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May 11, 2025

PLAYOFFS! All Four Local Teams Qualify For Baseball/Softball WPIAL Playoffs

CLASS 3A BASEBALL Top overall seed Riverside (13-2, 9-1 Section 1) will look to collect yet another WPIAL title behind winningest coach in WPIAL history, Dan Oliastro, with its opening round game Tuesday at Seneca Valley HS. The Panthers await the winner of #16 Shady Side Academy and #17 McGuffey who play Monday. The top seeded Panthers are led by a trio of outstanding pitchers, Zach Hare (5-0, 1.41 ERA, 61 strikeouts), Christian Lucarelli (4-1, 1.41, 54 strikeouts) and Hunter Garvin, and an offense that averaged over nine runs per game. Hare is also hitting .423 to go along with…

April 8, 2025

Ten Wolverines Collect Hits, Ellwood City Routs Sto-Rox

Ten Ellwood City Wolverines collected hits Monday afternoon, and 14 different players reached based as Ellwood City routed visiting Sto-Rox 23-1 at Sanders Field in Ewing Park. Jordan Keller smashed two homeruns, both in an 11-run Ellwood City fourth inning that induced the mercy rule. Ellwood City scored three runs in the first inning, four in the second inning and five in the third before erupting in the fourth inning. In the third inning, Jacob Biskup hit a solo home run to left field, Will Nardone singled, scoring two runs, and Gino Biondi singled, scoring two runs. The Wolverines scored…

April 5, 2025

Hare, Panthers Defeat Wolverines at SRU To Even Season Series

After a series of weather induced rescheduled affairs, the Riverside Panthers and Ellwood City Wolverines found themselves at Jack Critchfield Park on the grounds of Slippery Rock University Friday evening for a WPIAL section tilt. The Panthers came away with a 9-5 victory behind Zach Hare to even the season series with the Wolverines. Ellwood City shutout Riverside earlier in the week. On Friday, Zach Hare slugged two homeruns at the plate and tossed five innings on the rubber to lead the Panthers. Hare led off the scoring for the visiting Panthers as he homered to left field in the…

April 2, 2025

Lake, Wolverines Shutout Panthers

Aaron Lake struck out 10 batters in a complete game gem to lead the Ellwood City Wolverines past Riverside 4-0 on Tuesday at Beaver Falls High School. Lake surrendered just three hits and three walks in his performance that handed the Panthers their first loss of the season. Ellwood City was the first to get on the board in the top of first inning when Will Nardone singled, scoring one run. The Wolverines added to their early lead in the top of the third inning after Cameron Mills walked, and Sam Landis singled to center field, each scoring one run….

March 28, 2025

SPORTS ROUND-UP: Zach Hare Leads RHS Baseball, Tennis Defeats LHS

Zack Hare was dominant on the bump Thursday afternoon and at the plate Thursday in Riverside’s 4-1 victory over West Allegheny running the Panthers early season unbeaten record to 4-0. Hare rang up 11 strikeouts and surrendered only three hits, one walk, and one run over six and two-thirds innings. The righty also went 4-4 at the plate with an RBI. Hare also opened up the offensive scoring for Riverside with an RBI single in the bottom of the first inning. Riverside added one run in the third after scored on a wild pitch. Hunter Garvin and Hare were tough…

November 15, 2024

Lucarelli Signs With Duke University

Riverside Panther standout pitcher Christian Lucarelli officially signed his commitment to pitch at Duke University on Wednesday afternoon. The 6′ 3″ 215-pound senior is ranked the #3 player in the Pennsylvania 2025 class (111 nationally). The right-hander started and led the Panthers to a WPIAL Championship and PIAA Class 3A title in 2023. Lucarelli struck out seven batters across 3 2/3 innings in May but the Panthers could not repeat as WPIAL Champions, falling to Avonworth in an epic 14-inning championship game. The Panthers then fell to Punxsutawney in the first round of the 2024 PIAA Playoffs. Duke University baseball…

May 29, 2024

Avonworth Dethrones Riverside In Epic WPIAL Championship

Avonworth dethroned the defending Class 3A champion Panthers Tuesday afternoon in extra innings at Wild Things Park in Washington, PA. The 7-seeded Antelopes scratched out a run in the top of the 14th inning and held on for the historic 4-3 victory. The WPIAL Championship game was the longest ever recorded at Wild Things Park and the longest game since 1940. The marathon game lasted over four hours. Avonworth’s Luke Zelinko lined an RBI single to plate Mason Metz in the 14th inning and sophomore pitcher Cooper Scharding closed the door on the Panthers hopes of repeating. Scharding entered the…

May 21, 2024

Hare Leads Panthers Past South Allegheny, Advancing to WPIAL Championship

The Panthers are one step closer to repeating, thanks in large part to Zach Hare. The 6’3″ junior struck out 11 batters across six scoreless innings to lead Riverside past South Allegheny 2-0 on Tuesday in the WPIAL Class 3A semifinals.  The top-seeded Panthers (16-1 Overall) advance to the WPIAL Class 3A Championship game against #7 seed Avonworth who defeated #14 Burrell 2-1 in 8 innings on Tuesday at North Allegheny. On Tuesday, Hare paced the offense as well, reaching base in all three plate appearance with a walk, single, and double. Riverside got on the board with two outs…

May 20, 2024

Bottom Of Lineup Carries Riverside Past South Park In WPIAL Quarterfinals

The bottom of the lineup helped Riverside cruise to a 11-1 mercy rule victory over South Park in the WPIAL Class 3A Quarterfinals on Monday at Neshannock High School. Sam Barber, Sean Hayes, and Christian Lucarelli combined for six of the Panthers’ 10 hits in the victory. The trio combined for three RBIs and two runs scored. Lucarelli also earned the victory on the mound for Riverside, going the full five innings, allowing one earned run and striking out seven batters.  He walked four and allowed only two hits. Riverside got on the board in the bottom of the first…

May 6, 2024

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…