Penn College Wrestlers Finish No. 24 in NCWA
Over the past week for Pennsylvania College of Technology athletes, the wrestling season came to an end and the baseball and softball seasons began.
Sophomore Dan Frankenfield, of Dushore, finished 4-2 in the 174-pound weight class to lead Penn College wrestlers at the National Collegiate Wrestling Association National Championships in Allen, Texas, Thursday through Saturday. Also for Penn College, freshmen Mason Repogle, of New Enterprise, finished 3-2 at 141; Troy Leid, of Terre Hill, at 157, and Mike Failla, of Beach Lake, at 197, both finished 2-2; Joe Champluvier, of Laceyville, at 157, was 1-2; and Pat Fitzgerald, of Port Royal, at 197, was 0-2.
Frankenfield ended just one win shy of qualifying for the All-American rounds. He carried a 2-1 lead into the second period against Eric Dietz, of Grand Valley State, before being pinned.
Competing in Division I of the tournament, Penn College placed 24th in a field of 28 teams. In previous trips to the NCWA Championships, the Wildcats finished tied for 42nd in 2011, 17th in 2012 and 20th last year.
"We probably should have won a couple more matches than we did. Probably the biggest heartbreaker was Dan Frankenfield's round of 12. He was actually winning and got caught in a cradle and got pinned. But the guys brought away from this tournament a lot of good experience that is definitely going to help us for years to come," Penn College coach Schuyler Frey said. "We have a real nice base for next year's team."
Wildcat players finally got outdoors and they celebrated with wins in their first two games of a five-day trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C. In the opener March 9, Penn College batters rapped out 15 hits, including three each by Zach Buterbaugh, of Conestoga, who drove in four runs, and Zach Weil, of Kutztown, who plated three runs and scored three times, to back the combined three-hit pitching of Tyler Cooklin, of Rippey, Iowa, and Nick Pupo, of Lewistown, in a 20-2 win over Lancaster Bible College. Cooklin finished with 11 strikeouts in six innings and Pupo didn't allow a hit and fanned two in three innings. Lorenzo Marefka, of Jeanette, homered in the sixth inning. In the day's second game against Sauk Valley Community College, Penn College scored all of its runs in the fourth inning of a 3-1 win. Mike Scully, of Middletown, Del., had three hits for the Wildcats while Josh Longsderff, of Columbia, got the win with five strikeouts in six innings.
The Cal Ripken Experience continued for Penn College on Tuesday with a split as it edged Spoon River Community College, 12-10 in eight innings, and lost to West Virginia Wesleyan, 11-3. In the first game, James Simasek, of Landenberg, went 4 for 5 at the plate with four runs batted in and Buterbaugh went 2 for 2. In the second game, the Wildcats managed just four hits with Buterbaugh going 2 for 3 and driving in all three runs.
Playing a single game on Tuesday, Cooklin picked up his second win of the season with five strikeouts in five innings of a 6-1 Penn College win over Penn State Schuylkill. Simasek paced the Wildcats offense with two hits and an RBI.
Buterbaugh continued his hot hitting on Wednesday with two singles, a double and a triple in the Wildcats' 13-5 win over West Virginia Wesleyan. Weil hit a two-run homer; Rantz Mahaffey, of Linden, hit a two-run triple; and Longsderff picked up his second win on the mound.
Thursday, on their final day in Myrtle Beach, the Wildcats split, beating Sauk Valley CC for the second time in the tournament, 5-2, and losing to Henry Ford Community College in a game added to the original schedule, 9-0. Penn College ended the week 6-2. In the first game, Buterbaugh had two hits and Pupo pitched the win while recording seven strikeouts. The Wildcats managed just two hits against Henry Ford.
The Wildcats started their season in fine fashion on Monday with wins over Gordon College, 8-0, and SUNY IT, 5-3. In the opener, Jessica Gmerek, of Bellefonte, went 2 for 2 and drove in three runs while Brittney McHugh, of Frederick, Md., and Karey Wolfe, of Milton, also had two hits to back the one-hit, nine-strikeout pitching of Brianne Brewer, of Jersey Shore. In the nightcap, Gmerek continued her hot hitting by going 2 for 3 including a two-run home run. Arika Stopper, of Williamsport, got the mound win.
On Tuesday, the Wildcats dropped games to Penn State Harrisburg, 5-1, and Ursinus College, 2-1. Gmerek and Marie Lucas, of Reedsville, each had two hits and an RBI.
Penn College split its games on Wednesday, falling to Dakota State University, 4-3, and edging Arcadia University, 4-3. In the first game, Katie Kratzer, of Lynch Station, Va., went 3 for 3 and scored a run. Kratzer added two more hits in the nightcap.
The Wildcats closed out play in Myrtle Beach on Thursday with losses to Gordon College, 8-5, and Mt. Aloysius College, 9-0, to end 3-5 on the trip. Against Gordon, Penn College took a 4-0 lead after one inning before letting it slip away. Kratzer and Gmerek each had two hits. Penn College was hitless against Mt. Alolysius.
PENN COLLEGE SCHEDULES/RECORDS
Sunday, March 9 – vs. Lancaster Bible at Myrtle Beach, S.C., W, 20-2
Sunday, March 9 – vs. Sauk Valley Community College at Myrtle Beach, S.C., W, 3-1
Monday, March 10 – vs. Spoon River Community College at Myrtle Beach, S.C., W, 12-10, 8 innings
Monday, March 10 – vs. West Virginia Wesleyan at Myrtle Beach, S.C., L, 11-3
Tuesday, March 11 – vs. Penn State Schuylkill at Myrtle Beach, S.C., W, 6-1
Wednesday, March 12 – vs. West Virginia Wesleyan at Myrtle Beach, S.C., W, 13-5
Thursday, March 13 – vs. Sauk Valley Community College at Myrtle Beach, S.C., W, 5-2
Thursday, March 13 – vs. Henry Ford Community College at Myrtle Beach, S.C., L, 9-0
Saturday, March 22 – host Baptist Bible College (2) at Bowman Field, 1 p.m.
Tuesday, March 25 – host Mansfield University (2) at Bowman Field, 2 p.m.
Monday, March 10 – vs. Gordon College at Myrtle Beach, S.C., W, 8-0
Monday, March 10 – vs. SUNY IT at Myrtle Beach, S.C., W, 5-3
Tuesday, March 11 – vs. Penn State Harrisburg at Myrtle Beach, S.C., L, 5-1
Tuesday, March 11 – vs. Ursinus College at Myrtle Beach, S.C., L, 2-1
Wednesday, March 12 – vs. Dakota State University at Myrtle Beach, S.C., L, 4-3
Wednesday, March 12 – vs. Arcadia University at Myrtle Beach, S.C., W, 4-3
Thursday, March 13 – vs. Gordon College at Myrtle Beach, S.C., L, 8-5
Thursday, March 13 – vs. Mt. Aloysius College at Myrtle Beach, S.C., L, 9-0
Saturday, March 22 – at Elmira (N.Y.) College (2), 1 p.m.
Wednesday, March 26 – host Wilson College at Elm Park (2), 2 p.m.
Tuesday, March 25 – at Baptist Bible College, 4 p.m.
Final overall record: 1-8, finished sixth in USCAA championships, 24th in NCWA championships.
Final PSUAC record: 0-2, finished third in conference championships.
March 29-30 – Northeast Collegiate Tournament at Storrs, Conn.