Westmoreland County basketball notebook: Penn-Trafford thrives as gritty underdogs

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Thursday, February 20, 2025 | 11:01 AM

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Penn-Trafford coach Doug Kelly had referred to his team as the “road warriors” several times this season.

Kelly does not play up the underdog role but rather looks to unleash the “dog” in his boys basketball teams.

Dog and grit are two of his favorite words when talking about the Warriors.

Gritty underdogs was more fitting of late.

Penn-Trafford pulled the stunner of the playoffs so far with a 60-45 win at No. 2 seeded Baldwin on Tuesday night in the WPIAL 5A first round.

Baldwin made the finals last year, had only one loss coming in and was 10-0 at home this season. The Highlanders this season won their first section title in 39 years.

Asked if the win was the biggest of his coaching career, Kelly said, “So far, for sure.”

“I am so proud of our guys, our staff, for the way they prepared and executed,” Kelly said. “Total team effort. Loved the way we defended and rebounded and, of course, 24 for 28 from line was huge for us. What an effort.”

Zach Feldman had 20 points, Brayden Stone – who continues to flourish in his off-ball role – had 16, and Evan Gross scored 10 in the upset.

Who saw this next matchup coming? It will be No. 15 seed Warriors (14-9) vs. No. 10 seed Mars (13-10) in the quarterfinals Friday.

Earning their keep

Latrobe and Penn-Trafford both earned first-round wins Tuesday, the first for both since 2020-21.

But that was the covid year when the WPIAL held an open tournament for all teams that chose to compete in the postseason.

Earning their way in to this year’s playoffs and winning in the first round gave the teams greater satisfaction.

Latrobe held back Kiski Area, 59-51,

“It feels well-earned,” Latrobe coach Brad Wetzel said. “We would have gotten in whether it was open or not and that upset win (over No. 10 Thomas Jefferson) was nice for sure.

“(Tuesday’s) win was satisfying based on how we talked all summer about making a mark. As humbling as it was, I think it was necessary to go on the road to a hostile atmosphere. … To never trail except for the first basket took a great deal of focus and determination.”

Quick turnaround

The Penn-Trafford girls will hit the court again Friday night in the WPIAL 5A consolation round.

The Lady Warriors (23-1), who suffered their first loss of the season with a 65-60 setback in overtime against Thomas Jefferson in the quarterfinals, will host Indiana (18-6) at 6 p.m.

The play-back tournament features losers of quarterfinal games and determines seedings for the state playoffs.

Saturday sites

A pair of local teams will play semifinal games Saturday at AHN Arena at Peters Township.

The Greensburg Central Catholic girls (19-5), No. 2 in 3A, will play No. 3 OLSH (21-3) at noon, while Belle Vernon (19-4), the top seed in the Class 4A boys tournament, will play No. 4 Avonworth (18-5) at 3 p.m.

Group effort

Noah Felentzer scored 53.4% of his team’s points in Tuesday’s 3A opening round win for Southmoreland against Carlynton.

But Scotties coach Frank Muccino – and Felentzer – insisted the team’s first playoff win since 2017 was a group effort.

While the scoresheet showed Felentzer with 31 points and six others combining for 27, contributions were subtle and important in a 58-50 win.

Freshmen Luke Stinnett and Brock Pritts played key minutes down the stretch, while junior Stanley Chapman and Elliot Premus – the only senior on the roster – commanded rebounds.

And don’t forget junior Brady Sherbondy, who had a key block with 30 seconds left, then sank two free throws to make it a seven-point game with 20.4 left.

“They all played contributing roles,” Muccino said. “We can’t be a one-man show.”

Stone coaching

Remember Southmoreland star Brandon Stone, the 6-foot-11 post man who went on to play at three colleges – LaSalle, Robert Morris and Delaware State?

Stone had plans to play professionally overseas but suffered a torn hamstring, meniscus and patella while at Delaware State.

Now, he is coaching at Northfield High School in Denver, Colo. He is a varsity assistant and the head coach of the eighth-grade team.

“I was refused proper medical treatment and forced to play on it and just didn’t feel right when I was training to go overseas,” Stone said. “I decided to retire due to a bad knee injury. I’ve been thinking about maybe trying to make a comeback but not 100% sure yet.”

Stone, who played his final high school season at The Christ School in North Carolina, still follows Southmoreland’s progress.

As for coaching: “I wanted to stay involved in the game and give back to the next generation,” Stone said.

Veteran coaches

Some of the area’s most tenured coaches have led their teams into the quarterfinals.

Latrobe’s Wetzel is in his 24th season, while Southmoreland’s Muccino and Adrian Batts of Jeannette have both guided their programs for 16 years.

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

Tags: Jeannette, Latrobe, Penn-Trafford, Southmoreland