Donyae Baylor-Carroll
Although the spring 2020 season came to an early end due to COVID-19, the 2019-20 athletic campaign was one of the most successful in Penn State Harrisburg history. Teams reached new heights and student-athletes earned a plethora of individual awards and honors. Filled with incredible highs, record-breaking performances, and historic resolve in the wake of unprecedented circumstances, the 2019-20 athletic season will be remembered for years to come.
The men’s basketball and men’s soccer teams capped their historic seasons with their first-ever trips to the NCAA Division III Tournaments after capturing each program’s first North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) Championships. In NCAA Tournament play, the men’s basketball squad defeated No. 6 Johns Hopkins in a double-overtime classic and advanced to the round of 32. The women’s soccer team made a run to the NEAC Championship Game, while women’s volleyball and women’s basketball each qualified for their conference postseason tournaments. Unfortunately for programs that compete for championships in the spring, seasons were halted due to the COVID-19pandemic, and promising starts from the baseball, track & field, and men’s and women’s tennis teams were cut short.
As individuals, numerous student-athletes achieved national, regional, and conference recognition. Baseball’s Bret Williams was named to the D3baseball.com All-Decade Team after becoming the school’s first CoSIDA Academic All-American and D3baseball.com Preseason All-American. Men’s basketball’s Donyae Baylor-Carroll earned a pair of all-region honors after being named Conference Player of the Year. He was recently named a Basketball Times Preseason All-American. Men’s hoops’ teammate Nate Curry was tabbed the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III Rookie of the Year after picking up NEAC Rookie of the Year honors. Men’s soccer’s Shammah Gahomera was chosen as conference Defensive Player of the Year before securing all-region recognition. Women’s volleyball’s Brittany Ebaugh was selected as an NCAA Woman of the Year nominee after being named conference Defensive Player of the Year. Ebaugh (block solos) also joined men’s soccer’s Nick Guglielmetti (goalkeeper shutouts) and men’s basketball’s Dylan Daniels (blocked shots, blocked shots per game) as NCAA Statistical Champions. Men’s track & field jumper Alex White was named the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Indoor Outstanding Field Athlete of the Year after winning a conference title in the long jump and capturing bronze in the high jump. He also won the ECAC Championship in the long jump and set a new program record in the event. After an outstanding campaign, Don Friday was named the ECAC Division III Men’s Basketball Coach of the Year. He was also voted the NEAC Coach of the Year by his peers. For his efforts, men’s soccer’s Daniel J. Krzyzanowicz earned conference Coach of the Year accolades as well.
Six student-athletes earned All-ECAC honors: women’s volleyball’s Ebaugh; men’s soccer’s Gahomera, Guglielmetti, and Joey Aman; women’s soccer’s Mackenzie Haladay; and men’s basketball’s Baylor-Carroll, while 21 student-athletes received NEAC or NJAC All-Conference recognition: men’s soccer’s Gahomera, Aman, Guglielmetti, Jared Brewer, Luke Myers, Mason Jones, and Jacob Krantweiss; women’s soccer’s Haladay, Rhyan Socash, Haley Vavrek, Elizabeth Clippinger, and Sydney Hemler; women’s volleyball’s Ebaugh, Alexis Imler, and Katie Kreider; men’s basketball’s Baylor-Carroll, Curry, Daniels, and Zegary Scott III; women’s basketball’s Kendis Butler; and men’s track & field’s White.