Abdalah, Smrcka and Over Earn Top Honors in 2021 Women’s Cross Country
LOCK HAVEN, Pa. --- The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference announced this year’s major award winners in Women’s Cross Country for the 2021 season Thursday. From Slippery Rock, Marianne Abdalah was tabbed as the Athlete of the Year, Hannah Smrcka of Seton Hill was Rookie of the Year and Bobby Over of Seton Hill was picked as Coach of the Year.
All awards were determined by a vote of the league’s head coaches.
Abdalah finished her junior season with a run at the DII National Championships. Throughout the season, she had been one of the top performers in the region, taking third at the PSAC Championships earning first-team all-conference honors, and following that up leading all PSAC runners at the regional championships taking second overall and earning all-region honors.
Seton Hill’s Smrcka was one of the top runners throughout the PSAC this year as a true freshman. She helped the Griffins to a DII National Championship appearance cracking the top-10 at regionals with a ninth-place finish. Smrcka was the top finishing freshman at the PSAC Championships placing eighth overall and earning first-team all-conference honors.
Griffin Head Coach Bobby Over claimed top coaching honors in the league after leading his team to a DII National Championships appearance. Over is the first Seton Hill head coach to earn the award. The Griffins placed second in the Atlantic Region and at PSAC Championships on the season.
The rest of the all-conference honorees were earned at PSAC Championships earlier this season and are listed below:
First-Team All-PSAC
1. Sydney Wolf, Seton Hill
2. Sheilah Cheruiyot, Edinboro
3. Marianne Abdalah, Slippery Rock
4. Kimberly Goerss, Edinboro
5. Sarah Supplee, West Chester
6. Anna Alberti, Edinboro
7. Cadie Kiser, Lock Haven
8. Hannah Smrcka, Seton Hill
9. Kathryn Blair, Bloomsburg
10. Nicole Keeley, Bloomsburg
11. Aneisa Dodson, Mansfield
12. Isabelle McCabe, Seton Hill
13. Morgan Perry, Lock Haven
14. Kyra Gerber, Shippensburg
15. Kate Szep, Edinboro
Second Team All-PSAC
16. Erika Moriarty, Kutztown
17. Lyndsey Payne, Shippensburg
18. Haley Schaller, Clarion
19. Meredith Morse, Gannon
20. Tori James, IUP
21. Elaina Klinger, Lock Haven
22. Darby Roth, Seton Hill
23. Caitlin O'Rourke, Gannon
24. Sophia Knerr, Kutztown
25. Madison Murtland, Slippery Rock
26. Malia Anderson, Cal U
27. Jaelyn D'Amelio, Kutztown
28. Emma Steele, Gannon
29. Madeline Curtis, Cal U
30. Alexis Cunningham, Seton Hill
ABOUT THE PSAC
Headquartered in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference is an NCAA Division II Conference comprised of 18 institutions in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The member institutions are Bloomsburg University, California University of Pennsylvania, Clarion University, East Stroudsburg University, Edinboro University, Gannon University, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Kutztown University, Lock Haven University, Mansfield University, Mercyhurst University, Millersville University, The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, Seton Hill University, Shepherd University, Shippensburg University, Slippery Rock University and West Chester University.