Behrend volleyball team opens conference play with two wins

The Penn State Behrend men’s volleyball team opened Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference play with two wins over Mt. Aloysius. The Lions finished with scores of 3-1 and 3-0. Kyle Hoffman, a junior from Carlton, had 26 kills.

The team lost to Geneva, 3-2.

Behrend’s basketball, track and field and wrestling teams also were in action last week. Here are the scores and highlights:

Men’s basketball

• Penn State Behrend 69, Pitt-Bradford 62
• Penn State Behrend 84, Hilbert 77

Tommy DiRienzo, a senior from Pittsburgh, scored 30 points and grabbed six rebounds against Hilbert. He now holds the program record for career points, with 1,779.

Women’s basketball

• Penn State Behrend 113, Pitt-Bradford 65
• Penn State Behrend 91, Hilbert 27

Julia Balaski, a junior from Mercer, scored a career-high 16 points against Pitt-Bradford. Chloe Yazembiak, a freshman from West Springfield, scored a career-high 12 points – all in the fourth quarter.

Men’s track and field

Alex Cotton, a junior from Saxonburg, placed fourth in the shot put at the SPIRE Indoor Games, completing a 16.37-meter throw. Ryan Festa, a senior from Horsham, tied for fifth in the pole vault, clearing a height of 4.50 meters.

Women’s track and field

Madison Kappeler, a senior from Cecil, tied for second in the pole vault at the SPIRE Indoor Games, clearing a height of 3.35 meters.

Wrestling

• Second (of five teams) at the AMCC Championships

The Lions hosted the conference championships and scored 127 points. Rudy Brown, a freshman from Burgettstown, topped the 157-pound weight class, winning a 14-9 decision. Nolan Fenton, a sophomore from Kersey, won by technical fall, claiming the 197-pound title.

Scores, updates and video links for Penn State Behrend athletics are posted at psblions.com.