Tag: Hempfield

Big Game Hunting for Week Eight 2016

October 19, 2016

Week eight brings with it the answer to a question put forth here back in week one. How will I personally feel about the change to six classifications after seeing it for a season? The answer now, is the same as it was for me at first blush. I hate it, hate it with the fiery passion of 1000 suns, not to put too fine a point on it. It does nothing to accomplish any of the goals it portends to. It is going to exclude some very good teams, possibly great teams from the playoffs and include some very bad teams. Not to mention we are only in week eight and little is left that matters in terms of games of import in the largest classification. Nonetheless, we are nothing if not intrepid here at BGH, so let’s go Big Game Hunting!

Read More...

MSA Sports Friday Night HighLights for Week Six

October 8, 2016

The second half of the WPIAL football season began with a BANG...albeit a very wet bang. Or in the case of Class 3-A Allegheny Conference front running Keystone Oaks, the second half began with a POWE, as in newly eligible wide receiver Quran Powe. While he had a nice debut, it was his signal calling teammate who was one of the Week 6 standouts in a rainy edition of the HighLights. Let's begin to tip our drenched caps. Zane Dudek - Armstrong

Read More...

MSA Sports Friday Night HighLights for Week Two

September 10, 2016

It was wet...it was wild...and depending on what sideline you were on, it was a wonderful Friday night of high school football...and we are only in Week Two. A long winning streak stretching over parts of seven years came to a sudden halt...a long losing streak came within inches of ending...and depending on what part of Western Pennsylvania you were watching your favorite team, you either had to deal with a pregame sprinkle or a mid-game downpour. Oh yeah, there were these gems that provided the icing on a very delicious scholastic football cake. Phil Jurkovec - Pine-Richland

Read More...

Big Game Hunting for Week One 2016

August 31, 2016

Big Game Hunting gets bigger! Nothing wrong with that, right? 2016 and our weekly four-pack gets rounded out to an actual 6-pack. While I am not a fan yet of six classifications; I am willing to give it a try and I am a huge fan of six-packs. When someone shows up at your door and they have a six-pack, they are automatically your friend. Well in 2016 I will be showing up at your door with a six-pack every week, so that will make us friends. That’s a good thing and so is more football talk, and so is researching and writing about 150% of the games for the same amount of money right? Er…. Without further ado, let’s for the first time in 2016, go Big Game Hunting!

Read More...

MSA Sports Friday Night HighLights for Week Zero

August 27, 2016

I was never a math wizard, but I was always told that zero = nothing. Well these athletes have spit in the faces of mathematicians everywhere by proving that Zero actually can equate into a whole lot. Once again this season, MSA Sports looks back at some of the top performances from Friday nights around the WPIAL as we tip our first caps to those who proved that they did not need a second scrimmage to be ready for primetime. Jordan Castelli - Canon-McMillan

Read More...

CTK ’16: 6-A Southeastern Conference Preview

August 17, 2016

A conference in the WPIAL’s largest classification that is made up of southern suburban teams … and doesn’t include Upper St. Clair? That might seem strange, but that is how things shake down this year under the new six classification system that the PIAA put in place. The Class 6A Southeastern Conference has seven teams, including Mt. Lebanon and Bethel Park. But not Upper St. Clair. Under the new system, determined by school enrollments, Upper St. Clair will play Class 5A. The rivalry games between Upper St. Clair and Mt. Lebanon, and Upper St. Clair and Bethel Park, are no more. The new 6A Southeastern Conference has southern and eastern teams.

Read More...

2016 MSA SPORTS DIAMOND DOLLS

June 24, 2016

Pitchers can dominate the sport of softball. But this year’s Diamond Dolls all-star team is led by pitchers who also were big factors as hitters. The Diamond Dolls is made up of the top 10 players in the WPIAL, regardless of position, and is picked by the MSA Sports staff. Pitchers like Hempfield’s Morgan Ryan, Shaler’s Bri Dobson and West Greene’s Madison also had huge impacts as hitters and led their teams to highly successful seasons. All four WPIAL champions have a player on the Diamond Dolls team. Youth also is served on this team as it includes four sophomores. Here is a look at the Diamond Dolls team. PLAYER OF THE YEAR MORGAN RYAN, HEMPFIELD Pitcher - Senior

Read More...

PIAA Baseball and Softball Recaps for Semifinals on Monday

June 13, 2016

The final step toward a happy place, specifically Happy Valley, the site of the 2016 PIAA baseball and softball championship games. Round Three was held Monday with four baseball and four softball teams from the WPIAL halfway to a state championship. Plum and Vincentian Academy baseball and Hempfield, Yough and West Greene softball are now one win from a state crown, while Riverside and Serra Catholic baseball and South Park softball see their dreams and seasons come to an end on Monday. Here are recaps from the State Semifinals games, all of which were heard here on MSA Sports. A special thanks to Todd Brown, Mike Azadian, James Dotson, Lou Rood, Jason Tennant and Sean Meyers for their help on these recaps. BASEBALL:

Read More...

2016 PIAA SOFTBALL PLAYOFFS

Yough did not even qualify for the WPIAL championship game, but they did win the district consolation game to earn a sport in the PIAA playoffs that paid off handsomely on Thursday. The Cougars won the schools first ever state championship with a win over Lampeter-Strasburg to win the Class AAA title game. Meanwhile, West Greene did win the WPIAL Class A championship, but finished second in the state when Williams Valley scored a run in the bottom of the seventh to win the state crown. Here are ALL of the results from three of the State Softball Championships at Penn State University on Thursday, plus the schedule for the Quad-A title game on Friday in the 2016 PIAA Softball Playoffs.

Read More...

Scholastic Notebook – 06/12/2016

June 12, 2016

Remember back two years ago when Blackhawk pitcher Brendan McKay’s scoreless streak was one of the biggest stories ever in WPIAL high school baseball? Well, the scoreless streak of Mike Boswell isn’t close to McKay’s, but Boswell’s also belongs as one of the most impressive in WPIAL history. Boswell is a 6-foot, 190-pound senior at Riverside who has played a huge role in getting the Panthers to the PIAA Class AA semifinals tomorrow [Monday]. He has not given up a run in four postseason victories and his scoreless streak, going back to the regular season, now stands at 41 innings. McKay’s streak was 72 1/3 innings, which tied for the second-longest in U.S. high school baseball history.

Read More...