E8 Athletes of the Week: January 19
Below are the athletes earning weekly honors for the week of January 12-18:
Men’s Swimming & Diving Athlete – Alfred
Dave Coombes, Senior – Dansville, NY/Dansville
Dave Coombes won four individual events and swam on three winning relays as Alfred won dual meets at LeMoyne and at home against Hartwick. In the win at LeMoyne, he won the 200 free (1:48.38) and 100 free (48.25) and swam the anchor on the winning 200 free relay (1:29.43). Against Hartwick he swam the lead leg on the winning 200 medley relay (1:39.01) and the anchor on the winning 200 free relay (1:27.68). He also won the 200 freestyle (1:43.25) and 100 free (46.70).
Women’s Swimming & Diving Athlete – Ithaca
Grace Ayer, Sophomore – Delmar, NY/Bethlehem
Grace Ayer helped the Bombers to a first-place finish out of seven teams at Rensselaer's Kumpf Invitational Saturday at Robison Pool. Ayer continued to collect individual accolades, starting with a first-place finish in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:12.37. She earned another victory with a time of 2:10.34 in the 200-yard backstroke, touching first in a field of 14 entries to set a meet record. Ayer took her third top spot of the day in the 200-yard breaststroke, finishing in a time of 2:30.10.
Men’s Basketball Player – Nazareth
Mitch Ford, Junior, Forward – Victor, NY/Victor
Mitch Ford helped the Golden Flyers split a pair of Empire 8 Conference games over the weekend as he averaged 28.5 points and 13.5 rebounds in games against Alfred and Utica. He scored 19 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in a loss at home to Alfred on Friday, then erupted for a career-high 38 points with 14 rebounds in a 67-61 win at Utica on Saturday. Ford shot 71 percent (22-for-31) from the field in the two games and 75 percent (12-for-16) from the free throw line.
Men’s Basketball Rookie – Ithaca
Marc Chasin, Freshman, Guard – Coral Gables, FL/Gulliver
Marc Chasin helped the Bombers to a 3-0 week, guiding the Bombers to two road conference wins and a home victory over No. 24 Scranton. Chasin scored in double figures all three games, starting with a 17-point effort in an 88-80 overtime win against Scranton. He followed up with 27 points in a 71-70 win at Stevens, and 22 points in a 96-91 victory over Hartwick.
Women’s Basketball Player – Stevens
Kaitlyn Astel, Junior, Guard – Staten Island, NY/Staten Island Tech
Kaitlyn Astel averaged 18 points and seven rebounds in a 2-1 week for the Ducks, who saw their conference record rise to 6-1. After a 12-point, six-rebound performance in 16 minutes against The College of New Jersey, Astel poured in a game and career-high 25 points and 10 rebounds against Ithaca on Friday. Asel then followed up that performance on Saturday with 19 points and five rebounds in a win against Elmira. Astel also added six assists, five blocks and one steal during the week.
Women’s Basketball Rookie – Elmira
Danielle Cleary, Freshman, Guard – Rochester, NY/Our Lady of Mercy
Danielle Cleary wins rookie honors for the fifth time this season as she helped Elmira go 1-1 this weekend in a pair of Empire 8 Conference contests. She averaged a team-high 13 points in the two games and went 5-for-9 from 3-point range. Cleary knocked down four of her five made 3-pointers in Elmira's three-point road win over Hartwick and scored five of the Soaring Eagles’ final seven points down the stretch.
Men's Indoor Track Athlete – Nazareth
Tom Sippie, Junior – Toms River, NJ/Toms River South
Tom Sippie helped Nazareth to a seventh-place finish at the RIT Tiger Invitational Saturday as he finished first in the 400-meter dash in 49.70 seconds, a half of a second off the Nazareth school record. He ranks third nationally in that event. He also anchored Nazareth's winning 4x200 meter relay, using a 21.6-second split to help the Golden Flyers to a school-record winning time of 1:33.77.
Men's Indoor Field Athlete – Nazareth
Luis Rivera, Junior – Rochester, NY/James Monroe
Luis Rivera broke his own school record for the second time this season in the 35-pound weight throw with a second-place finish in that event at Saturday's RIT Tiger Invitational. His toss of 17.62 meters ranks seventh nationally and surpassed his previous best throw by more than a foot.
Women's Indoor Track Athlete – Nazareth
Hannah Brackley, Senior – Horseheads, NY/Elmira Notre Dame
Hannah Brackley got off to a strong start to the second semester on Saturday with a first-place finish in the 400-meter dash at the RIT Tiger Invitational with a time of 60:52 seconds. She also anchored Nazareth's 4x400 meter relay that finished second with a time of 4:15.7.
Women's Indoor Field Athlete – Utica
Sarah Wiatr, Junior – Poland, NY/West Canada Valley
Sarah Wiatr took home first place and set a new school record in the triple jump with a leap of 11.55 meters as the Pioneers placed ninth at the RIT Tiger Invitational Saturday. Her mark of 11.55 meters is currently ranked No. 1 in all of Division III on the national women's indoor qualifying list.