E8 Athletes of the Week: Nov. 11
Empire 8 fall tournaments have come to a close and league champions have been crowned, and the league's athletes continue to shine. These week's award winners include...
Football Offensive Player - Alfred
Tyler Johnson, Freshman, QB – East Syracuse, NY/East Syracuse-Minoa
Tyler Johnson led the Alfred offense in a 48-31 victory over Utica College on Saturday. He was 19 of 25 passing (76%) for 342 yards and two touchdowns.
Football Defensive Player – Ithaca
Will Carter, Graduate Student, LB – Thornwood, NY/Westlake
Will Carter made a career-high 18 tackles as Ithaca rallied from a 10-point first half deficit and defeated Salisbury 24-23 in overtime. The Bombers kept the Salisbury ground-game in check, holding the Sea Gulls 32 yards below their per-game rushing average. The victory clinched the first Empire 8 championship for Ithaca in five years and earned the Bombers an automatic qualification to the NCAA Division III Football Tournament.
Football Special Teams Player - Buffalo State
Joe Going, Junior, P – Kings Park, NY/Kings Park
Joe Going averaged 44.8 yards on six punts on an extremely windy day at Coyer Field in the Bengals game against St. John Fisher. He had three punts inside the 20, including a 74-yarder that was downed at the 1-foot line.
Field Hockey Player of the Week – Utica
Hannah Mackey, Junior, Forward – Locke, NY/Moravia Central
Hannah Mackey led Utica College to its second straight E8 Conference title. Second-seeded Utica defeated Ithaca, 1-0 in the semifinals and then topped No. 4 seed St. John Fisher, 5-2, in the title game. Mackey was named the tournament's most valuable player after tallying two goals and one assist in the final.
Men’s Soccer Player of the Week – Stevens
Joe Cellitti, Sophomore, Midfield – Mendham, NJ/Mendham
Joe Cellitti was named MVP of the Empire 8 Men’s Soccer Championship Tournament after helping Stevens Institute of Technology clinch its seventh-straight E8 crown and the AQ to the NCAA Tournament. The Ducks posted a 5-0 win over Nazareth in the semifinals where Cellitti registered two assists and then defeated Utica 2-0 in the title game. The Ducks have posted 11 shutouts on the season.
Women’s’ Soccer Player of the Week – Ithaca
Aimee Chimera, Freshman, D – Pipersville, PA/Central Bucks East
Aimee Chimera was honored as the MVP of the E8 Women’s Soccer Tournament after leading Ithaca to its second straight Conference Championship. The Bombers defeated St. John Fisher, 6-2 in the semifinals to avenge its only conference loss of the regular season and then topped Nazareth, 3-1, in the finals. With the victories, Ithaca earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, marking the Bomber’s 11th straight trip to the NCAA postseason.
Women’s Volleyball Player of the Week – Nazareth
Maria Allocco, Junior, MB – Ballston Lake, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake
Maria Allocco was named tournament MVP for the third year in a row over the weekend as Nazareth captured its third straight Empire 8 Conference championship in women's volleyball. She had seven kills in 17 attempts in Saturday's three-set sweep of Elmira and then posted 13 kills in 20 attempts with six blocks in a four-set triumph over Stevens in the title match. The two weekend wins enabled Nazareth to improve to 29-8 overall and to gain a berth in the NCAA Tournament for the 11th time.
Men’s Swimming & Diving Athlete – Stevens
Ravi Sun, Sophomore – Arkadelphia, AK/Arkadelphia
Sophomore Ravi Sun won three events and was part of two winning relays as well to lead Stevens to a win at the NYU Fall Invitational. Sun won the 100- and 200-yard backstrokes with times of 52.72 and 1:57.25, respectively. His 1:57.28 was good for a win in the 200-IM. Sun also swam the backstroke leg of the 200-medley relay, another win, as the group teamed to finish with a time of 1:36.18. Sun also was a member of the winning 400-medley relay that finished in 3:35.07.
Women’s Swimming & Diving Athlete – Stevens
Danielle Caruso, Freshman – Chesterfield, NJ/Northern Burlington Country Regional
Danielle Caruso led the Ducks to a second place finish at the NYU Invite. She teamed to help win the the 400-medley relay (4:02.04) and was second in the 1,650-free(17:45.13). She also helped the Ducks take second in the 200-free relay with a time of 1:39.93. On Saturday, Caruso won the 200-free with a 1:57.18, and she earned her second win of the day in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 5:11.01. She also assisted the 400-free relay team tally a 3:41.92 in taking second in the event.