Dec 9, 2025 By Chris Dugan 4 min read

Geno Calgaro, a member of the St. Francis football team, was named to the All-Northeast Conference first team as a linebacker.

Calgaro, a Canon-McMillan graduate, finished with a team-leading 105 tackles with five games of at least 10 tackles.

The sophomore led the NEC in tackles per game with a 9.5 average and ranked second in overall tackles with 105. He also ranked fifth in the league for tackles for a loss (10.5). The sophomore ranked 17th in FCS in tackles per game and was one of 39 players to reach 100 tackles on the year at the FCS level.

With St. Francis dropping to the Division III Presidents’ Athletic Conference next year, Calgaro recently announced that he will be entering the transfer portal in January and have two years of eligibility remaining.

In wrestling

Washington & Jefferson freshman Joey Gardner was selected as the Presidents’ Athletic Conference Newcomer of the Week on Monday.

Gardner, a Canon-McMillan graduate, had five wins while competing in all three events on the week for the Presidents. He logged two victories on Thursday night in dual meets against Waynesburg and Mount Union. Wrestling at 157 pounds, began the night with a pin 1:46 mark against the Yellow Jackets. Against Mount Union, Gardner won a 7-2 decision.

At the Ohio Northern Invitational held last weekend, placed sixth at 157. He opened with a pin in 1:58 before scoring a 19-4 technical fall and a two-point reversal to upset the No. 2 seed in the bracket in the third round. Gardner lost in the semifinals to the No. 3-seeded wrestler from Ohio Northern.

In basketball

Natalie Wetzel is off to a good start in her freshman season at Miami (Fla.).

Last season’s Observer-Reporter Girls Basketball Player of the Year at Peters Township, Wetzel has played in all nine games for the Hurricanes and has started five. She is averaging 5.6 points and 16 minutes per game. Wetzel is shooting 56.3 percent from the field, 36.4 percent from three-point range and is averaging 3.4 rebounds per game.

Maddie Webber is the fourth-leading scorer for Illinois.

Webber, who was the O-R Girls Basketball Player of the Year in 2023 while at South Fayette, is averaging 10.9 points per game in her first season with the Illini after transferring from Villanova. Webber is shooting 52 percent from the field and 44 percent from three-point range. She has scored a season-high 16 points three times, against Southeast Missouri State, Western Kentucky and Saturday in the Illinois’ Big Ten opener against Indiana.

Gavin Cote, a redshirt junior guard from Venetia and a Peters Township graduate, is the leading scorer for Clarion.

Cote is averaging 17.1 points per game for the Golden Eagles (4-4). He has topped 20 points in a game three times already with a game-high of 29 against Frostburg State. He opened the season with a 28-point game against West Liberty and scored 21 against Roberts Wesleyan. Cote made five three-point field goals in the games against West Liberty and Frostburg State.

For the season, Vote is shooting 45 percent from the field, 41 percent (24-for-58) from three-point range and 78 percent from the three-point line.

Slippery Rock redshirt freshman Elijah Hill, a South Fayette graduate, was named the PSAC West Division Defensive Athlete of the Week for Nov. 24-30.

Hill earned the honor after helping Slippery Rock to a pair of double-digit wins over Glenville State (92-81) and D’Youville (85-68). In the two games, Hill totaled eight defensive rebounds, three steals and one blocked shot while averaging 11.5 points per game on 66.7 percent shooting.

Hill has started all eight games for The Rock (7-1) while posting per game averages of 11.5 points and 6.6 rebounds in addition to shooting 70 percent from the field and 75 percent from 3-point range.

Eden Williamson, a junior guard from Washington and a Trinity graduate, has started all seven games for the Division III juggernaut that is New York University’s women’s basketball team.

NYU has won the last two Division III national championships and the Violets are off to a 7-0 start this year. NYU has won 69 consecutive games.

Williamson is averaging 3.9 points and 2.7 rebounds per game while shooting 53 percent from the field. She scored a season-high 10 points against Swarthmore.

In football

Former Belle Vernon standout Devin Whitlock had a big season as a wide receiver for IUP.

Whitlock was the Crimson Hawks’ leading receiver with 84 receptions for 927 yards and six touchdowns. He had a pair of 11-reception games during the regular season, against Seton Hill and Clarion, and then caught a career-high 13 passes for 152 yards in Indiana’s NCAA Division II playoff game against Assumption.

Whitlock had nine catches, including two that went for touchdowns, in a win over California. He also was the Crimson Hawks’ top kickoff returner, averaging 25.2 yards on 13 returns.