Schoalstic Notebook

By: HSSN Staff
Saturday, May 7, 2011 | 12:00 AM

India McCoy is bar hopping like few girls have in the history of the WPIAL. McCoy is only a sophomore at Ambridge, but she already has established herself as one of the best high jumpers in league history. On Friday night at the Baldwin Invitational, McCoy tied a meet record by clearing 5 feet 8 inches.

Not only did McCoys leap tie a meet record, it tied the third-best jump in the history of the WPIAL in any event. McCoy tied seven others on the all-time WPIAL list. It was also the best jump in the WPIAL since 2006, when Hopewells Becky Novacek cleared 5-8.

McCoy was the only athlete to set or tie a meet record at the Baldwin Invitational, which is one of the largest meets in the eastern part of the country. McCoy won the WPIAL title last year as a freshman and has a good shot at winning a second consecutive championship, along with possibly a PIAA title. She is 2 inches behind the best jumps in WPIAL history. Pam Gearing of Slippery Rock cleared 5-10 in 1977 while Kathy Ridilla of Greensburg Central Catholic also cleared 5-10 in 1985.

Next up for McCoy is the WPIAL qualifiers this week.

A Run on Runs

The Norwin baseball team is still undefeated. While the Knights string of victories is impressive, what might be even more impressive is their double-figures steak.

Norwin has scored 10 runs or more 10 games in a row. The Knights are 14-0 and have scored 10 or more in 12 of those games.

Still Perfect

Norwin is one of only three teams still undefeated in WPIAL baseball, heading into Saturdays games. The others are Elizabeth Forward (16-0) and Shady Side Academy (13-0).

In WPIAL girls softball, six teams are undefeated. Hempfield is 13-0, Shaler 13-0, Seton-LaSalle 11-0, Chartiers-Houston 16-0, Carmichaels 13-0 and Sto-Rox 12-0. The Class A playoffs should be interesting because Char-Houston, Carmichaels and Sto-Rox are all Class A.

Freshmen Influence

Blackhawk is one of the top baseball teams in Class AAA. The Cougars are No. 4 in the most recent MSA Sports rankings, and their top pitcher is a freshman. Brendan McKay is a ninth-grader pitching like a seasoned senior. After beating West Allegheny recently, McKay has a 4-0 record with a 1.03 ERA.

While McKay has been good all season, a South Side Beaver freshman softball pitcher had quite a debut for the Rams. In her first varsity start of the year, ninth-grader Michelle Klein tossed a no-hitter in a 10-0, five-inning victory against Union Thursday.

Will the Streak Go On?

The North Allegheny baseball team has been to the WPIAL playoffs 25 years in a row, believed to be a record. Mondays showdown against Seneca Valley will be a big determining factor on whether the Tigers make it 26 in a row.

North Allegheny plays host to Seneca Valley under the lights at 7 p.m. in a big Class AAAA Section 1 game. In the Section 1 standings, North Allegheny and Shaler are tied for fourth with 6-4 records. But both are only one game back in the loss column behind Pine-Richland (8-3), Butler (7-3) and Seneca Valley (6-3).

The top three teams make the playoffs. If North Allegheny loses, it cant catch Pine-Richland or Seneca Valley (Seneca would have two victories against North Allegheny). If North Allegheny loses it is unlikely the Tigers could catch Butler, either, because Butler has a game left against Fox Chapel, which hasnt won a section game all year.

But if North Allegheny wins, the Tigers seemingly have a good shot at making the playoffs.

The Losing Streak Goes On

The losses keep mounting for the Aliquippa baseball team.

The school that has one of the best football programs in the state, and always a competitive basketball program, just cant do anything in baseball. The Quips are now 0-10 this season and their losing streak is now at 41 games. This season, Aliquippa has been outscored, 142-17.

Coaching News

Moon is expected to hire Mark Washington as its new football coach Monday night. Washington has been an Aliquippa assistant coach.

Mohawk hired Joe Lamenza as its new football coach. Lamenza was most recently an assistant coach at Beaver, but he was West Mifflins head coach for one season a few years ago.

Geibel hired Ed Kroupa as its new boys basketball coach. Kroupa, 55, has head coaching experience on the varsity level. He was Youghs girls coach from 2002-04.

Where Are They Now

* Tyler Bream, former Seneca Valley baseball player and son of former Major League Baseball player Sid Bream, has started all 46 games for the Liberty (Division I) baseball team and is hitting .251 with 26 RBIs. A distant cousin, Doug Bream of Elizabethtown, Pa., leads the team in hitting at .371.

* Another Seneca Valley graduate, pitcher Kyle Helisek, has started 10 games for Villanova and is 1-6 with a 4.72 ERA.

* Andrew Heck, a former North Hills High standout, has pitched in nine games for the Oklahoma State baseball team. He is 2-1 with a 4.40 ERA. Heck played the first three years of his career at Duquesne University, but when the Dukes dropped their program after last season, he transferred to Oklahoma State.

* South Park graduate Tarran Senay has started 28 games for the North Carolina State baseball team and is hitting .242.

Tags: Aliquippa, Ambridge, Blackhawk, Carmichaels, Chartiers-Houston, Elizabeth Forward, Geibel, Hempfield