Westmoreland County high school notebook: Penn-Trafford hockey holds edge over Hempfield

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Sunday, February 8, 2026 | 4:17 PM

Penn-Trafford and Hempfield are the frontrunners in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League Class 2A standings with the Warriors (14-2-0-0) holding a one-point lead over Hempfield (13-2-1-0) at the beginning of last week.

The teams may also be the best two in the classification and on a collision course to meet for the Penguin Cup title.

Both have clinched a playoff berth as the regular season winds down.

Teams get three points for a regulation win, two for an overtime win and one for an OT loss.

The top eight teams in 3A and 2A qualify for the postseason. The top seven go in Class A, and the top four advance in Division 2.

Player of the month

Hempfield hockey player Nino DiPetro was named the PIHL Class 2A January Player of the Month.

The senior forward produced eight goals and four assists for 12 points in three games last month.

Back in the district

The return of Uniontown to WPIAL football — the Red Raiders played as an independent the last five years — also means the return of a former area coach.

Tim Bukowski, the former Southmoreland coach, leads the Uniontown program.

Uniontown went 2-8 last season and is 17-28 since leaving the WPIAL.

Bukowski went 17-16 in three seasons leading the Scotties. He was there for seven years overall.

He also coached at Clairton as an offensive coordinator from 2006-12 and won six WPIAL and four PIAA titles.

Record run

Hempfield has a pair of fresh indoor records in the 800-meter dash.

Jonathan Stetchock set a program mark with a time of 1 minute, 58.29 seconds at the Spartans’ most recent meet.

He wasn’t alone. Chesnee Smith ran a 2:15.90 to set the girls record.

Recruiting

NCAA National Signing Day came and went last week, and numerous local athletes made their commitments official.

Division II football commits included:

• Mt. Pleasant lineman Carter Strayer (6-foot-4, 245 pounds) and kicker Preston Rathway of Belle Vernon, who signed with IUP.

• Belle Vernon’s Deaubre Lightfoot, a running back and linebacker, signed with Edinboro.

• Norwin’s Michael DeFazio, a tight end and linebacker, had nine college offers and chose Edinboro. He also had an offer from Division I Mercyhurst.

• Jeannette linebacker Nick Mendoza and Franklin Regional edge rusher Lochlan Bresnahan (6-2, 210) signed with West Liberty.

• Greensburg Salem lineman Isaiah Stillwagon (6-3, 310) signed with Lock Haven.

• Gabe Kubasky, who transferred from Southmoreland to Fairmont Senior (W.Va.), committed to Wagner. He is a wide receiver and safety.

• Payton Wehner, a former North Huntingdon resident who played at Central Catholic and began his college career at Saint Francis, signed with Carson-Newman (Tenn.).

Division III football commits included: Jacob Morgan of Hempfield (Waynesburg), Nick Mahalko (Muskingum), Anthony Dicenzo (Waynesburg) and Vito Barravecchio (John Carroll) of Belle Vernon and Aiden Toth (Grove City) and Jamison Yurt (Grove City) of Penn-Trafford.

Other recruits:

• Franklin Regional senior baseball player James Templeton committed to Gannon. He is a right-handed pitcher.

• Mackenzie Cox, a softball catcher at Penn-Trafford, signed with Saint Francis.

Other Warriors to sign were Mia Williams (tennis, Skidmore) and Alannah Hall (soccer, Carlow).

• Jeannette standout softball pitcher Grace Stein signed with Pitt-Greensburg.

• Mt. Pleasant signees included Carly Surma (softball, Mount Aloysius), Raygan Mizikar (soccer, Saint Vincent) and Santino Marne (baseball, Thiel).

• Jake Lang of Penn-Trafford committed to Saint Vincent for wrestling.

• Belle Vernon commits included: Jordan Sisley (bowling, Saint Vincent), Bella Tatar (track, Slippery Rock), Eli Triffanoff (football, Washington & Jefferson), Taylor Beech (softball, Pitt-Greensburg), Connor Bergman (baseball, Pitt-Greensburg) and Lily Crawford (softball, Saint Vincent).

• Former Southmoreland quarterback Caden Matthews, who transferred to Connellsville, will play at Allegheny.

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

Tags: Belle Vernon, Franklin Regional, Hempfield, Jeannette, Norwin, Penn-Trafford