With the start of school a week ago, athletes on seven Pennsylvania College of Technology fall sports teams are in training as they prepare for their season openers.
The women's volleyball team, in its 12th season under coach Bambi Hawkins, will be the first to get under wayas the Wildcats take to the court at 8 p.m. Friday against Rochester College in the Penn State Beaver Classic. Action in the tournament continues Saturday.
Last year, Penn College finished 17-7 overall and 13-3 in the Penn State University Athletic Conference, where it was eliminated in the semifinals.
In other openers:
- Men's soccer begins play Aug. 30 hosting Davis College
- Men's and women's cross-country teams run Sept. 1 in the NEPA Classic at Wilkes-Barre
- Golf and women's soccer teams play Sept. 7 (the golfers in the Penn State Fayette Invitational at Mystic Rock and the soccer squad at Albright College)
- Coed tennis starts Sept. 14 atPenn StateHazleton.
Key returning players for Hawkins are Lyndsey Smith, of Mechanicsburg; Tara Powell, of Burgettstown; Lindsay Moyer, of Canton; Ashley Matson, of Troy; and Paula Monteiro, of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Other returnees are Alyssa Millard, of Sayre, and Rachel Heller, of Allison Park. The squad also boasts what the coach calls "a really strong freshman class who are going to push all of the returners."
"We have a lot of hitting power this year. "¦ Our defense needs some work," said Hawkins, who is assisted by Erin McMahon.
A key to the season will be teamwork, the coach said.
"We are going to have so many girls vying for six positions. Literally, any of the next six girls in the lineup could take the place of the first six. They need to all work together and realize that they're giving each other breaks and not taking each other's positions. I think we're going to have a real versatile group," Hawkins said.
"I have not seen a better team at Penn College as far as the hitting skills. If we can get their defensive skills to even come close to their hitting skills this is a team that most definitely can take the PSUAC and head to the USCAA (United States Collegiate Athletic Association) tournament," she added.
SCHEDULE Women's Volleyball Friday, Aug. 26 vs. Rochester College at the Penn State Beaver Classic, 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 27 vs. Penn State Fayette at the Penn State Beaver Classic, noon
Men's Soccer Tuesday, Aug. 30 host Davis College, 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 3 host Penn State Brandywine, 1 p.m.
Cross-Country Thursday, Sept. 1 NEPA Classic at Wilkes-Barre, 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 10 Albright Invitational at Reading, 10:30 a.m.
Golf Wednesday, Sept. 7 Penn State Fayette Invitational at Mystic Rock, 11 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 15 Mont Alto Invitational at Penn National, 11 a.m.
Women's Soccer Wednesday, Sept. 7 at Albright College, 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 10 host Cedar Crest College, 1 p.m.
Coed Tennis Wednesday, Sept. 14 at Penn State Hazleton, 3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 17 at Penn State Lehigh, noon
(Complete rosters and season schedules are available on the college's Athletics Web site . For more information on the PSUAC, visit on the Web; more about the USCAA also is available online.)
Vol. 10, No. 1