Sports

High school scores, summaries and schedules for Dec. 18, 2019

December 18, 2019

Basketball

Section, holiday basketball near and far make for busy Thursday

One of the best girls basketball rivalries in the WPIAL continues Thursday when perennial powers Mt. Lebanon and Bethel Park square off.

Butler, Chartiers Valley sit on top of first Trib 10 basketball power rankings

For the first time in the 2019-20 WPIAL basketball season, the Trib Live High School Sports Network presents the weekly Power Rankings.

North Allegheny’s Ben Grafton defeats North Hills’ David Lukas Dec. 18, 2019 at North Allegheny.

High school roundup for Dec. 18, 2019: North Allegheny pins loss on North Hills

Nick Marcenelle (195), Ben Grafton (285), Sam Horton (113) and Grant Mackay (152) won by fall and Bobby Snyder (170) won in a tiebreaker to lead North Allegheny (2-0) to a 51-19 Section 3B-AAA wrestling victory Wednesday night. Ethan Uechi (182) and Sam Hillegas (145) scored bonus points for North Hills (0-2), which won five matches.

Latrobe’s Connor Johnson struggles to gain the upper hand on Hempfield’s Nolan Daerr in the 132 weight class bout on Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2019 at Greater Latrobe High School.

Hempfield wrestlers hold off upset-minded Latrobe

Top-ranked Hempfield came out on top again in a WPIAL Class AAA dual meet, beating Latrobe on Wednesday night, but Spartans coach Tom Dolde wasn’t in a much of a mood to talk about the success.

Hempfield senior Sarah Liberatore is a member of the 2019-20 basketball team.

Hempfield’s Liberatore wrapping up notable career in leadership role

Hempfield’s Sarah Liberatore is one of those high school basketball players who seems to have been playing forever.

Freeport’s Samantha Clark (12) attempts to move the ball up court during a Section 1-4A game against Highlands on Monday, Dec. 16, 2019, at Highlands High School.

Freeport girls navigating rocky road during season’s opening weeks

The Freeport girls basketball team is 2-0 in Section 1-4A and the Yellowjackets hope to remain unblemished Thursday when they face rival Burrell.

Elizabeth Forward’s Kailey Larcinese pitches a throw against Mt. Pleasant in the PIAA class 4A softball semifinal on Tuesday, June 11, 2019, at Seton Hill University. Elizabeth Forward defeated Mt. Pleasant 2-1 after eight innings.

Elizabeth Forward softball pitcher Kailey Larcinese verbals to Towson

Growing up around the travel softball circuit and coming up in the WPIAL, Kailey Larcinese heard about the intricacies of the recruiting process.

Norwin’s Olivia Gribble takes a shot during practice Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2019, at Norwin High School.

Westmoreland County girls basketball notebook: Norwin takes tune-up trip

Norwin used a pre-holiday trip south to work out some early kinks in its game.

Alle-Kiski Valley girls basketball notebook: Kiski Area loses Hannah Potter to broken wrist

Hannah Potter hoped to have a standout senior season for the Kiski Area girls basketball team and build off of a strong junior campaign which saw her lead a young Cavaliers squad with an average of 14.9 points a game.

Ligonier Valley’s Mike Petrof (54) was among three linemen players from the Rams who signed national letters of intent Wednesday.

Linemen highlight numerous early football signings in Westmoreland County

One of the best recruiting years for linemen in Westmoreland County reached its high point Wednesday, the first day of the NCAA Division I early signing period for college prospects.

Serra’s Alex Glumac (left) celebrates with Mark Black after hitting out the first pitch of the game against Seton LaSalle Tuesday, June 11, 2019, during the PIAA Class 2A baseball semifinals at West Mifflin Area High School.

Top 19 of ’19: Trib HSSN breaks down the top stories of the year — No. 14

The 2019 high school sports season is nearly in the books.

Pitt recruit Dayon Hayes of Westinghouse

Western Pa. football recruits make official commitments during early signing period

The early signing period for Division I football recruits arrived Wednesday and high school seniors across Western Pennsylvania took to social media to reveal their official commitments.

Kaitlin Fournier goes up for a ball during a match this season. Fournier verbally commited to Georgia last week to play volleyball.

Elizabeth Forward volleyball standout Kaitlin Fournier commits to Georgia

Elizabeth Forward’s Kaitlin Fournier is becoming a Bulldog.

Second big night of section matches in WPIAL wrestling takes center stage

Twas the week before Christmas and all through the WPIAL, many creatures were stirring on a busy night of district mat action.

High school scores, summaries and schedules for Dec. 17, 2019

December 17, 2019

Basketball

Lincoln Park’s Andre Wilder scores against Aliquippa’s Michael Dawkins during their game Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019, in Midland.

High school roundup for Dec. 17, 2019: Lincoln Park holds off Aliquippa charge

Isaiah Smith scored 18 points and Dakari Bradford added 15 as Lincoln Park held off a late charge from Aliquippa to secure a 68-64 victory in a matchup of top teams in Section 1-3A Tuesday night.

Springdale’s Demitri Fritch works out next to head coach Aaron Epps during practice Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2019, at Springdale High School.

Demitri Fritch registers triple-double in Springdale OT thriller over Sto-Rox

Springdale junior Demitri Fritch had a game for the ages as he registered a triple-double in a thrilling 86-85 overtime victory over No. 2 ranked Sto-Rox.