February 12, 2025 4:28 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Department of Education has taken another step in advancing the Trump administration’s new transgender policy for sports by asking the NCAA and a key high-school sports organization to restore titles, awards and records it says have been “misappropriated by biological males competing in female categories.” The department sent a letter requesting the changes to the National Federation of State High School Associations and the NCAA. The NCAA changed its participation policy to restrict competition in women’s sports to athletes who were assigned female at birth a day after President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at banning transgender athletes from women’s and girls sports.
February 10, 2025 2:30 am
The WPIAL Basketball playoff brackets have been released by the League. The 12 brackets include 11 girls teams from Washington & Greene Counties, 10 more on the boys side. Action begins with preliminary games later this week, needed to trim several brackets down to 16 teams, including the 2A boys tournament that starts with 21 teams, six of them from the two-county area. Three other brackets-5A boys, 4A girls, 2A girls-have 17 teams each. The WPIAL championships return to the University of Pittsburgh’s Petersen Events Center Feb. 27-March 1. The daily schedule for all 21 teams from the two-county area follows. Click for WPIAL Brackets
Thursday, Feb. 13
Boys 2A #20 Beth-Center vs. #13 Winchester Thurston, 5:45 pm at Peters Township WJPA-AM (1450) or Watch/Listen Here
Boys 2A #15 Bentworth vs. #18 South Side Area, 7:15 pm at Peters Township WJPA-AM (1450) or Watch/Listen Here
Boys 2A #12 Jeff-Morgan vs. #21 Springdale, 7:00 pm at Jeff-Morgan
Boys 2A #14 West Greene vs. #19 Brentwood, 7:00 pm at West Greene
Girls 2A #17 Bentworth vs. #16 Apollo-Ridge at Apollo-Ridge
Friday, Feb. 14
Girls 5A #2 Peters Township vs. #15 Fox Chapel, 6:45 pm at Peters Township WJPA-FM (95.3) or Watch/Listen Here
Girls 3A #10 McGuffey vs. #7 Quaker Valley, 6:45 pm at Quaker Valley WJPA-AM (1450) or Watch/Listen Here
Monday, Feb. 17
Boys 2A #7 Chartiers-Houston vs. #10 Shenango, 7 pm at Chartiers-Houston
Boys 2A #9 Fort Cherry vs. #8 Union, 6:45 pm at Union WJPA-AM (1450) or Watch/Listen Here
Girls 1A #7 West Greene vs. #10 Eden Christian, 7 pm at West Greene
Tuesday, Feb. 18
Boys 5A #6 Peters Township vs. #11 Penn Hills, 6:45 pm at Peters Township WJPA-FM (95.3) or Watch/Listen Here
Boys 3A #15 Charleroi vs. #2 South Allegheny, 7 pm at South Allegheny
Boys 3A #8 McGuffey vs. #9 Shady Side Academy, 7 pm at McGuffey
Boys 3A #14 Waynesburg vs. #3 Mohawk, 7 pm at Mohawk
Girls 2A #9 Beth-Center vs. #8 Laurel, 7 pm at Laurel
Girls 2A #14 Burgettstown vs. #3 Winchester Thurston, 6 pm at Keystone Oaks
Girls 2A #5 Fort Cherry vs. #12 California, 6:45 pm at Fort Cherry WJPA-AM (1450) or Watch/Listen Here
Girls 2A #6 Chartiers-Houston vs. #11 Brentwood, 7pm at Chartiers-Houston
Girls 2A #15 Carmichaels vs. #2 Aliquippa, 6 pm at Aliquippa
Thursday, Feb. 20
Girls 6A #4 Canon-McMillan vs. #5 Butler, 6 pm at Canon-McMillan
February 11, 2025 4:18 am
BROSSARD, Quebec (AP) — Sidney Crosby says he’s good to go for Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off after getting injured in one of Pittsburgh’s final games before the break in the NHL season. Crosby skated between reigning league MVP Nathan MacKinnon and 2023 Stanley Cup winner Mark Stone at practice. Coach Jon Cooper stopped short of saying Crosby was definitely playing in Canada’s tournament opener against Sweden on Wednesday, but all indications are the 37-year-old will be on the ice. Penguins coach Mike Sullivan, who’s behind the bench for the United States, said for obvious reasons he was not a central figure in the decision-making process.
February 11, 2025 4:22 am
Fox Sports is projecting a Super Bowl record average audience of 126 million U.S. viewers across television and streaming platforms for Philadelphia’s 40-22 victory over Kansas City. Sunday night’s game was televised by Fox, Fox Deportes and Telemundo and streamed on Tubi as well as the NFL’s digital platforms. Fox’s projections include Nielsen’s early numbers and streaming data from Tubi and the NFL. Updated and more complete numbers are expected on Tuesday. It would be the second straight year the Super Bowl has reached a record audience. The Chiefs’ 25-22 overtime victory over San Francisco last year averaged 123.7 million on CBS, Nickelodeon, Univision and streaming platforms.
February 10, 2025 4:33 am
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Cooper DeJean, Josh Sweat and the Philadelphia Eagles’ ferocious defense denied Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs a Super Bowl three-peat. It wasn’t even close. DeJean got a pick-6 on his 22nd birthday, Sweat tormented Mahomes and the Eagles routed the Chiefs 40-22 on Sunday to secure the franchise’s second Super Bowl championship. Jalen Hurts threw for two touchdowns and ran for a score on a tush push, and Vic Fangio’s defense was so dominant that the Eagles didn’t need much from Saquon Barkley. With Donald Trump becoming the first president in office to attend a Super Bowl, the Eagles outplayed Kansas City in every facet.
February 10, 2025 4:34 am
Aaron Rodgers is still contemplating whether to continue his playing career. If he does, it appears it won’t be with the New York Jets. The team has told the 41-year-old quarterback it is “moving on from him,” Fox Sports reported Sunday. Rodgers said toward the end of the Jets’ 5-12 season he was undecided on his playing future and wanted to take a mental break. There was also uncertainty as to whether the Jets would even want to move forward with Rodgers. The Jets recently hired general manager Darren Mougey and coach Aaron Glenn, and owner Woody Johnson said at their introductory news conference on Jan. 27 the new regime would have the final say in that decision.
February 9, 2025 12:02 am
The WPIAL Basketball Committee is crafting six girls playoff brackets with a total if 84 teams, 11 of them from Washington and Greene Counties, with seven of those in the Class 2A bracket. The tournament pairings will be released Monday afternoon. Following is a playoff primer on all six girls brackets.
Class 6A – 8 teams including Canon-McMillan (12-8). Norwin and Upper St. Clair are expected to get the top two seeds, splitting their regular season series. Section 1 champion Seneca Valley should be third. Canon-Mac is in line to get the #4 seed and host a quarterfinal round game.
Class 5A – 16 teams including Peters Township (19-2). The Indians and three-time defending champion South Fayette have been ranked #1 and #2 all season and haven’t lost to any Pennsylvania teams. Penn-Trafford hasn’t lost to anyone this season. Chartiers Valley, Franklin Regional and Indiana should fill in the next three slots.
Class 4A – 17 teams. Blackhawk, North Catholic, Oakland Catholic and Elizabeth-Forward are likely to be the top four seeds. The bracket’s preliminary game will include two of these four teams: Freeport, Highlands, Hopewell and Mt. Pleasant.
Class 3A – 15 teams including McGuffey (13-8), the third-place finisher in Section 3. Shady Side Academy (21-0) is a lock for the top seed. Keystone Oaks, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Greensburg Central Catholic and Seton-La Salle should follow.
Class 2A – 17 teams, 7 from the two-county area. Neshannock (20-2) will be the top seed, coming in on an 11-game winning streak. Winchester Thurston should be #2, aided by a mid-January win over Chartiers-Houston. Aliquippa, Chartiers-Houston, Fort Cherry and South Side Beaver will round out the top six seeds. Carmichaels (3-18), the last team in the field, will play in the bracket’s preliminary, possibly against Section 3 foe Bentworth (7-14), the Bearcats heading into the playoffs with losses in 9 of their last 10 games. Burgettstown (8-13) is also a possible opponent for the Mikes. California and Beth-Center should be in the 8-10 seed range, the Trojans likely getting the higher spot thanks to their win over the Bulldogs on Thursday.
Class 1A – 11 teams including West Greene (15-7). Union (22-0) and Geibel Catholic (21-1) are locks to be #1/#2. Aquinas Academy, Clairton and St. Joseph are likely to be #3 through #5, getting first-round byes along with Union & Geibel. Serra Catholic and West Greene (15-7) should each host first-round games against the Section 1 fifth-place teams, Sewickley Academy and Eden Christian.
February 9, 2025 12:01 am
Monday afternoon, the WPIAL Basketball Committee will release its six boys basketball playoff brackets. Those pairings will include 10 Washington & Greene County teams, six of them in the Class 2A bracket. Following is a playoff primer on all six boys brackets.
Class 6A – 11 teams with five first-round byes. Upper St. Clair (20-2) will be the top seed, with New Castle, Imani Christian, Central Catholic and Fox Chapel rounding out the top five. Butler, Mt. Lebanon and Seneca Valley should host opening-round games.
Class 5A – 17 teams including Peters Township (15-6). Montour (20-1) has been the #1 ranked team all season. Baldwin, Uniontown, Chartiers Valley and Moon Area will round out the top five. Peters Township is likely to be seeded 7th, funneling into a possible quarterfinal rematch with Baldwin.
Class 4A – 12 teams. Belle Vernon, Beaver Area, North Catholic and Avonworth should be the top four seeds, each receiving first-round byes. Central Valley, Deer Lakes, Elizabeth-Forward and Knoch should host opening-round games.
Class 3A – 16 teams including Charleroi (10-11), McGuffey (15-6) and Waynesburg (9-11). Aliquippa, South Allegheny, Mohawk and Bishop Canevin are likely the top four seeds, followed by Southmoreland and South Park. Keystone Oaks, Ligonier Valley, and McGuffey are next in line with the Highlanders likely settling in at #9, having to open the playoffs on the road.
Class 2A – 21 teams, including six from Washington/Greene Counties. Greensburg Central Catholic, Sewickley Academy, Neshannock, Jeannette and Chartiers-Houston (19-2) will be the top five seeds. Fort Cherry (12-8), Jeff-Morgan (14-7) and West Greene (12-8) will be in the next group of seven teams, six of whom will avoid preliminary games. Bentworth (10-10) and Beth-Center (9-13) will certainly have to play opening night.
Class 1A – 8 teams. Neighborhood Academy will be #1, followed by Serra Catholic and Nazareth Prep, the Section 1 champion. Serra beat Nazareth in mid-January to earn the second spot. Aquinas Academy will be fourth and host the quarterfinal round match-up, likely with Geibel Catholic.
February 9, 2025 6:05 am
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Travis Konecny had a goal and an assist to help the Philadelphia Flyers snap a five-game losing streak with a 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night. Scott Laughton and Garnet Hathaway also scored for Philadelphia. Samuel Ersson made 32 saves. Erik Karlsson and Kevin Hayes had tallies for Pittsburgh, and Joel Blomqvist stopped 17 shots. Penguins captain Sidney Crosby (upper body) missed his second straight contest after sitting out Friday’s 3-2 win over the Rangers. Pittsburgh also was without Evgeni Malkin (lower body) and Bryan Rust, who was placed on injured reserve on Saturday.
February 9, 2025 6:12 am
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Andy Reid and Matt Nagy vs. Vic Fangio. Nick Sirianni and Kellen Moore vs. Steve Spagnuolo. This Super Bowl is a matchup of some of the brightest — and oldest — minds in the NFL. When the Kansas City Chiefs go for a three-peat in a rematch against the Eagles on Sunday, the game will come down to what Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Chris Jones and teammates do on the field against Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, Jalen Carter and the rest of Philadelphia’s talented roster. But it starts with the coaches and the coordinators and their schemes. They have to devise the right game plan and make the best play calls.
