Track and Field
Scholastic Notebook – 03/28/2015
March 28, 2015
The best distance runner in WPIAL history might not compete in track this season because of an illness and injuries. That leaves the door open for someone. Madeleine Davison has her foot in the door. Davison is a junior at North Allegheny. While Shaler’s Brianna Schwartz was running her way to records last year, Davison was often close behind, sometimes just a second or two away. Now, Davison could gain a reputation as one of the best distance runners in the WPIAL in recent history.Scholastic Notebook – 01/09/2015
January 9, 2015
New Castle High School’s Malik Hooker apparently isn’t the only one who wears the athletic “genes” in the family. Hooker was one of the best two-sport athletes in the state the past two years, standing out in football and basketball. He now is a freshman football player at Ohio State, but is being redshirted this year. Two of Hooker’s younger brothers are now playing on the New Castle basketball. One of them is the team’s leading scorer in his first year as a starter. Marquel Hooker, a 5-foot-10 junior, is averaging 16.4 points a game. He never saw regular varsity time before this season.MSA Sports Countdown – Top 25 WPIAL Stories From 2014 – 01/07/2015
January 7, 2015
It has become a tradition like no other...at least during the holidays here at MSA Sports. Here is a look back at another great high school sports year with the top stories from around the WPIAL in 2014. We conclude our countdown with all 25 stories from #25 through #1. #25 - Game, Set, Match and Gold The unique streak continued in 2014 for Sewickley Academy. 2009 was the last time a Panthers duo did not win gold the WPIAL boys doubles tennis tournament. back in April, the Sewickley Academy tandem of Ryan Gex and Luke Vith won gold in Class AA.
MSA Sports Countdown – Top 25 WPIAL Stories From 2014 – 01/01/2015
January 1, 2015
It has become a tradition like no other...at least during the holidays here at MSA Sports. It's time to look back at another high school sports year with the top stories from around the WPIAL in 2014. We conclude our countdown with the five stories that ended up #5 through #1. {Left: Brianna Schwartz of Shaler crosses the finish line to win the WPIAL Girls Class AAA cross-county championship, her third straight title} #5 - Sister Power In 2013, the Kluska sisters made news when older sister Alyvia forfeited her WPIAL Class AA Consolation match to Michaela, thus earning the then freshman a spot in the PIAA girls individual singles tennis playoffs.Scholastic Notebook – 11/14/2014
November 14, 2014
It has been well-documented how Pine-Richland quarterback Ben DiNucci has turned out to be one of the most prolific passers in the history of the WPIAL. But DiNucci also has benefitted from a terrific one-two receiving punch. It looks like you could call seniors D’ondre Gastion and Mike Merhaut are a receiving duo for the ages. There are no records available for best receiving one-two punches, but you can bet you will be hard-pressed to find many duos from the same team who have been as productive as Gastion and Merhaut. How many teams have had two receivers with 100 or more career catches? But that’s what Pine-Richland has in Gastion and Merhaut, a pair of seniors.
MSA SPORTS CUP: South Fayette Roars to First Class AAA Cup Title
July 1, 2014
The first ten years of the MSA Sports Cup has shown us that while there are a couple of dominating schools in the other three classifications, the chase for the Class AAA Cup has been up for grabs with eight different schools earning The Cup in ten years. Now in the eleventh year of this competition, we have another first time winner in Triple-A making it nine different champs in eleven years. After finishing as the runner-up in 2012-2013 and being a steady member on the Top 5 in recent years, South Fayette is finally enjoying its day in the Championship Sun with a convincing victory.
MSA SPORTS CUP: Another Year, Another Quad-A Title for North Allegheny
June 30, 2014
Another school year and another MSA Sports Cup in Class AAAA for North Allegheny High School. NA captured their 11th Cup in eleven years since the MSA Sports Network started this school year long competition to determine the top sports programs in each classification. There are 20 sports in which schools can earn points in the competition and for the second straight year and only the second time in this history of the coveted competition, the Tigers earned points in ALL of them. In the 2012-2013 school year, North Allegheny scored a mind-numbing and record 1,115 points. In 2013-2014, they had to settle for a mere 965 points. The second place school finished 530 points behind NA.
2013-2014 MSA Sports Male Athlete of the Year
June 26, 2014
Neshannock High School in Lawrence County was much more than a school for Ernie Burkes. To him, the place was like his own personal “four seasons” resort. Oh, don’t get the wrong idea. Neshannock was never a place Burkes went to relax. But it was where he always went to get his fix of sports – in all four seasons. Burkes would start football in late summer and play it into the fall. He would move to basketball in the winter. In the spring, it was on to baseball and track. Four seasons. Four sports. One incredible athlete. Now just call him Athlete of the Year. Burkes, a Neshannock senior, wins the MSA Sports Male Athlete of the Year for the 2013-14 school year. The winner is picked from the entire WPIAL and is selected by the MSA Sports staff.
2013-2014 MSA Sports Female Athlete of the Year
June 25, 2014
Brianna Schwartz ran her final event of the school year two weeks ago in New York. It was a prestigious invite-only event sponsored by adidas and Schwart ran a race in which 10 high school runners from around the country competed in the mile. The entire meet was part of the adidas “Grand Prix” and the event that Schwartz participated was called the “Dream Mile.” For Schwartz, it was a rather appropriate title because she had a “dream year.” Schwartz, a junior at Shaler Area High School, did some marvelous things in the 2013-14 school year. She put herself in the WPIAL spotlight, but also gained national prominence. She is the MSA Sports Female Athlete of the Year.PIAA Track & Field – Day Two Recap
May 24, 2014
If the color of success is gold, then it was a successful weekend for the WPIAL at the PIAA track and field championships. The WPIAL left Shippensburg University today (Saturday) with gold medals in 15 individual events and four relays. That’s pretty good, considering recent history. The 15 gold medals in individual events are the most in a while. The WPIAL had only 10 individual winners last year and also 10 in 2012 and 2011. The WPIAL had nine individual winners in 2010, 12 in 2009 and only five in 2008.PIAA Track & Field – Day One Recap
Maddie Holmberg and Max Adams are both students at Hempfield High School. They went to the same elementary school and the same middle school. They belong to the same church. On Friday, they ended up in the same place again. The top of the winners stand. Holmberg and Adams gave Hempfield two state track and field champions as they both won gold medals today, the first day of the PIAA track and field championships at Shippensburg University. The final day of the championships is Saturday.Scholastic Notebook – 05/19/2014
May 19, 2014
Seneca Valley has been the surprise team of the WPIAL Class AAAA playoffs. The Raiders are the No. 16 seed, but find themselves in the semifinals. One more win and Seneca Valley will make history, but not because of their seeding. Seneca Valley plays Pine-Richland in a semifinal game Wednesday at a site and time to be determined. A win will put Seneca Valley into the championship game for the fourth year in a row. It has been at least 50 years since a team made it to a title game four consecutive years. In fact, it is likely that no team has ever made it to a championship four years in a row. So far in the playoffs, Seneca Valley has knocked off No. 1 seed Hempfield, 10-5, and also No. 9 seed Shaler, 3-0. Smith Does it All2014 WPIAL Individual Track & Field Results Thus Far
May 16, 2014
Mother Nature made it a two day event at Cibik Stadium at Baldwin High School which started Thursday and ended Saturday. Here are ALL of the results from the 2014 WPIAL Boys and Girls Class AAA and Class AA Individual Trck & Field Championships. Here are eight medalists in each event from Saturday’s WPIAL championship meet at Baldwin. The top five finishers in Class AA and the top four in Class AAA automatically qualify for the PIAA meet next Friday and Saturday in Shippensburg University. Others who finish in the top eight must meet qualifying standards to make the PIAA meet. The qualifying standards are in parentheses next to each event. *BOYS CLASS AAA*
NA & Beaver Boys Along With Hempfield & SF Girls Win WPIAL Team Track Titles
May 13, 2014
Three teams were able to repeat their golden success from a year ago while one school tasted a team track title for the very first time. Hempfield captured a third straight girls Class AAA crown while both the North Allegheny boys in Class AAA and the South Fayette Lions in girls Class AA won for the second consecutive year. Meanwhile, it was a first time championship captured by the Beaver Bobcats in boys Class AA on Monday at Baldwin High School. Here are ALL of the results from the 2014 WPIAL Boys and Girls Team Track & Field Championships. The 2014 WPIAL Boys and Girls Class AAA and Class AA Individual Track and Field Finals are set for Thursday, May 15th at Baldwin High School and here on the MSA Sports Network..This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 05/11/2014
May 11, 2014
Let the games begin! The 2014 WPIAL spring sports playoffs kick into full gear this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have EXCLUSIVE coverage of the 2014 WPIAL Baseball, Softball, Lacrosse and Boys Volleyball postseasons with First Round and/or Quarterfinals action along with the 2014 WPIAL Boys and Girls Individual Track & Field Championships, plus we another edition of Rappin on Racin and The WPIAL Baseball Show...playoff edition ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, May 12th: TALK SHOW - Rappin on Racin at 6:00pm on MSAsports.netScholastic Notebook – 05/02/2014
May 2, 2014
There are multi-sport athletes in the WPIAL who compete in more highly-visible sports than North Hills’ Noah Bostick. But as far as the number of sports and excelling in them, Bostick has few peers. It wouldn’t be an overstatement to say Bostick is most one of the best all-around athletes in the WPIAL. He is a young man for all seasons – and then some. You don’t see many three-sport athletes these days at large schools. But Bostick is more than a three-sport athlete. He actually competes in four sports, and does well in all of them.Scholastic Notebook – 04/20/2014
April 20, 2014
If you look at the three sports of football, basketball and baseball, Baldwin has been more like Baldloss the past few years. But finally, the baseball team is putting the win back in Baldwin. Things have been absolutely perfect so far this spring for the Baldwin baseball team. The Highlanders have a perfect 7-0 record after a 13-3 victory over Gateway on Saturday. This winning is new for the three teams of football, basketball and baseball at Baldwin. There hasn’t been a winning season in those three major sports since the basketball team went 14-8 in the 2009-10 season and the baseball team went 12-6 in the 2010 season. The football team hasn’t had a winning season since 2003.Scholastic Notebook – 04/11/2014
April 11, 2014
Have strong pitching and possess the ability to win close games. It sounds like the Pirates recipe for success this year and last. But it’s also the two main ingredients involved in the biggest turnaround stories so far in WPIAL baseball. The Butler Golden Tornado is one of the big surprises of the early season. Butler is 6-2 overall and in first place in Section 1 of Class AAAA. Section 1 also is home to perennial baseball powers North Allegheny and Seneca Valley. This is the same Butler team that went 2-16 last season and did not win a section game.Scholastic Notebook – 03/28/2014
March 28, 2014
Baseball and softball teams were able to start playing games last week. But it’s never too early to look ahead – and there are two teams that have a chance to make history come late May. In baseball, Seneca Valley has been to the WPIAL Class AAAA championship game three years in a row, winning twice and losing last year. The Raiders could become the first WPIAL team in at least 70 years to make a championship game four years in a row. A check of WPIAL final game scores that go back to 1954, shows that no team has played in a championship game four consecutive years. Some teams have made it three years in a row. North Allegheny made it four of five years from 1990-94. Shaler made it four of five years from 1980-84.2014-2015 WPIAL Springs Sports Alignment
March 24, 2014
The WPIAL Board of Control has approved the final seasonal alignment starting next season as the district spring sports sectional alignment has been approved. The new alignment kicks into affect next spring for WPIAL Baseball, Softball, Boys Volley, Boys Tennis, Boys Track & Field and Girls Track & Field. Click on the respective link below to see the new set up for each section and classification starting in the Spring of 2015. WPIAL Baseball: http://www.wpial.org/stuff/14-15/bse/14-15%20bse%20align%20o2.pdf
