New coach, 10 1st-year players look to carry Pitt-Greensburg in AMCC play

It was a rough beginning for first-year coach Julie Bolden and her Pitt-Greensburg women’s basketball team.

Despite the Bobcats’ 96-64 loss at Waynesburg on Nov 8, Franklin Regional graduate Sarah Penrod scored a career-high 20 points for UPG, which was scheduled to play twice more last week, including the home opener Saturday against Grove City.

Penrod, a 5-foot-6 sophomore, also came away with seven rebounds and two assists.

Pitt-Greensburg entered the season predicted to finish fifth among nine teams in the Division III Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference.

The Bobcats wound up in fourth place last season with a 12-14 record and qualified for the AMCC Tournament for the fourth year in a row.

UPG this season welcomed 10 new faces, not including Bolden, who succeeded Darien Lantz as coach.

The roster includes seven freshmen, three sophomores and juniors each and just one senior, 5-7 guard Melina Maietta.

“This is an amazing group of young women with a high ceiling both on and off the court,” said Bolden, who spent the past two seasons as recruiting coordinator at Dayton. “They’re passionate about the game of basketball and continuing to develop into great players and people.”

Maietta, a graduate of Greensburg Central Catholic who began her college career at Coastal Carolina, was a first-team All-Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference selection last season after averaging 18.0 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game.

Juniors Tianna Moracco (Derry, 12.0 ppg, 8.4 rpg) and Anna Durbin (West Greene, 6.9 ppg) and sophomores Penrod (11.3 ppg) and Jordan Bass (Jeannette, 1.7 ppg) round out the Bobcats’ returnees.

Saint Vincent

The Bearcats, picked to finish fifth in the 11-team Division III Presidents’ Athletic Conference, opened the season on a weekend trip to Washington & Jefferson, where they dropped a pair of decisions at the W&J Challenge to Otterbein, 70-60, and Baldwin Wallace, 75-49.

They were scheduled to play their home-opener Saturday against Marietta.

Senior guard Emily Thompson (10.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg), the team’s top returning scorer, heads a list of veterans.

Thompson is joined by junior guards Makenna Maier (3.7 ppg) and Reese Gadsby (4.1 ppg), junior center Camdon Bashor (6.0 ppg, 4.3 rpg) and sophomore guard Danielle Pontius (Laurel).

Saint Vincent lost to graduation leading scorer Emily Cavacini (Shaler, 13.4 ppg) and leading rebounder Madison Weber (9.0 rpg), who also was the team’s third-leading scorer (10.1).

Seton Hill

The Griffins returned an experienced team under second-year coach Maeve Gallagher when they opened with a pair of victories Nov. 8 and 9 at the MEC/PSAC Challenge at Lock Haven.

Seton Hill, which returns its top three scorers, defeated Fairmont State, 77-73, before its offense erupted in a 120-77 rout of Concord.

The Griffins, picked to finish fifth among eight teams in the Division II Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, were scheduled to play at West Liberty on Wednesday and Frostburg State on Saturday.

Their home opener doesn’t occur until Friday against Shepherd.

Graduate student Christiane Frye (Central Valley, 17.9 ppg, 5.6 rpg) and twins Hallie Cowan (12.5 ppg, 3.4 rpg.) and Helene Cowan (12.4 ppg, 4.2 rpg), both juniors from Chartiers Valley, head the list of returnees.

Other key players back are Abby Mankins (Greensburg Salem, 8.7 ppg, 5.1 rpg), graduate student junior Sakeria Haralson (7.1 ppg, 8.2 rpg), sophomore Mia Kalich (6.6 ppg, 6.5 rpg), Paula Llovich (3.8 ppg) and junior Corinne Eisner (2.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg).

Six freshmen joined Seton Hill, including 5-foot-11 forward Anna Rafferty, a Latrobe product.

Penn State New Kensington

Leading scorer Destiny Batiste (17.4 ppg) returns to lead the Lions, who began the year with a 92-41 loss to Miami-Hamilton at the Penn State Beaver tournament.

Batiste, a 5-foot-8 senior guard, was joined by sophomore guards Jayde Rivera (12.6 ppg), Jada Norman (Valley, 6.4 ppg) and Tori Johnson (Valley, 4.4 ppg) as returning starters.

PSNK, a United States Collegiate Athletic Association member, was scheduled to play again Wednesday at Kent State-Tuscarawas before a nine-day layoff leading to its first home game against Penn State Scranton this Friday.