to introduce legislation that would let the PIAA create separate tournaments for boundary and...
Baldwin hires McKeesport assistant Dana Brown Jr. as football coach
Dana Brown Jr. turns 32 on Sunday, but he got an early birthday present Wednesday night. Brown, a McKeesport assistant coach and former standout player for the Tigers, was hired as Baldwin’s football coach, making him one of the younger big-school coaches in the WPIAL. The first-time head coach takes...
Ohio-bound D.J. Walker, 5 other Aliquippa seniors make college commitments official
A group of Aliquippa football seniors including standout safety/wide receiver Donovan Walker announced their college commitments Wednesday, with Walker choosing Ohio. Also announcing commitments were defensive back Nate Lindsey (Fordham) and two-way linemen Neco Eberhardt (Albany) and Jason McBride (IUP). Wide receiver Dorius Moreland signed with Bethany College. Another two-way...
Aquinas Academy’s Vinnie Cugini breaks WPIAL basketball all-time scoring record
There’s a new all-time leading scorer in WPIAL basketball history, but the newly crowned record holder had a somewhat subdued celebration. Aquinas Academy senior Vinnie Cugini broke the WPIAL record with a 33-point effort Tuesday night, bettering a mark that had stood for 30 years, but was slightly disappointed the...
Woodland Hills’ Miles Sanders extends Super Bowl streak for Big 33 Football Classic
The Big 33 Football Classic’s Super Bowl streak lives on, thanks to a former WPIAL star. Woodland Hills’ Miles Sanders, who played in the high school all-star game in 2016, is headed to Super Bowl LVII next month with the Philadelphia Eagles. Every Super Bowl has included at least one...
WPIAL girls basketball rankings: Week ending Jan. 29, 2023
Class 6A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. Upper St. Clair, 14-2, 2 2. North Allegheny, 11-4, 4 3. Norwin, 15-3, 1 4. Mt. Lebanon, 13-5, 3 5. Butler, 10-7, NR Out: Chartiers Valley (9-6, 5) Class 5A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. South Fayette, 16-2, 1 2. Oakland Catholic, 16-2,...
WPIAL boys basketball rankings: Week ending Jan. 29, 2023
Class 6A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. New Castle, 15-2, 1 2. Central Catholic, 9-7, 2 3. Mt. Lebanon, 12-5, 3 4. Butler, 13-4, 4 5. Upper St. Clair, 10-8, 5 Out: none Class 5A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. Penn Hills, 12-2, 1 2. Peters Township, 14-3, 4 3....
North Allegheny wrestling crowns 2 county champs
North Allegheny’s wrestling team celebrated two individual champions at the Allegheny County Tournament at Fox Chapel, where senior Jayson Flener and junior Aidan Buggey each won their weight class Jan. 20-21. Flener claimed the 145-pound title, Buggey won at 215, and the Tigers finished third overall in the team standings....
No. 1 Lincoln Park uses ‘organized mayhem’ to defeat North Catholic, strengthen section lead
“Organized mayhem” is the way Lincoln Park’s boys basketball team describes its offense. Sure, there are only a few set plays used, and the shooters might put up some surprising shots, but they say that’s all by design. Besides, who can argue with the results? Leopards stars Brandin Cummings and...
6 WPIAL coaches earn NFHS Section 2 honors for 2021-22 sports seasons
Six WPIAL coaches have earned regional honors from the National Federation of State High School Associations for their work in the 2021-22 school year. Seneca Valley’s Brian Blackwell (boys swimming), Neshannock’s Luann Grybowski (girls basketball), Mars’ Bob Marcoux (boys lacrosse), Hempfield’s Suzannah Meyer (competitive spirit), Montour’s Rob Naylor (girls cross...
City League QB among 5 finalists for Willie Thrower Award for 1st time
Westinghouse quarterback Keyshawn Morsillo, who led the Bulldogs on a historic run to the state football finals, was announced Tuesday as one of five finalists for the Willie Thrower Award. Morsillo is the first City League player selected as a finalist in the three-year history of the award, which recognizes...
Central Catholic hires former Seneca Valley, Pine-Richland assistant Ryan Lehmeier as football coach
Central Catholic’s new football coach wasn’t chosen from the school’s alumni list, but that doesn’t mean Ryan Lehmeier isn’t already familiar with the team’s tradition. Eleven times in the past eight years, Lehmeier coached a team on the opposite sideline from Central Catholic, so he can appreciate the success of...
Bethel Park hires offensive coordinator Phil Peckich as football coach
Bethel Park promoted offensive coordinator Phil Peckich to head coach Tuesday night, giving the Black Hawks football program some continuity under a coach who’s among the youngest in the WPIAL. The 31-year-old is a first-time head coach but brings eight years of experience to the job. Peckich spent five seasons...
WPIAL boys basketball rankings: Week ending Jan. 22, 2023
Class 6A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. New Castle, 13-2, 3 2. Central Catholic, 8-7, 1 3. Mt. Lebanon, 10-5, 2 4. Butler, 12-3, 4 5. Upper St. Clair, 9-7, 5 Out: none Class 5A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. Penn Hills, 10-2, 1 2. North Hills, 12-3, 2 3....
WPIAL girls basketball rankings: Week ending Jan. 22, 2023
Class 6A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. Norwin, 14-1, 1 2. Upper St. Clair, 11-2, 2 3. Mt. Lebanon, 12-4, 3 4. North Allegheny, 10-4, 4 5. Chartiers Valley, 7-6, 5 Out: none Class 5A Rk., Team, W-L, Last 1. South Fayette, 14-2, 2 2. Oakland Catholic, 11-2, 3 3....
WPIAL Hall of Fame inductee Don Rebel reflects on 35 years calling games
A tree in the middle of a grassy field in Sheraden served as the first press box for a 7- or 8-year-old Don Rebel, who climbed the branches and offered play-by-play for his older brother’s Wiffle ball games. He called it as he saw it. “They got a big kick...
North Allegheny wrestling great Ray Brinzer to join WPIAL Hall of Fame
Ray Brinzer writes software and manages databases as a computer programmer, which seems a world away from a wrestling mat for one of the WPIAL’s all-time greats, but the former North Allegheny star can see similarities. “The common thing for me is complexity,” said Brinzer, a 1990 graduate who’ll be...
With Pitt coach watching, Aliquippa football stars hit basketball stride to defeat Shenango
Pitt football coach Pat Narduzzi was sitting among the home fans in Aliquippa’s gym Wednesday night, there with dozens of others to watch a group of football players throw around a basketball. Sometimes there’s a linebacker, a safety, a running back, a tight end and maybe a lineman on the...
Valley great Tom Pipkins highlights 2023 WPIAL Hall of Fame class
Tom Pipkins jokes that he might already be retired from working if high school athletes could’ve signed endorsement deals back in his day. That’s how much interest there was around the former Valley basketball star when he broke the WPIAL career scoring record 30 years ago this month. As part...
Peters Township creates 3-way section tie with narrow win over Bethel Park
Peters Township broke a tie on the scoreboard to create a tie in the standings. Locked at 66 with 70 seconds left, Peters Township used its defense, some clutch free throws and a disputed technical foul to clinch a 75-67 victory over host Bethel Park, a win that created a...
