February 23, 2024 1:36 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Pirates and All-Star pitcher Mitch Keller have agreed to a five-year contract worth $77 million. The deal, which starts this year and runs through 2028, was officially signed on Friday. Keller, 27, is coming off a breakthrough season in 2023 in which he went 13-9 with a 4.21 ERA and made the All-Star team for the first time in his career.
February 22, 2024 2:15 am
Fort Cherry struggled through three quarters, scrambled back close in the fourth only to fall to South Side in the 2A girls quarterfinals. Trailing by 16 through three, the Rangers twice got within 4 points but couldn’t close the deal, dropping into the consolation bracket. Rainey Staub led the rally, scoring 10 of her game-high 19 points in the final 8 minutes. Fort Cherry, with a state tournament berth in hand, will face Rochester in the Round I consolations Friday as the four quarterfinal loser play to determine their seeds in the state bracket. The West Greene boys lost to #1 Imani Christian. The Pioneers also enter the Round I consolation bracket but must win two straight to qualify for the PIAA tournament.
In dramatic fashion, a group of Washington & Greene County teams that numbered 24 has been cut down to five as the WPIAL Basketball playoffs move through quarterfinal round action. After Wednesday’s action, girls teams from Peters Township, Trinity and West Greene are still alive in the championship brackets along with boys teams from Fort Cherry and Canon-McMillan. Quarterfinals in the remaining eight brackets are scheduled over the next two nights. We’ll have the Peters Township & Trinity girls and Fort Cherry boys quarterfinal games on the WJPA Sports Network, both on-air and online. And, as we move through the brackets, we’ll have live coverage of as many games as we can, on-air and online. Our audio stream is free to all. The video, when possible, will be streamed through WPIAL partner NFHS Network (subscription required, links provided).
PIAA tournament spots will also be claimed over the next several days. So far, the Fort Cherry girls are the only team from the two-county area to have wrapped up a spot in the state tournament that begins March 8th. A Boys (Fort Cherry) and 5A Girls (Trinity) each send the top seven teams to the PIAA meaning they’ll each clinch with one more win, and they’ll have three chances to get that win. 6A Girls sends the top four teams meaning Peters Township must win Thursday to clinch. Only the top three advance to the state tournament in 6A Boys so Canon-McMillan will have to win twice, including Friday night’s quarterfinal against Central Catholic. Only the top 5 advance in 1A Boys and 1A Girls. For WPIAL brackets, CLICK HERE.
Quarterfinals
Wednesday, Feb. 21
2A Girls #12 South Side Area 50, #4 Fort Cherry 42 Listen/Watch Here
1A Boys #1 Imani Christian 60, #8 West Greene 26
Thursday, Feb. 22
6A Girls #2 Peters Township 58, #7 Pine-Richland 46 Listen/Watch Here
1A Girls #1 Union 59, #8 West Greene 14
Friday, Feb. 23
6A Boys #7 Canon-McMillan vs. #2 Central Catholic, 7 pm at Gateway
5A Girls #3 Trinity vs. #6 South Fayette, 5:45 pm at Peters Township, WJPA-FM (95.3) Listen/Watch Here
2A Boys #4 Fort Cherry vs. #5 Bishop Canevin, 7:45 pm at Peters Township, WJPA-FM (95.3) Listen/Watch Here
Consolation Round I
Friday, Feb. 23
2A Girls Fort Cherry vs. Rochester, 6 pm at Montour (winner to 5th place game, loser to 7th place game)
1A Boys West Greene vs. Monessen, 7 pm at Monessen (winner to 5th place game, loser eliminated)
February 22, 2024 4:39 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The struggling Pittsburgh Penguins may be sellers at the trade deadline for the first time in decades. Pittsburgh currently sits near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings with two weeks to go before the March 8 deadline. General manager/director of hockey operations Kyle Dubas says he wants to give the team plenty of opportunities to show it can contend. Still, time is running out if the Penguins want to avoid missing the playoffs for a second straight season following a streak of 16 consecutive postseason berths.
February 22, 2024 4:37 am
HOBE SOUND, Fla. (AP) — Charlie Woods is taking the first step toward trying to play on the PGA Tour. The 15-year-old son of Tiger Woods is in the pre-qualifier Thursday for the Cognizant Classic. Roughly the leading 25 players advance to the Monday qualifier. Only four players get into the tournament. Charlie Woods is no stranger to the spotlight. He’s been playing with his father in the PNC Championship the last four years. That’s the 36-hole event in which major champions team up with a family member. Charlie Woods will be on his own this time at Lost Lake Golf Club.
February 20, 2024 12:01 am
Trinity built an 11-point lead with 3:30 to play, then had to hold on to beat Woodland Hills and move on to the 5A girls quarterfinals. Maddy Roberts led Trinity with 17 points, joined in double figures by Ruby Morgan, Macie Justice and Sam Horne. Fort Cherry, the #4 seed in the 2A boys bracket, broke open a tight game at the half with a 20-point third quarter, moving to Friday’s quarterfinals. Cheartiers-Houston and Burgettstown boys were eliminated. The two-county area sent 24 teams into the playoffs, including 19 from Washington County. With the opening round now complete, Fort Cherry and West Greene have both boys & girls teams into the quarterfinals. They’ll be joined by Canon-McMillan boys, Peters Township and Trinity girls teams. As we move through the brackets, we’ll have live coverage of as many games as we can, on-air and online. Our audio stream is free to all. The video, when possible, will be streamed through WPIAL partner NFHS Network (subscription required, links provided). For WPIAL brackets, CLICK HERE.
First Round games
Tuesday, Feb. 20
5A Girls #3 Trinity 59, #14 Woodland Hills 54 Listen/Watch Here
2A Boys #4 Fort Cherry 69, #13 Winchester Thurston 48
2A Boys #8 Serra Catholic 58, #9 Chartiers-Houston 47
2A Boys #5 Bishop Canevin 62, #12 Burgettstown 41 Listen/Watch Here
Quarterfinals
Wednesday, Feb. 21
2A Girls #4 Fort Cherry vs. #12 South Side Area, 7:45 pm at Peters Township, WJPA-FM (95.3) Listen/Watch Here
1A Boys #8 West Greene vs. #1 Imani Christian, 8 pm at Bethel Park
Thursday, Feb. 22
6A Girls #7 Pine-Richland at #2 Peters Township, 6:45 pm, WJPA-FM (95.3) Listen/Watch Here
1A Girls #8 West Greene at #1 Union, 7 pm
Friday, Feb. 23 (times to be determined)
6A Boys #7 Canon-McMillan vs. #2 Central Catholic, 7 pm at Gateway
5A Girls #3 Trinity vs. #6 South Fayette, 5:45 pm at Peters Township, WJPA-FM (95.3) Listen/Watch Here
2A Boys #4 Fort Cherry vs. #5 Bishop Canevin, 7:45 pm at Peters Township, WJPA-FM (95.3) Listen/Watch Here
February 21, 2024 4:34 am
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Kevin Miller scored 18 points, Hunter Sallis added 17 and Wake Forest routed Pittsburgh 91-58, snapping the Panther’s five-game winning streak. Wake Forest (17-9, 9-6 ACC), which ended a two-game skid that includes a 49-47 loss against then-No. 21 Virginia, shot 61% (31 of 51) overall, made half of its 20 shots from distance and 19 of 20 free throws against Pitt. Ishmael Leggett made three 3-pointers and scored 15 points to lead Pitt (17-9, 8-7), which shot 18 of 62 (29%) from the field. Wake Forest opened the second half on a 20-4 run and cruised from there.
February 21, 2024 4:36 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Adam Pelech beat Alex Nedeljkovic 57 seconds into overtime to lift the New York Islanders past the skidding Pittsburgh Penguins 5-4. Pelech’s winner was his first goal since last April as the Islanders recovered in the extra period after squandering a late lead. Brock Nelson scored his 24th goal of the season for New York. Mathew Barzal, Simon Holmstrom and Mike Reilly also scored for the Islanders. Valtteri Puustinen and Drew O’Connor scored 54 seconds apart in the third period as the Penguins erased a two-goal deficit to salvage a point in the standings.
February 21, 2024 4:38 am
The field for the 12-team College Football Playoff will comprise five conference champions and seven at-large selections after the university presidents who oversee the CFP voted unanimously to tweak the format. The move to decrease the number of spots reserved for conference champions from six to five was prompted by realignment, including the demise of the Pac-12. The original plan for the 12-team format was to have the six highest-ranked conference champions, with the top four receiving first-round byes, and six at-large selections.
February 20, 2024 12:01 am
The opening-round struggles continued for most teams in the two-county area including losses at home by Peters Township and Wash High boys teams. The only winner Monday night was the West Greene girls, only the third win by a Washington/Greene County team in this year’s playoffs, the first against a team not from the two-county area. Of the 24 teams that started tournament play, 15 lost in the first round, four others have first-round games on Wednesday, and the last two teams will play their first games in the 6A quarterfinals later this week. As we move through the brackets, we’ll have live coverage of as many games as we can, on-air and online. Our audio stream is free to all. The video, when possible, will be streamed through WPIAL partner NFHS Network (subscription required, links provided). For WPIAL brackets, CLICK HERE.
First Round games
Monday, Feb. 19
1A Girls #8 West Greene 55, #9 Jeannette 33
1A Girls #6 Bishop Canevin 53, #11 Mapletown 17
3A Boys #9 Ellwood City 53, #8 Wash High 36 Listen Here
3A Boys #2 Mohawk 74, #15 McGuffey 39
5A Boys #12 Kiski Area 58, #5 Peters Township 51 Listen/Watch Here
Tuesday, Feb. 20
5A Girls #3 Trinity 59, #14 Woodland Hills 54 Listen/Watch Here
2A Boys #4 Fort Cherry 69, #13 Winchester Thurston 48
2A Boys #8 Serra Catholic 58, #9 Chartiers-Houston 47
2A Boys #5 Bishop Canevin 62, #12 Burgettstown 41 Listen/Watch Here
Quarterfinals
Wednesday, Feb. 21
2A Girls #4 Fort Cherry vs. #5 South Side Area, 7:45 pm at Peters Township, WJPA-FM (95.3) Listen/Watch Here
1A Boys #8 West Greene vs. #1 Imani Christian, 8 pm at Bethel Park
Thursday, Feb. 22 (times to be determined)
6A Girls #7 Pine-Richland at #2 Peters Township, 6:45 pm, WJPA-FM (95.3) Listen/Watch Here
1A Girls #8 West Greene at #1 Union, 7 pm
February 19, 2024 12:01 am
Every two years, the WPIAL realigns its sections in all sports following the release of new PIAA enrollment cutoffs. The realignment for fall sports was released Monday by the League. Here are some notes for teams from Washington/Greene Counties and the new sections in football, boys/girls soccer and girls volleyball. Click Here for complete re-alignment listings for fall sports.
Football: 6A Canon-McMillan is listed in an eight-team section including Butler who had indicated that they would play an independent schedule. 5A defending champion Peters Township is in a six-team section with Baldwin, Bethel Park, Moon, South Fayette and Upper St. Clair. Aliquippa, thought to be heading for that section, was instead placed in a Northern section with Fox Chapel, North Hills, Pine-Richland, Penn Hills, Plum and Shaler.
Trinity and Ringgold are together in a six-team 4A section along with two-time defending state champion Belle Vernon, Chartiers Valley, Laurel Highland and Thomas Jefferson. McGuffey will have the most frequent flyer miles in the regular season, placed in a 3A section with Avonworth, Beaver, Central Valley, Hopewell, North Catholic and Quaker Valley.
Charleroi, Wash High and Waynesburg are all part of a 2A section with Carlynton, Keystone Oaks, Seton-La Salle and Sto-Rox. 1A teams from the two-county area are split with eight of them in the Tri-County South (Avella, Bentworth, Beth-Center, California, Carmichaels, Jeff-Morgan, Mapletown and West Greene. The others, Burgettstown, Chartiers-Houston and defending WPIAL champion Fort Cherry, are part of the Black Hills Conference with Bishop Canevin, Cornell, Monessen and Serra Catholic.
Boys Soccer: Canon-McMillan and Peters Township are in the same 4A section along with Connellsville, Mt. Lebanon, Upper St. Clair and Woodland Hills. 3A has Ringgold and Trinity in with traditional opponents Albert Gallatin, Bethel Park, Laurel Highlands, McKeesport, South Fayette and Thomas Jefferson. Wash High, part of a co-op with Burgettstown and Fort Cherry, is in another 3A section with Allderdice, Belle Vernon, Franklin Regional, Latrobe, Penn-Trafford, Uniontown and West Mifflin. McGuffey is in one 2A section comprised mostly on Mon Valley/South Hills teams while Charleroi and Waynesburg are together with mostly Westmoreland County squads. Bemtworth, Beth-Centeer, California and Chartiers-Houston are in a 1A section along with Geibel and Greensburg Central Catholic.
Girls Soccer: Canon-McMillan and Peters Township are together in a 4A section of similar makeup to the boys section, though adding Baldwin and eliminating Woodland Hills. Trinity girls are matched up in a 3A West Hills/South Hills grouping against Bethel Park, Blackhawk, Chartiers Valley, Montour, Moon and West Allegheny. Charleroi, McGuffey and Ringgold are grouped with Belle Vernon, Keystone Oaks, South Park and Steel Valley in a 2A section. All five 1A teams are together, Bentworth, Beth-Center, California, Chartiers-Houston and Waynesburg along with Brownsville.
Girls Volleyball: Traditional South Hills grouping in 4A with Canon-McMillan and Peters Township, joined by Baldwin, Bethel Park, Mt. Lebanon and Upper St. Clair. Trinity is in a 3A mostly West Hills section with Oakland Catholic added in. Ringgold is in another 3A section with neighbors in the Mon Valley and Uniontown areas. All of the area’s 2A teams are together with Bentworth, Burgettstown, Charleroi, Chartiers-Houston, McGuffey, Wash High and Waynesburg joined by Brownsville. 1A has an odd alignment that is being questioned as Jeff-Morgan is in a section with Frazier, Geibel, Greensburg Central Catholic, Serra Catholic and Trinity Christian. The Rockets Greene County neighbors, Carmichaels and Mapletown, along with West Greene, Beth-Center, California and Avella are in another section. Fort Cherry is in yet another 1A section along with Bishop Canevin, Brentwood, Eden Christian,. Hillcrest Christian and Propel Montour.
