District College category, Page 10
Change in roles helps Burrell grad Jayson Ireland become key player for Penn State New Kensington men’s soccer
In the moments after the Penn State New Kensington men’s soccer team earned a historic victory in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament, coach Mark Duffield wasn’t sure what made him more proud: the fact that the program earned its first win in the event or that Jayson Ireland...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Seton Hill men win on wild buzzer-beater
Trailing Glenville State by two points with 6.7 seconds remaining, Seton Hill had one more punch waiting for the visiting Pioneers. A near turnover in the closing moments instead became the shot of the year so far for the men’s basketball team. Grad guard Ryan Meis inbounded from in front...
Gateway grad Emily Mannion earns PSAC postseason honors at IUP
Emily Mannion hoped to make the most of a new opportunity this fall on the IUP women’s soccer team. The Gateway graduate and Crimson Hawks sophomore midfielder, who transferred from Clarion after one season, got her chance to shine, and she took full advantage. She scored four goals, one in...
District college football roundup: Slippery Rock wins in playoffs on 2-point hook-and-lateral in OT
Brayden Long hit hit Logan Ramper with a 28-yard touchdown pass, then Slippery Rock scored on a hook-and-lateral on the ensuing 2-point conversion to knock off top-seeded Kutztown, 25-24 in overtime, in an NCAA Division II playoff second-round game Saturday. Kutztown (11-1) scored earlier on its overtime possession on Luke...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Former Hempfield wrestler wins title for Army
When it comes to wrestling at Army, Ethan Berginc is one good soldier. Berginc, a Jeannette native who wrestled at Hempfield via a co-operative agreement, is on a roll eary in his junior season. Far from his days as a plebe, Berginc won back-to-back titles at 133 pounds, the second...
St. Joseph grad Trinity Lockwood-Morris taps into new talent with Pitt-Greensburg cross country teamVideo
Throughout a three-sport high school career at St. Joseph, Trinity Lockwood-Morris did her share of running. Whether it was on the soccer pitch or up and down a basketball court — or during offseason training for both — running was a part of her life. But it wasn’t something she...
District college football roundup: Clutch defensive play leads Slippery Rock to playoff win
Brayden Long threw for 270 yards and a touchdown and Michael Henwood made a game-saving defensive play to lead Slippery Rock to a 14-7 victory over New Haven (8-3) in first round of the NCAA Division II tournament Saturday. With Slippery Rock (10-1) leading 14-7 late in the third quarter,...
Knoch grad Brynne Smith proves quick study in 1st season as setter with Penn State Behrend women’s volleyball
Brynne Smith wasn’t sure what to expect heading into her freshman season with the Penn State Behrend women’s volleyball team. The Knoch grad had hoped to play a regular role on the team, but, with it being her first season of college athletics, she didn’t know how feasible that would...
New coach, 10 1st-year players look to carry Pitt-Greensburg in AMCC play
It was a rough beginning for first-year coach Julie Bolden and her Pitt-Greensburg women’s basketball team. Despite the Bobcats’ 96-64 loss at Waynesburg on Nov 8, Franklin Regional graduate Sarah Penrod scored a career-high 20 points for UPG, which was scheduled to play twice more last week, including the home...
Southmoreland grad Zach Cernuto has played many roles in Washington & Jefferson offense
Penn State tight end Tyler Warren has made waves across college football this season. The 6-foot-6, 261-pound senior has contributed to the Nittany Lions’ lofty ranking as a pass catcher and as a runner. Entering Saturday’s game against Purdue, Warren had 59 receptions for 681 yards and four touchdowns. He...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Mt. Pleasant grad Riley Gesinski earns postseason honors at Pitt-Greensburg
It didn’t take Riley Gesinski long to adjust to college-level soccer in the NCAA Division III Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference. The freshman midfielder from Pitt-Greensburg made her mark this season, and conference coaches noticed. The former Mt. Pleasant standout was named the AMCC Newcomer of the Year. She led a...
Cal (Pa.), Slippery Rock, Grove City, W&J and Carnegie Mellon qualify for NCAA football playoffsVideo
Five district college football teams are on their way to the NCAA playoffs. Cal (Pa.), the PSAC West champion, is back in the Division II bracket for the first time since 2017. The Vulcans, who lost to Kutztown in Saturday’s PSAC championship game, earned the No. 3 seed in their...
District college football roundup: Kutztown tops Cal (Pa.) to repeat as PSAC champs
Jaedyn Stewart rushed for 115 yards and a touchdown and caught an 8-yard scoring pass from Judd Novak to lead No. 3 Kutztown to a 21-14 victory over Cal (Pa.) in the PSAC championship game Saturday to repeat as conference champs. The Vulcans (8-2) pulled to within seven points with...
Saint Vincent fires football coach Aaron Smetanka, 2 assistants after 1-9 season
After a 1-9 season, Saint Vincent fired head football coach Aaron Smetanka along with offensive coordinator Sam London III and defensive coordinator John Bell, launching an immediate search for new staff members. The remainder of the coaching staff was still listed on the school’s athletics website, but that does not...
Studying with QBs helps Seton Hill receiver Todd Phillips become best deep-ball threat in the country
Seton Hill wide receiver Todd Phillips suffered a dislocated shoulder in spring practice leading up to his senior season in 2023. Subsequent surgery kept him out for the entirety of the fall. While he couldn’t do anything physically on the field, Phillips figured he at least could keep his football...
Saint Vincent men’s basketball sets championship expectations
Saint Vincent enters another college basketball season with high hopes in the third year of D.P. Harris’ second men’s coaching stint with the Bearcats. “It’s business as usual,” Harris said. “We expect to win championships.” After finishing a year ago as runner-up to Geneva in the NCAA Division III Presidents’...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Longtime coach Tom Harbert to be honored at Saint Vincent
The Saint Vincent wrestling program will honor one of its greats Tuesday night before the season opener against visiting Shippensburg. The man of the hour will be Tom Harbert, the head wrestling, lacrosse and cross country coach at SVC for over 50 years and a advocate for bringing wrestling back...
District college football roundup: Slippery Rock handles Seton Hill
Chris D’Or ran for 107 yards and a touchdown to lead No. 10 Slippery Rock to a 38-20 victory over Seton Hill in PSAC football Saturday. Brayden Long threw for 248 yards and two touchdowns for Slippery Rock (8-1, 5-1). Ky’Ron Craggette rushed for 113 yards and a touchdown for...
Reunited Bilinksy brothers at Pitt-Johnstown headline Westmoreland County players in college basketball
Adam Bilinsky wants to gain traction in his slow-going college basketball career, and the former Norwin standout believes he has found a comfort zone with his new team. Bilinsky transferred from Mercyhurst to Pitt-Johnstown, bringing familiarity of PSAC basketball while also reuniting with his brother, Ty, another Norwin alum and...
Standout freshmen, return of setter Vivian Poach have Saint Vincent volleyball among PAC playoff contendersVideo
As the volleyball regular season winds to a close in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference, the standings are bunched as teams jockey for spots in the conference tournament. The top six teams at the end of the regular season earn spots in the PAC postseason, with the top two receiving a...
Highlands grad Sam Norris among young cornerstones for budding Waynesburg men’s soccer program
Sometimes finding the right college athletic program isn’t about finding the most successful one. It’s about finding the one with the best culture, the best sense of “team.” That’s how Highlands grad Sam Norris arrived at Waynesburg. Currently wrapping up his freshman season with the Yellowjackets men’s soccer team, Norris...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Penn-Trafford grad Dylan Grabowski commits to Liberty
Dylan Grabowski built some equity playing baseball at Patrick & Henry Community College in Virginia. He honed his skills to better prepare himself for a potential future at the Division I level. He improved, and the bigger schools came around. Grabowski recently committed to one of them. The utility man...
District college football roundup: Washington & Jefferson drops Case Western
Jacob Pugh threw for 340 yards and three touchdowns to lead No. 19 Washington & Jefferson to a 34-21 victory over Case Western in PAC football Saturday afternoon. Zach Cernuto caught 14 passes for 123 yards and a touchdown for the Presidents (8-1, 8-1) while teammate Kobe Derosa ran for...
Slippery Rock rolls past Clarion
Brayden Long threw for 399 yards and four touchdowns to lead Slippery Rock to a 38-22 victory over Clarion in PSAC football Thursday night. Kylon Wilson caught seven passes for 147 yards and two touchdowns and Mike Solomon had four grabs for 85 yards and a score for The Rock...
Westmoreland County campus clippings: Postseason honors pour in for Pitt-Greensburg tennis
Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference women’s tennis power Pitt-Greensburg threw a net over the all-conference honors. The regular season and conference tournament runners-up saw freshman Gabi Moder take conference player and newcomer of the year, while three teammates also received accolades. Freshmen Nancy Jiang and Devon Ulmer were first-team picks in...
