Norwin’s Sidun captures Powerade title

Norwin wrestler Landon Sidun added another accomplishment to his stellar resume last week, as he captured gold at the Powerade Tournament last Tuesday. Competing at Canon-McMillan High School, Sidun stood atop the podium at 121 pounds, culminated by a 12-0 major decision against Jojo Burke of St. Joseph Regional in New Jersey in the final. Sidun earned the top seed and a bye in the bracket, and he followed with technical fall decisions in his first two bouts. In the quarterfinals, Sidun prevailed by major decision, 14-0, against Gabe Swann from Baylor, Tennessee. In the semis, the junior notched a 7-1 decision against Brock Rothermel of Line Mountain. Sidun, the lone WPIAL grappler to reach the finals, repeated as champion at the prestigious event. Several other Westmoreland Country wrestlers placed, as Mario Hutcherson of Kiski Area placed third at 189 pounds, Derry Area’s Mason Horwat finished fourth at 172, Kiski Area’s Cooper Roscosky came in seventh at 215, and Franklin Regional’s Michael Ruane took eighth at 152.

Kiski Area girls lead the way at Powerade

At the heralded Powerade Tournament at Canon-McMillan High School last week, an array of Westmoreland County girls wrestlers took the medal stand, including a trio from Kiski Area. The Cavaliers’ Ava Goulding finished as runner-up at 142 pounds, while teammate Alyssa Tresco also took silver at 170. Moreover, Carley King of Kiski Area came in sixth in the 130-pound bracket. Three Norwin grapplers also stood out, as Karsyn Champion of Norwin came in fourth at 155 pounds, while Josephine Dollman and Octavia Walker took sixth at 136 and 170 pounds, respectively. Additionally, a pair of Derry Area Trojans placed, as Maizy Mikeska took fifth at 130 Kaila Keesecker finished sixth at 118. Lastly, Southmoreland’s Zoey Murphy took silver at 235, while Elizabeth Kantoris is Greater Latrobe came in sixth in the same bracket. In the team scoring, the Cavaliers finished fourth with 95.5 points, while Norwin came in 10th, compiling 52.5 points.

Jeannette’s Brown reaches 1K points

Jeannette senior Kymon’e Brown reached a milestone last Monday, as he hit the 1,000-point mark in a victory against Bishop Canevin. In the 67-52 victory against the Crusaders, Brown tallied 15 points. He became the 15th Jayhawk boys player to hit the milestone, and the first since Michael Pompei in 2017. With the win, Jeannette moved to 9-1 on the season.

SHU women extend winning streak

Seton Hill University women’s basketball continued to surge over the weekend, as the Griffins won twice on consecutive days to push their winning streak to nine games. In their return from the Christmas break, the Griffins rolled past Kutztown University 83-53 on Friday, and followed with an 82-67 triumph against West Chester University on Saturday. Four Griffs scored in double figures in the win against the Golden Bears, led by Helene Cowan’s 21 points. Against the Golden Rams, SHU outpaced West Chester 25-15 in the fourth to seal the outcome, as Hailee Ford netted a game-high 20 points and Mia Kalich produced 16 points, 14 rebounds, three assists, four steals, and two blocks. As a result, Seton Hill moved to 10-2 overall, including 6-0 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC).

This week on WSN

With the holiday break in the rear-view mirror, basketball and wrestling return in full force this week on the Westmoreland Sports Network. Tonight, Derry Area hosts Greater Latrobe in an all-Westmoreland mat clash. On Tuesday, Franklin Regional hosts Greater Latrobe in a Class 5A Section 1 boys basketball tilt, while the Norwin boys welcome Pittsburgh Central Catholic is Class 6A action. On Wednesday, wrestling takes center stage once more, as Norwin hosts Penn-Trafford in a highly-anticipated matchup. On Thursday, Greensburg Central Catholic girls basketball plays at home against Shady Side Academy in a WPIAL Class 3A Championship rematch.