Westmoreland high school notebook: Belle Vernon tennis player Dusi shifts commitment to Duquesne

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Saturday, May 31, 2025 | 5:03 PM

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Junior Gabby Dusi is changing course for her college tennis career.

The Belle Vernon standout, who won back-to-back WPIAL Class 2A singles championships, announced last week she committed to Duquesne.

She previously made a verbal pledge to Saint Francis (Pa.), but with SFU dropping from NCAA Division I to Division III, she could not play at her preferred level. But there was more to it.

“I was interested in both Saint Francis and Duquesne originally because of their PA programs,” Dusi said. “I also love Duquesne’s campus and felt at home from the moment I stepped onto it. It’s also very close to home. The tennis team is very competitive, and the program is going to push me to be a better player there.”

Last year, Dusi also finished second in the PIAA singles tournament.

“I’ve wanted to play Division I tennis since about eighth grade, and it’s been my goal since,” Dusi said.

Dusi and recent PIAA Class 2A boys singles champion Max Henson of Belle Vernon have put the Leopards’ program on the map with their play of late.

“Tennis at Belle Vernon has had a lot of success because both myself and Max Henson happen to have families that have supported and provided us with many opportunities to progress our game, since the area does not have many tennis courts and resources,” Dusi said. “My dad (Steve Dusi) coached both of us in the WPIAL and PIAA tournaments.”

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State playoffs

A slim number of local teams will open the PIAA baseball and softball postseason this week.

Only the Greensburg Central Catholic baseball and Hempfield and Penn-Trafford softball teams have qualified for the state postseason.

The first round is Monday.

• Greensburg Central Catholic (18-4) finished fourth in WPIAL Class A and will play District 10 champion West Middlesex (12-8) at 2 p.m. at Slippery Rock University.

• WPIAL Class 6A champion Hempfield (20-1) will host State College (11-8) in the first round at 4 p.m.

• Penn-Trafford (20-3), the WPIAL 5A runner-up, will play at Central Mountain (15-1) at 4.

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Roundball highlights

Latrobe’s Carley Berk brought home MVP honors from the Roundball Classic all-star basketball games played last weekend at North Allegheny.

Berk, who played in a state flag football all-star game the day before in Mechanicsburg, scored 11 points for the Class 5A team in a 50-45 loss to Class 2A/District 10.

Berk, a Millersville commit, wasn’t the only local player to play well at the event.

Brayden Stone of Penn-Trafford had 17 points to help the Class 5A South team defeat the District 10 stars, 141-101.

The Class 4A boys team fell to Class A/City League, 94-78, but Zion Moore of Belle Vernon scored 11.

In the Class 2A’s 90-78 victory over Class 3A, Liam Gallagher of Greensburg Central Catholic had 11 points.

And for the Class 6A girls, who handled Class 5A, 80-60, Averi Brozeski of Norwin scored 10.

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

Tags: Belle Vernon, Greensburg C.C., Hempfield, Norwin, Penn-Trafford