January 20, 2024 4:40 am
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — With many players NFL eligible and others following unhappy starting quarterback Kyle McCord into the transfer portal, Ohio State football looked to be in for an unhappy winter. But it didn’t happen that way. In fact, at least a dozen key contributors eligible for the NFL draft decided to stay in Columbus for another year, and the transfer portal provided the Buckeyes with more than it took away. Coach Ryan Day got top quarterback Will Howard, running back Quinshon Judkins and center Seth McLaughlin from the portal.
January 20, 2024 4:43 am
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) — Stanford’s Tara VanDerveer tied Mike Krzyzewski as winningest coach in college basketball history with her 1,202nd victory, guiding the No. 8 Cardinal past Oregon 88-63 while losing leading scorer Cameron Brink for the final three quarters with a leg injury. VanDerveer can set the record Sunday, when she goes for 1,203 as Stanford hosts Oregon State. A couple dozen former Stanford players are expected to be on hand for the potential milestone. Kiki Iriafen led Stanford with 21 points and 15 rebounds. Chance Gray scored 19 points for Oregon.
January 19, 2024 10:31 am
Winter weather has forced multiple cancellations and re-scheduling of high school games and matches this week, including Friday’s slate. The WJPA Sports Network’s coverage of the McGuffey / Wash High boys game has been postponed to Saturday afternoon. Below, we’ve separated those events still on the schedule (as of this moment) and those that have been postponed, indicating the new date/time if available. The Allegheny County Wrestling Tournament has been shifted back one day. It will now run Saturday & Sunday at Fox Chapel.
Friday Basketball
Girls Peters Township 59, Bethel Park 55
Boys Peters Township 62, Mt. Lebanon 54
Boys Waynesburg 56, Charleroi 44
Friday Games Postponed
Boys McGuffey at Wash High, now Saturday, 1:50 pm WJPA-AM (1450) Listen Here Watch Here
Girls Chartiers Valley at Trinity, now Saturday 1 pm
Boys Chartiers Valley at Trinity, now Saturday 2:30 pm
Boys Bentworth at Frazier, now Monday 7 pm
Boys Beth-Center at Ft. Cherry, now Monday 7:30 pm
Boys Burgettstown at Chartiers-Houston, now Monday 7:30 pm
Boys Canon-McMillan at West Allegheny, now Monday 7:30 pm
Boys South Park at Ringgold, re-schedule to be determined
Boys West Greene at Carmichaels, reschedule to be determined
January 18, 2024 1:01 am
The Canon-McMillan girls opened the second half of section play, falling at Mt. Lebanon. The loss drops the Big Macs into a tie for the final 6A Section 2 playoff spot with Upper St. Clair. In 2A, Burgettstown crushed Sto-Rox, staying perfect in Section 2. In Section 4, unbeaten Chartiers-Houston leads Wash High by one game with the Little Prexies now two up on California. On the boys side, Avella dropped a game back of co-leaders Union & Rochester in 1A Section 1.
Thursday
Girls Basketball (Class-Section)
6A-2 Mt. Lebanon 56, Canon-McMillan 46
2A-2 Burgettstown 61, Sto-Rox 22
2A-4 Chartiers-Houston 65, California 44
2A-4 Wash High 60, Bentworth 20
2A-4 Beth-Center at Frazier
1A-2 Avella 49, Jeff-Morgan 45
NC Fort Cherry 61, McGuffey 38
NC West Greene 45, Carmichaels 10
Boys Basketball (Class-Section)
1A-1 Union 79, Avella 57
NC California at Bentworth
Friday Games Postponed
Girls Chartiers Valley at Trinity, PPD to Saturday 1 pm
Boys Chartiers Valley at Trinity, PPD to Saturday 2:30 pm
Boys McGuffey at Wash High, PPD to Saturday, 1:50 pm WJPA-AM (1450) Listen Here Watch Here
Boys Beth-Center at Ft. Cherry, PPD to Monday, 7:30 pm
January 19, 2024 1:16 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Mike Tomlin isn’t going anywhere. The longtime Pittsburgh Steelers head coach says he expects to be back for an 18th season and that his passion for the job hasn’t waned despite another quick playoff exit. Tomlin’s status for next season was up for debate after there was speculation he may be burning out. Tomlin says his enthusiasm for the job has only intensified through the season and plans to sign a contract extension soon. While Tomlin is returning, the Steelers have plenty of questions to answer in the offseason. The team’s top priority is hiring a new offensive coordinator after Matt Canada was fired just before Thanksgiving.
January 19, 2024 4:38 am
FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Mike McCarthy is selling his belief that the Dallas Cowboys can make an elusive playoff breakthrough with him as coach. McCarthy is returning for a fifth season despite a stunning 48-32 wild-card loss to Green Bay. Dallas was the first team not to reach a conference title game in three consecutive 12-win playoff seasons. McCarthy said the club has developed a “championship program” with two NFC East titles in three seasons. He says it just hasn’t reached a “world championship yet.”
January 19, 2024 4:39 am
Ohio State is hiring former Houston Texans and Penn State head coach Bill O’Brien as offensive coordinator, a person with direct knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the hire still needed university approval, but an announcement was expected as soon as Friday. Buckeyes coach Ryan Day has been Ohio State’s primary play-caller since being promoted from offensive coordinator to head coach in 2019 to replace Urban Meyer. Bringing in an experienced play-caller at both the college and NFL level could allow Day to hand off those responsibilities.
January 17, 2024 12:01 am
Trinity doubled up a short-handed West Allegheny wrestling lineup, clinching the 3A Section 5 championship in the process. Canon-McMillan lost for the second straight week, the Big Macs now teetering on elimination with one match left in the season. Peters Township kept post-season hopes alive while keeping Mt. Lebanon winless. Waynesburg’s win over Chartiers Valley is the Raiders first of the year. In Class 2A, Burgettstown stayed perfect, eliminating Beth-Center in the process. McGuffey and Bentworth clinched team tournament spots with wins.
On the hardwood, Trinity boys snapped a three-game losing skid, winning at Ringgold. Beth-Center pulled into a tie for the last playoff spot with Chartiers-Houston and Frazier.
Wednesday
Wrestling (Class-Section)
3A-5 Trinity 45, West Allegheny 20 Watch Here
3A-5 Waynesburg 48, Chartiers Valley 27
3A-3 Ringgold at Thomas Jefferson
3A-6 Bethel Park 34, Canon-McMillan 26
3A-6 Peters Township 41, Mt. Lebanon 27
2A-1 Burgettstown 45, Beth-Center 19
2A-1 McGuffey 49, Jeff-Morgan 21
2A-1 Bentworth 54, Fort Cherry 23
2A-1 West Greene 48, Wash High 12
Boys Basketball (Class-Section)
5A-1 Trinity 70, Ringgold 49
2A-4 Beth-Center 63, Frazier 61
2A-4 Chartiers-Houston 57, Carmichaels 46
1A-2 Monessen 76, California 34
1A-2 West Greene 54, Mapletown 39
Girls Basketball (Class-Section)
4A-3 Elizabeth-Forward 65, Ringgold 9
1A-2 Monessen 58, Avella 14
1A-2 West Greene 50, Mapletown 23
January 18, 2024 1:18 am
Coach Ron Faust, referee Jim Chacko, 1989 Peters Township Boys Soccer and 2011-2012 Canon-McMillan Wrestling were announced among the WPIAL Hall of Fame Class of 2024. The honorees will be officially inducted on Friday, May 31 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Green Tree.
Ron Faust led Wash High boys basketball to 653 wins, 22 section titles, four WPIAL championships and a pair of state crowns over his two stints as head coach. Jim Chacko followed his 1,000-point high school basketball career at Charleroi with a long run as a WPIAL/PIAA official in football, basketball and baseball.
The 1989 Peters Township boys soccer team went 23-2-2, allowing just 19 goals in the season on the way to WPIAL & PIAA championship repeats. The Indians did not allow a post-season goal, blanking opponents 23-0 over the WPIAL/PIAA tournament run.
Canon-McMillan’s 2011-2012 team went unbeaten (26-0) to win WPIAL and PIAA Team titles, lead by state champion Kody Wiercioch and seven other PIAA place-winners, three of them joining Wiercioch as WPIAL individual champions. The Big Macs downed North Allegheny to win the WPIAL Team Tournament, then topped McDowell a week later in the PIAA Finals.
January 18, 2024 4:49 am
Mike McCarthy will get another chance to end a nearly three-decade stretch without a deep playoff run for the Dallas Cowboys. Owner and general manager Jerry Jones says McCarthy will be back for a fifth season as coach after a stunning 48-32 wild-card loss to Green Bay. The Cowboys were the first No. 2 seed to lose to the last team to get in since the 14-team format was adopted in 2020. They haven’t been past the divisional round since the 1995 season. That was when Dallas won the last of the storied franchise’s five Super Bowl titles. Jones says there is “great benefit” to the continuity of bringing McCarthy back.
