WCCA 7-on-7 returns Thursday, Norwin apparent favorite

By: HSSN Staff
Monday, July 16, 2018 | 2:51 PM

Coaches are pointing to Norwin as the favorite to win the Westmoreland County Coaches Association 7-on-7 passing championship on Thursday at Latrobe High School.

Norwin reached the title game last season but fell to two-time defending champion Hempfield, 22-8.

Hempfield lost talented quarterback Justin Sliwoski (Pitt) and forceful tight end Braden Brose (Delaware), among others.

Norwin, on the flip side, returns a number of key players, including senior running back/safety Jayvon Thrift, senior receiver/linebacker Gianni Rizzo and junior quarterback Jack Salopek.

All three have Division I scholarship offers, Thrift and Salopok from Pitt. Thrift’s other offers include West Virginia, Indiana and Syracuse.

Rizzo has over a dozen offers, mostly from FCS programs like Buffalo, New Hampshire and Youngstown State.

Jeannette also is a team to watch with shifty Seth Howard back at quarterback and Division I prospect Marcus Barnes out wide. Franklin Regional brings back quarterback Adam Rudzinski and receiver Nick Leopold.

Division I prospect Trent Holler, who has offers from Pitt and West Virginia, will snap for Latrobe.

Games begin at 9 a.m. and also will be played on three campus turf fields: Rossi Field, the main football stadium; along with the baseball and softball fields at nearby Graham-Sobota Field.

Rossi Field will be divided in half to accomodate two games at a time. The softball field will be used for junior varsity games througout the day.

The championship is set for around 2:15 p.m.

There are 12 teams in the field.

Bracket A has Derry, Franklin Regional, Southmoreland, Jeannette, Norwin and Greensburg Salem. Bracket B includes Mt. Pleasant, Hempfield, Yough, Burrell, Penn-Trafford and Latrobe.

Thursday’s schedule is as follows:

9 a.m. — Rossi Field: Franklin Regional vs. Derry; Jeannette vs. Norwin; Baseball field: Southmoreland vs. Greensburg Salem

9:30 a.m. — Rossi Field: Hempfield vs. Mt. Pleasant; Burrell vs. Penn-Trafford; Baseball field: Yough vs. Latrobe

10 a.m. — Rossi Field: Southmoreland vs. Jeannette; Greensburg Salem vs. Derry; Baseball field: Franklin Regional vs. Norwin

10:30 a.m. — Rossi Field: Yough vs. Burrell; Latrobe vs. Mt. Pleasant; Baseball field: Hempfield vs. Penn-Trafford

11 a.m. — Rossi Field: Greensburg Salem vs. Jeannette; Franklin Regional vs. Southmoreland; Baseball field: Derry vs. Norwin

11:30 a.m. — Rossi Field: Latrobe vs. Burrell; Hempfield vs. Yough; Baseball field: Mt. Pleasant vs. Penn-Trafford

Noon — Rossi Field: Norwin vs. Southmoreland; Greensburg Salem vs. Franklin Regional; Baseball field: Jeannette vs. Derry

12:30 p.m. — Rossi Field: Penn-Trafford vs. Burrell; Latrobe vs. Hempfield; Latrobe vs. Hempfield; Baseball field: Burrell vs. Mt. Pleasant

1 p.m. — Rossi Field: Derry vs. Southmoreland; Norwin vs. Greensburg Salem; Baseball field: Franklin Regional vs. Jeannette

1:30 p.m. — Rossi Field: Mt. Pleasant vs. Yough; Penn-Trafford vs. Latrobe; Baseball field: Hempfield vs. Burrell

2:15 p.m. — Championship, Rossi Field

Bill Beckner is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Bill at bbeckner@tribweb.com or via Twitter @BillBeckner.