The Bishop Carroll Catholic girls and Forest Hills boys basketball teams will each look to end their respective Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference basketball title droughts Saturday.

Both games could be a preview of District 6 championship games in two weeks.

The Huskies battle Bishop Guilfoyle Academy in a matchup of 21-2 section-winning teams at 6 p.m. Saturday inside St. Francis University’s DeGol Arena in Loretto. Bishop Guilfoyle is the defending champion. Bishop Carroll has not won LHAC gold since winning back-to-back titles in 2018 and 2019.

The Rangers meet three-time defending LHAC champ Bishop Guilfoyle Academy in a contest of 20-3 section runner-up squads at 8 p.m. Saturday in Loretto. Bishop Guilfoyle knocked off Forest Hills 78-69 in a 2025 conference semifinal, but the Rangers won 69-58 in the District 6 Class 3A championship game.

Forest Hills shared the 1993-94 LHAC title with Bishop McCort Catholic. The Rangers previously played in the conference championship game in 2011, a loss to Greater Johnstown.

“That will be a great matchup,” Bishop Guilfoyle coach Ryan Lestochi said of Forest Hills. “We played them twice last year. We played them in the conference semis last year.

“We played them in the district championship. We split games. They’re a really good team. They’ve got a stud for a player in Dylan (Stohon).

“Hopefully, we’re ready.”

“I love competition,” Bishop Guilfoyle senior 1,000-point scorer Taurean Consiglio said of playing Forest Hills. “Challenges are great. I can’t wait to be on the floor.”

“Bishop Guilfoyle is not only quick and skilled, they are physically strong,” Forest Hills coach Dom Vescovi said. “They do a great job of getting to their spots on offense and disrupting you on defense with their strength.

“From a skill standpoint, they are elite. Every player they put on the floor is able to handle the ball and shoot it well. The way they stretch you out on offense makes them difficult to guard. You can tell they are well-coached because they always seem to be in the right spot, so their players always have a chance to make the right play.”

Forest Hills junior Stohon, who is 18 points away from 1,500 for his career, tallied 18 of his team-high 22 points in the second half as the West runner-up Rangers beat East champion Clearfield 69-62 Thursday in a semifinal. Seniors Brandon Gregovich and Koy McGough each finished in double figures with 16 and 12 points, respectively, for the Rangers.

The Rangers outscored the Bison 18-10 in the pivotal third quarter. Stohon supplied 11 points in the fourth, including 5-for-7 from the foul line.

Forest Hills went 11-for-17 from the free-throw line in the fourth.

East runner-up Bishop Guilfoyle Academy defeated West champion Greater Johnstown 45-36 Thursday. A 15-2 edge in the second quarter put the Marauders up 25-19 at halftime.

Consiglio netted a game-high 20 points and grabbed seven rebounds.

“They do a great job pressuring the ball with their defense,” Vescovi said of Bishop Guilfoyle. “Each player they have can guard one-on-one, but they also do a great job helping.

“They move as if they were on a string, so openings are difficult to find. I think their size and strength is what helped them hold Johnstown to 36 points and our challenge will be the same. Hopefully, we can use the Johnstown game to learn from.”

In a 51-40 victory over East runner-up Hollidaysburg, West champ Bishop Carroll received 13 points apiece from Emily Lucko, Adelyn Myers and Ava Pablic.

Sophomore Lucko leads the Huskies with 14.4 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. Junior Myers scores 12.2 points per contest, and junior Pablic averages 11.2 points, 3.2 assists and 2.5 steals per game.

In the final stanza, Pablic contributed seven of Bishop Carroll’s 17 points to seal the victory.

Bishop Carroll and Bishop Guilfoyle are quite familiar with each other. Bishop Guilfoyle beat Bishop Carroll three times during the 2024-25 season, including in the District 6 Class 1A title game (61-44) and PIAA semifinal (49-42).

“It’s a winnable game,” Bishop Carroll coach Nick Smith said. “It’s BG. We’ve been waiting for this game.”

Bishop Guilfoyle advanced with a 65-54 victory over Central Cambria. The 2024-25 PIAA Class 1A champions received 15 points each from Mary Haigh and Morgan Ruggery. Stella Yeskey added a dozen points, and Layona Williams netted 10.

ALTOONA, Pa. – Central Cambria junior Burke Niebauer collected his 100th career victory Friday during the District 6 Class 2A wrestling tournament.

Niebauer defeated River Valley’s Nathaniel Daugherty with a 15-0 technical fall in 1:16 during the round of 16. The top seed at 139 pounds, Niebauer topped Claysburg-Kimmel’s with a 13-4 major decision in a quarterfinal bout.

Niebauer will face Marion Center’s Tyler Phillips Saturday in a semifinal match.

Bishop McCort Catholic advanced 11 to the semifinals.

The Crimson Crushers lead 27 teams with 143 points. Penns Valley is second with 104.5, and Huntingdon is third with 96.

A total of 20 area wrestlers moved on to the semifinals. The top six wrestlers at each weight class advance to the Southwest Regional Feb. 27-28.

Bishop McCort’s Bo Bassett (145), Keegan Bassett (121), Jackson Butler (152), Austin Carfley (133), Ethan Cotchen (107), Marquez Gordon (215), Emory Gunby (172), Owen McMullen (139), Melvin Miller (160), C.J. Pensiero (189) and Caleb Rodriguez (285) each moved on to the semifinals.

Wrestling resumes at 9 a.m. Saturday.

At 107, Cotchen won by default over Bellwood-Antis’ Nolan Hewitt. Cotchen led 7-4 5:08 into the match, and will face River Valley’s Levi Anthony Saturday.

Forest Hills’ Santino DiPaola earned a 4-2 decision over Philipsburg-Osceola’s Jacob Dugan in a 114 quarterfinal. DiPaola meets Huntingdon’s Gaige Sholly Saturday.

At 121, Keegan Bassett needed 1:11 to tech fall Glendale’s Harrison Snyder 17-2 and advance. Keegan Bassett faces Philipsburg-Osceola’s Caleb Hummel in a semifinal bout.

Forest Hills’ Logan Moss and Westmont Hilltop’s Owen Dluhos each moved to the 127 semifinals.

Moss topped Bishop McCort’s Daelon Britt, and will meet Penns Valley’s Conner Myers Saturday. Dluhos beat Huntingdon’s Carter Weaver 18-12, and faces Central’s Joel Morris in a semifinal match.

At 133, Carfley and Richland’s Brady Kostick each advanced. Carfley won a 10-1 major decision over Central Cambria’s Hadyn Strittmatter, and will oppose Penns Valley’s Erik Carlile Saturday. Kostick collected a 14-5 major decision over Marion Center’s Griffin Tinsman, and will face Bald Eagle Area’s Tanner Guenot in a semifinal bout.

McMullen earned a 15-0 technical fall over Huntingdon’s Christian Taylor in 4:24 at 139.

McMullen faces Penns Valley’s Tripp Watson Saturday.

Bo Bassett needed just 50 seconds to defeat Juniata’s Ty Fahnestock 17-2 in a technical fall at 145. Bo Bassett meets Philipsburg-Osceola’s Averi Gable Saturday. United senior Josef Garshnick pinned Central’s Kaden Horn in 37 seconds, and faces Bald Eagle Area’s Caden Judice Saturday.

At 152, Butler advanced with a 21-6 tech fall that lasted 2:15 over Southern Huntingdon County’s Aaden Cromwell. Butler meets Juniata’s Ryder Smith in a semifinal match.

Miller beat Westmont Hilltop’s A.J. Leiato with a 18-2 tech fall in 3:11 during a 160 quarterfinal. Miller faces Penn Cambria’s Nate Mack, who beat West Branch’s Jaykob Sample with a 17-1 technical fall in 4:18, in a Saturday semifinal.

Gunby pinned River Valley’s Tanner Flickinger in 2:40 during a 172 quarterfinal. Gunby meets Penns Valley’s Brayden Lisowski Saturday.

At 189, Richland junior Grayson Mahla advanced with a 23-6 tech fall that lasted 5:13 over Moshannon Valley’s Evan Krause. Mahla opposes Pensiero, who won a 4-1 decision over Philipsburg-Osceola’s Colton Chapman, Saturday.

Gordon pinned Tyrone’s Kyler Suhoney in 5:56 to advance to the 215 semifinals. Gordon will face United’s Max McConville, who won by fall in 5:01 over Penns Valley’s Robert Martin, Saturday in a semifinal.

Rodriguez pinned Huntingdon’s Noah Metz in 2:23 during a 285 quarterfinal. Rodriguez meets Bald Eagle Area’s Gage Gardner Saturday.

An analysis of data from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) study found that religiosity may protect against depression and stress by fostering feelings of gratitude and social support. The research was published in the Journal of Affective Disorders.

Religiosity refers to the extent to which individuals hold religious beliefs, engage in religious practices, and integrate religion into their daily lives. It encompasses beliefs, behaviors (such as prayer or worship attendance), personal commitment, and identification with a religious community.

A substantial body of research shows that religiosity is positively associated with psychological outcomes, such as higher life satisfaction and greater subjective well-being. Longitudinal and cross-cultural evidence indicates that these associations are modest but robust across different populations and cultural contexts.

In psychology and public health, religiosity tends to be viewed as a potential protective factor for mental health. One key reason for this is that religious involvement can help individuals cope with stressful life events and derive meaning from adversity. According to some models of stress and coping, religiosity may influence well-being by shaping how stressors are appraised and managed. Rather than exerting a direct effect, religiosity appears to provide psychological and social coping resources.

Study authors Ethan D. Lantz and Danielle K. Nadorff sought to explore the mechanisms through which religiosity affects psychological well-being. They hypothesized that higher levels of religiosity would be associated with higher levels of gratitude and social support. In turn, individuals experiencing stronger feelings of gratitude and better social support would tend to report better psychological well-being—defined as lower depressive symptoms and perceived stress, and higher life satisfaction.

The authors analyzed data from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) study. MIDUS is a large, long-running national research program that examines how psychological, social, behavioral, and biological factors influence health and well-being as people age.

Specifically, the researchers used data from 1,052 participants in the MIDUS 2 dataset, collected between 2004 and 2006, and 625 participants from the MIDUS Refresher dataset, collected between 2011 and 2014. The average age of participants was 55 years in the MIDUS 2 dataset and approximately 52 years in the MIDUS Refresher. Females made up 55% and 51% of the participants in the two datasets, respectively.

The authors utilized data on participants’ religiosity (collected using the MIDUS Religiosity Questionnaire), depressive symptoms (Center for Epidemiological Studies – Depression Scale), perceived stress (Perceived Stress Scale), life satisfaction (Satisfaction with Life Scale), gratitude (Gratitude Questionnaire), and social support (Support and Strain from Partners, Family, and Friends scale).

They tested a statistical model proposing that religiosity leads to higher feelings of gratitude and greater social support. In turn, the model proposed that these resources would lead to improved psychological well-being. The results confirmed a “full mediation” model across both datasets. This indicates that the relationship between religiosity and well-being was fully explained by the presence of gratitude and social support.

“Religiosity may confer protection against affective distress by fostering key psychological and social coping resources. These findings highlight the potential clinical utility of interventions designed to cultivate gratitude and strengthen social support networks as a strategy to improve well-being and reduce symptoms of affective disorders,” the study authors concluded.

The study contributes to the scientific understanding of the psychological correlates of religiosity. However, it should be noted that the cross-sectional design of this specific analysis does not allow for causal inferences to be derived from the results.

The paper, “An attitude of gratitude: How psychological and social resources mediate the protective effect of religiosity on depressive symptoms,” was authored by Ethan D. Lantz and Danielle K. Nadorff.