After incident in WPIAL semifinals, should postgame handshake lines continue?

By: Chris Harlan
Monday, March 7, 2022 | 12:01 AM

Should handshake lines disappear from the WPIAL?

No, says the league’s top administrator, even though one of the WPIAL’s best basketball players will miss the first round of the PIAA playoffs after a postgame confrontation.

WPIAL executive director Amy Scheuneman said eliminating handshakes would essentially absolve players and coaches of their responsibility for sportsmanship.

“That’s part of the game,” she said. “To eliminate that is saying it’s only a competition and nothing bigger.”

Belle Vernon and Montour were involved in an incident Feb. 26 when teams were shaking hands after a WPIAL Class 4A semifinal. Belle Vernon senior Devin Whitlock “slapped” an opponent in the face, said Montour coach Bill Minear. The game officials already had left the court, so the school was asked to look into the incident.

“We reached out to Belle Vernon’s administration to talk about the unsportsmanlike conduct,” Scheuneman said. “We asked them to review it, and they took action.”

Belle Vernon athletic director Matt Humbert confirmed Whitlock will miss Tuesday’s PIAA first-round game against City League opponent Obama Academy.

Should Belle Vernon win, Whitlock’s availability for the second round is unclear. Since the discipline was imposed by the school and not the WPIAL, Scheuneman declined comment on specifics.

However, she added, “we felt that discipline was appropriate.”

Belle Vernon boys basketball coach Joe Salvino declined comment and referred questions to Humbert.

The contact itself was open to interpretation.

“Punch, slap, push — I guess it could be called any of those things depending upon who you talk to,” Scheuneman said, “but it was a physical act.”

Whitlock is one of the WPIAL’s best athletes.

The 5-foot-8, 165-pound senior quarterbacked Belle Vernon’s football team to the WPIAL finals last fall and led the basketball team to a 19-4 record this winter. He accepted a preferred walk-on offer from Pitt football in February.

Minear said some on-court “jawing” took place between Whitlock and Montour’s Dante Deltondo during the semifinal game, which Montour won 64-53, but there was no physical confrontation between the two. The game was played at Bethel Park.

Minear said he was told Whitlock reached out to shake Deltondo’s hand but instead “slapped him on his face,” which upset Montour, but video showed the two teams then left the floor without further incident.

“That was so surprising,” Minear said, “because there was nothing during the game to make you think that (would happen).”

The teams also played three weeks earlier, which Montour won, 65-48, without incident.

Handshake lines have drawn added scrutiny in recent days after Michigan men’s basketball coach Juwan Howard hit a Wisconsin assistant in the face as the teams shook hands Feb. 20, earning Howard a suspension for that postgame altercation.

Some have called for the tradition to be eliminated, and Minear might agree.

“Last year when we didn’t have them and we just kind of waved to each other, I was OK with that,” Minear said of the covid-related guidelines. “Maybe it’s a comment on society. In the lower levels and in AAU, because it’s a win-at-all-costs mentality, some sportsmanship has got lost along the way.”

Minear recalled times when his coaching staff has shadowed one of their own players through the handshake line, worried emotions from the game might make them volatile.

“You should compete hard and respect the other guy at the end,” Minear said. “I don’t think that’s always the case anymore.”

Scheuneman still sees value in the handshake lines. From a sportsmanship perspective, the WPIAL considers them an integral part of the entire game-day experience.

“You’re competing against an opponent. They’re not the enemy,” Scheuneman said. “At the end of the game, everyone should be able to walk away with an understanding of who won and who lost.

“This should not be a time for inappropriate interactions. It’s a respect thing, a sportsmanship initiative, so I do think they need to be there. People need to shake hands and congratulate others on a hard-fought game.”

Staff writer Bill Beckner Jr. contributed.

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Montour