Empire 8 Conference Players of the Week - April 1
Empire 8 Players of the Week
March 25 – March 31
Baseball
Player – Buzz Shirley, Ithaca (Junior, Ithaca, N.Y.)
Shirley helped guide Ithaca to a 4-1 conference week as he batted .467 (7-for-15) with two home runs, two doubles, a triple, nine RBI and four runs scored. He notched 17 total bases over the five games (1.133 slugging) and was 47-of-48 on defensive chances. He had at least one hit in each of the five contests.
Pitcher – Jake Binder, Ithaca (Senior, Syracuse, N.Y.)
Binder and Charlie Hammel combined to toss a nine-inning no-hitter against SUNY Canton Saturday as Ithaca topped the Kangaroos, 10-1. Binder fired the first seven innings and struck out seven batters with four walks, while Hammel tossed the final two innings in relief to complete the no-hitter, which was the first for Ithaca since 1999.
Rookie – Sutton Dole, Stevens (Freshman, Houston, Texas)
Dole ended the week with a .350 batting average. The Houston, Texas native recorded seven hits over a five-game stretch. He ended the week with three home runs, two of which came in each of Stevens' wins over St. John Fisher.
Men’s Lacrosse
Player – Cale Donegan, Alfred (Sophomore, Corning, N.Y.)
Donegan was a standout in the Saxons’ 2-0 week as he totaled 12 points from 10 goals and two assists. He had mirrored performances in Alfred’s 28-6 win over Hilbert and its 16-5 win over Empire 8 foe, Utica, as he scored five goals and recorded one assist in each showing. Donegan was credited with the game-winning goal against Hilbert. He also picked up two groundballs in each contest while causing a turnover against Hilbert. Four of his five goals against Utica occurred in the fourth quarter as the Saxons totaled 10 in the final 15 minutes while only allowing one in the period.
Goalkeeper – Scott Kimiecik, Alfred (Freshman, Randolph, N.J.)
Kimiecik played his first full game on Saturday as he totaled 13 saves on 29 shots faced (18 on goal). He picked up his second collegiate career win in the Saxons’ defeat of Empire 8 foe, Utica. This is his first game with double-digit saves and the most shots that he has faced all season. Earlier in the week, in non-conference action against Hilbert, Kimiecik played for the entire third quarter where he made three saves on four shots faced while allowing just one goal. He picked up one groundball in each showing while causing a turnover against Utica.
Women’s Lacrosse
Player – Hailey Pooler, Hartwick (Senior, Adams Center, N.Y.)
Pooler had a big week, putting up 14 points over two Hartwick victories and tying and setting some career highs in the process. In Monday's 17-6 win over Wells, she had three goals on four shots and two assists, tying for the team high of five points, and contributed elsewhere with two ground balls, a caused turnover, and a draw control. On Wednesday in a 21-4 Empire 8 win over Elmira, Pooler tied her career high with nine points and set a career high with seven goals on ten shots, all game highs. She was also second on the team with four ground balls.
Goalkeeper – Ashley Jablonowski, Hartwick (Junior, Levittown, N.Y.)
Jablonowski made 14 saves on 27 shots faced in two wins last week, as well as scooping a ground ball. In Monday's 17-6 win over Wells, she played 51:25 and had 13 saves on 22 shots faced, letting up only six goals. This included seven saves in a closely contested first half, allowing the Hawks to take a 6-4 lead into the break and blow the game open in the final 30 minutes. Jablonowski also played the second half in another 'Wick win on Wednesday, registering a save and a ground ball in a 21-4 Empire 8 victory over Elmira.
Softball
Player – Sam Chadbourne, Elmira (Senior, Braintree, Mass.)
Chadbourne had a big week at the plate, guiding Elmira to a 5-1 week as she hit .316, tying for the team lead in hits (6), while slugging a team-best .789. Of her six hits, three were doubles and two were home runs. She also paced the Soaring Eagles’ offense with eight RBIs over the six games. She had at least one hit in four of the six games, including a 2-for-4 showing with a double, a run scored and an RBI in a 10-2 win in the nightcap against Pitt-Bradford. Chadbourne drove in a career-high five RBIs in the late game vs. Morrisville State (W, 10-2), which included an inside-the-park grand slam. In the first half of a doubleheader vs. Clarks Summit (W, 5-0), she hit her second home run of the week, finishing 2-for-3 with two RBIs and one run. She was perfect in the field, too, with 33 putouts and one assist for a 1.000 fielding percentage.
Pitcher – Marissa Cappello, Stevens (Senior, Mantua, N.J.)
Cappello pitched 8.0 innings and earned her fourth win of the season in Stevens’ 2-1 win over NYU. The Mantua, New Jersey native struck out five batters and allowed just one run to help lead to the Ducks in game two of their doubleheader.
Men’s Tennis
Player – Stephen Gervase, Elmira (Junior, Lebanon, Conn.)
Gervase went 2-0 at the top spot in singles and doubles to lead Elmira to its first win of the season, an 8-1 triumph over Sage in the 2019 conference opener. He dropped just three games in a 6-0, 6-3 win at No. 1 singles. Teamed up with Zackarie Stedge to claim his first No. 1 doubles win of the season over Sage's top tandem by an 8-6 score.
Outdoor Track & Field
Men’s Track Athlete – Alex Spicer, Alfred (Freshman, Corning, N.Y.)
Spicer won the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.24, defeating 68 other competitors including Division II runners from Daemen and a Division I runner from St. Bonaventure during the SUNY Geneseo Invitational on Saturday. He also took seventh in the 400-meter dash with a time of 51.80. Spicer teamed with Jackson Trimboli, Rashid Abuelmaali and Papa Dioum to take third in the 4x100-meter relay with a time of 44.77 on Saturday.
Men’s Field Athlete – DeAndre Fyffe, Utica (Freshman, Kingston, Jamaica)
Fyffe turned in the most impressive outdoor debut imaginable at this weekend's Geneseo Invitational. The freshman turned in event victories in both the shot put and discus, and arguably had the greatest debut performance in any event in Utica history in the discus. Fyffe threw a school and Empire 8 record 52.10 meters on his first collegiate throw in the discus. His maiden throw in the discus currently stands third nationally, and would have gotten Fyffe on the podium at last year's NCAA outdoor championships. He also cracked the national leaderboard in the shot put as his winning throw of 15.39 meters is tenth in all of Division III.
Women’s Track Athlete – Edena Sanchez, Houghton (Sophomore, Amsterdam, N.Y.)
Sanchez won the 800-meter run at the Geneseo Early Season Invitational with a facility-record and E8 leading time of 2:20.
Women’s Field Athlete – Katrina Cornick, Utica (Sophomore, Mason City, Iowa)
In her collegiate outdoor track debut, Cornick landed just short of a school record in the discus this past weekend at Geneseo. She came through with a throw of 39.25 meters to place second. The throw is currently 35
th-best nationally.
Men’s Volleyball
Player – David Lehman, Stevens (Junior, Oakland, Calif.)
Lehman collected a career-high 30 kills in Stevens’ five-set loss to Cal Lutheran. The Oakland, California native averaged 4.57 kills per set over three matches. Lehman collected an ace in each match and ended the week with 14 blocks.
Rookie – Josh Bigford, St. John Fisher (Freshman, Cicero, N.Y.)
Bigford helped lead the Cardinals to a perfect 3-0 over the weekend as the Cardinals defeated Sage, Vassar, and Daemen. He paced the Fisher offense during its three-match week, finishing the week with a total of 39 kills, 27 digs, six blocks, two service aces, and a .389 average hitting percentage. Bigford was unstoppable versus Sage as the freshman posted 16 kills on 21 attempts, a .714 hitting percentage, and six digs. On Saturday, the Cicero native tallied 14 kills, 12 digs, and two service aces in the four-set conference win over Vassar. He would then follow up with nine kills, nine digs, and four blocks in the Cardinals’ straight set victory over Daemen.
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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