Norwin notebook: Dylan McCullough sparks Knights

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Saturday, December 16, 2023 | 11:01 AM

Dylan McCullough sank a career-high five 3-pointers for a personal-best 19 points as the Norwin boys basketball team evened its record at 2-2 with a 63-58 win over Latrobe at the Westmoreland County Coaches Association Showcase on Dec. 9 at Jeannette.

The Knights blew a 12-point lead but managed to hold back Latrobe, which had several key players out with injuries.

Sophomore Mario Csukas added 12 points for Norwin, which made 11 3-pointers, including two from Csukas and sophomore Alex Graney.

“We knew Latrobe was going to be up in our grill,” McCullough said. “If we could get passes over the top, we thought we could get good looks.”

Said Norwin coach Lance Maha: “We’re young and inexperienced. There are so many teachable moments. Our guys did a good job following the game plan.”

Girls earn split

After dropping their first game of the season, 51-46 against Spring-Ford, the Norwin girls basketball team bounced back with a 58-24 win over Central Bucks West in the State College tip-off tournament.

Seniors Lauren Palangio (14 points) and Ava Kobus (11) led the scoring for Norwin (3-1). Palangio was named to the all-tournament team.

Wrestling opens

The Norwin wrestling team opened the seaso at the Ephrata Duals and came home with a 4-1 record.

The Knights defeated Malvern Prep (45-25), Biglerville (43-22), Conrad Weiser (51-24), and Ephrata (54-12). Their loss came against Malvern Prep (70-3).

Landon Sidun (121 pounds) went 5-0, while Gage Mamie (139), Nick Puskar (172), Nate Campbell (189), and Aidan Pham (215) all posted four wins.

The first-year Norwin girls wrestlers lost two matches at the Boiling Springs Duals, falling to Penns Manor (36-30) and Boiling Springs (54-24).

Karsyn Chapman (155), Octavia Walker (170) and Abigail Hewitt (190) all won two matches for the Lady Knights.

On ice

Norwin’s hockey team snapped a three-game losing streak with a 6-3 victory over Fox Chapel.

Alex Thomas, back in the lineup after missing two games with an injury, had a hat trick and an assist for the Knights, while Dom Cerilli added a goal and two assists.

Alley cats

The Norwin bowling team had two of the top individuals in the Week 3 results of the WPIBL Southeast Division.

Jake Sincak rolled a high series of 614 with a top game of 224, whil Hunter Cook followed with a 605/222 for the Knights (2-1).

College scene

Updates on Norwin athletes playing at the college level:

Football

• Allegheny: Senior wide receiver Declan O’Brien was named to the D3football.com All-Region 2 Third Team. O’Brien set program records for receptions (91) and yards (1,228) in a season. He had a career-high 233 yards in one game, and tied a team record for the longest receiving touchdown with a 95-yard catch. He topped 100 yards five times this year. O’Brien announced he plans to take advantage of a fifth season and entered the NCAA transfer portal.

Women’s basketball

• Bethany: Freshman Kate Botti was averaging 4.2 points and a team-beat 6.1 rebounds a game though nine starts with the Bison.

• Chatham: Sophomore forward Alyssa Laukus had 14 points as the Cougars set program records for points, margin of victory and field goals made in a 116-42 dismantling of Thiel. Chatham made 47 shots in the 74-point win. Laukus made 6 of 7 shots.

• Grove City: Junior guard Mara Polczynski had seven points, eight rebounds and four assists in 33 minutes, but the Wolverines dropped a 49-44 decision to Saint Vincent in a PAC matchup.

• Marian: Senior point guard Jayla Wehner has played in all 10 games for the Knights and is averaging 24.2 minutes. She was leading the team with 40 assists.

• Marietta: Senior guard Olivia Gribble had a season-high 17 points and made four 3-pointers in a 68-55 victory over Capital. Gribble was leading the Pioneers in scoring with 12.5-point average.

Men’s basketball

• Mercyhurst: Freshman Adam Bilinsky pumped in 12 points in 21 minutes off the bench as the Lakers topped Kutztown, 82-73.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

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