Smith scores top 8 finishes in sprints at Big Ten meet
Penn State’s standout sprinter Xavier Smith, from Douglassville (Daniel Boone), finished sixth in the 60 meter dash and seventh in the 200 meter dash at the Big Ten Conference Indoor Track Championships Feb. 23-24 at the SPIRE Institute in Geneva, OH. His time in the 60 was 6.73 and his time in the 200 was 21.24. As a junior, Smith finished first in the 60 in 6.66 and fourth in the 200 in 21.07.
Smith’s lone improvement in placement in this year’s meet came in running a leg on the 4x400 relay which finished second compared to a fourthplace finish last year. However, the time last year was 3:04.80 compared to 3:05.12 this season.
The sprinter entered this year’s championship on a high note. At the D-1 Indoor Classic on Feb. 9-10 at Geneva, he finished first in the 60 (6.72), third in the 200 (21.17) and third in the 4x400 (3:12.13). He had two firsts, a third and a fourth in his No. 1 event, the 60.
Smith is still hoping to earn a berth in the NCAA Championship March 9-10 in College Station, TX. His best bet is with the 4x400 which finished 10th Indoors and ninth outdoors in the NCAAs last season. JACKSON EHLERT (EXETER) » The 5-foot-11, 195-pound junior is starting on defense for the second straight season with the Marquette men’s lacrosse team which opened this season 2-0 after an 11-10 victory over Jacksonville on Feb. 17 in Milwaukee, Wis. and a 13-6 triumph over Detroit Mercy on Feb. 24 in Pontiac, Mich. Ehlert has three ground balls and two caused turnovers this season and had 14 ground balls and eight caused turnovers last season. The Golden Eagles open Big East Conference play Saturday, March 24 against Georgetown in Milwaukee.
ABBY LODGE (DANIEL BOONE) » The Stockton junior finished seventh in the 200 meter dash (26.85) and ran a leg on the 4x200 relay which finished third (1:48.17) to help the Ospreys finish third with 131 points at the New Jersey Athletic Conference Indoor Track Championships on Feb. 19 at the Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex in Staten Island, N.Y. Lodge finished ninth in the 200 (26.98), third with the 4x200 (1:49.63) and fourth with the 4x400 (4:05.62) in the NJAC Indoor meet last year as a sophomore. JONATHAN BIEBER (EXETER) » The Albright senior finished third in the 60 meter hurdles at the Middle Atlantic Conference Indoor Track Championships Feb. 23-24 in Bethlehem. His time was a personal record 8.87. He also ran a leg on the 4x400 which finished eighth (3:41.31) and the 4x200 which finished 10th (1:38.39). Bieber finished fifth in the 60 hurdles indoors last season. He is the MAC’s defending champion in the 110 hurdles after posting a career-best time of 15.56 at the outdoor championships last spring. CONNOR CHOATE (DANIEL BOONE) » The 6-foot-2 senior had 10 digs as the No. 5 Marymount men’s volleyball team defeated No. 4 UC Santa Cruz on Feb. 17 in Harrisonburg, Va. He also had 10 digs in a 3-0 triumph over Southern Vermont the same day to push the Saints to 13-4 overall and 4-1 in Continental Volleyball Conference play. Choate leads the team with 142 kills. He also has 38 assists and has started all 17 matches and played in all 56 sets. He was an outside hitter for two years before moving into the libero spot this season.
MIKE MILLER (BERKS CATHOLIC) » The senior earned MAC Commonwealth honorable mention for his play with the Alvernia men’s basketball team. He led the Golden Wolves in scoring with a 14.9 average and hit 64 of 177 3-point attempts (36.2 percent). He made 8 of 14 from outside the arc and had 28 points in a 7966 loss to Lycoming on Jan. 31. Miller finished his career with 1,251 points and hit 246 of 702 3-point attempts. He also averaged 3.1 rebounds and had 29 assists this season, Alvernia finishing 12-13 overall and 7-9 in league play.
JAY DESCHAMPS (BERKS CATHOLIC) » The junior helped the Albright men’s swim team finish first with 615 points at the Middle Atlantic Conference Championships Feb. 15-18 in York. Deschamps finished second in the 50 freestyle (21.35), sixth in the 100 freestyle (47.40) and 12th in the 100 butterfly (58.73). He also swam legs on the 200 free relay which finished third (1:26.36), the 200 medley which finished fourth (1:36.54), the 400 medley which finished fifth (3:34.15) and the 400 free which finished sixth (3:13.84).
ALEX O’HERRICK (BOYERTOWN) » The senior 5-foot-9 midfielder kicked off her season with the Lock Haven women’s lacrosse team by scoring four goals and picking up an assist in a 1610 non-league victory over Georgian Court Feb. 20 in Lock Haven. O’Herrick entered the season with 50 goals and 14 assists in 48 career games. Junior Karli Gilbert (Boyertown) chipped in with a goal against Georgian Court and now has 27 goals in 29 career games. Senior Emily Gerhart (Boyertown) starts on defense for the Bald Eagles and had three ground balls.
MADDIE MCDONALD (OLEY VALLEY) » The sophomore who competed with Berks Gymnastics is one of the top performers on uneven bars and vault with the Ball State women’s gymnastics team, the Cardinals 9-5 overall and 3-0 in the MidAmerican Conference. McDonald kicked off the season with a tie for first with a career-best 9.850 on bars in a quad meet with Kentucky, George Washington and Southeast Missouri on Jan. 5 in Lexington, KY. It’s the top mark on the team in that event thus far. She also ranks third in vault with a score of 9.800.
KASSIDY LESHER (HAMBURG) » The senior and her Dickinson women’s basketball team went out in style with victories over Franklin & Marshall (74-63) on Feb. 14 and Washington College (71-50) on Feb. 17. The 6-foot-1 forward had 27 points and 14 rebounds against Franklin & Marshall and 23 points and 17 rebounds against Washington College. She was named Centennial Conference Player of the Week on Feb. 19 for her performance. It was her third honor this season. Lesher finished the season leading the Red Devils in scoring (14.9) and rebounding (12.5). Her rebounding average ranks 14th in Division III and her double-doubles, 18 in 25 games, is tied for 10th. Despite her performance, Dickinson finished 10-15 overall and 10-10 in the league.
KALI HEPNER (HAMBURG) » The Shippensburg senior finished second in the pole vault at the PSAC Indoor Track Championships on Feb. 24 in Edinboro. It was her highest finish in four years. She cleared 12 feet, 6 ¾ inches to tie for second but earned the runnerup spot by hitting the mark on her first attempt. Hepner finished tied for fourth last year, tied for seventh as a sophomore and was sixth as a freshman. She recorded her career-best mark (12 feet, 9 ¾) when he finished first at the S.U. Challenge on Feb. 3 in Selinsgrove. NIGEL HILL (TWIN VALLEY) » The Rhode Island senior was named Most Outstanding Track Performer at the Atlantic 10 Conference Indoor Championships Feb. 17-18 in Kingston, R.I. Hill captured the 60 meter dash in 6.75 which is a program, conference and facility record. Penn State’s Xavier Smith competes in the 60 meter dash prelims during the Nittany Lion Challenge.
He also finished first in the 200 meter dash with a personal best time of 21.27 and helped the Rams finish first out of 10 schools in the team standings with 204 points, which is the team’s
MARK SELDERS - PSU ATHLETICS
sixth title since 2010. Hill prepped for the championship by finishing first in the 200 (21.44) and second in the 60 (6.79) at the New England Championships Feb. 2-3 in Boston, Mass.