When Blackhawk fell to North Catholic in the PIAA Class 4A quarterfinals in March, it marked the end of Aubree Hupp’s junior season.
But, while it closed the book on one thing, it also began something new.
That would be Hupp’s relationship with her future college.
And it happened in random fashion, too.
One of North Catholic’s assistant coaches is Lynn Roman, whose daughter, Courtney, is an assistant coach at Canisius University, a Division I school located in Buffalo, N.Y. Courtney just so happened to be at the PIAA quarterfinal game while back home visiting family and friends.
“It’s very funny, the only reason Courtney saw me was because she came to watch her mom’s game when she beat us this year,” said Hupp, who scored 23 points in a 51-44 loss. “She literally just went to see her mom when she was home, and she ended up having to mark it as a recruiting day.”
A few months later, Canisius extended Hupp a scholarship offer. And on Aug. 8, Hupp took the program up on that offer.
Hupp, a 5-foot-10 senior forward and one of the WPIAL’s top players, announced her commitment on social media Aug. 22. Canisius was the only school to which Hupp took an official visit, but she also had offers from Colgate, Iona, Seton Hill and USC Upstate.
“I had just gotten back from another visit [Colgate], and I wanted to make my decision early. So I said, ‘Let’s get it over with,’” Hupp recalled. “I texted [Canisius head coach Tiffany Swoffard] and asked if she was free to talk today or tomorrow, and she immediately called me. I told her I wanted to commit, and it just kind of went from there.”
Hupp, who has scored more than 1,000 career points, is coming off an outstanding junior season that saw her average 21.5 points, 11.4 rebounds, 3.1 steals, 2.3 assists and 2.1 blocks per game on her way to first-team all-state recognition in Class 4A. Also a PUP All-Star selection, Hupp, one of the area’s more physical players, set program single-game (24) and single-season (332) rebounding records.
Hupp said that her relationship with the coaching staff was one of her biggest reasons for choosing Canisius. One of those coaches is assistant Stephan Walton, who coached another Blackhawk player, Bree Hoover, while at a previous coaching stop at Kennesaw State.
“Buffalo reminded me of Pittsburgh,” Hupp said. “I didn’t want to go South. I hate the heat. The snow won’t bother me. It felt homey, and I didn’t see myself going to a huge school.”
Hupp said she plans on studying biology and hopes to become a physician’s assistant one day. She won’t be the first Division I athlete in her family. Her father, Jason, was an offensive lineman at Kent State in the early 2000s. One of his teammates was Steelers great James Harrison.
But before Hupp leaves for Buffalo, she hopes to have a strong senior season. While Hupp has already won a PIAA title (she’s played in the PIAA finals twice), she is 0 for 3 in WPIAL championship games in her career.
“I’d love to finally win a WPIAL. The fourth time will be a charm, hopefully,” Hupp said. “We’re a young team, and I want to do my part as a senior to build up our younger girls.”
McCrommon-Bruce, Webb earn offers
A pair of WPIAL boys basketball players picked up their first Division I offers in recent months. Gateway senior Mykel Bruce-McCrommon was offered by Iona. The offer came a few weeks after Arkansas coach John Calipari watched Bruce-McCrommon and his AAU team play in a tournament in Eastern Pa. Bruce-McCrommon is a 6-6 guard who pumped in 21 points per game last season. Indiana junior Aaron Webb has collected offers from James Madison and Pepperdine. Webb, a 6-7 guard, averaged 15.2 points a game as a sophomore. Both Bruce-McCrommon and Webb were all-section picks.
Weir lands first offer
One of the WPIAL’s top sophomore girls basketball players received her first Division I offer over the weekend, as North Catholic’s Sam Weir was offered by La Salle. Weir, a 6-foot guard, averaged 11.2 points per game last season when she helped the Trojanettes advance to the WPIAL and PIAA Class 4A semifinals. She was one of only three freshmen in the WPIAL to be named to an all-section team.
Baseball commitments
Avonworth’s Cooper Scharding (Seton Hill); Central Catholic’s Landon Greene (Slippery Rock); Indiana’s Sully VanHoose (West Chester); Seneca Valley’s Quinlan Carney (California, Pa.); Thomas Jefferson’s Colin Pearson (Mercyhurst).
Basketball commitments
Baldwin’s Julianne Ott (Penn State Behrend); Geibel’s Emma Larkin (Belmont Abbey); Laurel Highlands’ Aierra Jenkins (California, Pa.); Oakland Catholic’s Ellie Junker (Penn State Behrend); Thomas Jefferson’s Riley McCabe (Frostburg State).
Soccer commitment
South Fayette’s Abbey Spalla (Penn State).
Softball commitment
Hempfield’s Claire Mitchell (Marist).
Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at beverett@unionprogress.com.