FOOTBALL
INDIANA – Senior strong safety Nick Sipes of Curwensville was named Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division Defensive Player of the Week after starring in Clarion’s 21-14 upset of Indiana that disappointed the partisan crowd of 2,369 at Miller Stadium Saturday.
Sipes made five solo stops and assisted on five others for his fourth double-digit tackle performance of the season, intercepted a pass and recovered a fumble as the Golden Eagles won their second game in a row after opening 0-5.
His first career interception at the C-30 halted Indiana’s first drive into Clarion territory in the first quarter and his fumble recovery cost the Crimson Hawks a first down at their own 43 while trailing 7-0 late in the third quarter.
Sipes shared credit for one sack and one tackle for a loss.
Teammate Alfonso Hoggard earned PSAC-West Offensive Player of the Week honors by gaining 179 yards on just 17 carries and scoring two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, a 49-yarder to break a 7-7 tie and a 69-yarder for an important insurance TD with 1:11 remaining. He ran for a two-point conversion and wound up with 245 all-purpose yards.
Hoggard also recovered an onside kick after Indiana scored in the final seconds.
Sipes is third in the PSAC with 68 tackles, with his 36 assists ranking second. He is one of 10 conference defenders with two forced fumbles.
In NCAA Division II, he is tied for 23rd in tackles with his 9.71 average.
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CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. – Leading tackler David Kalgren of Curwensville turned in another outstanding performance for the Oberlin (2-4) defense in a losing effort against once-beaten host Wabash Saturday.
The sophomore right cornerback was involved in a game-high 14 tackles, including seven solo stops, intercepted two passes and blocked an extra point in the North Coast Athletic Conference battle witnessed by 3,841 fans in Hollett Little Giant Stadium.
His 40-yard interception runback to the W-35 set up a Yeomen score that cut the Little Giants’ lead to 30-14 late in the half.
He returned his second pick 29 yards early in the third quarter.
Kalgren leads the NCAC in interceptions with four and is third in passes defended with eight.
He also is the No. 1 tackler among conference defensive backs with 54, a 9.0 average that ranks fifth among all defenders. He ranks second overall in solo stops with 41.
He is tied for 91st in average tackles per game in NCAA Division III.
Kalgren also has returned seven kickoffs for a 19.7 average and four punts for an 8.0 average.
The Yeomen are 1-3 in the NCAC.
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LOCK HAVEN – Redshirt freshman wide receiver Jesse Hoover of Curwensville hauled in three passes for a game-high 57 yards in Lock Haven’s 42-7 loss to Gannon at Hubert Jack Stadium Saturday afternoon.
A crowd of 2,154 saw the Bald Eagles (0-7) suffer their 27th consecutive loss after trailing only 7-0 at halftime of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division game.
Hoover’s 40-yard reception gave the Bald Eagles a field goal opportunity late in the second quarter, but the kick was blocked.
Hoover has started six games and is third in catches with 13 but second in yards with 252 and first in average at 19.4 yards per reception. He has scored one touchdown.
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GROVE CITY – Clearfield Area High School graduate Tyler Kirkwood of Frenchville played at wingback and on special teams as Grove City came from behind to top Geneva 13-7 in front of 5,100 fans at Robert E. Thorn Field Saturday night.
The non-conference win balanced the Wolverines’ record at 3-3.
Kirkwood, who started the first four games, has one pass reception for nine yards.
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LANCASTER – After missing the first six games because of an injury, sophomore offensive guard Robert Faust of Clearfield got his first taste of action for unbeaten Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology at Bevilacqua Stadium Sunday when the Bulldogs pulled away from Walter Reed in the second half for their seventh win, 36-8.
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SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Pitt kicker Dan Hutchins was named Big East Conference Special Teams Player of the Week after averaging 50 yards on five punts and booting six extra points and a 24-yard field goal out of holds by junior redshirt quarterback Andrew Janocko of Clearfield in Saturday’s 45-14 victory over Syracuse.
The Panthers evened their record at 3-3 in the Big East Conference opener that drew 40,168 fans into the Carrier Dome.
Hutchins is the nation’s No. 3 punter with a 47.08 average and tied for 16th in field goals with a 1.67 average per game.
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WOMEN’S SOCCER
GREENSBURG – Danielle Struble of Curwensville scored in the 31st minute to give Westminster (7-7-1) a 1-0 win over host Saint Vincent in Presidents’ Athletic Conference action Saturday.
The senior forward converted a cross from Tyler Dever with a one-touch shot while sliding into the goal for her second game-winning goal of the season.
She attempted six of Westminster’s 27 shots and had three of the 12 shots on goal.
On Wednesday, Struble had five shots, two on goal, in a 1-0 loss to undefeated co-leader Thomas Moore at Crestview Hills, Ky.
At 3-2, the Lady Titans sit in a tie for fourth place and the final berth in the PAC Playoffs.
Struble leads Westminster and is tied for first in the PAC with 68 shots. She is second in shots per game with a 4.53 average.
She is seventh in goals with seven and tied for 10th in points with 16, both totals second on the Lady Titan stats.
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SLIPPERY ROCK – Senior forward Juliana Howell of Clearfield has three assists in 12 games for Slippery Rock (9-3-2).
She started for the fifth time in a 2-0 win over Gannon at Erie on Oct. 12 but did not play in a 2-1 victory over Mercyhurst at Thompson Stadium Saturday.
The two wins gave The Rock sole possession of third place in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference with 29 points for a 7-3-2 record and virtually assured the Green and White of a berth in the post-season tournament.
Howell has registered six shots, three on goal.
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LOCK HAVEN – Senior midfielder Jenny Williams of Clearfield came off the bench for Lock Haven (5-7-2) in a 2-2 double-overtime tie with Gannon on the Hubert Jack Stadium turf Saturday.
Coupled with a 1-0 upset of Mercyhurst at Erie on Oct. 12, the deadlock gave the Lady Eagles seven points in their last three Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference. They have a total of 11 points for a 3-7-2 mark.
Williams sports six points for three goals, one a game-winner, and has logged nine shots, five on goal.
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LORETTO – Freshman forward-midfielder Brooke Mohney of Clearfield saw action for Saint Francis (10-4-1) in a 3-0 Northeast Conference victory over visiting Quinnipiac at the Stokes Soccer Complex Friday.
The Red Flash followed up by trimming Central Connecticut State 3-1 Sunday to move into second place in the NEC with 12 points for a 4-2 start.
Mohney has participated in five games with one shot on goal.
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MEN’S SOCCER
NEW WILMINGTON – Clearfield Area High School graduate Alan Baldwin of Olanta has appeared in 12 games for Westminster (3-8-2), which split a pair of Presidents’ Athletic Conference road games last week.
After losing 1-0 to Thomas Moore in overtime at Crestview Hills, Ky., Wednesday, the Titans bounced back to down St. Vincent 2-0 at Latrobe Saturday for a 2-2 PAC record.
Baldwin, a senior midfielder, subbed in both games and was credited with his fourth shot of the season against Saint Vincent.
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WASHINGTON, Pa. – Midfielder John Lhota of Clearfield was one of 11 Washington & Jefferson seniors honored in a pre-game ceremony at Alexandre Stadium Saturday and had two of just six shots by the Presidents in a 1-0 non-conference loss to Geneva.
He accounted for their lone shot on goal in the 69th minute.
Lhota and his classmates have helped W & J to a 41-24-10 record, including 15-3-3 in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference, during their four years.
The Titans, who defeated Point Park 2-1 in another non-conference outing on Oct. 12, are 8-3-2.
Lhota has one goal and two assists for four points. He has attempted 18 shots with 12 on goal.
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ERIE – Freshman midfielder Kurtis Graham of Clearfield got off one shot in a reserve role for Penn State Altoona in a 4-0 loss to host Penn State Behrend with first place in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference on the line Saturday.
The Lions took a 5-1 record into the showdown with the unbeaten front-runners, who are 6-0.
Graham has played in 15 games, four as a starter, for Penn State Altoona (8-8) with tow assists and 10 shots, half of them on goal.
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WOMEN’S VOLLEBALL
DUBOIS – Starters Stephanie Neeper and Lindsay Barrett, both freshmen from Curwensville, and reserve Sophia Reed, a sophomore from Clearfield, were instrumental in Penn State DuBois securing a first-round home match for Pennsylvania State University Athletic Conference Tournament with two wins in three outings last week.
The Lady Lions, who had moved up from No. 20 to a tie for No. 18 in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association Poll, defeated Penn State Beaver 25-19,25-22, 15-25, 25-22 at Monaca Wednesday and then salvaged a split in a home triangular Saturday.
They swept Penn State Scranton 25-15, 25-9, 25-14 to lock up at least fourth place but were unable to get past 16th-ranked Penn College for third place. Penn College prevailed 25-23, 25-19, 25-14.
Neeper is a middle hitter and outside hitter, Barrett an opposite and Reed an outside hitter for the Lady Lions, who will host No. 5 seed Penn State Wilkes-Barre Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Multipurpose Building Gym.
The winner advances to the Final Four at Penn State’s Rec Hall and will get regular season champion Mont Alto in a 7 p.m. semifinal. The title match is booked for Saturday at 1 p.m.
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WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
UNIVERSITY PARK – Freshman Gwenn Porter of Clearfield was one of 14 Lady Lions who competed in the Penn State National Saturday and was clocked in 26:41 for the 6,000-meter trail through the Blue and White Golf Courses.
The invitational attracted 304 runners from 31 teams, with Big East powers Villanova (26 points) and Syracuse (57) leading the way.
Penn State, ranked No. 30 by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, finished third with its top five runners placing 20th through 35th for 137 points.