Sports
PIHL Penguins Cup Playoff Recap for Wednesday, March 14th
March 15, 2012
The first of twelve Penguins Cup Quarterfinals games over the next three days turned into a South Hills thriller as Peters Township cames back to edge Mount Lebanon and advance to the PIHL Class AAA Final Four. Here is a recap of this high school hockey Second Round dandy.PIHL PENGUINS CUP CLASS AAA QUARTERFINALS:WPIAL Coaching Changes: New Castle Football and Shenango Girls Volleyball
March 14, 2012
Embattled New Castle football coach Frank Bongivengo has stepped down from his position, effective immediately. Bongivengo is facing criminal theft charges related to funds taken from a youth football program. Those charges were filed after a 17-month investigation from the Pennsylvania State Police, the coach and his wife Karen, were both charged with theft, conspiracy and forgery charges, relating to over 36 hundred dollars taken from the youth football program’s account. Investigators looked at transactions between that account and the Bongivengo’s personal account. Bogivengo served as head coach from 2005 thru last season, he went 39-32 over that time, playing in the Parkway Conference and took the Red Hurricanes to three playoff appearances and a winning overall record in each of the last five season.
PIHL Penguins Cup Playoff Recaps for Tuesday, March 13th
Blink and you missed it. The First Round of the high school hockey playoffs is over and three more opening round contests on Tuesday night with the first defending champ falling. Unlike Monday when all five home teams won, the road warriors claimed two of the three games as AAA #10 State College and A #9 Thomas Jefferson busted through the Elite Eight while 2011 AAA champ Upper St. Clair is ousted. Here are the recaps from all three Penguins Cup First Round games on Tuesday.A special thanks to Matt Vandriak, Josh Rowntree, Ken Laird and Steve Nagler for their help on these recaps.PIHL PENGUINS CUP CLASS AAA FIRST ROUND:
2012 PIHL PENGUINS CUP HIGH SCHOOL HOCKEY PLAYOFFS Update
March 13, 2012
The PIHL Final Four puzzle is nearly finished with just one missing piece. One game on Wednesday and ten contests on Thursday have resulted in eleven teams moving on to Neville Island next week and the 2012 Penguins Cup Semifinals. Here are ALL of the final scores from the Quarterfinals on Thursday, plus the Semifinals matchups set for Class A and Class AA on Monday and Tuesday at the Island Sports Center.MSA Sports is your home for the frozen version of march madness from the drop of the puck in the opening round through the PIHL high school hockey finals at CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh.PIHL CLASS AAA Quarterfinals:Penn-Trafford Warriors 5 - State College Little Lions 4
PIHL Penguins Cup Playoff Recaps for Monday, March 12th
March 12, 2012
There was no surprises and very little suspense on the opening night of the 2012 PIHL Penguin Cup high school hockey playoffs. All five higher seeds won at home with only one game going down to the wire. Here are the recaps from the games that dropped the puck on the chase for Penguins Cup gold.A special thanks go out to Mark Schaas, Don Rebel, Greg Kuntz, Steve Nagler and Matt Vandriak for their help on these recaps.PIHL PENGUINS CUP CLASS AAA FIRST ROUND:
PIHL High School Hockey Notebook – 03/12/2012
Welcome to another edition of “PIHL Notebook,” your weekly companion to “The PIHL Power Play” on the MSA Sports Network. This week, we have a special edition on tap as we preview all opening round matchups in the 2012 Penguins Cup Playoffs. Plus, see what Quaker Valley head coach Kevin Quinn had to say about Class A’s number one seed on last week’s show in “They Said It.”PIHL CLASS AAA:FIRST ROUND BYES1. Penn-Trafford (19-2-1) 2. Canon-McMillan (19-3-0) 3. North Allegheny (16-5-1) 4. Mount Lebanon (15-6-1)FIRST ROUND GAMESThis Week on the MSA Sports Network – 03/12/2012
We say so long to the high school wrestling postseason and hello to the Penguins Cup high school hockey playoffs this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have Second Round and Quarterfinals action in the PIAA boys and girls state basketball playoffs along with the drop of the puck on the PIHL Penguins Cup Playoffs with First Round and Quarterfinals play, plus its the season ending edition of Inside the WPIAL Wrestling Circle, along with the WPIAL Roundball Report and the PIHL Power Play Show ALL here at MSAsports.netMonday, March 12th:TALK SHOW - Inside the WPIAL Wrestling Circle at 7:00pm on MSAsports.netPIHL High School Hockey Playoffs: Penguins Cup Class AAA First Round - Shaler vs Peters Township at 7:30pm on MSAsports.net
Derry’s Gulibon Joins Elite Group, Wins Fourth State Wrestling Title
March 11, 2012
In his usual dominating fashion, Derry’s Jimmy Gulibon joined a very elite club by becoming the tenth wrestler in PIAA history to win four individual state titles at the 75th annual PIAA Wrestling Championships on Saturday afternoon at the GIANT Center in Hershey. On the strength of four takedowns, the Trojans’ senior cruised to a 9-3 decision over Keystone Oaks’ Nick Zanetta in the Class AA 126-pound final. Gulibon also defeated Zanetta, a junior, at the WPIAL Class AA Championships two weeks ago, 11-4, and at the PIAA Southwest Regional tournament last Saturday, 11-3. The Penn State recruit, named the Outstanding Wrestler of the tournament, finishes his high school career with a 136-4 record. Gulibon won Class AAA titles as a freshman and sophomore and AA championships the past two seasons.
Four WPIAL & One City League Class AAA Wrestlers Win State Championships
Led by Cody Wiercioch, Canon-McMillan won its second straight PIAA Class AAA Wrestling Championship Saturday evening at the GIANT Center in Hershey. The Big Macs, with 102 team points, easily outdistanced second place Central Dauphin (67 points). Chambersburg finished in third place with 52 points. Weircioch won his second state title with a 7-4 decision in the 170-pound final over Norristown’s Shane Springer. The Big Macs’ junior completed a perfect 46-0 season by scoring three takedowns on his way to the gold medal. Wiercioch, who won his first state title at the Class AA level two years ago as a freshman at Charleroi, advanced to the finals with an 11-4 semifinal victory Saturday morning over Solanco’s Connor Moran.FINAL 2011-2012 PIHL High School Hockey Standings
March 10, 2012
Here are the FINAL 2011-2012 standings for the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League, including the FINAL Penguins Cup playoff clinchings, Plus the FINAL Open Class regular season standings. You can follow the PIHL high school hockey season with broadcasts, the PIHL Notebook every Monday and the PIHL Power Play Show on Wednesday nights at 8:00pm right here on the MSA Sports Network.# - Clinched Section Championship * - Clinched PIHL Playoff Spot % - Ineligible for PIHL Playoffs x - Eliminated From Postseason ChaseTEAM - OVERALL RECORD - POINT TOTAL - POINT PERCENTAGEPIHL CLASS AAA: (ALL 12 Teams Have Clinched Penguins Cup Playoff Spots) {22}PIHL Class AAA Section One: #-Canon-McMillan Big Macs : (19-3-0) (38) *-Peters Township Indians : (14-5-3) (31) *-Bethel Park Black Hawks : (14-7-1) (29) *-Upper St. Clair Panthers : (11-9-2) (24)PIAA Individual Wrestling Championships – Day Two
Derry’s Jimmy Gulibon is on the brink of becoming only the tenth athlete in 75 years of Pennsylvania wrestling history to win four individual state titles. The Trojans’ senior advanced to Saturday afternoon’s 126-pound final with quarterfinal and semifinal victories over Hanover’s Ian Brown, 8-1, and Ridgway’s Corey Bush, 14-4, on Friday at the GIANT Center in Hershey. It has been sixteen years since another WPIAL wrestler, McGuffey’s Jeremy Hunter, last won his fourth state crown in 1996. The eight other wrestlers to accomplish this feat are Jim Conklin, Waynesburg (1943); Jerry Maurey, Clearfield (1950); Mike Johnson, Lock Haven (1961); Matt Gerhard, Catasauqua (1984); Ty Moore, North Allegheny (1990); John Hughes, Benton (1991); Cary Kolat, Jefferson Morgan (1992); and Bob Crawford, Milton (1993). The PIAA individual wrestling championships were first contested in 1938.Scholastic Notebook – 03/09/2012
March 9, 2012
Derry Area wrestler Jimmy Gulibon is in Hershey this weekend, trying to make history. The Derry senior is trying to become only the 10th wrestler in Pennsylvania to win four state titles. If Gulibon wins, this one would probably mean the most, simply because of what he overcame this season. Flash back to late December, when Gulibon was wrestling in the finals of the Powerade Tournament. He won, but sustained a left knee injury. Gulibon, and some others, thought the injury might be serious. They thought it might be an ACL tear. “He was very scared because he never even really had an injury before,” said Derry coach Mike Weinell. “We didn’t know at the time how serious it was. Jimmy just knew he couldn’t do what he does. He couldn’t push off his foot or his leg.”Quigley Edges Indiana in Double OT Thriller to Win PIHL Open Cup
The Open Cup classification saved their best for last. Nick Santiago scored 34 seconds into the second overtime, propelling Quigley to a 5-4 win over Indiana in the Open Cup Championship at Island Sports Center on Thursday night. The Spartans, who were the #1 seeded team in the Nailers Cup, overcame a two-goal deficit behind 4 goals by Troy Emig, winning their second Open Cup title in four years in a game that was delayed over 30 minutes because an official had transportation issues and could not make it to the arena.A busy first period for the two-man officiating crew saw five goals and six penalties. After Indiana's PJ Kuta scored less than two minutes into the game,PIAA Individual Wrestling Championships – Day One
A remarkable forty of the WPIAL’s forty-two Class AAA wrestlers survived the first day of wrestling and will again be in action Friday afternoon at the 2012 PIAA Wrestling Championships at the GIANT Center in Hershey. With three WPIAL wrestlers entered in each of the fourteen weight classes in the Class AAA brackets, twenty-seven won first round bouts Thursday afternoon to advance to the quarterfinals. Thirteen of the fifteen wrestlers losing in the first round turned around and won their first round consolation matches to remain alive in the tournament. The WPIAL was perfect in five weight classes, advancing all three of its AAA wrestlers at 106, 126, 160, 182 and 285 pounds. Only the 220-pound bracket saw all three wrestlers drop their first round match. But Pine-Richland’s Ben Balish, Canon-McMillan’s Alex Campbell, and Greensburg Salem’s Tanner Hahn all bounced back to win their first round consolation bouts.
Quigley Wins PIHL Open Class Championship
March 8, 2012
High school hockey fans discovered Thursday night what happens when two PIHL champions collide. 45 minutes of regulation and ten more minutes of an overtime could not decide a winner. Finally in the second OT, Nailers Cup champion Quigley scored to claim the 2012 Open Cup Title with a thrilling victory over Chiefs Cup champion Indiana. Here are ALL of the final results from the PIHL Open Class Playoffs.2012 PIHL OPEN CLASS CHAMPIONSHIP:Quigley Spartans 5 - Indiana Little Indians 4 in Double Overtime (MSA)---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2012 PIHL OPEN CLASS CHIEFS CUP CHAMPIONSHIP:Indiana Little Indians 4 - Greensburg-Salem Golden Lions 2 (MSA)PIHL OPEN CLASS CHIEFS CUP Semifinals:MSA Sports Top Seven – PIHL High School Hockey Playoff Rankings
March 7, 2012
Each Wednesday during the regular season, MSA Sports ranked the top seven teams in all four classifications/divisions in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League. With the regular season winding down and the PIHL Penguins Cup Playoffs starting next week, in our final rankings of the season, we rank all 12 AAA, and all 10 AA and A playoff teams as the chase for the cup is set to begin on MSA Sports. Don't miss “The PIHL Power Play Show” every Wednesday at 8:00pm and the "PIHL High School Hockey Notebook" every Monday during the season only here on the MSA Sports Network.PIHL CLASS AAA - 12 TEAMS:PIHL Chiefs Cup and Nailers Cup Hockey Championship Recaps
Tuesday night, the PIHL held the Championship Game in both the Nailers Cup and Chiefs Cup playoffs. Quigley and Indiana skated away with the titles and will now face each other on Thursday for the Open Class Championships.PIHL High School Hockey Notebook – 03/05/2012
March 5, 2012
Welcome to another edition of “PIHL Notebook,” your weekly companion to “The PIHL Power Play” on the MSA Sports Network. Check out which teams are hot right now in “Melting the Ice” and track recent game action in “Scoreboard Watch.” Plus, we preview upcoming MSA broadcasts and quote guests from the show in “They Said It.”PIHL CLASS AAA:MELTING THE ICEBethel Park’s winning streak has reached 10 games, with the unbeaten streak at 11 … Defending state champion Upper St. Clair has gotten hot at the right time, winning two in a row to get above the .500 mark … Penn-Trafford has won two straight and has earned a point in its last five outings.SCOREBOARD WATCHThis Week on the MSA Sports Network – 03/05/2012
The first full week of March concludes one winter scholastic sport with the state championships while another winter high school sports tips off its state playoff this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have end to end action of both the Class AAA and Class AA PIAA Individual Wrestling Championships from the GIANT Center in Hershey along with the start of the PIAA Boys and Girls state basketball playoffs, the PIHL Chiefs Cup, Nailers Cup and Open Cup Championships and the start of spring sports with college baseball, plus Inside the WPIAL Wrestling Circle, and the WPIAL Roundball Report and the PIHL Power Play Show here at MSAsports.netMonday, March 5th:TALK SHOW - Inside the WPIAL Wrestling Circle at 7:00pm on MSAsports.net2012 WPIAL BOYS BASKETBALL PLAYOFF RESULTS
March 4, 2012
While there were no down to the wire thrillers in the WPIAL Boys Basketball Finals at the A.J. Palumbo Center, there was also no question about the validity of the four champions crowned. Gateway became only the second school in Quad-A history to win back-to-back championships. New Castle was perfect in winning the school's 8th WPIAL boys basketball crown and first since 1999. Beaver Falls totally shut down last years AA champion Monessen en route to the schools 8th title and first crown in seven years while the third time was a charm for Lincoln Park as they captured the schools first ever WPIAL gold basketball. Here are ALL of the final results from the 2012 WPIAL Boys Basketball Playoffs.
