College notebook: Williamson makes immediate impact at Temple
Alexa Williamson, who was the Observer-Reporter’s Girls Basketball Player of the Year last season while at Chartiers-Houston, has made an immediate impact as a freshman for Temple University.
Williamson, a forward, scored a game-high 19 points in 23 minutes during Temple’s 76-64 victory over University of the Sciences, a Division II program, in an exhibition game Oct. 30. Williamson was 5-for-8 from the field, made nine of 14 free throws and grabbed six rebounds.
“I was a little nervous in the beginning, but then a few minutes into the game, I realized there was nothing to worry about, and I just started playing,” Williamson said.
In her first regular-season collegiate game, Williamson had 11 points and four rebounds in Temple’s 76-61 victory over Delaware State last Tuesday. In the Owls’ game Friday at St. Joseph’s, Williamson scored four points on 2-for-5 shooting as the Owls defeated their crosstown rival 58-52.
Temple (2-0) plays Wednesday at Mississippi.
In soccer
Sabrina Bryan, a sophomore from Cecil, scored a goal in Hofstra’s 2-0 victory over top-seeded James Madison in the Colonial Athletic Conference women’s championship game, clinching an NCAA tournament berth for The Pride.
With Hofstra leading 1-0, Bryan converted a rebound off a teammate’s shot for her team-leading 11th goal of the season. Bryan also leads Hofstra in scoring with 26 points.
Bryan had consecutive two-goal games in October against Drexel and Elon.
A member of Canon-McMillan’s PIAA championship team in 2016, Bryan was named to the All-CAA first team and the conference’s all-tournament team.
Hofstra played at 22nd-ranked Boston College in the opening round of the NAA tournament Friday night and defeated the Eagles, 4-1, behind by two goals by Bryan. She gave Hofstra a 2-0 lead with a goal in the 70th minute and four minutes later scored an unassisted goal to make the score 3-1.
Hofstra (16-5-1) will play Wisconsin in the second round Friday in Palo Alto, Calif.
Winthrop’s Allie Thomas, a forward from Canonsburg and a Canon-McMillan graduate, was named second team All-Big South Conference. Thomas was the leading goal-scorer for the Eagles, scoring five goals and assisting on three others in 17 games. She scored two game-winning goals, both in conference matches.
Three players from Washington County played significant roles in helping the Penn State Behrend men’s team to a berth in the third round of the NCAA Division III tournament.
Aaron Harris, a junior midfielder from Washington and a McGuffey graduate, is the fifth-leading scorer for Penn State Behrend. Harris scored three goals and had four assists in 20 games
Logan Brinsky, a freshman forward from Peters Township, has nine goals and 18 points in 10 games (10 starts). Brinsky had one of the biggest goals of the season when he had the only tally of the game in Behrend’s 1-0 victory over Lycoming in the first round of the NCAA tournament Saturday. Brinsky scored only four minutes into the match.
Tyler Opferman, a freshman midfielder from McMurray and a Peters Township graduate, has played in 20 games and contributed two goals and two assists.
Behrend (16-3-2) defeated John Carroll 1-0 in a double-overtime game in the second round of the NCAA tournament and will play against Calvin (Mich.) on Friday in the third round at Cleveland, Ohio.
Kyra Watkins, a junior midfielder from Charleroi, had a strong season for Pitt-Johnstown with two goals and five assists for nine points in 16 games. She was UPJ’s second-leading scorer.
In volleyball
Jayden Barnish of Carmichaels was a key player for Penn State Fayette’s team that won the Pennsylvania State University Athletic Conference championship.
A freshman setter, Barnish led Penn State Fayette with 723 assists and was fifth in digs with 136.
Penn State Fayette has a 21-7 record and defeated Penn State Beaver in a five-game final of the conference tournament at University Park.
In football
Marietta is having one of its best seasons in many years and Robert Nelson, a sophomore wide receiver from Washington, has played a significant role.
A Trinity graduate, Nelson has 27 pass receptions for 292 yards and two touchdowns. He has catches in each of the Pioneers’ last six games. In a loss Saturday to Division III powerhouse Mount Union, Nelson had six receptions for 54 yards.
Nelson’s best game was Oct. 13 against Wilmington as he caught six passes for 79 yards and two scores in the Pioneers’ 63-21 victory. Nelson had TD catches of 8 and 37 yards in the first half.
Marietta finished the season with a 7-2 overall record and 6-3 mark in the Ohio Athletic Conference. The Pioneers averaged 37.8 points and 268.2 passing yards per game.
In cross country
Duquesne freshman Sam Snodgrass, a South Fayette graduate, was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie team.
The All-Rookie teams consisted of the top seven freshman finishers at the A-10 Championships that were held in Mechanicsville, Va.
Snodgrass, a WPIAL cross country champion, finished sixth among rookies, crossing the finish line 47th overall with a time of 25:52.5.