Author: Beaver County Radio

Marion Twp. Secretary Named to PSATS Hall of Fame

The Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors has named a local secretary to its Hall of Fame. 65-year-old Marilyn Zona – who has served as Marion Township’s secretary/ treasurer for 40 years – was named to the group’s secretary wing of its Hall of Fame. She joins Sandy Wright of Greene Township, who was enshrined in 2013, as the only other honoree from Beaver County. There are no secretaries included from Lawrence or Allegheny Counties.

Commissioners Receive Latest 2019 Budget Numbers

In their first post-election work session, the Board of Commissioners got the latest update on the 2019 budget…an update that indicates a move in the right direction. Matt Drzik has more from the courthouse:

Matzie: $500,000 State Grant to Finance Improvements for Part of Pennsylvania Avenue in Monaca

A $500,000 state grant from the Commonwealth Financing Authority will fund streetscape renovations to a portion of Pennsylvania Avenue in Monaca. State Rep. Rob Matzie, D-Beaver/Allegheny made the announcement. Matzie said the renovations are needed because overhead utilities are being relocated to underground as part of the Monaca Gateway Initiative project – a major infrastructure overhaul designed to enhance traffic flow to and from the new Shell cracker plant under construction…

Matzie says the grant from the CFA Multimodal Transportation Fund will finance the following:

– the construction of 29-hundred linear feet of sidewalks.
– 12 crosswalks.
– 26 ADA-complaint curb ramps.
– the restoration of 14-hundred linear feet of roadway.
– stormwater management.
– installation of 18 streetlights.
– and streetscape amenities such as plantings, trash receptables and bike racks.

Monaca Borough is requesting a waiver to the local match requirement. The total project cost is approximately $2.3 million.

AP Exclusive: FBI Eyes How Pennsylvania Approved Pipeline

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The FBI is investigating how Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration came to issue permits for construction on a multibillion-dollar pipeline to carry natural gas liquids across Pennsylvania, The Associated Press has learned. FBI agents have interviewed current or former state employees in recent weeks about the Mariner East pipelines, according to three people who spoke on condition of anonymity. Wolf’s administration has said in the past that the permits contained strong environmental protections.

Guilty Verdict in Death Penalty Trial in Officer’s Slaying

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A jury has convicted a man of first-degree murder in the shooting death of a New Kensington police officer almost two years ago. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against 31-year-old Rahmael Sal Holt in the November 2017 slaying of officer Brian Shaw. Prosecutors contend Holt was an armed drug dealer who had planned to rob the driver of the SUV that Shaw attempted to stop in New Kensington on the night of the shooting. Holt has maintained that he wasn’t the person who fired.

BREAKING NEWS: Water Line Break in Aliquippa

BREAKING NEWS: Crews are working to repair a water line break in Aliquippa this afternoon. Beaver County Radio News Correspondent Sandy Giordano has more. Click on ‘play’ to hear Sandy’s report…

Pitt pulls away from Robert Morris 71-57

Pitt pulls away from Robert Morris 71-57
By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer
MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. (AP) — A double-digit deficit on the road. A capacity crowd in full throat. Pittsburgh has been there plenty over last two-plus years. And faltered each and every time.
For once, the Panthers pushed back, a small sign of growth for a program hoping to take another step toward respectability in head coach Jeff Capel’s second season.
Trey McGowens scored 25 points and Terrell Brown added eight points, nine rebounds and a career-high five blocks as Pitt spoiled the unveiling of Robert Morris’ sparkling UPMC Events Center in a 71-57 win on Tuesday night. Three days after getting upset at home by Nicholls State, the Panthers (2-1) responded by snapping a 24-game road losing streak that stretched back nearly three years.
The Colonials (0-3) used an 18-0 run in the first half to take an 11-point lead. Six-plus years after upsetting defending national champion Kentucky in a National Invitational Tournament game at the since-demolished Sewall Center, Robert Morris again staggered a Power Five conference team.
The Panthers, however, recovered behind McGowens’ relentlessness and the 6-foot-10 Brown’s dominance in the lane as Pitt earned its first true road victory since beating Boston College on Feb. 8, 2017.
“When they made their run, it was loud, we could have folded,” Capel said. “We have to understand the importance of each day. We are not a program and we don’t have the type of talent where you can just show up.”
A lesson the Panthers learned painfully against Nicholls State, a game in which Pitt led for just 35 seconds against a team picked to finish 11th in the Southland Conference. The Colonials, perennial contenders in the Northeastern Conference under coach Andy Toole, represented a bit of a step up in class. Throw in the debut of their new $45 million, 4,000-seat gym — a building that’s a testament to both the program Toole has built and the rapid expansion at the school of more than 5,000 students located 20 miles west of Pitt’s Oakland campus — and Robert Morris had all the intangibles required to beat the Panthers for the first time in 31 meetings.
The Colonials just didn’t have the tools necessary to slow down McGowens or overcome Brown’s size.
“Terrell Brown was really the difference in the game,” Toole said. “His ability to protect the rim, and make it hard for our guys to finish around the basket had a huge impact on us offensively.”
Josh Williams led Robert Morris with 12 points, Jalen Hawkins added 11 off the bench and Yannis Mendy had 10 points and six rebounds, but the Colonials — who didn’t have a player over 6-feet-8 — couldn’t keep pace over the final 20 minutes. Pitt, which scrambled back from the early hole to tie it at halftime, opened the second half with a 22-10 surge that broke it open.
The Panthers outrebounded Robert Morris 39-27, dominated Robert Morris in second-chance points (14-2) and kept the Colonials off the free throw line. Robert Morris didn’t even attempt a free throw in the second half and finished with just six for the game. McGowens, by comparison, made 8 of 10 at the line after getting to the stripe just nine times total over his first two games.
“I was just letting it come to me,” McGowens said.
PACKED HOUSE, NEW DAY?
Toole hopes the response to the debut of the Colonials’ glittering new venue — particularly from a raucous student section — is a sign of things to come. Robert Morris has averaged 20 wins a season over the last 12 years but all that success didn’t necessarily translate to a rowdy atmosphere at the Sewall Center. He thinks that can change going forward.
“I think this could become a great home court for us if we can get the campus and community support that I think these guys deserve,” Toole said. “It was a fun environment for them to come and cheer and be connected as a university community. I think that’s something to build upon. There’s a great source of pride being able to be in this building finally.”
BIG PICTURE
Pitt: The Panthers need to find some sort of identity on offense if they’re going to take another step forward in coach Jeff Capel’s second season. Through three games, Pitt has relied heavily on McGowens and Xavier Johnson getting to the basket. When they’re either finishing at the rim or getting fouled, the Panthers are competitive. When they’re not — as they weren’t against Nicholls State — Pitt will struggle to generate offense.
Robert Morris: The Colonials will have a chance to make some noise in the NEC. Picked to finish fifth, Robert Morris should be plenty battle-tested thanks to a nonconference schedule that includes games against Marquette and UNLV before league play begins.
UP NEXT
Pitt: Faces longtime rival West Virginia for the 129th time on Friday when the Mountaineers visit the Petersen Events Center.
Robert Morris: Plays Howard on Friday night in Toledo, Ohio as part of the Men Against Breast Cancer Invitational.
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More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25