For the third year in a row, a downtrodden WPIAL football program is voluntarily leaving the league to participate in an independent schedule.
The WPIAL board of directors approved a request by Uniontown School District on Monday to opt out of its 2021-22 football schedule, allowing Uniontown to create its own independent schedule for the 2021-22 season. The board will reevaluate Uniontown’s standing with the league at the conclusion of next season.
The move follows similar decisions made by Albert Gallatin prior to the 2019-20 season and Butler prior to the 2020-21 season.
“It’s certainly unfortunate, because we want to make sure schools are able to compete in our league,” said WPIAL executive director Amy Scheuneman. “We don’t want to see the trend where schools are deciding to leave, because we want to have our schools included in schedules, and when you have more schools involved in schedules, it’s easier to offer them a good section and good schedule.”
The Red Raiders have lost 34 consecutive games dating back to 2016, and things weren’t getting easier for them in the loaded Class 4A Big Eight Conference, which includes powerhouse teams like Thomas Jefferson, Belle Vernon and McKeesport.
Uniontown originally chose not to play football during the 2020-21 season, but eventually the school changed course and participated in an abbreviated schedule amidst COVID-19 concerns. The Red Raiders finished 0-2 last fall and are 3-57 over the last seven seasons.
“We don’t want to see schools do that. We understand that they struggle and hope they would take steps to do things for their program in other ways,” Scheuneman said. “But in the end, the decision is going to be theirs, and if they feel it’s what’s best for their school, our board has to let them go.”
Scheuneman said the WPIAL board has pondered the idea of a “developmental conference” for struggling programs like Uniontown to help them find more suitable competition, but she doesn’t believe the league will implement such a conference any time soon.
“I think there have been philosophical discussions, but in the end, we’re here to provide a competitive schedule,” Scheuneman said.
Woodland Hills
Woodland Hills boys basketball coach Matt Furjanic will be summoned to a hearing with the WPIAL board in the near future to discuss a recent social media post of his. The WPIAL will meet with Furjanic and the Woodland Hills administration to determine what disciplinary actions, if any, will be taken.
Furjanic appeared to criticize the officiating during the Wolverines’ 76-36 season-opening loss vs. Gateway on Jan. 8 in a since-deleted tweet, but Scheuneman declined to specify the post in question.
Monessen
Monessen and California have agreed to take on a cooperative sponsorship for their soccer programs, beginning in the 2021-22 school year. Monessen will host California students for girls soccer, while California will host Monessen students for boys soccer.
Swimming and diving
The WPIAL board announced that last year’s eighth-place qualifying time will be used as the qualifying time for this year’s WPIAL swimming championships. Any swimmer who meets the criteria for the qualifying time will automatically earn a berth to the championship meet, and the rest of the spots will be filled by the remaining swimmers with the best times.
Steve Rotstein: srotstein@post-gazette.com and Twitter @SteveRotstein.
First Published: January 12, 2021, 12:33 a.m.
