Trib HSSN June Madness quarterfinals: Neil Walker, Pine-Richland vs. Luke Hagy, Mt. Lebanon

By: Don Rebel
Friday, June 12, 2020 | 9:00 AM

Over the course of the next few weeks, June Madness will determine who fans believe is the WPIAL Athlete of the Century.

HSSN has put together two 32-player brackets, one for the boys and one for the girls, of WPIAL alumni. Outside of a few exceptions, the field is made up of former district players who excelled in more than one sport.

Each weekday, June Madness will have one matchup each day with a little background info on each athlete found in a daily tale of the tape.

Starting at 9 a.m. Friday and running through 9 a.m. Saturday, vote on the HSSN twitter page on the two athletes featured in this quarterfinals matchup.

Check the HSSN website Saturday at noon for the matchup’s final results.

Here is the contest for the boys (Round 3, Day 7):

Neil Walker vs. Luke Hagy is a north against south battle of old Class AAAA athletes who starred in football in the fall, basketball in the winter and baseball in the spring.

Neil Walker – Pine-Richland Class of 2004

(Baseball, football, basketball)

• Defeated T.J. McConnell of Chartiers Valley in the second round, 67-33%

• Defeated Josh Lay of Aliquippa in the first round, 76-24%

• 2004 Pittsburgh Tribune-Review male co-athlete of the year

• 2004 Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Terrific 24 football and Diamond Dozen all-star

• In four years as a starter on the Rams baseball team, the switch-hitting catcher hit .504 with 32 home runs and 102 RBIs

• In his senior season, Walker batted .657 with 13 home runs, 42 RBIs and a slugging percentage of 1.403 in leading the Rams to a WPIAL championship

• Walker was a standout wide receiver in football, helping Pine-Richland win the 2003 WPIAL Class AAA championship. The Rams reached the state finals but lost in a snowstorm, 39-38, in an epic PIAA title game

• While he did not play his senior year, Walker was an all-section basketball player in 2003

• His No. 24 baseball jersey was retired by Pine-Richland in 2010

• Inducted into the WPIAL Hall of Fame in 2012

• Played major league baseball for Pittsburgh, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Milwaukee, Miami and Philadelphia

Luke Hagy – Mt. Lebanon Class of 2012

(Football, basketball, baseball)

• Defeated Sean Lee of Upper St. Clair in the second round, 55-45%

• Defeated Ryan Mundy of Woodland Hills in the first round, 63-37%

• Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Terrific 25 football all-star in 2011 and Terrific 10 basketball all-star in 2012

• Four-year starter in basketball and a three-year starter in both football and baseball. He was also the captain of those three teams a combined seven times, three years in basketball and two each in football and baseball

• As a senior, Hagy was named the Army Iron Man of the Year for Pennsylvania has the state’s best two-way football player

• Became the school’s all-time leading rusher by gaining 4,795 yards and scoring 72 career touchdowns. His rush total at the time was the third highest in WPIAL Class AAAA history

• As a senior, Hagy rushed for 1,907 yards, had 2,125 all-purpose yards, scored 25 touchdowns and on defense, he registered 81 tackles, broke up 11 passes and had three interceptions as Mt. Lebanon finished 7-4 after a loss to Central Catholic in the district quarterfinals

• In his junior season, Hagy rushed for 1,981 and scored 29 touchdowns for a Mt. Lebanon team that was 10-0 before losing to Woodland Hills, 29-22, in the WPIAL quarterfinals

• In basketball, Hagy set the school record in assists with 486 and steals with 380 and helped Mt. Lebanon reach the PIAA Class AAAA championship game his junior season where the Blue Devils lost to Chester

• In baseball, Hagy was a two-time all-section player who hit .451 as a junior and batted .370 as a senior in helping Mt. Lebanon reach the WPIAL AAAA championship game where it lost to Seneca Valley, 5-3

• Played his college football as a running back at Cornell

Neil Walker – @NeilWalker18
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Luke Hagy

— TribLive HSSN (@TribLiveHSSN) June 12, 2020

Tags: Mt. lebanon, Pine-Richland