Westmoreland Campus Clippings: GCC's Liberatore nabs conference honor

Some athletes have “hello world” moments in college sports.

Collin Liberatore has had a “hello world” season at Indiana State.

The junior starting pitcher was named the Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Year.

Liberatore, a right-hander from Greensburg Central Catholic who transferred from Pitt and sat out a season, also was selected to the all-MVC first team.

He led the conference with a 10-1 record over 14 starts. He lasted seven or more innings seven times. He has a 2.45 ERA with 67 strikeouts and 27 walks in 91²/₃ innings.

In April, he went 4-0 with a 1.10 ERA.

Opponents are batting .202 against him.

The Sycamores (36-15) will travel to Normal, Ill. to play in the MVC championship against Evansville (24-27) at 8 p.m. Wednesday.

Baseball

Kansas State: Sophomore outfielder Zach Kokoska (Latrobe) was named all-Big 12 honorable mention. He took a .329 average, seven homers and 30 RBIs into the Phillips 66 Baseball Championship. He had a team-best 12-game hitting streak for the Wildcats (25-31). Kokoska transferred from Virginia Tech.

Pitt: Senior outfielder Connor Perry (Norwin) was named to the all-ACC third team after a big offensive season for the Panthers (21-34). Perry led the team with 15 home runs, fifth-most in the conference. He batted .289 with 13 doubles and 35 RBIs. He had 10 multi-RBI games and three in which he hit more than one homer.

Softball

Notre Dame: Sophomore pitcher Morgan Ryan (Hempfield) took on a relief role this season for the Irish (37-18), who ended the year with a 1-2 record at the Norman, Okla. regional. Ryan finished 1-2 with a 2.65 ERA in 24 appearances, 21 of them out of the bullpen. She struck out 23 and walked 17 in 42¹/₃ innings.

St. Francis (Pa.): Freshman pitcher Meadow Uncapher (Mt. Pleasant) finished her first season at the college level with a 6-6 record and a 5.00 ERA. In 30 appearances (nine starts), she pitched 75²/₃ innings with two complete games and two saves. The Red Flash (29-31) lost twice in the NCAA regional round, to host Michigan (8-0) and DePaul (3-1).

Men’s basketball

Purdue Fort Wayne: Recent backcourt standout Kason Harrell (Hempfield) is pursuing a professional career after signing with an agency. Harrell will be represented by GoEmpire Group out of Chicago. In his final season at Purdue Fort Wayne, Harrell (6-foot-2, 190 pounds) averaged 15 points, four rebounds and two assists. He was a three-year starter and scored 1,349 career points.