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Athletes of the Week: 10.26.12
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Last week: Roth set the Mt. Lebanon single-season passing record while throwing for 243 yards and three touchdowns in leading the Blue Devils to a 35-7 win at Penn Hills.
Check this out: Roth, a senior and first-year starter at quarterback, is the No. 2 passer in the WPIAL, completing 103 of 194 passes for 1,720 yards and 23 touchdowns. Against Woodland Hills, he threw for 359 yards and five touchdowns. Mt. Lebanon (7-1 overall, 7-0 in the Southeastern Conference) is ranked No. 3 in Class AAAA and plays at No. 4 Upper St. Clair (7-1, 6-1) tonight. Roth is also the starting shooting guard on the Mt. Lebanon basketball team.
• Who has the harder practices: Football coach Mike Melnyk or basketball coach Joe David? With coach David, it's physically harder. Coach Melnyk's are mentally harder.
• Excluding anyone on your team, who is the best player in the WPIAL? That's a tough one. I think Pat Kugler from North Allegheny is really good. Also (North Allegheny's) Mack Leftwich. He really leads his team well.
• Do you have a nickname? Yeah. This was made up by some of the upperclassmen when I was a sophomore, but since they're gone this nickname has kind of died. They called me Reptar, which is the name of the dinosaur from Rugrats.
• Why Reptar? My sophomore year when we were on a trip for basketball, they said that when I shoot, I put my hands up like a T-Rex.
• Two of Mt. Lebanon's best players are the Briercheck brothers, Mike and Tim. Who is better? (Laughs) Don't make me answer that. They are both great in their own ways.
• Best Halloween costume you ever had? When I was three years old, I was the red Power Ranger.
• Finally, what's your prediction for tonight's game against Upper St. Clair? We're just looking to execute. If we can do that, we'll win.
Last week: Last Friday, Caravaggio helped Quaker Valley defeat Sewickley Academy, 3-2, to win the WPIAL Class AA team tennis championship. The Quakers also defeated Windber, 5-0, in the PIAA playoffs Tuesday to advance to the quarterfinals today in Hershey.
Check this out: Caravaggio, a 5-foot-8 senior, has enjoyed a golden career at Quaker Valley. She won the WPIAL Class AA singles title a few weeks ago for the second time in her career. She also has been part of two championship teams. The other team title came in her sophomore year.
• You have won both individual and team titles. What feels better? Probably the team title. The individual title, you do it by yourself. But I think it's nice to be able to watch the girls who have gotten so much better, and it's great to see them win because they have worked so hard.
• What are your chances at the PIAA singles tournament next weekend? I'm hoping to do very well. I haven't really seen the draw at all and I don't know who I will be playing. If I play my best, I have a good chance. I don't know if I have a great chance at winning it all, but at least doing very well.
• Some top players choose not to play high school tennis, opting instead to play in USTA tournaments. What do you think of that? I do both. I think it's great to be able to play in high school. High school tennis has its ups and downs, but for the most part it has been good for me.
• What is the best part of your game? I have pretty good speed. I think that helps me out a lot. I'm pretty good on the forehand, too.
• How many rackets do you own now? I think four or five.
• People might be surprised to know ...? I love NBA basketball. When my boyfriend's friends come home from college, I spend a lot of time with them just watching the NBA playoffs. I love it.
• Favorite team and player? The Thunder and Kevin Durant.
First Published October 26, 2012 12:00 am
