On Campus: Gannon wins PSAC's all-sports Dixon Trophy for first time
Coaches and student-athletes from the Gannon University athletic program were in for a surprise Wednesday afternoon as they gathered outside Old Main, on the corner of Peach Street and West Sixth Street.
A Gannon University bus pulled up in front of the building and off stepped Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Commissioner Steve Murray. In his hands was the Dixon Trophy, which goes to the top PSAC program at the end of each academic year.
The Trophy experienced several firsts in 2021-22: its first trip to Erie County and its first awarding to a non-state school. Obviously, that means Gannon is the Dixon Trophy winner for the first time in school history. The trophy also now lies at a school without a track and field program for the first time.
"It is truly amazing," said Lisa Goddard McGuirk, director of athletics at Gannon. "We have a tremendous staff and a tremendous university. This is a culmination of all the time, effort and dedication and has been a great build to this moment. I'm really excited to celebrate the collective effort of our department. It really is a team effort day-in and day-out. I could not be prouder and I'm so happy for our coaches and student-athletes."
When accepting the award, Gannon President Keith Taylor made note to tell Murray, a Gannon alumnus, that this may not be the first time it will end up in downtown Erie.
"We have a strong, long tradition of Gannon Golden Knights doing great things not only on the court, on the field, on the mat, in the pool, but in this community," Taylor said. "This is just a reflection of the great work that Lisa Goddard McGuirk, the coaches and the students put in this year."
The Dixon Trophy has been awarded 25 times. It is given annually to the institution that accumulates the top score based on results of conference playoffs and/or regular-season records of each PSAC championship sport it sponsors. The trophy is named in honor of F. Eugene Dixon Jr., former chairman of the Board of Governors of Pennsylvania's State System of Higher Education.
"Wow, it's pretty darn special," said Cleve Wright, head coach of the PSAC-champion women's basketball team. "I just love the coaches that we have here, the leadership that we show here and the desire to show they want to compete and to be the best, but also not losing the relationship in the process and really caring for our athletes and wanting the best for them."
Gannon had an overall average of 12.97 points to beat out the other 17 PSAC institutions. Slippery Rock was second (11.56) and Mercyhurst was third (11.32).
Along with women's basketball, Gannon also won the PSAC championship in women's golf and earned a co-championship in men's wrestling.
The Knights joined the PSAC in 2008-09 and had never finished higher than sixth in the Dixon Trophy standings. Only the Gannon administration knew of Gannon's win ahead of Wednesday's event. For the coaches and athletes, it was a surprise.
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"This was a year where it all came together," said Don Henry, who is in his 38th year as the Knights' wrestling coach. "It was a secret. We were not told. We're asking 'Who's getting off the bus? Oh, it's Steve. We must have won the Dixon Trophy.' It was really cool."
Matt Darling, Gannon's volleyball coach for the past 15 years and an English professor on campus, said that the school's maneuvering through the COVID-19 pandemic allowed the athletic department to thrive in 2021-22.
"I think we really took advantage of the opportunities Gannon gave us during COVID to build some momentum going into the season," he said. "We put it all together and it was great to see that trophy come off that bus."
AMCC Presidents Cup
Behrend wins again: As Gannon received its first Dixon Trophy, Penn State Behrend learned that it had secured the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference's all-sports title for the 18th time in 19 years.
Behrend again claimed the Presidents Cup, which is presented to the most outstanding overall athletics program in the AMCC.
Behrend captured eight conference championships – four in the fall, two in the winter and two in the spring.
The Lions won titles in women's soccer, women's cross country, men's cross country, women's volleyball, women's swimming and diving, men's volleyball, men's tennis and softball. They finished as runners-up in women's tennis, men's soccer, men's golf, men's swimming and diving, and baseball.
Behrend finished with 103.3 Presidents Cup points out of a possible 114 points in 15 of the 16 sports sponsored by the AMCC. That gave the Lions a .906 winning percentage.
Penn State Altoona was the AMCC runner-up with .651 winning percentage (69 points out of a possible 106).
Track and field
Behrend's trio of All-Americans: Three Penn State Behrend track and field athletes, including two Erie County products, claimed NCAA Division III All-America status late last week at the NCAA championships in Geneva, Ohio.
Seneca High School graduate Braeden Smith, Harbor Creek High School grad Dan Dabrowski and Samuel Hetrick (Redbank Valley) clinched NCAA All-America status by finishing among the top eight in their events.
Smith, a senior, placed sixth among 19 qualifiers in the high jump Friday to become an All-American for the third time in his career. Smith finished with a height of 6 feet, 8.75 inches (2.05 meters).
Hetrick, a sophomore, earned his first All-America honor with an eighth-place finish in the high jump, also at 2.05 meters. Smith had fewer misses than Hetrick.
Dabrowski, a sophomore, placed eighth in the discus on Thursday. He had a top distance of 163 feet, 2 inches (49.73 meters).
College choices
General McLane athletes announce picks: The General McLane girls soccer program has emerged as one of the top programs in the area over the past few years, and three standouts from the team recently committed to playing in college.
Kellie Kulisek, Teaghan Watkins and Payton Massey were among 10 Lancers to commit to colleges at signing ceremony this past week. Kulisek and Watkins are staying close to home at Edinboro, while Massey is headed to Chatham.
McLane also has two volleyball players heading to the next level with Ellen Cunningham going to Lock Haven and Brooke Simmons to the Pennsylvania College of Technology.
John Amon is set to play football at Edinboro, while Emma Cannata will compete in equestrian at Thiel, Brad Weber will play basketball at Penn State Shenango, Genevieve Preston will run cross country at Gannon and Isaac Mroz will compete in track and field at Edinboro.
Cross country
Gannon's Carrig retires: Long-time Gannon University cross country coach John Carrig is retiring after more than three decades involved with the program.
He has been the Golden Knights' men's cross country coach since 1990 and has been the women's coach since 1995.
"We would like to thank John for his years of service to the men's and women's cross country teams," said athletic director Lisa Goddard McGuirk. "Our student-athletes have consistently achieved success both in the classroom and on the course over the years."
"After 32 years of coaching Gannon cross country, there are an incredible amount of people I need to thank," said Carrig, who then mentioned a long list of family members, assistants, administrators and colleagues. "Last, I would like to thank and heap praise on all of the student-athletes who have come through our program and helped establish the culture of GUXC. You have made these years most enjoyable."
Contact Josh Reilly at jreilly@timesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNreilly. Tom Reisenweber contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: On Campus: Gannon wins PSAC's biggest athletic award for first time
