Westmoreland campus clippings: Ligonier Valley grad makes nationals in high jump, pentathlon

Senior Olivia Miller will again compete on a national stage for the Carlow women’s track and field team.

Miller, a Ligonier Valley graduate and multi-event athlete, qualified to compete in the high jump and pentathlon at the NAIA Indoor Track & Field Championship held Wednesday through Friday at Dakota State (S.D.).

Her winning high jump of 1.66 meters at the River States Conference championships allowed her to advance. It is a meet and Carlow record.

The mark ranks eighth in the nation.

Miller was named the RSC Field Athlete of the Year.

She won twice and earned all-conference in three events at the conference finals.

Her performance in the pentathlon at the Indiana Tech meet punched her ticket to nationals as she earned 3,123 points — another school record.

The top 16 NAIA qualifiers in each event moved on to the national event.

Miller also holds school record in the long jump (5.28 meters), triple jump (11.58). She also made nationals last year and placed 29th in the triple jump (10.95).

Men’s basketball

Bethany: Sophomore guard Asa Klimchock (Greensburg Central Catholic) is averaging 10.4 points per game for the Bison (1-6). The Clarion transfer hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to force overtime as the Bison downed Saint Vincent, 91-88. He finished with 11 points, his fifth double-figure game of the season.

Grove City: Senior guard Justice Rice (Monessen) scored 13 points on senior day as the Wolverines (4-2) downed Franciscan, 92-63, for third straight win.

Holy Cross: Senior Austin Butler (Latrobe) erupted for a career-high 30 points in an 86-75 win over Boston. He made 11 of 14 shots, including 3 of 5 3-pointers. The Crusaders (5-11) take a two-game winning streak into the Patriot League Tournament.

Saint Vincent: Senior Shemar Bennett had 24 points and 11 rebounds, freshman Osyon Jones added 21 points, and freshman Nelson Etuk added 19 points and 10 rebounds, but the Bearcats fell to Franciscan, 95-93, in overtime. SVC followed with another tight loss to Bethany. Despite 26 points and 19 rebounds from Shemar Bennett — Jones chipped in 18 points, and Etuk scored 16 and grabbed 11 rebounds — the Bearcats (2-6) fell, 91-88.

West Virginia Wesleyan: Redshirt sophomore guard Marvel McGowan (Greensburg Salem) scored a career-high 12 points in a 77-66 loss to Concord.

Women’s basketball

Grove City: Junior Allison Podkul (Hempfield) had 14 points and four assists in a 102-49 win at Thiel.

Marian (Ind.): Freshman guard Jayla Wehner (Norwin) had seven points in 23 minutes as the Knights (26-4) won their 20th straight game, 87-75 over Mt. Vernon Nazarene to advance to the Crossroads League Tournament championship.

Point Park: With a 101-75 loss to Oakland City (Ind.), the Pioneers ended their season at 6-4. Was it the last game for senior guard Michelle Burns (Hempfield)? Burns, who had 17 points in the loss, is considering coming back for one more year. She has 1,399 career points and has started 83 of 94 career games. She averaged a career-best 20.8 points this season.

Saint Vincent: The Bearcats (3-0) returned from a two-week hiatus in the program and downed Bethany, 72-59, as senior Jenna Lafko and freshman Emily Cavacini each scored 12, and junior Taylor Geer had 10.

Wrestling

Pitt: Junior 133-pounder Micky Phillippi (Derry) finished second in the ACC Tournament after a 3-1 loss to Korbin Myers of Virginia Tech in the conference finals. Phillippi was seeking a third straight ACC title. Phillippi, however, will make his third appearance in the NCAA Championships and is expected to land a top-10 seed.