Other Local category, Page 25
Former Hempfield standout signs pro hoops contract with Cyprus team
Kason Harrell’s professional basketball career lives on. Many players in his situation feel like they are alone on an island as they chase down their dream. Harrell, a Hempfield graduate who has been training vigorously in the offseason, literally will be on an island in his next venture. He signed...
Freeport grad Erica Lampus quickly grows into prominent role for Shippensburg volleyball teamVideo
Erica Lampus admitted she had tempered her expectations. After all, freshmen normally don’t crack the starting lineup or even see regular playing time at the college level. On top of that, the Shippensburg women’s volleyball team she was joining had a couple of established back-row players. The Freeport grad said...
Fox Chapel Area Youth Soccer League helps bolster area high school programs
Talk to any high school soccer coach at Fox Chapel, Oakland Catholic or Shady Side Academy about their success, and they are likely to reply that it all starts at the youth level. The Fox Chapel Area Youth Soccer League has proven to be a training ground for some excellent...
Pennsylvania Karate Championships return to A-K Valley
Two years ago, the Pennsylvania Karate Championships were called off in the midst of the ongoing covid pandemic. It stopped the event’s annual gathering of the top martial artists from throughout the Alle-Kiski Valley as well as the Pittsburgh region, the state and the country. But the championships returned in...
Norwin’s JJ Matijevic to get ring after Astros’ World Series win
The World Series had a nice ring to it for JJ Matijevic. The former Norwin star who had multiple call-ups from Triple-A to the major leagues this season, was a member of the World Champion Houston Astros’ taxi squad. That meant he was in the building during home games and...
Lower Burrell Recruits capture 8U AYFL Super Bowl title to cap undefeated season
The Lower Burrell Recruits are champions again. For the third time in the past four seasons, the 8U football team captured the Allegheny Youth Football League Super Bowl championship Saturday with a 40-18 victory over West Mifflin at RYFO Field in Natrona Heights. Members of the Lower Burrell Flyers youth...
Plum Stallions capture AYFL 10U championship
Plum Midget Football Association teams went 1-1 in Super Bowl championship games as the Allegheny Youth Football League wrapped up its 2022 season Oct. 29. The Stallions (10U) completed an undefeated season (10-0) with a 13-0 win over Lower Burrell in the championship game at Bushman Field in Natrona Heights....
Alumni of IUP’s century-old marching band celebrate love for music, each other
Ask Stuart Estes what instrument he played in his college marching band five-plus decades ago, and the answer gets complicated. “It’s an interesting story,” said the 75-year-old from Shippenville, a 1968 graduate of what is now Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Raised in Potter County near the New York line, the...
Pine-Richland grad playing lockdown defense for Case Western women’s soccer
Katie Rishel gained confidence in herself through hard work in the offseason, but she had to prove her progress to a new women’s soccer coaching staff at Case Western Reserve University. The coaches showed belief by making her a starter, and she’s repaid them by flourishing in her sophomore season...
Big East Youth Football League reaches playoff semifinals
The Big East Youth Football League has reached its playoff semifinals. Matchups in all four divisions are set for Sunday at Gateway and Penn-Trafford high schools. The championship games are slated for Nov. 6 Big East Youth Football League Playoff schedule Sunday, Oct. 30 Semifinals Flag (Ages 5-6) No. 3...
Murrysville’s Palmer Jackson set to make PGA Tour debut
A wonder-struck Palmer Jackson grew up watching the PGA Tour. He followed the storylines, emulated swings and mannerisms and slid to the end of his seat as Sunday finishes met their climax. Now, people will tune in to watch him play inside the ropes. Jackson, the former state champion out...
Plum grad Gina Proviano excited for future of LIU women’s soccer teamVideo
Plum grad Gina Proviano was eager to try something new when she chose to play soccer at Long Island University. The program was new. Three years ago, LIU’s two campuses, Post and Brooklyn, merged their athletic departments to form one Division I program. There was also New York City. The...
With eye on turning pro, Shaler grad grows golf game at University of Findlay
Dominic Guarnieri knows what to expect when he pulls up to the Beall Oilers Golf Center on the University of Findlay’s campus. If the weather is poor, with a 40-degree temperature, winds blowing and the rain pouring down, the Oilers’ men’s golf coach can expect to see Tanner Grzegorczyk working...
Peters Township’s Jason Makrinos finds fit on North Carolina A&T staff, comes home to face Robert MorrisVideo
By the time he was 12 years old, Jason Makrinos made up his mind what he wanted to do for a living: be the coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Makes sense. During Makrinos’ youth, Bill Cowher and Co. were regular contenders for the Vince Lombardi Trophy, so, for a kid...
Diabetes doesn’t stop Apollo youth Sloan Olbeter in quest for boxing success
Sloan Olbeter climbing between the ropes and squaring up with his opponents in the boxing ring is his choice. At first, the 12-year-old Apollo resident wasn’t sure. Olbeter’s first trip to the Sanctuary Boxing Club in New Kensington was at his mom’s insistence. “Honestly, my mom kind of forced me,”...
Jeannette grad Marcus Barnes focused on bringing a championship to William & Mary footballVideo
One of the features of William & Mary’s athletic facilities is a wall that pays tribute to the Tribe’s all-time greats. Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, naturally, is part of the display. So, too, is fellow NFL coach Sean McDermott (Buffalo). Jeannette grad Marcus Barnes wouldn’t mind being on the...
Mt. Lebanon’s Mia Bhuta becomes 1st woman of Indian descent to play in World Cup for U.S. Soccer
Mia Bhuta’s family shut down the stadium at the Women’s U17 World Cup Tuesday in Bhubaneswar, India. Bhuta, a Mt. Lebanon native, made history by becoming the first woman of Indian descent to appear in a World Cup game for U.S. Soccer. Playing in her father’s home country, Bhuta pocketed...
Delmont schedules 2023 budget workshops
Delmont officials will hold two public workshops to go over the 2023 budget in the coming weeks. The borough will host 6 p.m. budget workshops on Oct. 23 and Nov. 2 at the borough building at 77 Greensburg Street. The first session typically covers incoming revenue for the new budget...
Burrell junior shares love of hockey with Kenyan kids on mission trip to Africa
John Lukac has a burning passion for hockey and an equal desire to help people. He recently got the chance to incorporate both on a special journey that he will remember for a lifetime. Lukac, a junior at Burrell, volunteered for a 12-day mission to Kenya last month with the...
Neurologist, Tyler Kennedy highlight Westmoreland Sports Club socials
After two successful socials in August and September, the new Westmoreland Sports Club has announced details for meetings in October and November. Dr. Joe Maroon, a UPMC neurologist and triathlon competitor, will speak to members and guests Oct. 13 at Ferrante’s Lakeview. On Nov. 17, the club will hand the...
Injury setback, memory of best friend spurs Jeannette grad Robert Kennedy to new heights for Old Dominion footballVideo
The reminder is always there for Robert Kennedy. It’s there multiple times a day. On his phone’s wallpaper, Kennedy has a picture of his best friend, Tre Cunningham. Cunningham was killed in a motorcycle accident in summer 2020, and the photo is a reminder of the friendship the former Jeannette...
Franklin Regional grad Michael Krauza works his way to Double-A in Mets system
It’s been an adventurous summer for Franklin Regional grad Michael Krauza. The Murrysville native started his summer pitching for the Cleburne (Texas) Railroaders in the American Association, an independent league. He posted an 0-1 record in 15 games for Cleburne, allowing 12 hits in 18 innings of relief, striking out...
Crossfit competitors value camaraderie at 13th annual Patriot Brawl
Sonny Litwiler doesn’t give himself the excuse of not being able to do his Crossfit training. Since classes run all day, the Northern Regional Police Officer can always find time for a workout. Due to the nature of shift work, Litwiler also usually can count on someone else holding him...
Hempfield coach Katie Miller Gee advances to U.S. Mid-Am match play
Katie Miller Gee is taking a break from coaching the Hempfield girls golf team to play in the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur. After a solid showing across 36 holes of stroke play, Gee is headed to the match play part of the tournament at Fiddlesticks Country Club in Fort Myers, Fla....
Baldwin grad Robert Healy proves to be ‘a true beast’ at Transplant Games of America
His competitiveness just won’t go away. Duquesne and Baldwin football alumnus Robert Healy took first place in the discus throw and shot put competition at the 2022 Donate Life Transplant Games of America, smashing records among living donors and all-time donors in both events. The 39-year-old Healy, a 2001 Baldwin...
