Westmoreland County girls basketball notebook: Greensburg Central Catholic awaits word on injured star Mya Morgan

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Wednesday, January 10, 2024 | 11:01 AM

Greensburg Central Catholic is awaiting word on the playing status of senior leader Mya Morgan.

The shooting guard and Cal (Pa.) commit injured her knee during the second quarter of Saturday’s 58-42 nonsection loss at North Catholic.

She is expected to miss Wednesday’s game at Oakland Catholic and Thursday’s Section 3-2A home game against Clairton.

GCC (7-3) is the No. 1-ranked team in Class 2A. Clairton (9-0) is No. 2.

Morgan became a 1,000-point career scorer earlier this season.

All eyes on Wade

Clairton is led by junior point guard and scoring sensation Iyanna Wade, who has been on another tear of late.

The 5-foot-3 guard is coming off a three-game stretch where she scored 49, 50 and 48 points.

She added 37 against Serra Catholic on Monday.

Wade leads the WPIAL with a 39.8-point average after averaging 33 last year.

In last year’s game at GCC, she scored 35, including her 1,000th career point. She reached the milestone in just 36 games.

Klimchock nears 400

Coach Rick Klimchock, the leading man at Greensburg Salem, needs one more to reach 400 for his long career, which began in 1992 when he took over the Jeannette boys job.

Klimchock won 246 games at Jeannette, nine with the Saltsburg boys, 63 with the Franklin Regional girls and has 81 wins at Greensburg Salem.

The Golden Lions play at Highlands on Thursday night and at Freeport on Monday.

Greensburg Salem boys coach Paul Sapotichne also had 399 wins.

County contributors

North Catholic is expected to push for a third straight WPIAL 4A championship, and a Westmoreland County contingent, including two promising freshmen, could play major roles in another title run.

Senior point guard Alayna Rocco, the No. 2-ranked Trojanettes’ leading scorer and a Harvard commit, is from Trafford.

Guard Brady Wehner used to live in North Huntingdon, while 6-foot-2 forward Lauren Reitz is from Murrysville. The freshmen pair are starters.

“Alayna is our unspoken leader,” coach Molly Rottman said. “Her level and work ethic are there all the time and something we can count on.

“Brady is not a freshman any more. I tell her, you belong on the floor.”

Said Rocco, agreeing that the freshmen remind her of herself when she broke onto the scene in ninth grade: “They don’t play like freshmen.”

Layups

Erica Rodriguez of Greensburg Central Catholic won the Kathy Hickey-Monti Sixth Man Award at the Don Graham Classic at North Catholic. … Norwin’s loss to Wheeling Park last week snapped a 14-game home winning streak for the Knights. … Latrobe senior guard Elle Snyder has 11 double-doubles this season. She had 30 points and 13 rebounds Monday in a win over Albert Gallatin. … Southmoreland postponed its boys and girls basketball games Tuesday due to the high-wind warning and potential power failure. The girls were scheduled to play at Connellsville.

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

Tags: Clairton, Greensburg C.C., Greensburg Salem, North Catholic, Southmoreland