November 23, 2024 2:51 pm
Fort Cherry drove 83 yards in 13 plays, took nearly five minutes off the fourth-quarter clock and scored with less than three minutes to play to beat Clairton, 21-20, and win a second straight WPIAL football championship. Shane Cornali threw an option pass early to Ryan Huey to convert one fourth down and Matt Sieg’s 13-yard scoring pass to Huey capped the drive, also on fourth down to lead the comeback. Nick Massey hit all three of his point-after attempts, the difference in the game. Sieg scored on two short runs in the first half, giving the Rangers a 14-6 lead at intermission. Clairton dominated the third quarter, rushing for nearly 150 yards and a pair of touchdowns to take a 20-14 lead into the final period, setting the stage for another fourth-quarter Fort Cherry rally. After the Rangers took the lead, the Bears had no timeouts and couldn’t move the chains. Eli Salvini sacked Bears’ quarterback Jeffrey Thompson to seal the win. Fort Cherry’s 21 points matched what the Bears had allowed all season. The back-to-back championships by Washington County teams had only happened twice previously: McDonald (1951 & 1952) and Chartiers-Houston (1971 & 1972). Fort Cherry will play District 9 champion Port Allegany in the PIAA Quarterfinals.
WPIAL Football Brackets: 6A 5A 4A 3A 2A 1A
PIAA Football Brackets
November 22, 2024 4:22 am
CLEVELAND (AP) — Nick Chubb ran for a 2-yard touchdown in heavy snow with 57 seconds left, and the Cleveland Browns stunned division rival Pittsburgh 24-19, ending the Steelers’ five-game winning streak. The Browns had blown a 12-point lead in the fourth quarter and were down 19-18 before getting the ball back with 3:22 remaining after Pittsburgh punter Corliss Waitman shanked a 16-yarder. With snow piling up and covering the yard lines on the field, Cleveland’s Jameis Winston completed a third-down pass to Jerry Jeudy to the Pittsburgh 9. Two plays later, Chubb barreled into the end zone. The AFC North-leading Steelers fell to 8-3 while the Browns are 3-8.
November 22, 2024 4:29 am
CLEVELAND (AP) — Myles Garrett didn’t want an apology from T.J. Watt. Instead, he demanded respect. Garrett showed Watt why he’s the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, recording three sacks in a dominant first half that set the tone for Cleveland’s shocking 24-19 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. It was the kind of performance Garrett had numerous times last season, when he was voted the league’s top defensive player over Watt, the Pittsburgh edge rusher who had more sacks and seemed to have an issue with finishing second. Watt won the award in 2021. Garrett said he was out to prove “I’m the guy.”
November 23, 2024 3:01 am
A year ago, Fort Cherry and Peters Township won their first-ever WPIAL football championships. Saturday, both return to the championship games looking to repeat but facing programs that have combined to win 20 WPIAL titles.
Fort Cherry has beaten its last 27 WPIAL opponents but will have to find a way to score against a Clairton team that has allowed a total of 21 points all year. The Bears own 14 WPIAL championships. WJPA-AM pregame starts at 10:30 am from Acrisure Stadium.
Peters Township takes on a Pine-Richland team looking for its seventh League title. The Rams are also looking to avenge last year’s loss to Peters Township in the finals. WJPA-FM pregame is scheduled for 7:30 pm.
Between our WPIAL finals broadcasts, our coverage switches to Altoona’s Mansion Park and the PIAA 4A quarterfinals as Thomas Jefferson takes on District 9 champion Clearfield. We’ll start our coverage online at 12:45 pm and join in progress on WJPA-AM immediately after the Fort Cherry / Clairton game. We’re also producing the multi-camera video of the Thomas Jefferson / Clearfield game for NFHS Network (subscription required).
WPIAL Football Brackets: 6A 5A 4A 3A 2A 1A
PIAA Football Brackets
Saturday, Nov. 23
WPIAL Finals (at Acrisure Stadium, Pittsburgh):
1A #1 Fort Cherry vs. #2 Clairton, 10:30 am, WJPA-AM (1450) Listen Here
5A #3 Peters Township vs. #1 Pine-Richland, 7:30 pm, WJPA-FM (95.3) Listen Here
PIAA Quarterfinals (at Mansion Park, Altoona):
4A 7-1 Thomas Jefferson vs. 9-1 Clearfield, 12:45 pm, WJPA-AM (1450) Listen / Watch Here (NFHS subscription required)
November 22, 2024 4:32 am
NEW YORK (AP) — Shohei Ohtani won his third Most Valuable Player Award and first in the National League, and Aaron Judge earned his second American League honor on Thursday. Ohtani was a unanimous MVP for the third time, receiving all 30 first-place votes and 420 points in voting by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor was second with 263 points and Arizona second baseman Ketel Marte third with 229. Judge was a unanimous pick for the first time. Kansas City shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. got all 30 second-place votes for 270 points, and Yankees outfielder Juan Soto was third with 21 third-place votes and 229 points.
November 22, 2024 4:33 am
Alex Ovechkin has a broken left fibula and is expected to be out four to six weeks. The Washington Capitals confirmed Ovechkin’s injury and prognosis Thursday after he was evaluated by doctors upon the teams’ return from a three-game road trip. This prolonged absence puts a pause on Ovechkin’s pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s NHL career goals record. He scored 15 goals in his first 18 games this season to move just 27 away of passing Gretzky. Ovechkin was on pace to break the record in February before his shin-on-shin collision with Utah’s Jack McBain on Monday night.
November 21, 2024 4:25 am
The Steelers and Browns will renew their rivalry Thursday night sitting at opposite ends of the AFC North. After navigating through some quarterback uncertainty, Pittsburgh is a surprising 8-2 while Cleveland is a dreary and disappointing 2-8. The Steelers are coming off a gritty win at home over the Baltimore Ravens and can’t afford a letdown against the Browns, whose playoff hopes are gone and may be headed for another massive overhaul. Coach Kevin Stefanski could use a big win to alleviate any concern that he has lost his team.
November 21, 2024 4:23 am
Atlanta’s Chris Sale and Detroit’s Tarik Skubal have each won their first Cy Young Award. The left-handers were honored Wednesday night after sharing the MLB lead with 18 wins while leading their respective leagues in strikeouts and ERA. Sale went 18-3 and topped the National League with 225 strikeouts, while his 2.38 ERA in 29 starts was the best among all major league qualifiers in his first season with the Braves. The 35-year-old was an All-Star for the eighth time and won his first Gold Glove this year. Skubal, who turned 28 on Wednesday, went 18-4 with a 2.39 ERA and a big league-best 228 strikeouts in 31 starts to take the American League prize in a unanimous vote.
November 21, 2024 4:27 am
NEW YORK (AP) — Major League Baseball will test robot umpires as part of a challenge system during spring training at 13 ballparks hosting 19 teams, which could lead to regular-season use in 2026. MLB has been experimenting with the automated ball-strike system in the minor leagues since 2019 but is still working on the shape of the strike zone. An agreement for big league use would have to be reached with the Major League Baseball Umpires Association, whose collective bargaining agreement expires Dec. 1. Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred says: “I would be interested in having it in ’26.”
November 20, 2024 4:27 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Brayden Point scored at 3:58 of overtime and the Tampa Bay Lightning rallied to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 on Tuesday night. Point’s overtime winner was his 10th goal of the season. Anthony Cirelli scored his fifth goal of the season. Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 17 shots for Tampa Bay. Rickard Rakell scored a power-play goal, while Jesse Puljujarvi opened the scoring for Pittsburgh. Tristan Jarry made 32 saves for Pittsburgh.
