Empire 8 Conference Players of the Week
Empire 8 Players of the Week
Sept. 10-17, 2018
Football Offensive Player – Brockport
Eamon Gillespie, Senior - Middletown, NY/Middletown
Eamon Gillespie had a stellar performance for the No. 4 Golden Eagles in a lopsided 65-12 Homecoming win on Saturday over Saint Lawrence. The senior set the tone in the contest, catching a seven-yard touchdown to open the game. His second score of the matchup came early in the second quarter, this time taking a 16-yard catch to the house to push to a 33-0 lead. The Middletown, N.Y. native turned in seven catches on the day for 161 total yards, including a 70-yard catch that would lead to a Brockport TD.
Football Defensive Player – Alfred
Cole Reed, Senior – Gratz, PA/Upper Dauphin Area
Alfred’s Cole Reed had 17 tackles (seven solo; 10 assisted) and an interception that he returned 34 yards. Reeds performance with 17 tackles is tied for 10th all-time for most tackles in a single game.
Football Special Teams Player - Hartwick
Kevin Roberts, Freshman - Montgomery, NY/Valley Central
Roberts made six extra points as the Hawks traveled to King’s College on Saturday. He also averaged 55.0 yards in seven kickoffs to pace the Hartwick special teams unit.
Men’s Golf Player – Oswego
Sean Paul Owen, Senior – Horseheads, NY/Horseheads
Owen claimed the top spot at the Empire 8 Fall Championship, shooting a two-day total of 145 (+1). He finished three strokes ahead of St. John Fisher's Colin McGaugh. The Horseheads, N.Y. helped the Lakers to a one stroke lead over the Cardinals heading into the spring. This is the first time Fisher has trailed after two rounds since the four-round format was introduced in the 2006-07 season.
Women’s Golf Player – Cortland
Danielle Bambola, Junior – Miller Place, NY/Miller Place
Bambola finished first in a field of 56 golfers at the William Smith Invitational. She recorded a 74 Saturday and a 75 Sunday for a five-over par total of 149 strokes, five strokes ahead of the runner-up and one stroke shy of her career-best score. Her performance helped Cortland finish second in the 11-team field.
Men’s Cross Country Runner - Utica
Mitchell Marlow, Junior – Malone, NY/Franklin Academy
Marlow set a new course record time of 16:28, and the Pioneer pack was not far behind as they posted a perfect team finish with the minimum 15 points at the Mitchell College Invitational this weekend. Marlow's time on the five kilometer course smashed the previous course record by 47 seconds, and the Pioneers took the top eight places in the race in front of the previous course record holder, who finished ninth.
Women’s Cross Country Runner – Utica
Kaitlyn Stinson, Senior - South Kortright, NY/ South Kortright
Stinson posted a second consecutive individual victory while lifting the Pioneers to a third consecutive race win to begin the 2018 season at Saturday's Mitchell Invitational. Her time of 19:15 for the five kilometer course headlined a dominant Utica effort which saw the Pioneers place a perfect 15 points in the scoring while also bringing the top nine runners to the line. Stinson set a new race record for the Mitchell Invitational on its current course at Mitchell Woods by two minutes.
Women’s Tennis Player – Nazareth
Elizabeth Karstedt, Senior – Eden, NY/Eden
Karstedt helped the Golden Flyers improve to 4-0 overall and 3-0 in E8 matches by winning twice each at singles and doubles over the weekend. She won 6-4, 6-2 at second singles and 8-7 (7-5) at third doubles with Maelah Nadeau as Nazareth edged Stevens 5-4 Sunday. On Saturday, she won 6-3, 6-0 at second singles and 8-1 at second doubles as Nazareth blanked Hartwick 9-0.
Field Hockey Offensive Player- St. John Fisher
Kelly Bergamo, Junior, Forward- Liverpool, NY/Liverpool
Kelly Bergamo of the St. John Fisher College field hockey team posted eight points last week as the Cardinals downed SUNY Geneseo and SUNY New Paltz to improve to 4-1 on the season. Bergamo totaled three goals overall with two assists and had six shots to her name. Against the Knights, Bergamo broke a 1-1 tie with a game-winning goal in overtime before notching two more goals and assisting on two others in another overtime win against the Hawks on Saturday. For the season, Bergamo ranks second on the team in points and goals and is among the conference leaders.
Field Hockey Defensive Player- Washington & Jefferson
Rena Israel, Sophomore, GK- Wexford, PA/North Allegheny
Israel recorded a pair of shutouts last week, leading the Presidents to 1-0 victories over both Slippery Rock and Stevens. Both triumphs hold significance for the Red & Black, as the win over The Rock was the program's second-ever against a Division II program and the victory over the Ducks gave W&J a perfect 5-0 overall record and a 1-0 start in the E8. In the pair of wins, Israel combined to make five saves and commanded a Presidents defense that held its opponents to just 17 shots.
Women’s Volleyball Player- Elmira
Taylor Kaznowski, Senior, Setter- Hamburg, NY/Frontier
Kaznowski orchestrated the Elmira attack this past week and led the Purple and Gold to a trio of wins (3-2) against Hilbert, D'Youville and SUNY Canton. She amassed 128 assists (7.53 per set), including a 36-assists performance against Oswego State, as well as 36 digs (2.12 per set), seven aces (0.41 per set) and a pair of blocks (0.12 per set). She also chipped in with five kills (0.29 per set). Kaznowksi produced season highs in digs (11) against D'Youville and service aces (4) against St. Lawrence. For her efforts at the Oswego State Invitational, Kaznowski was named to the All-Tournament Team.
Women’s Volleyball Rookie- Stevens
Elizabeth Chu, Freshman, Libero- Old Tappan, NJ/Northern Valley
Chu continues to be a force at libero for Stevens, totaling 112 digs over five matches (19 sets). The Old Tappan, New Jersey native continues to lead the conference with 5.55 digs per set. During the review period, Chu also handed out 12 assists, served seven aces and recorded a kill.
Men’s Soccer Offensive Player- Stevens
Adam Silva, Freshman, Midfielder- Wayne, NJ/Seton Hall Prep
The freshman midfielder recorded three goals and an assist as Stevens went 3-0 during the review period, including a 3-0 blanking of St. John Fisher to open conference play. Silva recorded a pair of game-winning goals and fired four of his five shots on net. For the season, Silva leads the conference in both points and goals.
Men’s Soccer Defensive Player- Alfred
Joe Gonzalez, Senior, Goalie- Marion, NY/Marion
Senior goalkeeper Joe Gonzalez picked up his first two wins in goal this week as Alfred University defeated both Pitt-Bradford and Utica College on Wednesday and Saturday, respectively. In total, Gonzalez faced 13 shots with 11 on goal. He made six saves against Pitt-Bradford and allowed just the one goal in the Saxons’ 3-1 win. On Saturday at Empire 8 foe Utica College, Gonzalez stopped all four shots on goal in the 1-0 overtime win for his first AU shutout.
Women’s Soccer Offensive Player- Elmira
Taylor Hanson, Sophomore, Forward- Chatham, NY/Chatham
Hanson was the fuel that powered the Soaring Eagles to back-to-back wins this week against Wells and SUNY Cobleskill. The Chatham, New York, native registered her first-ever hat trick in a 7-1 victory over Wells. She followed that up by scoring EC's fourth goal in a 4-0 shutout of SUNY Cobleskill. Following the four-goal outburst last week, Hanson sits in third place in the Empire 8 in goals scored.
Women’s Soccer Defensive Player- Nazareth
Hannah Miller, Junior, Goalie, Butler, PA/Butler
Miller helped the Golden Flyers secure a win and a tie in a pair of non-conference games last week. She had 11 saves in Nazareth's 1-0 win at Brockport on 9/12 and have 10 saves in a 1-1 tie at Ithaca on 9/15. She has a 0.49 GAA and a .944 save percentage with two shutouts in 2018. She has 11 shutouts for her career.