Newsroom

We are excited to share that Kadenne Kemp, a standout player from our boys basketball team, has been nominated for Athlete of the Week! Each week, High School On SI scours the Keystone State for the top winter sports like basketball, wrestling, soccer and swimming.

Kadenne has shown incredible skill and dedication on the court, and now it’s time for us to show our support! Let’s come together as a community and help Kadenne win this well-deserved recognition by voting for him as Athlete of the Week.

Vote here: Vote for Kadenne Kemp

Voting closes Sunday, March 16 at 11:59 p.m. 

The only thing that shined brighter than Sam Cavanaugh's two Silver Medals was his dazzling overall performance this week. Sam captured four medals, the maximum possible, at the PIAA 2A Swimming Championships, Bucknell University. Plus, with a time of 47.47 seconds in the first leg of a relay, he even broke the Northgate-Avonworth team record in the 100 Freestyle, previously held by the legendary Zach Schuster. Sam's silvers included the 200 Individual Medley (IM) and the 500 Freestyle, where he nabbed second in a wild, three-swimmer dead heat in the 20th and final length of the pool.

While Sam shone brightly, there was plenty of Northgate luster to go around, lighting the way for another impressive PIAAs showing by our swim team. Our fabulous freshmen contingent of Greyson McKelvey, JoAnn Cook, Addison Hase and Bridget Campbell sparkled throughout, with Greyson grabbing three medals and JoAnn two.

The boys' squad nailed 6th place overall out of 59 boys' teams, just ahead of Section 3 rivals Hampton and Shadyside Academy. Amazingly, five of the top eight boys' teams were from the WPIAL, which simply dominated the competition at States. Our girls came in 17th place out of 57 teams, ahead of section rival Knock and neighbor Quaker Valley. In all, our swimmers mounted the podium seven times to accept medals. Every single one of our swimmers either medaled in the Finals or placed in the Consolation Finals. And Greyson McKelvey won the 500 Free in the Consolation Finals by nearly 4 seconds!

“What a meet!!!" wrote Head Coach Ashley Vranick afterwards to the team and parents. "I am so proud of this group. They should be proud of themselves, and it was a perfect way to end a great season.”

Complete List of Medal Winners

Silver Medal: 200 IM, Sam Cavanaugh, 1:50.61

Silver Medal: 500 Free, Sam Cavanaugh, 4:34.52

5th Place Medal: 200 Free, Greyson McKelvey, 1:43.34

5th Place Medal: 200 Medley Relay, 1:38.29. Greyson McKelvey, Sam Cavanaugh, Jakob Vranick, Nate Campbell

5th Place Medal: 400 Free Relay, 3:15.94. Sam Cavanaugh, Caleb Gratner, Jakob Vranick, Greyson McKelvey

7th Place Medal: 100 Back, JoAnn Cook, 56.95

8th Place Medal: 200 Free, JoAnn Cook, 1:57.17

Consolation Finals (places 9-16)

9th Place: 500 Free, Greyson McKelvey, 4:42.60

12th Place: Girls' 200 Medley Relay, 1:53.04. JoAnn Cook, Rachel Buzzard, Clair Boughton, Bridget Campbell

15th Place: Girls' 400 Free Relay, 3:44.96. Addison Hase, Bridget Campbell, Katie Petrina, JoAnn Cook

15th Place: 500 Free, Addison Hase, 5:21.23

16th Place: Boys' 200 Free Relay, 1:33.39. Caleb Gratner, Liam Joyce, Nate Parker, Nate Campbell

Other Impressive Individual Finishes by Northgate Swimmers

22nd Place: 100 Breaststroke, Nate Parker, 1:02.08
26th Place: 500 Free, Jacob Vranick, 5:03.17

27th Place: 100 Breaststroke, Rachel Buzzard, 1:10.34

31st Place: 200 IM, Rachel Buzzard, 2:23.02

Bidding Farewell to Our Captains

We sadly bid adieu to our outstanding team captains--all seniors--Claire Boughton, Katie Petrina, Nate Campbell and Caleb Gratner. Thank you for your leadership, your kindness, your camaraderie and all your hard work! It's been a pleasure following your swimming careers and your achievements in school and the community. Best of luck always, in everything you do! 

Congratulations to all our "Flame-a-lopes," and to Coach Ashley and Assistant Coach Terry Benson, on another successful season.  As Coach Ashley wrote on the trip home, "Great job to all the swimmers.... watch out next year!"

The excitement is building as our boys' varsity basketball team is gearing up for a thrilling matchup in the PIAA State Quarterfinals! They will face off against Northwest Area High School on March 15, at 1 p.m. at West Branch High School.

Get Your Tickets

Don’t miss out on the action – secure your tickets for the game now!

Purchase Tickets Here

Game Location:

West Branch High School
444 Allport Cutoff
Morrisdale, PA 16858

Best of luck, Flames! We believe in you!

Get ready for an unforgettable journey as Northgate High School Musical proudly presents "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" – a musical filled with heart, drama and powerful performances. Our talented cast and crew have been working hard to bring this incredible story to life on stage, and we can't wait for you to experience it!

Tickets are on sale now! Click the link below to reserve your seats. We look forward to seeing you there and sharing the magic of theater with our Northgate community!

https://www.onthestage.tickets/show/northgate-high-school-musical/6799554147096d6c8eee5677?fbclid=IwY2xjawI_5eZleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHWVmBT4J11KRWVthXiZeL6CgBdXbQreIhbRYUNYxRThaiNUhrwx_JxyieQ_aem_NX9o2mE15A0gv5XPIzthBQ

We are thrilled to announce that our boys' basketball team has advanced to the second round of the state playoffs! They will be facing Clarion Area in what promises to be an exciting and hard-fought game. This is a monumental achievement for our team, school, and community, and we couldn't be prouder of the dedication, teamwork, and sportsmanship these young athletes have displayed throughout the season.

As we approach this crucial playoff game, we are calling on our Northgate family—parents, alumni, students, faculty, and community members—to come together and show unwavering support for our boys. Let’s fill the stands with red and gold, creating an atmosphere of encouragement and pride that will inspire our team to give their very best on the court.

The game will take place on March 12th at 7:00 PM at Freeport Area High School. Let’s make this an event to remember by coming out in full force to cheer for our players and coaches, who have worked tirelessly to represent Northgate with honor.

Thank you for your continued support and for being such an integral part of our community’s spirit and success. Together, let’s show everyone what it means to be Northgate proud!

Location:
Freeport Area High School
625 S Pike Rd, Sarver, PA 16055

Go Flames!!

While 13 is supposed to be an unlucky number, a Northgate-Avonworth baker’s dozen is counting their lucky stars for qualifying for the PIAA AA Swimming Championships, March 12-13, at Bucknell University, Lewisburg. The coed squad will be led by WPIAL Gold Medalist Sam Cavanaugh (200 IM), a Junior, and Bronze Medalists JoAnn Cook (100 Back) and Greyson McKelvey (200 Free), both Freshmen. The complete team of qualifiers includes:

Claire Boughton, Sr.

Rachel Buzzard, So.

Bridget Campbell, Fr.

Nate Campbell, Sr.

Sam Cavanaugh, Jr.

JoAnn Cook, Fr.

Caleb Gratner, Sr. 

Addison Hase, Fr.

Liam Joyce, So.

Greyson McKelvey, Fr. 

Nate Parker, So.

Katie Petrina, Sr.

Jakob Vranick, Jr.

Our Boys’ PIAA Events (in chronological order) 

• 200 Medley Relay: McKelvey, Cavanaugh, Vranick, Campbell
• 200 Freestyle: Grey McKelvey
• 200 Individual Medley (IM): Sam Cavanaugh
• 500 Free: Vranick, Cavanaugh and McKelvey
• 200 Free Relay: Gratner, Joyce, Parker, Campbell
• 100 Breaststroke: Nate Parker
• 400 Freestyle Relay: Cavanaugh, Gratner, Vranick, McKelvey

Our Girls’ PIAA Events

• 200 Medley Relay: Cook, Buzzard, Boughton, Campbell
• 200 Free: JoAnn Cook
• 500 Free:  Addison Hase
• 100 Back:  JoAnn Cook
• 100 Breaststroke: Rachel Buzzard
• 400 Free Relay: Petrina, Hase, Campbell, Cook

A complete schedule can be found at the PIAA Swimming Championships website. A "heat sheet," or listing of events, heats and lane assignments for each event can be found here. The preliminaries and finals will be broadcast for free on PCN, PCNTV.com and PCN Select app, starting at 8:05 am Wednesday and Thursday. 

Go Flame-a-lopes! Good luck at States!

The boys basketball team takes home a win at the PIAA playoffs. Read more: https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/high-school-basketball/2025/03/08/piaa-boys-basketball-playoffs-kadenne-kemp-buzzer-beater-upset-northgate/stories/202503080020

A team of Northgate seniors recently competed in the regional round of the Euro Challenge hosted by the European Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh. The European Union Delegation to the United States created the Euro Challenge Competition to engage American high school students in economic based problem-solving tasks. The Northgate team members, Anastasia Beridze, Caleb Gratner, Juliana Shane, and Jeanelle Stiteler, spent many hours researching the history and economies of the Euro Area. The judges were impressed with their knowledge of economic concepts and their proposed solutions to managing migration flows in Greece. In the end, the Northgate team placed 2nd overall from a slate of 8 teams. The students will advance to the semi-final round in New York City in April. Northgate is very proud of their hard work and success. As they say in Greece: OPA!

The Northgate-Avonworth Swim Team showed its mettle last week at the WPIAL AA Swimming Championships, held at Pitt’s Trees Pool. Our young men and women captured 13 medals in total, including one Gold and three Bronze.

Junior Sam Cavanaugh proved he was worthy of Gold and tough as nails in his thrilling come from behind win over Mt. Pleasant’s Joseph Gardner in the 200 Individual Medley (1:52.95). Sam also dropped time and took Bronze in the 500 Free (4:39.80). Two of our outstanding freshmen—Greyson McKelvey and JoAnn Cook—outswam a legion of upperclassmen as each captured Bronze. Grey
swam 1:44.11 in the 200 Free and JoAnn logged 56.26 in the 100 Back, each dropping time.

These three “Flame-a-lopes” weren’t the only ones to win medals and stand proudly on the podium. Our other medalists included:

• 4th Place – Boys 200 Medley Relay (1:38.77). Greyson McKelvey, Sam Cavanaugh, Jakob Vranick, Nate Campbell
• 4th Place – Boys 400 Free Relay (3:16.79). Sam Cavanaugh, Caleb Gratner, Jakob Vranick, Greyson McKelvey
• 4th Place – Girls 200 Free (1:56.21). JoAnn Cook
• 5th Place – Girls 200 Medley Relay (1:50.71). JoAnn Cook, Rachel Buzzard, Claire Boughton, Bridget Campbell
• 6th Place – Boys 200 Free Relay (1:32.34). Caleb Gratner, Liam Joyce, Nate Parker, Nate Campbell
• 6th Place – Boys 500 Free (4:48.80). Grey McKelvey
• 7th Place – Girls 100 Breaststroke (1:08.43). Rachel Buzzard
• 7th Place – Girls 400 Free Relay (3:42.29). Katie Petrina, Addison Hase, Bridget Campbell, JoAnn Cook
• 8th Place – Boys 100 Breaststroke (1:01.22). Nate Parker

Recognition is also due to Conor Blaser and Kacey LaVelle, who dropped significant time and scored important points. Conor cut an impressive 2.77 seconds in the 100 Breaststroke (1:06.63), while the 200 Free Relay team of Buzzard, LaVelle, Boughton and Petrina cut 1.22 seconds, finishing at 1:44.96. Plus, another fabulous freshman, Kaitlyn Klaum, dropped 3.5 seconds off her 500 Free for a time of 5:45.28.

Our boys team finished 5th overall, out of 45 boys teams competing at Pitt, while our girls finished 9th overall, out of 48 girls teams.

One more stop lies ahead for our teams: the PIAA AA Swimming Championships at Bucknell University, March 12-13. Onward to States!

With the regular season in the rear-view mirror, 17 swimmers of the Northgate-Avonworth Swim Team head to Trees Pool at the University of Pittsburgh to take on opponents from 40+ high schools at the WPIAL AA Swimming Championships, February 27-28. These 17 “Flame-a-lopes” qualified to compete there, and they are set to compete in their respective events below (relays can be altered on day of meet):

• Mohamed Abouwafia, Fr., alternate (fills in for team where needed)
• Conor Blaser, Jr., 100 Breaststroke
• Claire Boughton, Sr., 200 Medley Relay, 100 Butterfly, 200 Free Relay, 100
Backstroke
• Rachel Buzzard, So., 200 Medley Relay, 200 Individual Medley (IM), 200 Free
Relay,
• Bridget Campbell, Fr., 200 Medley Relay, 50 Free, 100 Butterfly, 400 Free
Relay
• Nate Campbell, Sr., 200 Free Relay, 100 Free, 100 Breaststroke
• Sam Cavanaugh, Sr., 200 Medley Relay, 200 IM, 500 Free, 400 Free Relay
• JoAnn Cook, Fr., 200 Medley Relay, 200 Free, 100 Back, 400 Free Relay
• Caleb Gratner, Sr., 50 Free, 200 Free Relay, 100 Back, 400 Free Relay
• Addison Hase, Fr., 200 Free, 500 Free, 400 Free Relay
• Liam Joyce, So., 200 Free, 200 Free Relay, 100 Free
• Kaitlyn Klaum, Fr., 200 IM
• Kacey LaVelle, Sr., 200 Free, 200 Free Relay
• Greyson McKelvey, Fr., 200 Medley Relay, 200 Free, 500 Free, 400 Free Relay
• Nate Parker, So., 200 IM, 200 Free Relay, 100 Breaststroke
• Katie Petrina, Sr., 50 Free, 200 Free Relay, 100 Free, 400 Free Relay
• Jakob Vranick, Jr., 200 Medley Relay, 100 Butterfly, 500 Free, 400 Free Relay

Impressive facts: Sam Cavanaugh is the top seed in both the 200 IM (1:54.58) and 500 Free (4:39.85). Two freshmen are seeded in the top three. JoAnn Cook is 3rd seed in the 200 Free (1:57.99) and 100 Back (58.23), and Greyson McKelvey is 3rd seed in the 200 Free (1:46.32).

Head Coach of our team is Ashley Vranick and Assistant Coach is Terry Benson.

Good luck Flame-a-lopes!

We are very excited to inform you that the Northgate School Board recently approved an agreement with the Arts Ed Collaborative to support the district’s arts education initiatives.

We will host a community event on Wednesday, March 12th, from 6-8 p.m. in the MS/HS Library. Families will have the opportunity to provide feedback on what they value most and want to see prioritized in our music and arts education programs. We strongly encourage you to attend this event.

This collaboration will provide valuable opportunities for our students and educators including professional learning programs for arts educators, school district support to strengthen K–12 arts programs, evaluation and consulting services, and convenings that highlight innovative practices in arts education. We are very fortunate to have a community that loves and supports the arts.

If you'd like to learn more about the Arts Ed Collaborative, please visit https://artsedcollab.org/.

The AHN Suburban building, a former hospital in Bellevue, has transformed into a community hub that supports Northgate students. Through internships and hands-on STEM learning, students gain professional experience and earn course credits. Kidsburgh dives deeper into this transformation and how the space sets students up for success.

Read more: On the grounds of a century-old hospital, the reimagined AHN Suburban is helping Northgate students and their community | Pittsburgh is Kidsburgh

Introducing Highmark Wholecare's Free Farmer's Market Series.

Highmark Wholecare is partnering with AHN Healthy Food Centers and the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank to provide nutritious, fresh and healthy produce to local families in need. This collaboration aims to support community health by delivering free, locally sourced fruits and vegetables directly to families, ensuring access to healthy food.

By working with local farmers and food providers, this partnership will help address food insecurity across the community. Reusable shopping bags will be provided to shoppers. There are no income guidelines and no ID necessary. These events are open to the public at no charge and are first come, first serve.

The Free Farmer's Market will be held at AHN Suburban on the dates/times listed below. We hope to see you there!

Friday, March 28 @ 12 PM – 4 PM

Friday, June 27 @ 12 PM – 4 PM

Friday, September 26 @ 12 PM – 4 PM

Friday, November 7 @ 12 PM – 4 PM