Unique honor: Orsteins enter different halls of fame month apart
It’s not unusual for two members of the same family to be inducted into a sports hall of fame.
But Mike and Kaitlyn Orstein-Fife have a unique accomplishment.
The two Washington & Jefferson College products will be inducted into separate chapters of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame one month apart this spring.
Mike Orstein will be a part of this year’s Susquehanna Valley Chapter induction ceremonies that will be held Saturday, May 7, at the Four Seasons Resorts in Landsville, Lancaster County.
Kaitlyn Orstein-Fife will be a part of this year’s Washington-Greene County Chapter induction ceremonies that will be held Friday, June 10 Friday at the DoubleTree in Meadow Lands.
Tickets for the Susquehanna Valley banquet are $20 apiece and can be obtained by calling Charles Gerfin at 717-684-4772. Tickets for the Washington-Greene County banquet are $45 apiece and can be obtained by calling BJ at 724-678-4320.
Mike Orstein, in 28 seasons at W&J, has amassed a record of 460-198-2 and has a 520-223-3 mark over a 32-year span. Orstein earned his 500th college swimming victory in the 2014-15 season.
Interestingly, Mike Orstein was inducted into the Washington-Greene Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in May of 2014.
Among his honors, Orstein was awarded the prestigious Master Coach Award at the May 1996 College Swimming Coaches of America Association’s national convention. This honor was only conferred upon eight NCAA coaches that year.
Orstein was named the Presidents’ Athletic Conference’s swimming coach of the year 15 times. He produced eight national champions, 17 All-Americans, 36 NCAA Division III Swimming and Diving Championship qualifiers and 248 PAC champions. He has coached teams to nine PAC titles, 218 school records, and 61 conference records.
Prior to coming to Washington & Jefferson, Orstein served as the athletic director at York Country Day School and was head women’s swimming coach at York College.
Among Orstein’s NCAA champions was his daughter, Kaitlyn, who joined the W&J swim staff as a volunteer coach this season.
Orstein-Fife was an eight-time NCAA Division III champion and a 25-time Presidents’ Athletic Conference champion. Orstein-Fife won the 200 individual medley in 2005, 2007 and 2008, the 400 individual medley in 2005 and 2006, the 200 breaststroke in 2007 and 2008, and the 100 breaststroke national title in 2008. She established 18 W&J, 10 PAC records and five NCAA Division III records.
Orstein-Fife was a 14-time NCAA Division III All-American held the national record in the 200 individual medley (2:00.27) for five years. Orstein was named the PAC Swimmer of the Year during all four years on the squad and led the Presidents to the 2005 and 2008 PAC team championships, two of the eight in W&J’s history.
Following her sophomore season, Orstein-Fife was invited to represent Team USA at the Maccabi International Games in Sydney, Australia and captured five gold medals.
Teddi Maslowski of Burgettstown, a senior at Duke, recently finished second in two events at the Raleigh Relays hosted by North Carolina State.
Maslowski, who attended Steubenville Central Catholic, was second in the 100-meter hurdles in 13.65 and in the 400 meter hurdles in 1:00.71. Maslowski is the Duke school record holder in multiple events and has qualified for the NCAA Championships in the outdoor and indoor seasons.
Sprinter Mark Minjock of Peters Township was named Waynesburg University’s Male Athlete of the Week for March 20-26.
Minjock, a sophomore, won the 100-meter dash Saturday at the Carnegie Mellon Invitational and set a meet record. Minjock won in 11.13 seconds. He also finished in second place in the 200 meters (23.52) and capped the day by running a leg on the Yellow Jackets’ 400 relay team that placed third in 44.72.
Former Peters Township standout John Hlavinka is the leading hitter in the Allegheny Mountain College Conference.
A junior outfielder at Penn State Behrend, Hlavinka is batting .491 (27-for-55) through 15 games. The Venetia native also leads the AMCC in on-base percentage (.567), is second in runs (21) and fifth in RBI (19). A two-time All-AMCC selection, Hlavinka recently had a 10-game hitting streak.
Justin Forman, a freshman third baseman from South Fayette, has been another impact hitter for Penn State Behrend. Foreman is batting .375 in 10 games and has two doubles and two home runs with 10 RBI. Foreman was 3-for-4 in Behrend’s 11-0 win over Waynesburg.
Dylan Pounds is off to a terrific start with the bat for Pitt-Greensburg.
A junior shortstop and pitcher from Chartiers-Houston, Pounds is the leading hitter for the Bobcats with a .435 batting average that ranks fifth in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference. He leads the AMCC in hits (30) and his seven doubles and 16 runs are team-highs.
On the mound, Pounds has a 1-1 record and 2.84 ERA in five outings, including two starts. He gave up only one run in 7 1/3 innings to get the win in UPG’s victory Feb. 28 over Frostburg State in Fayetteville, N.C. In that same game, Pounds went 3-for-3 with two runs, a double and a walk.
Pounds was named the AMCC Player and Pitcher of the Week for Feb. 21-28. In addition to his pitching win, Pounds had a .636 batting average in three games during the week.
Logan Linder, a junior outfielder from Burgettstown, has started all but one game for Point Park and has been a solid contributor for the Pioneers.
Linder is batting .278 and is second on the team with eight doubles. He also ranks second in RBI (20) and third in total bases (31). Linder is in his second season at Point Park after transferring from Niagara. He batted .375 in 27 games for the Pioneers as a sophomore.
Marley Lafferty, a senior first baseman at Pitt-Greensburg, is the second-leading hitter for the Bobcats.
A former standout at Trinity and a Washington native, Lafferty is batting .314 and leads UPG with three doubles, one home run and eight runs scored.
Lafferty has been used a two-way player. As a pitcher, she threw a six-hit shutout with four strikeouts against Saint Vincent March 17, which helped her become UPG’s Female Athlete of the Week. She had a season-high six strikeouts against SUNY-Potsdam and Alfred.
Samantha Scopel, a freshman outfielder from Burgettstown, is batting .318 for La Roche. Scopel has played in 10 of the Red Hawks’ 11 games and is 7-for-22 at the plate with one stolen base.
Point Park’s softball roster has a local look to it as two area freshmen are playing significant roles for the Pioneers.
Ashley Iagnemma, a South Fayette graduate, has been one of Point Park’s starting pitchers. She has started 10 of the Pioneers’ 31 games and has a 3-6 record with a sterling 1.87 ERA. A Bridgeville native, Iagnemma has 62 strikeouts in 60 innings pitched.
Erica Burns, a freshman from Carmichaels, has made 20 starts for the Pioneers at second base and pitched in six contests. Burns has a .203 batting average but her nine runs and six stolen bases each are team highs.
As a pitcher, Burns is 0-0 with a 2.90 ERA.