It was a moving night in the Professional Fighters League middleweight division Friday at Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte. Josh Fremd, a Connellsville graduate, continued his ascent in 2026.

Dalton Rosta, a Laurel graduate, suffered a split-decision loss to drop his third consecutive defeat.

Fremd had a war with Brazilian Jhony Gregory, who has a penchant for finishing fights in the first round. Fremd had to work his way out of a choke to move into the second round. With Gregory exhausted, Fremd used his striking to score a technical knockout.

Fremd (13-6) has now won three fights via knockout in 2026. Two of those wins came in the PFL, where Fremd was ranked ninth in the division before his fight with Gregory, and one was in the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship.
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Rosta (11-4) had a colorful walkout before the fight. He started in a Carolina Panthers jersey, before taking it off to reveal a Steelers jersey underneath. Rosta drew the ire of the Charlotte crowd, which was behind Battle in his hometown.

Before the fight, the fighters didn’t touch gloves. When the fight started, however, the action was lacking.

Rosta, who was ranked fourth in the division, employed a grappling-heavy approach and couldn’t hold battle down as the fight wore on. Despite Rosta’s inability to land heavy strikes, Battle also couldn’t employ much of his striking either.

Battle told Dan Hardy during his post-fight interview that he wanted to look for more openings to counter.

“It’s a pleasure to fight at home,” Battle said. “It’s hard to fight a tough guy like Dalton. I was hoping he would give me a few openings, but he kept it technical tonight. We were both trying to bounce back.”

Battle and Rosta had both fought on the PFL Pittsburgh card in March. Battle was submitted by PFL interim middleweight champion Johnny Eblen.

Rosta was knocked out by former PFL Tournament winner Impa Kasanganay in the first round.

Battle wants to quickly climb into the title picture as the PFL starts to inch closer to its rebranding under the MVP Promotions umbrella in 2027.

​“I’m not going to sit around and wait for something,” Battle said. “Let me whoop someone’s ass, please.”

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

Josh Fremd spent this year revitalizing a career he thought he may have lost. The Connellsville graduate was cut by the UFC after missing weight before a fight two years ago. 

Fremd, who lives and trains in Colorado, has already collected two victories in two organizations -- the Professional Fighters League and Bare Knuckle FC -- and will have a chance for a third this Saturday. Fremd (12-6) will take on Brazilian Jhony Gregory in a middleweight bout to kick off the main card this Friday at Bojangles Colisuem in Charlotte.

Fremd will be one of two Pittsburgh-area fighters on the card. Laurel graduate Dalton Rosta will fight in the main event against UFC veteran Bryan Battle in another middleweight bout. Rosta, Battle and Fremd all fought on the PFL Pittsburgh card at Robert Morris University. Rosta (11-3) lost via knockout in the first round against former PFL champion and UFC veteran Impa Kasanganay.

Battle lost in the first round via submission to current interim champion Johnny Eblen. This will likely be the last fights under the PFL banner for Rosta and Fremd. PFL announced recently it was being acquired by MVP Promotions, which is owned by Jake Paul. 

Fremd, 32, seeing a resurgence meant a lot to him. He was cut from the UFC in October 2024 after missing weight for a schedule fight against Abdul Razak Alhassan. Fremd, who was 2-4 in the UFC, made a quick turnaround following his third-round knockout win over Jarrah Hussein Al-Silawi in March.

Fremd knocked out Jared Torgeson in the first round of a BKFC event in April. His opponent this weekend Gregory, who is also 32, has a knack for being in fights that don't go thte distance. He is 10-5 overall and has seen 13 of his 15 fights end inside the distance. Fremd has a lot more experience with seeing the scorecards, as six of his 18 MMA fights have gone the distance.

Fremd is no stranger to seeing fights end early, as he has five wins by knockout and four via submission. Rosta is looking to avoid losing three consecutive fights for the first time in his career. He lost in the PFL Tournament final in 2025 when he suffered a third-round head kick KO loss to Fabian Edwards and followed that with the loss to Kasanganay.

Battle, 31, also was pushed out of the UFC due to struggles with making weight. He was 7-1 with one no contest while in the UFC. Battle has nine wins by finish during his career.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

Undefeated light heavyweight title contender Atif "Lord Pretty" Oberlton, who trains with Tom Yankello in Ambridge, has his next opponent in line. Oberlton (16-0, 14 KOs) will fight former title challenger Roamer Alexis Angulo on a featured undercard bout on the Claressa Shields vs. Kaye Scott fight Aug. 15 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta.

Oberlton won his last fight in May when he forced Carlos Gongora to retire following the fifth round. Angulo (28-4, 23 KOs) has lost three of his past five fights. Angluo, who is 42, lost his last fight to Umar Dzambekov in June of 2025 at the Hollywood Fight Nights Event.

Oberlton is an articulate fighter who has drawn plenty of attention for his colorful ring attire. I caught up with him before his last fight this spring. The interview is below.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

Dontae Giddens' return from the Hank Aaron Invitational was a proud one. The Penn Hills shortstop found an easy way to show his improvement year-over-year.

Last summer, Giddens was unable to produce a hit in eight at-bats while he was at the Jackie Robinson Complex in Vero Beach, Fla. When Giddens went back earlier this month, he hit .667 (6-of-9).

"It was great to see that improvement," Giddens said.

The Hank Aaron Invitational was founded in 2015 and is the premier diversity-focused baseball development experience for high school-aged baseball players in the United States. The four-day event mixes on-field development and games in addition to providing opportunities for learning and a chance to hear speakers talk about what baseball is like at the next level.

Current MLB players who came through the program including Taj Bradley, Lawrence Butler, Justin Crawford, Hunter Greene and Michael Harris II, among others. There are more than 30 current minor leaguers and more than 150 college players who have played in the event.

"Being selected for the Hank Aaron Invitational for the second straight year was an honor," Giddens said. "It showed me the work I've put in is paying off. Competing against some of the best players in the country pushed me to get better and gave me a lot of confidence."

Giddens helped Penn Hills halt a 34-game losing streak last spring when the Indians beat Carrick in April. Penn Hills struggled with numbers and finished 1-15.

Giddens hopes to continue to build his profile during his senior year.

"Being part of an event like this means a lot because it gives me the chance to compete at a high level and continue growing as a player," Giddens said. "My goal is to play Division I baseball, keep developing my game, and make an impact wherever I end up."

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

There will be a new event for wrestlers in Pennsylvania to test themselves. This one, however, won't come after the battles waged falling a long winter season.

The inaugural Ohio vs. Pennsylvania Wrestling All-Star Duals on set to take place on Oct. 10-11 at Venue 18 in Fostoria, Ohio.  One of the event organizers, Caden Crawford, set he expects to see a lot of strong matches.

"Both days will have a high school all-star dual and an open division all-star dual," Crawford said. "The inspiration behind it was wnating to create something different for the wrestling community. Ohio and Pennsylvania both have strong wrestling cultures, and I felt like an all-star dual between the two states could give athletes a bigger stage, more excitement and something that feels more meaningful than a normal offseason match."

There has been a real push to find opportunities for wrestlers outside of their typical high school and college careers. Real American Freestyle has held a number of events over the past year that have provided more mat time for a number of former Olympians, NCAA champions and even UFC fighters.

On the WPIAL front, Franklin Regional graduates Spencer Lee and Nico Megaludis and Kittanning graduate Jason Nolf have all competed in Real American Freestyle.

"I do think events like Real American Freestyle show that people are interested in wrestling when it is presented in a bigger, more exciting way," Crawford said. "I think there is room for more showcase style events that make wrestling feel like a real event, not just another tournament."

The Pennsylvania vs. Ohio All-Star event has seen a number of commitments already from Pittsburgh-area wrestlers, including Seneca Valley's Kaleigh Tuell and Pine-Richland's Giada Campanella. One of the challenges with filling the upper weights on the boys' side will come with a few one of the top wrestlers also playing football.

Crawford believes the event will see a good turnout. The wrestler announcements have been posted on Instagram under the State Pride Wrestling Series account.

​"I think it could create some challenges with certain athletes, especially upper weights, but I also think the right wrestlers will want to compete in something like this," Crawford said. "Since it is an all-star dual and not a full tournament, the goal is quality matchups and strong representation from both states."

Josh Rizzo is editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

The Pittsburgh Passion will be heading to the Pro Football Hall of Fame next weekend. The Passion, who are the sixth oldest franchise in the Women's Football Alliance, will be attempting to win their first-ever WFA crown. Pittsburgh last played in the final of the Independent Women's Football League in 2015.

The Passion (7-1) will play the Minnesota Vixen at 2 p.m. on Saturday at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium. Pittsburgh has won three championships during its history, including back-to-back IWFL championships in 2014-15. The Passion also won the National Women's Football Association in 2008.

The Passion have won the National Conference in each of the past three seasons. However, Pittsburgh fell one step short of reaching the championship game, losing in the National Conference final in 2022, 2024 and 2025. The Passion bested their old rivals, the DC Divas, to reach the WFA final.

Josh Rizzo is the editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.

Jaquan Brisker announced he will be holding a fourth annual youth football camp July 18 at Gateway High School. Brisker, a Gateway graduate, signed a one-year, $5.5 million contract to join the Steelers this season after spending his first four seasons with the Chicago Bears.

While in Chicago, Brisker started all 52 games that he appeared in. Brisker intercepted four passes and recorded seven sacks during his time with the Bears. Brisker took the junior college path to the NFL.

He started his collegiate career with Lackawanna College and transferred to Penn State after his freshman season. He was named a second-team all-American while playing for the Nittany Lions in 2021. Brisker would end up being drafted in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft by the Bears.

James Armstrong chose to get his college commitment out of the way early. The Hopewell junior chose to announce his commitment to play at Penn State. Armstrong passed for 2,217 yards and 21 touchdowns last season. He also piled up 739 yards on the ground and scored 17 times.

​Hopewell finished 6-4 and returned to the playoffs for the first time in a decade.

Daemar Kelly is on the move again.

The former Penn Hills standout will be coming back to Pennsylvania to play at Mercyhurst. The Lakers compete in the Division I Northeast Conference after a long stint as members of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference. Kelly played last season at Northern Illinois University.

Kelly made 15 starts for the Huskies, contributing 5.6 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. Kelly was a 1,000-point scorer for the Indians and committed to Quinnipiac after high school. He chose to transfer after his freshman season.

Kelly moved on to Saint Francis (Pa.) and helped the Red Flash make a surprising run to the NCAA Tournament. His time with the Red Flash to be the most fruitful in his career thus far. Kelly started all 34 games he appeared in, averaging 8.1 points and 3.2 rebounds per game.

Josh Rizzo is editor and publisher of Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges. Story ideas can be submitted to [email protected] or on X @J_oshRizzo.