Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1519242
M A Y 2 0 2 4 47 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M campaign ended: sophomore guard Shay Ciezki and senior forward Ali Brigham. Ciezki was one of Penn State's top young players, starting 59 of 65 games and averaging 11.6 points in her two sea- sons. She had not announced a transfer destination as of mid-April. Brigham spent three seasons at PSU after transferring from Villanova. She was the only player to start all 35 games this season, averaging 8.7 points and 4.9 re- bounds. Brigham revealed on April 5 that she planned to finish her career at Bryant University in Rhode Island. Despite those losses, Kieger said she is determined to keep the Lady Lions on their upward trajectory. "This program is coming," she said. "We're going to have a chip on our shoul- der next year. We've got something to prove, and we've got places to go." ■ MEN'S VOLLEYBALL: Eighth-ranked Penn State clinched the Eastern Intercol- legiate Volleyball Association regular-season championship with a 3-2 comeback victory over George Mason on April 12 at Rec Hall. Graduate opposite hitter John Kerr had 23 kills, 7 digs and 4 blocks for the Lions, who rallied to win the last two sets. Following a 3-1 win over the Patriots on April 13, the Lions were 21-6 and 10-0 in conference play. They won hosting rights for the EIVA Tournament April 17-20 and were set to face the winner of a first-round match between Harvard and the New Jersey Institute of Technology. BASEBALL: Penn State hit 7 home runs in a 15-4 victory over host Indiana on April 12. Sophomore infielder Bryce Molinaro led the way with 2 homers, and five other Nittany Lions hit solo shots. It was the fourth game in a row in which PSU scored at least 12 runs, the team's longest such streak since 1957. The Hoosiers responded by winning the next two games, 10-9 and 12-3. Head- ing into a nonconference home game against Kent State on April 16, the Lions were 18-14 overall and 5-7 in Big Ten play. SOFTBALL: Fourth-year coach Clarisa Crowell earned her 100th victory at Penn State when the Lions topped visiting Michigan State, 6-3, on April 13. Crowell be- came only the fourth coach in program history to reach the 100-win milestone, joining Sue Rankin, Robin Petrini and Amanda Lehotak. The Lions stood at 30-9 overall and 9-3 in Big Ten competition after taking two of three games from the Spartans. Heading into an April 16 doubleheader at Ohio State, Crowell had a 100-81 record at Penn State, including a 61-25 mark since the start of the 2023 season. MEN'S LACROSSE: Eleventh-ranked Penn State ended a two-game losing streak with a 14-8 victory over Michigan on April 13 at Panzer Stadium. The Nittany Lions needed just six seconds to pounce on top of the Wolverines, with junior midfielder Matt Traynor scoring the first of his 2 goals. Graduate attack- man TJ Malone had 5 goals in the win, while freshman attackman Kyle Lehman added 3. Prior to its matchup against Michigan, Penn State had dropped games to a pair of nationally ranked foes, falling to No. 12 Maryland, 13-11, on March 31 and No. 10 Johns Hopkins, 9-8 in overtime, on April 6. Heading into their regular-season finale at Rutgers on April 19, the Lions were 8-3 overall and 2-2 in Big Ten play. WOMEN'S LACROSSE: The 24th-ranked Nittany Lions stunned No. 4 Maryland, 12-11, on April 13 in College Park. Junior midfielder Lauren Saltz and junior at- tacker Brooke Hoss both scored in the final six minutes, giving Penn State a 12- 10 lead that it parlayed into its third win of the season over a ranked opponent. The Lions were 8-6 overall and 3-2 in Big Ten play heading into their regular- season finale against Johns Hopkins on April 18. MEN'S GYMNASTICS: Penn State finished fifth with a team score of 404.050 at the Big Ten Championships April 5 at Illinois. Junior Josh Karnes was third in the all-around with a score of 83.000. Coach Randy Jepson said the Lions had "a disappointing night." "Six misses are not going to put you in the hunt for a Big Ten championship," he added. PSU did claim a conference title the following night in the individual event finals, with senior Michael Jaroh finishing first on the high bar. Jaroh posted a career-high score of 14.325 and became the first Nittany Lion to claim the Big Ten high bar title since Trevor Howard in 2016. WOMEN'S GYMNASTICS: Penn State finished fourth with a team score of 197.050 at the Ann Arbor Regional Final of the NCAA Championships on April 6. The score was Penn State's best ever at an NCAA regional. Senior Cassidy Rushlow tied a season-high by posting a 9.925 score on the uneven bars, while sophomore Amani Herring turned in a 9.9 on the balance beam. Herring qualified for the NCAA Championships and was set to compete in the first semifinal session April 18 in Fort Worth, Texas. MEN'S TRACK AND FIELD: Competing in the 10,000-meter race for the first time in his collegiate career, junior Hayden Healey finished in 29:14.92 to take first place at the Bison Outdoor Classic on April 13 in Lewisburg, Pa. It was the fastest 10K by a Penn State runner since 2012. WOMEN'S TRACK AND FIELD: Sophomore Hayley Kitching and junior Florence Caron set school records in the 800- and 5,000-meter races, respectively. Kitching, a native of New South Wales, ran a 2:00.70 time to place fifth in the 800 at the Australian Athletics Championships on April 14. She became the first Penn State woman to break 2:01 in the event. Caron, competing at the Bryan Clay Invitational in Los Angeles on April 13, finished the 5K race in 15:32.22, breaking a school record that had stood for 46 years. — Matt Herb W I N T E R / S P R I N G S P O R T S R O U N D U P Men's Tennis And Swimming Have Coaching Changes Three Penn State teams will be under new leadership next season. Men's tennis coach Jeff Zinn announced on April 8 that he plans to retire after the 2024 season. Zinn is in his 13th season with the Nittany Lions and his 35th as a head coach. He had a 175-155 record with the Nittany Lions heading into the team's visit to Wisconsin on April 19. That mark includes seven winning sea- sons and 35 victories over ranked opponents. "I'm thankful to have had the opportunity to finish my coaching career at Penn State," said Zinn, who came to the Nittany Lions after 15 seasons at Wake Forest. "I came here to make an impact, and, in a small way, we have made a contribution to the success of the men's tennis program. Athletic directors like Tim Curley, Sandy Barbour and Dr. Pat Kraft have supported the men's tennis program throughout this process. "You never know when the time is right to step away. I feel this is the right time." The swimming and diving programs will also have a new head coach next year. Penn State announced on April 2 that it was not renewing Tim Murphy's contract. Murphy had overseen the PSU men's and women's programs since 2013-14 after spending the previ- ous 15 seasons at Harvard. He guided the men's team to a 44-41 dual meet record in 11 seasons. His best year was his first, when the Lions went 7-1 in the dual meet season, with a fifth-place finish at the Big Ten Championships and a 17th-place showing at nationals. The women went 58-28 during Murphy's tenure. Their best postseason showings were in his first season when they finished third at Big Tens and 18th at nationals. Penn State announced that it would conduct a national search to find a successor. — Matt Herb