Latrobe’s Berk steps into spotlight for girls basketball team

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Wednesday, January 1, 2025 | 5:08 PM

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Anna Rafferty, Emma Blair, Camille Dominick, Elle Snyder — all former Latrobe girls basketball standouts who made their mark on the program in different ways. Players who made headlines and took much of the well-deserved limelight.

To Carley Berk, a senior on this year’s Wildcats team, those players held a role she coveted but waited patiently to reach.

She admits to playing in their shadows — in the cases of the towering Rafferty, Blair and Dominick, literally — passing them the basketball and playing a more low key spot until it was her time to lead Latrobe.

That time is now, and the smooth-going left-hander is showing she belongs on that list of recent Wildcat greats.

Berk went from a role player to becoming the team’s heart and soul.

“I did, but I knew I could work hard and be the kind of players they were,” Berk said. “I knew I was going to be the only returning starter, so I had to step up and help the younger girls along.”

Berk, who also is a proficient cross-country runner, waited her turn to make a final kick in basketball. Now, she is one of the best guards in WPIAL Class 5A, a Division II Millersville commit who plays for one of the top AAU programs in the state, the Western PA Bruins.

Watch her play, and it’s clear she has worked on more than scoring. With Latrobe up by double figures on the way to a 52-41 upset of 6A No. 4 Hempfield, she showed poise with ball-handling and movement, helping the Wildcats take care of the basketball and close out the win with few mistakes.

She scored 17 in the win, making all eight of her free-throw attempts, controlling the flow of the offense and creating havoc on the defensive end.

“Carley has great vision and has really stepped into the leadership role,” Latrobe coach Mackenzie Livingston said. “She sees the game like I do as a coach. We needed someone to be that leader when Elle left. Carley has done that for us.”

Berk’s biggest game, somewhat to her chagrin, came in a loss to undefeated Penn-Trafford. She scored a career-high 31 points and made a half-court buzzer-beater at the end of the first quarter.

“I know I have to help the team however I can,” said Berk, who has started since her sophomore season. “A day or two after last season ended, I was back in the gym, getting up shots every day.”

Berk is one of the more complete guards in the WPIAL, but it didn’t come together overnight.

“I probably get a couple hundred shots up a day,” she said. “I want to be able to shoot it or drive. I want to have a good mid-range jumper and be able to shoot 3s.”

She has done all of those things and more while reaching double figures in all but two games for Latrobe (6-5). She scored 27 in a lopsided win over McKeesport, 12 points and 10 assists against Washington and 20 points in a tight 64-61 win over Plum.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

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