High school roundup for Jan. 9, 2024: Ralphie Blundo shoots New Castle past Central Catholic in OT

By: Tribune-Review
Tuesday, January 9, 2024 | 11:32 PM

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Ralphie Blundo scored 34 points to lead New Castle to a 72-67 overtime win over Central Catholic in Section 1-6A boys basketball Tuesday night.

Damian Harrison added 14 for New Castle (10-3, 1-2). Bradley Gompers led Central Catholic (6-4, 1-2) with 23 points and Payton Wehner had 14.

Aliquippa 55, Northgate 50 – Joshua Pratt scored 21 points, Cameron Lindsey had 11 and Quentin Goode added 10 to lead Aliquippa (7-3, 3-0) to a Section 1-2A win. Josh Williams led Northgate (7-3, 2-1) with 20 points and Tylan Daniels had 10.

Allderdice 69, Obama Academy 39 – Logan Golle hit for 31 points and Major Rainey added 16 to help Allderdice (8-2, 2-0) to a City League win. Torrien Perkins led Obama Academy (2-7, 1-1) with 17 points.

Avella 69, Cornell 63 – Bryce Wright scored 23 points and Westley Burchianti added 14 to lead Avella (7-7, 2-1) to a Section 1-A win. Julian Cordice led Cornell (3-8, 0-3) with 38 points.

Baldwin 74, Norwin 53 – Led by 16 points from Nathan Wesling, 14 from Matthew Schenk and 12 from Caden Cherico, Baldwin (9-3, 2-1) picked up a Section 2-6A win. Mario Csukas hit five 3-pointers and scored 17 points and Dylan McCullough added 16 for Norwin (5-7, 0-3).

Belle Vernon 81, Laurel Highlands 52 – Zion Moore scored 20 points and Curtis Wade added 19 to lead Belle Vernon (7-3, 2-1) to a Section 3-4A win. Tommy Davis (12 points, 10 rebounds) and Alonzo Wade (12 points, 11 rebounds) each had a double-double for the Leopards. Ethan Koffler hit four 3-pointers and scored 17 points for Laurel Highlands (2-11, 0-3).

Bethel Park 66, Connellsville 28 – Nick Brown scored 12 points and Owen Turoski added 11 for Bethel Park (8-4, 3-0) in a Section 1-5A win over Connellsville (1-12, 0-3).

Bishop Canevin 79, Propel Braddock Hills 41 – Michael Vaughn scored 21 points, Drew Allen added 13 and Jackson Maddix had 12 to lead Bishop Canevin (4-5, 2-0) to a Section 2-2A win. Dylan Tomer scored nine points for Propel Braddock Hills (3-8, 0-2).

Brashear 60, Westinghouse 40 – Titus Gillett scored 24 points, Mike Lee and Karmello Harshey each had 11 and Nasir Pullie added 10 to lead Brashear (4-7, 1-1) in a City League win. Tyrell Wafford put up 24 points for Westinghouse (1-4, 1-1).

Burgettstown 63, Bentworth 42 – Zack Schrockman scored a game-high 25 points while James Leuice and Carson Tkalcevic added 15 points apiece as Burgettstown (11-3, 4-0) defeated Bentworth (2-9, 1-4) in Section 4-2A. Ben Hays scored 20 points and Christopher Harper had 16 for the Bearcats.

Canon-McMillan 52, Hempfield 46 – Ryan Galicic scored 15 points, Evan Morris added 11 and Eamon O’Donoghue finished with 10 to lead Canon-McMillan (7-6, 2-1) to a Section 2-6A win. Drew Gordon led all scorers with 19 points and made six 3-pointers for Hempfield (3-10, 0-3).

Carrick 57, Perry Traditional Academy 26 – Kelenn Ward scored 18 points and Brayden Fisher and Ray Saunders added 15 apiece to lead Carrick (4-6, 1-1) to a City League win. Javon Diamond scored 11 for Perry (1-8, 0-2).

Fort Cherry 60, Chartiers-Houston 55 – Derek Errett put up 19 points, Ryan Huey added 15 and Shane Cornali finished with 12 to lead Fort Cherry (7-4, 3-0) past Chartiers-Houston (9-5, 2-3) in Section 4-2A. Avery Molek led all scorers with 20 points, Nate Gregory added 12 and Justus Buckingham had 10 for the Buccaneers.

Fox Chapel 50, Armstrong 38 – Asher White and Ike Moser scored 10 points apiece to lead Fox Chapel (8-6, 3-0) to a Section 2-5A win. Isaiah Riggle scored 13 points for Armstrong (8-5, 1-2).

Frazier 64, Carmichaels 57 (OT) – Dailan McManus scored 16 points, Darian Bateman added 14 and Brennan Stewart had 12 to lead Frazier (8-5, 3-1) to a Section 4-2A win. Robbie Wilson-Jones led all scorers with 19 points, Aydan Adamson finished with 15 and Dominic Colarusso followed with 13 for Carmichaels (3-8, 0-3).

Hampton 63, Freeport 31 – Peter Kramer dropped 24 points and Liam Mignonga had 17 to pace Hampton (10-2, 3-0) in a Section 1-4A win. Brady Sullivan scored 15 for Freeport (2-10, 0-3).

Highlands 78, Greensburg Salem 64 – Bradyn Foster had a double-double with 34 points and 12 rebounds to lead Highlands (7-4, 2-1) to a Section 1-4A win. Cam Reigard added 23 points and Jordyn Tavarez had 10. Ryan Burkart scored 37 points for Greensburg Salem (2-11, 0-3), including 32 of the team’s 35 in the second half. Julian Stevens added 12. The Golden Lions hit 13 3-pointers, including seven by Burkart.

Imani Christain 63, Aquinas Academy 46 – Markus Williams and Nate Brazil each scored 14 points and Avery Wesley added 10 to lead Imani Christian (4-4, 3-0) to a Section 3-A win over Aquinas Academy (8-3, 1-2). Sam Duer scored 17 points and Jacob Guillen had 12 for the Crusaders.

Jeannette 62, Clairton 50 – Jayce Powell scored 16 points, Kymone Brown added 12 and Xavier Odorisio-Farrow had 10 to lead Jeannette (8-4, 3-1) to a Section 3-2A win. Taris Wooding led Clairton (7-7, 4-1) with 18 points.

Jefferson-Morgan 54, California 47 – Dayten Marion scored 23 points and John Woodward Jr. added 13 to lead Jefferson-Morgan (9-4, 2-1) to a Section 2-A win. Noah Neil led California (2-10, 2-1) with 16 points and Vinny Manzella had 14.

Knoch 60, Indiana 42 – Jackson Bauman and Derek Lang scored 12 points each to pace Knoch (10-2, 3-0) in a Section 1-4A win at Indiana (4-5, 1-2). Zane Pacek added 11 points and Teagan Finucan had 10. Jaden Petrovich scored 14 for Indiana.

Lincoln Park 83, Hopewell 33 – Brandin Cummings scored 20 points, Meleek Thomas followed with 19, Vinnie DePaula had 15, Rhaki Lum added 13 and Mikey Crawford chipped in with 10 as Lincoln Park (9-3, 3-0) rolled to a Section 2-4A win. Zach Kovell scored 10 points to pace Hopewell (6-6, 0-5).

McGuffey 68, Brownsville 52 – Aydan Cunningham had a double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds, Grayson Wallace added 19 points and Trey McGowan scored a career-high 13 to lead McGuffey (10-3, 2-2) past Brownsville (5-8, 1-4) in Section 4-3A.

Mohawk 79, Riverside 47 – Bobby Fadden led Mohawk (6-6, 4-0) with 23 points, Jay Wrona had 14 and Mason Hopper added 13 in a Section 1-3A win. Drake Fox scored 11 points for Riverside (4-9, 1-3).

Montour 77, East Allegheny 29 – Ama Tening Sow scored 18 points, Kaleb Platz had 14 and Jake Wolfe added 10 for Montour (8-1, 2-0) in a Section 4-4A win. Brennan Ruttledge led East Allegheny (3-10, 0-3) with 11 points.

Moon 73, Chartiers Valley 42 – Elijah Guillory led with 20 points, Aiden Reeseman followed with 14 and Michael Santicola added 11 for Moon (10-2, 3-0) in a Section 4-5A win. Julian Semplice scored 15 points and Julius Best had 12 for Chartiers Valley (6-7, 1-2).

Neighborhood Academy 54, Hillel Academy 29 – Courtney Wallace scored 17 points and Shamar Simpson followed with 14 to lead Neighborhood Academy (8-4, 2-1) to a Section 3-A win. Noam Azagury had 10 points for Hillel (4-4, 1-3).

Neshannock 68, New Brighton 15 – Jake Rynd scored 23 points to lead Neshannock (12-1, 5-0) to a Section 1-3A win over New Brighton (2-10, 0-4).

North Catholic 73, Central Valley 65 – Max Hurray led North Catholic (7-5, 3-1) with 23 points, Jason Fredericks added 13 and Jason Siket followed with 12 in a Section 2-4A win. Isaiah Jeter scored 24 points and Gabriel Raso had 21 for Central Valley (7-4, 2-2).

North Hills 61, West Allegheny 53 – Nathan Schanbacher scored 16 points, Eric James followed with 14 and Zach Pollaro added 12 for North Hills (5-6, 1-2) in a Section 4-5A victory. Brandon Bell led all scorers with 19 points and Justin Manns had 15 for West Allegheny (9-4, 0-3).

OLSH 49, South Park 45 – Tiernan McCullough made four 3-pointers and scored 13 points and Jake Johnson added 12 points to lead OLSH (9-3, 4-0) past South Park (6-6, 1-3) in Section 2-3A. Luke Scarff led all scorers with 23 points and Danny Batista added 11 for the Eagles.

Penn-Trafford 64, McKeesport 55 – Tyler Freas led all scorers with 23 points while Ian Temple and Carmen Metcalfe scored 10 points apiece for Penn-Trafford (7-6, 1-2) in a Section 3-5A win over McKeesport (3-7, 0-3). E.J. Johnson scored 16 points, Dom Cochran chipped in with 12 and Lamont Cochran followed with 11 for the Tigers.

Peters Township 84, Ringgold 35 – Jack Dunbar finished with 22 points, Dylan Donovan put up 13 and Nate Miller had 10 as Peters Township (8-4, 2-1) rolled to a Section 1-5A win. Daryl Tolliver had 14 points for Ringgold (3-10, 0-3).

Pine-Richland 58, Seneca Valley 43 – Carsen Baer scored 14 points and Grant Spacciapolli added 11 to lead Pine-Richland (5-6, 1-2) in a Section 1-6A win. Andrew Omasits finished with 18 points to pace Seneca Valley (3-11, 0-3).

Rochester 56, Carlynton 51 – Jayvin Hemer scored 18 points and Xavier Rigby added 14 to power Rochester (7-4, 3-0) to a Section 1-A win. Jake Moldovan scored 18 and Jaydin McKnight and Ryan Lewis each added 13 for Carlynton (2-8, 1-1).

Serra Catholic 83, Riverview 59 – Owen Dumbroski scored 34 points and Isiah Petty added 24 to lead Serra Catholic (7-5, 2-3) to a Section 3-2A win. Alex Schultheis led Riverview (5-6, 0-4) with 14 points and Nate Sprajcar had 13.

Seton LaSalle 90, Brentwood 76 – Patrick Weldon and Hayden Merchant each scored 20 points, Elias Latouf added 16, Ian March finished with 12 and Keenu Brooks had 11 for Seton LaSalle (9-3, 4-0) in a Section 2-3A win. Forrest Betz led all scorers with 25 points, Colton Rosing and Aidan Barker scored 13 points apiece and Shane Palmer added 12 for Brentwood (3-11, 1-4).

Sewickley Academy 70, Laurel 34 – Lucas Grimsley put up 22 points to lead Sewickley Academy (7-4, 1-2) to a Section 1-2A win over Laurel (2-9, 0-3). Brayden Faulkner and Anthony Ziccardi each scored 10 points for the Spartans.

Shaler 63, Penn Hills 52 – Keegan Smetanka led all scorers with 19 points and Brandon London finished with 17 for Shaler (12-1, 2-1) in a Section 2-5A contest. Robert Thomas scored 17 points, Amon Hawthorne added 15 and Kahlil Wall had 14 for Penn Hills (6-4, 1-2).

Shenango 69, South Side 67 – Brody McQuiston scored the game-winning bucket with 1.3 seconds left and led all scorers with 31 points as Shenango (8-3, 2-1) defeated South Side (6-7, 1-2) in Section 1-2A. Joey Campoli and Jimmy Roe each added 13 points for the Wildcats. Brody Almashy finished with 30 points and Andrew Corfield had 19 for the Rams.

South Allegheny 70, West Mifflin 57 – Drew Cook scored 18 points, Jeston Beatty Jr. added 15 and Cam Epps followed with 14 for South Allegheny (9-3, 1-2) in a Section 4-4A win. David Fleming led West Mifflin (7-5, 1-2) with 22 points and Brandon Battles had 12.

Thomas Jefferson 71, Trinity 46 – Noah Prosser scored 16 points, Nicholas Trklja followed with 13 and Kane Eggerton finished with 11 to lead Thomas Jefferson (9-2, 3-0) to a victory in Section 1-5A. Jacob Dunkle led all scorers with 20 points and Jonah Williamson had 13 for Trinity (6-6, 1-2).

Washington 69, Waynesburg 46 – Zxavion Willis led all scorers with 19 points, Deondre Dougherty added 12 and Ruben Gordon chipped in with 10 for Washington (8-5, 5-0) in a Section 4-3A win. Dane Woods scored 16 points and Jackson Dean had 10 for Waynesburg (2-8, 0-3).

Winchester Thurston 56, Nazareth Prep 52 – Anthony Pipkin scored 16 points and Henry McComb followed with 12 to lead Winchester Thurston (6-5, 2-1) to a Section 2-2A win. Khylil Johnson posted 16 points and Leon Harrison added 13 for Nazareth Prep (3-6, 0-2).

Woodland Hills 57, Plum 45 – Scoop Smith scored 15 points to lead a balanced scoring effort from Woodland Hills (5-8, 2-1) in a Section 2-5A win. Darian Nelson scored 11 points while Brendan Getlak and Owen Proskin each added 10 for Plum (5-7, 0-3).

Yough 62, Mt. Pleasant 36 – Terek Crosby put up 24 points, Austin Matthews added 15 and Zander Aird chipped in 12 as Yough (7-4, 2-1) defeated Mt. Pleasant (4-7, 3-1) in Section 4-3A. Chase McCloy scored 14 points for the Vikings.

Girls basketball

Avonworth 53, Freedom 42 – Greta O’Brien led with 16 points, Eden Schleis followed with 13, Becca Goetz added 12 and Emma Obersteiner had 10 for Avonworth (11-1) in a nonsection win. Shaye Bailey scored 24 points for Freedom (5-7).

Canon-McMillan 58, Baldwin 34 – Lauren Borella scored 20 points, Madison Clair had 11 and Samantha Miller added 10 to lead Canon-McMillan (9-4, 2-2) to a Section 2-6A win over Baldwin (7-6, 0-5).

Carrick 53, Perry Traditional Academy 23 – Kaliyah Hairston scored 18 points, Jayonna Johnson added 13 and Aaliyah Freeman had 10 for Carrick (5-5, 1-1) in a City League victory over Perry (1-2, 0-2).

Elizabeth Forward 71, Fox Chapel 50 – Alyssa Terza recorded a double-double with 21 points and 13 rebounds, McKenna Bittner scored 14 points and Chloe Zombek added 13 for Elizabeth Forward (10-2, 3-0) in a nonsection win. Bella Urso put up 13 points while Skye Barnes and Isabella Barbour each scored 11 for Fox Chapel (3-10, 1-3).

Mars 45, Shaler 42 – Vita Vargo broke a 42-42 tie by draining a 3-pointer with 23 seconds left to lift Mars (7-5, 3-1) past Shaler (5-8, 2-2) in Section 2-5A. Vargo finished with 15 points and Cecilia Christy scored 17 for the Fightin’ Planets. Bayleigh Perez led the Titans with 16 points.

North Hills 49, New Castle 16 – Gianna Sturdivant scored 12 points and Delaney Amato added 10 for North Hills (7-6, 4-0) in a Section 2-5A win. Rihanna Boice scored eight points for New Castle (2-12, 0-5).

Peters Township 68, Mt. Lebanon 48 – Gemma Walker led Peters Township (13-0, 4-0) with 21 points, Natalie Wetzel followed with 20 and Alina Sopko added 11 in a Section 2-6A win.Payton Collins scored 15 points for Mt. Lebanon (6-6, 3-2).

Woodland Hills 56, Kiski Area 46 – Jhalynn Wilson scored 26 points to lead Woodland Hills (2-7, 2-2) to a Section 1-5A win. Abbie Johns scored 26 and Zoe Holm added 11 for Kiski Area (5-8, 1-3).

Girls wrestling

Burrell 39, Latrobe 24 – Kendra Lewandowski, Ella Campbell, Katie Koehler, Pippa Meyer and Bella Stewart each had a pin to help Burrell defeat Latrobe and earn its first dual meet win in program history. Cierra Molnar secured a decision for the Bucs.

Hockey

Central Catholic 7, Canon-McMillan 4 – Noah Hritz, Griffin Lewis, Josh Moline, Anthony D’Orazio and Evan Benscoter each had a goal and an assist to lead Central Catholic (6-7) to a Class 3A victory. Brenden Lomago had a hat trick for Canon-McMillan (1-12).

Elizabeth Forward 6, Trinity 3 – Joey Wach recorded a hat trick, Aidan Motil scored twice and Patrick Malandra added another for Elizabeth Forward (5-5) in a Varsity D2 matchup. Seamus Coyle, Robert Daddea and Cole Johnson each scored for Trinity (1-9).

Shaler 7, McDowell 0 – Matthew Stelitano scored two goals while Thomas Sommer, Brendan Fitzgerald, Luca Wallanderm Tyler Garasich and Joshua Yuiska each scored a goal as Shaler (9-3-1) blanked McDowell (3-9-1) in a Class A matchup. Shane Ciganik stopped all 16 shots he faced to earn the shutout for the Titans.