Category: Sports

Pitt fires embattled women’s basketball coach Tory Verdi amid court struggles and legal issues

(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – Pitt Head Coach Tory Verdi speaks during a ACC women’s NCAA college basketball media day, Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson, ,File)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh fired women’s basketball coach Tory Verdi on Tuesday, ending a three-year tenure in which the Panthers struggled to find success on the court and Verdi potentially ran into trouble off it.

Athletic director Allen Greene announced the decision shortly after the Panthers missed the ACC women’s tournament after going 8-23, including a 1-17 mark in conference play.

“After a thorough and thoughtful evaluation of our women’s basketball program, it has been determined that we have not progressed enough competitively and now is the right time to seek a new leader for our program,” Greene said in a statement. “We thank Tory for his dedication over the past three seasons and wish him and his family nothing but the best in their future endeavors. The search process for our next leader is already underway.”

The decision comes just weeks after former Pitt players filed a lawsuit against Verdi and the university, alleging they were subject to Verdi’s abusive coaching methods and their pleas for the university to intervene went unheard. The school has denied the allegations.

Verdi went 29-66 with the Panthers, who hired him in 2023 following a lengthy run at Massachusetts.

Pitt’s next coach will be the program’s third in four years. The Panthers have struggled to find their footing since moving from the Big East to the ACC in 2013. Pitt has just one NCAA tournament appearance since swapping conferences, and that came in 2015 under Suzie McConnell Serio.

The 2025-2026 PIAA girls high school basketball playoffs kicks off this weekend

(File Photo of the Basketball Schedule Broadcast Logo)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Beaver County, PA) The 2025-2026 PIAA girls high school basketball playoffs are ready to begin with its first-round tipping off this Friday and Saturday. Seven teams from the area of the Beaver Valley will compete in this year’s state playoffs. They are Aliquippa, Beaver Falls, Blackhawk, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Quaker Valley, Rochester and Sewickley Academy. According to the Beaver County Times, here is the full schedule for the first round of the 2025-2026 PIAA girls high school basketball playoffs, with the local teams in bold:

Friday, March 6th

2A: Aliquippa at Keystone, 6 p.m.

2A: Rochester at Kennedy Catholic, 7 p.m.

3A: Quaker Valley at Northwestern, 7 p.m.

3A: Seneca at Beaver Falls, 7 p.m.

3A: OLSH at Central Cambria, 7 p.m.

Saturday, March 7th

4A: Fairview at Blackhawk, 1 p.m.

1A: Sewickley Academy at Farrell, 1 p.m.

Penguins goaltender Arturs Silovs recognized as the NHL’s Second Star of the Week ending March 1st, 2026

(Credit for Photo: Photo Courtesy of Gene J. Puskar/ AP(The Associated Press))

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Arturs Silovs had two amazing games over the past week and was recognized by the NHL for his performances. Silovs was named the NHL’s Second Star for the week ending on March 1st. According to the Penguins, for all goaltenders with at least two games played over the past week, Silovs leads all major categories. The Penguins have earned points in 20 of their last 23 games, while also ranking in the top-three in the NHL for points, wins, win percentage, goals against, goals-against average and save percentage during that time. 

Top 2026 MLB prospect Konnor Griffin continues to perform for the Pirates in spring training

(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – Pittsburgh Pirates’ Konnor Griffin plays during a spring training baseball game, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026, in Clearwater. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum,File)

JUPITER, Fla. (AP) — Top prospect Konnor Griffin homered for the third time this spring in the first inning of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ matchup with the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday.

The 19-year-old Griffin, ranked as MLB Pipeline’s No. 1 prospect, started at shortstop for the Pirates and hit a two-run shot off Kyle Leahy to give Pittsburgh a 2-0 lead.

Griffin went deep twice against the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday.

The Pirates drafted Griffin in the first round in 2024. He reached Double-A last year, where he hit .337 with a .960 OPS in 21 games for Altoona.

Sewickley Academy wins their sixth WPIAL 2A high school boys basketball championship

(File Photo of the Basketball Broadcast Schedule Logo)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) Sewickley Academy raised the WPIAL 2A boys high school basketball trophy for the first time since 2018 on Friday after their 52-38 win over Jeannette at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh to win its sixth title in program history. Junior forward Adam Ikamba and sophomore forward Mamadou Kane each scored 14 points. The Panthers will face the No. 3 team out of District 10 at a site and time to be determined on Saturday, March 7th. 

Aliquippa wins record 15th WPIAL boys high school basketball 3A championship with their 65-54 win over South Allegheny

(File Photo of an Aliquippa Quips Flag)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) Aliquippa made history at the WPIAL boys high school basketball 3A championship on Saturday by winning its league record 15th WPIAL title in program history with a 65-54 win over South Allegheny at the Petersen Events Center in Pittsburgh. Senior guard Qa’lil Goode had a game high of 30 points along with eight rebounds for the Quips. Goode is used to winning a WPIAL championship with Aliquippa because the multi-sport star caught the game-winning touchdown in Aliquippa’s 21-12 win over McKeesport at Pine Richland High School on November 15th, 2025 to win their 21st high school football WPIAL 4A Championship. The Aliquippa boys high school basketball team will be playing the runner-up of the subregional game between District IX and 10 at a site and time to be determined on Saturday, March 7th. 

Rust and Kindel help the Penguins beat the Golden Knights 5-0

 

(FIle Photo: Source for Photo: Pittsburgh Penguins’ Egor Chinakhov, center, celebrates with Justin Brazeau, left, and Tommy Novak, right, after scoring against the Vegas Golden Knights during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Pittsburgh, Sunday, March 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Bryan Rust, Ben Kindel and Justin Brazeau each had a goal and an assist, helping the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Vegas Golden Knights 5-0 on Sunday.

Rickard Rakell and Egor Chinakhov also scored as Pittsburgh improved to 10-1-3 in its last 14 games. Erik Karlsson had two assists, and Arturs Silovs made 22 saves in his first shutout since opening night on Oct. 7 at the New York Rangers.

Vegas goaltender Adin Hill stopped 17 shots. The Golden Knights dropped to 4-7-2 in their last 13 games.

Vegas captain Mark Stone left late in the first period with an undisclosed injury. Penguins defenseman Kris Letang gave Stone a seemingly harmless shove to the left arm with his stick in the neutral zone, though it may have caught him in the gap between his elbow and shoulder pads. Stone grimaced in pain, went down to one knee and skated off.

Kindel, a first-round pick in the 2025 draft who turns 19 on April 19, scored his 15th goal with 5:04 left in the first.

The Penguins grabbed control with three more goals in the second. Rust and Rakell each scored on the power play.

Brazeau made it 5-0 with 5:01 left in the third. It was Brazeau’s 16th on the season, extending his career high.

Up next

Both teams play again on Tuesday night. The Golden Knights visit Buffalo, and the Penguins are at Boston.

 

Trocheck scores shootout winner as Rangers edge Penguins 3-2

 

(File Photo: Source for Photo: New York Rangers center Vincent Trocheck (16) shoots the puck past Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Stuart Skinner (74) during a shootout in an NHL hockey game Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

NEW YORK (AP) — Vincent Trocheck scored the shootout winner and Igor Shesterkin made 31 saves and the New York Rangers rallied to defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 on Saturday.

After an overtime in which each team had several good scoring chances, Trocheck beat Penguins goaltender Stuart Skinner with the only goal of the shootout as the Rangers snapped a five-game losing streak. Shesterkin made five saves in overtime.

Mika Zibanejad and Taylor Raddysh also scored for the Rangers. The last-place Rangers are 7-15-5 at home this season.

Anthony Mantha and defenseman Ryan Shea scored for the Penguins, who had their two-game winning streak stopped. Pittsburgh is 8-1-2 since Jan. 17.

Mantha beat Shesterkin at 2:08 of the first with his 21st goal of the season. Shea made it 2-0 at 1:59 of the second with his fourth goal.

Zibanjead scored his team-leading 24th goal on the power play at the 10-minute mark of the second.

Raddysh tied it with his ninth at 2:57 of the third with assists to Vladislav Gavrikov and Brendan Brisson. It was Brisson’s first point as a Ranger.

Forward Tye Kartye, claimed off waivers from Seattle on Friday, made his Rangers debut.

Shesterkin made his second straight start since returning for Thursday’s 3-2 home overtime loss to Philadelphia. Shesterkin had suffered a lower-body injury suffered on Jan. 5

Skinner made 23 saves in defeat.

The Penguins under first-year head coach Dan Muse – a former Rangers assistant — lead the Rangers by 20 points in the Metropolitan Division.

The Rangers, coached by former Penguins coach Mike Sullivan, are last at 23-29-7.

The Penguins were without captain Sidney Crosby who suffered a lower-body injury at the Winter Olympics in Milan. The 38-year-old center leads Pittsburgh with 27 goals and 59 points. He is expected to miss four weeks.

Up next

Rangers: host Columbus on Monday.

Penguins: host Vegas on Sunday.

 

Source: Steelers place last out of the 32 NFL teams in this year’s NFL Players Association survey

(Source for Photo: Pittsburgh Steelers’ DK Metcalf wipes his face on the bench during the second half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Detroit. Credit for Photo: (AP Photo/Rey Del Rio)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) The Pittsburgh Steelers ranked in last place out of the thirty-two NFL teams in a recent NFL Players Association annual report card and the team received low grades in several categories, according to survey results obtained by ESPN. This is the first time in the four-year history of that survey that the Steelers were placed in last and that team finished in 28th in this survey in 2025. This report grades the thirty-two NFL franchises from A-plus to F-minus on everything from ownership to treatment of families and the survey results obtained by ESPN confirm that this year’s report cards are based on responses from 1,759 players. All of the NFL football players who were on a 2025 roster at the time of the survey were eligible to participate, and it was conducted from November 2nd through December 11th, 2025. 

Late goals by Clifton and Chinakhov push the Penguins past Jack Hughes and the Devils 4-1

 

(File Photo: Source for Photo: Pittsburgh Penguins’ Tommy Novak (18) celebrates his goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the New Jersey Devils in Pittsburgh, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Connor Clifton and Egor Chinakhov scored 50 seconds apart in the third period and the Pittsburgh Penguins surged past Jack Hughes and the reeling New Jersey Devils 4-1 on Thursday night.

Tommy Novak, serving as the first-line center while captain Sidney Crosby recovers from a lower-body injury sustained at the Milan Cortina Olympics, picked up his 12th goal of the season. Blake Lizotte added an empty-netter late for Pittsburgh, which has won eight of 10 to move into second place in the crowded Metropolitan Division.

Arturs Silovs stopped 28 shots to win for the fourth time in five starts.

Paul Cotter scored his sixth goal of the season for the Devils but couldn’t halt New Jersey’s slide. The Devils have dropped seven of eight to fall off the pace in the race for one of the Eastern Conference’s two wild-card spots.

Hughes, who carved out a piece of U.S. Olympic history when he scored the winning goal in the gold medal game against Canada, received an extended ovation on the road — replete with chants of “Huuuughes” and “USA! USA!” — during a brief pregame ceremony in which the Penguins acknowledged the gold-medal winning U.S. men’s and women’s teams, as well as members of Team Canada.

The Penguins have pledged to stay in the playoff mix without Crosby. They began a busy stretch without him by using solid goaltending from Silovs and timely playmaking to keep it going.

Clifton’s blast past Jacob Markstrom 6:30 into the third period gave Pittsburgh a 2-1 lead. Chinakhov doubled the Penguins’ advantage less than a minute later when he collected a stretch pass from Evgeni Malkin then slipped the puck between Markstrom’s legs for his ninth goal in 19 games since being acquired from Columbus in December.

Up next

Devils: At St. Louis on Saturday.

Penguins: At the New York Rangers on Saturday.