Men’s Basketball
Entering the week of the AEC playoffs, two players were given conference honors. Junior forward Shilo Bivins was named Atlantic East Conference Defensive Player of the Week, after swatting four shots and grabbing nine boards in their playoff clinching victory against Immaculata. Brendan Franko was named to the Weekly Honor Roll, posting his third double-double and 17th straight double-digit scoring game.

Finishing as the fifth seed in the AEC, Marywood was forced to go to Centenary University for the first round of the conference playoffs. The Pacers would open the game on a 14-2 run, with Franko being responsible for half of the early Marywood points. After trailing by double digits for the majority of the first half, the Cyclones outscored the Pacers 10-5, bringing the game within four points at halftime. Centenary would flip the score in the early minutes of the second half, before Marywood converted all but one free throw and shooting consistently from field, ending the Cyclones’ season and winning the second playoff game in program history, 82-66.

Advancing to the semifinals, the Neumann Knights were the next stop on Marywood’s path to the NCAA tournament. The first 12 minutes were tightly contested, though the Knights held the lead for the majority of the time. Neumann was able to extend their lead, taking a 14-point lead into the half. Despite Marywood’s offense shooting more effectively, the Pacers had no answer for the Knights offense, as they converted over 59% of their attempts, ending Marywood’s season 89-69.

For the second straight season, Marywood finished 14-13 and ended their season in the AEC semifinals. At the end of his third season, head coach Jon Showers’ all time record moves to 38-42. Three players stamped their place in the Pacers history books. Franko became the ninth player in program history to join the 1,000 point club, ending his career fourth in scoring. Senior guard Trevor Seitz ends his Pacers tenure as the all-time leader in threes, connecting on 218 triples in his career. Lastly, senior guard Corey Perkins ends his collegiate career with 362 assists, retiring second all time in the category.

Women’s Basketball
Ending the regular season in the final playoff spot, the Pacers set to be road warriors through the playoffs, starting at Centenary University. The first half saw offense galore, with the Cyclones holding a narrow edge against Marywood. The Pacers were able to bring the game closer by the end of the third quarter, though Centenary still held the lead. It wouldn’t be until just under the three minute mark that the Cyclones would have the lead, as Finley Bittenbender would knock down a three-pointer, tying the game at 71 each. Marywood would score six more points, all from the foul line, advancing to the semifinals, 77-73. Playing all 40 minutes, Rachel McDonald would set a new career high, dropping 27 points in the victory.

Just a week after being battered at Immaculata, the Pacers returned, looking for vengeance against the Mighty Macs. Despite falling behind 9-0 in the opening two minutes, Marywood would take over, finishing the first quarter up 18-15. The advantage would be in favor of Marywood, until the final 60 seconds of the half, with Immaculata holding a three-point lead at the intermission. The Mighty Macs came out of the half firing, outscoring Marywood 24-9. Though the Pacers would sharpen up on both ends, the damage had been done, as Marywood’s season would be ended by the Mighty Macs, 69-48.

In her first season back with Marywood, Tara Macciocco led the Pacers to their best record since 2018-19, finishing 13-14. Two Pacers accomplished historic feats by season’s end. Olivia Ciullo grabbed her 500th board in the playoff win against Centenary. Senior Stephanie Klemick ends her career with 103 blocked shots, passing Courtney Murray as the program’s all-time leader in rejections.

Men’s Lacrosse
Coming off their season opening loss, the Pacers returned to the road, making the short trip south to Wilkes University. After starting down 3-0, senior John Scibello scored twice, followed by Ricky Strobel to knot the game up. The Colonels would score twice more, before Scibello and Strobel would strike for three more Pacer goals, taking the lead, before any other Pacers would join in. Ben Peters would drill a second quarter buzzer beater, as Marywood would take a 8-5 lead into the break. Marywood would issue three more scores, clinching their first win, 11-6.

Again on the road, Marywood traveled to Keuka College. The Wolves would blank the Pacers in the first quarter, scoring two goals. Peters and Shaun Howey would match the Wolves in the second, tied at two a piece at halftime. Ben Meighan would score the opening goal of the second half, before Keuka would tie it back up. Two more Pacers would score before the end of the third, followed by Meighan netting two goals in the fourth quarter, clinching his first hat trick and helping Marywood secure their first win, 7-3.

Women’s Lacrosse
Looking to rebound from their road loss against Lycoming College, the Pacers were traveling once more, heading to Lebanon Valley College. The Flying Dutchmen wasted no time taking control of the game, scoring seven first quarter goals, while Marywood was only able to find the net twice. The Pacers would work their way back into the game, with Kortney Harry scoring twice, followed by the junior trio of Kaitlyn Smith, Natalie Yilanjian and Avery Meighan all scoring, as the deficit was just two at the halftime break. Unfortunately, the defense would relapse, allowing 11 second half goals, as the Pacers would fall again, 20-10.

All stats are from MarywoodPacers.com as of March 2.

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