Empire 8 Conference Players of the Week - October 22
Empire 8 Players of the Week
October 15 - October 21
Cross Country
Men's Runner - Mitchell Marlow, Utica (Junior, Malone, N.Y.)
Marlow led the way for Utica with his third-place finish at the Hamilton College Short Course meet. He averaged a 5:25 mile in throwing down a time of 16:49 on the five-kilometer course at Hamilton's golf course. The Pioneers did not score in the meet, which was conducted on a modified scoring system between separate four kilometer and five kilometer races.
Field Hockey
Offensive Player - Rylee Meelan, Utica (Senior, Clinton, N.Y.)
Meelan continued her climb in the record books this weekend while heading up the Utica cause in a pair of resounding victories this past week. The senior from Clinton, NY potted a total of five goals in two matches while peppering opposing nets with twelve shots on goal. On Wednesday, Meelan canned a hat trick to aid Utica to a huge 4-1 win over Skidmore. On Saturday, she scored twice more in a 7-1 win over Elmira College in Empire 8 play. Meelan started the week in seventh place on the college's all-time points list with 87, and her ten points this week moved her past Carla Behe and Alaina Stojkovski on that list and into the fifth position. She needs just one more point to tie former 2006 Empire 8 Player of the Year Katie Kutas for fourth. She will also tie Kutas on UC's career goal scoring list with two more goals. She currently has 43 goals in her career.
Defensive Player - Megan Chamberlain, Utica (Freshman, Queensbury, N.Y.)
Chamberlain turned aside nine of ten Skidmore shots in backstopping Utica to a 4-1 non-conference win on Wednesday. She turned in five key first half saves to allow Utica's Rylee Meelan to square up the score, then turned in four more saves in the second half as the Pioneers pulled away.
Football
Offensive Player - Jake Smith, SUNY Cortland (Senior, Albany, N.Y.)
Smith tied a school single-game record with three TD receptions in Cortland's 56-3 win at Hartwick. He caught a 25-yard TD pass in the first quarter, an 18-yard scoring pass in the second quarter, and a 51-yard TD pass in the third quarter. Smith finished with seven catches for 176 yards (25.1 yds./catch), the 11th-highest single-game receiving yardage total at Cortland. Smith has caught at least one TD pass in each of his last eight games, one game shy of tying the school record.
Defensive Player - Dehstin Smart, Utica (Senior, Paterson, N.J.)
Smart turned in another spectacular performance on home turf as the Pioneers took care of business in a 30-22 win over Alfred. The senior rover put up a team-best 10 tackles and a contribution may have come in the fourth quarter. With a thin 20-19 lead on the board and the Saxons driving into Pioneer territory, Smart recovered a fumble and promptly took it 60 yards to the endzone for the score helped the Pioneers stave off a late Saxon rally as they went on to prevail by eight points.
Special Teams Player - Ben Sennett, Alfred (Junior, Rushville, N.Y.)
Sennett salvaged many drives for the Saxons, who struggled offensively in the game. He went 3-for-3 on field goal attempts, hitting two from more than 30 yards out. He nailed his career-high with a 39-yarder (second longest field goal in the Empire 8 in 2018) before drilling another field goal from 36 yards out. In addition to the nine points from field goals, he added another on an extra point.
Men's Golf
Player - Luke Labenski, Stevens (Sophomore, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.)
Labenski earned his best collegiate finish, tying for second place to lead the Stevens Golf Team to a tournament victory at the Stevenson Fall Invitational. The Ponte Verda Beach, Florida native shot a 6-over-77 against strong winds to lead the team to a two-shot victory.
Men's Soccer
Offensive Player - Zachary Gloskin, Alfred (Sophomore, New City, N.Y.)
Gloskin single-handedly lifted the Saxons over the Gators in an Empire 8 showdown that had significant playoff implications. The sophomore scored a career-high two goals in the game against Sage that solidified the Saxons place in the Empire 8 Championships for the first time since 2014.
Defensive Player - Ben Lawrence, Houghton (Senior, Marlborough, Conn.)
Leading the team from the center back position in two shutouts on the week (2-0 over Alfred State; 5-0 over Utica), Lawrence also scored twice with an additional assist in the 5-0 win over the Pioneers.
Women's Soccer
Offensive Co-Player - Samantha Trimblett, Sage (Senior, Monroe, N.Y.)
Trimblett had a banner week with 4 goals including a hat trick in the team's win over Houghton. Moved into the No. 2 spot on the Sage career point list with 113 and is No. 3 in career goals (45), and holds the career assist record with 23. A CoSIDA Google Cloud nominee, she has now played 66 games which ranks 14th all-time at Sage.
Offensive Co-Player - Jenna Mazza, Utica (Senior, Frankfort, N.Y.)
Mazza turned in a simply sublime performance in a non-conference match against local rival SUNY Poly last week. The senior recorded her first career hat trick, scoring three times in a span of just over 17 minutes to help expand an early 1-0 lead into a 4-0 final score in the crosstown triumph.
Defensive Co-Player - Hannah Miller, Nazareth (Junior, Butler, Pa.)
Miller continued her steady play as the Golden Flyers' goalkeeper as she posted two more shutouts to keep alive Nazareth's hopes for a post-season playoff berth. She had seven saves in a 0-0 double overtime tie at St. John Fisher last Wednesday and then equaled a career high with 16 saves in a 1-0 non-conference win over Carnegie Mellon last Saturday. For the season, Miller has a 7-5-4 record with a 0.90 goals-against average, a .897 save percentage and six shutouts.
Defensive Co-Player - Samantha Schmidt, Sage (Sophomore, Schenectady, N.Y.)
In a 2-0 week for the Gators in which they only allowed one goal in their two wins, Schmidt was a leader on the defensive side and also poured in three assists on defense in the team's win over Houghton.
Women's Volleyball
Player - Amber Smith, Alfred (Junior, Penfield, N.Y.)
Smith broke multiple career highs as she helped the Saxons not only go 3-0, but also punch their ticket into the Empire 8 Tournament for the second consecutive year and only the second time in school history. She recorded back-to-back double- doubles as she had 24 kills and 24 digs against Hartwick College and then 30 kills and 21 digs against Utica College. The 30 kills is a new career-high for the junior while the 24 digs are also a top mark for her. She also recorded four aces against Utica for another career-highlight as she posted a collegiate-best, 35.0 points when she added a solo block. Smith totaled 68 kills on the week, 54 digs, seven aces, two block solos, two block assists and one set assist. Smith had three set-winning points on the week.
Rookie - Alea Steigerwald, St. John Fisher (Freshman, Penfield, N.Y.)
Steigerwald and the St. John Fisher volleyball team wrapped up last week's action with a 1-1 overall record and one Empire 8 Conference victory over Elmira. Steigerwald moved into fourth place all-time on the St. John Fisher women's volleyball kills in a single season list, currently sitting at 406 on the season. The freshman finished with a game- high 26 kills in the five-set thriller with Stevens on Saturday. She also finished the match with 22 digs, three blocks, and a .240 hitting percentage. The Penfield native followed up with another game-high 13 kills in the Fisher straight set win over Elmira, totaling 16 digs, four service aces, two blocks and a .273 hitting percentage.
About the Empire 8 Conference
The members of the Empire 8 are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and aspire to be regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership seeks to distinguish itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the Empire 8.