Autumn Powell enjoyed a standout spring at the plate and in the pitching circle for a Pitt-Greensburg softball team that made it to the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference semifinals before falling to top-seeded Penn State Behrend.
The Freeport graduate and senior with the Bobcats was selected to the conference’s first team at pitcher.
Powell anchored the UPG pitching staff and earned her 200th career strikeout during the season. She finished with a 10-10 record, 3.20 ERA and 91 strikeouts.
She also made her mark again at the plate, batting .404 (19 of 47), which ranked second on the team. She doubled twice, drove in six runs and scored eight times.
“Not every pitcher gets a chance to bat and contribute that way,” Powell said. “That was one of my biggest goals, and I was happy about that.”
Powell doubled in a run to give her team a 1-0 lead in what turned out to be a tough 3-2 semifinal loss to Behrend. She started in the circle and gave up seven hits and three runs while striking out four in 6 1/3 innings of work.
“I feel I pitched well in that game,” Powell said. “They have a very tough lineup, but I went right at them. I just tried to stay consistent with what I had been doing all season. The whole team gave it their best that day. It was so close and competitive.”
Softball
IUP: Senior shortstop Jess Cekada (Highlands) earned a PSAC West first-team selection as she helped the Crimson Hawks win the regular season championship. She provided steady defense in the infield while hitting .291 (46 for 158) with 41 RBIs and 41 runs scored over 56 games, all starts. IUP went 38-19 overall, 24-4 in PSAC play, and went 3-2 in the PSAC tournament.
Seton Hill: Abby DeJidas (Freeport) was named an All-PSAC West second team. She finished second on the team with a .370 average (60 for 162) over 51 games, all starts. She led the team with 21 steals and tied for the team lead with three triples. She added 35 runs scored, 11 doubles, a home run and 22 RBIs.
Pitt-Greensburg: Junior infielder Kenzie Lang (Plum) played in 26 games with 24 starts for the Bobcats and batted .306 (22 of 72) with four doubles, three home runs and 21 RBIs. She was 3 for 4 with a double and five RBIs in a win over Franciscan on April 16.
Pitt-Greensburg: Junior infielder Hunter Taylor (Fox Chapel) batted .347 (34 of 98) over 30 games (27 starts). Her 10 doubles ranked third on the team, and she finished second on the team with 27 RBIs and third on the team with 22 runs scored.
Westminster: Junior outfielder Leah Taliani (Valley) played in 36 games this season and started 23 for the Titans. She batted .267 and helped Westminster (31-11) win the Presidents Athletic Conference championship and qualify for the NCAA Division III tournament. She collected a hit in two of the three NCAA playoff games and drove in a run in the finale, a 5-3 loss to Emory (Ga.) that went to nine innings.
Chatham: Freshman Madi Gorney (Highlands) received All-PAC honorable-mention selection (third base) after a debut collegiate season that saw her hit .376 with a .489 on-base percentage. She collected 41 hits and a program-record 13 doubles to go along with five home runs and 23 RBIs.
Baseball
Allegheny: Ryan Cochran (Deer Lakes) was one of two Gators selected to the PAC first team. The sophomore had a breakout season, earning four PAC Player of the Week awards and twice being named to the D3baseball.com Team of the Week. His 14 home runs were two shy of the team’s single-season record and most by an Allegheny hitter since 1998. Cochran finished the season second in the PAC in hits (65) and third in batting (.417) and slugging percentage (.795).
Chatham: Senior outfielder Angelo DeLeonardis (Knoch) earned PAC second-team laurels to go with his 2024 first-team selection and his 2025 honorable mention honors. He capped his senior season hitting .350 with a .961 OPS, 53 runs scored, 57 hits, including 14 extra base hits and 27 RBIs over 44 games (all starts). He also stole 23 bases. Chatham finished 30-14 and went 2-2 in the PAC championship tournament.
Penn-State Behrend: Shortstop Silvio Ionadi (Plum) earned All-AMCC first-team honors as he helped the Lions claim their ninth conference championship and qualify for the NCAA Division III tournament. He ranked first on the team in runs scored and walks drawn and finished tied for fourth with 48 hits. He hit .316 (48 for 152) with 37 RBIs over 43 games.
LaRoche: D.J. Loveland (Highlands) concluded his Redhawks career with AMCC second-team honors. He hit .321 with 35 hits, 18 runs, 14 RBIs and nine walks drawn. His 16 stolen bases ranked fourth in the AMCC. Loveland upped his performances in AMCC play, hitting .343 in those games. Defensively, he finished with a 1.000 fielding percentage (94 for 94).
Men’s track and field
Westminster: Junior Jack Crider (Kiski Area) captured the PAC Championship in the discus with a winning mark of 46.99 meters (154 feet, 2 inches) May 1 in Morgantown, W.Va. He also finished third in the hammer throw (42.79/140-4) and took fifth in the shot (13.18/43-3). Those performances helped the Titan men finish third in the team standings with 108 points.
Westminster: Junior Jake Mull (Apollo-Ridge) finished as the runner-up in the 400-meter hurdles at the PAC Championships with a personal-best time of 56.03 seconds. He also finished fourth in the 110 hurdles (16.34).
Women’s track and field
Cal (Pa.): Graduate student Jing McCann (Fox Chapel) collected U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association all-region honors May 13 for her performances in the hammer throw this season. It was the second such honor in her career. She finished third in the region with a school record of 53.80 meters (176 feet, 6 inches) at the Dave Labor Invitational in April. She was third at the PSAC championships (50.27/164-11).
Men’s tennis
Penn State-Altoona: Jackson Newell picked up first-team All-AMCC honors for his play at No. 4 singles. He played in all 18 matches, splitting time between No. 3 and No. 4 singles. He went 7-3 overall at No. 4 and was 4-0 agaisnt AMCC opponents. He was 14-4 overall in singles matches and was 8-0 in the AMCC. Newell also was selected second-team at No. 3 doubles where he and teammates Emmett Hibbs were 5-1 overall and 4-0 in the AMCC.
Women’s lacrosse
Grove City: Senior defender Reese Hasley earned All-PAC second-team recognition after a season that saw her finish second on the team in caused turnovers (35) over 18 games. She finished with 78 caused turnovers for her four-year career. Hasley also picked up 48 ground balls and scored eight goals this spring.
Football
Westminster: Aiden Fletcher (Deer Lakes) received the Weight Room Warrior Award for his dedication to getting stronger and inspiring others at the 21st Westminster Exceptional Sports Performances of the Year on April 27. He finished the 2025 season with 37 tackles including a career-high eight in a close 12-8 loss to Marietta on Sept. 4 as the Titans finished 8-3 overall and 6-2 in the PAC.