Director of Athletics Newsletter
Winter Edition
The men's soccer team celebrating after winning the ECAC Championship.
The men's soccer team celebrating after winning the ECAC Championship.
The men's soccer team celebrating after winning the ECAC Championship.
The men's soccer team celebrating after winning the ECAC Championship.
Dear Juniatians,
We are more than halfway through the academic year and are entering the busiest time for Juniata Athletics. Our winter sports teams have their eyes set on the postseason, while our spring teams are preparing for their upcoming competitions.
I’m incredibly proud of the eight teams who kicked off the semester by participating in the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service. Giving back to the community is a testament to our student-athletes and their commitment to being engaged and responsible citizens. Overall, more than 250 students, faculty, and staff volunteered for the Day of Service, doubling the college’s participation from the previous year.
Looking ahead, we have many exciting events planned for the spring semester, and I hope you will join us! Here are a few events to mark on your calendar:
- Hall of Fame Induction – Saturday, April 5
- Alfies Awards Celebration – Wednesday, May 7
On March 6, we will once again be participating in Juniata’s annual Day of Giving. Make your gift to the Athletics Giving Challenge and help your favorite team compete for cash prizes! We are grateful for every gift made that day, as all donations directly enhance the experience of our student-athletes. From training trips and leadership speakers to equipment upgrades, your contributions have a lasting impact on our programs.
Thank you all for your unwavering support of our phenomenal student-athletes. We look forward to finishing the year strong with even more athletic achievement!
Sincerely,
Nikki
Nikki (McLellan) Ayers '06
Director of Athletics
Alumni Events & Involvement
The women’s lacrosse, field hockey, swim and softball teams hosted alumni events this fall, and the men's and women's basketball teams had their alumni events in January. The women's basketball team welcomed back the 1979-80 team that went 24-4, and advanced to the AIAW semifinals. Future alumni team events include:
Women's Volleyball: April 5, 2025
For more information about the women’s volleyball alumni day, you can email head coach Heather Pavlik at pavlikh@juniata.edu.
Women's Soccer: April 5, 2025
For more information about the women’s soccer alumni day, you can email head coach Joe Alianiello at alianij@juniata.edu.
Notes from
the Nest
The Juniata men’s volleyball team is currently ranked #7 in the country, sitting at 11-2 on the year. The team went 2-1 at the FrogJump Invitational hosted by Carthage College, winning against #12 Baldwin Wallace and #3 Stevens Institute of Technology.
The Eagles have claimed three Continental Volleyball Conference athlete of the week awards already in this young season as Chase Robbins, Luke Hoffman and Tyler Goldsborough have each won the award once.
The men’s and women’s swim teams will compete in the Landmark Conference Championships beginning February 13th at Mangione Aquatic Center on the campus of Loyola University. The schedule of events for the four days of competition can be found here.
The women’s team heads into championships after one of their best regular seasons in a decade as they won 11 dual meets this year.
The men’s swim team has seen marked improvement as well, with them being rated the 18th most improved men’s swim program in the country.
In a challenging season for a young men’s basketball team, senior Mason Hardy led the Eagles to an overtime victory over Lycoming College with 24 points, 10 assists, seven rebounds, and five steals. Sophomore Ty Kocak added 12 points, 20 rebounds and three steals while first-year Jayden Bilger tallied 19 points, three rebounds, two blocks and a steal.
The women’s basketball team is in the hunt for a spot in the Landmark Playoffs, as they jostle for position with Goucher College to punch their ticket to the tournament.
Senior Haily Sherman sits fourth in the Landmark in scoring at 15.4 points per game, while Laney Gerdich is sixth in rebounds at 7.3 rebounds per game. Bri Bodtorf is atop the conference in assists at 4.6 assists per game and also fifth in steals at 2.6.
The Juniata Track and Field team is off to a strong start during the indoor season. So far this season, they have broken eight school records, had 10 top-five all-time performances, and set 167 total personal records.
Juniata field hockey standout Morgan Martin was selected to participate in the Women Leaders' Rising Stars mentorship program.
Chi Alpha Sigma has announced a collaboration with Women Leaders in Sports to provide mentorship and programming for a cohort of inductees interested in pursuing careers in athletics.
"This a tremendous opportunity to support and empower many of the young women at our institutions across the country who are looking to remain involved in athletics after graduation," Chi Alpha Sigma executive director Kellen Wells-Mangold said.
"Women Leaders in Sports is, without a doubt, at the pinnacle of organizations working to develop the leaders needed in intercollegiate athletics and beyond, so to be able to work together to provide networking opportunities and career resources is an incredible benefit to Chi Alpha Sigma and its inductees."
A national cohort of 40 Chi Alpha Sigma inductees will connect with experienced professionals in athletics who will serve as resources to the cohort, helping guide them as they begin to navigate their post-graduate careers.
Juniata College will induct its newest members into its Sports Hall of Fame on Saturday, April 5, 2025. Members of the Juniata College Sports Hall of Fame are selected by a selection committee consisting of current coaches, campus and athletic administrators, alumni, and current Hall of Fame members.
The Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place at 6:30 pm in the Ellis Ballroom. Additional information on the program for the day will be released at a later date.
Tim Reed 1979 - Football
Reed was a four-year letter winner at Juniata. He finished first in the Middle Athletic Conference (MAC) in punting three of his four years. In his senior year he set the single season record for punting average. Reed would finish his career second in career punting average. He was named to the All-MAC First team in 1978 as well as being named the best punter in East Division III. He was selected to the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) second team in 1975 and the ECAC Southern Region First Team in 1978.
Danny Young-Uhrich 2000 - Field Hockey/Women's Basketball
Young-Uhrich excelled as a two-sport athlete at Juniata. In field hockey, she was named to the MAC all-conference team once as a first teamer and twice as a second team member. She was also named to the MAC first team her senior year for basketball. On the court, she holds the career assist record, is third in blocks, and seventh in assists. As the winningest coach in team history, the women's basketball team saw four NCAA Tournament appearances, and one conference championship in 2010-2011. A two-time Landmark Conference Coach of the Year, she was also named the D3Hoops.com Mid-Atlantic Region Coach of the Year.
Dave Saintz 2006 - Baseball
Saintz was the MAC Rookie of the Year in 2003 and named to the second team. He was a MAC first teamer in 2004 and 2006. A member of the 2004 MAC Championship squad, he holds single season records for at bats, triples, and games played. He piled up career records including first in program history for at bats, runs, hits, triples, and stolen bases. He remains third in slugging, second in games played, games started, doubles, and total bases.
Randy Anderson 2007 - Track and Field
Anderson was an All-American in 2007 enroute to qualifying for the 55m in the NCAA indoor track and field championships. He holds the record for the 100m, 200m, 4x100m relay, indoor 60m, and indoor 200m. Anderson was a six-time MAC champion, two times for the indoor 55m and outdoor 100m, once for the indoor long jump and outdoor 200m.
Jeremy Hays 2014 - Men's Basketball
Hays sits atop the all-time record book in both assists and career steals. He was named to the Landmark All-Conference squad first team once as well as the second team once. Hays also is 12th all time in scoring. He holds the top three seasons in program history for total steals. He was a member of two Landmark Conference Tournament teams.
Kate McDonald 2014 - Women's Basketball
McDonald was a two-time Landmark Conference Defensive Player of the Year, Landmark Rookie of the Year and a Landmark Conference champion. She was named second-team all-region three times, was named to the Landmark All-Conference First Team three times, and the second team once. McDonald sits second in career scoring, rebounds and steals. She sits at ninth in all-time Landmark Conference scoring, third in rebounds and second in steals. McDonald is one of two players in program history to have over 1,000 points and rebounds.
Staff Accomplishments & Development
Director of Athletics Nikki (McLellan) Ayers '06 was selected to participate in Leadership U for Humanity, a leadership development program offered by the Korn Ferry Charitable Foundation in conjunction with Women Leaders in Sports.
At the 2024 Women Leaders Convention, Ayers sat down with D3.ticker’s Anthony Grassi to talk about returning to lead her alma mater, instilling competitiveness from the AD chair and more.
She has also been selected to serve on the National Association of Division III Athletic Administrators Board as an at-large member for the three-year term.
Head Men’s Volleyball Coach Glenn DeHaven ’07 and senior Jeremiah Burden ’25 were selected to present their research on optimal service speeds at the American Volleyball Coaches Association National Convention.
Burden and Ethan Brown ’26 started the project two years ago as they formed the Sports Analytics club with Randy Rosenberger as their advisor.
The Kennedy Sports and Recreation Center received a recent upgrade with the renovating of our Big 5 Wall, which is a record of all the winners of the Big 5 awards since their inception.
The campus community also voted to name the student section “The Nest” earlier in the year at Spirit Day. These projects are part of a multi-phase plan to enhance our facilities, made possible in part by contributions from our alumni and donors.
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