General | 11/8/2021 12:57:48 PM
Below are the Empire 8 Players of the Week, released on November 8, 2021, for games played from November 1-November 7. It is the tenth Empire 8 weekly honors release of the 2021-22 season. Sports featured include men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, field hockey, football, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s swimming and diving and women’s volleyball.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Cole Eells, Alfred, Gr., G, Ithaca, NY/Ithaca
Eells scored a game-high 20 points with five made 3-pointers as he helped the Saxons pick up the season-opening win over SUNY Brockport on Saturday. He shot .500 from beyond the arc and was 5-of-7 from the charity stripe. He also pulled down four rebounds (three defensive) during the win.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Andrew Rocci, Hartwick, Fr., G, Hanover, MA/Hanover
Rocci had an impressive collegiate debut on Saturday, nearly picking up a double-double against Union. He dropped 11 points and grabbed nine rebounds, and also contributed elsewhere with two assists, two blocks, and a steal.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Maggie Kirby, Hartwick, So., G, Selkirk, NY/Bethlehem
Kirby led all players with 14 points in Hartwick's season-opening, 54-40 win over Union on Saturday, shooting an efficient 7-of-9 from the field. She also pitched in with three rebounds, a steal, and an assist.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Anne Spila, Alfred, Fr., F, Mechanicsburg, PA/Trinity
Spila averaged almost a point a minute, scoring seven points in 11 minutes as the Saxons blew past SUNY Cobleskill, 71-47 on Friday night. She was 2-for-4 from the floor and a perfect 3-for-3 from the free throw line. Spila added three offensive rebounds, two defensive rebounds, an assist and a steal in the win.
FIELD HOCKEY
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Bre Socker, St. John Fisher, Gr., F, Liverpool, NY/Liverpool
Socker was named the Empire 8 Tournament Most Valuable Player for the second consecutive season after scoring three goals and an assist during the tournament, leading the Cardinals to their third league title in program history. On Tuesday, Socker scored twice and added an assist in a semifinal win over Nazareth. Socker scored the game-winning goal just 3:23 into Saturday’s 3-0 win over Utica in the E8 championship game Saturday. It is Socker’s third E8 weekly honor of 2021.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Selena Emery, St. John Fisher, Fr., D, Greene, NY/Greene
Emery led a stout St. John Fisher defensive unit that recorded a pair of shutouts, while surrendering just 11 total shots (four on goal) during the Empire 8 Championship Tournament. The Cardinals shutout Nazareth, 6-0 in the semifinals Tuesday and blanked Utica, 3-0 in the championship game Saturday to claim their second straight league title.
FOOTBALL
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Brees Segala, Cortland, Sr., QB, Webster, NY/Webster Schroder
Segala completed all 14 of his pass attempts for 204 yards and four touchdowns, and also ran for a score, in Cortland's 55-3 win at St. John Fisher that secured the outright Empire 8 title for the Red Dragons Saturday. Playing in just the first half, Segala helped the Red Dragons take a 49-0 halftime lead by throwing TD passes of 65, 14, 7 and 3 yards and running for a 3-yard TD. He has completed his last 16 pass attempts dating back to Oct. 30. It is Segala’s fourth E8 weekly honor of 2021.
CO-DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Joe Copp, Alfred, So., LB, Minoa, NY/East Syracuse-Minoa
Copp led a Saxon defense that held Utica College to only 17 yards of rushing as he had a game-high eight tackles with seven of them being solo efforts in Alfred’s 24-17 win on Saturday. Copp had 2.5 tackles for a loss of 19 yards, including a 13-yard loss on a sack. He also blocked a punt in the second quarter.
CO-DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Joe Miller-LaBar, Morrisville, Jr., LB, Groton, NY/Lansing
Miller-LaBar contributed to a stellar defensive game for the Mustangs in the 13-7 victory over Brockport Saturday, posting eight total stops, including four solo tackles. Two and half of his tackles were for a loss of seven yards, and one was a sack for a loss of five as the defensive unit held Brockport to a mere 46 yards rushing and 186 yards total offense, while keeping the Golden Eagles scoreless on the offensive side of the ball and forcing two turnovers.
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Dylan Dubuque, Cortland, Sr., LB, East Greenbush, NY/Columbia
Dubuque blocked a field goal that he then returned 64 yards for a touchdown during Cortland's 55-3 win at St. John Fisher Saturday. Dubuque has blocked three kicks this year (two punts, one field goal), with all three resulting in Cortland touchdowns, and he has scored three non-offensive TDs this fall (fumble recovery, interception, blocked FG return). As a starting linebacker, Dubuque has helped Cortland's defense not allow a touchdown over the last 19 quarters. It is Dubuque’s third E8 weekly honor of 2021.
MEN’S SOCCER
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Drew Decker, Nazareth, Fr., F, Clifton Park, NY/Christian Brothers Academy
Decker was named the Empire 8 Tournament Most Valuable Player after scoring one goal and adding an assist in two E8 Tournament contests for the top-seeded Golden Flyers. Decker scored the game-winning goal versus Houghton in the championship match on Saturday. It is Decker’s third E8 weekly accolade of 2021.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Trevor Clark, Nazareth, So., GK, Fillmore, NY/Fillmore
Clark came off the bench for his first action since September 21 and stopped a pair of penalty kicks to help Nazareth advance to the Empire 8 title game after a 1-1 tie with St. John Fisher on Wednesday. He did not play in the game but was inserted for the penalty kick round in which Nazareth outlasted Fisher, 4-2.
WOMEN’S SOCCER
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Sarah Merriwether, Nazareth, Jr., F/M, Malvern, PA/Great Valley
Merriwether tallied two goals and added an assist in leading Nazareth to the 2021 Empire 8 Women’s Soccer Championship last week. On Wednesday, she scored a goal and an assist in the 3-0 semifinal win over Hartwick and tallied the eventual game-winning goal late in the first half as Nazareth earned a 3-0 win over St. John Fisher in the title game.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Mallory Ott, Nazareth, Sr., D, East Syracuse, NY/East Syracuse-Minoa
Ott was named the Empire 8 Women’s Soccer Championship Tournament Most Valuable Player after helping lead the Golden Flyers to a pair of 3-0 shutout wins versus Hartwick in the semifinals and St. John. Fisher in the championship match Saturday. It is Nazareth’s 11th Empire 8 Women’s Soccer Championship in program history.
MEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Michael Schultz, Hartwick, So., Freestyle/Individual Medley/Butterfly, Binghamton, NY/Chenango Valley
Schultz was a part of four wins (three individual and one medley) in Hartwick's dominant victory over defending Empire 8 Champion Nazareth on Saturday. He claimed wins in the 100-yard butterfly (53.81), 200-fly (1:59.80), and 200-yard individual medley (2:03.51). Schultz also swam the 50-fly leg on Hartwick's 200-yard relay medley winning team (1:39.50). It is Schultz’s second E8 weekly honor of the 2021-22 season.
WOMEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING
ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Victoria Cramp, Alfred, Gr., Diving, Hornell, NY/Hornell
Cramp broke her own school record in the 1-meter, six dive event, as she scored 228.90 on Friday evening in a win against Pitt-Bradford. She won both diving events as she also scored 227.90 from the 3-meter board. Cramp capped off her evening by joining Dani Checa, Macie Francisco and Mia Spencer for the second fastest time in the 200-yard freestyle, combining for a time of 2:10.28.
WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Alea Steigerwald, St. John Fisher, Sr., OH, Rochester, NY/Penfield
Steigerwald was named the Empire 8 Tournament Most Valuable Player for the third straight year after leading the Cardinals to their third consecutive league title over the weekend. Steigerwald slammed 12 kills to go along with seven digs and three service aces in the E8 Semifinal on Friday. She followed that up by hitting .647 with 12 kills and 11 digs in the championship the following day, a three-set win for St. John Fisher over Nazareth. It is Steigerwald’s fifth E8 weekly honor of the 2021 season.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Tessa Grover, Nazareth, Fr., S/RS, Rochester, NY/Penfield
Grover dished out 42 assists to go along with 11 digs and six kills in the Empire 8 Championship Tournament Semifinal win over Hartwick on Friday and added 13 assists and four kills in the championship match against St. John Fisher Saturday. Grover ends the season as a six-time Empire 8 Rookie of the Week.
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.
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