Recent Stories

Local Sports

December 13, 2019

PART 2: High School Basketball Athlete Q&A; Boys Basketball

When the temperature drops and the roads become white with snow, school athletics turn to the great indoors to continue their competitive play. Within the two schools that reside in our small town, one of the most prominent indoor sports is boys and girls basketball. To give our winter warrior athletes their time to shine, EllwoodCity.org has decided to sit down and provide a Q&A with selected basketball student/athletes from each school district. We conclude our two-part series recognizing the boy’s basketball teams and their respective student/athletes. To view part one of our series, CLICK HERE. ELLWOOD CITY WOLVERINE BOYS…

December 12, 2019

PART 1: High School Basketball Athlete Q&A; Girls Basketball

When the temperature drops and the roads become white with snow, school athletics turn to the great indoors to continue their competitive play. Within the two schools that reside in our small town, one of the most prominent indoor sports is boys and girls basketball. To give our winter warrior athletes their time to shine, EllwoodCity.org has decided to sit down and provide a Q&A with selected school district’s basketball student/athletes. We begin our two-part series recognizing the girls basketball teams, while part-two will feature the male athletes. ELLWOOD CITY LADY WOLVERINES Maria Ioanilli: Player Name: Maria Ioanilli, Forward Grade:…

December 10, 2019

Rozanski to Stay as Head Coach of Wolverine Softball

Gary Rozanski Jr. will remain the head coach of the girls varsity softball team at Lincoln High School. During the November 14th Ellwood City Area School District’s Board of Directors meeting, a group of parents—many of whose children are involved in a youth program not affiliated with the district and have not been coached by Rozanski—demanded consideration of a new varsity softball coach. It was announced at the December 5 directors meeting that Rozanski will stay on as coach. Board President, Jennifer Tomon made the announcement. “We don’t discuss personnel,” she said, after visitor Bill Garroway questioned the board’s decision,…

December 9, 2019

Wrestlers Bring Home Four Medals In Weekend Tournament

The Ellwood City Wolverines wrestling team traveled to Hermitage on December 6 and 7 to compete in the 12th Annual Hickory Invitational Tournament which featured 24 teams competing. The team brought home four medals from the event: Ben Gallenz (Riverside High School competing on the Ellwood team through a co-operative agreement), 5th place, 106 pounds; Ryan Nazari, 8th place, 138 pounds; Austin Walley, first place, 195 pounds; and Rodney Grymes, 7th place, 220 pounds. Walley pinned Aidan Gardner (Redbank Valley) at 1:55 of the 195-pound final.  Walley as also named to the All-Academic Team Sponsored by Hermitage Education Association. Pictured…

December 6, 2019

PREVIEW: Tip-Off Tournaments Start Seasons For Local Basketball Teams

For the four area high school basketball teams tipping off their respective seasons this weekend, there will be a variety of ‘vibes’ for each team, nonetheless all looking to make their own improvements and reach the playoffs in the 2019-20 high school basketball season. Out of the local bunch, the Ellwood City girls basketball team (13-10) is coming off its best season in 15 years. The Wolverines reached the WPIAL playoffs for the first time in four seasons and return five of their top seven players, including junior forward Maria Ioanilli. “We’re coming off our most wins in over 15…

November 19, 2019

LHS Graduate Botti Named PAC Rookie of the Week

GREENVILLE, Pa. – Westminster College freshman defensive back Luca Botti (Ellwood City, PA / Ellwood City) was named the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) Rookie of the Week. The 6′ 2″ 170-pound redshirt freshman had a team-high seven tackles (7 solo) and a pair of pass breakups for Westminster in its 28-25 win over Geneva Saturday. (Read Full Game Recap) Botti has 16 tackles in six regular season game appearances this year. The Titans will travel to SUNY Morrisville in Morrisville, New York on Saturday, November 23 to compete in the Clayton Chapman Bowl. Kickoff is scheduled for 12 p.m. Westminster…

November 16, 2019

Panthers Playoff Run Ended, Defeated by Avonworth

Riverside’s magical playoff run was thwarted Friday night, falling 41-14 to #2 seed Avonworth in the WPIAL Class 2A semifinal at West Allegheny Friday night. The vastly underseeded Panthers knocked off #3 seed Burgettstown and #6 seed McGuffey to enter the contest as the first No. 14 seed to reach the WPIAL semifinals since Central Valley did it in 2010. Riverside only trialed 13-0 at halftime, unable to capitalize on two possessions reaching inside the Antelopes 10 yard line. The Panthers were denied twice on fourth down from the Avonworth 2- and 4-yard lines. Josh Bishop had two interceptions defensively…

November 15, 2019

Parents Demand New Head Coach for Ellwood City Girls Varsity Softball

A group of parents attended the Ellwood City Area School District’s Board of Directors meeting Thursday night and demanded consideration of a new varsity softball coach. Despite leading the girls softball team at Lincoln as the head coach since 2006 and bringing home numerous titles during that time, Gary Rozanski was under strict scrutiny. Softball parent Doug Balin, said his daughter has come home from practice in tears. He believes that with better guidance, the girls would love the sport more and have a better chance at getting scholarships. Jeff Barnett said his daughter Kali is a starter for every…

November 15, 2019

PHOTO: Justin Hand Signs With Tiffin University

Riverside senior and golf standout Justin Hand signed his NCAA National Letter of Intent on Wednesday, November 13th to play collegiate golf at Tiffin University in Ohio. Hand played well and qualified for the PIAA Western Regional golf finals in September and also participated in the 2019 US Junior Amateur Championship in July. RELATED COVERAGE: www.ellwoodcity.org/?s=justin+hand Tiffin University men’s golf team recently took the top spot in the 15-team Kyle Remar Memorial Championship in October. (View More) Pictured below with Justin are his parents, grandparents, swing coach Kevin Shields, trainer Dave Piecuch, and Riverside athletic directors. Photo courtesy of J…

November 13, 2019

PHOTO: Austin Walley Signs With Bucknell University

Wrestling standout and Ellwood City student-athlete Austin Walley has signed his letter of intent to wrestle at Bucknell University.  Walley signed Wednesday morning at Lincoln High School as part of NCAA Division 1 National Signing Day. Walley finished his junior season with a 36-5 overall record and finished 4th overall in the 182-pound weight class in the PIAA Class AA Wrestling Tournament held at the Hershey in March. (Read More)  In May, Walley finished third in both the Freestyle and Greco-Roman Pennsylvania/USA Wrestling State Championships held at Central Mountain High School in Lock Haven. His career record entering his senior…