The Horizon League Softball Player of the Year didn’t give conference coaches much to debate.
Redshirt senior Courtney Poulich (Mt. Pleasant) was an easy choice after a stat-packed final season that saw the right fielder smash home runs and records.
Poulich also was named to the all-conference first team. Her impressive numbers going into the Horizon League Tournament included 24 home runs, 82 RBIs and 73 runs— all league highs — a .458 batting average, .543 on-base percentage, 1.069 slugging percentage, and 1.613 OPS.
She set conference single-season marks in homers and RBIs and is RMU’s all-time leader in homers (46), runs (137) and RBIs (155).
Poulich powered the Colonials (31-18) to the Horizon championship game. They finished second, and Poulich made the all-tournament team.
Westminster: A pair of local players from Westminster swiped two major postseason awards in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference.
Sophomore Cheyenne Piper (Ligonier Valley) was named pitcher of the year, and freshman Kylie Anthony (Penn-Trafford) was tabbed newcomer of the year.
Piper repeated as the conference’s top pitcher. She was leading the PAC in wins (18), strikeouts (180) and opponents’ batting average (.190) going into the conference postseason. She helped power the Titans to their third consecutive PAC title, winning Most Outstanding Player in the tournament.
Piper was the PAC’s top newcomer last year, but the nod this year went to Anthony, who led the PAC in triples (8) and was fifth in runs scored (37). She was hitting .394 with 23 RBIs and a .475 on-base percentage.
Bloomsburg: Junior Josie Straigis (Latrobe) was named to the All-PSAC East Second Team. The utility pitcher hit a career-high 10 home runs and knocked in 32 runs. She hit .371 with 23 RBIs.
Chatham: Sophomore Hannah Uhrinek (Hempfield) was named to the All-PAC Second Team. The pitcher finished 4-4 with 63 strikeouts and set a record by pitching 10 1/3 innings in a game.
She also batted .340 with eight doubles and 13 RBIs.
Edinboro: Freshman Adoria Waldier (Yough) is entering the NCAA transfer portal after one season. Waldier, a third baseman and utility player, played in 11 games and batted .267 for the Fighting Scots.
IUP: Junior Bri Pusateri (Penn-Trafford) was named to the All-PSAC West Second Team. Pusateri was leading the team with a .399 batting average to go with 35 RBIs and 34 runs scored. She had started 52 of 53 games.
Senior outfielder Maddie Griffin (Ligonier Valley) was the recipient of the PSAC Softball Champion Scholar, which is given to the top student-athlete competing in the postseason.
Griffin, an accounting major, graduated with a 4.0 GPA and is pursuing a master’s degree.
Griffin also was a College Sports Communicators Academic All-District selection last year and earned All-America scholar-athlete honors from the National Fastpitch Coaches Association.
Pitt-Greensburg: Junior catcher Jessica Dunn and senior pitcher Autumn Powell were named to the AMCC All-Tournament Team.
UPG went 1-2 in the tournament to finish the season with a 17-24 record.
Pitt-Johnstown: Senior pitcher Mia Smith (Penn-Trafford) was named to the All-PSAC West Second Team.
Smith set records for career (450) and single-season strikeouts (123), finishing the season 9-12 with a 3.27 ERA and 17 complete games.
She also hit .229 with four home runs, five doubles and 13 RBIs.
Saint Vincent: Junior Alyssa Henderson and sophomore Josey Michalski (Norwin) were named to the All-PAC First Team.
Freshman Emily Dudenhoeffer made the second team, and sophomores Eva Farone and Taylor Williams were honorable mentions.
Henderson hit .422 with 23 RBIs, and Michalski hit seven homers and led SVC with 44 RBIs.
Dudenhoeffer hit .403 and knocked in 30 runs and scored 34.
Farone had 20 RBIs, and Williams scored 17 runs.
Seton Hill: Redshirt junior outfielder Kassidy Wittig was named to the All-PSAC West First Team. Sophomore Shelby Telegdy (designated player), sophomore Abby Dejidas (outfield) and junior Lacey Lynn (utility/pitcher) were second-team picks.
Wittig was hitting .433 with 50 runs and 29 RBIs, Dejidas had a .383 average with 21 stolen bases and 33 runs, Telegdy had 39 RBIs and Lynn drove in 33.
The Griffins finished 26-25 after a 9-2 loss to West Chester in the PSAC playoffs.
South Florida: Sophomore Toryn Fulton (Franklin Regional) was named to the American Conference all-freshman team. The outfielder made an instant impact for the Bulls. She was hitting .326 with a .553 slugging percentage going into the conference tournament.
South Florida (42-15) won the AAC title and will play in the NCAA Tournament.
Baseball
Grove City: Junior Dan Luko (Franklin Regional) went 2 for 4 with five RBIs, delivering a two-run double and a three-run homer, as the Wolverines edged Bethany, 8-7, to stay alive in the PAC Tournament.
Luko helped the Wolverines to a runner-up finish.
He went 2 for 4 with two RBIs in an 11-2 loss to Washington & Jefferson that eliminated Grove City from the tournament (22-18).
Penn State Behrend: Senior catcher Thomas Nicely (Franklin Regional) had a hit and knocked in two runs as Behrend (31-10) beat Alfred State, 12-6, to clinch the AMCC championship.
The Lions advance to play in the NCAA Division III playoffs.
Seton Hill: The Griffins (41-10) put six players on the All-PSAC West First Team, and longtime leader Marc Marizzaldi was tabbed division coach of the year.
Sophomore Brady McGuire was named the West player of the year, and sophomore Sean Williams grabbed pitcher of the year honors.
McGuire, Williams, junior shortstop Owen Henne, senior outfielder Jack Whalen (Norwin), junior pitcher Mark Wechtenhiser and grad student relief pitcher Christian Zilli (Hempfield) were first-team selections.
Junior catcher Jakob Haynes (Penn-Trafford) and redshirt junior pitcher Luke Deschenes made the second team.
McGuire hit .449 a team-high 53 RBIs, and Williams was 9-2 with a 3.32 ERA and threw a no-hitter.
Henne hit .409 with 42 runs, Whalen scored 64 runs ans stole 44 of 45 bases, Wechtenhiser had an 8-1 record with a 2.81 ERA and 63 strikeouts and Zilli was 2-1 with three saves.
Haynes batted .338 with a team-best 15 home runs and 51 RBIs. Deschenes went 7-1 with a 3.14 ERA and three complete games.
Marizzaldi reached 800 career wins leading the Griffins.
Seton Hill, ranked No. 10 in the nation, was stunned by Millersville in the first game of the PSAC Tournament, 16-4.
Seton Hill will play Charleston at Millersville in the first round of the NCAA Division II Tournament. Seton Hill is the No. 3 seed in the Atlantic Regional.
It will be the Griffins’ 15th appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
Washington & Jefferson: Sophomore shortstop Keegan Carr (Norwin) had a hit and scored a run as the Presidents toppled Grove City, 11-2, to claim the PAC championship — the program’s 17th conference title and sixth in the last seven years.
Carr, a dependable leadoff hitter who is hitting .365 with 48 runs scored, 24 RBIs and a team-high 28 walks, will join W&J in the NCAA Division III Tournament.
Men’s track & field
Cal (Pa.): Freshman Ekoulus Lett (Penn-Trafford) won the 400-meter race in 56 seconds at the West Virginia Last Chance Meet.
Women’s track & field
Westminster: Sophomore Grace Iwig (Hempfield) finished fifth, clearing 3.53 meters (11 feet, 7 inches) in the pole vault, at the Harrison Dillard Twilight at Baldwin Wallace.
Men’s lacrosse
Allegheny: Senior Liam Kruck (Franklin Regional) was named to the All-PAC Second Team.
Saint Vincent: Sophomore midfielder Calvin Rose was named to the All-PAC First Team, whereas senior attackman Jonathan Nagy, junior defender Zander Vetter and junior Cam Herring, and sophomore midfielder Reed Hunt were picked for the second team.
Senior goalie Garrett Ritts, junior defender Tyler Harpst and sophomore midfielder Connor Smith and sophomore Mason Krabbe were honorable mention selections.
Rose had 43 points on 35 goal and eight assists, Nagy scored 40 goals, Vetter had 23 caused turnovers, Herring 23 ground balls, Hunt 34 points and Ritts 116 saves. Harpst chipped in 22 ground balls, Smith 47 points and Krabbe finished with a .602 percentage on faceoffs.
Washington & Jefferson: Senior Braden Petrarco (Norwin) was an All-PAC honorable mention selection.
He finished the season with 25 goals and 11 assists for 36 points. He led the Presidents in ground balls (65) and caused turnovers (24).
Petrarco had 49 goals and 41 assists for 90 career points. He claimed 200 ground balls and tallied 78 caused turnovers.
Women’s lacrosse
Saint Vincent: Senior Melanie Seefeldt was named to the All-PAC Second Team, and grad student Chloe Herring was an honorable mention selection.
Seefeldt had a team-high 53 points (26 goals, 27 assists), whereas Herring led the Bearcats with 48 goals, 67 ground balls and 30 caused turnovers.