District 7

August 2020

2020 Player Profile: Nick Beitel – Ligonier Valley @nbeitel @LVRamsFootball

August 24, 2020 | Billy Splain

Nick Beitel Ligonier Valley High School Class of: 2022 RB/DB Jersey # 5 Ht: 5’7 Wt: 175 2019 Stats: Offense: 55 carries 642 yards 12 Touchdowns Defensive- 35 tackles 4 Ints. 6 passes defended 2 forced fumble Awards: 2nd Team Tribune-Democrat all area DB Indiana Gazette all-area honorable mention Other sports: Baseball Twitter: @nbeitel5 Why […]

2020 Player Profile: Chas Mrlack – Monessen @chas_money_3 Ready @Greyhounds_FB @SSwope_Sr

August 24, 2020 | Billy Splain

Chas Mrlack Monessen Class of: 2021 Kicker/ WR Jersey # 7 Ht: 6’0 Wt: 180 Other sports: Soccer, basketball, track Twitter @chas_money_3 Why do you play football? Chas: I fell in love with the game once I started kicking my sophomore season. Who is your favorite sports star and why? Chas: Russel Wilson, he’s a […]

2020 PFN Player Preview: Trent Cavanaugh, Bentworth, @PABackyard @TrentCav30 @BentworthHigh

August 22, 2020 | Nate Grella

Trent Cavanaugh Bentworth Class of 2021 Position(s): RB, LB Height: 5’10” Weight: 200 Twitter: @TrentCav30 Why did you choose football? I chose football because when I was little, I always wanted to grow up to be just like my dad. So one day I asked him if he played football when he was young and […]

2020 Player Profile: Tyson Brophy, Trinity Hillers @trinitystc @TysonBrophy @Trinity_Hillers

August 20, 2020 | Billy Splain

Tyson Brophy 2021 Trinity Defensive Tackle / Offensive Guard Jersey #54 Ht- 6’1” Wt- 270 Other Sports: Wrestling- (2x WPIAL Qualifier) 1st Team All Conference DT, Observer-Reporter All District DT, Bill Fralic Award Nominee, Trinity Defensive Player of the Year. Why do you play football? I love the team aspect of football. I also wrestle […]

2020 Player Profile: Nate Dlugos – Greensburg Central Catholic @DlugosNate @GCCHSFootball

August 17, 2020 | Tristan Klinefelter

Nate Dlugos Year: 2023 Greensburg Central Catholic High School Jersey # 6 QB/FS/ATH Ht: 6’1 Wt: 170 Other Sports: Track and Basketball Twitter: @DlugosNate Why do you play football? I play football because it is something that I have always enjoyed doing, and it teaches things that will be used in our daily life. You […]

Greensburg Central Catholic linebacker Zach Dlugos committed to Amherst, we asked him how that decision came about @DlugosZach @GCCHSFootball

August 17, 2020 | Billy Splain

Amherst College just got better. With interest from several schools pouring in, GCCC linebacker Zach Dlugos had his pick of roster spots throughout the D3 ranks. But it was the campus of Amherst that won him over. He made his commitment known a few days ago on twitter: 🟣COMMITTED⚪️ pic.twitter.com/AMqTQ65OtW — Zach Dlugos (@DlugosZach) […]

2020 Team Preview: The McKeesport Tigers @McKeesportArea @asaadflyyoung

August 16, 2020 | Billy Splain

McKeesport Tigers Head Coach Matt Miller Assistant Coaches Troy Blackwell Tom Smith Jamie Eckels John Harper Jared Miller Kevin Johnson Nick Lonigro Dana Brown Dennis Robinson Ron Kalup Ivan Hampton Habeeb Abdul Rabb 2019 Season Record 9-3 2020 Schedule DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME/SCORE 09-04 @ Woodland Hills (SCR) 7:00 pm 09-11 vs. Belle Vernon (0-0) * 7:00 pm 09-18 […]

2020 Team Preview: The Western Beaver Golden Beavers @coachmatsook @WesternBeaverFB @Daquanbradford1 @dakari307

August 15, 2020 | Billy Splain

Western Beaver Golden Beavers Head Coach Ryan Matsook Assistant Coaches Ron Busby, Jeff McCurley, Anthony Omogrosso, Ryan Nohe, Rick Nohe, Reon Hunter, Hank Ford, Chad Penn, Scott Florence 2019 Season Record 7-3 2020 Schedule DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME/SCORE 09-05 vs. Freedom Area (SCR) 12:30 pm 09-11 @ South Side (0-0) * 7:00 pm 09-19 @ Beaver (0-0) 7:30 pm 09-26 vs. Summit […]

2020 Player Profile: Brett Birch – Jeannette @BirchBrett @Jhawkathletics @CoachReitz

August 15, 2020 | Tristan Klinefelter

Brett Birch Year: 2022 Jeannette High School WR/DB/KR/PR Jersey # 7 Ht: 5’10 Wt: 175 Awards: All conference Twitter: @BirchBrett Why do you play football? Brett: I’ve always loved football since I started playing as a kid and watching Big Ben in his prime when I was young. What has been your best memory from […]

2020 Team Preview: The McGuffey Highlanders @McguffeyFB @WhipkeyM1 @RFalosk

August 14, 2020 | Billy Splain

McGuffey Highlanders Head Coach Ed Dalton Assistant Coaches * Keith Carlisle, Jeremy Fisher, Jared Johnson, Scott McCuen, Shawn Phillips, Nate Parry, Justin Wise, Ed Burg, Heath Shriver, Jon Leasure, Mike Fatigante 2019 Season Record 9-2 2020 Schedule DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME/SCORE 09-05 @ Brownsville (SCR) 7:00 pm 09-11 vs. Washington (0-0) * 7:00 pm 09-18 @ Charleroi (0-0) * 7:00 pm […]

2020 Player Profile: Alec Blazer Canon-McMillan @alecblazer43 @BigMacsFootball

August 13, 2020 | Billy Splain

Alec Blazer Canon-McMillan 2021 Middle Linebacker full back Jersey # 85 Ht 5’10 Wt 195 2019 stats 64 total tackles, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery, and 0.5 sack Other Sports: Lacrosse Team Defensive player of the year Why do you play football? My dad was big into football growing up and I wanted […]

2020 Player Profile: Aaron Gunn – Union @Aarongunn13 @UnionScotties

August 13, 2020 | Tristan Klinefelter

Aaron Gunn Year: 2021 Union Area High School Committed to Louisville OG/OT/C/DE Jersey # 77 Ht: 6’4 Wt: 300 Awards: First-team all-state. first-team all-conference, and Sports Illustrated All-American candidate. Other sports: Basketball and baseball Twitter: @Aarongunn13 Why do you play football? Aaron: I’ve been playing since I was a little kid I just fell in […]

2020 Team Preview: The Ligonier Valley Rams @LVRamsFootball

August 11, 2020 | Billy Splain

Ligonier Valley Rams Head Coach Roger Beitel Assistant Coaches Corey Turcheck, Brandon Rensko, Brett Marabito, Dave Shannon, Stephen Pardee, John Vida, Adam Foust, Denny Henderson, Dylan Jackman 2019 Season Record 12-1 2020 Schedule DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME/SCORE 09-04 vs. Elizabeth-Forward (SCR) 7:00 pm 09-11 @ Apollo-Ridge (0-0) * 7:00 pm 09-18 @ Frazier (0-0) 7:00 pm 10-02 vs. Steel Valley (0-0) * 7:00 […]

2020 Player Profile: C.j. Waldier – Yough @cjwaldier @YoughHSFootball

August 11, 2020 | Tristan Klinefelter

C.j. Waldier Year: 2021 Yough High School WR/OLB/SS/FS/CB/KR Jersey # 5 Ht: 6’1 Wt: 190 Awards: All-state wide receiver, all-conference wide receiver, defensive back and kick returner. Also, 3A receiving champion and Finest 30 wide receiver. 2019 stats: Offense: 70 catches for 929 yards and 5 touchdowns. Defense: 79 total tackles, 1 sack Other sports: […]

Wpial stands tall for fall sports while Philly Pub postpones till Jan 1, 2021: Central Bucks goes online, Milton Hershey postpones and more

August 10, 2020 | Billy Splain

Lately it’s been tough to keep up with whats going on with high school fall sports. Last week Governor Wolf dropped a bomb on the season by stating that no sports should be played until January 1, 2021. The next day the PIAA countered by delaying sports for two weeks to work with state legislators to […]

2020 Team Preview: The Bethel Park Black Hawks @BDeLallo @BP_BlackHawks

August 10, 2020 | Billy Splain

Bethel Park Black Hawks Head Coach Brian DeLallo Assistant Coaches Andy Assad – Defensive Coordinator / Inside Linebackers Mike Milliken – Defensive Line Joe Ranalli – Outside Linebackers Jeff Joyce – Defensive Backs Bernie Switala – Safeties & Special Teams Coordinator Keith Huebner – Offensive Line Phil Peckich – Quarterbacks Mike Donovan – Receivers Gino […]

Plum Linebacker Max Matolcsy will head to UPenn after his senior year. @MaxMatolcsy @PlumFootball

August 9, 2020 | Billy Splain

Twenty three schools offered Plum linebacker a chance to get an education and play football for them. Max Matolcsy had offers from all the Ivy’s, Harvard, Yale, Brown, Cornell, Fordham…but it was the Quaker program at UPenn that got him the most excited. Yesterday he announced he was ending his recruitment and heading east for […]

2020 Player Profile: Ameer Dudley – Central Valley @DudleyAmeer @cvqbclub @CoachLyonsCVfb

August 8, 2020 | Tristan Klinefelter

Ameer Dudley Year: 2021 Central Valley High School QB Jersey # 3 Ht: 6’2 Wt: 190 2019 Stats: 1,929 pass yards with 24 touchdowns with 547 yards rushing and 8 touchdowns Awards: All-State, Times County Player of the Year, #1 Dual Threat QB in Pa, #2 Overall QB in Pa Other sports: Basketball and track […]

2020 Player Preview: Nathan Witkowsky, McGuffey @NathanWitkowsky McGuffey @NathanWitkowsky @McguffeyFB

August 5, 2020 | contributor

Nathan Witkowsky McGuffey High School Kicker Class 2021 6’0” 175 lbs Twitter @NathanWitkowsky 1- How long have you been playing football? I’ve been playing football for 2 years. 2-What other sports do you play? I also play soccer, basketball, and tennis. 3- What life lessons has football taught you? Football has taught me self […]

2020 Team Preview: The Burrell Buccaneers @ShawnLiotta @BSDBucs @alex_arledge12

August 5, 2020 | Billy Splain

Burrell Buccaneers Head Coach Shawn Liotta Assistant Coaches Jeremy Liotta, Mark Kaczanowicz, Jeff Gates, Jim Gamble, John Reay, Eric Fusco 2019 Season Record 6-4 2020 Schedule DATE OPPONENT LOCATION TIME/SCORE 09-04 @ Indiana (0-0) 7:00 pm 09-11 @ Valley (0-0) * 7:00 pm 09-18 vs. East Allegheny (0-0) * 7:00 pm 09-25 @ Apollo-Ridge (0-0) 7:00 pm 10-02 @ North Catholic (0-0) * 7:00 pm […]

What went into North Allegheny linebacker Nathan Hoke”s decision to commit to Brigham Young @natehoke26 @nafootball_tfl

August 5, 2020 | Billy Splain

With offers from the like of Brigham Young, Central Michigan, Army, Fordham, Eastern Illinois and more, North Allegheny’s Nathan Hoke had a difficult decision to make, but having a brother play for one of those schools made that decision a little easier. Couple that with the fact that the Covid-19 situation prevented him from visiting […]

Baldwin’s Connor Lavelle makes his pledge to Lehigh @lavelle_2002 @bw_highlander

August 2, 2020 | Billy Splain

Baldwin Highlander DB Connor Lavelle made his choice. Lehigh is the place he wants to play his college ball. The speedy DB fits the mold, has the speed and talent to make an impact for the Hawks in a hurry. He made his announcement today on twitter: Committed❗️#2T1LLFLY pic.twitter.com/u1kBW6qQ5v — Connor Lavelle (@lavelle_2002) August […]

WPIAL goes with “PIAA Hybrid” schedules, playoff info updated

July 31, 2020 | Billy Splain

COMPLETE STATEMENT FROM WPIAL NOTICE TO ALL SCHOOLS REGARDING CHANGES TO FALL SPORTS July 31, 2020 In light of the current situation faced by school districts, the state and the nation due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the WPIAL encourages everyone to be flexible and understanding of the fluid situation and know that the decisions made […]

WPIAL likely to change start dates for fall sports

July 30, 2020 | Billy Splain

According to a report by Chris Harlan of the Trihssn network, the WPIAL board voted unanimously Thursday to trade the traditional start dates for a new “hybrid” option offered by the PIAA. The board hoped to give schools added flexibility as they transition back to classes under covid-19 conditions, WPIAL executive director Amy Scheuneman told […]

2020 Team Preview: The Neshannock Lancers @NeshannockF @Nesh_Sports @coachmo76