Westmoreland high school notebook: Penn-Trafford softball to get Capitol treatment

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Saturday, June 29, 2019 | 5:50 PM

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Penn-Trafford softball will get the pageantry it earned by winning the first state championship — in any sport — in school history.

The Warriors will accept an invite from Rep. George Dunbar to be recognized before the House of Representatives in Harrisburg in the fall.

The team had to delay the visit due to travel softball obligations.

“They were back on the field the next morning when they got back from Penn State,” Penn-Trafford athletic director Kerry Hetrick said. “When you put in all the time, I guess it pays off. They’re proof of that.”

The team also will be honored during Penn-Trafford’s first home football game, on Aug. 23 against Norwin.

In addition, the softball players will serve as grand marshals of the annual Penn Township Fall Festival on Sept. 21-23.

Hetrick said the team is working to get championship rings. After losing in the PIAA Class 5A semifinals, the heavy-hitting Warriors won five straight games, including a 5-3 victory over Lampeter-Strasburg in the state final.

New position for Porter

Former Mt. Pleasant boys basketball coach Donnie Porter, who has the same position at Geibel, will have extra duties starting in the fall.

Porter, who still lives in Mt. Pleasant, is the new athletic director at Geibel. The position becomes official Monday. He will replace A.J. Dines, who is retiring but will remain the school’s track and field and cross country coach.

Last season was Porter’s first with the Geibel basketball team. The Gators finished 11-12 and lost to Greensburg Central Catholic, 62-35, in the first round of the WPIAL Class A playoffs.

He coached Mt. Pleasant for eight years, four as head coach.

Porter is the longtime commissioner of the Westmoreland County Elementary Basketball League.

Leopold to Duquesne

Intramurals at Duquesne just got a whole lot more competitive.

Franklin Regional two-sport standout Nick Leopold will not play organized sports when he heads to college in the fall. Leopold, a talented guard in basketball and a wide receiver and defensive back in football, said his major is too demanding to include athletics.

“It will have to be intramurals for me,” he said. “It’s tough to give up sports but with nursing it would be very tough to do both.”

Brose close

Coveted football lineman Fintan Brose of Hempfield, who has more than 20 Division I offers, said he plans to make a commitment soon. Brose (6-3, 280), an incoming senior who can choose from an array of FCS and a few FBS programs, including Vanderbilt, Navy and Air Force, said he would like to announce before training camp in August.

He also has an offer from Delaware, where his brother, Braden, is a sophomore tight end.

Golf sites

Two area golf courses will host WPIAL Class AAA boys semifinal tournaments in the fall.

On Sept. 23, Hannastown Golf Club in Greensburg and Willowbrook Country Club in Allegheny Township will welcome qualifiers from section tournaments. The top 18 finishers at each semifinal will advance to the WPIAL championship Oct. 1 at Fox Chapel Golf Club.

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

Tags: Penn-Trafford