St. Joseph

Success across sports spectrum leads Greensburg CC to Trib Cup in Class A

The battle for the HSSN Trib Cup in Class A in 2021-2022 turned into one of the closest and most unique battles where overall success won out. In the end, it was Greensburg Central Catholic hoisting the cup aloft again, this despite the school only winning one district championship all...
A-K Valley teams adjust to changes in basketball alignment

Basketball in the A-K Valley will have a bit of a different look next winter. The WPIAL board of directors approved section alignments for the next two-year cycle in boys and girls basketball on June 13. Several A-K Valley teams were impacted. Here’s a look at some of the changes:...
Sally Ackerman returns to St. Joseph, this time in a new role

Sally Ackerman coached the girls basketball team at St. Joseph for five years from 2013-14 to 2017-18. The Spartans advanced to the WPIAL postseason four times, the PIAA playoffs once and compiled a 71-48 record during that span. Ackerman, also the girls JV coach at St. Joseph from 2010-13, has...
Knoch’s Maddie Boyer named Valley News Dispatch Girls Basketball Player of the Year

Maddie Boyer Knoch, 5-10, Sr., Guard As a freshman, Maddie Boyer helped the Knoch girls basketball team make the WPIAL Class 4A playoffs. The Knights suffered a first-round loss to Elizabeth Forward. Two years ago, Boyer increased her role at both ends of the court, and Knoch increased its standing...
Fox Chapel’s Eli Yofan takes Valley News Dispatch Boys Basketball Player of the Year honors

Eli Yofan Fox Chapel, 6-2, Sr., Guard Eli Yofan averaged 19.3 points throughout the 2021-22 boys basketball season, but he was limited for most of Fox Chapel’s WPIAL Class 6A title game against North Hills early last month at the Petersen Events Center. But as he did all season, the...
Former Cager Classic MVP Corey Smith now coaching in all-star basketball game

Kiski Area coach Corey Smith has come full circle with the Cager Classic. He was the East MVP in 2002, an assistant under Greg Hutcherson and now the head coach for the East as the Cager Classic returns after a two-year hiatus brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. The event...
2022 WPIAL Class A softball preseason breakdown

Last spring was a celebration as district athletes returned to the diamonds after the 2020 season was canceled because of the covid-19 shutdowns. Softball was a success throughout as the WPIAL crowned four new champions while Laurel and West Greene remained on top in 2A and A. District softball squads...
St. Joseph softball team will rely on players’ ability to play multiple positions

Position flexibility is key for any softball team but even moreso for those in Class A. St. Joseph enters the 2022 season with 12 players on its roster and just one senior. Though the small roster might provide some challenges, it also will offer opportunities for players to show their...
New coach Bestic will try to bring success to the St. Joseph baseball team

Bradley Bestic has experience leading a Class A baseball team to success. This spring, he will lean on that experience in guiding St. Joseph. Bestic, who was named St. Joseph’s athletic director in November, enters his first season as coach of the Spartans’ baseball program. He coached Vincentian Academy from...
After postseason upset, St. Joseph girls eager to build

While St. Joseph’s girls basketball team didn’t achieve the ultimate WPIAL prize of a district basketball title, it did pull off the win of the postseason. And it might be a sign of things to come. The Spartans finished the season with a 10-15 record but upset Class A’s top...
A-K Valley PIAA basketball playoff capsules: Games for Wednesday, March 9, 2022

Boys Class 6A 3-7 Cumberland Valley (19-7) at 7-1 Fox Chapel (24-1) 6 p.m. Wednesday Coaches: Zach Skrinjar, Fox Chapel; David Vespiognani, Cumberland Valley Winner plays: Winner of 8-1 Allderdice (19-7)/7-3 Central Catholic (18-6) Saturday in the second round (site and time TBD) Layup lines: Cumberland Valley earned a spot...
St. Joseph boys hope to learn, develop after falling short of postseason

St. Joseph boys basketball coach Hart Coleman said he is going to attend WPIAL playoff games and recommends his players do the same. He wants them to witness the type of consistency and play that will lead to his team to taking the next step in getting back to the...
Aquinas Academy fends off upset-minded St. Joseph, rolls into Class A title game

The St. Joseph girls basketball team held a great deal of momentum entering Monday’s WPIAL Class A semifinal against Section 3 rival Aquinas Academy at North Hills High School. The No. 9 Spartans took down No. 1 Rochester on Thursday, and they hoped to do the same against the No....
A-K Valley senior spotlight: St. Joseph’s Sam Wygonik

Sam Wygonik finishes classes each day and heads to swim practice, but for the St. Joseph senior, it’s not as simple as walking down a few hallways to the natatorium. Wygonik is the lone swimmer at St. Joseph and does his daily workouts at Fox Chapel High School. He’s an...
St. Joseph girls relish another shot at Aquinas after upset

The St. Joseph girls basketball team will get another crack at Aquinas Academy as the Section 3-1A rivals do battle at 6 p.m. Monday at North Hills in the WPIAL semifinals with a trip to Petersen Events Center on the line. Most playoff pundits and other observers probably thought the...
Guido: Not a typo: St. Joseph girls shock Rochester in quarterfinals

I confess. I thought it was a typo. After I filed my Highlands-Penn Hills story Thursday night, I perused the scoreboard to see what the other local teams did. The first time I saw the St. Joseph-Rochester score, I was skeptical. My media colleague sitting beside me agreed that somebody...