Westmoreland County campus clippings: Ligonier Valley grad Maddie Griffin transfers to IUP

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Monday, June 26, 2023 | 10:17 AM

Softball pitching in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference already is a grind for hitters, but it just got tougher.

Maddie Griffin, the former strikeout ace from Ligonier Valley, is leaving Youngstown State to play at IUP.

Griffin, a rising sophomore, said the move was based on nothing more than wanting to be closer to home.

She had five appearances this season. She was 0-2 with an 8.40 ERA and gave up eight runs in 6 2/3 innings. She struck out seven and walked 13.

In her season debut at Norfolk State, she allowed three hits and one run while striking our six in four innings. But no outing that followed lasted more than one inning.

Griffin was an all-state pitcher at Ligonier Valley, where she went 27-5 with 450 strikeouts over the last two years of her prep career.

She threw five perfect games, including a 21-strikeout gem in a 3-0 win over Seton LaSalle.

Baseball

Pitt: Redshirt sophomore Phil Fox (Hempfield) has found a new college baseball home.

Fox, who entered the transfer portal after one season, left Gardner-Webb and plans to play out the rest of his career at Pitt.

A Big South All-Freshman Team selection, Fox went 3-3 with a 4.45 ERA in 23 appearances last season. He struck out 38, walked 21 and gave up 23 hits in 30 1/3 innings.

Saint Vincent: Senior center fielder Jordan Sabol (Penn-Trafford) was named to the American Baseball Coaches Association Region 7 All-Defensive Team.

The speedy Sabol, who started 117 games for SVC, did not make an error in 103 chances this season. He held a .980 fielding percentage over his four-year career, with just six errors in 297 opportunities.

Sabol batted .352, scored 45 runs, stole 14 bases and had a .483 on-base percentage as the Bearcats reached the PAC championship game. He was an All-PAC First Team pick and won Saint Vincent’s PAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year award.

For his career, Sabol hit .368 with 22 doubles, seven triples, 129 runs, 58 RBIs and 49 stolen bases.

Seton Hill: Grad student first baseman Logan Vietmeier and senior third baseman Jack Oberdorf (Greensburg Salem) were named to the American Baseball Coaches Association Atlantic Region All-Defensive Team.

Seton Hill had one of the top fielding percentages in the nation at .985.

Vietmeier’s was a staunch .998 as he committed just one error in 204 chances. Oberdorf fielded .973 with 55 assists.

Men’s golf

Washington & Jefferson: A terrific debut season with the Presidents earned Cade Patterson (Penn-Trafford) significant recognition.

Patterson, a junior who transferred from Cal (Pa.), was tabbed a PING NCAA Division III Honorable Mention All-American by the Golf Coaches Association of America.

He is one of 49 golfers nationwide to receive the honor.

Patterson tied for ninth at the NCAA Division III Championships (68-75-77-67— 287) for the best-ever finish by a PAC golfer in the tournament.

He was an All-PAC First Team pick after a third-place finish at the conference championship.

He helped lead W&J to a team title.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.