High School Playbook

By Josh Taylor, School Coordinator

The campus at Our Lady of Sacred Heart High School is one that can be considered "in progress." They're in the middle of a massive renovation of their gymnasium and other facilities, but more what's more alluring is the show that usually goes on inside the gym; particularly on the hardwood.

That's where the Chargers boys' basketball team and their fans witness Jim Orie and the way he makes progress, and his comes in heavy volumes. The 6-foot-3 senior guard is among the best players in the area, and a capable achiever in the classroom, making him this week's Clearview Federal Credit Union Student-Athlete of the Week.

Channel 4 Action Sports' John Meyer and our High School Playbook team spent the afternoon out in Coraopolis, where we presented Jim with his award in front of his classmates in the school auditorium. Also present were his teammates, his parents, the Charger Cheerleaders, and our sponsor, Clearview Federal Credit Union, who presented the school with a check for $250.

Jim has been the focal point of the offense for the Chargers, averaging 27.8 points per game during the regular season, fourth-best in the WPIAL. He was also the team's leading rebounder with seven per game, all the while amassing over 1,000 career points while starting for only two years.

His efforts have helped the Chargers reach the WPIAL Class A quarterfinals, where they will meet Lincoln Park Friday night at West Allegheny. When asked what his team needed to do in order to make a deep postseason run, Jim said: "Just put it all together: execute on offense, play team defense, and we can get it done."

Jim also knows how to get it done in the classroom with a 3.5 GPA. A number of schools are interested in him, including the College of Wooster in Ohio and both the Army Academy at West Point and the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, but he says that decision won't come until after the season ends.

But if he carries on the way he has been, hopefully for Jim Orie and the Chargers, that day won't come just yet.

Previous Honorees:

• Luke and Angele Hagy, Mt. Lebanon
• Katie Rosemeier, Chartiers-Houston
• Adam Lazenga, Bethel Park

More OLSH:

Trophy Presentation

Jim Orie and John Meyer

OLSH Cheerleaders

OLSH Students

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Meet OLSH's Jim Orie

Clearview Student-Athlete Of The Week: Jim Orie

OLSH Hires First Head Football Coach

Our Lady Of Sacred Heart Adding Football Team

By Josh Taylor, School Coordinator

For most student-athletes, time management is the biggest challenge. The day is jam-packed with classes, games, and homework.

For Luke and Angele Hagy of Mt. Lebanon, it's twice as hectic, enough that their parents say it's hard to get everybody together at the dinner table. Besides juggling athletic schedules nearly year-round, Luke has a 4.14 GPA, while Angele has a 4.2. Together they make up our pair as this week's Clearview Federal Credit Union Co-Student-Athletes of the Week.

Channel 4 Action Sports' John Meyer and our High School Playbook team took a trip down Route 19 to Cochran Road, where we honored Luke and Angele in front of their teammates, coaches, and their parents. Scott McGrath from Clearview Federal Credit Union was also there to present the school with a check for $250.

Luke, a sophomore, is a three-sport athlete: a first team all-conference running back for the football team, a starting guard on the basketball team, and he plays baseball. Meanwhile, his older sister Angele is a senior guard on the defending WPIAL and PIAA Class AAAA champion girls' basketball team, and a thrower for the track and field team.

These days, their efforts are garnering quite a bit of attention on the local, state and national level. Both the Blue Devils' boys' (21-1) and girls' (20-2) basketball teams are ranked among the top 25 in the nation according to USA Today and MaxPreps.

Both are also heavily favored in this year's WPIAL playoffs, which begin this Saturday. For the boys, it's an opportunity to avenge their loss to Peters Township in last year's championship game, while the girls will look to win their second consecutive league title and try to become the first WPIAL team to win consecutive girls' state titles.

Angele hasn't made a firm decision on her future plans just yet, but she wants to throw in college and Waynesburg has shown great interest in her. Meanwhile, Luke will have two more years to add to his resume in basketball, and improve on his 907 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns during his first varsity football season.

Both have bright and busy futures ahead of them, but judging from their performance so far, it looks like they'll both be just fine.

Previous Honorees:

• Katie Rosemeier, Chartiers-Houston
• Adam Lazenga, Bethel Park

Among all of the teams in the WPIAL in the past decade, the third best winning percentage for both the boys' and girls' basketball teams belongs to Mt. Lebanon, an astounding .737 since the 2000-01 season. This season has been no exception, as the boys had a 21-1 record this season and the girls finished 20-2.

And entering the WPIAL playoffs, both teams are the #1 seeds in Class AAAA: the girls are the defending champions, while the boys hope to avenge last year's title game loss to Peters Township. Not to mention the fact that both teams are among the top-ranked in the state, and both are ranked in the top 25 nationally according to MaxPreps and USA Today.

But no pressure...in fact, neither team is taking anything for granted. Just the mention of appearing in the championships at A.J. Palumbo Center on March 5-6 makes girls' head coach Dori Oldaker jump.

"Shh!" she hisses with a smile and her fingers crossed. "Don't say it!"

With a track record like the one the Lady Blue Devils have compiled in the past two years, one could understand the need to avoid jinxes and curses. Over the past three seasons, they have gone 79-6, won a WPIAL championship, and won last year's state championship with an undefeated record, having not lost a game in the state of Pennsylvania since the 2008 state title game loss to Central Dauphin.

Having lost only Emily Miller from from last year's starting five, the core of the team consists of senior point guard Jess Babe, junior guard Madison Cable, senior forward Lauren Arbogast, senior forward Angele Hagy and senior guard Chelsea Apke. Their team-oriented approach extends to both ends of the floor and reveals itself on the stats sheet: there isn't one player averaging more than 15 points per game.

Meanwhile, the boys team has put together quite an impressive two-year run of its own. Head coach Joe David's squad has gone 45-7 since the beginning of the 2008-09 season, including finishing as last year's WPIAL runner up and reaching the PIAA semifinals.

Leading the way is senior guard Evan Pierce, a Wagner recruit, who averages 15.9 points per game. Along with him helping lead the Blue Devils' attack are 6'8" senior center Deion Turman, 6'5" junior forward Paul Lang, and sophomore point guard Luke Hagy, who led all scorers with 20 points in a 66-60 double-overtime win over section rival Upper St. Clair on February 12.

The players on both teams maintain a calm, steady approach toward the postseason, aiming to stay grounded. They leave the excitement to their classmates, who go to many different lengths as far as crowd participation: a recent favorite is the "Where's Waldo" chant, made famous by the famous cartoon book character who hides in plain sight.

"It's been very exciting for the school," assistant principal Lori Pavlik says. "The kids have really gotten into it, and they're always cheering."

"They're just like college kids."

With the success these two programs have had, it would be hard to blame them.

More Mt. Lebanon:

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WPIAL Boys' Basketball Pairings

WPIAL Girls' Basketball Pairings

Clearview Co-Student-Athletes Of The Week

X's & O's: Mt. Lebanon Boys' & Girls' Basketball

State Boys' Basketball Rankings

All Eyes On Mt. Lebanon Hoops

Ryan Malone has made a career of playing at his best in big games. So, why would his first ever Winter Olympics be any different?

Malone, an Upper St. Clair native who plays for the Tampa Bay Lightning, has made the best of his opportunity with the 2010 U.S. Olympic team so far, scoring a goal in each of his first two games. He scored a goal on three shots in a 3-1 U.S. victory over Switzerland in the tournament opener on Tuesday, and then scored a goal with an assist in another win over Norway Thursday afternoon, giving him a total three points on five shots on goal in those two games.

The United States (2-0) will be off for the next few days, and then will face Canada on Sunday. Malone will face former Pittsburgh Penguins teammates Sidney Crosby and Marc-Andre Fleury for the first time in international competition.

If the U.S. advances to the later rounds, there is a possibility he could also play against two other former teammates: Sergei Gonchar and Evgeni Malkin are on the Russian team.

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Upper St. Clair Marching Band

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Eat'n Park Game Of The Week: Panthers vs. Tigers

Vikings Right the Ship with 31-7 Victory

Three local football programs are turning the page this week. One reached back into the past and brought back a retired coach with a highly successful track record, one did the same in bringing back their own former coach, and the other elevated an assistant who has a state championship on his resume.

Norwin hired former Penn-Trafford and Jeannette head coach Art Tragresser Monday night. Tragresser retired in 2008 after leading Penn-Trafford to an 83-52 record from 1996-2008, and had a 73-33-3 record during his 11 seasons with the Jayhawks (1985-95).

Tragresser led Penn-Trafford to the WPIAL playoffs in 12 of 13 seasons, including a championship game appearance. He also coached Pennsylvania in the Big 33 Football Classic against Ohio in 2003.

Quaker Valley hired former Pittsburgh Central Catholic assistant coach Bob McIntyre Wednesday night, after the Quakers went winless in 2009 (0-9). McIntyre was with the Vikings the last six seasons, serving in several different roles, but was a part of their WPIAL and PIAA Class AAAA championship run in 2007.

New Brighton hired former head coach Joe Greco Sunday, who led the team from 1995-2006. During his time with the Lions he had a 68-52 record.

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Week 4 Football: Hempfield vs Norwin

Norwin Head Coach Dan Conwell

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NO LOVE FOR NORWIN

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The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League's Outdoor Charity Series started with a bang Monday night, as the first game of the series featured rivals North Allegheny and Pine-Richland at North Park. The two teams skated to a 3-3 tie in last year's meeting, but this year North Allegheny took home the bragging rights in a 5-4 victory.

North Allegheny led, 3-2 after the first period, but Pine-Richland tied it in the second on Ryan Hanahan's power play goal, his second of the game. North Allegheny answered later on in the period when captain Kevin Kelly scored beat goaltender Grant Goldberg on a breakaway to regain the lead, 4-3.

Pine-Richland came back again in the third when Sean Bogosta beat North Allegheny goaltender Lindsay Holdcroft, a former Clearview Student-Athlete of the Week, on the power play to tie the game at four. But the Tigers pulled back ahead for good when Eric Barger chipped in a rebound that ricocheted off the boards behind the net for the game-winner.

VIDEO: Highlights from Pine-Richland vs. North Allegheny

Friday night marked the first of two double-headers at North Park, where Mars and Quaker Valley faced off at 6:30 p.m., while at 8:30, the defending PIHL AAA champion Shaler Titans met Pittsburgh Central Catholic.

Mars made easy work of Quaker Valley with a 7-0 win in the first game. In the second, Shaler overcame a two-goal deficit in the second period when Billy Dobson beat Central Catholic goaltender Connor Burke in front of the net to tie the game at 3. Shaler then scored five unanswered goals to win, 8-3.

The proceeds from the Mars/Quaker Valley game will benefit Susan G. Komen for the Cure. The proceeds from the Shaler/Central Catholic game will benefit the PIHL Paul Sciullo Memorial Scholarship Fund.

Sciullo, a former captain for the Central Catholic hockey team, was honored before the game. Paul's family was presented with a commemorative Shaler Titans jersey with his number 20, and was named posthumously as an honorary captain of Shaler Hockey.

VIDEO: Highlights of Shaler vs. Central Catholic

The second doubleheader scheduled for Friday, February 5 at South Park was postponed due to inclement weather. No word on rescheduling has been received. If they are rescheduled, Montour will play Thomas Jefferson, and Bethel Park will take on Canon-McMillan.

Proceeds from the first game will benefit the PIHL Paul Sciullo Memorial Scholarship Fund, while the latter game's proceeds will benefit the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

It doesn't matter where he is: on the football field, on the wrestling mat, or in the classroom. When it comes to excellence, Adam Lazenga has it pinned down.

Adam is a senior at Bethel Park with a 4.3 GPA, and he is also an All-State linebacker for the Black Hawks' football team, and the top-ranked wrestler in the WPIAL Class AAA heavyweight class. Add those three things up and the sum is one overwhelming choice as the first Clearview Federal Credit Union Student-Athlete of the Week for 2010.

Channel 4 Action News anchor Michelle Wright presented Adam with his special double-headed trophy in front of his classmates in the Bethel Park gym. Also present was his wrestling coach, Bob Stewart.

"At practice he works hard everyday," Stewart said. "He's the hardest worker in the room, and obviously that shows why he's the top wrestler."

Bethel Park football coach Jeff Matheny told us over the summer that he considered Adam "one of the best centers in the WPIAL." He was selected to the All-State team as a linebacker, and was also named to our All-Playbook First Team, helping lead the Blackhawks to a 25-3 record in his junior and senior seasons, including the 2008 WPIAL Class AAAA title.

As far as Adam's future plans, he hasn't decided on a college yet, but hopes to play football when he gets there. He has gained some interest from several Patriot League schools and a few from the Ivy League.

But wherever his path takes him, Stewart believes Adam has what it takes to succeed.

"It takes hard work and dedication, and obviously, Adam has all of those qualities."

MORE BETHEL PARK:

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Week 8 Football: Bethel Park vs Canon-McMillan

Clearview Student-Athlete Of The Week Adam Lazenga

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Pittsburgh Football Week 3 Best Play Highlights

Black Hawks Soar Over Indians

Bethel Park: Built "Ford" Tough

The bodies of three Seneca Valley High School students were pulled out of a pond after their sport utility vehicle went into frigid water early Wednesday morning near the edge of Beaver and Butler counties. The teenagers families reported them missing about 1 a.m., and their bodies were later discovered in the water off Ben Venue Road around 5 a.m.

Sam Bucci, 18, Trevor Barkley, 17 and Elijah Lunsford, 18, were all seniors at Seneca Valley. Police think the SUV the three were riding in was coming off Route 68 and turned onto a dirt road before crashing, possibly because of icy conditions or hitting some stones on the road.

Besides the three being being model students and active in their community, Bucci also played on the varsity baseball team, and he and Lunsford were members of the Zelienople Volunteer Fire Department.

"They were, like, the good kids," Seneca Valley student Samantha Moon said. "They were in the fire department, they had girlfriends. They were good kids."

"Sam, he was a great kid," said classmate and fellow volunteer firefighter Spencer Mathew. "He never wanted to do anything wrong. Grew up with him playing baseball. He was a very good baseball player."

"They're going to be deeply missed, and I'm going to miss them."

A black wreath was hung outside the Zelienople Volunteer Fire Department Wednesday, and empty boots sat in their lockers with black ribbons. The Seneca Valley school district said in an announcement they were "shocked and deeply saddened" to learn of the accident.

"As we move forward, they'll be missed but not forgotten," Zelienople Fire Chief Rob Reeb said.

For one of the most successful football coaches in the past three decades it is the end of the road. And for the program he helped build into a local power it is the end of an era.

McKeesport football coach George Smith stepped down this week, finishing with a career record of 197-107-5 over 28 seasons with the Tigers. The decision came after a meeting with athletic director Charley Kiss, and McKeesport's superintendent, Michael Brinkos, and assistant superintendant Tim Gabauer.

Smith's teams won the WPIAL Class AAAA championship in 1994 and 2005, and the PIAA championship in the same seasons. He joins Upper St. Clair's Jim Render as the only two WPIAL coaches to win two state titles in Class AAAA.

Smith was highly respected by his peers and maintained good relationships with coaches of rival programs. He was also highly regarded for his introduction of the "triple-option" offense to McKeesport, an offense centered around the possibility of four different players carrying the football that was difficult for opponents to defend.

Among those who played for Smith at McKeesport and had success in football after high school are former Pittsburgh Steelers Mike Logan and Russell Stuvaints.

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Clearview Student-Athlete Of The Week

City Championship Preview: Schenley vs. Oliver

Eat 'n Park Game of The Week:Gateway vs McKeesport

Week 8 WPIAL & City League Football Highlights

Eat 'n Park Game Of The Week Preview

Week 7 WPIAL & City League Football Highlights

The Pennsylvania Sports Writers All-State teams were announced Wednesday, and among them was a strong contingent of local players: including the WPIAL's leading rusher (Rushel Shell), receiver (Jim Giansante), and a quarterback who finished his career as the third-leading passer in WPIAL history (Rob Kalkstein).

In addition, Clairton running back Deontae Howard was chosen as the state Class A Player of the Year, while his head coach, Tom Nola, was chosen as Coach of the Year. The Bears won their second consecutive WPIAL championship this past season, and their first state title in school history.

The City League's lone representative was Brashear's Manasseh Garner. Of this list of local players, 13 of them are former recipients of the Clearview Student-Athlete of the Week award; nine of them were selected this season.

CLASS AAAA

FIRST TEAM, OFFENSE - Tom Ricketts, OL (North Allegheny), Brendon Felder, WR/RB (Gateway)

FIRST TEAM, DEFENSE - Richard Gray, DL (Woodland Hills), Aaron Donald, DL (Penn Hills), Khaynin Mosley-Smith, DL (Woodland Hills), Adam Lazenga, LB (Bethel Park), Mike Hull, LB (Canon-McMillan), Cullen Christian, DB (Penn Hills), Orne Bey, DB (Gateway)

SECOND TEAM, OFFENSE - Dom Timbers, RB (Woodland Hills), Darien Robinson, RB (McKeesport), Joe Laukaitis, OL (Upper St. Clair), Miles Dieffenbach, OL (Fox Chapel), Rob Kalkstein, QB (Gateway)

SECOND TEAM, DEFENSE - Carlos Brown, LB (McKeesport), Dayonne Nunley, DB (Gateway), Jesse Della Valle, DB (Shaler), Bre Ford, DB (Bethel Park)

CLASS AAA

FIRST TEAM, OFFENSE - Mike Caputo, RB (West Allegheny), Rushel Shell, RB (Hopewell), Jim Giansante, WR (Thomas Jefferson), Sean Hickey, OL (Franklin Regional)

FIRST TEAM, DEFENSE - Jordan Paskorz, LB (Hampton), Matt Hundenski, DB (Hopewell)

SECOND TEAM, OFFENSE - Ben Simmen, WR (West Allegheny), Tim Johnson, OL (West Allegheny)

SECOND TEAM, DEFENSE - Alex Zupanovich, DL (West Allegheny), Ron Skinner, LB (Uniontown), Ed Hasis, DB (Thomas Jefferson), Manasseh Garner, LB (Brashear)

CLASS AA

FIRST TEAM, OFFENSE -  Cody Cook, RB (Beaver Falls), David Miller, RB (Greensburg Central Catholic), Drew Carswell, WR (Sto-Rox), Steve McIlhinny, OL (South Fayette), Brandon Bunting, OL (Mount Pleasant), Drake Greer, K (Bishop Canevin), Trent Hurley, QB (Greensburg Central Catholic), Christian Brumbaugh, QB (South Fayette)

FIRST TEAM, DEFENSE - Pat Mahoney, DL (Greensburg Central Catholic), Stanley Pugh, DL (Aliquippa), Admire Carter, DB (Beaver Falls)

SECOND TEAM, OFFENSE - Chris Elkins, OL (Beaver Falls), Bernie Sarra, OL (Greensburg Central Catholic), Paul Jones, QB (Sto-Rox)

SECOND TEAM, DEFENSE - Jordan Kerner, LB (Fairview), Lukas Turley, LB (Center), Eric Conjeski, LB (Beaver)

CLASS A

FIRST TEAM, OFFENSE - Deontae Howard, RB (Clairton), Terry Gettings, TE (Rochester), Kevin Weatherspoon, WR (Clairton), Desimon Green, QB (Clairton), Trey Johnson, RB (Rochester)

FIRST TEAM, DEFENSE - Eddie Ball, LB (Clairton), Brandon Small, LB (Clairton), Cory Bauer, DB (Brentwood), Nick Bolias, DB (Monessen)

SECOND TEAM, OFFENSE - Eric Roberts, OL (Rochester), Martin Long, QB (North Catholic)

SECOND TEAM, DEFENSE - Jimmy Zubik, DB (Avonworth)

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Fact Or Fiction:Sto-Rox Football Jobs On The Line?

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