In addition to earning a tryout with the Washington Wild Things, Brian Youchak, outfielder with the Johns Hopkins University baseball team, has been named ABCA/Rawlings National Player of the year. He also earned First Team All-America Honors. Congratulations Brian!

Following an outstanding spring, Don Kelly, an alumnus of the Pittsburgh Federation League and graduate of Point Park University, will head north with the MLB Detroit Tigers. To date, in 23 Grapefruit League games, Kelly has hit .355, including 6 doubles and 3 home runs.

After 16 games, statistics show Brian Youchak, a graduate student in engineering management at Johns Hopkins University, leading the Centennial Conference (Div. 3) in batting average (.526) and on-base percentage (.609), second in runs scored (26), tied for third in stolen bases (8), and fourth in slugging percentage (.719). A graduate of Vincentian Academy here in the ‘Burgh, Youchak played for AVB.

On October 1st, Kevin Giza and Dave Wexler, board members of Allegheny Valley Baseball, met with Norma Caquatto, Melissa Krasnow, and Jacob Klein of the Duquesne Law School Community Enterprise Clinic to discuss issues with regard to AVB moving forward with its nonprofit structure.  Good things are sure to come from this vital relationship.

(L to R) Dave Wexler (AVB); Melissa Krasnow and Jacob Klein (Certified Legal Interns, Duquesne Law School Community Enterprise Clinic); Norma Caquatto, Esq (Supervising Attorney, Duquesne Law School Community Enterprise Clinic); Kevin Giza (AVB).

On October 3rd, Dave Wexler, board member of Allegheny Valley Baseball and 4-year season ticket holder to University of Pittsburgh women’s basketball games, attended the annual Pitt Fan Fest and Maggie Dixon Heart Health Fair at the Peterson Events Center on the campus at Pitt. The event, which drew several hundred fans, highlighted the 2009 Pitt men’s and women’s basketball teams, and included various fan-oriented events, behind-the-scenes tours of the Pitt basketball facilities, family activities, “Chalk Talks” with coaches and student-athletes, and the Maggie Dixon Heart Health Fair. (Ms. Dixon, head coach of Army’s women’s basketball team and beloved sister of Pitt men’s head coach Jamie Dixon, passed away prematurely at age 28 of a cardiac arrhythmia on April 5, 2006.) Also, attending the event was Shavonte Zellous, who graduated from and finished her athletic eligibility at Pitt at the end of the 2008-09 season, and became a star guard with the WNBA’s Detroit Shock. Ms. Zellous is heading to Turkey this Fall to play European League basketball.

2009 AVB team members enjoyed their day at The Miracle League of Southwestern PA field. Pictured left to right: Dave Wexler, John Kobler, Eddie Skonieczny, Josh Logan, Erik Temple, Tom Sullivan, Kenny Morris, Fran Johns, Vito Fusaro, Gio Suprano, Joe Ferraro (kneeling), Rob Ferraro, and Kevin Giza. (Not pictured, Randy Chiquelin.)

On Saturday, June 13th, at 12:00 noon, the coaches and members of the 2009 AVB squad will be traveling to Cranberry Township to the home field of the Miracle League of Southwestern Pennsylvania (MLSWPA). Following through on our commitment, “TO GIVE BACK TO THE COMMUNITY,” we are honored to have been invited to participate with the players and their families. Please see http://www.miracleleagueofsouthwesternpa.org/ for more information. Perhaps you’d like to join us! – Directions to Graham Field

Don Kelly, CF, was recalled by the Detroit Tigers from the Toledo Mud Hens on Friday, June 12th. Kelly, an alumnus of the Pittsburgh Federation League and graduate of Point Park University, had an immediate impact for the Tigers when he drove in two runs against the hometown Pirates on Sunday, June 14th. We at AVB extend our heartiest CONGRATULATIONS to Don. Read More »

The open tryouts conducted by the Allegheny Valley team before each Greater Pittsburgh Federation League season was more important than ever this year.

Many players from last season’s Allegheny Valley team left to form two new teams.

Allegheny Valley’s open tryouts are a unique feature in the Fed League where most team’s rosters stay pretty close to the same from year to year. Those tryouts this season yielded some promising talent, including a trio of players from the east suburbs who have helped Allegheny Valley to a 10-7-1 record a little past the midway point of the regular season.

Former AVB Player Impresses with BlueSox
Brian Youchak, for several seasons a standout outfielder with Allegheny Valley Baseball, is making a significant impact for the Butler (PA) BlueSox of the Prospect League (formerly, the Frontier Professional League). Youchak is doing for the BlueSox what he does best for his Johns Hopkins University team — HIT! To date, he’s batting .400, with 12 RBI and a .596 slugging percentage in just 17 games. All of us affiliated with AVB wish Brian much good fortune with the BlueSox.