Westmoreland campus clippings: Seton Hill baseball to honor championship teams

Seton Hill is getting the band back together to celebrate its baseball benchmarks.

The Griffins will honor some of its top teams as part of its 20th anniversary celebration.

On March 18, the program’s first championship team will be welcomed back to campus — the 2006 NAIA World Series team that was ranked 14th in the nation. Seton Hill hosts LeMoyne for two games that day beginning at 1 p.m.

On March 25, the 2010 conference title-winning squad will be recognized when the Griffins play a doubleheader against Cal (Pa.), with a 1 p.m. start.

Three pitchers combined on a one-hitter as the Griffins (5-2) topped West Virginia Wesleyan, 12-1, in seven innings in Winter Haven, Fla.

Freshman Jack Whalen (Norwin) had two hits and three runs scored, senior Jack Oberdorf (Greensburg Salem) tripled and had two RBIs, senior Vincenzo Rauso went 3 for 4 with two RBIs, senior Owen Sabol (Norwin) went 3 for 4 with a triple, and senior Braden Durham had two hits.

Junior Jon McCullough and sophomore Jared Dowey each tossed two scoreless innings, with senior Jack Laird striking out five in three innings.

Baseball

Allegheny: Senior Bobby Kusinsky (Penn-Trafford) tossed seven innings of one-hit baseball and struck out seven as the Gators downed Bethany Lutheran, 3-1, in Tuscon, Ariz.

Pitt-Greensburg: The Bobcats broke out the bats in winning four of their first five games.

At the Russ Matt Invitational in Auburndale, Fla., they crushed Martin Luther College, 27-6 and 13-0, before posting wins over Medaille, 10-6, and Gordon College, 11-2.

Freshman James Domer has 11 hits in 20 at-bats, with four doubles, two triples, a home run, 12 RBIs and nine runs. He is slashing .550/.625/1.100 through five games.

Senior Jace Cappellini, meantime, is 9 for 14 (.643) and had seven RBIs, freshman Ben Aftanas (Valley) is hitting .533 with eight runs, and junior Mason Boehm also has a .533 average with six RBIs.

Aftanas also has a pitching win.

Freshman Nathan Mankoski has 16 strikeouts in eight innings pitched for UPG (4-1).

Domer was named the AMCC Player of the Week, while Mankoski was the conference pitcher of the week.

Saint Vincent: The Bearcats swept a season-opening doubleheader against Marian (Wisc.) with a pair of thrilling one-run wins in Auburndale, Fla.

In a 2-1, 10-inning victory in the first game, senior Jayke Saiani hit a walk-off home run, while senior Zack VonStein delivered a go-ahead single in the seventh inning in Game 2.

Washington & Jefferson: Senior Tyler Horvat (Penn-Trafford) had two hits and two RBIs, and pitched seven solid innings as the Presidents defeated Case Western, 10-1.

Westminster: Junior second baseman Donald Shimko (Latrobe) went 2 for 4 with a triple, RBI and run scored in a 14-8 victory over Fredonia State.

Westmoreland County Community College: Freshman catcher Logan Short (Latrobe) went 2 for 4 with a home run and two RBIs, and sophomore designated hitter Ronnue Howard (Norwin) and sophomore left fielder Alex Borges had two hits each as the Wolfpack lost to Finger Lakes Community College, 8-3.

Softball

Robert Morris: Grad student Dana Vatakis (Monessen) pitched 5 2/3 innings with seven strikeouts and no walks, and sophomore Jane Garver (Ligonier Valley) came in and worked 1 1/3 scoreless innings to earn the save as the Colonials beat Mercer, 6-3, at the T-Mobile Crimson Classic Friday at Rhoads Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Saint Vincent: With wins over Rivier (6-3) and Concordia-Moorhead (5-1), the Bearcats opened the season 2-0.

In the first game, SVC trailed 3-0 before rallying for the victory. Junior Alex Dillner (Norwin) went 2 for 3 with an RBI, sophomore designated player Allie Prady (Penn-Trafford) had two hits, including a double, and two RBIs, and junior Olivia Persin (Hempfield) had a hit, RBI and stolen base.

In Game 2, Dillner homered and drove in two, Persin went 2 for 4, and junior Jessica LaPorte had two hits and an RBI for the Bearcats, who got a complete-game victory from freshman Kiley Meek, who was named the PAC Rookie of the Week.

Women’s swimming

Saint Vincent: Seniors Lauren Connors and Erica Steele (Greensburg Salem) were selected to the All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference first team.

Connors won a conference title in the 100-yard backstroke.

Seven Bearcats made the second team: Sophomore Abby Leskovansky, freshman Emma Martz (Hempfield), senior Katie Kozy, sophomore Sarah Alexander, senior Sara Basala, senior Cara Luallen and sophomore Maddison Cassidy (Greensburg Salem).

Westminster: Senior Shannon Geer (Hempfield) was named to the All-Presidents’ Athletic Conference second team with the 400-yard medley relay team.

Men’s swimming

Saint Vincent: Freshmen Jacob Dzurica (Hempfield) and Nick Jackman and senior Kris Smith were named to the All-PAC first team, while senior Chris Bush, freshman Alex Leskovansky and senior Noah Schollaert made the second team.

Dzurica won a conference title in the 100-yard backstroke, while Jackson won the 1,650-yard freestyle.

Women’s lacrosse

Seton Hill: Junior Piper Conlan had a hat trick, redshirt sophomore Skylar Orlowski had two goals and freshman Mila Udovicic provided seven assists in an 11-7 win over Shippensburg.

The Griffins scored 10 of the last 12 goals in the game.

Elizabeth Tamasitis had three goals, and Conlan added two scores and two assists as the Griffins (2-1) edged No. 23 Mount Olive, 14-12.