Mar 27, 2023 9 min read

Local hockey teams split in PA Cup

Area teams went 1-for-2 in the Pennsylvania Cup hockey championships Saturday.

South Fayette won the Class 2A title with a 7-4 victory over Flyers Cup champion Pennsbury for its first state title in hockey.

Peters Township dropped a 7-3 decision against LaSalle College High School in the Class 3A title game.

In the South Fayette win, the Lions (19-3-0) scored two goals within 1:13 of the third period and added an empty net goal to finish off Pennsbury.

Nolan Murphy and Tyler Brandebura scored when South Fayette had a 5-on-3 to tie the game 2-2. Braydon Reighard and Wes Schwarzmiller scored to give South Fayette a 4-2 lead.

Schwarzmiller and Murphy put the game out of reach with back-to-back goals in a 1:13 span of the third period.

Peters Township scored a goal by Will Tomko 12 seconds into the second period but goals by Julian Tarsi and Evan Galato in a 41-second span for LaSalle College.

The top line for LaSalle College – Chase Hannon, Golato and Ryan Desmond – tallied three goals and six points in the win.

High school baseball

Cameron Dames’ two-run single with one out in the top of the ninth inning gave McGuffey a 6-4 road win at Southmoreland in the Class 3A Section 4 opener Monday.

McGuffey (1-0, 2-0) trailed 4-0 in the first inning but battled back and forced extra innings at 4-4 on a sacrifice fly by Austin Johnson in the seventh inning.

Jacob Ross was the winning pitcher with three shutout innings of relief and six strikeouts. Dames had a double, the game’s only extra-base hit.

Landon Urcho struck out 11 over 6 2/3

• innings and Zakery Burt hit a two-run inside-the-park homer as Bentworth remained undefeated with a 9-1 win over Washington in Class 2A Section 1.

Urcho allowed two hits and walked only one. He helped his cause with a triple, two runs and two RBU. Urcho, Burt and Gavin Linton-Rush had three hits each for the Bearcats (1-0, 3-0).

Wash High’s run came on a home run by Michael Shallcross.

• Michael DiMartini doubled and scored three runs as South Fayette defeated Anthony Wayne (Ohio) 14-5 in a six-inning game.

The Lions scored four runs in the top of the first inning and never trailed. Chase Krewson tripled, and Tyler Skeen and Anthony Diodata each had a double.

• Isaiah Bradick fired a four-hit complete game and drove in a run, leading Avella to a 4-1 road win over West Greene in the Class A Section 1 opener.

Bradick struck out 10 and issued only one walk in throwing the 96-pitch complete game. Bradick had an RBI single in the third inning to give the Eagles (1-0, 2-0) a 1-0 lead. Avella tacked on single runs in the fourth, fifth and seventh innings.

Ian VanDyne doubled and scored West Greene’s lone run on an error in the fifth inning.

• Greensburg Salem scored five runs in the top of the eighth inning to beat Waynesburg 9-4 in the Class 3A Section 4 opener.

Waynesburg forced extra innings at 4-4 by scoring two runs in the bottom of the seventh on a RBI single by Lincoln Pack and a bases-loaded walk to Ethan Kiger. Pack went 4-for-5 with two runs and two RBI. Alex VanSickle had a double for the Raiders.

• Aydan Adamson and Liam Lohr combined one a one-hitter and Patrick Holaren scored a pair of runs as Carmichaels stymied Jefferson-Morgan 3-0 in the Class A Section 1 opener.

Adamson allowed only a single by Grant Hathaway but di issue five walks. Lohr came on in relief and recorded the final seven outs with 2 1/3 hitless innings of relief.

Carmichaels took a 1-0 lead into the seventh before scoring on a bases-loaded hit batsman and an RBI groundout.

• Andrew Bredel struck out eight over six innings as Burgettstown won its Class 2A Section 1 opener over Charleroi, 7-2.

The Blue Devils trailed 2-1 before erupting for five runs in the fifth inning. An error allowed the tying run to score and Carson Tkalcevic followed with a two-run single to put Burgettstown ahead 4-2.

Burgettstown’s Brodie Kuzior had double.

• Ryan Opfer allowed one unearned run over six innings to lead Chartiers-Houston to a 5-1 win over Fort Cherry.

The Bucs (3-0) led 2-1 before scoring three insurance runs in the sixth inning.

C-H’s Keegan Kosek drove in a pair of runs and Opfer had double. Opfer struck out seven and walked only one.

• Three Beth-Center pitchers combined for a no-hitter as the Bulldogs defeated Frazier 5-3.

Starter Ethan Varesko worked five innings and was followed on the mound by Gavin Durkin and Dom Revi. The trio walked six and hit three batters but did not yield a base hit. Varesko had a double, the game’s lone extra-base hit. Tyson Dingle drove in a pair of runs.

• California scored in every inning en route to a 15-3 Class A Section 1 win at Mapletown.

Dom Martini led a 10-hit attack with a triple, and Panepinto and Ricky Lawson each doubled for the Trojans.

A.J. Vanata had a double for Mapletown.

High school softball

Sophomore Ali Jacobs hit two of Carmichaels’ three home runs, freshman bailey Barnyak twirled a one-hit shutout and the Mikes defeated host Jefferson-Morgan 12-0 in five innings in a Class A Section 2 opener Monday.

Jacobs went 2-for-2 with a pair of solo homers and three runs. Freshman Carys McConnell also homered for Carmichaels (1-0, 4-0). McConnell and Kendall Ellsworth each had three hits. Megan Voithofer and Kaitlyn Waggett doubled.

Barnyak struck out 11 and walked two.

• Peyton Mermon continued her strong start to the season by going 2-for-3 with two home runs and five RBI, powering Burgettstown to a 14-1 in over Avella in a four-inning non-section game.

Burgettstown led 2-1 before six times in both the third and fourth innings. Layla Sherman went 2-for-3 2ith a home run and three RBI. Gracyn Murray and Emma McGregor doubled for the Blue Devils.

• Sofia Celaschi fired a two-hitter with 11 strikeouts over four innings as helped her cause by belting a pair of doubles. powering Charleroi to an 11-1 win over Monessen in a five-inning non-section game.

The win keeps Charleroi undefeated at 3-0.

Celaschi went 3-for-4 with two runs and three RBI. Teammate Madalynn Lancy was 3-for-3 and drove in three.

Losing pitcher Joey Hurst hit a triple.

• Madie Kessler hit two of Norwin’s four home runs in a 15-5 victory over Canon-McMillan.

Rachel Minteer and Bailey Snowberger also homered for the Knights.

Kiersten Williams had a double for the Big Macs.

• A huge comeback by Peters Township fell a run short as the Indians lost to Moon, 11-10.

Moon led 11-0 in the fourth inning before PT mounted a charge. The Indians left the potential tying run in scoring position in both the sixth and seventh innings.

PT had nine doubles, including two each by Sami Bewick, Makenzie Morgan and Skylar Lemansky. Morgan, who was 3-for-5 with five RBI, also homered.

• Waynesburg was a 14-6 winner over West Greene in a non-section contest.

Winning pitcher Kendall Lemley had a big day at the plate going 3-for-3 with two doubles, a solo homer, two walks and three RBI. Dani Stockdale added a double for Waynesburg, and Riley Hixenbaugh went 3-for-5 with two doubles and two RBI. Hannah Wood collected three hits.

West Greene’s Lexi Six had a double and two RBI, and London Whipkey doubled and drove in a pair.

In women’s basketball

Aliyah Boston had 22 points and 10 rebounds, Zia Cooke scored 18 points and top-seeded South Carolina used its smothering defense to take control in the second quarter, outlasting second-seeded Maryland 86-75 on Monday night to reach its third straight Final Four.

In men’s basketball

Texas on Monday named Rodney Terry as full-time head basketball coach, removing the interim tag after he led the Longhorns to the Elite Eight following the midseason firing of Chris Beard.

The school tweeted the news of Terry’s appointment and scheduled a Tuesday news conference to introduce him as head coach.

The announcement came barely 24 hours after the Longhorns’ season ended when Texas was knocked out of the NCAA Tournament by Miami on Sunday. Financial terms and years of the agreement were not immediately available.

In baseball

The Detroit Tigers acquired veteran infielder Zach McKinstry in a trade with the Chicago Cubs on Monday.

The Tigers sent minor league right-hander Carlos Guzman to the Cubs for McKinstry, a .208 hitter with 12 homers and 43 RBIs in parts of three big league seasons.

The 24-year-old Guzman went 9-6 with a 4.11 ERA in 27 games last year, finishing the season with two appearances for Double-A Erie.