FOOTBALL
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Tanner Kelly (Photo courtesy of Albright College Athletics)
ALFRED, N.Y. – Four days after being named Middle Atlantic Conference Offensive Player of the Year, Clearfield Area High School graduate Tanner Kelly of Olanta passed for 163 yards and one touchdown before an injury forced him out of action for the second week in a row, but fellow senior Patrick Subers rallied Albright once again as the Lions knocked off Empire 8 Conference co-champion Alfred 35-25 for only its second NCAA Division III playoff victory Saturday.
Kelly, who played only one series against Lebanon Valley in Albright\’s regular-season finale the previous week because of a shoulder injury, teamed up with Scott Pillar for a 51-yard bomb that knotted the score 7-7 early in the second quarter of a clash that attracted 4,325 fans to Merrill Field.
On the first play of the second half, the redshirt senior quarterback took a hard hit while firing a pass to Nate Romig for a 33-yard gain and had to be replaced by Subers, who promptly guided the MAC runner-up Lions to the go-ahead TD.
The back-up QB found Romig for a 32-yarder and a 14-10 lead, and the same combination clicked for a four-yard score later in the third quarter that made Romig Albright\’s all-time touchdown reception leader with 37.
Subers, who was named MAC Offensive Player of the Week and QB of the D3Football.com Team of the Week after passing for 362 yards and five TDs in the Lions\’ 44-43 double-overtime win over Lebanon Valley, ran for what proved to be the winning TD in the fourth period.
Kelly finished with nine completions in 17 passes for 160 yards. Though second on the team in rushing, he did not make a running attempt.
Albright gets a chance to avenge its only loss of the season in the D-III second round Saturday, traveling to Doylestown to take on MAC champ Delaware Valley in a noon kickoff between 10-1 rivals. The Aggies, who advanced with a 66-7 rout of Liberty League co-champ Susquehanna, humbled the Lions 45-16 on Nov. 7 to all but wrap up the MAC title.
Kelly was accorded MAC Offensive Player of the Year honors for the second time in three seasons after leading the conference in six passing categories, including 2,351 yards and 18 touchdowns, while also running for 377 yards and six scores.
He was joined on the All-MAC first-team by Romig, who 72 receptions for 1,094 yards and 11 TDs, junior place-kicker John Whelan, senior linebacker Bob Harper and senior cornerback Brett Gaul. Five other Lions were named to the second unit.
Kelly ranks in the NCAA Division III top ten in four passing categories. He\’s tied for third in interception percentage (.72) with only two picks in 377 passes, fourth in completion percentage (69.31), sixth in passing efficiency rating (166.95) and eighth in yards per pass attempt (9.10).
The 6-3, 215-pounder also is tied for 22nd in total offense an average of 7.32 yards for 395 plays, 30th in yards per completion (13.13), 36th in passing yards (2,521), 44th in total offense (a 292.91 average for 2,892yards), 54th in passing yards per game (229.18) and 61st in completions per game (17.45).
Kelly, who has thrown for 19 touchdowns and five two-point conversions, has netted 371 yards on a ground, a 3.1 average, after deducting 168 yards for 35 sacks.
Also, Kelly has averaged 35.3 yards for 27 punts.
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WRESTLING
ITHACA, N.Y. – Army 149-pounder Matt Kyler of Clearfield finally ascended to the top of the Body Bar Invitational winner\’s stand in his fourth attempt, upholding his No. 1 seed with a pairs of falls and decisions in Cornell University\’s Newman Arena Saturday.
\”I\’m proud of the way Matt wrestled today against some tough competition,\” head coach Chuck Barbee said to Army Athletic Communications.
The Cadet senior co-captain, ranked No. 6 by Amateur Wrestling News and No. 7 by InterMat, pinned Ithaca\’s Evan Connors at the 4:42 mark and outpointed Wyoming\’s eighth-seeded Cole Dallasera 7-2 and Columbia\’s Steve Santos 10-4 to set up a showdown with No. 2 seed Matt Cathell of Kent State in the finals.
Kyler was trailing 5-0 when he pinned the Flashes\’ junior transfer at 2:19 to boost his record to 8-1.
Cathell, a three-time Delaware high school state, was a two-time NCAA Division I East Region champ for Delaware State, which dropped the mat sport after the 2008-09 season.
Kyler lost in the Body Bar Invitational finals at 133 as a freshman and at 149 last year. He placed third at 141 as a sophomore.
Army placed 10th in the 12-team tourney with 39.5 points.
No. 18 Kent State won the championship with 147.5 points. No. 3 Cornell and No. 10 Maryland tied for second with 109 points.
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BINGHAMTON, N.Y. – Junior 125-pounder Brad Pataky of Clearfield notched three victories at the Sprawl & Brawl Duals in SUNY-Binghamton\’s West Gym Saturday, and 19th-ranked Penn State mirrored his efforts with wins over Rutgers 18-17, Harvard 36-6 and No. 15 Edinboro 22-9.
Pataky, currently ranked No. 6 by InterMat and Amateur Wrestling News and No. 9 in Wrestling Insider Newsmagazine\’s pre-season poll, hooked up with No. 8 Eric Morrill in one of the day\’s feature bouts.
The Nittany Lion bantam worked a single-leg for the first-period takedown, escaped in the middle period and piled up 3:51 in riding time for a 4-0 decision over the three-time New Hampshire state champion.
In the morning match, Pataky pulled away from Rutgers\’ Vincent Dellafave in the third period, taking a 3-2 lead with an escape and engineering his second double-leg takedown of the match. Riding time set the final at 6-3.
Against Harvard\’s Steven Keith, Pataky again logged the opening takedown but gave up a reversal and two back points to fall behind. He quickly escaped and went in front 5-4 with another takedown before ending the fast-paced bout with a fall in just 1:13.
Pataky is 5-0 with a pin, a technical fall and a major decision.
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DUBOIS, Pa. – Freshman 125-pounder Andrew Spicer of Clearfield set the tone for the first-year Penn State-DuBois team\’s initial home dual meet Nov. 18 with a technical fall , triggering a six-bout sweep that carried the Lions to a 27-14 victory over Jamestown (N.Y.) Community College.
Spicer, now 5-2 and ranked No. 10 at his weight in National Collegiate Wrestling Association points with 21.50, handled Jayhawk sophomore Anthony Mirra 18-3. Mirra was a 2008 New York City Tournament and Major\’s Cup champion at 96 pounds.
Penn State-DuBois, also a member of the United State Collegiate Athletic Association, is 3-2 in duals.
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JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Clearfield Area High School graduate Kyle Keane of Bradford eked out a 4-3 win over Jarrod Shaw at 165 pounds as Pitt-Johnstown, ranked No. 10 in NCAA Division II, opened its dual meet card with an impressive 27-12 victory over West Liberty (W.Va.) State Friday night.
The redshirt senior, who is 4-1, was one of three 2009 Mountain Cat national qualifiers honored before the match along with returning All-Americans Shane Valko (133) and Adam Whetstone (141). Keane earned All-American status as a sophomore by placing fourth.
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WOMEN\’S SOCCER
NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. – Junior forward Danielle Struble of Lumber City received honorable mention honors on the 2009 All-Presidents\’ Athletic Conference team that included three of her Westminster teammates.
The Curwensville Area High School graduate was third in scoring with 14 points and tied for second in game-winning goals with three for the Lady Titans, who finished fourth with a 4-3 PAC record and were 13-7-1 overall.
Struble, who started every game, netted five goals in her team-high 24 shots on goal and tied for the lead in assists with four. She was third in total shots with 63.
Westminster junior forward Sarah Nee and sophomore midfielder Samantha Killmeyer were named to the first team, while sophomore defender Kelli Michanowicz was picked for the second team. Nee and Killmeyer tallied 24 and 20 points, respectively.
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MEN\’S BASKETBALL
BEAVER FALLS, Pa. – Sophomore Todd Hryn of Clearfield just missed a double-double as Pitt-Greensburg punctuated the first week of the season with an 83-36 romp over Penn State-New Kensington Saturday in Geneva\’s Coaches vs Cancer Tip-Off Tournament.
In 24 minutes, the 6-5 guard matched his career-high with 11 points and pulled down nine rebounds, seven of them on PS-New Kensington missed shots. He also blocked a shot for the second game in a row.
Hryn had two points, four rebounds and a steal in 17 minutes during Friday\’s tourney opener, an 82-67 loss to Marymount (Va.).
In the Bobcats\’ 68-53 loss to visiting Muskingum (Ohio) in their season opener on Nov. 17, Hryn scored four points in 11 minutes.
Hryn is second on the team with 10 defensive rebounds and 13 total rebounds. He has scored 17 points on 6-for-16 shooting from the field and 3-for-6 from the foul line.
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WOMEN\’S BASKETBALL
DUBOIS, Pa. – Brittany Barrett of Mahaffey (Curwensville Area H.S.) scored six points, grabbed five rebounds, dished out three assists and blocked one shot as Penn State-DuBois broke into the win column by trimming Community College of Allegheny County-Boyce Campus 62-40 Friday night.
Four of the junior guard\’s rebounds came under the offensive boards.
Two other former District 9 players led the Lady Lions (1-2), freshman Amanda Craker of Sheffield with 16 points and six rebounds and Lauren Donovan of Oswayo Valley with 10 points. The other six Lady Lions also got into the scoring act as well as pulling down at least three rebounds apiece.
In a 70-52 loss to Pitt-Titusville on Nov. 17, Barrett had four points, two rebounds, three assists and two steals.
She\’s hit five of 13 shots from the floor and made four of five free throws for 14 points in the Lady Lions\’ three games. She also has 13 rebounds and seven assists.
In the pre-season poll of 12-team Pennsylvania State University Athletic Conference head coaches, Penn State-DuBois was picked to finish sixth. The Lady Lions play in the West Division with PSU-Beaver, PSU-Greater Allegheny and PSU-Fayette. Beaver was first and Great Allegheny third in the pre-season poll.
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MEN\’S SWIMMING
BRONX, N.Y. – Freshman Mark Krchnak of Clearfield placed second and third in individual events and also helped a relay foursome to a second-place as Duquesne defeated Rhode Island 170-63 while losing to host and Atlantic 10 Conference rival Fordham 126.5-103.5 Saturday.
Krchnak touched the wall Col. Francis B. Messmore Aquatic Center wall in 2:11.62 to place second against Rhode Island and third against Fordham in the 200-yard breaststroke and registered a season-best 2:01.25 for third place against Rhode Island and sixth against Fordham in the 200 individual medley.
He swam a 59.62-second breaststroke leg for the Duquesne \’B\’ 400 medley team that took second against Rhode Island and fourth against Fordham in 3:35.80.
The Dukes, who had extended their winning streak to six by beating St. Peter\’s 107-93 at Jersey City, N.J, Friday afternoon, are off to a 7-2 start.
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CLARION, Pa. – Junior Brandon Boyer of Clearfield earned points in two events for Clarion in Saturday afternoon\’s 152-105 win over Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference rival Bloomsburg in Tippin Natatorium.
Boyer placed third in the 100-yard freestyle in a season-best 50.41 seconds and posted a 56.49 leadoff backstroke split for the Golden Eagle \’B\’ 400 medley relay team that finished second in 3:47.03.
Clarion is 2-2.
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NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. – Junior John Bodle of Clearfield placed fifth in the 200-yard butterfly in 2:21.62 for Westminster Saturday, but College of Wooster (Ohio) invaded the Westminster Natatorium and handed the Titans their first loss in four dual meets, 153-143.
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WOMEN\’S SWIMMING & DIVING
CHICAGO, Ill. – Sophomore diver Amber Centi of Clearfield accounted for 22 of seventh-place Lincoln College\’s 131 points at the first Phoenix Fall Classic hosted by the University of Chicago.
Centi claimed sixth place in the three-meter event with a season-high 286.80 points and wound up ninth in the one-meter event with 271.70 points