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Many special accomplishments by area all-state athletes

12 min read

One of the more significant awards at the Tri-County Athletic Directors Association’s Coach of the Year Banquet is Special Recognition. It is bestowed on an athlete who has either won a state individual title or was named to one of the all-state teams by the Pennsylvania Coaches Association.

This year, 35 athletes will be honored at the banquet, which is today at the DoubleTree by Hilton in the Meadow Lands.

All proceeds from the banquet benefit Special Olympics.

The following is a brief bio of each honoree:

Brett Brumbaugh

South Fayette

Brumbaugh led the Lions to a second straight PIAA Class AA football title and 32-game winning streak. Brumbaugh was named Class AA Player of the Year by the Pennsylvania Sports Writers Association. He passed for a PIAA record 11,104 yards, 3,728 coming this season with 42 touchdown passes. He threw two TDs in a victory over Dunmore for the state title.

Laurel Carpenter

Peters Township

Carpenter, a midfielder, was named to the Pennsylvania Soccer Coaches’ Association all-state team as a senior last fall. A West Virginia recruit, Carpenter was a four-year starter for PT at center-mid and helped the program to two state titles and one WPIAL title while scoring 47 career goals. She holds the school assists record with 104 and is a three-time all-section and all-WPIAL honoree. Scored 13 goals as a senior.

Mike Carr

South Fayette

Carr matched his brother Nick’s accomplishment by winning a state wrestling title in his junior season. Carr won a 3-2 decision over Tyler Vath of Saegertown in the 138-pound finals. He finished the season with a 44-0 record and regional and WPIAL titles.

Lauren Crites

South Fayette

Crites, a middle hitter, led the Lions to a 10-4 record and third place in Section 6-AA. South Fayette won its playoff opener but fell to Thomas Jefferson in the second round. Crites made first team all-state on the Pennsylvania Volleyball Coaches Association team.

Kailyn Clancy

California

Clancy repeated as PIAA Class AA shot put champion with a throw of 45-6¾. The gold medal came one day after she took sixth place in the discus. Clancy won as a junior with a put of 40-11 1/4 and won the high school competition at the Penn Relays. She received a scholarship to Iowa State.

Drew DeBerry

Laurel Highlands

DeBerry was named all-state for the second straight season by the Pennsylvania Baseball Coaches Association. He hit .486 with 20 RBI and 25 runs from his leadoff spot. He was named all-section once and All-Fayette County three times.

Delaney Elling

Trinity

Elling, a junior and Penn State recruit, was named first team all-state by the Pennsylvania Softball Coaches Association. She led the Hillers with 39 hits, 11 doubles and a .684 batting average as Trinity’s starting first baseman.

Olivia Gray

Trinity

Gray, a Pitt recruit, batted .554 with eight doubles, five home runs, 32 stolen bases and 32 RBI. She helped Trinity to a 16-3 record and a playoff appearance. Gray was named first team all-state by the Pennsylvania Softball Coaches Association.

Hannah Gibbons

Waynesburg

The first team all-state selection and Penn recruit led the Raiders to the WPIAL quarterfinals, as well as the Section 2-AA title. Waynesburg’s third baseman batted .614 and added three home runs, 34 runs, 26 RBI and struck out just twice in 87 plate appearances.

Hunter Hayes

South Fayette

Hayes was named to the all-state team of the Pennsylvania Sports Writers Association after a season in which he rushed for 2,103 yards and scored 33 touchdowns. He was one of two running backs in the WPIAL with 2,000 yards last season. He gained 263 yards and ran for two touchdowns in South Fayette’s win over Dunmore in Hershey.

A.C. Headlee

Waynesburg

Headlee won the Class AAA 132-pound title with a 7-2 decision over Latrobe’s Luke Pletcher in ultimate tiebreaker. Pletcher was a two-time defending champion and the No.1-ranked wrestler in his weight class in the country. Headlee also beat Pletcher in the WPIAL finals.

Ashley Iagnemma

South Fayette

Iagnemma led the Lions (14-2) to their first section title with a 1.80 ERA and 151 strikeouts. The Point Park recruit had a 14-2 record and batted .400 with a team-high 30 RBI. She earned all-state honors by the Pennsylvania Softball Coaches Association.

Mia Kness

Peters Township

Kness won the PIAA West Region golf title by shooting even par at Tom’s Run Golf Club in Blairsville. Kness was fifth in the WPIAL Championships at Willowbrook Country Club and tied for third in the PIAA Championships to earn all-state honors.

Josh Kruczek

Canon-McMillan

The Lafayette recruit had six goals and eight assists as one of the top two-way midfielders in Class AAA. Kruczek was named to the Pennsylvania Soccer Coaches’ Association all-state team.

Olivia Lorusso

Canon-McMillan

Lorusso was the Observer-Reporter Softball Player of the Year after hitting .532 with a team-high 16 home runs and 46 RBI. She was first named team all-state by the Pennsylvania Softball Coaches Association and is currently playing at Robert Morris.

Jenna Lucas

Fort Cherry

Lucas won her second consecutive PIAA Class AA title in the javelin with a throw of 153-5, which was 18 feet farther than the second-place finisher. Lucas received a scholarship to Central Florida and has already set the school record in the javelin.

Josh Luko

California

Luko was named the WPIAL Class A Pitcher of the Year, was a first-team all-state, the O-R Player of the Year and won a WPIAL Class A title with the 20-1 Trojans. Luko was 10-0 with 70 strikeouts in 59 1/3 innings only two walks and a 0.82 ERA.

Mario Mastrangelo

Peters Township

A Saint Francis (Pa.) recruit, Mastrangelo had a breakthrough season for the Indians, scoring 25 goals with 14 assists. He was named to the Pennsylvania Soccer Coaches’ Association all-state team after leading Peters Township to its ninth WPIAL title and fifth since 2003. He also helped PT to its first state title since 2007.

Nicco Mastrangelo

Peters Township

Nicco Mastrangelo became one of the most prolific scorers in the WPIAL, finishing his senior season with 23 goals and 16 assists. He earned Pa. Soccer Coaches’ Association all-state honors and powered PT to PIAA and WPIAL Class AAA titles. He will also play at St. Francis (Pa.).

Abby McCartney

Canon-McMillan

McCartney, who also chose Robert Morris, led the Big Macs with a .575 average with 12 home runs, 45 RBI, 42 hits and 36 runs. She struck out only twice in 84 plate appearances. McCartner was named first team all-state by the Pennsylvania Softball Coaches Association.

Nick McKee

South Fayette

McKee was named to the Pennsylvania Soccer Coaches’ Association all-state team as a midfielder after scoring 13 goals with 10 assists. She led the Lions to the WPIAL Class AA quarterfinals and the PIAA semifinals.

Kyra Murphy

Canon-McMillan

The goalkeeper was pivotal in C-M’s breakthrough season in 2014. She was a second all-state pick and had 13 shutouts, including two in the playoffs. The Duquesne recruit had 28 career shutouts and led Canon-McMillan to its first state final appearance. The Big Macs, who were 19-5-1, lost 2-1 in overtime to Central Bucks West in Hershey.

Shane Roebuck

Brownsville

Roebuck was named all-state by the Pennsylvania Baseball Coaches Association last year. He played catcher and outfielder and helped lead Brownsville to second place in Section 2-AA with an 11-3 record.

Linda Rush

Canon-McMillan

The hero of the Big Macs’ 2013 state title victory in 2013, Rush had a fantastic sophomore season, batting .571 with a team-high 48 hits, 40 runs and 16 doubles. She was selected first team all-state by the Pennsylvania Softball Coaches Association.

Lavalle Rush

Monessen

Rush averaged 22.6 points per game in seven playoff games, including 73 points in Monessen’s three PIAA playoff games. After scoring 18 points to lift the Greyhounds over Jeannette for WPIAL gold, he scored a game-high 25 points in Monessen’s PIAA quarterfinal loss to Kennedy Catholic.

Logan Sharp

South Fayette

Sharp caught 49 passes for 850 yards and 13 touchdowns to help the Lions repeat as Class AA state champions. The Penn recruit also was a standout linebacker, finishing third on the team with 75 tackles. Sharp was named all-state by the Pennsylvania Sports Writers Association.

Gavin Teasdale

Jefferson-Morgan

Teasdale’s first varsity season was perfect, a 46-0 record, a PIAA title at 106 pounds in Class AA after a 4-2 win over Aaron Burkett of Chestnut Ridge, and Southwest Region and WPIAL titles. The freshman is in position to win four state titles, a rare feat in the PIAA.

Lauren Waller

Canon-McMillan

Waller won her second consecutive WPIAL Class AAA golf title by shooting 4-under-par 68 at Willowbrook Country Club in Apollo. Waller finished second at the West Regional Tournament and the PIAA Championship.

Cassie Weiss

McGuffey

Weiss was one of the most dominant pitchers in the WPIAL last spring, leading the district with 175 strikeouts in 102 innings. She tossed 12 complete games and led the Highlanders to the WPIAL Class AA quarterfinals. She was selected second team all-state.

Sammie Weiss

McGuffey

Weiss is a three-time O-R Player of the Year, leading all area players with 25.9 points per game and helping McGuffey to its first PIAA playoff victory. Weiss was named to the Pennsylvania Sports Writers’ All-State Basketball first team in Class AAA.

Gia Zeremenko

Canon-McMillan

Zeremenko was one of four Big Macs named first team all-state by the Pennsylvania Softball Coaches Association. The catcher had a standout season, hitting .438 with five home runs, 24 RBI and just two strikeouts in 79 plate appearances. She is playing at Pitt.

3,200 Relay Team

Washington

The 3,200 relay team of DeQuay Isbell, Quorteze Levy, D’Heaven Kelley, and Ben Heim won the gold medal in the PIAA Class AA Track Championships with a time of 7:58.35. That broke the school record of 7:59.04, which was set in 1998.

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