Football
CTK ’17 – Week One WPIAL Football Scrimmages
August 17, 2017
FINALLY! High school football camps throughout Pennsylvania opened for business on Monday. That means district teams have five days of practice before they hit the field for either the first of two scrimmages or in the case of some teams, their only scrimmage prior to Week Zero. All Pennsylvania high school football teams have the […]
CTK ’17 – New WPIAL Football Coaches
New Faces – New Places – New Hopes – New Dreams. There are six more coaching changes this off-season then before the 2016 campaign. There are a lot of rookie head coaches getting their first crack, some coaches who are just changing hats and addresses and one who has gone back to the future. Whatever […]
CTK ’17 – 6-A Southeastern Conference Preview
The storylines all throughout the regular season last year in 6A revolved around how the Southeastern Conference lacked any heavyweight teams, while the Northern Seven boasted several title contenders. Unfortunately for fans of the Southeastern Conference, that’s exactly how things played out in the playoffs, too, as all four representatives were bounced in the first […]
CTK ’17 – 6-A Northern Seven Conference Preview
Of the seven teams in the Northern Seven Conference, at least one of them has been in a WPIAL championship game nine times in the past seven years. Two times over the past three years the championship in the WPIAL’s largest class has matched two teams from the Northern Seven. Come late November this year, […]
CTK ’17 – 2017 WPIAL Class 1-A Players to Watch
Countdown to Kickoff 2017 continues with a six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP […]
CTK ’17 – 2017 WPIAL Class 2-A Players to Watch
Countdown to Kickoff 2017 continues with a six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP […]
CTK ’17 – 2017 WPIAL Class 3-A Players to Watch
August 13, 2017
Countdown to Kickoff 2017 continues with a six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP PLAYERS and submitting their name. Here is a look at some of the players to watch this 2017 campaign in Class 3-A. OFFENSE: Quarterbacks: Nico Battisti - Central Valley Running Backs: Lionel Deanes - Seton-LaSalle Avante McKenzie - Aliquippa
CTK ’17 – 2017 WPIAL Class 4-A Players to Watch
August 12, 2017
Countdown to Kickoff 2017 continues with a six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP PLAYERS and submitting their name. Here is a look at some of the players to watch this 2017 campaign in Class 4-A. OFFENSE: Quarterbacks: Drew Saxton - South Fayette Running Backs: Joey Koroly - Trinity Garrett Reinke - Mars
CTK ’17 – 2017 WPIAL Class 5-A Players to Watch
Countdown to Kickoff 2017 continues with a six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP PLAYERS and submitting their name. Here is a look at some of the players to watch this 2017 campaign in Class 5-A. OFFENSE: Quarterbacks: Will Hirt - North Hills Brady Walker - Gateway Running Backs: Micah Morris - Fox Chapel Ross Greece - Kiski Area
CTK ’17 – 2017 WPIAL Class 6-A Players to Watch
Countdown to Kickoff 2017 continues with a six-day look at some of the top high school football talent in the WPIAL for this upcoming season. As always, this list just scratches the surface. We ask for your help in building a complete rundown of candidates. You can nominate a top player by clicking on NOMINATE TOP PLAYERS and submitting their name. Here is a look at some of the players to watch this 2017 campaign in Class 6-A. OFFENSE: Quarterbacks: Phil Jurkovec - Pine-Richland Troy Fisher - Pittsburgh Central Catholic Cam Tarrant - Penn Hills Justin Sliwoski - Hempfield James Stocker - Mount LebanonCTK ’17 – 2016 WPIAL Class 1-A Football Flashback
August 11, 2017
Expansion was a huge part of the 2016-2017 school year as the PIAA and thus the WPIAL got its first taste of six classifications starting with the 2016 football season. But no matter how you slice it or dice it, Class 1-A is owned by Clairton. The Bears stormed their way to yet another WPIAL championship and another trip to Hershey and the state title game. 2016 WPIAL 1-A HEADLINES:
CTK ’17 – 2016 WPIAL Class 2-A Football Flashback
Expansion was a huge part of the 2016-2017 school year as the PIAA and thus the WPIAL got its first taste of six classifications starting with the 2016 football season. While there were some surprises and some competitive action in the regular season and district playoffs, there was very little suspense in the championship chase as Steel Valley became one of the most dominant WPIAL and PIAA champions. 2016 WPIAL 2-A HEADLINES:
CTK ’17 – 2016 WPIAL Class 3-A Football Flashback
August 10, 2017
Expansion was a huge part of the 2016-2017 school year as the PIAA and thus the WPIAL got its first taste of six classifications starting with the 2016 football season. While the playoff format garnered several headlines in Class 3-A, one 'super' conference was unhappy about the number of guaranteed playoff teams they would have. But in the end, a team from that conference, Beaver Falls stood tall to claim the Tigers in over three decades. 2016 WPIAL 3-A HEADLINES:CTK ’17 – 2016 WPIAL Class 4-A Football Flashback
August 7, 2017
Expansion was a huge part of the 2016-2017 school year as the PIAA and thus the WPIAL got its first taste of six classifications starting with the 2016 football season. While Quad-A had been the league's highest classification since 1980, 4-A was the third highest class with a pair of nine team conferences. But when all was said and done, a familiar name was on top as Thomas Jefferson captured a second straight district championship. Here is a look back at the WPIAL 4-A in 2016. 2016 WPIAL 4-A HEADLINES:
CTK ’17 – 2016 WPIAL Class 5-A Football Flashback
August 6, 2017
Expansion was a huge part of the 2016-2017 school year as the PIAA and thus the WPIAL got its first taste of six classifications starting with the 2016 football season. There were and still are a pair of nine team conferences in Class 5-A. But when all was said and done, a familiar name was on top as West Allegheny captured the first 5-A crown and a third district title in five years. Here is a look back at the WPIAL 5-A in 2016. 2016 WPIAL 5-A HEADLINES:CTK ’17 – 2016 WPIAL Class 6-A Football Flashback
August 5, 2017
Expansion was a huge part of the 2016-2017 school year as the PIAA and thus the WPIAL got its first taste of six classifications starting with the 2016 football season. There were and still are a pair of seven team conferences in the highest class. But when all was said and done, a familiar name was on top as Pittsburgh Central Catholic captured a second straight district crown. Here is a look back at the WPIAL 6-A in 2016. 2016 WPIAL 6-A HEADLINES:
2016-2017 MSA Sports Male Athletes of the Year
July 5, 2017
Darius Wise and Austin Butler were both 'Cats in high school, Wise playing for the Beaver Bobcats and Butler for the Latrobe Wildcats. But when it comes to athletes, Wise and Butler are top dogs. Wise and Butler, who both graduated last month, have been selected the MSA Sports Co-Athletes of the Year. The MSA Sports staff selects the athlete of the year from all WPIAL schools. In the days of high school athletes specializing in one sport, Wise and Butler were throwbacks. They were multi-sports athletes - in the same three sports. But it's not just competing in three sports that made them stand out, it's what they achieved in the three sports that made them two of a kind.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.
