Basketball
Scholastic Notebook – 04/21/2017
April 21, 2017
Blackhawk baseball coach Bob Amalia has had talented pitchers before. Only a few years ago he had Brendan McKay, who came close to breaking a national scoreless streak record. But now Amalia is blessed with a stable full of pitchers who are putting up remarkable statistics for an undefeated team. “So far, so good. We’re trying to just go one game at a time,” said Amalia. “But as a staff, this is the best I’ve had.” Blackhawk has a 12-0 record and the Cougars’ statistics make eyes pop: * Blackhawk has allowed only eight runs in 12 games, including six earned runs. * The Cougars have seven shutouts and allowed only one run in four other games. Four of the runs allowed came in one game against New Castle.Scholastic Notebook – 04/08/2017
April 8, 2017
A star hurdler is emerging in girls track and field at Oakland Catholic, but the last time we heard much of her, she was at Penn Hills. Jayla Ellis is a sophomore at Oakland Catholic who has run the 100-meter hurdles in 14.1 seconds this spring. According to WPIAL girls track and field historian Jim Faiella, that is the second-fastest time in the history of the WPIAL. Lindsay Dolan of Center ran 14.1 in 2006. Ellis burst onto the WPIAL track scene a year ago, winning the 100 hurdles as a freshman and finishing fourth in the state. But Ellis attended Penn Hills last year. She transferred to Oakland Catholic for her sophomore year.
WPIAL Hall of Fame Class of 2017
The newest class of the WPIAL Hall of Fame includes a current NFL player, a former NFL head coach and a high school coach who sent almost a dozen players to the NFL. The 2017 class was announced by the WPIAL at a news conference Thursday at the Heinz History Center. This is the 10th anniversary of the Hall of Fame. The inductees with NFL ties are: Terrelle Pryor, who played for the Cleveland Browns last year and has signed with the Washington Redskins; former New York Jets head coach Joe Walton; former Woodland Hills coach George Novak, who sent 11 players to the NFL.
MSA Sports 2017 Boys All-Netters
March 31, 2017
The MSA boys All Netters team is in guarded condition this year. Of the 10 players selected to the All Netters team, eight are guards and another is a guard-forward. The team also is Ram tough. Two plays from WPIAL Class 6A champion Pine-Richland Rams are on the team. The All Netters team is picked by the MSA Sports staff and is made up of the top 10 players in the WPIAL. A handful of the players on the first and second teams are headed to Division I colleges and one is headed to a major college for football. Here is a look at the MSA Sports All Netters team as well as the Player of the Year: FIRST TEAM: PLAYER OF THE YEAR
MSA Sports 2017 Girls All-Netters
There are more than 8,000 reasons to like the players on the first team of this year’s MSA All Netters girls all-star team. That’s how many points the five players have scored in their careers. The All Netters team is selected by the MSA Sports staff and takes into consideration all players in the WPIAL. This year’s first team consists of three seniors and two juniors, and the three seniors are all headed to Division I colleges. And all five were big scorers. One of the seniors is among the top 10 scorers in WPIAL history. Here is a look at the first- and second-team selections on the All Netters team, as well as the Player of the Year. FIRST TEAM: PLAYER OF THE YEAR
WPIAL Coaches Corner – Jeff Ackermann
March 27, 2017
In this feature titled “Coach’s Corner”, I will be interviewing a different coach every week and asking them questions about their personal life and about coaching. Hopefully their answers will not only shed some light on how they coach their respective teams, but also allow readers to get to know the men behind the fields/courts.This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 03/27/2017
It's all about the transition. We make the transition of broadcasting winter sports to spring sports as march transitions into April this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We begin our spring scholastic sports coverage with a handful of WPIAL baseball games, a WPIAL softball contest and a WPIAL boys volleyball match, plus one more winter sports event with the Quigley Classic girls and boys high school basketball games ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, March 27th: WPIAL High School Baseball - Bishop Canevin vs West Allegheny at 4:30pm on MSAsports.net Tuesday, March 28th: No Broadcast Wednesday, March 29th:2017 PIAA BOYS BASKETBALL STATE PLAYOFFS Results
March 26, 2017
While the east claimed four of the six state titles, it was once again District 12 that flexed its boys basketball muscles. The district made up of public and private schools in the Philadelphia area, won three PIAA boys basketball championships by a combined score of 242-150. The two exceptions from the west were WPIAL 2-A champion Sewickley Academy and District 10 1-A champ Kennedy Catholic. While the Sewickley Academy Panthers brought home state gold, it was the runner-up silver basketball that Pine-Richland in 6-A and Lincoln Park in 3-A brought back from Hershey. Here are ALL of the final results from the 2017 PIAA Boys Basketball Playoffs. All results with (MSA) after them are games you can hear anytime you want archived here on The Network.2017 PIAA GIRLS BASKETBALL STATE PLAYOFFS Results
When it comes to girls high school basketball in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the East is the Beast. It was a clean 6-0 sweep for teams from the eastern side of the state in the state championships. Among those from the west that had to settle for the runner-up silver trophy were North Allegheny in 6-A, Trinity in 5-A and Bishop Canevin in 3-A. Here are ALL of the final scores from the 2017 PIAA Girls Basketball Playoffs. All results with (MSA) after them are games you can hear anytime you want archived here on The Network. 2017 PIAA CLASS 6-A GIRLS BASKETBALL STATE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME: Boyertown Bears 46 - NORTH ALLEGHENY TIGERS 35 (MSA)
Sellout Crowd Sees Reading Edge PIne-Richland for Boys 6-A State Title
March 25, 2017
The Giant Center in Hershey officially holds 10,500 attendees. It was near max capacity (9,531) for the PIAA Class 6A Boys Basketball Championship on Saturday night, and approximately 80% were supporting the Reading Red Knights. Nearly 8,000 fans dressed in red, but it was one red-clad player in particular who caused the havoc against Pine-Richland. Miami commit Lonnie Walker led his team in every major statistical category en route to a 64-60 Reading victory in a back-and-forth instant classic.
Archbishop Wood Beats Trinity to Repeat as PIAA Girls Champs
Archbishop Wood's slow down offense and tenacious defense added up to a 34-26 win over Trinity in the PIAA Class 5-A Girls Championship game Saturday night. The Vikings regularly held the ball outside the three-point line for upwards of 45 seconds while Trinity sat in a 2-3 zone inside the arch. The District 12 champions hit three treys in the game's first 4 minutes to lead 9-0 but scored only one more field goal before halftime. The Hillers struggle to take care of the ball and get good looks at basket, but stayed within reach, trailing 14-7 at the half.
Neumann-Goretti 3-Peats in Holding off Bishop Canevin in Girls 3-A
Defeating a two-time defending state champion is no easy task. Bishop Canevin seemed up to the task getting a double-digit lead over Neumann-Goretti in the first quarter. However, the Saints' pressure defense forced 26 Bishop Canevin turnovers, and despite a great fourth quarter comeback attempt, the Lady Crusaders fell to Neumann-Goretti 62-56 in the PIAA Class 3A Girls Basketball Championship.
North Allegheny Falls to Boyertown in PIAA Girls 6-A Finals
March 24, 2017
In a contest between two teams making their first ever PIAA title game appearance, it was the Boyertown Bears who won state gold with a 46-35 decision over the North Allegheny Tigers from the Giant Center in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Boyertown used a critical 20-4 run in the second half to claim its first state crown. Senior Abby Kapp, a Bucknell recruit, led Boyertown with 17 points and 13 rebounds.
Sewickley Academy Wins State Title in Overtime Upset of Constitution
When Sewickley Academy trailed 16-4 to Constitution late in the first quarter of the Class 2A PIAA Championship, it appeared unlikely that the Panthers would pull off the upset. Sewickley Academy rallied, though, forcing overtime on a late 3-pointer, and then dominated the extra frame to prevail 68-63 at the Giant Center in Hershey. By knocking off the powerhouse squad from Philadelphia, Sewickley Academy (26-4) captured its third PIAA title, joining Panthers’ squads from 1997 and 2010 in the record books.
PIAA Basketball Championship Recaps
March 23, 2017
While 6 WPIAL teams played for titles, there were other championships handed out this weekend in Hershey. Here are recaps of all of those games.
WPIAL Alum Q&A – Jimmy Leichliter
March 21, 2017
Averaging double figures in scoring for a college basketball season is quite an accomplishment, but averaging double figures in each of the first three seasons of a player's collegiate career is even more impressive. Former Connellsville star Jimmy Leichliter has achieved that feat at Geneva College, as he's become one of the top performers in his conference. Leichliter is the featured athlete for this weeks' installment of the WPIAL Alum Q&A. In high school, Leichliter was a two-year starter for the Falcons, although his team did not taste the postseason in either of those campaigns. In 2012-13, Connellsville compiled a mark of just 7-15. In Leichliter's senior campaign, the team improved to 11-10, as he netted approximately 18 points per game.
Coaches Corner – Molly Rottman
In this feature titled “Coach’s Corner”, I will be interviewing a different coach every week and asking them questions about their personal life and about coaching. Hopefully their answers will not only shed some light on how they coach their respective teams, but also allow readers to get to know the men behind the fields/courts. This week features Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic’s girls basketball head coach Molly Rottmann. Coach Rottmann is in her 19th year as the head coach of the Trojanettes, with over 380 wins, 5 WPIAL titles, and one PIAA crown. She is a graduate of CWNC, and played under WPIAL legend Don Barth. Let’s take a look inside Coach Rottmann’s corner: Personal:PIAA Basketball Semifinals Preview
There are 12 final fours in Pennsylvania high school basketball this year – and 12 WPIAL teams are involved. This is the first year of six classifications in basketball and the PIAA semifinals for all boys and girls teams are Monday and Tuesday around the state. The championships are Thursday through Saturday in Hershey. Seven boys teams and four girls teams from the WPIAL are still alive. Bishop Canevin has both its boys and girls teams alive. Besides Bishop Canevin, the WPIAL boys teams still left standing are Pine-Richland, Quaker Valley, Lincoln Park, Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic, Sewickley Academy and Monessen. The WPIAL girls teams in the semifinals are Bishop Canevin, North Allegheny, South Fayette, Trinity and Bishop Canevin.This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 03/19/2017
March 19, 2017
The high school basketball and high school hockey seasons come to a golden end this week on the MSA Sports Network. Our winter sports postseason coverage concludes with the PIAA state basketball Semifinals and Championship Games as well as PIHL Penguins Cup Championships and the Pennsylvania Cup state hockey title games with all seven hockey Finals on video stream as well, plus we have final editions of the season of The WPIAL Roundball Report and The PIHL Power Play Show ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, March 20th: TALK SHOW - Carlow Sports Talk at 8:30pm on MSAsports.net
WPIAL Alum Q&A – Mariah Wells
March 13, 2017
Just more than one week ago, the Chartiers Valley girls basketball team claimed the WPIAL Championship in the 5A classification. Four years prior, the Colts also made an appearance in the title game, but came up just short. Among the standouts on that team in 2012-13 was Mariah Wells, who just completed a successful career on the hardwood at Seton Hill University. She is this week's feature for the WPIAL Alum Q&A.
