WPIAL spirit championships on tap in Saturday’s 3 things to watch in high school sports

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, January 4, 2019 | 11:36 PM

We’ve got spirit, yes we do. We got spirit, how ‘bout you?

OK, so the cheers on Saturday won’t be as simple as that standard classic in the first high school sports championships of 2019.

For the seventh straight year, the WPIAL will host the competitive spirit championships Saturday to determine the top teams in the district.

There are three classifications based on female enrollment at the school.

Squads must have at least five members and no more than 30.

Last year’s three winners were Bethel Park (AAA), Elizabeth Forward (AA) and Chartiers-Houston (A).

Watch the finals from Hempfield High School starting at 10 a.m. only on the TribLive High School Sports Network.

County grappling

Three county wrestling events that began on Friday will conclude Saturday with semifinals, consolation finals and championship finals.

The Westmoreland County Coaches Association tournament takes place at Norwin, with 16 schools: Belle Vernon, Burrell, Derry, Franklin Regional, Frazier, Greensburg Salem, Hempfield, Kiski Area, Kiski School, Latrobe, Mt. Pleasant, Norwin, Penn-Trafford, Southmoreland, Valley and Yough.

The Midwestern Athletic Conference Tournament is at Freedom, also with 16 teams: Ambridge, Beaver, Blackhawk, Carlynton, Central Valley, Ellwood City, Freedom, Hopewell, Laurel, Mars, Montour, Moon, New Castle, Quaker Valley, South Side and West Allegheny.

The Tri-County Coaches and Athletic Directors Association tournament is at Trinity with 17 schools: Albert Gallatin, Bentworth, Beth-Center, Burgettstown, Canon-McMillan, Chartiers-Houston, Fort Cherry, Jefferson-Morgan, Mapletown, McGuffey, Peters Township, Ringgold, South Fayette, Trinity, Washington, Waynesburg and West Greene.

The TRICADA Saturday matches can be heard starting at 9 a.m. on TribHSSN.TribLive.com.

Classics and Jamfests

Besides nonsection high school basketball on Saturday, there are three events involving 17 boys and 11 girls district teams.

The annual Chuckie Mahoney Classic will be held at two gyms at Burgettstown with four boys’ and four girls’ games on the schedule.

The boys’ slate includes OLSH vs. Washington, McGuffey vs. South Side, Cornell vs. Chartiers-Houston and Weir (W.Va.) vs. Burgettstown.

The girls’ schedule is OLSH vs. Washington, McGuffey vs. South Side, Weir (W.Va.) vs. Burgettstown and Avella vs. Chartiers-Houston.

Jamfest at Penn Hills has four boys’ and one girls’ game.

The boys’ schedule is Serra Catholic vs. Highlands, Central Catholic vs. McKeesport, Jeannette vs. Penn Hills and McDowell vs. Mt. Lebanon. The girls’ game is Ambridge at Penn Hills.

There are two games making up this year’s Don Graham Classic at North Catholic as the Trojans boys’ team hosts OLSH while the NC girls’ team welcomes Keystone Oaks.

Don Rebel is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Don at drebel@tribweb.com or via Twitter @TheDonRebel.

Tags: Bethel Park, Burgettstown, Chartiers-Houston, Elizabeth Forward, Freedom, Norwin, Penn Hills, Trinity