Westmoreland County high school notebook: Football practice about to heat up

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Saturday, August 5, 2023 | 9:01 AM

Starting Monday, high school football teams will take part in “heat week,” the customary lead-up to training camp.

Yes, football is here again.

The required five-day period of heat acclimatization was instituted in 2013 by the PIAA. The idea is for players, who are not permitted to have full contact until the following week, to get accustomed to hot and humid weather conditions they likely will deal with in camp.

They are permitted to wear helmets and shoulder pads. Players must have five consecutive days of heat preparation before contact drills begin.

“It’s one week closer to real football,” Hempfield first-year coach Nick Keefer said. “I like (heat week). It gets the kids used to having shoulder pads on. Obviously, a week of full gear would be nice. But a lot of times in the season we are not going live anyway, so it’s nice transition from the summer conditioning to full contact the next week.”

Heat week also gives teams a chance to get into a camp-like routine with their schedules and drills. Teams often use stations during heat week, rotating through drills before mandatory water breaks.

Camp will last two weeks. Teams can then scrimmage Aug. 19, and the season-opening Week Zero games — or second scrimmages — are set for Aug. 25.

Berger offered

Norwin has one of the top rising junior guards in WPIAL Class 6A basketball.

Colleges are beginning to take notice of shooting guard Kendall Berger.

One is Fairmont State (W.Va.), a Division II program in the Mountain East Conference, which offered Berger a scholarship.

The 5-foot-9 Berger emerged as a go-to scorer for the Lady Knights last winter. She averaged 13.2 points and grabbed 4.7 rebounds for Norwin, which finished 24-5 after reaching the WPIAL and PIAA semifinals in the state’s largest classification.

Four starters are primed to return in Berger, senior forward Lauren Palangio, senior point guard Bailey Snowberger and senior off-guard Ava Kobus.

For a good cause

The Monessen girls basketball team put together a powderpuff football fundraiser with senior athletes at the school to help two families deal with tough times.

Seniors played the game and raised $7,200 to benefit Mason Madzey, a student in the district who has brain cancer, and the family of late student-athlete Amari Altomore, who was killed in a shooting last November.

A memorial bench also will be purchased to remember Altomore.

Championship calendar

The WPIAL’s championship sites are set for the 2023 fall season. They are as follows:

Football — Nov. 18 (Class 5A, 6A) at Norwin; Nov. 24 at Acrisure Stadium (Class A-4A).

Cross country — Oct. 26 at White Oak Park, McKeesport.

Boys golf — Oct. 3: 2A at Butler Country Club, 3A at Valley Brook Country Club, McMurray; Team finals, Oct. 12 at Cedarbrook Golf Course, Rostraver.

Girls golf — Oct. 5, Diamond Run Golf Club, Sewickley; Team finals, Oct. 12 at Cedarbrook Golf Course, Rostraver.

Soccer — Nov. 1-4 at Highmark Stadium.

Girls tennis — Sept. 20-21; Singles at North Allegheny; Oct. 4-5: Doubles at North Allegheny; Team finals, Oct. 18 at Washington & Jefferson.

Girls volleyball — Nov. 4 at Peters Township.

Recruiting

Nick Dlugos, a senior football player at Greensburg Central Catholic, has an opportunity to play at Kenyon College, a Division III program in Gambier, Ohio.

Dlugos is a defensive standout for the Centurions who is expected to play a hybrid linebacker/defensive end spot this season.

Last year, Dlugos (6-foot, 190 pounds) played defensive end, outside linebacker, strong safety, wide receiver and H-back.

• Belle Vernon senior lineman Luke Bryer, a guard and defensive end, has an offer to play at Juniata.

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

Tags: Greensburg C.C., Hempfield, Monessen, Norwin