Like her teammates and coaches, freshman Lauren Bell was blindsided by the news.
In a cost-cutting move, Marshall Univerity opted to cut the women’s swimming team, effective at the end of this season.
Bell, a Latrobe alum and former WPIAL standout, is suddenly faced with a tough decision: stay or leave.
Marshall will honor her scholarship, but if she wants to keep swimming, Bell would have to transfer to another school.
Marshall competed in the American Athletic Conference Championships last weekend in Greensboro, N.C.
“We just got back from conference. … My whole team and I were shocked,” Bell said. “I am very upset about the news. I’ve made my best friends here, and I love my team and my coach.”
Bell, a four-time PIAA qualifier and medalist, is a sprinter for the Thundering Herd.
“I have entered the portal to explore my options because I am unsure if I will remain at Marshall or transfer,” Bell said.
Bell swam a time of 53.39 seconds in the 100-yard freestyle preliminaries at the conference meet.
Men’s basketball
Pitt-Greensburg: The Bobcats settled for silver.
Seniors Jackson Byer and Matt Marinchak (Ligonier Valley) were named to the all-tournament team, but UPG (22-5) fell to nemesis Penn State Behrend, 66-61, in the AMCC Tournament.
Byer had 19 points, including five 3-pointers, and grabbed seven rebounds, and Marinchak scored 13 in the loss.
UPG’s season isn’t over yet. It earned the No. 1 seed in the eight-team ECAC Tournament and will play SUNY Maritime (13-13) on Saturday in the first round at New Jersey City University.
Seton Hill: Redshirt freshman Dean Simos scored 25 points and junior Kedrick Curtis and Dimitrios Sklavenitis each had a double-double, Curtis with 21 points and 10 rebounds, Sklaventis with 13 points and 15 rebounds, as the Griffins (15-12, 9-10) ran past Pitt-Johnstown, 85-70, to clinch a spot in the PSAC playoffs.
Junior Adam Bilinsky (Norwin) scored 20 for UPJ. He likes playing against the Griffins. Earlier in the season, he scored a career-high 35, on 13-for-14 shooting, in a 97-88 win.
Curtis was named the PSAC West Athlete of the Week. He shot 16 for 22 and had seven assists in a pair of wins.
Washington & Jefferson: Sophomore guard Cam Rowell (Franklin Regional) had 15 points and three assists in 20 minutes off the bench as the Presidents coasted to an 85-59 win over Geneva in the PAC quarterfinals.
Junior Ryan Edwards (Norwin) scored 10, and sophomore Austin Matthews (Yough) had nine points and seven rebounds for Geneva.
Rowell chipped in 10 points in a 75-65 win over Franciscan in the semifinals.
W&J (22-6) went on to win the conference title with a 68-61 victory against Westminster.
The Presidents will play Mount Union (23-3) in the first round of the NCAA Division III Tournament on Friday in the Round of 64 at Christopher Newport in Newport News, Va.
West Liberty: Junior guard Max Butler (Latrobe) scored 10 points and dished five assists in 19 minutes as a starter, as the Hilltoppers (24-3, 18-1 MEC) defeated Salem (W.Va.) 121-87.
Butler has scored in double figures in five of his last six games.
Women’s basketball
Bethany: Junior Kate Botti (Norwin) posted 10 points, 13 rebounds and five blocks as Bethany (17-9) held back Allegheny, 65-55, in the PAC quarterfinals. She added three assists and played 35 minutes.
Clarion: Freshman Kendall Berger (Norwin) had 11 points, four rebounds and three steals off the bench as the Golden Eagles (12-13, 7-12) lost to Gannon, 85-60.
Point Park: Freshman Kamryn Pieper (Penn-Trafford) pulled down 12 rebounds, tying a season high, and played 38 minutes in a 71-56 loss to Wheeling.
Robert Morris: Senior forward Bailey Kuhns (Southmoreland) had 11 points and eight rebounds, but the Colonials (17-11, 10-9) fell to Oakland, 71-61.
Saint Vincent: The Bearcats opened the PAC Tournament with a 61-57 victory over visiting Westminster as sophomore Emerson Peffer scored a game-high 17 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. Junior Danielle Pontius and senior Camdon Bashor added 10 points each.
Sophomore Angelina Brush (Franklin Regional) had nine points and six rebounds in 31 minutes for the Titans.
Seton Hill: The Griffins (19-7, 15-5 PSAC) are No. 4 in the most recent NCAA Atlantic Regional rankings.
They defeated Pitt-Johnstown, 74-62, as senior Hallie Cowan netted 18 points and junior Mia Kalich posted her 17th double-double of the season with 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Seton Hill secured the No. 3 seed in the PSAC Tournament.
Wrestling
Pitt-Johnstown: Redshirt senior heavyweight Isaiah Vance (Hempfield) earned his fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament with a third-place finish at the NCAA Super Region I Championship at East Stroudsburg.
Vance, the No. 2 seed, had two pins, including one after a semifinal loss to Freddie Retter of Kutztown.
His 18-2 technical fall against Gavin Harper of Wheeling clinched his spot at the national tournament set for March 13-14 in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Redshirt junior Noah Gnibus (Mt. Pleasant) completed his college career with a fifth-place finish at 184.
Saint Vincent: Three Bearcats placed inside the top eight at NCAA Division III Regionals.
Sophomore Anthony Orlandini placed fourth at 149 pounds while freshman Jonah McCoy and freshman Logan Connolly were seventh at heavyweight and 133.
Orlandi finished one match short of the NCAA Tournament.
Baseball
Chatham: Senior Matt Bamford (Belle Vernon) was named the PAC Pitcher of the Week. He allowed two hits and one earned run and struck out 13 in a 6-1 complete-game victory over Wentworth.
Grove City: Junior designated hitter Dan Luko (Franklin Regional) had two hits in a 23-9 win over John Jay to open the Russ Matt Invitational in Davenport, Fla.
Liberty: Junior Dylan Grabowski (Penn-Trafford) went 2 for 4 with a triple and two runs scored in a 9-3 win over High Point.
Grabowski played at Patrick & Henry Community College for four years before transferring to Liberty. He was an NJCAA Division II All-American last year and the Region 10 Player of the Year. He hit .405 with 104 RBIs and 84 runs in 97 games at PHCC.
Penn State: Redshirt senior Justin Turcovski (Norwin), who joined the Nittany Lions after four seasons at Pitt-Johnstown, went 2 for 4 with a triple and three RBIs in a 9-3 victory over Grand Canyon. Turcovski has 140 career hits and 106 RBIs in 162 games.
Penn State Behrend: Senior catcher Thomas Nicely (Franklin Regional) was named the AMCC Baseball Athlete of the Week. He had five hits and seven RBIs in three games, including three doubles. He had two doubles and five RBIs in a win over Albion.
Pitt-Johnstown: Sophomore Jake Cramer (Latrobe) went 3 for 3 with two runs and an RBI in an 11-2 victory over East Stroudsburg.
Saint Vincent: SVC opened the season with a 4-1 victory over Dubuque in Winter Haven, Fla. The Bearcats managed only two hits, by senior Dylan Schmude and senior Ben Hudson, and got two RBIs from sophomore Ryan Tierny and one apiece from junior Lane Golkosky (Mt. Pleasant) and sophomore Chuck Fontana (Penn-Trafford). Junior Nolan Hurd earned the complete-game victory, allowing four hits.
Seton Hill: Sophomore Sean Williams (2-0) pitched five shutout innings with six strikeouts, and freshman Mason Metz drove in a run as the Griffins defeated Jamestown, 4-2, in Davenport, Fla.
They completed the two-game sweep with a 16-9 win in Game 2. Freshman Brady Stone (Penn-Trafford) went 3 for 3 with a double and two RBIs, grad student Nate Dorinsky had two hits, including a double, and four RBIs, and junior Gage Wheaton (Hempfield) homered and drove in three runs in the victory.
Waynesburg: Freshman Eli Boring (Latrobe) and freshman Mason Leonard (Latrobe) each had two hits, and senior pitcher Ethan Erhard (Hempfield) moved to 2-0 as the Yellow Jackets defeated Wilson, 4-2. Erhard struck out eight and gave up one hit in five innings.
Boring added two hits and scored twice in the second game of the doubleheader, a 7-0 win for Waynesburg (4-2).
Washington & Jefferson: Sophomore Keegan Carr (Norwin) had two hits and scored twice in a 26-6 win over La Roche.
Westminster: Sophomore Ian Temple (Penn-Trafford) delivered a two-out, two-run triple to tie it in the seventh inning and hit a two-out, two-run home run in the third in an 8-7 win over Fredonia State.
Sophomore pitcher Brandon Roher (Penn-Trafford) tossed a scoreless fifth in relief.
Softball
Cal (Pa.): Sophomore second baseman Amarah McCutcheon (Southmoreland) went 2 for 3 with two doubles and a run in a 3-1 win over Salem.
Pitt-Johnstown: Senior Mia Smith (Penn-Trafford) pitched a complete-game five-hitter, striking out nine and walking two in a 3-0 win over Bluefield State.
Saint Vincent: Junior Alyssa Henderson doubled to left-center to score junior Shayna Perigo and sophomore Dakota Hershberger in the bottom of the seventh as the Bearcats slipped past Emmual, 11-10, in Clermont, Fla. Henderson went 3 for 5 with a double and two RBIs, Hershberger was 2 for 5 with two RBIs and Perigo had two hits, two runs and two RBIs for SVC.
Seton Hill: The Griffins opened their Florida trip with wins over Dominican (N.Y.) and Wilmingfon (Del.), 9-0 and 8-0.
Junior Lacey Lynn pitched a one-hitter in the first game, while sophomore Shelby Telegdy doubled twice and Chloe Orecchio and freshman Rilie Moore each drove in two.
Telegdy tossed a three-hit shutout in the second game, while sophomore Anna Kalkowski went 3 for 3 and junior Lexi Washington had three RBI.
Men’s volleyball
Grove City: Junior Carson Good (Penn-Trafford) had a team-high 11 kills and junior Andrew Kessler (Penn-Trafford) had six kills in a 3-0 win over Bethany.
Sophomore Keith Otto (Penn-Trafford) had six kills and seven digs in a 3-0 loss to Penn State Behrend.
Saint Vincent: Freshman setter Jack Ryan was named the PAC Newcomer of the Week. Ryan had 23 digs and three blocks in a win over Bethany and added a double-double with a career-high and program-record 44 assists and 12 digs in a win over Grove City.
Senior Zebadiah Wyant had 20 kills, 10 digs and two aces, and senior Shawn McSwiggen and freshman Owen Ward (Latrobe) had 14 kills apiece as the Bearcats (8-2, 4-0) ran their winning to eight with a 3-1 win over Hiram.
Men’s lacrosse
Seton Hill: Senior Will Cody was named the GMAC Defensive Athlete of the Week. The goalie finished with a career-high 19 saves in a 10-9 win over UIndy.
Washington & Jefferson: Senior Braden Petrarco (Norwin) scored all three goals in a 22-3 loss to Concordia Wisconsin.
Women’s lacrosse
Grove City: Junior attacker Gwen Shilling (Franklin Regional) had a goal in a 21-0 victory over Marian (Wisc.).
Saint Vincent: Sophomore Louisa Zamborsky scored four goals, sophomore Cara Dupilka (Greensburg Central Catholic) added three goals and two assists, and sophomore Katie Smith had three goals and an assist in a 16-5 win over Pitt-Bradford.
Freshman MaryKatherine New was named the PAC Newcomer of the Week. She registered nine draw controls against Pitt-Bradford, adding a goal.
Men’s tennis
Saint Vincent: Freshman Blaise Bukovac (Latrobe) was named the PAC Newcomer of the Week. He went a combined 3-1 against Carlow and Mount Aloysius.
Women’s track and field
Duquesne: Freshman Brandi Brozeski (Norwin) took third place in the pentathlon at the Atlantic 10 Indoor Championships in Virginia Beach, Va. She totaled 3,526 points, including a personal-best 1.64 meters in the high jump.
Her sister, Emily Brozeski (Norwin) won the A-10 pentathlon in 2023 and was second in ’22.
Edinboro: Senior Bernadette Zukina (Norwin) won the 400-meter dash at the PSAC Indoor Championships in a time of 56.80 seconds, an NCAA Division II provisional time. She also took second in the 200 in 25.25.
Seton Hill: The Griffins’ 1,600-meter relay of freshman Mackenzie McIntyre, sophomore Nemani Moon, sophomore Artemis Conaboy and freshman Kaitlyn Guth won a title at the PSAC Indoor Championships at Lehigh. The foursome’s winning time was 3 minutes, 56.86 seconds.
Westminster: Sophomore Grace Iwig (Hempfield) finished second in the pole vault, clearing 3.68 meters, at the PAC Championships.
Men’s track and field
Saint Vincent: The distance medley relay team of sophomore Will Stickman, junior P.J. McNeal, freshman Liam Wilson (Latrobe) and freshman Noah Channel ran to victory at the PAC Championships with a time of 10:40.58.
Stickman also won the open mile race for the Bearcats in 4:25.13.
Seton Hill: Junior Jacy Willis won the 400-meter dash at the PSAC Indoor Championships with a time of 48.56 seconds.
Westminster: Freshman Adam Frankhauser (Hempfield) took sixth place in the 60-meter hurdles in 8.99 seconds at the PAC Indoor Championships at Youngstown State.