BILLY BAIR

SCHOOL: Mars.

WHO IS HE? A 6-foot, 185-pound junior halfback and one of the leading rushers in the WPIAL.

LAST WEEK: Bair gained 222 yards on 14 carries in a 61-14 victory against Union.

BY THE YARD: Friday was the fourth consecutive game Bair gained 200 yards or more. For the season, he has 1,245 yards on 113 carries (11.0 average) and has scored 20 touchdowns. He is the second-leading rusher in the WPIAL and also plays linebacker on defense.

GOING FOR 2,000: The way Bair has been running, he has a shot at 2,000 yards in the regular season (Mars has three games remaining). In the past quarter-century, only one other WPIAL running back has gained 2,000 yards in the regular season. Laurel Highlands' Jim Smith had 2,026 in 1989. Bair has gained his yardage despite playing only a little more than two quarters in some contests. Bair has been taken out of the game because Mars (5-1) is ahead by a large margin.

"He probably could score four more touchdowns in some games, but why would you want to do something like that?" Mars coach Scott Heinauer said. "I've been on the other end of scores like that. You just don't like to see it.

"We take him out for the reason he doesn't get injured, but also just for sportsmanship. You don't need to run it up on people."

WAITING HIS TURN: Bair was Mars' backup halfback as a sophomore behind 1,000-yard rusher Paul Ferrese.

"It was kind of hard not playing last year, but I knew Paul was a senior and I just tried to learn from him," Bair said.

ON THE LINE: Bair was a lineman until eighth grade, when he was moved to running back.

"I was always bigger than everyone else," Bair said. "I was 5 feet 10 in seventh grade. They would put me at guard, center or tight end."

-- By Mike White

LINDSAY KRESCH

AND LAUREN FANELLI

SCHOOL: Moon.

WHO ARE THEY? Volleyball players and Division I recruits. Fanelli is a 5-foot-9 setter, Kresch a 6-1 outside hitter.

PAST WEEK: They helped Moon defeat Baldwin, 3-1, and Mt. Lebanon, 3-0, in Class AAA Section 5 play last week, and Hopewell, 3-0, in a non-section match Tuesday.

Moon (10-1, 8-1) is No. 1 in Section 5 and No. 2 in the Post-Gazette's WPIAL Class AAA rankings.

CAREER: Kresch and Fanelli are seniors who have started for four seasons.

TOP TALENTS: Moon coach Jason Ferri has a high regard for this duo.

"Lauren is about as strong a player as you will see," he said. "You can put her in any sport and she will excel, even football.

"Lindsay is longer and very explosive, with a great vertical leap. She also has uncanny speed and an uncanny knack for getting to the ball for her size.

"Both have an internal drive, a motor to go the extra mile," Ferri added. "In my opinion, they're as good as you get in the state."

FALLING SHORT: A year ago, the Tigers advanced to the WPIAL championship match for the first time, but lost to Pine-Richland, 3-1. Moon qualified for the PIAA tournament and advanced to the quarterfinals.

FUTURE: Fanelli has accepted a scholarship to the University of Colorado, and Kresch has made a verbal commitment to Northwestern University.

"[Colorado is] such a beautiful place and their volleyball program is amazing," Fanelli said.

Kresch chose Northwestern for academics and athletics. She plans to major in biomedical engineering or pre-medicine.

-- By Rick Shrum