Neshannock coach reflects on season
Luann Grybowski’s idea of going to the most magical place on earth didn’t include a trip to Disney World.
After four decades of coaching and nearly 700 wins, the Neshannock coach’s dream was to travel to Hershey and play for a state title for the first time.
It turns out it was everything she dreamed of and more.
“I told the kids, ‘I don’t know if I can find a word other than magical,’” Grybowski said. “It was a magical experience, a magical season for these young kids. An experience of a lifetime. It took me 41 years of coaching to get there. And some of those girls are only 14 or 15 years old.”
Neshannock came up short in the final, losing to Mount Carmel, 54-43, in last Thursday’s PIAA Class 3A championship. Despite the loss, Grybowski said she took with her so many great memories from the trip, among them the community giving the team a spirited send-off prior to leaving for Hershey, as well as a trip to Hershey’s Chocolate World after the game to see how candy bars are made.
Grybowski admits that there had been times over the years that she thought she might never make it to a state final, this despite a fantastic career that has seen her win 685 games and five WPIAL titles.
As for eventually winning one, it certainly wouldn’t be a surprise if that came next season considering Neshannock does not graduate any seniors from a team that won a WPIAL championship and finished 19-3. In fact, point guard Neleh Nogay is the team’s only junior. All of the other players are freshmen and sophomores.
“I’ve already told them, ‘With next year comes a target on your back,’” said Grybowski. “There will be higher expectations, which is good.”
Future is bright
Neshannock isn’t the only PIAA girls finalist from the WPIAL that should be loaded again next season. The same can be said about Class 6A champion North Allegheny and Class 5A runner-up Chartiers Valley.
North Allegheny graduates three seniors, two of whom were key starters: Lizzy Groetsch and Paige Morningstar. Reserve Maddy Reardon graduates, as well, but everyone else returns, including three players who started the PIAA final: sophomores Jasmine Timmerson and Cam Phillips and freshman Kellie McConnell. Junior Emma Fischer, a starter for most of the season, will also be back, as will junior Taylor Rawls, a projected starter who did not play after suffering a season-ending injury in the fall.
There was no need for Chartiers Valley to have a senior night this season.
That’s because the Colts didn’t have any. That bodes well for next season, as the junior- dominated team should again be a PIAA championship contender. All five players who started in the PIAA championship were juniors: Aislin Malcolm, Perri Page, Hallie and Helene Cowan, and Abby Vaites. The Colts will also have junior Marian Turnbull, a starter during the regular season who was ineligible for the postseason due to PIAA transfer rules. Freshman Ella Cupka saw time in the PIAA final, as well.
“We all know we’re juniors and we know we’ll be back, and we’re hungrier than ever now,” Malcolm said.
Class 3A runner-up Mohawk will have the most turnover. Four starters will graduate, a quartet that combined to score all 56 of the team’s points in the championship loss to West Catholic. The only returning starter will be junior Jordan Radzymynski.
Double golds
North Allegheny’s PIAA title was its first in program history, but for two of its players, it marked a second state championship this school year.
Senior Paige Morningstar and sophomore Mia Tuman were standouts for the North Allegheny volleyball team, which captured its fourth consecutive PIAA Class 4A championship in November. Morningstar has been a part of all four championship teams and Tuman the past two. Both were named all-state this past season.
Morningstar shined in both championship games her senior year, tallying a team-best 30 assists in North Allegheny’s 3-0 win against Unionville in the volleyball championship, and scoring 16 points in a 55-40 win against Spring-Ford in the basketball championship.
Getting an assist
One of the top freshmen in the Atlantic 10 helped out Chartiers Valley in its championship tilt against Cardinal O’Hara. Duquesne’s Megan McConnell sat on the bench offering words of advice and encouragement to Chartiers Valley players.
As a junior at Chartiers Valley two seasons ago, McConnell, daughter of Colts’ coach Tim McConnell, helped the team win their first state title. In 16 games (nine starts) playing for Duquesne this past season, McConnell averaged 7.5 points and led the Dukes in assists and steals.
Tim McConnell laughed when a reporter jokingly asked him if he thought about giving his daughter a jersey at halftime.
Said McConnell, “It would have been nice to have her from the beginning.”