Westmoreland high school notebook: Hempfield softball to be honored by YWCA

By: HSSN Staff
Wednesday, April 4, 2018 | 5:42 PM

Hempfield’s softball team was a picture of perfection last spring when it finished undefeated for the first time in the program’s 37-year history. It brought home a third straight WPIAL championship and a second PIAA title in a row.

The YWCA of Westmoreland County will formally acknowledge the Spartans’ impressive run on Tuesday night.

The YWCA will honor a number of local female athletes, teams and contributors during its annual banquet at 6 p.m. at the Greensburg Ramada Inn and Conference Center.

Hempfield won the Teen Sports Team of the Year award.

Yough softball won the award last year and Hempfield was honored with a “Committee’s Choice” Award.

Several former Hempfield players won’t be able to attend the ceremony because they are playing college softball, proof of the team’s wealth of talent that included Gatorade Pennsylvania, Tribune-Review and state player of year Morgan Ryan, now at Notre Dame.

Derry will have two honorees in the High School Sports Teen of the Year category: softball star Chelsea Bisi, a senior this year, will be honored as High School Sports Teen of the Year. Bisi, a shortstop and Penn State recruit, batted a head-turning .706 last season and earned all-state honors. She had 20 extra-base hits and drove in 27 runs.

Renee Rectenwald, meantime, was a four-year letterwinner in volleyball and helped the Trojans reach the WPIAL playoffs for the 18th straight season. A Geneva commit, Rectenwald is a standout outside hitter.

In addition, the YWCA Coach of the Year will go to Penn-Trafford field hockey coach Cindy Dutt, who guided the Warriors to back-to-back WPIAL titles. She runs the YWCA girls community field hockey program.

Tickets to the banquet are $20 for students and $32 for adults. They can be purchased by phone at 724-834-9390, or at the YWCA, 424 North Main Street, Greensburg.

Thrift visiting Indiana

Norwin junior football player Jayvon Thrift was invited to Indiana University on Thursday to watch practice and tour the athletic facilities.

Thrift, a 5-foot-11, 195-pound standout safety, has scholarship offers that include Pitt, West Virginia, Syracuse, Toledo, Temple, Buffalo and Army.

He also has interest from Penn State, Michigan State, Maryland, Kentucky, Rutgers and others.

He most likely will commit before Norwin’s training camp in August, and plans to enroll early.

Volleyball ranks

Penn-Trafford is No. 3 in the Western Pennsylvania Boys Volleyball Coaches Association Week 3 poll. Other Westmoreland teams ranked in Class AAA include Hempfield (6), Latrobe (7) and Norwin (9).

In Class AA, Derry is No. 3.

Penn-Trafford senior outside hitter Nick Tarabrella was named WPBVCA Class AAA co-player of the week, sharing the honors with Seneca Valley middle hitter Kyle Martini.

Stone shines

Former Southmoreland basketball standout Brandon Stone earned MVP honors for the Pennsylvania team at the inaugural ITPS #CancerSucks Classic last Saturday at Chatham. Stone, a 6-foot-11 junior at Christ School (N.C.), scored 41 points and grabbed 25 rebounds in a 111-97 loss to a team of West Virginia players.

Stone has 14 Division I scholarship offers and has his top three down to South Carolina, Penn State and Duquesne but said he might attend one of the academies — IMG or SPIRE — for a year before college.

Stone was a late invitee to the Roundball Classic April 20-21 at Geneva but declined because he has an AAU tournament.

Brandon Stone @b_stone23 c/o 2019@ITPS_classic
3-31-2018https://t.co/Vw9VckXlmA pic.twitter.com/F3j72AHAZn

— Zachary Simmons (@ZacharySimmons_) April 4, 2018

McGowan in all-star game

Greensburg Salem senior Marvel McGowan was selected to play in the 43rd annual Pennsylvania vs. Maryland All-Star Weekend on Friday and Saturday at Harrisburg Christian Athletic Center.

Ten WPIAL players were selected, including Burrell’s Donovan Russell.

There will be nine games played over the two days, including six on Saturday.

McGowan will play in the 6 p.m. Saturday game that pits the East Coast North against the West Coast North.

There also are two girls games but neither has any players from Westmoreland County.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at bbeckner@tribweb.comor via Twitter @BillBeckner.

Tags: Greensburg Salem, Hempfield Area, Penn-Trafford, Southmoreland