Local Sports

Three Victories In WPIAL Opening Round Action

All three local teams competing Tuesday in the opening round of their respective WPIAL playoffs earned victories. RIVERSIDE 4 KEYSTONE OAKS 1 Hunter Garvin and Zack Hare combined for a no-hitter as top seeded Riverside earned a 4-1 victory over Keystone Oaks on Tuesday. Hare struck out nine batters on the afternoon but Keystone Oaks scored the games first run in the fourth inning without the aid of a hit. The Panthers offense was finally able to respond with four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Garvin singled, Hare doubled, Darren McDade hit a sacrifice fly, and Sam…


Trio Of Local Playoff Games Set For Tuesday

Three local teams will compete on Tuesday in the opening round of their respective WPIAL playoffs Top seeded Panthers boys baseball team will look to defend its WPIAL title as it opens its 2024 playoff journey on Tuesday. Riverside will take on #16 Keystone Oaks at 4:30 p.m. at North Allegheny High School. The Panthers took charge last week with two victories over section foe Mohawk to earn an outright section championship. Riverside finished 11-1 in Section 1-3A and 13-1 Overall with their lone defeat at the hands of Neshannock. The Lancers enter the playoffs as a #11 seed while…


PHOTOS: Ellwood City Earns 3rd Place Finish At WPIAL Track & Field Championships

The Ellwood City boys track and field team placed third in the WPIAL Class 2A team championship at Peters Township Middle School on Tuesday. The Wolverines defeated Hopewell 79-61 to earn the third place finish. “I think many teams underestimated us this year and we proved everyone wrong,” said head coach Nate Brown. “We started with several postponed meets and my belief is the calendar beat us up pretty badly. That said, I know that I and my coaching staff and very pleased with this finish.” Quaker Valley won the WPIAL 2A Championship after beating Greensburg Central Catholic 76-65. Ellwood…


Riverside Clinches Section Title, Ellwood City’s Playoff Hopes Dashed

The Riverside baseball team completed its critical two-game sweep of Mohawk on Tuesday, earning a 9-4 road victory and clinching the Section 1-3A title. The Panthers (13-1 Overall, 11-1 Section 1-3A) used a three-run homerun by Darren McDade in the sixth inning to put the game out of reach. Riverside got on the board in the third inning, scoring four runs without the aid of a hit. Zach Hare was hit by a pitch and Sam Barber walked, each scoring a run and a fielders choice by McDade and fielding error plated two more Panthers runs in the inning. Mohawk…


Wolverines Outlast Shenango In 13 Innings; Hare Strikes Out 10, Homers For Panthers

In two pivotal playoff implicating match-ups on Monday, both local teams came out with big victories, putting more focus on Tuesday’s Class 3A-1 section games. Needing two victories over the Wildcats this week to earn a playoff berth, Ellwood City outlasted Shenango 6-3 in 13 innings Monday to earn the first victory in the two-game series. After a 3-3 game fell silent for five extra innings, Ellwood City used four consecutive singles, including two-run single by Jordan Keller in the top half of the 13th inning to pull away from the Wildcats. Wolverines starter Will Nardone helped his own cause…


Wolverines Track & Field Team Eyeing WPIAL Championships

After its qualifying victory last week at West Mifflin, the Ellwood City boys track and field team will turn its focus to the WPIAL Championships on Tuesday. The team earned its first-ever playoff win knocking off five foes in the qualifier last Thursday. The WPIAL Team AA Championships will be held at Peter’s Township Stadium: Confluence Financial Partners Stadium beginning at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The Wolverines will face off against Hopewell, Quaker Valley and the reigning Class-2A champion Greensburg Central Catholic. The boys have had a successful season, winning the Tri County Championship, earning a second place finish at…


The Riverside Hall of Fame: Royann Winfield, Selfless Coach, Mentor to the End

NOTE: This is the third in a three-part series featuring The Riverside Hall of Fame’s first class, all coaches. The inductees will be honored at the First Annual Hall of Fame banquet at Shakespeare’s Restaurant this Saturday, May 4th, from 6 to 10 p.m. Attendees will celebrate the esteemed inaugural class of: Dan Oliastro, Karl Florie, and Royann Winfield. Royann Winfield was a fighter to the end. Whether it was standing in strong support of her students, or her residents at McGuire Memorial, or battling cancer, Royann simply refused to give up on herself or others. Her final season in…


PHOTOS: Ellwood City Boys’ Track And Field Advances To WPIAL Finals

The Ellwood City Boys’ Track And Field team is heading to the WPIAL 2A Finals next week after a dominating performance in Wednesday afternoon’s qualifying meet at West Mifflin High School. The Wolverines steamrolled its five foes Wednesday beating Riverview 84-66, West Mifflin 86-64, Knock 87.5-62.5 and Waynesburg Central 91-59. Bradley Custer collected 2nd place finishes in the 800m and 1600m runs and Nick Franitti collected 2nd place finishes in the 110m hurdles and 300m hurdles.  Nick Wise took 2nd place in the 400m dash.  Nate Williams finished 1st overall in the long jump, adding a 2nd place finish in…


The Riverside Hall of Fame: Dan Oliastro, Winningest Coach in WPIAL History

NOTE: This is the second in a three-part series featuring The Riverside Hall of Fame’s first class, all coaches. The inductees will be honored at the First Annual Hall of Fame banquet at Shakespeare’s Restaurant this Saturday, May 4th, from 6 to 10 p.m. Attendees will celebrate the esteemed inaugural class of: Dan Oliastro, Karl Florie, and Royann Winfield. He may be the winningest coach in WPIAL history, but winning isn’t everything to Coach Dan Oliastro. “It’s more than just baseball,” he said. “One of the things you have to do is build relationships … good relationships with the kids.”…


The Riverside Hall of Fame: Karl Florie Built Powerhouse Team and Family of Football Players

NOTE: This is the first in a three-part series featuring The Riverside Hall of Fame’s first class, all coaches. The inductees will be honored at the First Annual Hall of Fame banquet at Shakespeare’s Restaurant this Saturday, May 4th, from 6 to 10 p.m. Attendees will celebrate the esteemed inagural class of: Dan Oliastro, Karl Florie, and Royann Winfield. Karl Florie, wasn’t the school board’s first choice to coach Riverside’s football program, but it came to pass that he was he was the right choice. Although his first season produced zero wins, he went on to build a program that became a powerhouse in…