Greater Latrobe’s Prady steps away

After leading Greater Latrobe football to nearly unprecedented success, Ron Prady stepped down as Wildcats head coach last week. Prady led the program for three seasons, compiling a mark of 20-15. His tenure included a pair of playoff wins, including a triumph against Highlands in 2022 that served as the program’s first postseason win since 1968. Last season, GL went 5-6, including a 42-7 loss to Bethel Park in the first round of the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs. Prady, who teaches at Greater Latrobe, had served as an assistant coach with his alma mater Penn-Trafford for 10 years prior to accepting the Wildcats’ position. He also had stints as an assistant at Greater Latrobe and Franklin Regional. Prady expects to continue coaching next season.

GCC, Jeannette boys stay perfect

Nearly a month into the WPIAL basketball season, a pair of Westmoreland County boys teams remain perfect. Rivals and section foes Greensburg Central Catholic and Jeannette both maintained their unblemished marks last week, as GCC moved to 8-0 overall and Jeannette ascended to 7-0 on the season. The Centurions opened the week with a 58-27 road triumph at Clairton on Tuesday, as Liam Gallagher paced GCC against the Bears with 21 points, while AJ Tarpley and Samir Crosby each netted 13 points. Three days later, the host Centurions blasted California Area 96-37, as Gallagher scored 22 points, and Brady O'Rourke added 16 points. The Centurions capped their sterling week with a 66-53 victory against Kiski Area on Saturday at the Westmoreland County Coaches Association (WCCA) Shootout at Hempfield Area. Against the Cavaliers, Gallagher amassed 27 points and Crosby scored 14, while Carson Heinle tallied 17 points in the loss for Kiski Area. Jeannette, meanwhile, commenced its ledger last week by rolling to a 70-42 win at Bentworth on Tuesday. Kymon’e Brown registered 17 points for the Jayhawks, and Markus McGowan notched 13 points. At home against Riverview on Friday, the Jayhawks prevailed 66-34, as Jayce Powell netted 18 points and McGowan scored 14. Jeannette put an exclamation point on its week on Saturday with a lopsided 81-21 home win against Mount Pleasant Area in the WCCA Shootout, as Brown posted 14 points and Stone Markham contributed 13 points.

Sidun beats nationally top ranked wrestler to win Beast of the East

Norwin sophomore Landon Sidun created a major buzz around the wrestling community over the weekend as he knocked off Joey Bachmann of Faith Christian Academy, 3-2 in ultimate tiebreaker to win the 120 pound title at the prestigious Beast of the East Tournament. Bachmann, also a sophomore, is the top ranked wrestler in the country at 120 pounds and suffered the first loss of his career. Sidun, who has a career record of 56-2, won the PIAA Class 3A 114 pound Championship last March.

Burrell wrestling edges Kiski Area

A furious rally by Burrell carried the Buccaneers to a 35-33 victory at Kiski Area on Saturday in a highly-anticipated nonsection wrestling clash between Westmoreland County rivals. Burrell won the final seven bouts of the matchup, including falls by Carter Thomas, Julian Bertucci, and Calio Zanella, a tech fall by Ben Catullo, decisions via Jacob Stewart and Cadyn Crawford, and a forfeit. The Cavs wins came via pins by Travis Shearer, Mario Hutcherson, Cooper Roscosky, Paxton Newell, and Gavin Murphy, and a decision via Mark Gray. As a result, Class 2A Burrell improved to 2-0 overall, while the Class 3A Cavaliers dipped to 9-4 on the season.

Panthers hockey notches pair of wins

Franklin Regional hockey improved its spot in the PIHL Class AAA standings last week after a pair of victories. Last Monday, FR edged Pine-Richland 4-3 in overtime, and the Panthers followed with a 4-1 triumph against Thomas Jefferson on Thursday. In the home win against the Rams at the Palmer Imaging Arena in Delmont, JJ Tensuan scored the winner 37 seconds into overtime. That came in response to the Rams tying the game with just five seconds left in regulation. Tensuan also added an assist, while Joey Casella netted a pair of goals for FR, and Ashton Rothrauff tallied 30 saves in net. Three days later, the Panthers rolled to a win against the Jaguars at the Ice Castle Arena in Castle Shannon. Ryan Crouse scored twice for FR, while Nick Matus tallied a goal and dished out two assists. Rothrauff compiled 40 saves between the pipes to earn the win. As a result, FR improved to 5-6-1-0, which equates to 17 points.

SVC’s Ostrowski wins conference award

Saint Vincent College men’s basketball standout Dev Ostrowski was honored last week with conference accolades. The junior guard was selected as the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) Player of the Week, the second time in three weeks that he received the acknowledgement. Ostrowski netted a career-high 38 points along with four steals in a win against Washington & Jefferson College on Dec. 15. For the campaign, Ostrowski has played in 10 games, compiling 18.7 points and 5.5 rebounds per contest, while racking up 21 assists and 19 steals. To this point, SVC is 7-3 overall, including 4-2 in the PAC.