August 7, 2024 –
The next in a series for the Big Five athletic teams looking back at the bright, shining stars of the 2023-24 season.
We will name a team of the year and student athlete of the year for each school. In addition, we will list an honor roll of teams and student athletes. Team recognition will be noted by a championship, postseason advancement, and / or a significant achievement. To be named as a player one should have a national award or honor, a league accolade, significant achievement, or a team record.
Let’s take a look back at the past season at Franklin Field, The Palestra, from Penn Park to Meiklejohn, from Weightman Gymnasium to the Tse Center, the Hecht Tennis Center, Sheerr Pool, and the Squash Center for the University of Pennsylvania. And give these teams and athletes a “Hurrah for the Red and Blue!”
Team of the Year
Women’s Track and Cross Country
The runners on the women’s teams had a banner year with league championships and personal records set. And one runner going to Paris as part of the United States Olympic Track and Field team.
The cross country year culminated with the Red and Blue taking third place in the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional with Olivia Morganti leading the way for her team. She placed 5th with a time of 19:50.2. Maeve Stiles was 8th covering the distance in 19:57.1. It was the first sub-20-minute time in the 6k race, and the top in program history. Lily Murphy was in 20th place.
In the outdoor season there was success in the Penn Relays and the Heptagonal Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Coach Steve Dolan was awarded with the Ivy Women’s Coach of the Year.
Morganti got things started on a positive note winning the 3000m Steeplechase at the Penn Relays in a program record time of 9:57.94 to be the first individual titlist for the Quakers since 2019. The Sprint Medley Relay team beat the school record by more than 10 seconds running a 3:42.32 in getting third place.
The team won the Ivy League championship at the Heptagonal meet. In record times Penn won the 4×400 gold in a meet record time of 8:36.97. Monaya Kassim, Jocelyn Niemiec, Amelia Kristen, and Aliya Garozzo ran in Red and Blue stripes. Penn placed first and second in the 100m dash as Fore Abinusawa (11.38) won the event, then a personal record,and Christiana Nwachuku (11.55) placed second her best ever time. Abinusawa set her collegiate mark of 11.28 at the NCAA East Region First Round. Personal records at the Heps fell as the Quakers swept the podium in the 200m, as the top two had their personal best times. Whittaker ran a 23.18, Abinusawa 23.24, while Nwachuku turned in a 23.85 effort. The 400m record was rewritten as 51.38 is the then standard in a gold medal performance by Isabella Whittaker. She would set her new record at the NCAA Championships at :50.17. Garozzo set a personal best of 13.52 in the 100m Hurdles preliminaries, then won the event in 13.59. Morganti won the 300m Steeplechase, Bronwyn Patterson the 800m, and the 4×100 team (Daniella Oyenuga, Whittaker, Abinusawa, and Caia Gelli), stood atop the podium, but did not set a new personal best.
Whittaker’s finish in the 400m put 4 points on the team scoreboard for the Red and Blue.
At the United States Olympic Track and Field Trials, Whittaker and Garozzo ran in the finals in their events. Neither athlete qualified by their finish, but Whittaker was named to the team as a pool relay runner in Paris.
Student Athletes of the Year
Isabella Whittaker, Women’s Track & Field, 400m Other Sprints and Relays
The record book for Penn and Isabella Whittaker was rewritten in the 2024 indoor and outdoor season as the senior set or took part in setting program records for the Red and Blue. Although she did not win individual titles, Whittaker performed impressively and was named to the United States Olympic Track and Field team as a pool runner for relays at the Games in Paris. There are 8 program records that Whittaker has her name attached to in the school record book from the 2024 season. She owns the record in the Indoor 500 (1:10.12, an Ivy League record), Outdoor 200 (23.18). Her time of :50.17 in the Outdoor 400 was set at the NCAA Championship final where she finished behind 4 Arkansas runners in a super sweep, saving her best for last in Red and Blue stripes. She put 4 points on the team scoreboard for the Quakers. In the Outdoor 200 Whittaker is at the top of the list running a 23.18. As part of a relay team Whittaker was on a record setting team in the Outdoor 4×100 (:43.74), Indoor 4×400 (3:29.86), and the Outdoor4x400 (3:29.29). All three relays time broke the Ivy League record. She was also on the Outdoor Sprint Medley Reay team that ran the fastest Penn time of 3:42.32). An impressive season with maybe more records to be set by the runner form Laurel, Maryland.
Matthew Fallon, Men’s Swimming, Breaststroke
An outstanding year for Fallon is earned a spot on the United States Olympic team in the 200 Breaststroke where he is a medal considered swimmer. During the season Fallon placed second in the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:48.48 which set an Ivy and school record at that time. He won the 200-meter event at the TYR Pro Swim Series to ready himself for the Olympic Trials. Fallon became the first Penn swimmer to break the American 200m Breast record with an event winning time 2:06.54. This is the fastest time in the world to this point and won the race by over two seconds. Fallon swam a time of 2:07.39 in the event semifinals. He competed in Paris against the best in the world.
Team Honor Roll
Baseball
The team made the Ivy League Championships, but a second game loss forced Penn to the elimination bracket. One more loss and the season would come to an end. The #4 Quakers fought back and won the Ivy League. Following a win over top seeded Columbia in the opening round, the Red and Blue lost to Cornell. In an elimination game the Quakers would defeat archrival Princeton later that day. The Quakers moved on, the Tigers did not. To get the title the Red and Blue would need to defeat the Big Red two more times. They did by scores of 11 – 9 and 12 – 6 on the same day. Penn won the title for the second consecutive year, the only team accomplishing that feat in the Ivy League. Wyatt Henseler was named the Most Outstanding Player posting a .375 tournament batting average (9 –for-24) with 3 home runs and 10 RBIs. Infielder Connor Chavez, who batted .429 hitting a home run, 3 doubles, 6 RBIs, and scored 8 times and was on the All-Tournament team along with outfielder Ryan Taylor (.412, 8 RBIs, and 3 extra base hits), and pitcher Cole Zaffiro (Game 6 winning pitcher). Marty Coyne was the winning pitcher in the championship game. The team headed to Charlottesville to play in the NCAA Tournament Regional. Penn lost to Virginia and St. John’s to end the season with a 24 – 25 record.
Five Quakers would hit over .300 this season; Henseler (the offensive star with a .360 average), Carson Ozmer (.328), Davis Baker (.319), Nick Spaventa (.318), and Taylor (.308). Zaffiro posted a 5 – 5 record on the mound while Eli Trop had an ERA of 3.33 in 21 appearances.
Men’s Soccer
The team would go undefeated over their last 7 regular season games to earn their second consecutive league championship and the number one seed in the Ivy League Tournament. Coach Brain Gill was named the Ivy League Coach of the Year. Over the campaign defenseman Leo Burney, goalie Nick Christoffersen, and midfielder Michael Hewes all made the Ivy League first team. The Quakers were solid on defense this season allowing 12 goals over 16 games for .75 goals against average, tops in the conference.
Burney is on the USC All-Northeast First Team. He led the team in minutes with 1,440 by doing so many things that do not show on the stat sheet. Penn surrendered 168 total shots, 62 that required a save. He is a Soccer Six All-Star, CSC All-District, USC All-Northeast Regions first team, and all-ECAC second team honoree. Burney scored one goal this season, a bicycle kick in the Ivy League Semifinal.
Hewes scored 8 goals and assisted twice. He scored a hat trick against #14 Penn State. Two of his goals were game winners. Hewes made the Philadelphia Soccer Six All-Star team, USC All-Northeast Region team, CSC All-District, and All-ECAC second teams. His season was highlighted by a hat trick in the 3 – 0 win at the ranked #14 Penn State.
Leading the Quakers offense with 20 points (6 goals and a team-leading 8 assists) is forward Stas Korzeniowski. The offensive points ranked second in the league. He is also a Soccer Six All-Star and is an All-Northeast Second teamer.
The season ended in the Ivy League semifinal where the Red and Blue lost to Brown on a game decided by Penalty Kicks. The closing record stood at 7 – 3 – 6 overall and 4 – 1 – 2 in the Ancient Eight.
Men’s Squash
National Champions as the team brought home the Potter Cup for the first time in school history. Second ranked Penn defeated Trinity 7 – 1 in the CSA National Collegiate Team Championship match. The Quakers lost to the Bantoms earlier in the season but won the big stage match. Salman Khalil, Omar Hafez, Nathan Kueh, Abdelrahman Dweek, Varun Chitturi, Dana Santry defeated their opponent. Roger Baddour and Rehan Luthra (whose win was not counted in the team total score) won by default. Garnering All-Ivy honors were Hafez and Nick Spizzirri while Khalil earned the league Rookie of the Year honor. Each of three team members are All-Americans. Overall, the team went 15 – 2 and 5 – 1 in the Ivy League. The team shared the league title with Princeton.
Women’s Gymnastics
The Quakers are three-time champions! Penn won the Gymnastics East Conference Championships for the third consecutive year under Coach Kirsten Becker, and seventh time overall. The Red and Blue, led by Skyelar Kerico, scored a season-high 196.275 points, saving their best at the biggest time. Penn scored 49 points or higher on three rotations.
Penn earned the ‘treble’ winning the Ivy Classic, GEC Regular Season, and the GEC Championship title.
Student Athletes Honor Roll
Wyatt Henseler – Baseball Third Baseman
The third baseman ended his Penn career with a flourish being named the Ivy League Player
Unanimously and the league tournament Most Outstanding Player. Henseler batted a team-leading .360 batting average overall and added team-bests with 22 home runs (a single-season league record), 64 runs, 72 hits, 56 RBIs, and 151 total bases. He led the Ancient Eight with a league average of .438, 31 runs, and 10 home runs. The third baseman was named to the First-team All-East Region by the American Baseball Coaches Association, and the ECAC Player of the Year. Henseler is at the top of the list at Penn in career hits (232), doubles (50), total bases (452), home runs (54), and RBIs (189). He appeared in all 50 games this season.
Nick Christoffersen, Men’s Soccer Goalie
Goalie Nick Christoffersen, the Philadelphia Soccer Six Chris Jones Player of the Year award winner, posted a goals against average of .67 (10 over 15 games). He made 43 saves and recorded 7 shutouts, all ranking number two in the Ancient Eight. He was named to the United Soccer Coaches All-Northeast and CSC All-District Second Team. Penn gave up 12 goals this season with Christoffersen getting a .811 save percentage. The most notable clean slate was a 3 – 0 win over 14th ranked Penn State, the first road win over the Nittany Lions in program history.
Malachi Hosley, Football Running Back
Hosley became the first winner of the Ivy League Rookie of the Year for Penn in thirty years. He was also named to the First-Team All-Ivy and the Freshman All-America team by FCS Central. This season Hosley ran for 723 yards on 121 carries, second in the league, and scored 7 touchdowns, third in the Ancient Eight. With 246 receiving yards, he totaled 969 all-purpose yards. Hosley made a statement in the game against Cornell when he gained 261 yards, third place in total rushing yards in a single game in program history. He scored twice and the 96-yard scoring burst represents the longest play in the Quakers record book. Hosley broke the 100-yard rushing barrier in his last three games to earn a place as a finalist for the Jerry Rice Award given to the National Freshman Player of the Year in FCS Football.
Joey Slackman, Football Defensive Lineman
The senior lineman was named as the recipient of the Asa Bushnell Trophy symbolic of the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year. He earned First Team All-Ivy honors as 12 of his tackles resulted in a loss of 30 yards for the opposition, ranking second in the league. Slackman recorded 50 total tackles, 23 solo stops. He was named as an All-ECAC player on defense. Slackman had a season-high 3.5 tackles for a loss against Bucknell, and an 11-tackle game against Brown. He blocked a field goal.
Mataya Gayle, Women’s Basketball Guard
Gayle earned the Ivy League and Big Five Rookie of the Year awards. The freshman is the eighth Penn player to be named the top Big Five Rookie in the McLaughlin era. She is on the Big Five second team. Gayle averaged 14.3 points per game, third on the team, scoring in double figures in 20 of 28 games for the Red and Blue. Gayle led the squad in assists (88) and in steals, swiping 41 over the season.
Clark Slajchert, Men’s Basketball, Guard
Over the course of the season Slajchert made first-team all-Ivy and in the Big Five won the Leading Scorer award netting 395 total points. He was second in Ancient Eight scoring. The achievement by the senior guard was notable in that he missed seven games due to injury. Slajchert averaged 18 points per game. He was second on the team in made 3-Point field goals draining 57, free throw percentage making 82.4% from the line (42 – 51), and in assists handing out 63 during his final year at Penn.
Skyelar Kerico, Gymnastics
Skyelar Kerico became the first ever in Penn history to be a two-time GEC individual champion getting gold in the individual all-around and the balance beam. On the beam Kerico scored a career-high 9.9. Her All-Around score was 39.2, just shy of the program record. She was named the GEC Gymnast of the Year. Kerico’s personal best scores this season are 9.825 on vault, 9.875 on bars, 9.9 on the beam and floor. Her All-Around record at Penn is at 39.325 earning her the top three scores in the program history book.
Izzy Rohr, Women’s Lacrosse, Defense
The senior earned the Ivy League Defender of the Year award in a unanimous vote. She is the second Penn player to win the honor. She was the anchor on defense for the Quakers who allowed less than 10 goals per game. Rohr caused 34 turnovers, a team-best, which ranked 11th in the nation in that statistic. She was second on the team in Ground Balls collecting 33. Penn defeated #1 Maryland (at that time) in College Park during the season. USA Lacrosse named her to the All-America Third Team. In her final game at Franklin Feld Rohr scored her first career goal in the NCAA Tournament win over Loyola, MD. A great way to end a home game career for the Red and Blue.
Emmet Carroll, Men’s Lacrosse, Goalie
The senior net minder made the All-Ivy first team. He stopped 238 potential goals posting a .594 Save Percentage. Penn ranked tops in the Ivies in saves per game with 15.56, with Carroll topping the individual list, and second in goals against average at 10.93. For the Red and Blue Carroll came up big in the Ivy League Tournament with his career-high in saves; 19 against Cornell and 20 in the final vs. Princeton. He was named to the USA Lacrosse All-America second team and the third-team honors on the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA). Carroll was on the Tewaaraton Award watch list.
Brendan Lavelle, Men’s Lacrosse, Defender
The senior earned first team All-Ivy honors. He led the team in Ground Balls gathering 49 and caused turnovers forcing 18. Both stats represent a career-high for Lavelle. He earned All-America nods from USA Lacrosse and Inside Lacrosse, the Lacrosse Network placed Lavelle on the Lacrosse Dream Team, and he was a first teamer on the USILA. Lavelle appeared on the Tewaaraton Award watch list during the season.
Esha Velaga, Women’s Tennis
An outstanding start to the career of Velaga as she was named the Ivy League Player of the Year and the Rookie of the Year. Velaga competed for the nationally recognized Penn team in the NCAA singles championship and in the doubles along with Eileen Wang. Prior to the national championships Velaga compiled a 29 – 6 record and was undefeated (5 – 0) in the Ivy League. Over the spring the freshman had a 15 – 3 record. In doubles Velaga and Wang carried an 8 – 4 record to the NCAA’s. The season ended after their first match play.
Bryce Louie, Men’s Fencing, Foil
Louie won the 2024 NCAA Foil Champion, the first at Penn since 1997 in foil. He defeated teammate Blake Broszus to win the title. Louis won 7 matches at the championships and landed his initial All-America honors. He culminated the season for the nationally ranked Quakers by being named as the United States Fencing Coaches Association (UFCA) Foil Athlete of the Year.
Written By: Glenn Papazian
Contact: Glenn@PhillyCollegeSports.com
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