Bethel Park High School

2011-2012 Athletic Highlights

Boys Soccer  WPIAL Quarterfinalist.  Section Champions  Ryan Thorsen and A.J. Vescovi were named All-WPIAL.  Ryan Thorsen, A.J. Vescovi, Sean Gallagher, Matt Vater and Clayton were named to the All- Section Team. Spencer Steinhaus was named Honorable Mention.  Ryan Thorsen, Matt Vater and A.J. Vescovi were selected to play in the WPSCA AAA All-Star Game.  A.J. Vescovi and Ryan Thorsen were named to The Almanac’s Boys Soccer All-Star Team. Matt Vater, Sean Gallagher and Clayton Schrey were named Honorable Mentions.  Junior Sean Gallagher was named a McDonald’s Sports Town South Feature Athlete.

Football  Qualified for the WPIAL Playoffs.  Evan Schweitzer, Eric Malle, Galega Atte, Conner Wilson and Matt Spegal were named to the All-Conference First Team.  Mike Dunlap, Anthony Cinello, John Mascaro, Jordan Hayes, Jonathan Kobal and Danny Christenson were named to the All-Conference Second Team.  Mike Grimm and Michael Brucker were named All-Conference Honorable Mentions.  Evan Schweitzer was named to The Almanac’s 2011 Football All-Star Team. Galaga Atte, Anthony Cinello, Danny Christenson, John Kobal, Eric Malle, Connor Wilson and Matt Spegal were named Honorable Mentions.

Ice Hockey  The Varsity Team are the Penguin Cup Champions!  The Varsity Team finished as the State Runner-Up.  The JV Team were Section Champions and qualified for the Playoffs.  Jacob Brown was named the high school hockey player of the year by the Post Gazette. Zach Volzer was also named to the PG Stellar Six 2011-2012 all-area hockey team.  Jacob Brown was named the South Player of the Year by the Post Gazette and a member of the South Xtra Stellar Six Hockey All-Stars. He was joined on the Stellar Six by teammate Zach Volzer.  Zachary Volzer, Jacob Brown and Alex Blum were selected to play on the Class AAA Southwest Team in the PIHL All-Star Game. Head Coach Jim McVay was selected as an Assistant Coach for the game.  The Team received a #5 Pre-Season Ranking in the Post Gazette.

Girls Tennis  The Team qualified for the WPIAL Team Playoffs.  Sophomore Nina Barbano advanced to the Semifinals of the Section Singles Tournament and qualified for the WPIAL Singles Championships.  The Team was featured in a September 22 Post-Gazette article.

Girls Cross Country  The Team finished in Seventh Place at the WPIAL Championships. Kelsey Metheny finished in seventh place; Amanda Ruschel was 10th and Hillary Boxheimer was 20th. All three runners qualified to compete in the PIAA State Championships.  The Team finished in Third Place at the California University Invitational. Top 10 runners were Hillary Boxheimer (third) and Kelsey Metheny (fourth).  The Team finished in Sixth Place at the Red, White and Blue Classic. Hillary Boxheimer finished in Second Place and Kelsey Metheny finished in Sixth Place.  The Team finished in Fifth Place at the Central Catholic Invitational. Hillary Boxheimer finished in Fourth Place and Kelsey Metheny was Ninth.  Kelsey Metheny finished in Ninth Place at the Tri-State Coaches Championship.

Boys Cross Country  Thomas Bailey finished in 30th Place at the WPIAL Championships and qualified to compete in the PIAA State Championships.  The Team won the Mingo Creek Classic. Thomas Bailey finished in Eighth Place.  The Team finished in Third Place at the Uniontown Invitational.

Boys Golf  Sean Edgar finished in 16th Place at the WPIAL Championships and advanced to the PIAA West Regional Playoffs.  Sean Edgar finished in Sixth Place at the WPIAL Boys Golf Divisional Semifinals and advanced to the WPIAL Championships.  Junior Brody Taylor was named a “Player to Watch” by the Tribune Review.

Girls Volleyball  Four Players were named All-Section by the WPIAL. Stacey Kazalas was named to the First Team; Meghan Balogh was named to the Second Team; and Abbey Marks and Shannon Schaefer were named to the Third Team.  The Team was featured in a September 23 Post Gazette article.  The Varsity Volleyball Team on the South Fayette Tournament.  The Varsity Volleyball Team won the California University of Pennsylvania Summer Camp Tournament for the second consecutive year.  The Varsity Volleyball Team won the Greentree Sportsplex Summer League.

Girls Soccer  A.J. Baroffio and Alexis Keibler were named to the Section All-Stars.

Girls Basketball  WPIAL Quarterfinalist.  Justine Carroll was selected to the Class AAAA Fab 5 All-Star Team by the Post Gazette and is a member of the PG South’s Fabulous Five.  Justine Carroll was named to the Section 4 All-Star Team and joined by teammate Megan Marecic.  The Almanac named Justine Carroll to its Elite Eleven Girls Basketball All-Star First Team and Megan Marecic to its All-Star Second Team.  Justine Carroll was selected to play on the AAAA Team in the 2012 Roundball Classic.  Justine Carroll was named to the All-Tournament Team for the Bethel Park Tip-Off Tournament.  The Post Gazette gave the team a #3 Pre-Season Ranking and named Megan Marecic a “Class AAAA Player to Watch.” It picked the Hawks as a Contender for a Section Championship.  The Tribune Review gave the team a #5 Pre-Season Ranking and named Megan Marecic a “Pre-Season Player to Watch.”

Boys Basketball  Qualified for the WPIAL Playoffs.  Brian Holland was selected to play in the 17th annual Hoops for a Cure WPIAL Boys All-Star Basketball Game.  Brian Holland and Evan Schweitzer were named to The Almanac’s Boys Basketball All-Star Second Team. Cody Gilchrist was named Honorable Mention and Coach Ben O’Connor was named Coach of the Year.  Brian Holland was named First Team All-Section by the Beaver County Times.  The Team won the Bethel Park Tip-Off Tournament. Cody Gilchrist and Evan Schweitzer were named to the All-Tournament Team. Brian Holland was named Tournament MVP.

Boys Swimming  Finished in Fourth Place at the WPIAL Championships. o Erik Brinkhoff was the WPIAL Champion in the 50 Freestyle and finished in Third Place in the 100 Freestyle. o The 200 Freestyle Relay Team—Zach Misak, Danny Litwin, Mitch Stahara and Erik Brinkhoff—finished in Third Place. o Zachary Misak finished in Third Place in the 100 Backstroke and Fifth Place in the 50 Freestyle. o The 400 Freestyle Relay Team—Mitchel Stahara, Danny Litwin, Zach Misak and Erik Brinkhoff—finished in Third Place. o Mitchel Stahara finished in Seventh Place in the 100 Freestyle. o Illya Vogel finished in Eighth Place in the 100 Butterfly and 16th Place in the 200 Individual Medley. o The 200 Medley Relay Team—Vinny Tavoletti, Thomas Bailey, Illya Vogel and Daniel Snyder—finished in Eighth Place. o Thomas Bailey finished in 11th Place in the 100 Breaststroke and 14th Place in the 200 Individual Medley. o Danny Litwin finished in 12th Place in the 500 Freestyle and 16th Place in the 200 Freestyle.  Zach Misak, Danny Litwin, Erik Brinkhoff and Mitchel Stahara qualified to compete at the State Swimming Championships.  At the State Championships, the 200 Freestyle Relay Team—Zach Misak, Danny Litwin, Mitch Stahara and Erik Brinkhoff—finished in Seventh Place.  Erik Brinkhoff received the Most Positive High School Athlete in Western Pennsylvania in the sport of Boys Swimming and Diving. He was presented his award by retired Pittsburgh Steeler Hines Ward at a dinner honoring all of the area’s Positive Athletes.

Girls Swimming and Diving  The Team finished in Sixth Place at the WPIAL Championships. o Ashley Sams finished in Second Place at the WPIAL Diving Championships. o Allie Brinkhoff finished in Third Place in the 200 Individual Medley and in Fourth Place in the 100 Backstroke. o The 200 Medley Relay Team—Emily Eiben, Kelly Kramer, Jessica Hirsh and Rebecca Yonek—finished in Fifth Place. o Megan Douds finished in Sixth Place in the 100 Butterfly and 15th Place in the 200 Freestyle. o The 400 Freestyle Relay Team—Megan Douds, Rebecca Yonek, Emily Eiben and Allie Brinkhoff—finished in Seventh Place. o The 200 Freestyle Relay Team—Megan Douds, Jessica Hirsh, Rebecca Yonek and Allie Brinkhoff—finished in Ninth Place. o Emily Eiben finished in 10th Place in the 100 Backstroke and in 11th Place in the 200 Individual Medley. o Jessica Hirsh finished in 13th Place in the 100 Butterfly. o Rebecca Yonek finished in 13th Place in the 500 Freestyle. o Kelly Kramer finished in 16th Place in the 100 Butterfly and 100 Breaststroke. o Aubrey Hoffman finished in 16th Place in the 500 Freestyle.  Emily Eiben, Jessica Hirsh, Rebecca Yonek, Allie Brinkhoff, Megan Douds, Ashley Sams and Kelly Kramer qualified for the State Swimming and Diving Championships.  At the State Championships, Ashley Sams finished in Sixth Place in the Diving competition and Allie Brinkhoff finished in Eighth Place in the 200 Individual Medley.

Rifle  Jim Lofstead finished in 13th Place at the WPIAL Individual Rifle Championships and qualified to compete in the State Rifle Championships.  Autumn Held finished in Fourth Place and Will Botzer finished in Fifth Place at the WPIAL Senior Shoot.

Wrestling  Ben Nolan is the Section 4 Champion at 182 pounds. Other wrestlers who finished among the top five at the Section Championships and advanced to the WPIAL Championships were Brian Brust (#3 at 285), Paul Dunn (#4 at 132), Dan Sullivan (#4 at 170) and Aaron Plopi (#5 at 138). Other top six finishers included Justin Fonner (#6 at 126) and Christian Riley (#6 at 160).  The Team finished in Fourth Place at the Eastern Area Tournament, earning three Second Places (Paul Dunn, Dylan Mogan and Ben Nolan), three Third Places (Dan Sullivan, Matt Nolan and Brian Brust), one Fifth Place (Nick Sabol) and one Sixth Place (Sam Gercak).  The Almanac named Ben Nolan to its 2012 Wrestling All-Star Team.  The Post Gazette South named senior Dylan Mogan as a “South Top Returning Class AAA Wrestler.”

Indoor Track  Kelsey Metheny, Tatianna Ruzzini, Amanda Ruschel and Hillary Boxheimer medaled at the State Indoor Track Championships, finished in Seventh Place in the Girls DMR event.  For the third consecutive year Kelsey Metheny, Amanda Ruschel, Hillary Boxheimer and Stephie Cobb are the TSTCA Indoor Track and Field 4x800 Relay Champions.  The Girls DMR Relay Team (Kelsey Metheny, Hillary Boxheimer, Amanda Ruschel and Tatiana Ruzzini) captured First Place, set a Meet Record and qualified for States at the February 18 Edinboro Meet.  The Boys 4x800 Relay Team (Chris Harkins, A.J. Vescovi, Trevor Walter and Ryan Lee) finished in First Place at the Edinboro Meet and qualified for the State Championships.  The Girls DMR Relay Team (Kelsey Metheny, Hillary Boxheimer, Amanda Ruschel and Tatiana Ruzzini) and the 4x800 Relay Team (Stephanie Cobb, Kelsey Metheny, Hillary Boxheimer and Amanda Ruschel) captured First Place in their respective events at the Edinboro Meet.  Senior Kelsey Metheny qualified for the Indoor Track State Championships in the 800 meters at the Edinboro Meet.  Freshman Lexi Stevenson qualified for the Indoor Track State Championships in shot put on the first throw of her high school career. She also won her first meet—the Hempfield Shot Put Meet.

Cheerleading  The BPHS Cheerleaders (Varsity, JV and Junior High Squads) won eight awards and Superior Ribbons at the UCA Elite Cheerleading Camp at Slippery Rock University. The Varsity Squad won First Place in the Cheer and Xtreme Routine competitions and the JV Squad won First Place in the same events. The Junior High Squad earned First Place in the Home Pom and Xtreme Routine competitions and Third Place in the Cheer competition. The Bethel Park Cheerleading Program was awarded a Superior Program Trophy for their outstanding performances all week.  Twelve Cheerleaders were named UCA All-Americans: Varsity Cheerleaders Brittany Carson, Brittney Gregg, Emily Swogger and Cassie Zekeny; JV Cheerleaders Brenna Erzen, Kourtney Leech Emily Mackowiak and Kara Kosmer; Junior High Cheerleaders Grace Brueggman, Jaime Gerst, Carolyn Vona and Amanda Vorko.

In-Line Hockey  The Junior Varsity 2 Team earned the Silver Medal in the JV2 Championship Series.  Several students were named to the 2012 PIRHL’s All-Star Teams. Jimmy Stitt, Connor Farren and Jon Drozd were named to the PIRHL Varsity 1 All-Star Team. Ethan Rupprecht and Gage Niedermeyer were named to the Varsity 2 Team. Jared Robbins and Dylan Karas were named to the Junior Varsity 2 Team. Josh Kimes and Michael Harrington were named to the Middle School 3 and 4 Teams. Dawson Gainar was named to the Elementary 2 Team.

Fencing  Randi Fedela was named to the 2011 USA Fencing All-Academic Team.

Other Accolades  Girls Swimming Coach Bill Kennedy was inducted into the Pennsylvania Swimming Hall of Fame before the State Swimming Championships in Bucknell.  Swimmer Mallory Mutschler accepted a scholarship to continue her swimming career at Lock Haven University next year.  Track athletes Hillary Boxheimer and Kelsey Metheny accepted scholarships to continue their track careers at the University of Pittsburgh next year.  Senior Kelsey Metheny received the KDKA-TV/Allegheny General Hospital Sports Medicine Extra Effort Award on December 7 in recognition of her accomplishments on the Cross Country and Track Teams, her academic achievements and her commitment to community service.  Athletic Director Amy Scheuneman was inducted into the Plum High School Sports Hall of Fame. She earned 14 varsity letters at Plum and was All-WPIAL in soccer. At Robert Morris University, she played soccer and pole vaulted.