High school roundup for Sept. 11, 2025: Late field goal lifts Riverside past Union in MAC football opener

By: Triblive
Thursday, September 11, 2025 | 11:51 PM

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Gage Safran drilled a 39-yard field goal with 5:37 left in the fourth quarter to send Riverside to a 9-7 victory over Union in the Class 2A Midwestern Athletic Conference opener Thursday night.

Riverside (2-1, 1-0) took a 6-0 lead in the first quarter when Mason Holler scored on a 25-yard screen pass from Aidan Gaydosz. Union (0-3, 0-1) answered with a 2-yard run by Gianna Million and the extra point by AJ Kulkin to take a 7-6 advantage.

Gaydosz threw for 200 yards and a score and Hunter Garcia caught eight passes for 123 yards for the Panthers. Million ran 18 times for 84 yards for the Scotties.

Boys soccer

Avonworth 6, Hopewell 1 – Nate Kline scored twice and Cody Cwynar had a goal and an assist to lead Avonworth (6-1, 4-1) to a Section 2-2A victory over Hopewell (0-4, 0-3). Jimmy Quinn, Calder Mahan and James Meese also scored and Jagger Boyd had two assists for the Antelopes.

Beaver 10, Ellwood City 0 – Anthony Furda scored four goals, Shane Ebbitt recorded a hat trick and Seth Kullen added a brace as Beaver (6-0, 6-0) blanked Ellwood City (0-4, 0-3) in Section 2-2A. Brayden Cosky also scored for the Bobcats.

Beaver County Christian 2, Freedom 1 – Zach Stephens and Liam Birchler each had a goal and an assist for Beaver County Christian (6-0, 3-0) in a Section 1-A win over Freedom (1-4-1, 0-2-1).

Bentworth 7, Beth-Center 0 – Ryan Moessner had a hat trick, Blake Lusk followed with two goals and Billy Moyer and Adam Moessner added a goal apiece for Bentworth (7-0, 4-0) in a Section 2-A win over Beth-Center (5-2, 2-1).

Bethel Park 2, Trinity 1 – Jason Koerbel and Xavier Jackson scored a goal apiece to lead Bethel Park (4-1-1, 4-0-1) to a Section 2-3A win. Jacob Wright scored for Trinity (4-2, 4-1).

Blackhawk 3, Ambridge 2 – Drake Moore scored two goals and Max Sprinker added another to lead Blackhawk (2-6, 1-3) past Ambridge (3-5, 1-4) in a Section 4-3A win.

Deer Lakes 11, Valley 0 – Artemey Parshyn and Sam Dischner scored two goals apiece to lead Deer Lakes (6-2, 5-0) past Valley (0-5-1, 0-4-1) in Section 1-2A. Collin Rodgers, Cuyler Crim, Jacob Orseno, Peyton Kushon and Ryan Liggett each had a goal and an assist. Colton Bish and Connor Moore also scored and Wesley Boyle and Callen Sabow combined on the shutout.

Elizabeth Forward 7, Steel Valley 0 – Aidan Davis scored four goals, Luca Valerio added two and Chaz Crea also scored to lead Elizabeth Forward (4-3, 4-1) past Steel Valley (1-5, 1-4) in Section 3-2A. Nick Moffa and Cooper Weagley combined on the shutout.

Franklin Regional 2, Allderdice 0 – Fabrizzio Costa had a goal and an assist and Luca Aguilera also scored to lead Franklin Regional (6-1) past Allderdice (4-4) in a Section 3-3A exhibition match.

Freeport 1, Highlands 1 (OT) – Ryan Maloney converted a penalty kick and Liam Roberts made 12 saves for Highlands (2-2-1, 2-1-1) while Carson Rowley scored for Freeport (4-2-1, 2-2-1) in a Section 1-2A draw.

Greensburg Central Catholic 12, California 0 – Grant Brewer had three goals and two assists, Lukas Czegan also scored a hat trick and freshman Rocco Cicci dished out six assists to lead Greensburg Central Catholic (1-3, 1-2) past California (0-3, 0-3) in Section 2-A.

Hampton 4, Shaler 0 – Xavier Ware scored two goals and Matteo Sciulli and Mason Hall added a goal apiece to lead Hampton (4-1-1, 3-0-1) to a Section 1-3A win over Shaler (4-3, 3-2).

Latrobe 3, West Mifflin 2 – Levi Porvaznik netted two goals and John Massaro also scored to lead Latrobe (2-4, 2-1) to a Section 3-3A win. Greyson Black and Blake Steele scored for West Mifflin (2-4-1, 1-2).

McGuffey 6, Ligonier Valley 0 – Ben Piatt scored two goals and Jaiden Newton, Conner Piatt, Jack Gallick and Cooper Grice added a goal apiece for McGuffey (6-2, 3-2) in a Section 3-2A win over Ligonier Valley (2-5, 2-3).

Mt. Lebanon 2, Canon-McMillan 1 (OT) – A goal from Benton Thompson and an own goal sent Mt. Lebanon (6-2, 2-1) to a Section 2-4A win over Canon-McMillan (4-2, 1-2).

Moon 2, Montour 1 – Rhys Hollowood and Hayden Dunn scored a goal apiece for Moon (4-3, 4-0) in a Section 4-3A win. Brayden Borris scored for Montour (5-3, 3-2).

Mt. Pleasant 1, Waynesburg 0 – Tyke Snyder scored the lone goal for Mt. Pleasant (6-1, 5-0) in a Section 4-2A win over Waynesburg (1-4-1, 1-3-1).

Neshannock 1, Eden Christian 0 – Caeden Turner scored the winning goal for Neshannock (6-1-1, 1-1-1) in a Section 1-A victory over Eden Christian (2-5, 1-2).

North Allegheny 2, Butler 0 – Harper Boles and Owen Lopresti scored and Xavier Zyskowski recorded the shutout to lead North Allegheny (5-1-2, 2-0-1) past Butler (2-4, 0-3) in Section 3-4A.

North Catholic 8, Burrell 0 – Arthur Mendonca and Justin Garvey each had two goals and an assist and Gabe Nonino added a goal and an assist for North Catholic (6-1-1, 4-1) in a Section 1-2A win over Burrell (2-5, 2-3). Austin English, Jackson Schlegel and Kelden Hufnagel also scored and Angelo Amelio had two assists.

OLSH 8, Serra Catholic 0 – Owen Minzer scored a hat trick and Peter Zink added a brace to pace OLSH (5-0, 3-0) in a Section 3-A win over Serra Catholic (1-5, 0-3). Brady Hernandez, Andre Kolocouris and Colby Lane each added a second-half goal for the Chargers.

Penn-Trafford 6, Uniontown 0 – Noah Haslam and Cooper Geyer netted two goals each and Colton Payne and Johnny Lovas also scored to power Penn-Trafford (5-2, 2-2) to a Section 3-3A win over Uniontown (2-5, 0-3).

Peters Township 5, Connellsville 2 – Colin Froelich, Nate Matuszewski, Anthony Maiello, Brady Rose and Connor Glass scored to lead Peters Township (6-0, 3-0) to a Section 2-4A win over Connellsville (2-6-1, 0-3).

Plum 8, Penn Hills 0 – Kent Holmes and Caden Zoller scored two goals apiece and Parker Berrott added a goal and two assists to lead Plum (6-1-1, 2-0-1) past Penn Hills (2-5-1, 1-2) in Section 1-4A. Christian Alter, Andy Strasser and Marco Tommasino also scored and Chase Eber preserved the shutout for the Mustangs.

Seneca Valley 2, Pine-Richland 1 – Michael Pokrzywinski and Jacob Prex scored and Connor Mackrell had two assists to power Seneca Valley (7-1, 2-1) past Pine-Richland (3-4-1, 0-3) in Section 3-4A.

Shady Side Academy 14, Leechburg 1 – Mark Bence, Manek Gerhardy, Rohan Khera, Beau Brush and Yaseen Hamda scored two goals apiece to lead Shady Side Academy (3-3, 3-2) to a Section 1-2A win over Leechburg (0-6-1, 0-4-1).

South Allegheny 6, East Allegheny 1 – Brayden Hernandez and Adam Jackowski each scored two goals and Kaden Gatchie added a goal as South Allegheny (2-6, 1-4) beat East Allegheny (0-5, 0-5) in Section 3-2A. Channign Hamilton also scored his first career varsity goal for the Gladiators.

Southmoreland 3, Brownsville 1 – Jack Smith scored two goals and Reed Pollard deposited another as Southmoreland (4-3, 3-1) beat Brownsville (1-7, 0-5) in Section 4-2A.

Springdale 3, Riverview 1 – Alex Wylly had two goals and an assist and Mason Mattie also scored to lead Springdale (4-0, 3-0) to a Section 4-A victory over Riverview (3-4-1, 0-2-1) in the second half of a boys-girls doubleheader at Riverside Park. Eben Ulrich scored for the Raiders.

Thomas Jefferson 5, Ringgold 0 – Gavin Kern had a hat trick and Nathaniel Rice and Owen Householder added a goal apiece to lead Thomas Jefferson (7-0-1, 4-0-1) to a Section 2-3A win over Ringgold (3-3, 2-3).

West Allegheny 3, Chartiers Valley 1 – Aaron Bouch, Mochael Johnson and Colton Yonker scored to lead West Allegheny (2-4, 2-2) to a Section 4-3A win over Chartiers Valley (3-2, 3-1).

Yough 1, Charleroi 0 – Issac Pacacha scored the winning goal and Russell Wieland made nine saves to earn the shutout as Yough (5-2, 4-1) defeated Charleroi (5-2, 4-1) in Section 4-2A. The game was halted with four minutes left due to fan conduct.

Girls soccer

Allderdice 1, Penn Hills 0 – Alexa Leventon scored to lead Allderdice (6-2) to a nonsection win over Penn Hills (1-5). Emma Daley had her fifth clean sheet of the season.

Bentworth 1, Belle Vernon 0 (OT) – Brielle Dillion scored with four minutes left in the second overtime to lead Bentworth (6-1-1) to a nonsection win over Belle Vernon (5-2-1).

Carlynton 4, Aquinas Academy 2 – Mary Crawford scored two goals and Sophia O’Brien and Bella D’Antonio scored a goal apiece as Carlynton (3-2-1, 3-1) doubled up Aquinas Academy (2-3, 2-3) in Section 3-A.

Highlands 3, Ligonier Valley 1 – Ella Prager, Hailee Rankin and Jocelyn Bloch scored to send Highlands (3-3) to a nonsection win. Bella Butler scored for Ligonier Valley (1-6).

South Park 3, Beaver 0 – Ella Voyten scored two goals and Arianna Beck added one to lead South Park (8-0) past Beaver (5-4-1) in a nonsection win.

Springdale 5, Riverview 1 – Adele Walters-Vrabel scored twice and Tessa Derringer had a goal and an assist to lead Springdale (4-0-1, 3-0-1) to a victory over Riverview (4-1, 4-1) in a matchup of top teams in Section 4-A. Hailey Marchlewski and Kaitlyn Shock also scored for the Dynamos.

West Mifflin 4, Washington 2 – Abby Jakubovic scored a pair of goals while Caroline Chelosky and Jada Downs added a goal apiece as West Mifflin (2-5) defeated Washington (1-1) in nonsection play.

Yough 3, Hempfield 0 – Kate Slavick scored two goals and Gionna Piontka added one to lead Yough (3-4) to a nonsection win over Hempfield (0-7).

Girls volleyball

Beaver 3, New Castle 0 – Kailyn Connelly had 10 kills, Malaya Oster produced 11 digs and Kayden Blinn tallied 19 assists as Beaver (6-0, 2-0) swept New Castle (0-4, 0-1) in Section 4-3A.

Brownsville 3, Bentworth 0 – Skyler Gates had 17 kills and eight digs, Ari Johnson handed out 10 assists and Ashley Evanchak finished with 10 digs to lead Brownsville (7-0, 4-0) to a Section 3-2A win. Kenzie Adams added seven assists and Abby Thomas had four kills and two blocks for the Falcons. Addison Pysh had 10 kills and Nora Lindley added five kills for Bentworth (2-4, 0-4).

Indiana 3, West Mifflin 0 – Paige Fisanich had nine kills, Gianna Boyer added seven kills and four blocks and Hannah Stone had 14 assists and four aces to help Indiana (6-0, 4-0) past West Mifflin (3-4, 1-2) in Section 5-3A. Ellie Long finished with four kills and three digs and Chloe Hain handed out 12 assists for Indiana.

Laurel Highlands 3, Albert Gallatin 0 – Riylee Abel had three kills, five digs and five assists to lead Laurel Highlands (4-1, 3-0) past Albert Gallatin (0-5, 0-4) in Section 3-3A. Jenna Myers, Gabby Deloranzo and Mila Giachetti each had five digs and Mikayla Shea added four aces and three digs for the Mustangs.

Mars 3, Highlands 0 – Cecilia Christy had 13 kills, Rylee Wooldridge added eight kills, Gabi Weidemann dished out 31 assists and Kate Ashbaugh had five aces and seven digs to lead Mars (5-2, 2-0) past Highlands (2-4, 0-2) in Section 2-3A.

Mohawk 3, Beaver Falls 0 – Marli McBride had six kills and Riley Shaffer dished out 11 assists to lead Mohawk (5-1, 3-0) to a Section 4-2A win over Beaver Falls (0-5, 0-4). Emme Druschel added four kills, Reagan Magno finished with four kills and two blocks and Macey Tanner had 10 assists for the Warriors.

Montour 3, Moon 0 – Sloane Cotten had 10 kills, Hailey Staub tallied 16 digs and Delaney Barto followed with 12 digs to power Montour (3-2, 2-1) to a Section 1-3A sweep of Moon (2-4, 0-3). Zoe Woessner dished out 17 assists for the Spartans.

Shenango 3, Neshannock 2 – Marika Measel had 13 kills and Rian Owens finished with 25 assists and six kills to lead Shenango (4-0, 3-0) past Neshannock (5-1, 3-1) in a matchup of top teams in Section 4-2A. Kate Pauline added eight kills, Emmy Passarelli had seven kills and Liv Hoover collected five kills and four blocks for the Wildcats.

Field hockey

Hempfield 1, Allderdice 0 – Kate Moses scored the winning goal to lead Hempfield past Allderdice in a nonsection matchup.

Girls tennis

Section 1-3A – Penn-Trafford’s Mia Williams won her fourth section singles title, defeating Latrobe’s Carlin Bukovac in the finals, 6-2, 6-0. Bukovac advanced to the finals with a three-set win over Franklin Regional’s Michelle Yan, who finished third with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Norwin’s Bayleigh Vilage. In Class 3A, the top four finishers advance to the WPIAL tournament next Wednesday and Thursday.

Section 2-3A – North Hills senior Elinor Kim dropped a total of seven games in four matches en route to the section title, defeating Sonaya Arora of Pine-Richland, 6-1, 6-1, in the finals.

Section 3-3A – Two-time defending WPIAL champ Meriwether McCargo won her third section singles title in a Shady Side Academy showdown, defeating Bulldogs teammate Cassie Lapina in the finals, 6-2, 6-0. Zoey Liu won a matchup of Fox Chapel teammates in the third-place match, defeating Clara Drahnak, 6-3, 6-0.

Section 4-3A – Bethel Park senior Cami Fisher defended her section singles crown with a 7-6 (7), 6-4 victory over Upper St. Clair freshman Brianna Kuczinski in the finals. Peters Township’s Neve Zuzek topped Chartiers Valley’s Carly Weber, 6-1, 6-1, for third place.

Section 1-2A – In an all-senior matchup of the top two seeds in the bracket, Mt. Pleasant’s Bella Fullman defeated Burrell’s Ava Radvansky, 6-2, 6-3, in the section singles finals. Fullman, the No. 1 seed, finished third in the section last season. Derry’s Melody March defeated Burrell’s Jenna Morrison in straight sets in the third-place match. In Class 2A, the top three finishers advance to the WPIAL tournament next Wednesday and Thursday.

Section 2-2A – Oakland Catholic junior Mollie Sclichter won the section title when two-time defending WPIAL champion Gabriella Dusi of Belle Vernon was forced to medically withdraw after one set. Dusi won the first set, 7-5. Veronica Zinski of Winchester Thurston defeated Luciana Easly of Oakland Catholic, 6-1, 6-2, for third place.

Section 3-2A – North Catholic players won the championship and third-place matches with Evelyn Marche defeating the Ellis School’s Allegra Scaringi, 6-1, 6-1, for the title, and Macaria Stall beating Hampton’s Arianna Barbera, 6-4, 6-1, for third.

Section 4-2A – Beaver’s Anna Mrkonja won back-to-back section championships, defeating Neshannock’s Madalyn Arrow in the finals, 6-3, 7-5. Blackhawk’s Emma Derringer beat Lincoln Park’s Bella Colatriano, 6-2, 6-2, in the third-place match.

Section 5-2A – Quaker Valley sophomore Avery Allen defeated Sewickley Academy junior Lucy Taylor, 6-1, 6-4, to take the section title. Sewickley Academy’s Sutton Rea won the third-place match, beating Ambridge’s Abby Smith, 6-0, 6-3.