Wood wins EIWA title, headed to NCAAs
JORDAN WOOD (BOYERTOWN) » Lehigh redshirt freshman Wood won the heavyweight championship at the EIWA Championships, helping the Mountain Hawks to the team title on March 4.
Lehigh went 5-for-5 in finals with a win by Wood over 10th-ranked Michael Hughes of Hofstra, the No. 1 seed. Tied 1-1 through regulation and sudden victory, Wood escaped 12 seconds into the first half of the tiebreaker and was able to keep the 285-pound Hughes down in the second half to seal the 2-1, tiebreaker win. Wood is the first Lehigh freshman to win an EIWA title since Randy Cruz in 2013 and just the second since 2003. He advanced to the finals with a 4-1 win over Columbia’s Garrett Ryan in the semifinals.
Wood is seeded 10th at 285 for the NCAA Division I Championships, which will be held March 15-17 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland. JOSH LAFFERTY (POPE JOHN PAUL II) » Josh Lafferty picked up his first victory of the season for the Widener baseball team and it earned him MAC Commonwealth Pitcher of the Week on March 4.
The 6-foot-3, 200-pound righthander worked six innings in a 4-0 victory over Coe on March 3 in Auburndale, Fla. He scattered four hits, walked two and struck out five. It was the second start for the senior from Pottstown (Pope John Paul II). He pitched six innings and gave up three hits and two runs, both earned, with three walks and 10 strikeouts in a 4-3 triumph over Immaculata Feb. 24 in Garnet Valley, the Pride scoring in the bottom of the seventh to break a 3-3 tie and get the victory.
“It (Pitcher of the Week) is a well-deserved honor for Josh,” coach Mike DeRosa said. “He’s been consistent on our staff the past three seasons. Now that he’s a senior, his work ethic and commitment is really starting to pay off.”
Lafferty has a 16-6 record with a save in 35 games and 22 starts with six complete games in his career with the Pride. He has 97 strikeouts in 164.1 innings. KELLY GLATTHORN (METHACTON) » The senior has started all eight games on defense for the Virginia Tech women’s lacrosse team, the Hokies 5-3 overall and 1-0 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, a 17-14 triumph over No. 10-ranked Duke. Glatthorn has 15 ground balls, 14 draw controls and six caused turnovers. She also had a goal in a 20-3 victory over Old Dominion Glatthorn has played in 48 career games with 37 starts and has four goals and seven assists. She also has 56 ground balls, 63 draw controls and 34 caused turnovers. CONNOR KLEMANN (SPRING-FORD) » The 5-foot-8, 185-pound junior infielder has started all nine games for the Penn State baseball team, the Nittany Lions 4-5 after an 8-7 victory over UC Santa Barbara last Monday in Santa Barbara, Calif. Klemann had a home run in that game, his second on the season. He’s playing third base and hitting .294 (10-for-34) with four runs scored and eight runs batted in. Klemann played in 10 games with eight starts before his season ended with an injury last year. MIKE ANTHONY (PHOENIXVILLE) » The 6-foot-2 junior right-hander pitched in 23 games with 14 stars for the La Salle baseball team his first two seasons, but he’s coming out of the bull pen thus far this season. He’s 2-1 with a 4.76 earned run average in five games. In 5.2 innings, he’s given up eight hits and five runs, three earned, with three walks and four strikeouts. He picked up his first victory working three innings in a 5-4 triumph over Presbyterian Feb. 17. He worked just 2/3 of an inning to earn the win in a 6-4 victory over The Citadel on Feb. 25. BRET CLARKE (SPRING-FORD) » The 6-foot-2 junior right-hander is 1-1 with a 2.57 earned run average in three starts with the 7-4 Stony Brook baseball team and his loss was as impressive as his victory. Clarke faced No. 1 Florida March 3 in Gainesville, the Gators winning 8-0. He worked five innings and gave up six hits and two runs, both earned, with a walk and two strikeouts. Clarke picked up his victory in a 7-6 triumph over Sacred Heart on Feb. 24 in Norfolk, Va. He worked five innings and gave up eight hits, two runs, both earned with no walks and three strikeouts. NATHALIE SELL (PERKIOMEN VALLEY) » The junior is off to a great start with the powerful Millersville women’s lacrosse team, the Marauders 4-0 and averaging over 20 goals a game after a 20-1 victory over West Virginia Wesleyan last Tuesday in Millersville. Sell has six goals and two assists. She’s taken 10 shots with eight on goal. She also has five ground balls, seven draw controls and four caused turnovers. Sell entered this season having scored just 12 goals in 29 games. PAIGE BREHM (OWEN J. ROBERTS) » If the first two games are any indication, the 5-foot-7 midfielder is ready for a another big season with the Wesley women’s lacrosse team. Brehm had four goals and an assist in a 25-3 victory over Cedar Crest on Feb. 24 and came back with four goals and an assist in a 26-17 triumph over Gwynedd Mercy on March 3. And she’s had eight ground balls, 10 draw controls and nine caused turnovers. Brehm had 25 goals and six assists for 31 points to go along with 35 ground balls, 31 draw controls and 20 caused turnovers last season. MATT MESSERLE (SPRING-FORD) » The 5-foot-8, 160-pounder is a senior presence in goal for the Goucher men’s lacrosse team, the Gophers 3-3 on the season after a 14-5 loss to Messiah last Wednesday. Messerle had seven saves in that game. He had a season-high 18 saves in a 14-8 loss to Gettysburg on Feb. 21 and 15 saves in a 12-5 setback to Randolph-Macon on Feb. 24. In 40 career games, he’s 17-17, giving up 289 goals with 334 saves. He started all 14 games as a junior and all 15 games as a sophomore. RILEY MICHAELS (POTTSGROVE) » The senior continues to be one of the top face-off players in the country for the Cabrini men’s lacrosse team. The 5-foot-7 junior is 22 for 44 for the 3-0 Cavaliers. He also has 10 ground balls and scored a goal in a 16-15 victory over No. 16-ranked Lynchburg on Feb. 24. Last season, Michaels was an AllColonial States Athletic Conference first team pick, was named to the ECAC South All-Star first team, the Mid-Atlantic Regional second team and was a Division III All-American honorable mention. He has won 263 of 409 face-offs in his career (64.3 percent). ALVYN ABRAHAM (PERKIOMEN VALLEY) » The 5-foot-10 junior was moved from outside hitter to setter with the Arcadia men’s volleyball team. He has 207 assists but has 180 in the team’s last five matches including 53 in a 3-2 victory over Thiel on Feb. 17 and 46 in a 3-1 triumph over Misericordia on Feb. 22. Abraham also has 35 digs and 12 kills to help the Knights go to 10-9 overall and 4-2 in Middle Atlantic Conference play in just their second year of varsity volleyball. He had 187 assists and 41 digs in 21 matches last season. ALYSSA MORALES (PERKIOMEN VALLEY) » The junior right-hander is 2-1 pitching for the Gwynedd Mercy softball team, the Griffins 4-1 after a 5-3 triumph over Mary Washington last Tuesday in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Morales picked up the complete game victory giving up eight hits and three runs, two earned, with no walks and five strikeouts. She has a 1.84 earned run average in three complete-game starts. In 19 innings, she’s given up 17 hits and eight runs, five earned, with one walk with 13 strikeouts.