I WEDNESDAY, AUG. 25, 2010 • Powell making impact at corner By Audrey Snyder playing behind Stephon Morris receiver in the same game, his ary came from his days as a safety 1 COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER and Lynn on the first-team current focus is on becoming a at Susquehannock High School, i li ketr .. . defense, Powell's likely going to better cornerback and a more hewasn't too apprehensive. When the Penn State wide see the field in nickel packages, refined kick returner. While his safety duties in high ' receivers take the practice field, where he'll sub in for a linebacker. But Powell's efforts to improve school mainly involved playing t kat' • 17 there's usually a group of excited "I said something to the coach- at his new position have not gone man coverage on a tight end, cornerbacks waiting for them on es like, 'Hey if you guys need me to unnoticed, as Paterno said it adjusting to playing against a fast . the other side of the ball. come back over there I'll do what- would take a "disaster" to return wide receiver is just part of the The opportunity to go against a ever you guys want me to do.' " him to wide receiver transition.. _ * receiving corps that returns its Powell said after wide receiver "Powell is doing very well on "At first, you know when he f , top-two downfield threats contin- Curtis Drake broke his leg during defense and likes it over there." switched in spring there was defi ues to test the Nittany_Lions' sec- an August practice. Paterno said. "Powell's biggest nitely a learning curve," Lynn wr or 'I L ondary, cornerback D'Anton Lynn The idea to allow the former problem has been, you know, he's said. "It's not something easy to -•:;-,, . ' said. But among those excited cor- four-sport high school athlete to a kid that has not been consistent switch to because it's a tough posi- , • I .. nerbacks is a guy who is used to play on both sides of the ball is in doing some things. But all of a tion. But he picked it up quick, he being in the offensive huddle. something Joe Paterno and the sudden he lixrks like he's having worked at it all summer and he After catching 28 passes last coaching staff considered once some fun out there on defense, came into camp and he's had a ,i, . year, Chaz Powell has found him- Drake was injured, Powell said. and he's really doing well." real good camp." _PAIL - - ' bell"- self at cornerback since spring. But as the season nears, and still Safety leads with actions By Brendan Monahan COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER Safety Drew Astorino admits he's not outspoken. Instead, the redshirt junior is more of the leader-by-example type - a characteristic his team mates have noticed. "He can hit," redshirt junior linebacker Nate Stupar said in the spring. "He'll come at you hard." The hard-hitting Astorino is now healthy after a January surgery on his left shoulder to heal a torn labrum, which forced him to sit out spring practice. Astorino yearned to play full throttle on the field, which is why he played with his injured shoulder last season, including returning punts. While battling the injury, Astorino started 12 of the team's 13 games. On a team that has yet to decide its captains, Astorino and his 62 tackles from last season are the most by a returning player. Astorino sticks out as a possible captain, though he isn't the vocal leader the coaching staff may be looking for. Though quiet, Astorino believes he can be the leader of the defense. The redshirt junior headlines an experienced defen sive backfield with three other returning starters. Only participating in non-con tact drills, Astorino was relegat ed to a sideline role in the spring. "I couldn't tell you how bad it was to sit out during spring practice and just sit there," Astorino said. "It's the worst experience ever. You want to be out there." Astorino, who said his time out in the spring gave him a chance to help the younger defensive backs, described being back on the field as "phe nomenal." He's happy to be leading by example and working hard, though some teammates may be cringing from his hits. To e-mail reporter bjmsl46@psu.edu Astorino (28) playing last year. SPORTS ON TV Philadelphia vs. Houston 7:05, CSN Pittsburgh vs. Cardinals 7:05, FSN While he ,lieves he could be able to play cornerback and KING COLE Matt Rourke/k Cole Hamels delivers a pitch in the second inning of the Phillies' game against the Houston Astros Tuesday. Hamels pitched seven innings, giving up five hits and striking out eight hitters but failed to get a decision. The Phillies fell to the Astros 4-2 in 16 innings. Freshman Tyler making adjustments By Me Still COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER Even with his 6-foot-2, 200- pound frame, Jordan Tyler still finds himself intimidated by the size of players at the college leveL The freshman forward has played only one game for the Penn State men's soccer team, but he's already noticed the differ ence from playing in high school. "I just felt like my skill level's there, but the speed of play is a lot faster and guys are a lot bigger and stronger, so it's a lot more physical," Tyler said. Penn State coach Bob Warming Nye receives award Penn State men's golf head coach Greg Nye has been selected as the. 2010 Division I NCAA Northeast Regional Coach of the Year for the third consecutive season. Nye has earned the prestigious honor from the Golf Coaches Association of America eight times after 59 tournament titles, four NCAA births and 17 NCAA Regional appearances. Though Powell's only previous experience playing in the second- gave Tyler the start against Hartwick, challenging the fresh man in his first collegiate contest. Despite fight ing a case of freshman jitters, he rose to the occasion In the 22nd minute, with the Lions down 1-0, the freshman beat Hartwick keeper Jake Wright to tie the game at 1-1 Though he knew starting Tyler would test the freshman emotion ally and physically, Warming felt Galley a breath of fresh air Buffalo Bills coach Chan Galley approached teenaged hecklers after the team's practice yesterday to defend quar terback 'Thent Edwards. The 58-year-old coach told the punks that if they diss one of 'em, they diss all of `ern. It's nice to see a coach go out of his way To e-mail reporter: aass22o@psu.edu the move was necessary. Many times he's seen young players come into games and play timid with heavy legs and nervous energy, Warming said. He wanted Tyler to get those nervous feel ings out of the way during the pre season so Tyler will be ready to go mentally for the regular season. It's still early, but Tyler's team mates have noticed the potential the freshman has if he plays confi dently. While describing Tyler's style of play, junior forward Corey Hertzog drew a comparison to a recently departed Penn State star THE DAILY COLLEGIAN Chaz Powell talks at media day Spikes drop 2nd straight By Jake Kaplan COLLEGIAN STAFF WRITER State College Spikes manager Gary Robinson couldn't pinpoint exactly what the problem with his team's offense was following Monday night's game against the Mahoning Val- ley Scrappers Whatever it was, the Spikes were not able to fig ure it out in time for Tuesday night's rematch on the road. One night removed from a 3-hit performance from the team's offense, the Spikes managed just another four hits and suffered a 1- 0 defeat at the hands of the Scrappers Tuesday night at Eastwood Field in Niles, Ohio. It was the third game out of the last four the Spikes (30-32) have lost to the Scrappers (27-36), who are just a half-game out of last place in the Pinckney Division. State College first baseman Matt Curry, who went 1-for-4, said he thinks the team is pressing at the plate. "We haven't had a very good game in a while and everybody's trying to do too much," Curry said. "'frying to get out of the slump in one game where we need to just work back into it by just hitting the ball." The game's lone run came in the first inning as Mahoning Valley shortstop Nicholas Bartolone led off the latter half of the frame with a double to left field. He advanced to third base on a ball that got away from State College catcher Matt Skirving and scored on a groundout by Scrappers designat ed hitter Richard Martinez. Though the Spikes struggled to get hits, the team did manage to draw eight bases on balls, See SPIKES, Page 12. "I think he's gonna be a lot like Jason Yeisley," Hertzog said. big, physical fojward up top, and that'll help with the physicality of our game." With a game under his belt, and one more preseason exhibition to go until the Lions open their regu lar season Sept. 3, Tyler is confi dent he can contribute to the team's success this year. "Just when I first got started, just like Coach said, I was just really nervous," Tyler said. "But now it's out of my system and I'm ready to play." To e-mail reporter. massB6o@psu.edu to defend his players. Especially one who is expected to be one of the team leaders this season. NEW YORK-PENN LEAGUE Q: Who were the : State College Slates affiliated with before becoming a mem ber of the Pittsburgh Pirates farm sys tem? Tuesday's Answer. The last Toronto Blue Jay's player to lead the league in homeruns was Fred McGriff in 1989 with 36 homeruns.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers