Competing Saturday in the NCAA Division III Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships, seven Pennsylvania College of Technology cross-country runners turned in career personal-best times and 11 posted season personal bests.
Also, when the United East Conference postseason soccer awards were handed out, Wildcat players made an unprecedented haul, while the wrestling and basketball teams tasted victory.
Cross-Country
The men’s team placed 22nd in a 29-team field and the women’s team was 29th in a 30-team field Saturday at the season-ending meet. Individually, Matthew Woolcock of Oil City led the men while Elaina Brady of McConnellsburg paced the Wildcat women.
Woolcock placed 117th in a men’s field of 216 over an 8K course in 27:14.9. Also, Mitchell Campbell of Riegelsville was 139th in 27:42.2, Alec Rees of Centerport, New York, was 142nd in 27:44.3, Holden Furey of Williamsport was 157th in 28:41.3, Chase Ebeling of Bellefonte was 165th in 29:04.6, Ethan Knapp of Franklin was 169th in 29:20.9 and Aaron Guerrisky of South Williamsport was 171st in 29:33.3. Only the top five count toward the team score.
Brady finished 159th in a women’s field of 217 over the 6K course in 26:28.8. Also, Isabella Kerlin of Pottstown was 175th in 27:16.4, Karleigh Hunter of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, was 189th in 28:14.8, Lillian DePew of Muncy was 199th in 29:07.6, Kayleigh Miller of Sayre was 202nd in 29:51.6 and Isabella Telford of Greensburg was 217th in 38:28.9. Only the top five count toward the team score.
Times for Woolcock, Furey, Guerrisky, Brady, Kerlin, Hunter and Miller were season and career bests, while times for Rees, Ebeling, Campbell and Telford were their season bests.
“We ended a successful season on a positive note. The women had some nice personal records and showed signs of continued improvement. We hope to have growth from those who return next year and to add a few recruits,” coach Tom Leeser said.
“The men followed up their conference championship with a solid performance. The pace went out fast. Some guys benefited from the quick start while a few faded later in the race,” Leeser said, adding, “Kayleigh Miller and Alec Rees competed in their final races as Wildcats. They have been excellent leaders and will be missed.”
Carnegie Mellon led the men’s field with 39 points and was followed by Johns Hopkins 40, Marywood 128, Dickinson 162, Lebanon Valley 186, Misericordia 205, Messiah 224, Washington & Jefferson 268, Elizabethtown 282, St. Vincent (Pa.) 304, Salisbury 335, Geneva 337, Grove City 391, Susquehanna 391, York 394, McDaniel 399, Scranton 410, Franklin & Marshall 510, Gettysburg 543, Lancaster Bible 647, Alvernia 673, Penn College 679, St. Mary’s (Md.) 683, King’s 696, Juniata 712, Penn State Berks 741, Lycoming 827, Waynesburg 858, Penn State Harrisburg 876.
Individually, Emmanuel Leblond of Johns Hopkins finished first in 24:12.8.
Johns Hopkins led the women’s field with 34 points and was followed by Carnegie Mellon 76, Gettysburg 150, Grove City 153, Misericordia 192, Dickinson 241, St. Vincent (Pa.) 246, Salisbury 250, Scranton 261, Elizabethtown 263, Lebanon Valley 264, Franklin & Marshall 315, Messiah 326, Washington & Jefferson 374, Geneva 430, Susquehanna 458, St. Mary’s (Md.) 501, York 515, Marywood 521, Hood 560, Waynesburg 627, Lycoming 654, Lancaster Bible 705, Alvernia 711, McDaniel 730, Chatham 794, Juniata 794, King’s 823, Penn College 863, Penn State Harrisburg 923.
Individually, Claire Anderson of Washington & Jefferson placed first in 21:04.9
Schedule
Saturday, Nov. 16 — NCAA Division III Mid-Atlantic Regional Championship at Lock Haven University’s West Branch Course, women 29 of 30, men 22 of 29
Women’s Soccer
Megan Kurian of Royersford was the most decorated player when UE end-of-the-season awards were announced on Thursday as the freshman was the Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year — a conference team first — and joined three other teammates on the all-conference first team, a Penn College program-record.
Kurian finished her rookie campaign with 26 goals, 15 assists and 67 points — all single-season program records. She tied for the conference lead in both goals and assists and led the United East in points. She also ranked No. 2 in NCAA Division III in points, tied for fourth in goals and was tied for seventh in assists. Kurian scored multiple goals in nine contests, including three hat tricks.
Joining her on the UE first team were senior midfielder Cassie Johnson of Richland, sophomore defender Makayla Bucks of Lebanon and freshman defender Ashley Gordon of Pottstown.
Johnson, who was named to the all-conference second team as a freshman, picked up her first career first-team selection after she finished the season with 43 points, on 14 goals and 15 assists. She shared the program’s single-season record and the United East’s top assisting player honor with Kurian and also was ranked No. 7 nationally in assists. Johnson netted multiple goals in four matches and dished out multiple helpers in five games.
Kurian and Johnson spearheaded the most prolific offense in the conference, which scored 85 goals and totaled 62 assists. Penn College ranked No. 3 in NCAA Division III in goals and finished No. 4 nationally in total points.
Bucks picked up her second all-conference honor as a defender after earning a second-team nod last season.
Bucks (two assists) and Gordon (four assists) were key contributors on set pieces and anchored a defense that surrendered nine goals (five in all UE play), which ranked second in the United East and was tied for 19th nationally. Penn College’s defense allowed 6.4 shots per game and finished with a conference-high 13 shutouts, which ranked No. 24 nationally.
Penn College completed a program-record 14-0-4 regular season, 7-0-1 UE regular season, and finished 15-1-4 overall and 8-1-1 all UE matches where it reached the semifinals, and a key part of that was the outstanding play of senior goalkeeper Nicole Lichtinger of Erie who, in eight conference regular-season matches, allowed just two goals, third-best in the UE; had a .250 goals-against average, also third-best in the conference; and a .882 save percentage, which was the second-best in the UE. She led the UE with six shutouts, and coach Ian Scheller observed, “(it was) very unfortunate for Nicole; she definitely deserved something.”
Men’s Soccer
After going 6-2-2 in all UE matches and reaching the playoff quarterfinals, five players earned all-conference honors, with senior defender Tommy DeGeyter of Long Valley, New Jersey, named to the first team, freshman midfielder Scott Goldfeder of Mechanicsburg to the second team, and senior midfielder Logan Stapleton of Chambersburg, senior defender Matt Neeson of Chadds Ford and senior defender Jack Lenosky of Moon Township to the third team.
The five selections were the most for the Penn College men in the NCAA era that began in 2014. Overall, Penn College was 11-5-3, its best record in nine seasons under coach Tyler Mensch and the first season since 2013 with double-digit wins.
DeGeyter is the third Wildcat to earn three or more all-conference nods in program history after the captain led the team in points (18), goals (6) and assists (6) for the second consecutive season and went 3-for-3 in penalty kick opportunities. DeGeyter finished the season tied for 15th in league scoring and points and was sixth in assists.
Goldfeder tied for second on the team with 10 points, with four goals and two assists.
Stapleton, Neeson and Lenosky capped their careers with their first all-conference selections after starting in every game. Stapleton finished the season tied for second on the team with four goals and two assists. Stapleton scored three of his four goals in conference matches against Gallaudet, Lancaster Bible and Valley Forge. Lenosky scored two goals and aided with two assists to finish with six points, while Neeson was credited with an assist.
“They were all very deserving and I’m happy the other coaches felt the same way by voting for all of them,” Mensch said.
Wrestling
Hosting first-time foe Penn State Altoona in its Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference opener on Saturday, Penn College won 54-3.
Five of the Wildcats’ six pins came in the first period of action with Justin Adams of York (125), Isaac McGregor of Northumberland (141), TJ Martin of Honesdale (149), Isaac Cory of Montoursville (184) and Nicholai Brotzman of Marietta (285) all making quick work of their opponents, while Cavin Napoletano of Killingworth, Connecticut, earned a second-period fall.
Schedule/Record
Overall record: 1-0
AMCC record: 1-0
Saturday, Nov. 16 — host Penn State Altoona (AMCC), W, 54-3
Saturday, Nov. 23 — host Penn College Invitational, 10 a.m.
Saturday, Dec. 7 — at Elizabethtown Blue Jay Classic, 9:30 a.m.
Men’s Basketball
On Wednesday at Muhlenberg College, a second-half comeback fell short in an 89-83 loss. Gavin Barrett of Roselle, New Jersey, led Penn College with 27 points, while Livingston Cross of Union, New Jersey, scored 16 points and added 11 rebounds.
At home with William Paterson on Saturday, the Wildcats used a 51-23 second-half scoring advantage for an 89-63 win that evened their series at 1-1. Cross led the team with 22 points and 15 rebounds, while JD Smith III of Dallastown added 20 points.
Earlier, Cross nabbed the season’s first United East Defensive Player of the Week award for Nov. 3-9 after he averaged a double-double with 22 points and 11 boards and led the Wildcats to a 1-1 start to the season against Elmira and Keuka. In the Wildcats’ season-opener against Elmira, Cross led the team with 24 points and grabbed 14 rebounds while dishing out five assists and adding two blocks and two steals. Cross followed with 20 points, eight rebounds and three takeaways while shooting 54.5% (6-for-11) against Keuka.
Schedule/Record/Series History
Overall: 2-2
UE: 0-0
Wednesday, Nov. 13 — at Muhlenberg College, L, 89-83
Saturday, Nov. 16 — host William Paterson, W, 89-63
Wednesday, Nov. 20 — at Lebanon Valley, 6 p.m. (LV leads 1-0)
Saturday, Nov. 23 — at King’s College, 3 p.m. (King’s leads 5-0)
Tuesday, Nov. 26 — host Penn State Brandywine (UE), 7 p.m. (PSB leads 2-0)
Women’s Basketball
Playing the full 40 minutes, Rachel Teats of Middleburg led the Wildcats with 18 points in a 55-47 road loss at Elmira College on Wednesday.
Hosting first-time opponent Pitt-Bradford on Saturday, Teats led four Penn College players in double figures with 15 points in a 71-47 victory. Also for the Wildcats, Gigi Parlante of Williamsport had a double-double with 17 rebounds and 11 points.
Also, Parlante claimed her first career United East Player of the Week award for Nov. 3-9 after she scored 15 points in her collegiate debut against Chatham and 16 in the second game against Susquehanna.
Schedule/Record/Series History
Overall: 1-3
UE: 0-0
Wednesday, Nov. 13 — at Elmira College, L, 55-47
Saturday, Nov. 16 — host Pitt-Bradford, W, 71-47
Tuesday, Nov. 19 — at Keuka College, 5:30 p.m. (Keuka leads 6-2)
Thursday, Nov. 21 — at York College, 6 p.m. (York leads 1-0)
Saturday, Nov. 23 — at Penn State Altoona, 3 p.m. (PSA leads 4-0)
Tuesday, Nov. 26 — host Lancaster Bible College (UE), 5 p.m. (LBC leads 16-1)
For additional information, visit the Wildcats Athletics website.
For more about the United East, visit the conference website.