BEIRUT — With a voter turnout of 44.59% and in an environment of excellent security and competitiveness the Lebanese government successfully organized the first round of municipal and mayoral elections in Mount Lebanon Governorate The municipal elections will be held in four stages during the current month This comes amidst an escalation in tensions surrounding Lebanon particularly in the occupied Palestinian territories and Syria followed repeated postponements since 2016 It is obviously a test for political factions to determine the extent of their popular representation ahead of the major parliamentary elections in May 2026 which will be pivotal to the Lebanese political life In various municipalities in Beirut’s southern suburb (Dahiyeh) a Hezbollah stronghold in Mount Lebanon Governorate won unopposed under the “Development and Loyalty List” The duo won in the Ghobeiry suburb against the “Ghobeiry Gathers Together” list the duo also won against a list supported by the Lebanese Forces party Despite their recent strained relationship the duo formed an alliance with the Free Patriotic Movement which may pave the way for the resumption of the Shiite-Christian alliance in the upcoming parliamentary elections Pro-Resistance voters emphasized that their participation was “in favor of the resistance approach and the sacrifices of the martyrs.” “We voted to affirm our loyalty to the approach of our supreme martyr His Eminence Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah,” the father of one of the martyrs told Tehran Times President Joseph Aoun followed the elections on the ground he visited the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities where he was received by Minister of Interior and Municipalities Ahmad Hajjar and Minister of Justice Adel Nassar “It is important that these elections were held on time especially since approximately 90% of the municipalities in Lebanon have been dissolved Citizens complain that these municipalities are not meeting their needs and requirements even though municipalities play a fundamental role in the development,” Aoun said.  Prime Minister Nawaf Salam also visited the operations room at the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities to monitor the vote counting process stressing that “the election process proceeded smoothly and without any disruption Administrative complaints were followed up and resolved quickly.” Hajjar said: “The process proceeded smoothly without any pressure or any significant problems.” Army Commander General Rodolphe Heikal also inspected the Mount Lebanon operations room where he was briefed on the exceptional security measures taken to ensure the safety of the electoral process TribLIVE's Daily and Weekly email newsletters deliver the news you want and information you need Lebanon dealt with fallen trees and wires on Wednesday after a severe storm hit the Pittsburgh area on Tuesday Stay up-to-date on important news from TribLIVE 1-800-909-8742 © 2025 Trib Total Media | All Rights Reserved About Us Advertise Career Opportunities Contact Advertising Contact Circulation Contact Newsroom Contact Us Feedback Request Correction Resource Center Scholarship Opportunities Send Letter to the Editor Send News Tip Subscribe Subscriber Services Blog eFeatures Email Newsletters eTrib Facebook Home Delivery Instagram LinkedIn Marketing Minute Store Locations TribLIVE App - 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find out why Water Matters We give you the latest climate facts from the world’s leading source analyse the trends and explain how our planet is changing We meet the experts on the front line of climate change who explore new strategies to mitigate and adapt After almost 10 years and an armed conflict, Lebanese citizens have taken to the polls to vote in local elections, the first since Israel and the militant group Hezbollah agreed on a ceasefire. began on Sunday in Mount Lebanon districts including Beirut's southern suburbs The polls for mayors and municipal councils though not as significant as Lebanon’s parliamentary election set for 2026 are a barometer of how much the devastating conflict that left over 4,000 dead and entire neighbourhoods destroyed has impacted support for politicians and parties Hezbollah and fellow Shiite party the Amal Movement are expected to win most votes for municipal councils and mayors in Beirut's southern suburbs The voting also took place in public schools near the wreckage of buildings destroyed in Israeli airstrikes Lebanon's cash-strapped government has been scrambling to secure international funds for the reconstruction which the World Bank estimates to be over €9.7 billion Municipal elections were supposed to have taken place years ago but the government postponed them three times including once due to budgetary constraints Voters said they were primarily concerned with rebuilding their homes and livelihoods a candidate running for the Haret Hreik municipality said his local council “has a great responsibility especially given the extensive destruction that occurred in our area.” Polling stations opened at 7:00 am Sunday across Mount Lebanon’s six districts in the first round of Lebanon’s municipal elections The National News Agency said 9,321 candidates are running for municipal and mayoral seats Political and partisan balances and alliances have shifted since the last municipal elections in 2016 with all eyes on the presidency of the union of Northern Metn municipalities amid a competition between the incumbent Mirna Michel Murr and the municipal chief of Bekfaya-Mhaydtheh The most heated battle in Metn will take place in Jdeideh-Bouchrieh-Sadd the Lebanese Forces and MP Ibrahim Kanaan is vying against a list backed by the Free Patriotic Movement In Jounieh meanwhile a list backed by the FPM and Juan Hbeish is competing against a list backed by MPs Neemat Frem and Farid al-Khazen President Joseph Aoun meanwhile toured the ministries of interior and defense and Baabda's serail to inspect the taken security and administrative measures He also inspected the state-run Tele Liban television in Beirut Share on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on PinterestShare on LinkedIn(AP) - UPS is looking to slash about 20,000 jobs and close more than 70 facilities as it drastically reduces the amount of Amazon shipments it handles The package delivery company said Tuesday that it anticipates making the job cuts this year It anticipates closing 73 leased and owned buildings by the end of June UPS said that it is still reviewing its network and may identify more buildings to be shuttered “The actions we are taking to reconfigure our network and reduce cost across our business could not be timelier,” CEO Carol Tomé said in a statement on Tuesday In January UPS announced that it had reached a deal with Amazon to lower its volume by more than 50% by the second half of 2026 During UPS’ fourth-quarter earnings conference call in January Tomé said that the company had partnered with Amazon for almost 30 years and that when its contract came up this year “Amazon is our largest customer but it’s not our most profitable customer,” Tomé said at the time Tomé said that UPS considered various options and determined that the volume reduction was the best alternative also reported its first-quarter financial results on Tuesday The Atlanta-based company earned $1.19 billion That’s better than the $1.44 per share that analysts polled by Zacks Investment Research were calling for beating Wall Street’s estimate of $21.06 billion UPS said that it wasn’t providing any updates to its previously announced full-year outlook The company previously said that it expected 2025 revenue of approximately $89 billion Shares of UPS rose slightly in morning trading This website is unavailable in your location It appears you are attempting to access this website from a country outside of the United States therefore access cannot be granted at this time When Western Pennsylvania’s first Toastique opens in Mt. Lebanon on June 7 people will discover more than the gourmet toasts smoothies and coffee drinks that the growing franchise is known for building a community gathering place that welcomes everyone in the name of healthy comfort food Or, as Toastique founder Brianna Keefe says: “We are the fast-casual modern dining your inner health nut has been waiting for.” Keefe opened the first Toastique in Washington serving the kinds of food she craved as a college athlete: open-faced sandwiches like avocado toast açai and other bowls brimming with protein and antioxidants The restaurant’s name merges “toast” with “boutique.” Success was rapid Toastique locations are sprouting across the nation have built their Toastique in a long-empty spot on Washington Road in the heart of Mt Chrissy envisions “a comfortable place for moms and kids and a place to meet friends.” A living-plant wall greets customers upon entrance Another wall features a mural by a local artist Seating ranges from booths to tables to counter spots The Wi-Fi is strong and electrical outlets abound The pleasing aesthetics match the ethos of the menu “fresh” and “house-made” are how they roll The juices are pressed in a powerful machine housed in a shower-like space “We don’t take shortcuts with the food,” says Brad “Everything is made to order.” The Sileos bring a similarly healthy attitude to their new venture she was deeply engaged in local schools and community organizations she and Brad began looking for the right project to tackle who built and sold a software engineering company works as a consultant to startups and others in the tech space and spends his spare moments as a scuba instructor “applying our life experience to the nuts-and-bolts of opening a business has been a great adventure,” he says With Chrissy responsible for day-to-day management of the restaurant she undertook the extensive training that Toastique provides franchise operators That involves a four-week program at one of the Washington locations — hands-on experience with every aspect of running the shop from toasting the bread and juicing the fruit to managing inventory and hiring employees The Toastique menu is both formatted and flexible agave and coconut water topped with pineapple banana and apple juice topped with strawberry coconut water) and Green Machine Smoothie (banana • Wellness shots in varieties of Immunity (turmeric the menu has rotating items monthly or seasonally Local franchises can experiment with some items distinct for their market The Sileos have a long-term vision for Toastique aiming to open at least two more locations in the Pittsburgh area in the coming years “It’s close to home in a community we know and love,” says Chrissy Lebanon feels like the right place for our first Toastique because we know we’re offering something special and ideal for the moment.” They are hiring at least 15 people for the first location we are looking for people who want to grow along with us,” says Brad the first 100 guests will receive $50 in Toastique Reward Dollars with a $10 purchase which go toward future visits via Toastique’s loyalty program There will be opportunities to win other exciting prizes throughout the day The Mt. Lebanon Toastique’s regular hours will be 7 a.m “We are going to be your all-day place,” Brad says and open late enough to grab a bite before soccer practice.” For more information or employment questions email Chrissy Sileo at chrissys@toastique.com This has been a paid article submitted by our content partner Lebanon reopened with a touch of time travel: It’s now rebranded as 1930 by Atria’s The well-known establishment on Beverly Road closed Dec “We felt like the original location needed a remodel while still preserving the history of the building and the legacy of the Atria family,” said Patrick McDonnell “We’ve received some great feedback at an event we hosted (Sunday).” McDonnell’s family has owned the establishment since 1998 when his parents Pat and Nancy McDonnell purchased the business the modern cocktail bar has been updated with an improved display of bourbon The fresh look includes high-end spirits and specialty cocktails owner of The Warren Bar and Burrow in Downtown Pittsburgh The establishment has four areas: The Library The cuisine is “American leading with a twist,” McDonnell said has expanded the culinary choices to feature cuisine from around the world as well as reimagined classic pasta and steak dishes Atria’s is known for The menu will be smaller and change every four to six weeks to keep it fresh and allow for most of the menu items to be prepared in the main first-floor kitchen of the three-story building 1930s by Atria’s will serve brunch on Saturday and Sunday with dishes such as steak and eggs The ownership made sure to preserve the history and character of the recognizable building on Beverly Road which originally housed a neighborhood grocery store They chose the name 1930 by Atria’s as a nod to the year when Italian immigrant Joe Atria established a modest grocery store It was also once a barbershop and dry cleaner Atria’s introduced six-packs of beer to go and created a neighborhood bar and restaurant He said guests have told him they appreciate that his family is honoring the Atria family and keeping the neighborhood feel of the place McDonnell said that it was important to honor the Atria family “We definitely wanted to keep the patio,” McDonnell said especially on nice days like we have (Monday).” JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region's diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of "A Daughter's Promise." She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com Mt. Lebanon’s Sam Deibert (right) attempts a shot over Norwin’s Dom Kantz during their WPIAL Class 6A playoff game Monday at Mt. Lebanon. The Mt. Lebanon bench reacts after Liam Sheely (bottom) draws a four-point play opportunity against Norwin during their WPIAL Class 6A playoff game on Monday, Feb. 17, 2025, at Mt. Lebanon. Mt. Lebanon’s Jacob Zaber (3) scores on a layup against Norwin’s Mario Csukas during their WPIAL Class 6A playoff game Monday, Feb. 17, 2025, at Mt. Lebanon. Mt. Lebanon’s Samuel Deibert (back) rejects a shot attempt from Norwin’s Alex Garney (front) during their WPIAL Class 6A playoff game Monday, Feb. 17, 2025, at Mt. Lebanon. Mt. Lebanon’s Jacob Zaber reacts after drilling a 3-pointer against Norwin during their WPIAL Class 6A playoff game Monday, Feb. 17, 2025, at Mt. Lebanon. Lebanon’s Sam Deibert scored a game-high 24 points as the sixth-seeded Blue Devils ran away with 61-34 victory over No 11 Norwin in a first-round rubber match Monday night in the WPIAL Class 6A playoffs The section foes split their two regular-season matchups starting with a two-point overtime win by Norwin in early January Key again was the Blue Devils’ efficiency Lebanon closed the first half with a tiebreaking 12-2 run to lead by 10 points at the break and then outscored Norwin “To me it’s an advantage (facing a section team in the playoffs) because you know them pretty well But we didn’t have to go out and study a whole bunch of tape on someone from Section 1.” 3 Imani Christian in the quarterfinals Thursday at a site and time to be announced Lebanon also split its section series with Imani The Blue Devils built a lead over Norwin by scoring in the paint converting on offensive rebounds and forcing Norwin into 16 turnovers went 10-for-10 shooting from the field in the final three quarters with a handful of putback baskets Norwin coach Cam Auld pointed to communication breakdowns by his team’s defense “They’re too good of a team to have miscommunications,” Auld said “They do a lot of off-ball screening A lot of stuff that’s going to put you one way and the ball’s going to go back the other way “There’s that lack of communication defensively and then there’s rebounding I don’t even want to know the number (of offensive rebounds).” Lebanon freshman Jacob Zaber scored 17 points He accounted for all but two of the Blue Devils’ points in the opening quarter Sheely scored five points in the third quarter as Mt. Lebanon pulled away. “I felt fine in there,” Sheely said. “I banged with them. Limited minutes, but I still felt like I could do what I wanted to do.” Junior Mario Csukas made four 3-pointers and scored a team-high 14 points for Norwin (10-12). Norwin played short-handed without one of its top players, junior Chris McKnight, who suffered a thumb injury in practice over the weekend. A 3-pointer by Csukas had forced an 18-18 tie with 6:40 left in the second quarter. But the Knights made only one more shot before halftime, and they went 2-for-8 shooting in the third quarter. “That’s not good math,” Auld said, “for trying to win a basketball game.” If Javascript is disabled browser, to place orders please visit the page where our photos are available to purchase. Mt. Lebanon’s Santino Fiumara shoots a free throw against Central Catholic on Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025 Lebanon boys basketball coach Joey David told his team they needed a signature victory the Blue Devils’ resume received a big boost Sophomore Santino Fiumara beat his man down the right lane and scored with 4 seconds remaining as Mt Lebanon came back to stun Central Catholic “I told my team I was looking to see how many playoff teams we beat,” David said we haven’t beaten a really good team.” The Blue Devils came back to knock off the Vikings rallying from a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit Both teams shined in their half-court defense Central Catholic got the better of play in the opening quarter and led by eight taking its first lead of the game with 1:13 left in the half on a 3-pointer by freshman Jacob Zaber and leading by one at the half Big second halves by junior guards Enzo Khalil and Wills Kontul allowed the Vikings to build up to their biggest lead of the game midway through the fourth quarter before the Blue Devils’ pressure started turning defense into offense “I saw a lot of our team getting down because we lost to them earlier the same way in that we were close to them and they started pulling away,” Mt “We just couldn’t let that happen Deibert relied on the charity stripe for most of his offense hitting on 9 of 10 from the free-throw line which David realizes that has to be the case each time his team takes the floor so we have to make up for it with our speed our quickness and our intelligence,” he said “I thought (we) really did a good job near the end.” Deibert explained what his team needs to do to continue to be one of the top defensive teams in Class 6A making sure we are sliding over on our help defense making sure we are communicating and staying down and staying focused the whole time,” he said After Deibert hit two free throws with 23 seconds remaining to tie the game Central Catholic never got a shot off on its next possession as Zaber knocked the ball away and Mt The Blue Devils tried to set Sheely up for the game winner on the wing who won the race to the hoop and laid in the game winner Lebanon to 5-4 in the section and 9-6 overall as the Blue Devils moved into fourth place in Section 2-6A They were led by Deibert’s 15 points while Sheely playing in only his fourth game of the season due to two injuries Central Catholic falls into third place with the loss at 6-3 in the section and 9-6 overall Khalil led with 12 points while Kontul scored 11 with the two combining to score 16 of their combined 23 points in the second half and they are a good team,” David said I told our guys beforehand it was going to be physical I’m happy to get out of here with a W.” Mt. Lebanon’s Liam Sheely is introduced before a WPIAL Class 6A quarterfinal with Imani Christian on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025. Zachary Milanak is introduced before Mt. Lebanon’s WPIAL Class 6A quarterfinal with Imani Christian on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025. The ball is tipped to start a WPIAL Class 6A quarterfinal between Mt. Lebanon and Imani Christian on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025. including 14 points and a key 3-pointer in the second half Lebanon to a 64-61 victory over Imani Christian in the WPIAL Class 6A quarterfinals Thursday night “There’s never a time in the game where I’m thinking we’re gonna lose this game,’” Sheely said “I’m always thinking that shot’s going in ready to shoot my shot and take the lead back.” They got that spark from Sheely and Sam Deibert The Blue Devils jumped out on an 8-1 run in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter which included a 3-pointer from Sheely and a chase-down block from Deibert “I’ve never been so hyped for a block,” Sheely said “On a fast break and no one’s back he comes out of nowhere and slaps that.” “I had three fouls in a close game going into in the fourth quarter It’s a two-point game,” Deibert said 3 Imani Christian (13-8) trailing 55-50 with four minutes to play He and the Saints battled back and retook the lead 56-55 came around a screen and buried a 3-pointer to take a 58-56 lead Sledge then notched a steal and set up Kieshaun Davis layup to tie it back up This led to Jacob Zaber driving to the basket and drawing a foul Zaber drilled both free throws to go up 60-58 The Blue Devils earned another stop and Zaber hit another set of free throws Imani wouldn’t go away as Markus Williams hit a 3-pointer Santino Fiumara and Zaber doubled Sledge on the inbound play and Fiumara swiped the ball from Sledge “Our whole thought process was that we had one foul left to give so we were either going to foul or just force a steal because either one stops them,” Zaber said “They’re not gonna shoot free throws or anything so me and Tino Fiumara went to go get the steal The freshman Zaber had seven points and seven assists “Those are definitely the biggest shots I’ve ever taken,” Zaber said just focused on my form and all four went in.” Sheely was pleased with Zaber’s play “I’m so proud of him,” Sheely said “I never seen a freshman play like that in my time who finished with 14 points and nine assists “He’s tough,” Zaber said so I’m just trying to stay in front of him as much as I can.” Sledge wasn’t the only one tough to slow down Donovan Gordon posted 17 points and Kieshaun Demus tallied 11 points and seven rebounds for the Saints set its defensive gameplan and stuck with the memo the entire game “We trust coach (Joe) David — whatever he says we’re gonna do,” Sheely said “We know he’s had championship teams so we trust him with our whole hearts.” Lebanon will take on New Castle on Monday in the WPIAL Class 6A semifinals “We’re a tough team,” Deibert said “I know a lot of people don’t think that we’re coming after you full heart.” New Castle’s Ralphie Blundo (4) reacts after drawing an and-one call in the WPIAL Class 6A semifinals Monday, Feb. 24, 2025, at North Allegheny. New Castle’s Damian Harrison (2) rejects a shot attempt from Mt. Lebanon’s Zachary Milanak (34) in the WPIAL Class 6A semifinals Monday, Feb. 24, 2025, at North Allegheny. New Castle’s Damian Harrison reacts after a fourth-quarter dunk in the WPIAL Class 6A semifinals Monday, Feb. 24, 2025, at North Allegheny. New Castle’s Ralphie Blundo (4) makes a pass as Mt. Lebanon’s Jacob Zaber (3) pressures in the WPIAL Class 6A semifinals Monday, Feb. 24, 2025, at North Allegheny. New Castle’s Kai Cox (12) attempts a shot against pressure from Mt. Lebanon’s Samuel Deibert (13) in the WPIAL Class 6A semifinals Monday, Feb. 24, 2025, at North Allegheny. They’d missed the playoffs entirely. “It was almost embarrassing,” said Blundo, a senior who’d reached the WPIAL finals as both a freshman and sophomore. “Finishing in early February was weird. I was starting my offseason workouts.” The second-seeded Red Hurricanes are headed to the WPIAL finals for the 10th time in coach Ralph Blundo’s 15 seasons after defeating No. 6 Mt. Lebanon, 67-56, in a Class 6A semifinal at North Allegheny. Ralphie Blundo scored a game-high 25 points, and the Red Hurricanes pulled away in the second half with a 19-6 run that stretched from the late third quarter into the fourth. Freshman Kai Cox overcame early foul trouble to score 17 points, and junior Damian Harrison had 14 points and 14 rebounds. New Castle (21-3) advances to face No. 1 seed and defending champion Upper St. Clair (22-2) in the finals at 9 p.m. Friday at Petersen Events Center. “Not making the playoffs last year drove us this year,” Ralph Blundo said. “That did not sit well with us at all. I’m proud we’re able to bring our team back to the Pete and compete for the 6A championship.” Mt. Lebanon junior Liam Sheely scored a team-high 21 points for the Blue Devils (17-8), whose last lead came in the first quarter at 13-11. New Castle won the rebounding battle by nearly a two-to-one margin, a total that included 14 offensive boards for the Red Hurricanes. Harrison, a versatile 6-foot-3 guard, had eight offensive rebounds. “We’ve been rebounding the ball really well,” Ralph Blundo said. “I think we gave up five offensive rebounds in the last three games. We’ve been able to keep guys off the glass, but none of them are 6-10.” That’s a nod to Upper St. Clair senior Tyler Robbins, a 6-10 center they’ll see in the finals. New Castle also never let Mt. Lebanon’s shooters find their rhythm. The Blue Devils made only 7 of 26 attempts from beyond the arc and shot 39% from the field overall. “We had multiple things go wrong,” Mt. Lebanon coach Joe David said. “We didn’t rebound. We turned it over seven times in that first half. The shot selection was horrendous. We were down eight or nine points and guys are launching shots from 35 feet. What are we doing?” Yet New Castle’s lead was only four points with 2:30 left in the third quarter. Four consecutive free throws by Harrison and a runner by Ralphie Blundo gave the Red Hurricanes a 44-37 lead after three. That was the start of their decisive 19-6 run. New Castle opened the fourth with a runner by Cox and a layup by Blundo and eventually pushed its lead to 57-40 with 3:30 left in the fourth. “I don’t know if we’re the type of team that’s going to jump on you and beat you wire to wire like some of my other teams,” Ralph Blundo said. “This group is different. They have their own identity and they’re writing their own story.” This team’s story includes one final playoff run together for Ralph and Ralphie Blundo. They’re guaranteed at least two more games together since the team has already clinched a spot in the state playoffs. Four WPIAL teams qualify in 6A, meaning Mt. Lebanon also advances to states. “I just want to coach him as long as I can,” Ralph Blundo said. “Obviously, going to the Pete with your son is something special. We’ve been there before together. As a senior, I know what he’s put into it.” If Javascript is disabled browser, to place orders please visit the page where our photos are available to purchase Lebanon Fire Department Monday to press lawmakers in Harrisburg to approve his budget which includes $30 million in grants for fire companies across Pennsylvania Top of mind for Shapiro and other speakers at Monday’s event was the recent arson at the governor’s mansion Investigators claim 38-year-old Cody Balmer set fire to Shapiro’s residence the morning of April 13 “This past weekend my family and I experienced what it’s like to be rushed away from a fire while you see heroes rushing in order to put out a fire and save lives,” Shapiro said during a press conference and tried to claim my life and the life of my family and others who were there.” Austin Davis and other elected officials including U.S Lebanon Fire Chief Kurt Christofel and Ralph Sicuro president of Pittsburgh Firefighters Local 1 The governor highlighted his proposed budget’s call for $30 million in competitive grants that would allow fire departments to seek funding for recruiting This is in addition to $30 million in grant funding that already exists The 30 that is already available gets divvied up and sent out to fire departments across Pennsylvania This new $30 million is going to be a competitive grant So when the chief here says we need something unique for Mt there is now a fund available for competitive grants for them to go and chase and bring back to this local community,” Shapiro said The proposed budget also calls for a pilot program that would incentivize cooperation between fire departments and to cover annual cancer screenings for firefighters Shapiro was flanked by dozens of officials representing fire departments in the region North Strabane and South Strabane townships South Strabane Fire Department Chief Jordan Cramer said increased funding is something needed “badly” by the Washington County agencies “The costs of providing service are just continuing to rise and at some point our taxpayers can’t take on all of that cost at a local level … The plans that they’re proposing would be incredibly beneficial to us,” Cramer said after the press conference finished Rising costs is also why the state incentivizing cooperation between agencies is important “They are essentially prioritizing and incentivizing departments that are willing to work with other areas and other regions the cost of service continues to increase so much that we’ve got to work together to try to reduce our cost to be able to continue to provide this level of service,” Cramer said When Shapiro mentioned he was proposing the state cover cancer screenings for Pennsylvania firefighters Cramer called this prong of the governor’s budget a “priority.” “It is a priority that I think most departments have had for several years and we don’t have a funding mechanism for it they pay for every single firefighter to have a cancer screening and if the governor is able to get that through it’s going to greatly benefit all of our fire departments here in the county If you have an account and are registered for online access sign in with your email address and password below Never been a subscriber and want to subscribe Copyright © Herald-Standard | Contact | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy The Official Source of North Allegheny Sports The North Allegheny boys’ tennis team lost their first regular season match in over a year as they fell to perennial powerhouse Mt The team captains joined forces to get the Tigers on the board first as junior Adhav Ramadas and senior Nick Scheuring won at 2nd doubles Lebanon answered quickly by winning both 2nd and 3rd singles despite valiant efforts by junior Anish Ramachandruni and sophomore Dylan Pak respectively Man of the Match honors go to sophomore sensation Advaita Sircar who took on the best the Blue Devils had to offer The deciding point came at 1st doubles as senior Sri Thirumala and sophomore Ronit Ginde battled back from a first set deficit to tie the match a set a piece The Tigers return at action tomorrow when they travel to Chartiers Valley to take on the Colts at 3:30 p.m Any questions or comments should be directed to Athletic Director Bob Bozzuto at bbozzuto@northallegheny.org © Copyright 2013 North Allegheny School District Pitt’s Mac Stout, right, hugs brother Luke Stout of Princeton after their match in the second round of the NCAA tournament Thursday, March 20, 2025 in Philadelphia. Mac won, 4-2. Pitt’s Mac Stout has his hand raised after defeating his older brother, Luke Stout of Princeton, 4-2, in a second-round match at 197 pounds at the NCAA tournament Thursday, March 20, 2025 in Philadelphia. It was appropriate that Philadelphia, which is known as the “City of Brotherly Love,” was the site of the first “Battle of Brothers” at the Wells Fargo Center. While brothers have competed in the same tournament since it began in the late 1920s and there are five sets of brothers competing this season, the Stouts were the first pair to wrestle each other in a match at NCAAs. Pitt redshirt sophomore Mac Stout defeated older brother Luke, a senior at Princeton, during the second round of the tournament in the 197-pound weight class. Mac Stout, seeded sixth, used an escape and takedown in the second period to defeat Luke, 4-2, and advanced to Friday’s quarterfinals. Luke, who was seeded 11th, dropped into the consolation bracket where he will try to earn All-American status and a spot on the podium. It was also the first time the Mt. Lebanon grads have met on the mat other than in practice at home and at clubs. After the hard-fought match, the brothers hugged a couple of times. During an interview after the match shared by FloWrestling, Mac Stout talked about how tough it was to face his brother. “It stinks,” he said. “I wish I never had to wrestle my brother, but I wouldn’t be here today if I wasn’t for him, you know. “I finally got one back after all those years he was shoving my head into the mat.” Mac said he planned to talk to his brother as soon as possible after the match. “He’s my best friend, I talk to him every day,” Mac Stout said. “I knew that regardless the outcome, we would still be best friends after the match. “It’s a weird feeling. We scrap in the room all the time. It’s different, though, you know? I don’t know. It’s just a weird feeling. It’s over with now. Hopefully, I think it’ll help me be able to wrestle more freely now and forget about that whole thing on my shoulders.” The brothers will not meet on the medal podium Saturday. Mac Stout lost, 2-0, to No. 2 ranked A.J. Ferrari of Cal State Bakersfield in the quarterfinals to drop into the consolation bracket. Luke Stout won his first consolation match but lost his second, falling two wins short of a medal. The Stouts come from a wrestling family. Older brother Kellan was a WPIAL and PIAA champion in 2015 at 182 pounds; Luke was a two-time WPIAL and one-time PIAA champion in 2019 and 2020 at 195 pounds; and Mac was a two-time WPIAL champion (2020 and 2022) and PIAA runner-up in 2020. Kellan Stout began his collegiate career at Penn State before transferring to Pitt and becoming an NCAA qualifier in 2019. THeir father Bryan was a four-time All-American at Clarion. Hempfield junior Lucas Murray lines a double in the third inning against Mt. Lebanon on Wednesday. Hempfield second baseman Chase Sikorski turns a double play in the first inning as Mt. Lebanon’s Brett Hamel slides into the base Wednesday. Mt. Lebanon’s Luke Tierney steals second base as Hempfield second baseman Chase Sikorski applies a late tag Wednesday. The then-freshman along with senior David Shields, who was drafted and signed by the Kansas City Royals, gave the Blue Devils a solid one-two punch. The 6-foot-5 sophomore right-hander pitched his best game of the season Wednesday in a Section 2-6A battle against Hempfield (2-3, 4-6). The No. 2-ranked player in the country in the 2027 class by Prep Baseball allowed two hits and two runs and struck out 11 over six innings as Mt. Lebanon rolled to a 9-2 win. Game 3 is scheduled to be played Thursday at Hempfield. Keen dominated the Hempfield batters. He retired them in order in four of the six innings he worked. He struck out the top four Hempfield batters twice each. “This was Graham’s best outing of the year,” Mt. Lebanon coach Patt McCloskey said. “He’s a phenomenal talent that is a pleasure to coach because he cares about winning. “He definitely built himself up pitching to be at his best for his first section game. I cannot thank him enough for the competitive effort that he gave us.” The Spartans’ runs came in the third inning when Ian Kovalcik was hit with a pitch. Courtesy runner Lucas Harshman moved to third on a double by Lucas Murray. Harshman then scored on a wild pitch, and Murray scored on a groundout by Chase Damaska. Meanwhile, Mt. Lebanon not only pounded out 12 hits, four by Dane Barber, it received 10 walks and a hit batter. “You are not going to win many games when you walk 10 guys, that is for sure,” Hempfield coach Tim Buzzard said. “Their pitcher threw really well. He is very good for a reason. “We did not have our best in any area. They beat us in all three phases and outplayed us, outcoached us and deserved to win the game. Keen was on (today). He’s a good pitcher and player.” The Blue Devils scored an unearned run in the second inning when Mikey Tetlow singled and scored on an error. They opened the third inning with three consecutive hits: a double by Keen, a single by Barber and a single by Ben Kraemer (RBI). Cole Kappeler walked, and Tetlow walked to force home Barber and make it 3-0. That walk chased Hempfield starter Kevin Bender and brought in Lucas Simmons, who retired two batters before walking Brett Hamel to force home the third run of the inning. Maddox Yost then hit a slow roller that took a bad hop away from shortstop Quinn Wilkins to score two more runs for a 6-0 lead. “We gave them a couple runs early,” Buzzard said. “They swung the bats well.” After Hempfield cut the lead to 6-2, Mt. Lebanon scored a single run in the fifth inning and two more in the seventh. “Coming into the series we were hitting .199 as a team,” McCloskey said. “We hit the ball better than we have been. Now we can go for the series sweep.” Coming into the series, which started Monday with a 3-1 win at home, the Blue Devils (2-0, 2-6) had lost six consecutive games. Barber added three RBIs and Yost two RBIs. Dylan Firmstone tripled for the Spartans in the sixth inning. Pittsburgh Union Progress Lebanon didn’t know if it would have its leading scorer available for the playoffs as sharpshooting junior guard Liam Sheely suffered an injury to his left shoulder in the final regular season game and after coming off the bench to score 7 points in the team’s first-round win in the WPIAL Class 6A playoffs the kid with the shoulder ailment shouldered the load in the second half to help the Blue Devils put an end to Imani Christian’s hopes of three-peating as WPIAL and PIAA champions Sheely scored a game-high 23 points and No Lebanon was excellent from the free-throw line down the stretch as the Blue Devils came from behind to edge No in a quarterfinal in what was an electric atmosphere at Montour High School Final – Mt. Lebanon 64, Imani Christian 61. Lebo advances to face New Castle in the WPIAL Class 6A semifinals. Liam Sheely scored a game-high 23 points. Freshman Jacob Zaber and Carter Gould hit some big FTs in the final minute. pic.twitter.com/25rwcC0f8S Lebanon’s win puts the Blue Devils (17-7) in the semifinals for the fourth season in a row They will look to reach the final for the first time since 2020 when they take on No 2 New Castle (20-3) in Monday’s semifinals Imani Christian (13-8) saw its season come to a disappointing end The Saints won WPIAL and PIAA Class 1A titles in 2023 and 2024 before voluntarily playing up in Class 6A this season In what was a rubber match between Section 2 rivals Sheely scored only 6 points in the first half before tallying 17 in the second who said he is “basically 100%,” picked up his fourth foul and went to the bench with 1:38 left in the third But after returning with 6:02 left in the fourth Lebanon a 58-56 lead with 1:58 left.  10 days ago I didn’t even know he was going to be around But we have a good training staff and physical therapists and they did what they needed to do to get him in I’ll live and die with the ball in his hands.” Hear from Mt. Lebanon junior sharpshooter Liam Sheely, who scored 17 of his 23 points in the second half (including two big 3s in the fourth) to help Mt. Lebanon rally for a 64-61 win against Imani Christian in what was an electric WPIAL Class 6A quarterfinal. pic.twitter.com/xrojzYWJ7W “I never doubt for a minute we’re going to miss a free throw. I know our guys practice it, and I know it’s going to translate it to games,” Sheely said. Trailing by three points, Imani Christian then got the ball to Sledge, but there was no last-second shot attempt after he lost the ball to Mt. Lebanon’s Santino Fiumara, and the Blue Devils ran out the clock. Mt. Lebanon did an excellent job defending Sledge, one of the WPIAL’s top players who was trying to win a fourth district title. (He won one at Bishop Canevin his freshman season.) Sledge scored 33 and 26 points in the first two meetings, but on Thursday was limited to 14 points, 8 under his season average. Like Sheely, Sledge picked up his fourth foul late in the third quarter before returning a few minutes into the fourth. “We tried to trap him on the screens,” David said. “We didn’t do a good job of that in the first half. I thought [Fiumara] did a good job containing him. He’s a hell of a player. He’s a winner. He’s a champion. Guys like that, they’re hard to beat.” Donovan Gordon led Imani Christian with 15 points, but only 2 of those came in the second half. Kieshaun Demus added 11 points and Williams tacked on 10. Mt. Lebanon also got a strong performance from 6-foot-5 forward Sam Deibert, who used his size advantage and inside game to score 19 points, including 17 in the first half. Gould finished with 15. • Tyler Robbins (17 points) led four players in double-figures for No. 1 and defending champion Upper St. Clair (21-2), which advanced to the semifinals for the third year in a row with a 63-41 win against visiting No. 9 Woodland Hills (12-12). Nico Gidas added 14 points for Upper St. Clair, which led, 4-3, after one quarter before taking a 25-15 halftime lead. Scoop Smith scored 22 points for Woodland Hills, which was seeking its first trip to the semifinals since 2018. • For the first time in the playoffs, a No. 1 seed was eliminated, with No. 8 Union (18-6) stunned No. 1 Greensburg Central Catholic (21-3), 44-42, at Shaler. Greensburg was a finalist last season and had reached the semifinals four years in a row. Lucas Stanley scored 14 points for Union, including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:35 left. Union outscored Greensburg, 23-18, in the second half. Liam Gallagher and A.J. Tarpley each scored 9 points for the Centurions, who had won six straight. Jeannette 55, Our Lady of the Sacred Heart 50 Sewickley Academy 48, Chartiers-Houston 39 Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at beverett@unionprogress.com. WPIAL Class 3A field hockey champion Pine-Richland at Washington & Jefferson on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. WPIAL Class 3A field hockey runner-up Mt. Lebanon at Washington & Jefferson on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. Lebanon and top seed Pine-Richland on Saturday chances were even between the squads as both goalkeepers did outstanding jobs to thwart any second or third opportunities from the opposing attack possessing the ball in the Blue Devils’ end for 90% of the remaining 30 minutes we knew we would have possession and we just made some minor adjustments,” said Pine-Richland coach Donna Stephenson “We played down our right and still had to come back and cut back towards the ball Rams junior forward Anna Merlack scored the game’s only goal to help Pine-Richland (20-0) prevail 1-0 over Mt Lebanon (12-5) at Cameron Stadium at Washington & Jefferson College and win its sixth straight WPIAL title The Rams got a corner at 12:42 in the third quarter and the ball went into senior Madeline Mill who sent the ball to her left to fellow senior Georgia Rottinghaus Lebanon defenders and was slowly making its way toward the net Merlack was quicker to the ball than Blue Devils goalkeeper Olivia Marcovitz and she tapped it in I knew to have my stick down on the post,” Merlack said “The ball came to me and I just tipped it in Madeline Mill and her sister Claire teamed up for one of the first chances in the second half for the Rams Claire took a feed from Madeline on a two-on-one but Marcovitz came out and shut the door with a kick save but the Blue Devils’ Autumn Dowiak ran up to block the shot Claire Mill had another opportunity to score but once again Marcovitz stepped up to cut off the angle and stop the shot Lebanon had its chances earlier in the game but was unable to put one past Rams keeper Maddie Merlack and once the Rams turned it on in the second half They’re a very good team and played very well We just couldn’t get the ball on net when we needed to.” It was the fifth loss of the season for Mt who outscored their opponents 118-1 on the year That one goal was scored by the Blue Devils “Our girls were very happy in that fact,” said Kattan which showed our girls made improvements throughout the season Just a few more bounces our way and maybe we get a few goals.” The Rams will look to take their dominant level of play this season and translate that into success in the PIAA playoffs a place where WPIAL teams struggle to find wins “We have a lot of girls that are returning from last year so they have the experience of playing at states They know what to expect,” said Stephenson “We don’t know if we’ll play Mechanicsburg or Wilson The girls really want it this year.” Mark “Knobby” Walsh had made a career of being a high school boys basketball head coach which included a highly successful 13-year run at Seton LaSalle decided in June to become a girls coach for the first time when he accepted the head coaching position at Mt Lebanon’s opponents in Walsh’s first two games Defending PIAA champion Blackhawk and reigning WPIAL champion North Catholic defeating Blackhawk by 17 and North Catholic by six we’ve had some very challenging opponents,” Walsh said “We had some good preseason workouts and it was great to be able to grab two wins right away but we hope these games prepare us for section play and to try to be one of the teams that makes a run at a WPIAL title.” Lebanon (12-11 a season ago) has gotten out to a 2-3 start in Walsh’s first season The Blue Devils followed their two wins with losses to Altoona They will travel to Bethel Park on Saturday before hosting Hempfield in the Class 6A Section 2 opener on Dec had been a boys coach since getting into coaching when he was 30 a WPIAL title and two other WPIAL final appearances he was the head coach at Bishop Canevin for six seasons said that while he was happy at Seton LaSalle He said that for the past four or five years he had picked the brains of peers who had coached both boys and girls looking for feedback as the thought of transitioning to becoming a girls coach gained momentum Clair girls game last season watching a friend’s daughter play when making the move really picked up steam “It was really good to watch from a basketball perspective,” said Walsh who works as a health and physical education teacher at Fox Chapel I truly loved my 13 years at Seton LaSalle The experience could not have been better.” Leaving Seton LaSalle meant that Walsh would not coach his son for his senior season Brady Walsh is a senior guard for the Rebels But being that boys and girls often play on different nights Knobby should be able to make it to watch his son play quite a bit Walsh is being helped by two young assistant coaches Anna Betz is a Brentwood graduate who played at Saint Vincent while Maura Castelucci is a South Fayette graduate who played at Wheeling Lebanon team features three seniors — twins Payton and Riley Collins and Shea McCarthy Payton Collins is averaging a team-best 15.6 points per game and has knocked down 16 3-pointers Walsh spoke about what he sees as being the biggest differences coaching girls compared to boys “One is the execution of what we’re trying to do there’s a little more flexibility and a little more ad lib But the girls that I’m coaching try to run exactly what we’re trying to run,” Walsh explained “And the other thing is the game is played below the rim “I’m learning so much about how the girls game is played and it’s very similar to my Seton LaSalle teams this group of young people is one of the hardest working groups of young people I’ve ever been around I feel like we’ve made a lot of progress in the five months we’ve been together.” Lebanon athletic director John Grogan and boys basketball coach Joe David for helping him make the transition Lebanon with how positive the girls are and the skills that they show is truly something that you have to experience to understand,” Walsh said “The parents are tremendous and the support has been great.” Neshannock coach Luann Grybowski is in her 45th season But just because she’s a coaching veteran doesn’t mean that she has seen it all experienced a first this past Saturday when her team played two games in one day Neshannock took on General McLane in the Lakeview tournament at 1:30 p.m before facing Quaker Valley in the Clash at New Castle at New Castle High School at 7:30 Playing twice in one day wasn’t supposed to be the plan Grybowski said that when she committed to play in the Lakeview tournament she thought it was being held the previous weekend Neshannock had already committed to playing Quaker Valley at New Castle so when Grybowski found out that the game at Lakeview would be the same day she realized that the Lancers were in a bit of a pickle It’s about a 45-minute drive from Lakeview to New Castle so Neshannock was never in danger of missing the second game Junior Jaidon Nogay scored a game-high 27 points against Quaker Valley after scoring 12 against General McLane Clairton’s Iyanna Wade could make a run at 3,000 career points and perhaps even the WPIAL’s all-time scoring record this season The lightning-quick senior guard is off to a terrific start already leads the district in scoring after pumping in 122 points in Clairton’s first three games Wade scored 42 in a season-opening win against Gateway added 43 a day later in a win against Obama Academy The scoring binge brings Wade’s career total to 2,271 points She averaged 40 points a game last season after averaging 33.3 a game her sophomore season Wade scored a WPIAL single-game record 65 points in a win against Steel Valley last January She’s hoping to become only the third player in WPIAL history to reach 3,000 points Monessen’s Gina Naccarato holds the district scoring record with 3,364 points which is also the top mark in state history Shining on mom’s old stomping ground South Fayette junior Ryan Oldaker had one of the best games of her high school career Monday when she scored a game-high 22 points to help the Lions improve to 4-0 following a 51-28 non-section win at Mt What likely made the outing all the more special for Oldaker was that it came at the school that her mom built into one of the top programs in the state Lebanon girls for 19 seasons before stepping down following the 2021-2022 season Oldaker turned the Blue Devils into a power She won four WPIAL titles and three PIAA titles including three consecutive state crowns from 2009-2011 Her 2010 team finished the season ranked No Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette WZUM is the Pittsburgh Jazz Channel! 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