Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1464375
M A Y 2 0 2 2 15 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M PENN STATE'S TOP PERFORMERS Kateryna Chorniy — Women's Fencing Chorniy was Penn State's top finisher at the NCAA Fencing Championships, which took place at Notre Dame in March. A sophomore from Kyiv, Ukraine, she claimed All-America honors for the second year in a row, tying for third place in the epee competition. A year ago, Chorniy finished eighth in the epee. As a team, Penn State was sixth in this year's combined men's and wom- en's standings. The Nittany Lions had three All-Americans on the men's side: senior Ryan Griffiths (sixth place, epee), sophomore Arwen Borowiak (seventh place, foil) and freshman Kamar Skeete (eighth place, saber). Ally Kurland — So ball Kurland, a senior designated hitter from Burke, Va., has been a huge part of Penn State's turnaround this season. During a recent four-game stretch in which the Nittany Lions topped Bucknell and swept a three-game series against Purdue, Kurland batted .584 with seven hits, three home runs and eight RBI. On the heels of that show- ing, in which she compiled a .667 on-base percentage, Kurland was named Big Ten Player of the Week, becom- ing the first Nittany Lion since Alyssa VanDerveer in 2015 to capture that honor. Through Penn State's first 35 games, Kurland was third in the Big Ten with 13 home runs and second with 12 doubles. She had also totaled a team-leading 33 RBI. Will Peden — Men's Lacrosse It has not been a great year for the Nittany Lion laxers, but their fresh- man class has offered glimpses of a brighter future. On March 29, Peden became the fourth Penn Stater to be named Big Ten Freshman of the Week. The attackman from Downingtown, Pa., scored two goals in an 18-7 loss to No. 1 Maryland on March 27. Through Penn State's first nine games, Peden was 10th in the Big Ten with an average of 1.56 assists per game. He was leading the Nittany Lions with 14 total assists and was second on the team with 22 points. The other three freshmen who have been honored by the confer- ence this year are attackmen Nils Barry and Jeb Brenfleck, and midfielder Ethan Long. Bre Wildman — Men's Volleyball The senior outside hitter from Virginia Beach, Va., fueled a sweep of Saint Francis on April 2. In addition to his match- leading 12 kills, he nearly doubled his career high by fin- ishing with seven service aces, including four in a row to start the third set. His previous career best was four aces. Through Penn State's first 23 matches this sea- son, Wildman had 122 aces in his career to rank sixth in school history. For his efforts, which helped Penn State clinch the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association regular-season title, Wildman was named the league's Player of the Week. He was leading the Lions in kills with 259 heading into an April 8 matchup against NJIT. — Matt Herb Former PSU Football Standout Gary Brown Dies Gary Brown, who starred on offense and defense at Penn State and later en- joyed a long coaching career, died April 10 of liver and kidney failure after bat- tling cancer the past several years. He was 52. Brown died in his hometown of Wil- liamsport, Pa., where he had been in hospice care for several weeks according to an Associated Press report. Arriving at Penn State in 1987, Brown led the Nittany Lions in rushing the following year when Blair Thomas was sidelined due to an ACL injury. When Thomas returned to action, Brown was moved to safety. One of his best-known moments at Penn State occurred when he stripped BYU quarterback Ty Detmer in the 1989 Holiday Bowl and raced for a score that helped the Lions win the back-and-forth game, 50-39. Selected in the eighth round of the 1991 draft by the Houston Oilers, Brown spent eight seasons in the NFL, totaling 4,300 yards and 21 touchdowns. After his playing career ended, he got into college coaching in 2003 as an as- sistant at Lycoming before moving on to Susquehanna and Rutgers. In 2009, he returned to the NFL, spending time as running backs coach at Cleveland and later Dallas. Last season, he was back in the college ranks as running backs coach at Wisconsin. Following the news of his death, many of Brown's former teammates and col- leagues took to social media to eulogize him. "His energy and spirit were infec- tious," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones wrote. "He lit up every room he walked into and touched the lives of those who knew him in such a positive way. Every- one who knew him, loved him." Brown is survived by his wife, Kim, daughters Malena and Dorianna, and son Tre. — Greg Pickel