A-K Valley campus clippings: Freeport grad swinging hot bat at Mercyhurst
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Ally DeJidas is enjoying a strong start to her softball season with Mercyhurst.
The Freeport graduate and Lakers senior pitcher/outfielder led the team in batting with a .528 (19 of 36) average through her team’s first 10 games. She collected four doubles, two home runs and eight RBIs as Mercyhurst evened its record at 5-5.
The two home runs gave her 19 for her career, and her eight RBIs puts her at 84 in her three-plus seasons.
DeJidas earned PSAC Player of the Week honors Feb. 21 for her efforts during the D2 Cactus Classic in Tucson, Ariz.
Gannon: Lea Coffman (Burrell) hit a three-run homer in a 7-6 loss to Concordia-St. Paul on March 3 in Clermont, Fla. Coffman also knocked in a pair of runs in Gannon’s 10-2 win over Shaw on Feb. 24
Gymnastics
West Virginia: Senior Abbie Pierson (St. Joseph) had a big day in the Mountaineers’ regular-season home finale against Pitt and Central Michigan on March 5. The New Kensington native posted a season-high score on all three of her events to help WVU earn 197.325 and post two victories. She recorded a season-best on vault (9.925) and beam (9.875) and a career-high tying score on floor (9.925). In the event standings, she tied for first on vault and second on floor.
Women’s basketball
PSU-Behrend: Freshman Maddie Boyer (Knoch) finished third on the Lions in scoring at 14.9 points a game through 29 games, all starts. She scored 20 or more points in a game seven times with a season-high of 24 coming in a 79-76 loss at La Roche on Jan. 7. Boyer, the Valley News Dispatch Girls Basketball Player of the Year for the 2021-22 season, also averaged 7.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 2.1 steals for Behrend, which finished its season 21-7 overall.
Duquesne: Sophomore guard Tess Myers (North Catholic/Lower Burrell) collected a pair of 3-point field goals in a 71-68 loss to George Washington in the second round of the Atlantic 10 Tournament. She tied her own mark (2021-22) for the second-most 3-pointers in a single season (90) in program history. Myers is now fifth all-time at Duquesne with 205 3-pointers and is 20 away from fourth. Myers leads the team in scoring at 11.7 points through 31 games. The Dukes are 19-12 overall.
Baseball
Mercyhurst: Junior Jarrett Heilman (Freeport) worked into the sixth in a victory at Salem (W.Va.) on March 5. In his third start of the season, he surrendered just one hit and two earned runs with five strikeouts and five walks. Heilman picked up a no-decision as the Lakers rallied past Salem in the eighth inning for a 4-2 victory. He suffered his first collegiate loss against Millersville after going 8-0 last year in his first season as a starter. Heilman’s 13 strikeouts in three starts give him 101 strikeouts in 79 career innings.
Saint Vincent: Billy Perroz (Kiski Area), a junior first-baseman/outfielder, collected a team-best four RBIs over his team’s first four games. He went 1 for 3 with two RBIs in a loss to Gwynedd Mercy on March 7 and collected two hits and an RBI in a loss to Trine one day earlier.
Washington & Jefferson: Evan Sante (Plum), a senior outfielder for the Presidents, led the team with seven RBIs with a double and a home run over his team’s first seven games. He doubled and drove in three in a 10-1 win over Case Western in the second game of a doubleheader March 5. Sante homered and drove in three in a 10-9 win over Baldwin-Wallace on Feb. 26.
Men’s swimming
Gannon: Justin and Joey DeCheck (Plum) teamed up on the third-place 400 freestyle relay (3 minutes, 3.01 seconds) at the PSAC championships Feb. 18. The points in the final race of the championships gave the Knights a team total of 588.5, second place to West Chester (968.5). Justin Decheck, a senior, also helped the 200 medley relay (1:30.78) and 400 medley relay (3:18.84) set school records. The 200 medley relay finshed second, while the 400 medley relay was third overall.
Football
Washington & Jefferson: Max Garda (Burrell) played for the Presidents and graduated in 2021. He returns to the program as an intern assistant coach in charge of all strength and conditioning for the program. Garda, a three-time All-PAC honoree, racked up 194 total tackles and six interceptions during his W&J career. He earned All-PAC first-team honors in 2019 after posting 65 tackles, 11 passes defended, four interceptions and three forced fumbles. Garda helped W&J to PAC titles in 2017 and 2018.