Nov 14, 2018 3 min read

Vallecorsa scores 30 as Cal women win

Gina Vallecorsa scored a career-high 30 points and made eight three-pointers to power California University to a 78-60 victory over host Shephered in a nonconference game Wednesday evening.

Vallecorsa made 10 of 14 shots from the field and was 8-for-8 from three-point range for the undefeated Vulcans (3-0).

Shepherd (2-1) did a good job against Cal’s Seairra Barrett, who had scored 75 points in the Vulcans’ first two games. Barrett was held to eight points but the rams forgot about Vallecorsa, who scorched the Rams for 19 first-ahfl points. Cal led 44-26 at halftime.

Ahmya Woodyard was the only other Cal player to score in double figures. She came off the bench to contribute 11 points.

Kari Lankford led Shepherd with 17 points.

McPhatter, Mitchell

lead All-PSAC picks

California University junior defensive back Lamont McPhatter II was named the PSAC West Defensive Athlete of the Year and Vulcans quarterback Noah Mitchell was selected as the PSAC West Freshman of the Year. The conference released its all-PSAC football teams Wednesday.

In addition to McPhatter, junior linebacker London Cloud, sophomore wide receiver Tyson Hill and junior offensive lineman Craig McCorkle were Vulcans named to the West Division first team.

McPhatter is the first Cal player to be named Defensive Athlete of the Year since former All-American Rontez Miles in 2011 and 2012, which was also the last time a defensive back earned the award. A New Castle native, McPhatter led Cal and ranked third in the league with five interceptions. McPhatter finished third on the team with 63 tackles (37 solo) and also had 3½ sacks, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and one blocked kick. The 5-11 junior had at least one interception in four-straight games.

Mitchell is Cal’s first Freshman of the Year since 2010, and the Vulcans’ first offensive recipient since Sam Mannery in 1987. An Ohio native, Mitchell ranked second in the league with a school freshman record 2,759 passing yards. He had a 56.2 completion percentage and 19 passing touchdowns.

In his first year with the program, Cloud led the team and finished sixth in the PSAC with 92 tackles (54 solo). Hill led Cal with 61 receptions and 905 receiving yards. A three-year starter, McCorkle was named to the first team for the second consecutive season. He started 10 games at left tackle.

In addition to Mitchell, junior running back Nelson Brown, redshirt junior wide receiver Jordan Dandridge and junior center Christian were selected to the second team.

Edinboro junior running back Walter Fletcher was named the Offensive Athlete of the Year. Indiana led the division with 14 all-conference representatives, including seven on the first team.

WVU signs guard

Guard Miles McBride has signed a letter of intent to play basketball at West Virginia.

Mountaineers coach Bob Huggins announced McBride’s signing Wednesday.

The 6-2 McBride is a senior at Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati. He played just two games as a junior after injuring his foot while playing football.

Graduation rates for NCAA reaches high

Graduation rates for NCAA athletes have reached a record high of 88 percent, according to data released by college sports’ governing body.

Graduation Success Rate data released Wednesday by the NCAA showed a 1-percentage point increase from 2017, with similar increases among men’s basketball players (3 percentage points to 85) and FBS football players (1 percentage point to 79).