Football
WPIAL Big Game Hunting – State Championships
December 16, 2015
The final Big Game Hunting of the year is here, and I hear those sarcastic “ahhhs” throughout western Pennsylvania! I have names and numbers and email addresses, each of you will be hearing from me personally. District-7 after going .500 in the PIAA quarters improved that number to 1.000 in the semis moving two teams into the final weekend of high school football in the state. The Quips and Vikings look for state championships number 39 and 40 for the WPIAL in football this weekend. That sounds like a great reason to go Big Game Hunting one more time in 2015.This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 12/13/2015
December 13, 2015
The end of another season and the end of the four classification era in Pennsylvania also marks the final cruise on the 2015 Road to Hershey this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have the final two scholastic football games of the year on Saturday as the two remaining 2015 WPIAL champions in Aliquippa in AA and Pittsburgh Central Catholic in AAAA play for a PIAA state football championship on Saturday.Scholastic Notebook – 12/11/2015
December 11, 2015
There is a Wildcat strike in WPIAL boys basketball this season. Big things are expected of the Latrobe Wildcats and coach Brad Wetzel’s crew has been impressive in the first week of the season. Latrobe is 3-0, including Tuesday’s victory against Pine-Richland, which was the No. 2-ranked Class AAAA team in the MSA Sports preseason Class AAAA rankings. This could be one of Latrobe’s best teams in a while, at least the best since the 2009 team that went 19-4. Latrobe is the odds-on favorite to win Section 1. If Latrobe wins the section, it would be only their fourth crown in the past 30 years. The others were in 1987, 1990 and 2009.WPIAL Big Game Hunting – State Semifinals
December 10, 2015
The quarterfinals sliced the number of District-7 teams in half and, shocked the entire community of high school football in the state of Pennsylvania. Erie Cathedral Prep over Thomas Jefferson was tough, but we had a feeling something like that could happen, District – 7 has typically, especially lately had difficulty in that quarters round. The jaw-dropper was Berlin Brothersvalley knocking off our Clairton Bears. No one saw that coming, I don’t think even Berlin Brothersvalley fans thought that would happen. Five turnovers are tough to overcome, even for the best. So we move to the PIAA semis with AAAA and AA games involving WPIAL teams.
WPIAL Alum Q&A – Luigi Lista-Brinza
December 7, 2015
Nine days ago, the Central Catholic Vikings captured their fifth WPIAL football championship, defeating Penn-Trafford at Heinz Field in the Class Quad-A Championship. Prior to that, the last time Central Catholic captured gold was 2013, when running back Luigi Lista-Brinza paced the offense. That season, Lista-Brinza totaled more than 1,600 yards on the ground. As a result, he was named to the first team All-Conference, and second-team All-State.This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 12/06/2015
December 6, 2015
We continue our ride on the Road to Hershey on a bust first full week of December this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We follow the two remaining 2015 WPIAL champions in Aliquippa on Friday and Pittsburgh Central Catholic on Saturday as they play in the PIAA Semifinals state football playoffs. We also continue our early season coverage of WPIAL and District 6 boys and girls high school basketball, WPIAL and District 6 scholastic wrestling, audio and video coverage of PIHL high school hockey and men's and women's college basketball featuring Carlow University, plus the PIHL Power Play Show and the first edition of Inside the WPIAL Wrestling Circle ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, December 7th:PIAA Football Quarterfinals Recaps 2015
December 5, 2015
Last year, the WPIAL sent all four of its champions to Hershey to play in the PIAA football finals. In both 2012 and 2013, three of the four District 7 teams made it to Hersheypark Stadium. This year after the Quarterfinals, only two teams are left standing as another WPIAL Triple-A champ is ousted by Erie Cathedral Prep while Clairton is stunned by a team they beat last year by 28 points. Here are recaps from all four PIAA Quarterfinals state football playoff games involving the four WPIAL champions. A special thanks to Sean Meyers, Bob Gregg, Bob Barrickman and Paul Paterra for their help on these recaps.Scholastic Notebook – 12/04/2015
December 4, 2015
Bill Cherpak’s coaching resume is as impressive as it gets. It took him less than 20 years to win 200 games at Thomas Jefferson High School. He has five WPIAL championships on his list of accomplishments. But this season may have very well been Cherpak’s best coaching job. This was not one of Cherpak’s best teams in terms of talent. Just about anyone will tell you that. Even Cherpak will admit it. But when they handed out the WPIAL Class AAA gold championship trophy last week at Heinz Field, it went to the black and gold of Thomas Jefferson. Thomas Jefferson beat Central Valley for the title. Who would’ve thunk that after the first two games of the season, the Jaguars would be calling themselves champions.WPIAL Big Game Hunting – State Quarterfinals
December 2, 2015
For the final time ever it will be just four WPIAL teams carrying the District-7 flag into the PIAA tournament. A tough job for WPIAL coaches this quarter-final round of the state playoffs,(the WPIAL Championship games are the first round of the state playoffs), the tough job of re-igniting your team emotionally after playing for a gold football at Heinz Field. It is no secret that the District-7 title games are a much bigger deal than a lot of other districts around the state. Not just in football but truly in every sport, avoiding a WPIAL championship hangover is a tall task moving into the PIAA tournament. Lucky for us we have four of the best coaches in the business going to the quarter-finals.2015 WPIAL FOOTBALL PLAYOFFS Results
November 29, 2015
Three of this years champs are partying like its 2008. Seven years ago, Clairton, Aliquippa and Thomas Jefferson also won WPIAL titles while it was Bethel Park and not Pittsburgh Central Catholic wining Quad-A gold. We discovered two things on what it took to win this year. First, be ranked #1 in the MSA Sports Preseason Top Ten like Central Catholic, Thomas Jefferson and Clairton were all top ranked by The Network with Aliquippa #2 behind South Fayette. The second thing would be to reach Heinz Field and run the ball while shutting down the other teams ground attack.This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 11/29/2015
We make the move from The Highway to Heinz to the Road to Hershey while also making the move from fall sports to winter sports as November turns into December this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We follow all four of the 2015 WPIAL champions as they play PIAA Quarterfinals state football playoff games. We also tip off the WPIAL boys and girls high school basketball and scholastic wrestling seasons along with several PIHL high school hockey games and men's and women's college basketball featuring Carlow University, plus the final edition of This Week in the WPIAL and the first edition of The PIHL Power Play Show ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, November 30th:
Thomas Jefferson Shuts Down Central Valley to Win AAA Gold
After Thomas Jefferson dropped its first two contests of the 2015 season, some began to question if the Jaguars had lost their distinction as a powerhouse team. Those questions have been definitively answered, as the Jaguars won 11 straight games from that point, culminating with the WPIAL Class AAA Championship, defeating top-seeded Central Valley 20-7 at Heinz Field. With the triumph, the No. 6 Jaguars captured their sixth championship, and first since 2008, when Thomas Jefferson notched the final of three-consecutive titles.
Aliquippa Wins 16th Crown in Ending South Fayette’s 2-Year Reign
November 28, 2015
Aliquippa has found it tough to dispatch South Fayette in WPIAL Class AA championship games at Heinz Field. After falling to the Lions in the title contest two straight years, the Quips finally emerged victorious this year. But it wasn’t easy. In an incredible game that featured numerous ebbs and flows of emotion and momentum, Aliquippa (13-0) topped South Fayette (12-1) in pulsating fashion by a score of 44-38. In the process, the Quips snapped South Fayette’s 44-game winning streak and captured the school’s 16th WPIAL championship.
Central Catholic Wins 2nd Title In 3 Years With Win Over Penn-Trafford
Using an explosive running back and a defense to make big plays, The Pittsburgh Central Catholic Vikings claimed their fifth WPIAL championship with a 24-17 victory over the previously unbeaten Penn-Trafford Warriors in the WPIAL Quad-A Championship game at Heinz Field. The Vikings ground out 262 yards, with senior Ronnie Jones gaining 146 of those yards on the way to their tenth straight win. The defense came up big as well, holding the Warriors, who had scored 559 points in their twelve wins, to just 232 offensive yards and 29 points below their season average.
Clairton Caps Decade of Dominance With Rout of Jeannette
Defending champion Clairton wasted no time getting things started in this year’s WPIAL Class A Championship. Senior running back Harrison Dreher took the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown. Lamont Wade added a two point conversion to put the Bears up 8-0 just 16 seconds into the game. Jeannette took over at the 36-yard line. Struggling to find an offensive rhythm, Jeannette went three and out on its first possession.Scholastic Notebook – 11/26/2015
November 26, 2015
The weather has been pretty good the past few days. That means it’s a perfect time to pick a fresh batch of “factoids” from the “factoid tree.” They always go well with the WPIAL football championships, which are Saturday at Heinz Field. **** Just about all of the coaches in the title games have had that championship feeling before. Penn-Trafford’s John Ruane and Jeannette’s Roy Hall are the only coaches who haven’t won a title. Between the other seven, there are 17 championships. Aliquippa’s Mike Zmijanac has won five, Thomas Jefferson’s Bill Cherpak four, South Fayette’s Joe Rossi three, Central Valley’s Mark Lyons two, Pittsburgh Central Catholic’s Terry Totten two and Clairton’s Wayne Wade one.Chicks Picks – Championship Saturday – 11/26/2015
Welcome to Championship Week of the high school football season. Chick’s Picks never understood why the song, “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” was a Christmas carol, when the title clearly explains WPIAL football Championship Week. First, Thanksgiving. Then, Championship Saturday. What time of year could possibly be more wonderful than that? In the midst of this most wonderful time of the year, Chick’s Picks took a moment to reflect on all that she is thankful for this year. First and foremost, she is thankful for her loved ones that will place the fate of their Thanksgiving dinners in her hands on Thursday.WPIAL Big Game Hunting – Championship Saturday
A little light reading for your post-turkey dinner relaxation in this week’s Big Game Hunting. This is a pretty epic Championship Saturday. The eight contestants have combined for some astronomic numbers over the years. All-time, this group of teams has combined to win 50 WPIAL football championships. More recently the numbers get even more impressive. Since 2003 there have been 48 WPIAL football championships won, these teams have combined to win 26 of them, that’s 56% of the championships in the last twelve years going to these teams! They know all about Big Game Hunting. Weather, the surface, the bright lights, and injuries all will play a part Saturday.PIAA Alignment Numbers for 2016 & 2017 – Fall Sports
November 24, 2015
The new alignment list has been released by the PIAA for the 2016 and 2017 fall sports seasons. With the expanded classifications, there are still a lot of questions to be answered by WPIAL school officials and the schools themselves before anything in finalized and conferences are set. School must make a decision by mid-December if they want to remain in their designated classification OR decide to move up in class. A school is not permitted to move down.This Week on the MSA Sports Network – 11/22/2015
November 22, 2015
The Highway to Heinz is only open for one more week and only eight special teams are allowed to cruise to their final destination on the North Shore of Pittsburgh for a football feast that they are very thankful for this week here on the MSA Sports Network. We have wall-to-wall coverage of ALL Four WPIAL Championship Games at Heinz Field all day Saturday along with a PIAA First Round Class AAA state football playoff game. We also have ice action with PIHL high school hockey along with men's and women's college basketball featuring Carlow University, plus a Championship Saturday preview during This Week in the WPIAL ALL here at MSAsports.net Monday, November 23rd: No Broadcasts
