Reading, Pa. (Feb. 27, 2025) - Alvernia Athletics is set for a jam-packed weekend of postseason activities, as six of Alvernia's NCAA winter sports teams compete at either a conference or regional championship beginning tomorrow.

Alvernia's Men's and Women's Track and Field and Men's Wrestling get underway tomorrow (Friday) for the first of their respective two day championships. Track and Field is competing at the 2025 MAC Indoor Track and Field Championship, which runs Friday and Saturday. Wrestling is at the NCAA Region 3 Championship at Messiah beginning tomorrow and also running through Saturday. On Saturday, NCAA Men's Ice Hockey and Women's Ice Hockey and Men's Basketball join Track and Field and Wrestling in the postseason action. Both ice hockey teams are at Wilkes University for their respective inaugural MAC Championship Ice Hockey Semifinal. Men's Basketball also heads to York College for the title game of the MAC Commonwealth Men's Basketball Championship.

Check out previews for each team below, and stay with auwolves.com online and Alvernia Athletics on social media throughout the weekend.

Men's Wrestling: NCAA DIII Region 3 Regional Tournament
Game Information: Hosted by Messiah University in Grantham, Pennsylvania
Live Coverage Options: auwolves.com/live
Start Times: Day 1: 10:00 AM, Day 2: 9:00 AM

Alvernia Men's Wrestling is set to travel to Messiah University for the NCAA DIII Region 3 Regional Championships on Friday and Saturday with ten Golden Wolves looking to punch their tickets to the 2025 NCAA DIII National Championships in Providence, Rhode Island. It is the first regional under a new NCAA Division III Regional alignment that began this season.

Five Golden Wolves look to head back to the national championships with Chance Babb, Jason Rezc, Matthew Lackman, Nathan Lackman and Mauro Pellot-Vazquez having all qualified for the championships before in their career. 

Matthew Lackman is the #1 ranked 165 pounder in the nation as of the February NWCA national rankings, and is looking to head back to the championships for the fourth time in his career. Lackman is a three time regional champion at 165 pounds and is also a three time All-American. Lackman has been ranked either #1 or #2 for the entire season and is looking to finish off his historic career with a fourth trip to nationals. 

Nathan Lackman is the #2 ranked 174 pound wrestler in the nation per the February NWCA rankings, and is looking to punch his ticket back to the championships for the third time in his career. Lackman is a two time regional champion while at Rhode Island College and is also a two time NCAA DIII National Champion at 157 and 165 pounds. Lackman has bumped another weight class, but has been consistently ranked atop of the 174 pound rankings as he tries to close out his career with a third appearance at the championships. 

Jason Rezac is the #13 ranked 157 pounder in the country and is trying to qualify for a third straight NCAA DIII national championships. Rezac has finished second and third at the NCAA regionals so look for him to punch his ticket to nationals with a regional title to cap his career. 

Chance Babb is the final Alvernia men's wrestler ranked in the February rankings and is the #15 ranked 149 pounder. Babb looks to head to Providence for his second national championships after he qualified in his freshman year at 149 pounds in 2022-2023. Babb placed third at the NCAA regionals back in 2022-2023. 

Keito Shaw and Mauro Pellot-Vazquez are not nationally ranked in the February poll, but both are the #3 regionally ranked wrestlers in their weight classes. Shaw is ranked #3 in Region 3 at 125 pounds and has a fifth place finish on his resume at last year's regional tournament. Pellot-Vazquez is the final Golden Wolf that has been to the national tournament before after qualifying in 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 both at 197 pounds. Pellot-Vazquez is the #3 regionally ranked wrestler at 285 pounds and looks to punch his ticket back to the championships with his first regional title. Pellot-Vazquez has recorded a second and third place finish at the regionals in his national qualifying seasons. 

As a team the Golden Wolves have finished in the top ten three times at the NCAA Regional tournament including back to back second place finishes in 2021-2022 and 2022-2023. The Golden Wolves finished ninth last season, so look for Alvernia to bounce back with an impressive team showing this year and make a run for the team regional title.
Track and Field MAC Championship
Championship Information: Friday, February 28th at 12:15 PM and Saturday, March 1st at 10:00 AM
Ticket Information: $10 per day. Tickets can be purchased on site or online here

For the fifth straight year, the MAC Indoor Track and Field Championship will be held on February 28th and March 1st at Alvernia's Flynn PLEX. Lebanon Valley was selected as the favorite in the pre-championship poll on the men's side, and Widener was selected as the favorite on the women's side. Both the Dutchmen and the Pride are the reigning respective MAC Indoor Track and Field Champions.

Alvernia Women's Track and Field was selected 11th in this year's pre-championship poll, and Alvernia Men's Track and Field  was selected 12th. 

In the Women's field, the Golden Wolves have three qualifiers and a relay team in the top-ten of MAC performances this season. Both Mylina Castillo and Britney Anyia have respective 2nd ranked marks entering Saturday. Castillo has the second best MAC mark of the season in the triple jump at 11.46m, and Anyia has the second best MAC mark of the season in the long jump at 5.20m. Caitlin Sternberg enters Saturday with the 8th best MAC mark in the 60m hurdles at 9.69 seconds. Alvernia's 4x400m relay team also owns the 7th best MAC mark of the season at 4:25.29.

In the Men's field, Alvernia has two individual qualifiers and four relay teams with top-ten MAC marks entering this weekend. Individually, Leo Tirado owns the fifth-best MAC mark in the high jump at 1.89m. Luke St. Pierre enters with the 10th best MAC mark in the 200m at 22.94 seconds. Alvernia also has four relay teams in the top-ten entering the weekend. Both Alvernia's Distance Medley Relay and 4x800m relays have the fifth best MAC marks. Alvernia's 4x200m has the sixth, and the 4x400m has the eighth best mark. 

Men's Basketball: #4 Alvernia University at #2 York College
Game Information: 3:00 PM at Wolf Gym on the campus of York College of Pennsylvania
Live Coverage: auwolves.com/live
Season Record vs. York: 0-2
All-Time Record vs. York: 13-8
Alvernia 2024-25 Season and MAC Record: 16-10, 7-7
York 2024-25 Season and MAC Record: 20-6, 12-2

Alvernia secured its second MAC Commonwealth Championship appearance in the last three years with an 89-81 MAC Commonwealth Semifinal win at top-seeded Albright on Wednesday night. On the other side of the bracket, #2 York College defeated #3 Hood College for the second time in less than a week. The Spartans held the Blazers to a season-low 69 points in the 86-69 win.

Alvernia is seeking its fifth MAC Commonwealth Championship title and its first since defeating Stevenson in 2015. Alvernia was last in the title game in 2023, but fell to Widener University. The Spartans, who are the newest member of the MAC, are seeking their first ever MAC Commonwealth title. 

Alvernia averages 77.8 points and allows, on average, 73.2 points per game. The Golden Wolves are a good mix of veteran and first-year talent on the floor. Fifth year Jakob Kelly is averaging 12.8 points per game and 7.5 rebounds per game. Fellow fifth year Robert Mullan is averaging 10.7 points per game and 3.3 rebounds per game. But, it was the newest members of the Alvernia line-up that led the charge and the semifinal and who have had the hot hands enter Saturday.  First-year Robert Cottrell finished with 17 points and first-year Janye Stanley went 7-for-9 for 23 points. He also brought in ten boards.. On the season, Cottrell is averaging 11.4 points per game and Stanley averages 10.7. First year forward Elijah Hamilton and grad-transfer forward Rasheem Dearry also made their presence felt at Albright. Hamilton finished with 13 rebounds at Albright, and Dearry had 13 points. 

The Spartans have played shutdown defense the last three games leading into Saturday. In addition to holding Hood to back-to-back season-lows, York held Widener to just 64 points in the penultimate game of the regular season. The Spartans also held Alvernia to under 65 points in both meetings. On the season, York allows a conference-leading 68.1 points per game. Offensively, York averages 75.9 points per game. York's offense is anchored by Kai Cipalla, the MAC Commonwealth leader in shooting percentage at 57.8%. The Spartans also have the leader in 3-pointers made per game in Jackson Mascari. 

Tip-off is set for 3:00 PM at York's Wolf Gym. 

Women's Ice Hockey: #4 Alvernia University at #1 Wilkes University
Game Information: 3:30 PM at the Toyota SportsPlex in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Live Coverage Options: auwolves.com/live
Season Series vs Wilkes: 0-3
All-Time Record vs Wilkes: 6-5-1
Alvernia Season Record: 14-9-2, 10-9-2 (33 pts.)
Wilkes Season Record: 20-4-1, 18-2-1 (57 pts.)

The Golden Wolves head to Wilkes-Barre as the #4 seed in the inaugural MAC Women's Ice Hockey Championship semifinal after a 14-9-2 overall record, and a 10-9-2 (33 points) record in the conference. Wilkes heads into the championships as the regular season champions and the #1 seed after a 20-4-1 overall record and a 18-2-1 (57 pts.) record in the MAC. 

#2 ranked Arcadia will play host to #3 ranked Lebanon Valley in the other semifinal match at 5:30 PM at Arcadia's Hatfield Ice Arena. 

Alvernia and Wilkes have met 12 times since Alvernia's inaugural season in 2019-2020 with the Golden Wolves holding a 6-5-1 all-time series lead. The Golden Wolves took six of the first seven meetings against the Colonels, but Wilkes has flipped the script in the last two years and have won the last four meetings against Alvernia. 

Wilkes took all three games during the 2024-2025 season and outscored the Golden Wolves 13-5. But, the Golden Wolves are coming into the matchup hot and recorded a 5-1-1 record in their final seven games of the season. 

The Golden Wolves are led by experience with a mix of new talent as well. Three of Alvernia's top five point scorers are either juniors or seniors, but the other two are first years. Senior Julia Franklin leads the Golden Wolves with 25 points off four goals and a MAC leading 21 assists. Sydney Bradley, a senior captain, ranks third in total points for Alvernia with 19 points off eight goals and 11 assists, and junior Kathryn Palmer follows Bradley with ten goals, seven assists and 17 points. Alvernia's other two top point scorers are first years Emma Hart and Addy Gularte, both of which have stepped into the spotlight and provided offensive firepower for the Golden Wolves. Hart is second in points with 15 goals, five assists and 20 points and Gularte is fifth with 15 points off seven goals and eight assists. Both Hart and Gularte have netted three game winners for the Golden Wolves during their rookie seasons.

The Alvernia defense has been anchored by goaltenders Juju Rodgers and Stephanie Skorupa, who have split time in net. Skorupa comes into the game with a 10-5 overall record, including four shutouts,295 saves, a .922 save percentage and has allowed just 1.69 goals per game. Rodgers has recorded 174 saves, one shutout and a .874 save percentage in 13 appearances. 

The Colonels come into the playoffs with a MAC leading 18-2-1 record and a 20-4-1 overall record. Wilkes' 20 wins in a season marks the most in a single season for the Colonels. Wilkes had four players record 20 or more points in 2024-2025 with Haylee Bouchard leading with 27 points (16 G, 11 A). Renee Ng recorded 25 points(8 G, 17 A) and both Nina Hudakova and Jordan Ferry recorded 23 points. Audrey Milne is the main goaltender for the Colonels, and comes into the game with a 17-4-1 overall record, a 1.28 goals against average, 375 saves and a .931 save percentage. The Colonels are ranked ninth in the country in goals scored as a team with 96, and also are seventh in the nation in scoring margin with a 2.60 margin. 

Men's Ice Hockey: #4 Alvernia University at #1 Wilkes University
Game Information: 7:00 PM at the Toyota SportsPlex in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Live Coverage Options: auwolves.com/live
Season Series vs Wilkes: 0-1-2
All-Time Record vs Wilkes: 1-4-2
Alvernia Season Record: 11-12-2, 9-10-2 (31 pts.)
Wilkes Season Record: 16-7-2, 16-3-2 (51 pts) 

Alvernia's men's ice hockey travels to Wilkes-Barre to take on the #1 ranked Wilkes Colonels in the inaugural MAC men's ice hockey playoffs. Alvernia wrapped up the #4 seed in the conference with a 9-10-2 record in the MAC, and Wilkes secured the regular season title with a 16-3-2 record in the MAC. 

#2 Stevenson University will host #3 Neumann University in the other MAC men's ice hockey semifinal matchup at 3:00 PM. 

Alvernia and Wilkes have met just seven times since Alvernia's inaugural season in 2022-2023, and the Colonels have a 1-4-2 advantage all time over the Golden Wolves. Wilkes also took the season series over Alvernia with a 5-0 victory in the last meeting, but the Golden Wolves took the Colonels to a shootout on both occasions at home. The teams split the shootout victories at one each. Alvernia is also the only team to take the Colonels to a shootout this season. 

The Golden Wolves are led offensively by young talent during the 2024-2025 season with four of their top points leaders being first years. First year forward Joey Arnold leads Alvernia in points with 18 with six goals and a team leading 12 assists. Senior Frazer Dodd and junior captain Sawyer Senio follow Arnold with 17 points each. Dodd recorded nine goals and eight assists, and Senio has six goals and 11 assists. First year Easton Inglis scored seven goals and added nine assists for 16 points. First years Edvin Robertsson and Justin Pare both recorded 14 points on the season. 

The Alvernia defense has been led by Jacob Stern as the lead goaltender between the pipes. Stern started in 16 games for the Golden Wolves, and recorded a 7-7-2 overall record. Stern made an even 400 saves, posted a .901 save percentage and kept one shutout against Lebanon Valley in the regular season finale, which was the first shutout victory in program history. 

Wilkes comes into the game with a 16-3-2 conference record and is led by three players with 20 or more points. Cole Jungwirth leads the team with 25 points with three goals and 22 assists, Patrick Roginski follows with nine goals and 13 assists for 22 points and Nick Swain rounds out the 20 plus point scorers with 21 points on 12 goals and nine assists. Jack Perna led the Colonels defense in goal with a 9-6-1 overall record in 17 appearances. Perna recorded 468 saves, tallied a .930 save percentage and also recorded a 2.20 goals against average. Wilkes as a team has the fourth best power play conversion percentage in the country and converts its power play opportunities at just under 30%.