Dave Mackall stories, Page 18
New Kiski Area girls coach foresees ‘formidable team’
There have been some lean years during the past decade in girls basketball at Kiski Area, but a 9-13 record a year ago represents the most victories since the team went 16-7 during the 2011-12 season, the most recent time the Cavaliers reached the WPIAL playoffs. Armed with four starters...
Kiski Area boys coach Smith confident entering 2nd season
Every time he’s in the gym at Kiski Area High School, Corey Smith looks up at banners representing the Cavaliers’ WPIAL section championships in boys basketball and feels the pride of being a member of those title teams in 2000 and ’02. For Smith, there’s just something about being a...
Duquesne beats Colgate in Keith Dambrot’s hometown, Akron
AKRON, Ohio — Duquesne remains unbeaten in the Keith Dambrot coaching era in games played in Dambrot’s hometown of Akron. But just barely. In gut-wrenching fashion, the Dukes made it 4-for-4 on Friday night at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, where Dambrot once coached LeBron James, by holding off Colgate,...
In coach’s 2nd season, Deer Lakes girls ready to make climb over .500 mark
Deer Lakes has only one thing in mind as another girls basketball season approaches — to come away with a winning record for the first time in three years. Perhaps the time is ripe? “We have the potential to be as good as anyone in the section,” said coach Sam...
New coach keeps bar high for Deer Lakes boys basketball
There have been great expectations in recent years for the Deer Lakes boys basketball team, which enters a new season with a new coach in a new classification. Don’t count on those expectations changing. Albie Fletcher, a Deer Lakes graduate and former basketball assistant at the school, certainly doesn’t see...
Duquesne bounces back from Kentucky loss with rout of S.C. State
Keith Dambrot was looking for a bounce-back game from Duquesne on Monday, three days removed from a humbling trip to legendary Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky., and a decisive loss to No. 4 Kentucky. The Dukes responded to their coach in resounding fashion, scoring from seemingly everywhere, and ran past...
Ryan Palmieri, Pine-Richland top Woodland Hills to get back to WPIAL championship game
For a team used to playing for WPIAL football championships, Pine-Richland came away from Friday night’s Class 5A semifinal battle with Woodland Hills like it had never before been to the finals. The second-seeded Rams broke their postseason huddle with a burst of enthusiasm — and relief — knowing they’d...
Robert Morris basketball team routs Pitt-Greensburg
The Robert Morris men’s basketball program gladly accepted a nice-sized paycheck from Ohio State for traveling to Columbus, Ohio, earlier in the week for an anticipated spanking by the Buckeyes, who entered the season receiving votes in the Associated Press Top 25 poll. Ohio State won that game Monday night...
Pine-Richland dethrones North Allegheny in Class 4A volleyball
Wake up, Pine-Richland. It’s as real as it gets. You’re a WPIAL champion. “You know, I’ve been having this dream for about four months, where I can vividly see us winning the WPIAL finals and listening to ‘We Are The Champions,’” Pine-Richland girls volleyball coach Angela Seman said. It’s not...
Rochester dominates Greensburg Central Catholic in WPIAL 1st round
A No. 14 seed in the WPIAL Class A playoffs apparently didn’t sit well with the Rochester football team. Don’t believe the Rams coaches and players if they tell you otherwise. “We don’t look at the seedings,” Rochester coach Gene Matsook said with a straight face. Oh, really? Judging from...
Greensburg Salem hockey has high expectations after strong start
In his four seasons as hockey coach at Greensburg Salem, Corey Mentch hasn’t seen a Golden Lions team offer this much potential. Whether they can deliver is another matter. Despite getting 12 victories last season, the most under Mentch, Greensburg Salem was left out of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League...
Latrobe grad Emma Fenton shines in more prominent role for St. Francis (Pa.) volleyball
A freshman season of learning for former Latrobe girls volleyball standout Emma Fenton has evolved into a sophomore year of applying at St. Francis (Pa.). Fenton was learning the life of a college athlete last season as a wide-eyed first-year player before a year later applying all that in a...
Penn-Trafford tops Latrobe to claim 7th straight WPIAL field hockey title
It never gets old. So say members of the Penn-Trafford field hockey team on the age-old concept of winning, something the Warriors are accustomed to doing. They continued their winning ways Saturday at the WPIAL championship, earning their seventh consecutive Class 2A title with a 4-1 victory over Latrobe at...
Ellis School captures WPIAL Class A field hockey championship
So much excitement surged through Ellis School junior Rita Gianakis as she raced to meet her teammates moments after the Tigers secured their third WPIAL Class A field hockey championship on Saturday at Washington & Jefferson College. Gianakis almost single-handedly provided the spark, scoring three fourth-quarter goals to lead Ellis...
Gino Caesar passes 1,000-yard mark, leads Hempfield past Norwin
Their football playoff aspirations dashed, Hempfield and Norwin entered their 2022 season finales having been reduced to playing for the latest bragging rights in this storied Route 30 rivalry. Norwin came into Hempfield’s Spartan Stadium on Friday night carrying the torch after a decisive victory last season, but the nod...
Latrobe hockey team ready to rebound after missing playoffs a year ago
After their first playoff miss in 17 years, the Latrobe IceCats high school hockey team came to camp this season with one thing in mind. “They were embarrassed not making the playoffs last year,” coach Josh Werner said, smiling. What else could the veteran coach do, but laugh it off?...
Hempfield hockey team has high expectations under new head coach
During the buildup to Hempfield’s season-opening high school hockey game — a 5-1 loss to Latrobe last Thursday at Nevin Arena in Greensburg — Spartans players were weighing the idea of a new season with a new coach. One, they say, with a changing approach. Cory Myers, a former American...
Mt. Pleasant rolls past South Allegheny
Mt. Pleasant attempted to build momentum as the WPIAL football playoffs inched closer, taking advantage of a depleted and reeling South Allegheny squad and rolling to a 42-0 victory Friday night. The Vikings, who play at Southmoreland in the regular-season finale next Friday, qualified for the WPIAL playoffs for a...
Serra Catholic fends off Ligonier Valley to win 7th in a row
Serra Catholic coach Jose Regus might have witnessed a better season a year ago when the Eagles won a WPIAL championship and advanced to the PIAA title game, but he appears to be enjoying 2022 just the same. Maybe more. “I don’t know if last year was the best year...
With seniors leading way, Latrobe gaining respect in WPIAL field hockey circles
Not long ago, elite WPIAL field hockey teams almost certainly would mark down a victory against Latrobe before the games actually were played. Now, not so much. The Wildcats lately have been playing like anything but a pushover. They reached the WPIAL Class 2A championship game in back-to-back seasons in...
Leechburg cruises past Jeannette
Randy Walters gazed around McKee Stadium — a storied venue in Jeannette — and he was proud in the moment. Walters, Leechburg’s proud football coach — especially on this night — witnessed his team again dismantle a Jeannette squad that represents the school with the most victories all-time in the...
Mix of veterans, young players providing spark for Ligonier Valley volleyball
With just one senior on its roster, the Ligonier Valley girls volleyball team has been looking to its younger veterans for a spark this year. And there are many. On a team with 21 girls, a total of 14 are either sophomores or freshmen, many with prior varsity experience. Outside...
Penn-Trafford bounces back for shutout of Norwin
Penn-Trafford shrugged off last week’s disappointing loss to one of its arch-rivals and took out its frustrations this week on another. Conlan Greene passed for 132 yards and two touchdowns, and Daniel Tarabrella scored twice as the Warriors overcame a slow start to blank visiting Norwin, 28-0, Friday night in...
Familiar face guides Greensburg Central Catholic volleyball to strong start
Erin Salas, with a long history of coaching in the Greensburg Central Catholic system, has taken over the Centurions varsity girls volleyball team this year, becoming the program’s third head coach in as many seasons. She succeeds Angela Grabb. “I did it because I love to coach,” said Salas, a...
Steel Valley stomps Ligonier Valley to stay undefeated
Top-ranked Steel Valley kept rolling in Class 2A on Friday night, earning its first shutout of the high school football season and scoring another mercy-rule victory, its third in a row. Cruce Brookins passed for 122 yards and a touchdown and rushed for two more scores — all in the...
