An incredible week for Penn State. Before we get into the different sports, it should be mentioned that Penn State winter sports earned 123 Academic All-Big Ten Honors. That is a Penn State winter record, which comes off a record fall season as well. Excellent reminder that Penn State is not just about athletics, but also shaping the mind.
Wrestling
NATIONAL CHAMPS! Yep, Penn State wrestling dominated the tournament, which gave the Nittany Lions their 9th championship in 11 years. An incredible run. Penn State went five for five in the finals, with Roman Bravo-Young, Nick Lee, Carter Starocci, and Aaron Brooks winning their second titles. Max Dean won his first. Greg Kerkvliet finished in fourth place (he had a medical forfeit in the consolation finals), but his consolation semifinal win sealed the title for PSU.
Volleyball
Men: Picked up two road wins, first against Princeton (3-1) and then at George Mason (3-0). The boys improved to 17-3 (10-0).
Ranked #2
Swimming
Women: At the women’s championship, Penn State had one swimmer: Marie Schobel. In the 100-yard backstroke she finished 23rd and her time set a Penn State record. She finished 45th in the 200-yard.
Tennis
Women: Lost a tough one to Nebraska (5-2), but they rebounded with a nice against Iowa (4-3). 7-8 (1-2)
Lacrosse
Women: Lost a close one to Princeton, 12-11. They dropped to 5-3 on the season.
Gymnastics
Women: They did not fare well at the Big Ten Championships, finishing in 10th. However, they did have four selected for the NCAA Regional Championships: Alissa Bonsall, Lauren Bridgens, Cassidy Rushlow, and Isabella Salcedo.
Men: Lost to Michigan, 408.400-401.800. 2-4 (0-4)
Ranked #7
Baseball
The Nittany Lions took two out of three against Milwaukee at the home opener. They won 6-4 on the first day, then 4-3, but dropped the final game 12-0. They also lost to Youngstown State 2-1 a few days later. 7-11
Softball
The Lady Lions are on a nice little winning streak. They dominated the Penn State Invitational by beating Cornell (3-2), Rider (2-0), UMass Lowell (12-2), Cornell (10-2), and Rider (2-1). Then on Tuesday they beat Saint Francis 2-1. 17-11
Bailey Parshall (P) and Cassie Lindmark (C) were named Louisville Slugger/Wilson D1 Top Performers of the Week. Parshall was 4-0 with 0.00 ERA and 27 Ks. Lindmark hit .500 with 6 RBIs and a .636 OBP.
Parshell was also the Big Ten Co-Pitcher of the Week
Track & Field
The outdoor season opened this week at the Penn Invitational. Here are some of the winners.
Women: Chloe Royce (100m Hurdles, Long Jump), Piper Klinger (Discus), Cecelia Bacon (High Jump), Madison Smith (Javelin)
Men: Tyler Merkley (Hammer)
Soccer
Men: The men’s soccer program signed Quentin Flowers, a 5’11 defensive midfielder from Nashville, Tennessee. Not sure if there are soccer prospect rankings out there, but his accolades sound impressive.
