Penn College spotlight on sports: 2024-25 in review
Spectacular. Pennsylvania College of Technology athletic teams had multiple highlights during their record-setting 11th season as members of the United East Conference and eighth season as full-fledged members of the NCAA.
The college finished third of 17 teams in the United East Presidents’ Cup, which annually recognizes the athletic achievements of its members. The winner is determined by a scoring system that rewards success during both regular-season and postseason competition. St. Mary’s (Maryland) College took the top spot for the third year in a row, followed by Penn State Harrisburg. The Wildcats’ third place was their highest after a fourth and two sixth-place finishes.
“This is unequivocally the most successful year in Penn College history in many ways. Twelve of our sports teams advanced to the conference postseason, the department captured three conference titles, as well as had two conference runners-up. Off the field, our student-athletes finished with a combined 3.3 overall GPA for the year in the classroom and had five United East Elite 20 Award winners. Finally, our teams gave back to the community and completed just over 2,700 community service hours,” athletic director Scott Kennell said.
“To be able to watch our programs grow over time is extremely rewarding to view from my seat,” Kennell continued. “Prior to the 2022-23 season, the department had only won three conference championships. Fast forward to 2024-25 and we have amassed seven more titles in a very short period of time.
“We have some of the best coaches and staff at the Division III level and it’s beginning to show. I’m fortunate to be surrounded by such a great group of individuals who have put Penn College Athletics on the map.”
A sport-by-sport review of the 2024-25 year (alphabetically):
ARCHERY
Coach: Dustin Bartron, fifth season.
Season highlight(s): Two archers took gold at the Indoor Nationals; the men’s compound and men’s fixed pins teams won gold at the East Region Outdoor Championships with three individuals earning All-East Honors; Casey Keiter became the college’s 44th All-American as a result of his top 10 scores at the indoor and outdoor national events.
Season honors:
All-East Region Team: Brady Buriak (Herndon), Casey Keiter (Dornsife), Josiah Hinojos (Groton, Connecticut).
All-American: Keiter.
BASEBALL
Coach: Chris Howard, 19th season. Career record: 377-283.
Final overall: 18-18.
Final UE: 11-7 (11-5 regular season)
Season highlight(s): Finished fourth during the UE regular season and entered the playoffs as the fourth seed.
Postseason honors:
UE first team: Dallas Griess (Williamsport), Shawn Townsend (Hatboro).
UE second team: Matt Munoz (Tobyhanna), Jaydon Goebel (Honey Brook).
UE third team: Levi Purnell (Snow Shoe).
UE Rookie of the Year: Purnell.
UE All-Sportsmanship Team: Brandon Shane (Boyertown).
D3baseball.com All-Region IV third team: Townsend.
American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings Division III All-Region Mid-Atlantic third team: Townsend.
BASKETBALL (men)
Coach: Geoff Hensley, sixth season. Career record: 45-108.
Final overall record: 10-18.
Final UE record: 8-11 (6-10 regular season).
Season highlight(s): Entered the UE postseason as the 12th seed and knocked off fifth-seeded St. Mary’s (Md.) College and fourth-seeded Keystone College before losing in overtime in a semifinal against top-seeded Bryn Athyn College. Seniors Gavin Barrett and Livingston Cross both ended their careers as 1,000-point scorers, and Cross finished as the career rebound leader with 711.
Postseason honors:
UE first team: Barrett (Roselle, New Jersey); Cross (Union, New Jersey).
D3Hoops.com District 4 All-Region third team: Cross.
UE All-Sportsmanship Team: Christian Chandler (Norfolk, Virginia).
UE Elite 20 Academic Award: Landon Reeder (Montoursville).
BASKETBALL (women)
Coach: Britney Mohney, fifth season. Career record: 45-80.
Final overall record: 15-11.
Final UE record: 12-5 (12-4 regular season).
Season highlight(s): Completed the regular season with records of 15-10 overall and 12-4 in the UE, its best since the NCAA era began in 2014 and its best overall mark since 2008-09. Freshman Gigi Parlante led the team in scoring, rebounding, steals and blocked shots. Senior Rachel Teats ended her career as a 1,000-point scorer.
Postseason honors:
UE first team: Parlante (Williamsport).
UE second team: Teats (Middleburg)
UE Rookie of the Year: Parlante.
UE All-Sportsmanship Team: Kayleigh Miller (Sayre).
CROSS-COUNTRY (men/women)
Coach: Tom Leeser, third season.
Season highlight(s): The men’s team won its second consecutive UE championship. A program-record nine men earned all-conference honors, and Leeser was honored at the UE Coach of the Year for the second season in a row. The back-to-back titles were the men’s team’s first since 2011-12, when they capped a 10-season title-clinching run. During the season, seven men posted season- and career-best times. The women’s squad placed fourth in the UE Championship, its highest finish since 2018.
Postseason honors:
UE first-team men: Alec Rees (Centerport, New York), Mitchell Campbell (Riegelsville), Ethan Knapp (Franklin), Matthew Woolcock (Oil City).
UE second-team men: Aaron Guerrisky (South Williamsport), Holden Furey (Williamsport), Chase Ebeling (Bellefonte).
UE third-team men: Jacob Parker (Weatherly), Noah Bowers (Mifflin County).
UE All-Sportsmanship Team men: Bowers.
UE first-team women: Elaina Brady (McConnellsburg).
UE third-team women: Isabella Kerlin (Pottstown), Karleigh Hunter (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma), Lillian DePew (Muncy).
UE All-Sportsmanship Team women: Brady.
Men’s UE Elite 20 Academic Award: Rees.
Women’s UE Elite 20 Academic Award: Kayleigh Miller (Sayre).
Men’s UE Coach of the Year: Leeser.
GOLF
Coach: Rob Lytle, third season.
Season highlight(s): Captured its third straight UE Championship with seniors Peyton Mussina and Will Orwig tying for third individually. During his three-year career, Mussina individually placed first nine times, second six times, third four times and fourth twice. Lytle was named the UE Coach of the Year for the third season in a row. At the NCAA Division III nationals, the Wildcats ended 41st and Mussina finished tied for 49th of 225 individually.
Postseason honors:
UE first team: Mussina (Montoursville), Orwig (Mifflintown), Gunner Redmond (Lock Haven).
UE third team: Brady Handy (Huntingdon), Logan Gawlinski (Kittanning).
UE Coach of the Year: Lytle.
UE All-Sportsmanship Team: Gawlinski.
UE Elite 20 Academic Award: Mussina.
PING Division III All-Region 3 Team: Mussina.
PING Division III All-America Honorable Mention: Mussina.
MEN’S LACROSSE
Coach: Jordan Williams, fifth season. Career record: 48-31.
Final overall record: 14-5.
Final overall UE record: 4-2 (3-1 regular season)
Season highlight(s): Won a program-record 14 matches, finished with the best record in program history. Placed second in the United East. A program-best six Wildcats were selected to the all-conference first team and a conference-high 12 were honored overall.
Postseason honors:
UE first team: Elliot Dotson (Wilmington, Delaware), Owen Kupsey (Chadds Ford), Aidan McFalls (Gilbertsville), Walt Heiser (Milford, New Jersey), Austin Callahan (Beaver Dams, New York), Ryan Twist (Great Meadows, New Jersey).
UE second team: AJ Dotson (Wilmington, Delaware), Will Ehret (Basking Ridge, New Jersey), Jake Small (Bloomsbury, New Jersey), Mason Nestor (Schwenksville), Ian Stambaugh (Red Lion), Levi Borkowski (Norristown).
Offensive Player of the Year: Elliot Dotson.
Rookie of the Year: Elliot Dotson.
UE All-Sportsmanship Team: Devin Page (Pine City, New York).
UE Elite 20 Academic Award: Heiser.
SOCCER (men)
Coach: Tyler Mensch, ninth season. Career record: 55-94-22.
Final overall: 11-5-3.
Final UE: 6-2-2 (5-1-2 regular season).
Season highlight(s): Produced the first double-digit-win season since 2013. Seeded sixth in the UE playoffs, they lost in the quarterfinals. Most all-conference selections in the NCAA era (since 2014-15).
Postseason honors:
UE first team: Tommy DeGeyter (Long Valley, New Jersey, defender).
UE second team: Scott Goldfeder (Mechanicsburg, midfielder).
UE third team: Logan Stapleton (Chambersburg, midfielder); Matt Neeson (Chadds Ford, defender); Jack Lenosky (Moon Township, defender).
UE All-Sportsmanship Team: Logan Confer (Watsontown).
United Soccer Coaches Division III All-Region IV second team: DeGeyter.
SOCCER (women)
Coach: Ian Scheller, third season. Career record: 35-12-12.
Final overall: 15-1-4.
Final UE: 8-1-1 (7-0-1 regular season).
Season highlight(s): Completed the first unbeaten regular season in program history (14-0-4). Seeded second in the UE playoffs, where it lost in the semifinals to complete a program-best 15-1-4 season. Freshman Megan Kurian dominated end-of-the-season honors after setting program single-season records in goals, assists and points. Program-record five UE first-team honorees. Program-record four all-region honorees.
Postseason honors:
UE first team: Kurian (Royersford, forward); Cassie Johnson (Richland, midfielder); Makayla Bucks (Lebanon, defender); Ashley Gordon (Pottstown, defender).
UE Player of the Year: Kurian.
UE Rookie of the Year: Kurian.
UE All-Sportsmanship Team: Olivia Casella (South Williamsport).
United Soccer Coaches Division III All-Region IV second team: Kurian.
United Soccer Coaches Division III All-Region IV third team: Nicole Lichtinger (Erie, goalkeeper); Johnson; Gordon.
SOFTBALL
Coach: Angela Stackhouse, sixth season. Career record: 141-57.
Final overall record: 28-17.
Final UE record: 14-8.
Season highlight(s): Finished fourth in the United East regular season. Went 4-2 in the UE postseason, including wins over top-seeded Penn State Berks and third-seeded Penn State Harrisburg, to place second to Penn State Brandywine, and because Brandywine was in a provisional year of NCAA membership, the Wildcats represented the conference at the NCAA Division III Cleveland Regional where they went 0-2. Pitcher Mackenzie Weaver ended her career with a program-record 560 strikeouts.
Postseason honors:
UE first team: Weaver (Montoursville), Madison Herriman (Danville).
UE second team: Mackenzi Tice (Mansfield), Payton Crawford (Bloomsburg).
UE third team: Grace Lorson (Jersey Shore).
UE Pitcher of the Year: Weaver.
UE All-Sportsmanship Team: Herriman.
NFCA Division III All-Region IV second team: Weaver.
TENNIS (men)
Coach: David Straub,second season. Career record: 7-22.
Final overall record: 4-10.
Final UE record: 3-5 (3-4 regular season).
Season highlight(s): Reached UE postseason for the first time since 2018. Seeded fifth, lost in the quarterfinals.
Postseason honor:
UE All-Sportsmanship Team: Kyle Shuler (Williamsport).
TENNIS (women)
Coach: David Straub,second season. Career record: 6-24.
Final overall record: 2-15.
Final UE record: 2-7 (2-6 regular season).
Season highlight(s): Reached UE play-in round for the first time since 2018 and seeded eighth.
Postseason honors:
UE women’s third team: Faith Murray (Dillsburg).
UE All-Sportsmanship Team: Ellen Buckley (Binghamton, New York).
VOLLEYBALL (women)
Coach: Kyle Hawk,first season. Career record: 3-24.
Final overall record: 3-24.
Final UE record: 1-9.
Season highlight(s): Posted first win ever over Penn State Mont Alto in five career meetings since 2013 to snap a two-season 14-match loss streak. Opened UE season with a win for the first time since 2013 and, in doing so, snapped a 46-match UE loss streak dating to October 2017.
Postseason honor:
UE All-Sportsmanship Team: — Jo Hess (Jersey Shore).
WRESTLING
Coach: Dalton Rohrbaugh,first year. Career dual record: 7-2.
Season highlight(s): Won first Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference dual championship. First-time AMCC individual tournament champion. Most-ever individual conference champions (eight). Top 10 regional team finish (highest ever). Five individual regional place winners (most ever). One NCAA Division III tournament qualifier in Noah Hunt, who graduates as the program’s first 100-match winner.
Conference/Region Honors
All-AMCC first team: Justin Adams (York, 125), Kaden Ware (Brooklyn, Connecticut, 133), Hunt (Muncy, 141), TJ Martin (Honesdale, 149), Carter Davis (York, 165), Travis Green (Manchester, Maryland, 174), Isaac Cory (Montoursville, 184), Nic Brotzman (Marietta, 285).
NCAA Division III Mideast Region: Hunt (141, third); Davis (165, fourth); Cory (184, fifth); Nicholas Woodruff (Wyalusing, 197, sixth); Martin (149, eighth).
PENN COLLEGE CATS (Celebrating Athletic Triumphs and Successes) AWARD WINNERS
Male Athlete of the Year: Cross (men’s basketball)
Female Athlete of the Year: Kurian (women’s soccer)
Male Newcomer of the Year: Elliot Dotson (men’s lacrosse)
Female Newcomer of the Year: Kurian
Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Heiser (men’s lacrosse)
Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Miller (women’s basketball and cross-country)
One Shining Moment Award: Weaver (women’s softball, 500 career strikeouts)
Mr. Wildcat (new): DeGeyter (men’s soccer)
Ms. Wildcat (new): Emily Pardee (Williamsport, women’s basketball)
Breakout Moments of the Year (new): Hunt (wrestling) and Kurian
Comeback Player of the Year (new): Nathan Gustkey (Philipsburg, baseball)
Staff Member of the Year: Eric Hunt
Community Service Award: Men’s lacrosse team
For more about the United East, visit the conference website.
For additional information, visit the Wildcat Athletics website.





