SXU Athletics Collects Numerous Accolades Over Spring Semester
Date:06/11/2026
Over the 2026 spring semester, Saint Xavier University (SXU) student-athletes and
teams have consistently amassed accolades. Here is a look at some of the many impressive
awards and accomplishments that the Cougars have gained.
On his way to leading the men's volleyball team to a seventh Chicagoland Collegiate
Athletic Conference (CCAC) tournament championship and a second-place appearance in
the NAIA Tournament, graduate student Matt Pennala became the program's all-time career
kills leader and is the only player in team history with 1,000 or more kills (1,082).
He has added 134 digs, 55 blocks (seven solos), 38 service aces, and 21 assists. Pennala
also leads the team with 388.0 points this year and is also the all-time team leader
with 1,302.5 points.
Men's volleyball head coach Tom Ryan won NAIA Coach of the Year for the second straight
season after leading SXU to back-to-back 30-win seasons. He is the first coach in
school history to win NAIA Coach of the Year more than once.
For the sixth consecutive season and 13th time in program history, the No. 21-ranked
softball team won the CCAC Tournament Championship after an 8-0 victory in five innings
over No. 2 University of St. Francis. The season was capped with multiple team records,
including most hits in a season by Haley Matlock (90), most RBIs by Jazmyn Casas (87),
and most runs (79) and stolen bases (95) by Fiona Crane.
The women's track and field team set a program record for highest finish and most
points at the NAIA Women's Outdoor Track and Field National Championships in Asheville,
N.C. The team placed 13th out of 74 with 21 points.
There, fifth-year senior Lexi Clarke, fifth-year senior Olivia Mathis, and senior
Yanira Deana Paninka each earned NAIA All-American honors in two disciplines as Clarke,
Deana Paninka, freshman Briana Krapf, and Mathis placed second in the 4x800m Relay.
Paninka was fourth in the 400m Hurdles, and Mathis and Clarke placed fourth and sixth
in the 800m.
Mathis became the most decorated Saint Xavier athlete in NAIA Outdoor National Championship
history, as she was also an All-American last season in the 800m.
As for men's track and field, junior Connor Whalen became just the second thrower
in program history to earn NAIA All-American honors after he broke his own school
record in the Hammer with a sixth-place distance of 58.91m at the NAIA Men's Outdoor
Track and Field National Championships in Asheville, N.C.
On the academic side, 52 student-athletes from SXU who participated in spring sports
were named Spring NAIA Scholar-Athletes. To be eligible, a student must maintain a
grade point average (GPA) of 3.50 or higher and be enrolled at the school for a calendar
year.
The softball program had the highest representation, with 14 student-athletes earning
the honor, followed by baseball with 12, men's track and field with 10, men's volleyball
and women's track and field with six, women's golf with three, and men's golf with
one.
The SXU community is incredibly proud of the prestigious accolades its student-athletes
earned this spring and looks forward to all the amazing things SXU Athletics will
accomplish in the fall!