Empire 8 Conference Players of the Week - Feb. 11
Empire 8 Players of the Week
February 4 – February 10
Men’s Basketball
Player – Sage Brown, Alfred (Senior, Cortland, N.Y.)
Brown helped the Saxons go 3-0 on the week behind his pinpoint shooting. He finished the week with a shooting average of 76.0% from the floor including a 57.1% mark from beyond the arc. He averaged 17 points per game as Alfred won all three games they played. Brown recorded a double-double with his 12 points and 10 rebounds against Stevens, and had a week-high 22 points against Sage. Brown totaled 22 rebounds, 10 assists and four blocks on the week as well.
Rookie – Bobby Connors, Hartwick (Freshman, Rockville Centre, N.Y.)
Connors averaged 14 points, seven rebounds, and three assists in a 1-1 week for Hartwick. He shot 56% (9-16) from the field and 44% (4-9) from three-point range and contributed three blocked shots and three steals. Connors scored 17 points with eight rebounds and four assists in a 106-99 victory over Elmira on Tuesday. He made six of 10 shots from the floor and three of seven from three-point range. On Sunday against St. John Fisher, he registered 11 points, six rebounds, three steals, two assists, and two blocked shots.
Women’s Basketball
Player – Rachel Benedict, Nazareth (Junior, Brockport, N.Y.)
Benedict helped the Golden Flyers to a pair of weekend conference wins as she averaged 19 points and 10.5 rebounds against St. John Fisher and Utica. She had a game-high 25 points with four three-pointers and seven rebounds in Friday’s win over Fisher. Against Utica Saturday, she posted her 14th double-double of the season by combining 13 points with 14 rebounds. Over the two games, she shot 14-for-28 from the field.
Rookie – Sydney Przygoda, Utica (Freshman, Freehold, N.J.)
Przygoda was a dominant inside force for the Pioneers in three games last week as Utica went 1-2. On Tuesday, she helped Utica break out of a losing skid as her 20 points and 14 rebounds helped the team to a last-second victory over Sage. She continued to shine in a pair of defeats against Elmira and Nazareth. She put up 16 points and nine rebounds against Elmira, and then had nine points and ten rebounds against Nazareth.
Indoor Track & Field
Men’s Track Athlete – Alex Kainer, Stevens (Senior, South. Brunswick, N.J.)
Kainer set two school records at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational. He broke his own record in the 200-meter dash, finishing 11th overall out of 205 runners with a time of 21.65 seconds. The senior previously reached the finish in 21.91 seconds in last season’s Empire 8 Indoor Championships. Kainer’s mark is currently the seventh-fastest time in Division III and the fourth-fastest time in the Atlantic Region. He followed that up by running an impressive third leg of the 4x400 relay, joining junior Daniel Kaba, freshman Trevor LaDue and junior Nicholas DiMaria in completing the race in 3:20.58, which eclipsed the previous record of 3:21.48, which was set at last year’s Valentine Invitational. The time was 22nd overall and currently ranks 29th in Division III and fifth in the Atlantic Region.
Men’s Field Athlete – Kyle Rollins, St. John Fisher (Sophomore, Groveland, N.Y.)
Rollins shined for the Cardinals on Friday at the Brockport Late Night Invite. The sophomore topped the leader board in the triple jump after leaping 14.07 meters and then went on to finish second overall in the long jump with a 6.82-meter jump. His effort in the triple jump is currently the 21
st-best mark in the event in all of NCAA Division III.
Women’s Track Athlete – Gina Dello Russo, Stevens (Junior, Whippany, N.J.)
Dello Russo finished 20th in the 200-meter dash out of 223 runners at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational, reaching the line in 24.920 seconds. Her time was the fastest mark among Division III runners and is tops in the Atlantic Region by nearly a half- second. It is currently the third-fastest time in Division III. The Whippany, New Jersey native also finished 20th out of 172 runners in the 400, posting the top Division III time of 56.02 seconds. The time is currently second in Division III and tops in the Atlantic Region.
Women’s Field Athlete – Katie Weeks, Stevens (Senior, Toms River, N.J.)
Weeks finished fifth out of 44 competitors at the David Hemery Valentine Invitational, reaching 17.66 meters in her fifth (and final) attempt to break the school record in the weight throw. The distance bested the previous record of 17.58 meters, which was set by current assistant coach Alina Duran in 2013. The distance is currently tops in the Atlantic Region and fifth in Division III. She also placed 11th in the shot put with a distance of 12.48 meters.
Men’s Volleyball
Player – Ethan Ross, Nazareth (Senior, Evanston, Ill.)
Ross helped the Golden Flyers to a pair of wins last week by posting a .692 hitting percentage (18-0-26) in three-set sweeps of Keuka and Bard. He went 10-0-14 with one block in Tuesday's non-conference win over Keuka. He then went 8-0-12 with four blocks Friday as Nazareth opened UVC play with a three-set sweep of Bard.
Rookie – Stedman van Arsdale, Stevens (Freshman, Westport, Conn.)
van Arsdale registered career-bests of five kills and four block assists in Stevens 3-1 win over MIT. The freshman also recorded a team-high .667 hitting percentage in the Ducks sweep over Elmira. van Arsdale ended the weekend with a total of 12 kills, nine block assists and three digs as the Ducks went 3-0.
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished 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 E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com and
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