Early agate
ON THIS DATE
Jan. 8
1955 – Led by Cy Godfrey’s school record 42 points, Washington & Jefferson defeats West Virginia Wesleyan 95-91.
1957 – Hot Rod Hunley brings West Virginia from behind in the second half for an 89-86 win at Pitt. Hunley scores 18 of his 32 points in the second half.
1959 – Waynesburg native Bill George, a middle guard for the Chicago Bears, is named to the Associated Press All-Pro team.
1963 – West Greene High School’s Rick Sonneborn scores 47 points – all but six of his team’s total – in a 53-51 victory over East Washington. Sonneborn makes 15 field goals and 17 of 20 free throws.
1969 – Penn State’s Joe Paterno turns down a $500,000 contract offer to be coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
1972 – The NCAA announces freshmen will be eligible to play on varsity football and basketball teams starting in the fall.
1980 – Ray Natili scores 18 points as Immaculate Conception defeats host Burgettstown, 43-36, in a battle of boys basketball teams that were undefeated in Section 9-AA.
1981 – Ron Skiles is named head football coach at Bentworth, succeeding Chuck Wonsettler.
1981 – Susan Clair scores 20 points and Beth-Center defeats Greensburg Central Catholic 46-44 in a girls basketball showdown for first place in Section 11-AA.
1985 – Washington High School sets the school’s single-game basketball scoring record with a 115-44 victory over host Avella.
1985 – Mark Dukate scores 40 points, making 16 of 30 shots from the field, as Waynesburg wins its Section 11-AAA opener 86-71 over Brownsville.
1986 – Waynesburg’s Terri Harding breaks a barrier by becoming the first female to wrestle for a Greene County school. Harding is pinned in 41 seconds by Upper St. Clair’s Dom Cicchenelli but Waynesburg wins the match 40-19.
1987 – Stacey Patterson scores 39 points and sets Chartiers-Houston’s girls basketball single-game scoring record in the Bucs’ 82-46 victory over South Fayette.
1988 – Fort Cherry’s Wade Timmerson makes 20 of 24 shots and scores a school record 56 points in the Rangers’ 99-59 victory over Sewickley Academy. Timmerson breaks the school single-game scoring record of 48 points set by Eugene Briggs in 1976.
1992 – Waynesburg College’s Larry Washington scores 39 points as the Yellow Jackets edge visiting Lake Erie 101-95.
1993 – Bryan Barto scores 33 points and makes 12 consecutive free throws in the final 1:45 as Burgettstown gets its first boys basketball win ever at Wash High, beating the Prexies 64-61 in Section 15-AA-A.
2000 – Kevin Dyson runs 75 yards for a touchdown after catching a lateral from Frank Wycheck in the game’s final 10 seconds to give the Tennessee Titans a victory over the Buffalo Bills in an AFC playoff game. The play is known as the “Music City Miracle.”
2006 – Joe Herber scores 23 points and West Virginia rallies from a 15-point deficit on the road to upset No. 3 Villanova, 91-87.
2012 – Tim Tebrow throws an 80-yard touchdown pass to Demaryius Thomas on the first play of overtime and the Denver Broncos defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers 29-23 in the AFC playoffs.
Jan. 9
1957 – Larry Romboski, who had 18 points, breaks the 10th and final tie of the game by scoring a go-ahead basket with 1:45 remaining and Washington & Jefferson holds off Waynesburg 65-63 for the Presidents’ seventh win in eight games.
1969 — Frank Kush, who was hired five days earlier, informs Pitt officials that he is backing out of an agreement to be the Panthers’ head football coach and returning to Arizona State.
1973 – Mike Brantley scores 22 points and Joe Montana has 11 as Ringgold High School improves its basketball record to 11-0 with a 58-53 win at Belle Vernon in Section 4-A.
1976 – Mapletown scores 46 points in the second half to defeat Geibel 71-68 and remain undefeated in Section 19-A. Rex Buckhalter scores 23 points and Jack Kocerka 21 for the Maples.
1981 – Mon Valley Catholic’s Lance Spernak makes 19 of 32 shots and scores 40 points as the Spartans defeat visiting Carmichaels 84-65.
1988 – Dana Zajicek scores 40 points, making 15 of 24 shots, as California University edges West Liberty 95-93.
1989 – Lori Burkholder scores 43 points, including five three-point baskets, as Carmichaels defeats Geibel 67-64 in Section 17-AA-A.
1992 – Elizabeth Proudfit scores 27 points and Washington rallies in the final four minutes to defeat Trinity 53-50 in a girls basketball game. The win improves Wash High’s record to 13-1.
1996 – The WPIAL Board of Control approves the addition of a third team from each conference to enter the football postseason.
2010 – Nick Morelli’s five-foot shot with 7.5 seconds remaining in the third overtime gives Washington & Jefferson an 84-83 win over Westminster at Henry Memorial Center.
2010 – Bethany College’s Joe Testa, a Trinity High School graduate, becomes the 22nd player in Bisons history to score 1,000 career points. Testa scores 20 points and grabs 11 rebounds in Bethany’s 62-56 win over Saint Vincent.
2016 – Chris Boswell kicks a 35-yard field goal with 14 seconds remaining, sending the Steelers past Cincinnati 18-16 in the AFC wild-card game. Pittsburgh moves into field goal position after two 15-yard penalties on the Bengals, one on linebacker Vontaze Burfict and another on Adam Jones after Burfict hits defenseless Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown.