Skip to main content

News Archive

 

Men’s Track and Field: Beard Named Region VII Nominee for Inaugural D3CA Student-Athlete of the Year Award

Thursday, August 4, 2022

UWANEE, Ga. - In an announcement made Thursday afternoon, 20 student-athletes were recognized as regional winners of the inaugural Division III Commissioner’s Association (DIIICA) Student-Athlete of the Year awards. Recent Westminster College graduate Ryan Beard (Murrysville, PA / Franklin Regional) was selected as the Region VII men's honoree.

Each of the winners will advance to the national ballot for consideration for 2021-22 DIIICA Men’s Sport Student-Athlete of the Year and Women’s Sport Student-Athlete of the Year.

Beard earned College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-America® honors on June 22 after completing a three-year accelerated undergraduate degree in accounting and posting a 4.0 cumulative grade-point average (GPA). He was recognized as Westminster’s Most Outstanding Accounting student and was named a Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA) Outstanding Senior Award winner for his service to the community and work in the classroom. Beard was also an Elks National Foundation Legacy Scholarship recipient.

Beard worked with the Westminster Entrepreneurship Center (WEC) as its director of finance, co-developing a competition for high school students, managing and transforming the program’s funding strategy by developing ideas for program sponsorships and with the College’s Student Equity Group as founder and director of due diligence reports, establishing a student research group that produced six due diligence reports for 412 Venture Fund, creating quality control reviews for all due diligence reports created, training students in conducting market research and copy editing. He also served as a Project Manager at BioHybrid Solutions through the WEC and founded a scholastic competition that the College hosted for high school students, which resulted in 35 percent of the attendees deciding to attend Westminster.

Last summer Beard was one of 10 interns selected from Deloitte’s Pittsburgh office to take part in the Deloitte National Leadership Conference (DNLC), participating in leadership development workshops and networking activities with Deloitte professional staff. He led an initiative to implement Analytic Process Automation at Louis Plung & Company LLP (locally owned certified public accounting firm in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania region) as an intern and also developed the idea to implement Alteryx software, which resulted in more than 200 hours of annual time savings for the firm.

Beard is active in the community, volunteering with the Boy Scouts to help provide free landscaping in preparation for summer campers and with the Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh to clean trash off the streets and organize the food pantry to allow for more efficient delivery of pet food to those in need. He has also worked with Enactus, an international organization that connects student, academic and business leaders through entrepreneurial-based projects that empower people to transform opportunities into real, sustainable progress for themselves and their communities by helping to collect over 400 pounds of bottle caps to repurpose them into furniture, such as benches. He has volunteered with the Elks National Foundation, serving food to military veterans and assisting with the organization’s annual golf outing.

At the Division III Championships in May, Beard received the NCAA’s Elite 90 award, which recognizes the true essence of the student-athlete by honoring the individual who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the national championship level in his or her sport, while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. The Elite 90 award is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA participating at the finals site for each of the NCAA's 90 championships. He is the first Westminster student-athlete to claim the prestigious honor.

Beard earned All-America honors at this year's Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships with a seventh-place finish as a member of 4x100-meter relay (41.38), the first All-America relay in program history.

Beard was a member of Westminster’s PAC championship team this spring, earning First Team All-PAC honors as a part of the winning 4x100 and 4x400 relays. Westminster's 4x100 relay posted a meet-record time of 41.27 while the 4x400 relay registered a time of 3:21.52. Individually, he recorded fourth-place finishes in the 100-meter dash (10.89) and 200-meter dash (22.07) at the PAC Championships.

Beard was also a member of the 4x100 relay that set a school record with a time of 40.74 at the University of Mount Union's Last Chance on May 19. 

Conferences were permitted to submit two nominations for each award if at least one of the nominations was an international student/ethnic minority. Graduating seniors were the only student-athletes eligible for this award.

Selection criteria for the awards included considerations based on academic achievement, athletics excellence, service and leadership and a personal statement submitted by each nominee.

Voting was conducted by the commissioners within each of the ten regions, with the top male and female honoree (including ties) recognized as finalists for the Awards Committee to select the Division III Commissioner’s Association Men’s Sport and Women’s Sport Student-Athlete of the Year.

The two national winners will be announced later this month.

For more Westminster Athletics news, go to westminster.edu/athletics.

Written by Nathan LaRiccia, Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations (the PAC contributed)

  read more


Lady Pesed, Westminster’s 2,300-year-old mummy, undergoes restoration

Thursday, July 28, 2022

Lady Pesed, Westminster College’s 2,300-year-old resident Egyptian mummy, was removed from her coffin for the first time in more than 100 years this summer, revealing a few new surprises during an in-depth examination, restoration and conservation process.

  read more


Westminster Announces Titan Sports Hall of Fame, Class of 2022

Wednesday, July 27, 2022

NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. - Westminster College will induct seven new members into the Titan Sports Hall of Fame on Friday, September 9.

The Class of 2022 is as follows: Adam Carswell '13, Men’s Track & Field; Jim Dafler, Director of Athletics and Men’s Basketball Coach; Rebecca Giles Badgujar '08, Women’s Swimming & Diving; Caitlin Hosler Zavora '14, Women's Tennis; Ryan Pontius '98, Men’s Golf (posthumously); Elisabeth Schulz Fee '11, Softball; Jessie Szakacs, Class of '12, Volleyball.

The inductees will be recognized on the field during halftime of the Westminster-Bethany football game on Saturday, September 10 which is scheduled to kick off at 1 p.m. The formal induction ceremonies will take place at dinner on Friday, September 9. Please contact the Department of Athletics (724-946-7307) for more information.

Below are the bios for each inductee:

Adam Carswell '13 was one of the Westminster leaders who helped turn the program to PAC Champions (three-straight, including the school's first). A 400-meter specialist, Carswell was a three-time PAC Champion in the Outdoor 400 (2011 - 49.70, 2012 - 48.87, 2013 - 49.07) and was a part of the PAC Champion 4x400 relay team in 2010 that won with a time of 3:22.42. Carswell is the only Westminster runner to be the PAC Champion in the 400 and is one of two Titan track athletes to win an individual event at PACs three times in a career. Carswell was a key member of three-straight PAC Outdoor Championship teams (2011, 2012, 2013).

Jim Dafler was a member of the Titan Athletics staff for 32 years, including 22 as the Director of Athletics. Under his leadership and guidance, Westminster became a landing spot for student-athletes all across the country to come and compete at world-class facilities. Dafler helped lead the construction and renovations of state-of-the-art facilities to further enhance the student-athlete experience and to provide as many opportunities as possible for all Titans to succeed. These top-level facilities include the UPMC Sports Complex, the Westminster Softball Field, the Westminster Baseball Field, and the Bill Rankin Indoor Golf Center. Dafler led the charge of adding four new varsity sport programs, including women's golf, women's track & field, men's lacrosse, and women's lacrosse – and the reestablishment of the diving program. He also assisted in the transition of Westminster's move from NAIA to NCAA Division II to NCAA Division III. Additionally, Dafler oversaw multiple renovations and improvements to Harold Burry Stadium and to the Memorial Field House (including the football locker room expansion and renovation, the Chet and Hilda Claire Student-Athlete Lounge, and the Dar Huey Heritage Center). During Dafler's tenure at Westminster, teams, student-athletes, and coaches have been recognized regionally and nationally, including numerous All-Americans, conference players of the year, scholar-athletes, conference championships, coaches of the year, and all-conference players. Dafler joined Westminster in 1989 as an assistant coach for the men's basketball team, later being promoted as the head coach, and became the Director of Athletics in 1999. During his coaching tenure, Dafler helped Westminster win five Keystone-Empire Collegiate Conference (KECC) titles and two NAIA Division I National Playoff appearances. For his entire head coaching career, Dafler was just four wins away from 200.

Rebecca Giles Badgujar '08 was a four-time First Team All-PAC selection. Giles was a key member of the 2006 and 2007 PAC Championship teams (and a pair of runner-up finishes). Giles has four Top-10 times in Westminster history. She ranks third in the 200 IM (2:09.21), fifth in the 200 fly (2:11.95), sixth in the 200 back (2:10.53), and seventh in the 100 breast (1:09.24). She was the PAC champion in the 400 IM in 2006 and was also a member of two relays that claimed conference titles (400 medley (2007) and 800 free (2005)). She qualified nationally for the 2007 NCAA Championships (400 individual medley, 200 individual medley, and 200 backstroke). Giles, who held numerous varsity and natatorium records throughout her career, is a member of the PAC 60th Anniversary Team.

Caitlin Hosler Zavora '14, the only PAC Player of the Year in program history, was an All-PAC selection all four years - including All-PAC First Team in three seasons. Hosler was a key member in Westminster’s back-to-back PAC Championship teams (2012, 2013). She holds the career school records in both singles wins (71, primarily at No. 1) and doubles wins (75, all at No. 1). In total, Hosler earned eight All-PAC finishes in the PAC Tournament, including First Team (first place at the PAC Tournament) four times (2013, No. 1 Singles; 2012, No. 2 Singles; 2012, No. 1 Doubles with Alex Bailey; 2010, No. 2 Singles). In her PAC MVP season, Hosler was 20-1 in No. 1 singles (tying second-most in program history for singles wins in a season) and helped lead Westminster to a PAC Championship Title and advance to the NCAA Tournament. Her 20 wins in 2013 are tied for the second-most singles victories in a season in school history and are the most by a No. 1 singles player all-time. Hosler won No. 1 singles at the 2013 PAC Championship, the only No. 1 singles player in program history to win an individual PAC Title. As a junior, Hosler teamed up with Alex Bailey at No. 1 doubles to become the school’s only undefeated pair with a 20-0 record. In 2011, Hosler was 20-1 overall in No. 1 doubles with Bailey, tying for the most doubles wins in program history.

Ryan Pontius '98 was a three-time NAIA All-American. Named Team MVP, Pontius is the only player in program history to have the season lowest average score on the team all four years. His 76.5 average during his senior campaign ranks fifth all-time in school history. Pontius is tied for first in school history for a 36-hole total with a 142. He is tied for fifth in program history for most rounds of par or better. Pontius helped lead the team to four-straight NAIA Northeast Regional Championships. An all-region honoree, Pontius was a back-to-back NAIA Northeast Regional individual medalist (1996, 1997) and tied for first as a senior.

Elisabeth Schulz Fee '11 stifled hitters in the circle as she was a four-time All-PAC selection, including First Team in both 2010 and 2011 (Second Team in both 2008 and 2009). Schulz is a member of the highly revered PAC 60th Anniversary Team. Schulz was an All-Region selection in 2010, one of two pitchers in program history to be named All-Region; she had a 13-4 record with a PAC-leading 1.30 earned run average in that season. In 2010, her 13 wins, three shutouts and .211 opposing batting average all led the team. Schulz, the Team MVP as a senior, compiled a 2.39 earned run average (second on the team), tied for the team-lead with nine victories, and her 70 strikeouts also tied for team-lead in 2011. For her career, Schulz punched out 179 hitters, while totaling 30 victories, seven shutouts, and 23 complete games.

Jessie Szakacs '12, a three-time All-PAC First Team selection, is one of the best setters in school history. A member of the PAC 60th Anniversary Team, Szakacs has the second-most assists in program history with 3,309 - only the third Titan ever to have dished out over 3,000 career assists. A three-year starter, Szakacs finished inside the top-four in the PAC in assists in each of her last three seasons. Additionally, Szakacs was third on the team in service aces three of her four seasons, including second-best in 2009 with a career-high 43. Her 124 career service aces are the 14th-most in school history.

For more Westminster Athletics news, go to westminster.edu/athletics.

Written by Nathan LaRiccia, Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations

  read more


Contract extended for President Kathy Brittain Richardson

Friday, July 22, 2022

The contract of Westminster College President Dr. Kathy Brittain Richardson has been extended through June 2027 by unanimous action of the College’s Board of Trustees.
 
The Chair of the Board of Trustees, Jeffrey A. McCandless, commented on the recent contract extension.
 
“Stability in the leadership is a key ingredient in the success of any organization, and Dr. Richardson has brought tremendous stability over the past six years, particularly during the recent COVID years,” said McCandless.

  read more


IN THE NEWS: Chris Norris ’08 named to Erie’s “40 Under 40” list

Thursday, July 14, 2022

Westminster College alumnus Chris Norris ’08 (broadcast communications) and has been named to the 2022 ”Erie’s 40 Under 40” list, a compilation of 40 young innovators, entrepreneurs and leaders shaping Erie’s future.

  read more


Medical journal publishes Westminster neuroscience grads’ research

Tuesday, July 12, 2022

An academic research paper by two Westminster College neuroscience graduates was published in May in the peer-reviewed scientific journal Nicotine and Tobacco Research.

  read more


Westminster College invests in campus improvements

Monday, July 11, 2022

 Westminster College is investing more than $1 million in campus improvements this summer through campus beautification projects, new athletic and student spaces, and various renovations and refreshes.

  read more


Sports Management students support fight against cancer

Thursday, July 7, 2022

In an effort to enhance their revenue generation skills, students in the Sports Management 110 course supported the American Cancer Society through the sale of pink thundersticks at home athletic events during the fall 2021 semester.

  read more


Procter & Gamble executive, Westminster alumna to serve as Analyst Program speaker

Tuesday, July 5, 2022

The Westminster College Analyst Program’s Summer Speaker Series will feature Deborah Platt Majoras ’85, the recently-retired chief legal officer for Procter & Gamble (P&G) and former chairman of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), in a remote event at 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 19.

  read more


Tim ’68 and Anne Filer ‘67 Schenz and their chemistry success in the food industry

Tuesday, July 5, 2022

A romance that spurred in a Westminster College Analytical Chemistry course in September of 1964 wasn’t the only thing fizzing and flavorsome between Tim ’68 and Anne Filer ‘67 Schenz. After college, Tim would become part of the PopRocks team, developing an instrument to measure their “fizz,” and Anne would later help develop scrumptious flavors for Ensure. Learn more about their life in the brief question and answer session!

  read more


Displaying 301-310 of 6417 total records