College notebook: Solorio off to fast start for Iowa wrestling
Valarie Solorio has the distinction of being the first girls wrestler to win a gold medal at the PIAA Championships. That happened in 2024, when she was a senior at Canon-McMillan, and won the 100-pound title.
Solorio would like to add the distinction of being the first local product to medal when the NCAA holds its initial women’s wrestling championship in March in Coralville, Iowa.
Now a sophomore at Iowa, Solorio has had a terrific start to her season. She recently won the 103-pound championship at the season-opening Luther Hill Open, then won the same weight class at the Blue Hose Challenge in Clinton, S.C., and placed second last weekend at the Missouri Valley Open in Marshall, Mo.
Solorio lost in the finals at the MV Open to Jaclyn Bouzakis, who is a high school junior at Wyoming Seminary in Pennsylvania. Bouzakis was wrestling unattached.
For the season, Solorio has a 16-1 record with 13 of the wins coming via pin or technical fall.
In football
Geno Calgaro of St. Francis continues to rack up weekly honors in the Northeast Conference.
A Canon-McMillan graduate, Calgaro was named an NEC Prime Performer for his efforts against Stonehill on Saturday. It is the sixth time this season he’s earned NEC Prime Performer honors.
Calgaro, a linebacker, finished the season finale with eight tackles, surpassing the 100-tackle milestone for the first time in his career. He raced past his previous career high of 70, set last season, finishing this year with a team-leading 105 tackles. The sophomore also recorded the first fumble recovery of his career and returned it 27 yards.
Throughout the season, Calgaro served as the key player anchoring the Red Flash defense, topping the team in solo and assisted tackles as well as tackles for loss. His impressive efforts extended beyond the NEC. He ranks 20th among FCS programs in solo tackles (54), 25th in assisted tackles (51), 24th in total tackles (105), and 17th in tackles per game (9.5).
* Seven local players – Washington wide receiver Jacob Macosko and defensive back Dante DeRubbo, Geneva offensive lineman Roman Costanzo, Westminster offensive lineman Dante Compagni, Case Western Reserve blocking back Jack Bryer, Grove City fullback Anthony Brunette, and Waynesburg wide receiver Tyler Richmond – were recently named to the All-Presidents’ Athletic Conference team.
Macosko was a first-team selection, Costanzo and DeRubbo were voted to the second team, and Compagni, Bryer, Brunette and Richmond received honorable mention.
A Peters Township graduate, Macosko surpassed the 1,000 receiving yard mark for the second consecutive season. He had 68 receptions for 1,065 yards and eight touchdowns. He has more than 3,000 career receiving yards.
Compagni, a Ringgold graduate, was the Titans’ starting left tackle. He started 39 consecutive games, including all 11 games this fall.
Costanza, a junior from Peters Township, was honored for the second straight season as a guard. He started all 10 games for the Golden Tornadoes and was a key part of the offensive line that helped Geneva have the top passing offense in the PAC.
Brunette, also a Peters Township product, started all 11 games for Grove City and also excelled in special teams throughout his career as a four-year letterman.
DeRubbo, a Trinity graduate, had a breakout season for the Presidents. He led the conference with seven interceptions and was tied for second nationally with 0.7 interceptions per game. DeRubbo is tied for fifth on the single-season interceptions list at W&J.
Bryer saw time at both tight end and as a blocking running back for the Spartans during his senior campaign. He played in eight games this year and was a key factor in Case averaging 147.4 rushing yards per game.
Richmond is a Carmichaels graduate who was Waynesburg’s leading receiver with 39 receptions. He displayed big-play ability by averaging more than 14 yards per reception.
In wrestling
The Mountain East Conference named Fairmont State’s Colton Stoneking as its Wrestler of the Week for Nov. 3-9.
Stoneking took home first place in the 141-weight class at the Washington & Jefferson Invitational. A senior from Waynesburg, Stoneking finished 5-0 at the tournament, picking up a 9-6 decision win in the finals.
Stoneking also won the 141-pound title at the King Open in Bristol, Tenn., on Nov. 16. He defeated Ashtan Hendricks of King by an 8-6 decision.
* Washington & Jefferson sophomore Vitali Daniels, a Bentworth graduate, was selected as the Presidents’ Athletic Conference Wrestler of the Week on Monday.
Daniels, from Scenery Hill, led the Presidents with a third-place finish in the 184-pound weight class at Muhlenberg’s Scotty Wood Invitational. Daniels began the tournament when he defeated a wrestler from the host school by a 19-4 technical fall. After dropping his next match by decision, Daniels won the consolation bracket with two wins by fall, the first in 20 seconds and the second in 2:13.
In volleyball
Washington & Jefferson’s Cali Dagen was one of only five freshmen to be named to the All-PAC teams. Her impressive rookie season led to an honorable mention selection.
Dagen, an outside hitter from Canonsburg and a Canon-McMillan graduate, finished second on the team and 16th in the conference in kills with 229, averaging 2.54 per set in 90 sets played. She was fourth in the conference among freshmen. Dagen also finished 19th in the PAC for total points (247.5), also fourth among freshmen.
In soccer
Penn State Behrend senior defender Brock Kiefer was named first team All-Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference.
An Eighty Four native and Canon-McMillan graduate, Kiefer started seven of eight AMCC contests, scoring one goal and adding three assists as a defender for five points. He anchored the defense that allowed just five goals in eight games. Overall, Kiefer was instrumental in the team’s 0.94 goals-against average and four shutouts.
Behrend had a 12-4-2 record.
* Two Pitt-Greensburg women’s players, sophomore forward Bella Carroto of Charleroi and freshman midfielder Abby Ault of Canonsburg, received second team All-AMCC honors.
In her debut season, Carroto led UPG with 14 goals – second in the AMCC – and added four assists. Her 32 points ranked third in the conference, making her one of the most dangerous offensive threats in the league.
Carroto scored a goal in UPG’s 3-2 loss to Waynesburg in the ECAC semifinals. UPG finished the season with a 9-9-3 record.
Ault made an immediate impact in her first season, appearing in all 21 games and contributing two goals and three assists. Her versatility and energy helped solidify the midfield.
* Former Canon-McMillan standout Lilly Bane announced on social media Sunday that she will be transferring from Purdue to Maryland.
Bane played one season for the Boilermakers.