News and notes from the local high school sports scene
News and notes from the local high school sports scene:
In a few weeks, The Times' sports staff will announce our boys and girls athletes of the year. Today, I'd like to talk about the best overall athletic department in our coverage area over the past year. That would be Quaker Valley.
Traditionally, Quaker sports teams have fared well collectively. This school year, their success was extraordinary.
Quaker Valley offers 21 varsity sports, and 18 qualified for postseason play.
Carrying the banner for QV sports in 2017-18 was football, with a squad that won WPIAL and PIAA 3A titles with a first-year coach (Jerry Veshio) who served as public address announcer at home games in recent years. Never before had the Quakers played in a WPIAL football final.
The boys soccer team didn't win a WPIAL title, but it did win the state 2A championship, the program's sixth overall.
Six QV teams finished second in championship tournaments: boys basketball, boys soccer, boys golf, boys swimming and girls lacrosse in the WPIAL; hockey in the PIHL.
Among the Quakers top individual stars were Ricky Guss and Coletrane Washington.
Guss played quarterback and linebacker on the 14-1 football team and power forward on the 26-2 basketball team. He was The Times' 2017 Football Player of the Year and is a candidate for our Boys Athlete of the Year. Washington, a 6-foot-5 guard, was our Boys Basketball Player of the Year.
The Quakers also had a WPIAL track champion in Franzi Nace, who won the 2A girls high jump.
"We've had great success in the past, but this year we just took it to another level," said Mike Mastroianni, the QV athletic director and boys basketball coach.
"The profile (for our athletes) is high academics and high achievers, kids who often play multiple sports. We're fortunate to have good student/athletes in our programs across the board. They're hard workers who put in time during their offseasons. That's the profile."
McCoy to wrestle at UPJ
One of the most fascinating athletes in local sports this school year has been South Side senior Bishop McCoy.
I could be wrong, but I'm not sure if there have been a lot of local wrestlers who also play baseball. But that's what McCoy has done the past four years.
Last season, McCoy joined the short list of all-time South Side wrestling greats by going 42-2, winning the WPIAL 2A title at 285 pounds and advancing to the state finals. In baseball, McCoy plays first base and usually bats cleanup for the Rams (15-5).
At 1 p.m. Thursday, McCoy and his baseball teammates play Huntingdon (21-1) in the PIAA 3A quarterfinals in Somerset.
McCoy is bound for Pitt-Johnstown where he will wrestle for the Mountain Cats' perennially strong NCAA Division II program.
Hopewell vs. Ringgold in quarterfinals
On Thursday, when play resumes in the PIAA baseball playoffs, Hopewell will face an opponent from the WPIAL. At 6:30 p.m. at Peterswood Park, the Vikings (15-10) play Ringgold (17-4).
Since both teams pitched their senior aces — Hopewell's Joe Rock and Ringgold's Ryan Varley — in first-round 4A wins Monday, a pair of underclassmen are probable starters Thursday.
Chase Angotti, a junior right-hander, will likely pitch for the Rams. He's 6-1 this season with a 1.81 earned run average. He pitched one inning in a 4-3 first-round win over St. Mary's.
It's expected that Hopewell will start Jake McGovern, a sophomore lefty. McGovern, the Vikings' center fielder, has only pitched in eight games this season. He's 2-2 but has a 1.40 ERA. His two wins came against Ambridge (2-13). But his most impressive performance came in a 1-0 loss to South Fayette in the WPIAL semifinals.
McGovern pitched a 3-hitter against the eventual WPIAL champs but didn't get any offensive support. Hopewell also only had three hits that day.
As the leadoff hitter, McGovern leads the team in hitting (.392), on-base percentage (.516), hits (29), walks (17) and runs (17). He's been an ideal leadoff hitter and a strong defensive presence in center field.
West A. vs. Red Land: Plenty of star power
No less than four major-college prospects will be on the field Thursday when West Allegheny (15-2) plays Red Land (18-4) in the 5A quarterfinals at Mt. Aloysius. And all four could someday play in the Southeastern Conference.
Three of those prospects play for Red Land, which is located in York County.
Two are cousins — Luke Wagner, a sophomore pitcher/outfielder, and Cole Wagner, a freshman pitcher/first baseman — who have already verbally committed to Georgia. Jared Payne, a junior catcher, has committed to Kentucky.
West Allegheny's D-I prospect is Austin Hendrick. He's a sophomore outfielder/pitcher who's committed to Mississippi State.
Demko hired as QV girls hoops coach
No news to report on the three local boys basketball vacancies (Hopewell, Rochester and Quigley Catholic). But there is a new girls coach. He's Tom Demko at Quaker Valley.
Demko replaces Jill Brumbaugh, who will not return after five seasons.
Demko, a teacher in the QV school district, served as boys varsity head coach from 2003-2007. Two of his teams went 21-3 and 23-8 and advanced deep in the WPIAL and state playoffs. He's served as middle school boys coach the last several years and middle school girls coach last season.
Demko inherits a program that hasn't had much success in recent years. The last time the girls team made the playoffs was in 2013.
Mike Bires is a sports reporter for the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at mbires@timesonline.com