Penn College Athletes Complete Year of Transition

Published 05.29.2016

News
Athletics
Wildcat Weekly

With five first-year coaches at the helm, this marked a transition year for many Pennsylvania College of Technology athletes as the college completed its second of four years as a provisional member of NCAA Division III.


A sport-by-sport review of the year (alphabetically) for Penn College teams:

Archery – Penn College, under 14th-year coach Chad Karstetter, finished eighth in the U.S. Outdoor National Championships and had first-place finishers in senior Markus Weber, of La Plata, Maryland, in male compound, and the mixed bowhunter team of junior Andrew Rupp, of Dayton, and freshman Erica Gause, of Bloomsburg. Also, Weber; freshman Tim Lamont, of Eldred; Gause; Rupp; and sophomore Tyler Schoonover, of Bradford, were awarded All-American honors for their combined results from the indoor and outdoor nationals. It was the second such honor for Schoonover; since 1997, 41 Penn College archers have earned that coveted status 83 times.

“We had really tough competition at MSU,” Karstetter said of the May 20-22 competition. “(The) weather was great, other than very windy conditions making it tough to shoot. Overall, we did well for a young team.

“Adding five more All-Americans to the long list at Penn College is always a great way to return. These five shot strong all year indoors and out, and it paid off in the end.

“The mixed bowhunter team had some great rounds of shooting and shot strong all day, edging out James Madison University in the end for the gold,” Karstetter said. “The men's compound team also shot strong, losing to Texas A&M, then winning the bronze medal in a match against UCLA.

“Individually, (Weber) shot better this weekend than I have ever seen him shoot. It was close though the last three arrows, with Markus winning by two points. Coming off of a win at Eastern Regionals set him up with the momentum to continue through.

“Overall, I am very pleased with how the team shot. I am excited to get another year next year with them,” the coach added.

Baseball – In their 10th season under coach Chris Howard, the Wildcats finished 13-23 overall and 4-8 in the North Eastern Athletic Conference. Howard’s career record now stands at 225-138. Aaron Palmer, of Hanover, was named to the All-North Eastern Athletic Conference First Team and was a United States Collegiate Athletic Association Honorable Mention while Cole Hofmann, of Newtown, was named to the All-NEAC Second Team.

Basketball (men) – Penn College ended 3-21 overall and 3-15 in the NEAC during coach Ryan Callahan’s first season as coach. Kevin Laurence-El, of Milton, was named to the All-NEAC Third Team.

Basketball (women) – In Matt Wilt’s final season as coach, Penn College went 3-19 overall and was 3-17 in the NEAC. In six seasons under Wilt, the Wildcats were 46-98. During the season, Jamie Steer, of South Williamsport, became the program’s all-time leading scorer with 1,422 points and junior Alicia Ross, of Williamsport, moved into the 1,000-point career scoring club as she now has 1,105. Ross was named to the All-NEAC Third Team and became the college’s first USCAA First-Team honoree while Steer was named a USCAA Honorable Mention and became the college’s first three-time USCAA honoree.

Cross-Country (men and women) – The men, under first-year coach Nick Patton, placed 10th in the NEAC Championships and the women ended 12th.

Golf – During coach Matt Haile’s seventh season, Wildcat golfers placed 10th during the fall United States Collegiate Athletic Association National Championships and sixth in the spring NEAC Championships. Ned Baumbach, of Elizabethtown, and Mike Johnson, of Towanda, were named to the All-NEAC Third Team.

Soccer (men) – Penn College went 6-12-1 overall and 4-7-1 in the NEAC during coach Tyler Mensch’s first season.

Soccer (women) – In coach John McNichol’s second season, the Wildcats were 8-9-3 overall and 7-4-2 in the NEAC, where they reached the conference quarterfinals. In two seasons, McNichol’s teams are 13-21-3. Robyn Beddow, of Lancaster, was named to the All-NEAC Second Team and was a USCAA Honorable Mention while Jordan Courter, of Mill Hall, and Hailee Hartman, of Lampeter, were named to the All-NEAC Third Team.

Softball – Penn College closed out its first season under coach Jackie Klahold going 17-21 overall (10-8 in the NEAC) and earning a berth in the USCAA National Championships, where it finished 10th. Taylor Brooks, of Cogan Station, and Kelsey Gantz, of South Williamsport, were named to the All-NEAC North Division First Team and Taylor Krow, of Mechanicsburg; Amanda Kustanbauter, of Muncy; and freshman Elizabeth Asher, of East Stroudsburg, to the All-NEAC North Division Second Team. In addition, Gantz was named a Second Team USCAA All-American and Brooks a USCAA Honorable Mention All-American.

Tennis (men) – The Wildcats had seasons of 1-4 in the fall and 1-6 in the spring (0-4 in the NEAC), as fifth-year coach Robert Kemrer’s overall record with the team went to 14-24. Ben Leibig, of Lebanon, was named to the All-NEAC Third Team.

Tennis (women) – After an 0-4 fall season, the team rebounded with a 2-6 spring (2-4 in the NEAC) as Kemrer’s overall record with the team went to 6-33. Jane Herman, of Greencastle, was named to the All-NEAC West Third Team.

Volleyball (women) – In coach Tom McLaughlin’s first season as coach, the Wildcats were 1-25 overall and 0-12 in the NEAC.

Wrestling – During coach Schuyler Frey’s sixth season, Penn College was 6-10 in dual matches and finished fifth in the USCAA National Championships. Frey’s career record with the Wildcats is 28-40.

College Award-Winners
Four student-athletes received special honors from the college as Courter, a women’s soccer captain, and LaQuinn Thompson, of York, a men’s basketball player, were recognized as scholar-athletes of the year while Beddow, a women’s soccer captain, and Schoonover, an archer, were honored as athletes of the year.

Archery
Friday-Sunday, May 20-22 – U.S. National Outdoor Collegiate Championships at Michigan State University, team finished eighth in nation

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