BHS Hosts Sports Media Forum for Student Career Exploration in Sports Industries
On Thursday, October 17th, Baldwin High School hosted The PGH Sports Media Forum at BHS Media Center—a panel of individuals with diverse careers in TV, radio and print sports. This event brought together alumni now working in sports broadcasting and reporting to share their insights with students aspiring to the field. All of the individuals were Baldwin High School graduates, and provided students with opportunities to connect their work inside the classroom with careers/experiences outside the classroom.
The event included a deep bench of heavy hitters in sports media, including:
Austin Bechtold - Austin, a 2019 Baldwin High School graduate, is thrilled to return for the Pittsburgh Sports Media Forum! Currently, he produces The Joe Starkey Show and hosts part-time on 93.7 The Fan. He also calls PAC College Football on KDKA+, covers Penn State football for Nittany Sports Now, and reports on various sports for Pittsburgh Sports Now. Many might recognize him as the voice of Baldwin football, basketball, and volleyball on the Fighting Highlanders Sports Network, as well as a PA announcer in the BHS Gymnasium. After earning his degree in Sports Media (Announcing) from Waynesburg in 2023, Austin is now pursuing a master's in Strategic Communications at Penn State. His journey began with The Purbalite, where he worked with Mr. Harrison as a sports writer and the first podcast editor. Those early experiences—along with the morning announcements—shaped his career and have contributed to the success in sports today.
Kevin Gorman - Kevin Gorman (Class of 1991) is a sports reporter for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review/TribLive. He began his journalism career writing for The Purbalite, where he served as sports editor. He attended Point Park College on a Golden Key scholarship, later transferring to and graduating from Penn State, where he covered the undefeated 1994 Big Ten and Rose Bowl champions for The Daily Collegian. Gorman completed internships at The Commercial Appeal in Memphis, The Arizona Republic in Phoenix, The Dallas Morning News, and The Kansas City Star. He returned to Memphis to cover high school sports before joining the Trib, where he has worked for 25 years. His coverage includes high school sports, boxing, and Pitt football and basketball, and he spent 10 years as a sports columnist. He has reported on the Penguins in three Stanley Cup finals, the Steelers in two Super Bowls, and the Pirates in two NL wild card games and the divisional playoffs. Since 2020, Gorman has served as the Pirates' beat writer and is the chair of the Pittsburgh chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America. He has also worked as a weekend host on The Fan and as a guest analyst for what is now SportsNet Pittsburgh.
Jack Hillgrove - Jack is a Sports Anchor and Reporter at WTOV-9 in Steubenville, Ohio, and also serves as a part-time talk show host for 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh. A 2017 graduate of Baldwin High School, Jack went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Communication with a concentration in Sports Broadcasting and Sports Information from Waynesburg University in 2021. His passion for sports journalism can be traced back to his three years as the sports editor for The Purbalite, which played a pivotal role in shaping his career in the field.
Guy Junker - Guy graduated from Baldwin High School in 1974, where Ms. Janet Laszewski played a pivotal role in recognizing his writing talent and encouraging him to join the Purbalite staff. During his time at Baldwin, Guy was a member of the baseball team and often wrote about sports, including his own experiences on the field. He continued his baseball career at Penn State, where he also joined the student radio station. By his senior year, he was providing play-by-play commentary for Penn State football. Before attending Baldwin, Guy was a student at St. Wendelin Catholic grade school. His first broadcasting job was at WPQR FM in Uniontown, where he earned $10 per game broadcasting Uniontown High School football. His career took off from there, leading him to two stints at WTAE TV—first from 1984 to 1990 and then again as sports director from 2006 until his retirement in 2022. Guy's most notable years were from 1991 to 2003, when he co-hosted Sportsbeat alongside Stan Savran and worked on pre- and post-game shows for the Pirates and Penguins on KBL and Fox Sports Pittsburgh (now Sportsnet Pittsburgh). He also spent six years doing sports talk for ESPN Radio locally and briefly worked as a national anchor in Washington D.C. for SNN, a sports version of CNN that unfortunately went bankrupt. Throughout his career, Guy won eight Emmy Awards, seven of which were for Best Sports Series as the writer and narrator for The Penn State Football Story. In 2001, he was honored with the Chris Schenkel Award by the NFL Coaching Academy. Today, Guy serves as the Public Address announcer at PNC Park for the Pittsburgh Pirates, does a weekly segment on the WDVE Morning Show, and hosts a monthly Penn State Hockey TV show during the winter.
Ashley Liotus - Ashley, a South Hills native and 2009 graduate of Baldwin High School, serves as the Sports Weekend Anchor/Reporter for WTAE. After attending Penn State University, her broadcasting career took off in Savannah, Georgia, at WJCL, WTAE’s sister station. She has also covered the SEC and NFL in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and the Big East in New York City. Ashley officially joined the WTAE Sports Department in 2024. In her free time, she enjoys working out, exploring Pittsburgh's newest restaurants, traveling, and spending time with her family.
Chris Mack - Chris, a proud Purbalite alumnus and 1998 graduate of Baldwin High School, earned his degree from Penn State in 2002. With over 20 years of experience in the radio industry, Chris has worked across various stations, from small-town Top 40 to his current role as the afternoon host on Audacy Pittsburgh’s country station Y108/WDSY. His passion for Pittsburgh sports has driven more than 15 years of his career, with contributions to major outlets like ESPN, TribLive, 93.7 The Fan, and the BetQL Network.
Alex Stumpf - Alex is a club reporter for MLB.com and has covered the Pittsburgh Pirates since 2019. His work has appeared in publications such as DK Pittsburgh Sports, FanGraphs, The Sporting News, the Beaver County Times, and WPXI. A 2010 graduate of Baldwin High School, Alex served as the Editor-in-Chief of The Purbalite and was a fill-in news and sports anchor for the morning announcements during his senior year. It was at The Purbalite where he honed his skills in conducting interviews, structuring stories, and discovering his voice as a writer.