Sydney Gonglik is a big fish in a little pond.
Gonglik attends Bentworth High School in Washington County, which has a total of 366 students. But this softball phenom will be headed to a much bigger pond when she gets to college. Heck, compared to Bentworth, it’s an ocean.
“It will definitely be intimidating,” Gonglik admitted. “I’m more worried about getting lost because I’ve never been to a big school before.”
On Sunday, Gonglik, a junior pitcher, committed to LSU, which this past spring had an enrollment of more than 34,000. And while Gonglik will attend a much bigger school when she arrives in Baton Rouge, the Tigers are likely thrilled after securing a commitment from one of the country’s top talents.
Gonglik is a five-star recruit ranked by On3 as the No. 10 junior in the nation. How coveted was Gonglik? Well, she canceled visits to fellow Southeastern Conference powers Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas A&M. Oklahoma won four consecutive national titles from 2021-24, Tennessee reached last season’s College World Series, and Texas A&M is the defending SEC tournament champion. Take all of that into account, and it’s fair to see that Gonglik is likely the most coveted player from the WPIAL in many years.
Gonglik committed to LSU while on a visit to the school. She was joined on the trip by her parents, Martin and Heather, and her younger sister, Makayla. Among the highlights of the trip, Gonglik said, was attending a softball practice, watching the LSU football team play a night game in Death Valley, and attending a team dinner at the home of coach Beth Torina. It was at the dinner when Gonglik told Torina that she would be committing to play for the Tigers.
“I knew I wanted to go there, but I didn’t expect it to be this weekend,” said Gonglik, who lives in Scenery Hill. “We were talking about my other visits a little bit, and I started to realize that this is where I wanted to be. It just felt right. It felt like home.”
LSU recruited Gonglik as a two-way player, which makes sense considering how good she has been both on the mound and at the plate. But after going 17-3 and striking out an average of more than two batters an inning while also hitting .764 her freshman season, Gonglik was limited to just eight appearances on the mound last season after injuring her shoulder. She was 3-2 with a 1.37 ERA and struck out 72 in 40⅓ innings last season while hitting .522 with 7 home runs and 31 RBIs.
Now healthy, Gonglik, who plays travel ball for the Ohio Outlaws, is hoping for a big bounceback season. And it will come with sister Makayla as one of her teammates. Makayla is a gifted freshman whom Sydney said she will share pitching duties with next season.
Said Gonglik, “I’m more so just trying to have fun instead of worrying about my stats and things like that.”
South Fayette QB picks lacrosse
Drew Welhorsky has shined as South Fayette’s starting quarterback for two seasons, but football won’t be the sport Welhorsky plays in college. Welhorsky, a 6-foot-1, 195-pound senior, committed to play lacrosse at Robert Morris. Welhorsky is one of the top lacrosse players in the WPIAL. As a junior, he scored 80 goals and tacked on 69 assists on his way to WPIAL Class 2A Player of the Year honors. Welhorsky, who has 209 goals and 150 assists in his career, led South Fayette to a WPIAL runner-up finish and to the PIAA quarterfinals last season. Welhorsky has led the Lions to a 2-1 start on the football field. One of the district’s top dual-threat quarterbacks, Welhorsky has passed for 435 yards and five touchdowns and has rushed for 320 yards and a touchdown.
Thiero takes visits
One of the most heavily recruited girls basketball players in WPIAL history has been busy taking official visits. Quaker Valley senior Mimi Thiero visited Oregon and Clemson last month and took another to Memphis last weekend. Those three schools, along with Florida, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Louisville, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi State, North Carolina and Vanderbilt, made Thiero’s list of 12 finalists. Thiero is a 6-5 forward who has 60 offers in all. Ranked as one of the top 30 seniors in the country, Thiero said she expects to make her decision in November.
Three D1’s at TJ
Thomas Jefferson is expected to have one of the best girls basketball teams in the WPIAL this upcoming season. The Jaguars have one senior committed to play at a Division I school, and two others now own Division I offers. Guard Maggie Spell committed to Campbell in July, backcourt mate Kaylee DeAngelo owns a half-dozen offers, and forward Allie Wilson recently picked up her first offer from Mercyhurst, which is entering its second season in Division I. DeAngelo has offers from Akron, Colgate, Delaware, Manhattan, Robert Morris and Youngstown State.
Baseball commitments
Bethel Park’s Mike Bruckner (Akron); Valley’s Nikolas Heakins (Seton Hill).
Basketball commitments
Canon-McMillan’s Madison Clair (West Virginia Wesleyan); Elizabeth Forward’s Mia Sostaric (West Virginia Wesleyan).
Lacrosse commitments
Mt. Lebanon’s Max Prezioso (Robert Morris); South Fayette’s Pierce Hondru (Delaware).
Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at beverett@unionprogress.com.