Tag: Blackhawk

Hometown Softball Recap – Blackhawk Cougars – 04/26/2017

April 26, 2017

The Blackhawk Cougars were rolling to a five game winning streak after a 3-1 win over Ambridge on Monday. But with most teams, there are as many lows as highs in a season and the Cougars suffered their second straight loss and more importantly a key tiebreaker with the 8-6 victory by the visiting New Castle Red Hurricanes on Wednesday. The Cougars rallied from a four run deficit in the seventh to knot the game at 6, but could not stop the Canes from plating two in the 8th. New Castle is now 3-6 overall and 3-4 in section.

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Scholastic Notebook – 04/21/2017

April 21, 2017

Blackhawk baseball coach Bob Amalia has had talented pitchers before. Only a few years ago he had Brendan McKay, who came close to breaking a national scoreless streak record. But now Amalia is blessed with a stable full of pitchers who are putting up remarkable statistics for an undefeated team. “So far, so good. We’re trying to just go one game at a time,” said Amalia. “But as a staff, this is the best I’ve had.” Blackhawk has a 12-0 record and the Cougars’ statistics make eyes pop: * Blackhawk has allowed only eight runs in 12 games, including six earned runs. * The Cougars have seven shutouts and allowed only one run in four other games. Four of the runs allowed came in one game against New Castle.

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Scholastic Notebook – 02/03/2017

February 3, 2017

The spirit of 66 ended for one WPIAL girls team. But one boys team is close to getting into the same spirit. The subject is section winning streaks. The Quigley Catholic girls had what was the longest section winning streak in the WPIAL at 66, but it ended Thursday night after a 56-48 loss to Cornell. Turn to WPIAL boys basketball and look at Lincoln Park. The Leopards have a 64-game section winning streak. Lincoln Park has two section games remaining, and if the Leopards win both, they will finish the regular season with a 66-game streak. Lincoln Park plays Riverside and Ellwood City in its final two section games.

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Chicks Picks for Week Nine

October 27, 2016

Welcome to Week 9 of the high school football season. As regular season play wraps up, Chick’s Picks knew that she needed to check in on The Boss at MSA Sports World Headquarters.  For quite some time, Chick’s Picks had been aware of the overtime put in by The Boss this time of year.  However, what she witnessed when she walked into World Headquarters was still a shock. There he was, The Boss, pecking away at his keyboard relentlessly with his two index fingers.  Moments later, when The Boss finally realized that he had a visitor, Chick’s Picks noticed his tired, bloodshot eyes, unkempt hair, and disorder throughout his office.

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Big Game Hunting for Week Nine 2016

The final week of the regular season arrives and things are still a bit murky around the WPIAL, but as always the “Boss” has made it clear and precise, if you have questions about your team and their post season needs or desires, it is laid out here, http://www.msasports.net/articles/2016-wpial-football-playoff-picture. That amount of work can only be a labor of love, and when the boss is doing a labor of love, the worker-bees will almost always do the same. Like the famous line in Remember the Titans, “Attitude reflects leadership”. So, this opening paragraph is dedicated to my colleagues, each of them I know, doing this job because they love it.

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Scholastic Notebook – 10/21/2016

October 21, 2016

For the first time in WPIAL history, there could be a Lady in the football playoffs. No, it’s not a female player or coach. It’s the Our Lady of the Sacred Heart team. The Chargers started playing WPIAL football in 2010 and failed to make the postseason in the first six years of the program. OLSH could turn out to be one of the big turnaround stories in the WPIAL this season. The Chargers did not win a game last year, going 0-9. Now they are 5-2 overall and 4-2 in the Big Seven Conference. They are almost assured of a playoff berth, with games remaining against Sto-Rox and Shenango. Rochester leads the conference at 6-0, Northgate is 5-1 and OLSH and Sto-Rox are tied at 4-2. Shenango is fifth at 3-3.

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CTK ’16: 4-A Northwest Nine Conference Preview

August 21, 2016

With the coming of six classifications, some conferences were merged into others. Gone is the Parkway Conference, one of the toughest in the nation. Also gone is the Greater Allegheny, known for some REALLY long bus trips over a 5 county area. Now we have the Northwest Nine, a combination of the two above mentioned with a little Century Conference thrown in. Let’s preview the new conference, which is sure to be exciting for fans over the next 2 years. AMBRIDGE BRIDGERS The Bridgers finished 5-5 last season and made the playoffs for the first time since 2005 out of the Parkway Conference. Ambridge won their last 3 conference games to make the Highway to Heinz. That was the good news.

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Chartiers Valley Gallops Past Blackhawk for First Baseball Title

May 31, 2016

The Chartiers Valley Colts (16-7) won their first baseball championship in school history with a come-from-behind 4-3 win over the Blackhawk Cougars (18-5) In the WPIAL AAA Championship at Consol Energy Park in Washington, PA. Cole Horew was the star on the mound for the Colts, pitching all seven innings with seven strikeouts and seven scattered hits, walking none. Chartiers Valley would threaten in the bottom of the first inning. With one out, Dante Panucci doubled deep to left field. Horew then reached on an error, putting runners at second and third base. A walk to Joe Sibeto loaded the bases. But Blackhawk's Mark Engel induced Tristen Zimmer into an inning ending double play.

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2016 WPIAL Baseball Championship Previews

May 30, 2016

For 75 percent of the teams in the WPIAL baseball championships, foes are familiar. Three of the four championships match teams that have already played once this season. Greensburg Central Catholic vs. Serra, and Neshannock vs. Riverside are title games between teams from the same section. Plum played Norwin in a non-section game. The Class AAA championship – Blackhawk vs. Chartiers Valley – is the only game where teams have not played before. All of the championship games will be played Tuesday and Wednesday at Consol Energy Park, home of the Washington Wild Things and heard here on the MSA Sports Network. Here is a breakdown of the four championships: WPIAL CLASS AAAA:

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WPIAL Alum Q&A – Brendan McKay

During the 2014 WPIAL baseball season, watching Brendan McKay was a must-see event. McKay, of Blackhawk High School, produced one of the best pitching streaks in high-school baseball history for the Cougars. Now at Louisville, the lefty hurler has continued his excellence on the mound, as well as at the plate, for the Cardinals. McKay is the focus of the final WPIAL Alum Q&A of the 2015-16 sports season.

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