Westmoreland high school notebook: Latrobe’s Alex Tatsch draws more college offers

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Sunday, November 5, 2023 | 6:25 PM

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Alex Tatsch has more than a handful of Power 5 scholarship offers. The list of interested schools is rising like his recruiting stock.

Tatsch, a 6-foot-3, 210-pound junior running back and linebacker who is getting recruited heavily for defense, added offers from Maryland and South Carolina last week.

In addition, Tatsch is listed as a 4-star (out of 5) prospect by national outfit Rivals.com.

Heading into the playoffs, Tatsch was leading the Wildcats in tackles (75), sacks (4) and interceptions (4).

Tatsch said he is leaning toward a summer commitment, but that could change.

State soccer

Only the Norwin and Burrell boys will represent Westmoreland County in the PIAA soccer playoffs, set to begin Tuesday.

First-time WPIAL champion Norwin (15-5-1) will open the Class 4A tournament at home at 6 p.m. against District 3 fourth-place team Warwick (18-1-1).

No local girls teams qualified, the first time that has happened since 2018.

The quarterfinals of the 4A tournament are Saturday, the semifinals are next Tuesday and the state final is at 7 p.m. Nov. 17 at Eagle View Middle School in Mechanicsburg.

Appealing position

Franklin Regional boys soccer has a coaching vacancy with the departure of two-year coach Lukas Petersen, who is moving to Maryland because his wife has a new job there.

The position might be one of the most attractive in the state, which isn’t hyperbole considering the Panthers only lose five seniors and return more than 80 percent of their starters, most of whom were juniors this season, from a 12-9 team that reached the semifinals as a No. 11 seed.

The key returnees would include Joey Bayne, Danny Christafano, Jovan Sankoorikal, Tyler Pipon, Noah Walker and others.

Big 5/6 honors

A number of Westmoreland County athletes were recognized by the Big 5/6 Athletic Conferences, which covers the largest classifications in the WPIAL.

In girls volleyball, Section 3-4A first-team picks included Penn-Trafford’s Ella Dindak, Maci Hoffman, Olivia Pepple and Elle Visco and Hempfield’s Ashley Hosni and Zoey Hopkins.

Jim Schall of Penn-Trafford was named coach of the year.

Braden Crowe of Hempfield and Owen Christopher of Norwin, meanwhile, made the first team in Section 2-4A boys soccer.

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Winter lurking

The WPIAL winter sports season in less than two weeks. Official practice for basketball, wrestling, swimming, rifle, and gymnastics begins Nov. 17.

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Recruiting

Franklin Regional senior basketball Angelina Brush announced her commitment to play at Westminster, a Division III program in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference.

Brush plays point guard for the Panthers.

—Mt. Pleasant senior soccer player Maggie Piper will continue her playing career in the Division II Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference. The talented center midfielder and outside backer committed to Gannon.

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

Tags: Franklin Regional, Latrobe, Mt. Pleasant