Norwin notebook: Bilinsky to be selected for Roundball Classic

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Saturday, March 6, 2021 | 10:01 AM

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The Roundball Classic is returning in full force this spring.

Organizer Allen Deep said the all-star basketball event will be played May 13-15 at Geneva.

Rosters are far from finished, but Deep knows one player he will invite to the event. He said Norwin senior guard Ty Bilinsky will be selected, even though the senior guard missed most of this season after having a stroke and being diagnosed with a blood disorder.

“He deserves to be there,” Deep said. “I have already reached out to (Norwin coach) Buddy (Valinsky) about it. We’d love to have Ty. In the past, we have had kids with injuries or whatever make the roster. We let them be a part of the games in some way.”

A seven-game schedule, featuring more than 200 players, was wiped out last April.

“We couldn’t shelve it this year,” Deep said. “We were going to find a way to get it done all along. Once the WPIAL decided to play and finish the season and go on with playoffs, that decided it for us.”

Games will be played over three days instead of two and more matchups could be added, Deep said, as details are ironed out over the coming months. Teams will practice at staggered times over two days.

There will not be a banquet.

“Some kids might play two games. We’ll see,” Deep said.

Seniors from five districts will be selected: the WPIAL, City League and Districts 6, 9 and 10.

As far as attendance, Deep said the state’s capacity limitation likely will be in effect, unless something changes.

“(The event) was going to happen whether we had a crowd or not,” Deep said. “The majority of our crowds are family and friends as it is, so that will be mostly the same. Geneva holds 3,000, so we’re looking at 300 people.”

Deep hopes to get invitations to players by the middle of April.

Altieri second

Norwin senior wrestler John Altieri finished as the runner-up at 145 pounds at the WPIAL Class AAA individual championships.

Altieri, a Clarion commit, lost to Waynesburg senior Wyatt Henson in the title match, 8-3.

Norwin junior Chase Kranitz, meanwhile, also lost in the finals, to Pine-Richland’s Cole Spencer. Kranitz fell 3-1 as Spencer used a third-period takedown to win the title at 160.

Henson and Spencer are two-time WPIAL champs.

Recruiting

Norwin senior football player Hayden O’Bryon will continue his playing career at Washington & Jefferson, a Division III program that competes in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference.

O’Bryon played running back, safety and linebacker for the Knights.

College scene

Norwin grad Jayla Wehner and her Marian (Ind.) teammates advanced to the Crossroads League title game.

Marian, a NAIA program, managed to play 30 games and took a 26-4 mark into the conference final.

The Knights were on 20-game winning streak.

Wehner, a freshman point guard, had played in 28 games, averaging 4.2 points and 2.7 assists in 16.6 minutes.

• Bucknell freshman Kurt Phipps, a Norwin graduate, finished seventh at the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association championship at 141 pounds.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

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