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Track gold highlights memorable spring at Norwin

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Saturday, June 21, 2025 | 11:01 AM


Norwin will remember the 2025 spring sports season for its impressive wins, highlight performances and gold medals.

There was plenty to talk about at year-end banquets.

Track and field was the standard bearer after a banner season.

The boys and girls teams won WPIAL Class 3A championships, the boys celebrating a title for the first time since 1977 and the girls for the first time since 2009.

A plethora of talent carried the Knights, who also produced a WPIAL individual champion in Ryan Schiller, who won the Class 3A 110-meter hurdles.

Runner-up finishers were Brandi Brozeski (triple jump, 100 hurdles) and Annie Czajkowski (1,600, 3,200), while Daniel Maddock (200), Melani Schmidt (400, 200) and the boys’ 400 relay all placed third.

At the PIAA championships, Schiller took second in the 110s while Annie Czajkowski took fifth in the 3,200-meter run.

Norwin’s track and field athletes broke 11 school records this spring, and 12 athletes will continue competing in college, including six at the Division I level.

Other highlights:

• The Knights baseball team also made a deep run in the postseason, reaching the WPIAL Class 6A championship game before finishing second to Seneca Valley.

Nate Silberman and Tristyn Tavares had hits in the WPIAL final, and Ethan Culbertson gave up just four hits in six innings a 1-0 loss to the Raiders.

Norwin, the No. 4 seed, beat Butler, 5-4 in nine innings, in the quarterfinals. The Knights defeated Hempfield, 7-4, in the semifinals.

With only the WPAL champion advancing to the PIAA playoffs in 6A, Norwin had to settle for a 14-9 season, coach Craig Spisak’s third with the team.

Nine seniors will leave the program, including Ben Geissler, Brayden Wardzinski, Culbertson, Silberman, Jake Sincak and others.

• The Norwin softball team reached the WPIAL 6A semifinals.

The Knights finished 10-12 with a team that will lose three seniors in Izzy Deering, Rachel Minteer and Kendall Dudley.

Top returning players will include Maddie Kugler, Diem Wardzinski, Abbie Telli, Miley Harrison, Addison Grimes and Makenna Black.

• Girls lacrosse made a surprising run to the WPIAL 3A quarterfinals.

The 12th-seeded Knights upset No. 5 Fox Chapel in overtime in the first round, 11-10.

They fell to No. 4 Moon in the quarterfinals, 13-7.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Norwin





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Georgia Adds Marin Collins from Penn State

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ATHENS, Ga. – University of Georgia volleyball has signed 6-3 outside hitter Marin Collins for the 2026 season, head coach Tom Black announced Saturday.
 
“We’re very excited to add Marin to our program,” Black said. “She has a tremendously high ceiling as a player, and we can’t wait to begin working with her.”
 
Collins signs with Georgia from Penn State as a redshirt-freshman. She did not play in 2025 due to injury and will have four years of eligibility as a Bulldog.
 
In 2024, Collins eclipsed 1,750 career kills at Frontier Central High School in the suburbs of Buffalo, New York, and earned JVA Class of 2025 All‑National Team honors. She was invited to the Under Armour NEXT Series Camp Elite, named First Team AA All‑State in New York, selected First Team All-Western New York by The Buffalo News, and garnered All‑ECIC First Team recognition.
 
In 2023, Collins appeared on the AVCA Phenom Watchlist and the JVA Watch List (OH, Class of 2025). She received Second Team AA All-State honors in New York, was named The Buffalo News All-Western New York First Team, and earned All‑ECIC First Team distinction, along with an invitation to the Under Armour NEXT Series Camp Elite.
 
Her freshman season in 2022 saw Collins on the AVCA Phenom Watchlist and the JVA All‑National Team, plus the JVA Watch List. She collected Second Team AA All‑State in New York, The Buffalo News All-Western New York First Team, Coach’s All-Western New York First Team, and All‑ECIC First Team. Academically, she was part of the USMC/AVCA Team Academic Award and recognized as a Scholar Athlete at Frontier Central.
 
Outside of volleyball, Collins competed on Frontier’s bowling team from her freshman through junior years and was involved with the Girls in Sports Organization.
 
On the club circuit, Collins played for Niagara Frontier Volleyball from 2014–2024.
 
The Lake View, New York native is the daughter of Kimberly and Ryan Collins.
 
Collins joins fellow transfer signee Alyssa Worden, an outside hitter from Iowa.
 
 



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Volleyball places four on academic all-district team

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Four Hamilton College student-athletes have been recognized on the 2025 Academic All-District® Women’s Volleyball Team, which is selected by the College Sports Communicators (CSC).

Academic All-District Women’s Volleyball Team release

The team honors the nation’s top student-athletes for their combined performances on the court and in the classroom.

Caitlin Allen ’27, Kathryn Fox ’27, Maggie Nichols ’26 and Ayzlinn Trefren ’28 were each named to the CSC Academic All-District® Team for Division III.

The CSC Academic All-America® program separately recognizes women’s volleyball honorees in four divisions — NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III and NAIA.

Allen appeared in 18 matches with 16 starts, and was first on the team in total blocks with 15 solo blocks and 56 block assists.  She was second in the NESCAC with 1.25 blocks per set. Allen also compiled 86 kills and 14 service aces with a .235 hitting percentage.

Fox played in all 19 matches with 11 starts. The junior was one of four players on the team with over 100 kills, registering a career-best 111 on the year. She was also second on the team in blocks with seven solo blocks and 39 block assists.

Nichols played in all 19 matches with 17 starts during her senior season with the Continentals. She produced 54 kills, and was third on the team in blocks with nine solo blocks and 23 block assists.

Trefren appeared in all 19 matches this season with 18 starts. She totaled a team-high 143 kills and a team-high 195 digs. She also contributed 23 service aces, three solo blocks and 13 block assists.

 



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Volleyball signs standout Auguste | Wisconsin Badgers

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MADISON, Wis. – Head coach Kelly Sheffield of the Wisconsin volleyball team has announced the signing of AVCA All-American Jaela Auguste after spending a pair of seasons at Florida. Auguste will arrive at UW for the start of the 2026 spring semester.

Currently a sophomore, Auguste is fresh off of the best season of her career, earning AVCA Third Team All-American, AVCA Southeast Region First Team and First Team All-SEC honors for the Gators. 

“I’m extremely excited to announce that Jaela will be joining our team,” said head coach Kelly Sheffield. “She is one of the most dynamic attackers in the country. Her slide is lethal and she is also great off of two feet. J.J. can also eat up passers from behind the service line. I’m looking forward to having her here this spring.”

The 2024 SEC Freshman of the Year averaged 2.69 kills per set on a .344 hitting percentage from the front court in 28 matches in 2025. Auguste recorded 106.0 blocks on the season, in addition to 27 service aces. The 6-foot-2 middle blocker earned 3.50 points per set as well. In total, Auguste tallied double-digit kills in 17 matches this past year, emerging as a strong producer on the offensive end. 

The Spring, Texas, native was a member of the 2025 USA Volleyball U-21 National Team Roster with setter Charlie Fuerbringer.



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William & Mary Hires Head Volleyball Coach

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WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – William & Mary announced today the hiring of Kellie Catanach Johnson to be the Tribe’s 11th head volleyball coach. She is currently the associate head coach of the Duke Blue Devil women’s volleyball team.
 

“I’m thrilled that Kellie is joining the Tribe as our head volleyball coach,” said Brian D. Mann, director of athletics.  “We very quickly identified her as the person we wanted to lead our program.  She had an extraordinary All-American career as a student-athlete at Duke and that, plus her experience as a standout coach at her alma mater and her lifelong passion for volleyball, made her the right choice for William & Mary.” 
 

“William & Mary is an incredible place that offers the best of all worlds, whether it’s athletics, academics or alumni support,” says Catanach Johnson.  “I want to build a program that everyone will be proud of while we give our student-athletes a great experience.  Everyone I’ve met is so wonderful that I can’t wait to get started!” 
 
Catanach Johnson joined the Blue Devil staff as an assistant in 2019 and was promoted to associate head coach in 2022.  She was the recruiting coordinator and responsible for training and program administration.  In 2021, she was honored as a member of AVCA’s Thirty Under 30 list. 
 
Prior to Duke, Catanach Johnson was Director of Education Services in the Student-Athlete Academic Services department at Florida State University.  She was responsible for day to day operations of educational services and was a liaison to advisors. 
 
During her playing career at Duke, Catanach Johnson was a four-year letterwinner and three-time All-American who starred on a team that made four NCAA appearances and won two ACC Championships.  She was the 2010 ACC Player of the Year and she finished her career ranked ninth in assists in the ACC.  She had at least 1,000 assists in her four seasons on the team and she was the team captain during her last two years at Duke. 
 
Catanach Johnson’s love of volleyball started early.  Her dad, Chris Catanach, coached volleyball at the University of Tampa and in his 42-year illustrious career won four National Championships and was named AVCA National Coach of the Year five times.  “My sister and I basically grew up in the gym,” she said.  “First we were chasing balls and when I got older I got to do some things with the team.”
 
Catanach Johnson is taking over a program that finished 12-15 this fall, with a conference record of 7-9. The team just announced the signing of its incoming 2026 freshman class, and current players Kaitlyn Dunnigan, Katherine Arnason and Audrey Brcka were just named to the CSC Academic All-District team.

Catanach Johnson graduated from Duke in 2012 with a Bachelor of Art’s degree and she earned a Master of Science degree in Sport Management from Florida State in 2015.  She will be joined in Williamsburg by her husband Dezmond Johnson, eight-month-old daughter Evie and their dog Bentley. 

 



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Pacific Joins ECAC for Outdoor Track & Field

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STOCKTON, Calif. – The Pacific men’s and women’s track & field programs will be competing in the East Coast Athletic Conference (ECAC) as outdoor affiliate members, beginning this 2026 season.

The Pacific women previously competed as a Division I independent, while the men begin their first season after the university announced the sport addition in May. The indoor program will participate in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) once the calendar turns to 2026.

“We are excited for the inaugural season of expanding our program to join the IC4A/ECAC,” Pacific head coach Josh Jones said. “This opportunity allows our athletes to gain valuable championship experience and elevates the standard of excellence within our program.”

The 2026 ECAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held at Rutgers University on April 17-18, 2026, at Bauer Track & Field Complex, co-hosted with the IC4A championships.

Stay Social

For all the latest on Pacific Track & Field, be sure to follow the team on (@PacificXCT), Instagram (@pacific_xc_track) and “like” the team’s official Facebook page (Pacific Cross Country/Track).

  

#PacificProud





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MIAC Athletes of the Week – December 22, 2025

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MIAC Women’s Basketball Offensive Player of the Week
Ella Peters
Gustavus Adolphus College
Jr. | Guard
River Falls, Wis. / River Falls
 
Ella Peters made 10 of her 12 shots for a career-high 21 points in the Gusties’ rout of Northwestern-St. Paul on 12/16. Peters scored 19 of her 21 points in the first three quarters of play, and 15 in the first half. Peters has posted double-digit point totals in five of her last six games.

MIAC Women’s Basketball Defensive Player of the Week
Elly Schmitz
Bethel University
Gr. | Forward
Hermantown, Minn. / Hermantown

Elly Schmitz averaged 9.0 rebounds, 2.5 steals, and 1.5 blocks in two victories for the Royals at the Justagame Invitational on 12/19-20. Schmitz came away with nine boards against both UW-La Crosse (12/19) and Coe (12/20), adding four steals and two blocks against the Eagles and one of each in a double-overtime win against the Kohawks. Schmitz also scored 15 points against UW-La Crosse and poured in 23 against Coe.



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