Westmoreland County campus clippings: Latrobe's Bryce Butler takes on coaching role

Bryce Butler had planned to play professional basketball after college, but an ailing knee made him reconsider playing overseas.

Sealing off his career as a player was tough, but it led him to the next best thing: coaching.

The former Latrobe star circled back to his college home, West Liberty, where he will be an assistant next season.

“I explored the professional options, both 5-on-5 and 3-on-3,” Butler said. “And that was the plan. But once I got called about the job, it was too good of an opportunity to pass on, especially with the state of my knee.”

A former two-time All-American and one of the nation’s best Division II players in his prime, Butler played his graduate season at Division-I College of Charleston before the opportunity to join WLU coach Ben Howlett’s staff arose.

“We are thrilled to welcome Bryce back to West Liberty,” Howlett said in a news release. “This was an absolute no-brainer hire for us as Bryce had one of the most decorated careers in the history of West Liberty basketball.”

Butler, a former Atlantic Region Player of the Year, helped lead West Liberty to the NCAA Division II National Championship game and a 33-4 record in 2022-23. He led the nation in points with 829.

He finished with 1,913 with the Hilltoppers, who were 107-16 with Butler on board.

Butler was the CAA Sixth Man of the Year last year at Charleston.

Football

Edinboro: Junior linebacker Tristan Waldier (Yough) had six tackles and a sack, but the Fighting Scots fell to Bloomsburg, 32-27.

Grove City: Junior running back Ian Demeri (Penn-Trafford) ran for 77 yards and two touchdowns, and junior linebacker Jack Jollie (Penn-Trafford) had five tackles and a sack as the Wolverines thumped Saint Vincent, 56-7.

Penn State: Freshman Quinton Martin (Belle Vernon) saw his first action in the backfield for the Nittany Lions, rushing for 28 yards on seven carries in a 56-0 win over Kent State.

Seton Hill: The Griffins evened their record at 2-2 with a come-from-behind victory over West Chester before 675 at Offutt Field. Trailing 24-14, they rallied for a 27-24 win as senior Jake Cruz passed for 237 yards and a touchdown, and redshirt junior Ky’Ron Craggette ran for 132 yards and two scores, including the go-ahead score with 1 minute, 3 seconds to play.

The defense had four interceptions, including two from junior David Awuah.

Craggette was named the PSAC Wet Offensive Athlete of the Week.

Men’s golf

Pitt-Greensburg: Junior Zach Abdallah (Franklin Regional) chipped in on the first playoff hole to win the Saint Vincent Invitational at Latrobe Country Club.

Abdallah shot a 76 and powered UPG to the team title with a 324, four shots better than the host Bearcats.

Junior Nick Thomas (Derry), sophomore Anthony Treonze, junior Ben Thomas (Greensburg Salem) and senior Vinny Treonze all shot 83 or better for the Bobcats.

Abdallah, who also won the Region V Showcase with rounds of 74 and 69 in Cleveland, was named the AMCC Player of the Week.

Thomas carded a 76, as did sophomore teammate Ashton Beighley (Derry), in the final round for UPG.

Women’s soccer

Pitt-Greensburg: Senior Emily Bonelli (Apollo-Ridge) scored her third goal of the season and junior Paige John made seven saves to pace UPG (4-1-3) to a 1-0 win over Washington & Jefferson.

Senior Julia Rowe was named the AMCC Player of the Week. She helped the Bobcats’ back line post two shutouts. The team has allowed only four goals all season.

Saint Vincent: Junior Jude Galvin scored two first-half goals, and fifth-year player Tanisha Grewal and sophomore Emma Koller added scores in the second half as the Bearcats defeated La Roche, 4-0, to move to 5-1-1.

Seton Hill: A 0-0 tie against Pitt-Johnstown kept the Griffins’ record clean. They moved to 3-0-3 with their third draw of the season.

Youngstown State: Redshirt freshman forward Sara Felder (Greensburg Central Catholic) scored her first college goal in a 2-1 loss to Duquesne.

Felder scored again in the next game as the Penguins dropped a 3-1 decision to Detroit Mercy.

Felder missed all of last season with a knee injury.

Men’s soccer

Seton Hill: Junior midfielder Julian Marker was named the PSAC West Athlete of the Week. Marker had three goals over two games, including the game-winning score against West Virginia Wesleyan.

Women’s tennis

Pitt-Greensburg: Nancy Jian was named the AMCC Player of the Week. She went 4-2 over a pair of matches for the Bobcats.

Women’s volleyball

Seton Hill: The Griffins moved to 10-1 on the season with a 3-0 sweep of Bowie State. Sophomore Devyn Sokol had nine kills, freshman Elysia Smith added eight digs and senior Abby Oesterling had 14 assists in the victory.

Thiel: Arin Delette (Hempfield) had 13 kills and four blocks as the Titans defeated La Roche, 3-1.

Wrestling

Minnesota: Former All-American Michael Kemerer (Franklin Regional) will join the Gophers’ coaching staff this winter.

The former Iowa standout spent last season as an assistant at Brown University, which followed his time as a resident athlete at Spartan Combat RTC in Ithaca, N.Y.

He also worked camps at Iowa in 2019.

“I am excited for the opportunity to make an immediate impact on the Minnesota wrestling program,” Kemerer said. “I am looking forward to working alongside the rest of the staff to help our guys achieve their goals.”

Kemerer was the first five-time All-American in Iowa wrestling and was an NCAA finalist in 2021. He finished his career with a record of 100-12, including a 55-12 mark against ranked opponents.

He finished third at the NCAA Division I Championships as a redshirt freshman competing at 157 pounds in 2017. He took fourth the next year.

Kemerer missed the 2019 season with an injury, but came back to wrestle at 174 in 2020 and earned All-American honors.

In 2021, he won a Big Ten title at 174 and was a national runner-up as a redshirt junior, before capping his career with a fourth-place finish in ‘22.

“Having Michael Kemerer join our coaching staff is a huge addition to our program,” Minnesota head coach Brandon Eggum said in a news release. “His technical expertise, leadership, emphasis on culture and personal connections with our athletes will make a significant impact. With his background as a high-level competitor, he’s uniquely equipped to help our wrestlers excel both on and off the mat.”

Men’s basketball

Saint Vincent: Junior guard Julien Vonovier worked this summer as an assistant coach with the U16 national team from his home country of Switzerland.

Vonovier helped the team finish third in Division B of the International Basketball Federation U16 European Championship in Skopje, Macedonia.

“It was amazing,” said Vonovier, 22, a Pully native who appeared in seven games last season for the Bearcats. “Beating Belgium was a big surprise because they have a lot of big-time players. People were like, ‘What is this? This is not the usual Switzerland.’ So, it was great.”