Sports year marked by triumphs, tragedies
Members of the California University women’s basketball team bow theirs heads and lock arms during a moment of silence for deceased teammate Shanice Clark before the Vulcans’ game in January against Slippery Rock at the Convocation Center.
California University women’s basketball players Irina Kukolj, left, and Seairra Barrett celebrate after the Vulcans defeated California Baptist 86-69 in the NCAA Division II National Championship game in Sioux Falls, S.D. Above, inset, several Vulcans bow theirs heads and lock arms during a moment of silence for deceased teammate Shanice Clark before their game in January against Slippery Rock at the Convocation Center.
Waynesburg’s A.C. Headlee, right, celebrates after defeating Latrobe’s Luke Pletcher in their Class AAA 132-pound final at the PIAA Wrestling Championships in Hershey.
Observer-Reporter
Jefferson-Morgan softball player Camryn Dugan holds back tears during the medal ceremony after the Rockets won the WPIAL Class A championship by defeating Chartiers-Houston. The win came two weeks after Chris Dugan, Camryn’s father and an assistant coach for the Rockets, died of cancer.
Waynesburg’s Rachel Rohanna celebrates after winning the Symetra Tour’s Guardian Retirement Championship at Sara Bay in Sarasota, Fla.
Baseball’s all-time hits leader Pete Rose gestures as he sits in the Washington Wild Things’ dugout before a Frontier League game against the Lake Erie Crushers at Consol Energy Park.
Trinity High School shortstop Olivia Gray makes a diving catch of a line drive during the PIAA Class AAA softball championship game against Bethlehem Catholic at Beard Field in State College.
Canon-McMillan’s boys soccer players hoist the championship trophy after defeating Fox Chapel in the WPIAL Class AAA title match at Highmark Stadium.
Two unforgettable stories of tragedy and triumph, a major makeover for high school sports in Pennsylvania, a three-year football winning streak and a unique wrestling season were among the memorable local sports stories in 2015.
There were plenty of championships and outstanding individual accomplishments that were celebrated. The area continued to produce WPIAL and state champions. There also was one national championship that was rooted in a heartbreaking loss away from the field of play.
The following are the top 10 stories of the year, as selected by the Observer-Reporter’s sports department:
1. The California University women’s basketball team began 2015 with a 9-1 record and plenty of momentum. Before January ended, the Vulcans were dealt a crushing blow when senior forward Shanice Clark, who was being redshirted after suffering a hip injury in preseason practice, died in her sleep Jan. 18 because of complications from a blood cell disorder.
When the Vulcans returned to the court five days later, they lost by eight points at Gannon. Basketball didn’t seem so important at the time.
After traveling to Toronto for Clark’s funeral, the Vulcans turned the heartbreaking loss of a teammate into a motivating force.
Cal sent a message that it was back when it dismantled fifth-ranked Indiana, 76-45, on the Crimson Hawks’ home court Feb. 4.
There was another loss to Gannon, this one at home and in overtime, that cost the Vulcans the PSAC’s West Division regular-season title and put them in a difficult spot in the bracket for the conference tournament. But Cal ran the gauntlet, defeating Gannon, East Division champion Bloomsburg and West Chester to win the PSAC title.
Cal caught a break when Limestone (N.C.), which had a 26-2 record and was ranked No. 1 in the region, was forced to forfeit wins because of the use of an ineligible player. Limestone’s misfortune and Cal’s conference title catapulted the Vulcans from No. 4 to the top spot in the regional rankings in one week. That gave Cal home-court advantage for the Atlantic Regional at Hamer Hall and the Vulcans won three games, including hard-fought victories over West Liberty and Bloomsburg, to advance to the Elite 8 in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Once in South Dakota, the Vulcans left quite an impression.
After close wins over Nova Southeastern and Emporia State, Cal played one of its best games of the year in the final against California Baptist, rolling to an 86-68 victory and the program’s second national championship.
After the final seconds ticked off the game clock, Cal’s players raced to midcourt, huddled and chanted “Shanice! Shanice! Shanice!”
“Basketball was a way for the players to get their minds off everything back in January,” California head coach Jess Strom explained.
“They used practices, games and watching film as an escape. Instead of being sad, basketball is what they wanted to do. What they didn’t realize was, by doing that, they were getting better every day.”
2. A.C. Headlee of Waynesburg led a trio of PIAA wrestling champions from the Observer-Reporter’s coverage area when he won the state title at 132 pounds and was named the Class AAA Outstanding Wrestler. Headlee won two dramatic finals – both against Luke Pletcher, a defending state champion from Latrobe – to capture WPIAL and state titles. The last win was a 7-2 ultimate tiebreaker.
Freshman Gavin Teasdale of Jefferson-Morgan burst onto the Class AA scene by winning all 46 matches, including a 4-2 decision over Aaron Burkett of Chestnut Ridge in the 106-pound finals. Teasdale has a chance to become the first undefeated four-time PIAA champion from J-M since Cary Kolat (137-0, 1989-92).
Mike Carr of South Fayette also went undefeated in Class AA, winning his 44th straight bout in the 138-pound finals, 3-1 over Tyler Vath of Saegertown.
3. High school athletics in the state of Pennsylvania will never be the same after the PIAA Board of Directors approved an expansion from four to six classifications in football, basketball, baseball and softball.
How the change happened was the biggest surprise of all. The process was expected to take at least one more meeting, but the board suspended protocol and passed the change with a 23-7. The plan was originally developed by Bob Tonkin, the District 9 chairman, to shorten the football season, but it caused a chain reaction through other sports.
Additionally, both boys and girls soccer, as well as volleyball, expanded from three to four classifications and field hockey from two to three. WPIAL officials opposed the change, citing the loss of Heinz Field for its football championship games and natural rivalries could be lost.
4. With each passing week this fall, South Fayette made history. The Lions’ football team stretched its winning streak to 44 games – tied for the third-longest in WPIAL history – when it defeated Steel Valley in the Class AA semifinals with a goal-line stand as time expired.
The streak ended eight days later, when South Fayette lost to Aliquippa, 44-38, in the WPIAL championship game at Heinz Field. The Lions twice overcame 14-point deficits, but a wide receiver pass put a stop to one of the most memorable runs the area has seen.
The 44-game winning streak included three conference championships, two WPIAL titles and two PIAA titles – the first Class AA team to accomplish the feat since the state playoffs began in 1988.
5. Hundreds of Greene County residents gathered at California University’s Lilley Field May 28 to both remember a coach and witness Jefferson-Morgan’s softball team try to win its first WPIAL softball championship.
The Rockets, who were mourning the loss of Chris Dugan, an assistant coach who died of cancer almost two weeks earlier, defeated Chartiers-Houston 3-2 to win the Class A championship. J-M scattered four hits and senior pitcher Mdison Ludrosky struck out 12 batters to upset of the top-seeded Bucs.
Dugan’s daughter, Camryn, the Rockets’ starting second baseman, hit a solo home run in the semifinals, only five days after her father’s death.
It was the school’s first district title in the spring sports season and the first WPIAL team title since 1995. Jefferson-Morgan went on to win the program’s first state playoff game and reached the PIAA quarterfinals before losing to Cochranton.
6. Rachel Rohanna of Waynesburg earned her LPGA tour card for next season by finishing in 10th place on the Symetra Tour’s money list. The Symetra is the LPGA’s official developmental tour.
A PIAA champion at Waynesburg High School and a former standout player at Ohio State, Rohanna tied for 24th in the season-ending Tour Championship at Daytona Beach, Fla. She earned $1,553 to raise her season total to $53,867, which was $284 more than No. 11 Haruka Morita-Wanyaolu. The top 10 on the Symetra Tour’s money list automatically gained LPGA Tour cards.
Rohanna also earned the first victory of her professional career in April at the Guardian Retirement Championship at Sara Bay in Sarasota, Fla., to ignite her run for the LPGA Tour. She added five top-10 finishes, including a third at the Symetra Classic.
“Playing on the LPGA tour has been my dream since I was 9,” Rohanna said.
7. Frank Zebrasky was fired as head coach of Canon-McMillan’s baseball team at season’s end. He was suspended for three games early in the season after the district launched an investigation into misbehavior by players during the team’s spring trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C. Following the investigation, multiple players were indefinitely suspended.
Zebrasky led the program to three consecutive appearances in the WPIAL playoffs and his record as baseball coach was 68-63, including 38-21 over the past three seasons.
Zebrasky’s job as C-M’s girls basketball coach also was opened.
8. On the last night of June, the player who is first on the major leagues’ all-time hits list visited Consol Energy Park to talk baseball, coach a couple of innings during a Wild Things game against the Lake Erie Crushers and sell his autograph.
Pete Rose, now 74 years old, visited Washington on a rain-plagued night but that didn’t put a damper on the festivities for fans young and old who paid $40 for an autograph or the 91 people who paid $100 for a meet-and-greet session with the 17-time all-star.
Rose’s appearance came one week after an ESPN report provided evidence that Rose bet on baseball as a player and manager for the Cincinnati Reds. As controversy swirled around him, Rose met with the media at PONY Baseball headquarters but refused to answer questions about being banned for life from Major League Baseball. He was hoping not to jeopardize his chances of being reinstated by new commissioner Rob Manfred.
Earlier this month, Manfred rejected Rose’s plea for reinstatement.
9. Trinity High School’s rollercoaster softball season came only a few soggy plays away from ending at the zenith – a state championship. The most successful season in Hillers history ended with a 2-0 loss to Bethlehem Catholic in the PIAA Class AAA final at Penn State, a game that was delayed by rain for 96 minutes in the sixth inning.
Trinity (20-6), a team loaded with offensive firepower and slick fielders, won in a variety of ways. After finishing second in Section 4 to qualify for the WPIAL playoffs, the Hillers received a one-hit shutout and two RBI from pitcher Paige Galentine in the opening round for a 6-0 win over Central Valley. Trinity’s powerful lineup destroyed West Allegheny, 20-3, in the quarterfinals before the Hillers suffered a puzzling 10-1 loss to Yough in the semifinals.
The Hillers almost didn’t make the PIAA playoffs. They had to qualify for the state tournament by winning the WPIAL’s third-place game, which they did, routing Southmoreland, 10-1.
The state tournament began with a Galentine throwing a two-hit shutout – she pitched her best games in bad weather – for a 3-0 win over Warren on a bitter-cold day in Erie. The Hillers then had their most satisfying win of the year, playing small ball to beat Section 4 rival and WPIAL champion Belle Vernon, 8-4. A hard-fought 3-2 win over Bellwood-Antis in the semifinals sent Trinity to its first championship game appearance.
Shortstop Olivia Gray led the Hillers’ potent lineup by batting .611 with 15 doubles, four triples and seven home runs in only 91 plate appearances. She was named the Pennsylvania High School Coaches Association Class AAA Player of the Year.
10. High school soccer programs from the local area have been a fixture at the WPIAL championships for years and 2015 was no different. This time, three programs played and two left Highmark Stadium with a gold medal. All three matches went to overtime.
The Canon-McMillan boys team won its first WPIAL title since 2012, when sophomore forward Brandon Byer scored with 7:58 left in overtime to give the Big Macs to a 2-1 victory over Fox Chapel in the Class AAA final. During the Big Macs’ playoff run, which ended in the PIAA quarterfinals, all six of their matches were decided by one goal.
Facing a perennial power that included one of the nation’s top high school players, the Charleroi girls returned to the WPIAL finals for the first time since 1999 and didn’t blink at Greensburg Central Catholic’s high-powered attack. The Cougars, however, fell, 1-0, in the Class A title match, allowing a goal in the second overtime. The Cougars, behind an outstanding season by Kyra Watkins and a defense that shut opponents out 17 times, went on reach the PIAA quarterfinals, where thye lost to Loyalsock Township, 1-0 at Mansion Park in Altoona.
South Fayette’s boys team won the program’s first district championship with a 3-2 overtime win over Mars in the Class AA title match. Senior striker Jordan Smith scored from 25 yards out with 7:35 remaining. The Lions advanced to the PIAA quarterfinals, but lost to Susquehannock, 1-0.