Local Sports

WEEKLY ROUND-UP: Ellwood City Sports

ELLWOOD CITY CROSS COUNTRY: Ellwood City swept Beaver Falls and Shenango handedly on Tuesday. Four Wolverine runners took the top four spots in the boys overall. Junior Bradley Custer led the way with an overall low time of 16:57.31. The strong team effort earned a 15-50 win over Beaver Falls and 16-49 win over Shenango. Ellwood City is now 6-0 this season and will set their eyes on a match against crosstown rival Riverside on Tuesday, October 3rd at 3:30 p.m. ELLWOOD CITY GIRLS VOLLEYBALL: The Ellwood City girls volleyball team split a pair of matches this week and now…


Ellwood City Area Hall of Fame: Dan Aloi Basketball Hall of Famer

Note: This is the second story in a series highlighting the Ellwood City Area Hall of Fame Induction Class of 2022 leading up to the induction of the 2023 Hall of Fame class that will be announced at the October 6th Homecoming Game. Bob Knight (also known as “The General”) once told him he was a good basketball player. He was a three-year starter for Ellwood City from 1985 to 1987. He had a career scoring mark of 1,937 points and had his basketball numbers 40 and 41 retired by the Ellwood City School District’s Board of Directors. He is…


Keller Takes 1st Place At Tam O’Shanter Invitational

The Ellwood City golf team placed 2nd overall as a team in the 42nd Tam O’Shanter Boys High School Invitational on Tuesday. 32 Teams and 160 Golfers participated in the invitational. Sophomore sensation Jordan Keller claimed the individual champion with a round of 72. Mitch Covert (83), Nate Kennedy (87), Jaxon Rozanski (87), and Carson Cappello (8)9 rounded out the scoring for the Wolverines (329) who finished just one stroke back from top team finisher Meadville who took the team championship with a team score of 328. Keller had a busy week, as he also fired a 85 (+13) in…



Western Beaver Scores Big, Downs Ellwood City 41-18

An opportunistic Golden Beavers football team racked up 475 yards of total offense on its way to a 41-18 victory over Ellwood City Friday Night. The Western Beaver offense accounted for only 9 first downs in the contest and possessed the ball for only 15:51 (compared to Ellwood City’s 32:09 minutes of possession) but used quick scoring drives and big scoring plays to post six touchdowns and earn its road victory. After Ellwood City opened up the scoring with a 12-yard touchdown strike from Chris Smiley to receiver Michael Walters, Western Beaver responded in less than a minute of game…


WEEKLY ROUND-UP: Ellwood City Sports

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL: The Lady Wolverines volleyball team split a pair of matches this week and now sits with a 6-3 record overall, and a 4-2 mark in section play. First on Tuesday, Ellwood City fell to Laurel 3-2 on the road. After taking the first set, the Wolverines dropped the next two sets, but rallied to even the match with a fourth set victory. In the pivotal fifth set, Ellwood City fell 15-12 to Laurel and dropped the section match. The Wolverines rebounded on Thursday, easily defeating Beaver Falls in straight sets 3-0 on the road. Ellwood City collected set…


2023 Riverside Homecoming Court Announced

Congratulations to the 2023 Riverside Homecoming Court! The court was announced this week by the district and the queen will be crowned at halftime of the Riverside home football game next Friday, September 29th. The court (Pictured left to right) is Brooke Wissinger, Sianna Falk, Brooke Dougherty, Emma Thellman, Ryleigh Clyde and Breana Hyre. The Panthers host the Beaver Falls Tigers in section play.  Last year, Elizabeth Frazier was crowned the Riverside 2022 Homecoming Queen. The Riverside School District will host its The Homecoming Dance on Saturday, September 30th from 7:30-10 at the high school.


Smiley, Wolverines Defeat Freedom 34-14, Improve Record to 3-1

Chris Smiley threw for three touchdowns and ran for another to lead the Ellwood City Wolverines to a 34-14 victory over Freedom Friday Night at Helling Stadium. The section victory improved the surging Wolverines record to 3-1 on the season – already eclipsing their win total from last year. On Friday, the junior quarterback hooked up with Michael Walters on two touchdown strikes as part of his aerial performance to pace the Ellwood City offense. Smiley finished 14-26 passing for 213 yards. Walters hauled in five receptions for 94 yards for the Wolverines. After Freedom opened up the scoring in…


Short of Playoffs, Ellwood City Golf Next Eyes Section Qualifiers

With its eyes on collecting a playoff berth, the Ellwood City Golf team suffered two section defeats this week and next will eye section qualifiers on Monday at Del Mar Golf Course. After defeating rival Riverside on Monday, the Wolverines fell 213-220 to Shenango at Sylvan Heights Golf Course on Wednesday and were knocked out of the playoff contention Thursday after suffering a 199-212 home course defeat at the hands of undefeated section leader Neshannock. The team now sits at 6-5 in section play and needed to finish among the top two teams in the section to advance to playoffs….


Local Baseball History Highlighted At Historical Society Dinner

Dick Freidhoff passed away in 1985. The local steelworker never coached high school baseball, yet his influence on the game helped Riverside High School win the State Championship in 2023. Illustrious Riverside head baseball coach, Dan Oliastro credited Freidhoff with instilling in him a love for the game and a winning ethic when he played for him as a member of the Moose Club-sponsored little league team in the 1950s. “We practiced every day. Those practices were so rigorous that the games were easy and fun. Winning was expected.” Freidhoff’s winning attitude is a tradition with Oliastro, who owns the…