Field Hockey | 9/27/2021 12:54:13 PM
Below are the Empire 8 Players of the Week, released on September 27, 2021, for games played from September 20-September 26. It is the fourth Empire 8 weekly honors release of the 2021-22 season. Sports featured include men’s and women’s cross country, field hockey, football, men’s golf, men’s and women’s soccer, women’s tennis and women’s volleyball.
MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
RUNNER OF THE WEEK – Michael Roberts, Utica, So., Remsen, NY/Remsen
Roberts led the Pioneers to the tape in their fifth place finish at St. Lawrence on Saturday. He averaged a 5:43 mile en route to a 14th place finish and a time of 28:26 over the 8,000-meter course.
WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
RUNNER OF THE WEEK – Jade Dening, Utica, Fr., Remsen, NY/Remsen
Dening led Utica to a fourth place team finish at St. Lawrence on Saturday. Dening set a 6:49 mile pace en route to a time of 25:25 for 6,000-meters, which was good enough for 14th place overall.
FIELD HOCKEY
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Peyton Bentley, Houghton, Jr., F, East Aurora, NY/East Aurora
Bentley recorded a hat-trick and added an assist in Houghton’s 6-0 win over Elmira on Saturday. Bentley assisted on Jace Hunzinger’s goal late in the opening quarter and scored once in the second quarter, once in the third and completed the hat-trick with 7:11 left in regulation. She now has five goals and 11 points in 2021.
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Sabrina Whitehouse, Utica, Gr., F, Greenwich, NY/Greenwich
Whitehouse scored four goals in a pair of games, giving her eight over her last three contests. On Tuesday, she scored once versus St. Lawrence. She followed that up with her second hat-trick in seven days, scoring three times in an 8-0 win over Russell Sage. Whitehouse, a back-to-back E8 Player of the Week, leads all Empire 8 players with 10 goals and 22 points this season.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Madison Maddocks, Hartwick, Jr., GK, Garrison, NY/Walter Panas
Maddocks was an important presence in both of Hartwick's wins this past week. She tied her career high with seven saves in Wednesday's 2-1 win over Union, including a nifty stop in the fourth quarter to prevent the Dutchwomen from taking the lead. Maddocks played all 60 minutes in net, making two saves in Hartwick’s 3-1 win over Washington & Jefferson to open up league play on Saturday evening.
FOOTBALL
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Alex McBurnie, Morrisville, Fr., RB, Brooklyn, NY/James Madison
McBurnie had the hot foot for the Mustangs in the 41-10 victory over Buffalo State on Saturday, carrying the ball 26 times for 191 yards on the day and two touchdowns. McBurnie scored his first collegiate touchdown at the 7:59 mark of the first quarter on a five-yard pound up the middle, before adding his second with 1:17 to go before the half on a nine-yard run. McBurnie's longest run was a 60-yard scamper after breaking three Bengal tackles.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Christopher Cox, Alfred, Sr., LB, Rochester, NY/Pittsford Sutherland
Cox led a stout Saxons defensive unit that limited Kalamazoo to only 10 yards rushing and 129 yards passing in a 10-7 road win for Alfred on Saturday. He had a game-high 14 tackles, including 10 solo tackles. Cox also had a game-high four tackles for a loss of 12 yards including one sack.
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Maki Medici, Utica, Gr., K/P, Watervliet, NY/Shaker
Medici accounted for all of Utica’s scoring on Saturday, drilling three first-half field goals from 30, 42 and 24 yards. He also averaged 39.6 yards on five punts, pinning Union inside their own 20-yard line once.
MEN’S GOLF
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Luke Buckley, St. John Fisher, So., Rochester, NY/Irondequoit
Buckley fired the low round for the Cardinals on Sunday and finished the first round in a tie for 10th place at the Royal Lakes Oglethorpe Invitational in Georgia. Buckley began the round with a pair of birdies and seven consecutive pars before making the turn. The sophomore finished the round with a one-over score of 73.
MEN’S SOCCER
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Riley Rease, St. John Fisher, Fr., F, Nunda, NY/Keshequa
Rease provided all of St. John Fisher's offense in a 2-0 win over Hartwick in the Cardinals Empire 8 debut on Saturday. Rease scored the game-winner in the 35th minute before adding an insurance marker in the 65th minute.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Logan Menna, Nazareth, Fr., GK, Lancaster, NY/Lancaster
Menna recorded his second and third shutouts of the season in a pair of wins last week. He played the first half against Hilbert and made three saves in the shutout win over Keuka on Saturday.
WOMEN’S SOCCER
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Jacey Palmgreen, Alfred, So., D, Rochester, NY/Greece Olympia
Palmgreen doubled her season point total last week as she had four assists in two wins for the Saxons. She assisted on a pair of goals in Alfred’s 3-1 win at Buffalo State Saturday and added two more helpers in a 5-2 win over Russell Sage in E8 action Saturday. It is Palmgreen’s second E8 weekly honor of 2021. Palmgreen is now tied for the Empire 8 lead with five assists this season.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Nevaeh Winston, Elmira, Fr., GK, Wilson, NY/St. Mary’s
Winston stopped 26 of 28 shots on goal over two games for a sparkling .928 save percentage. Against Houghton on Saturday, Winston recorded a season-high 17 saves while allowing just one goal to help the Soaring Eagles earn a 1-1 draw. On Sunday, she added nine saves versus FDU-Florham. She leads the Empire 8 with 60 saves and an .870 save percentage this season.
WOMEN’S TENNIS
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Maddie Cherry, Russell Sage, Fr., Las Vegas, NV/Odyssey Charter
Cherry went 2-0 this week at No. 1 singles as well as 2-0 at the No. 1 doubles and is now 6-0 at No. 1 singles and 6-0 at No. 1 doubles this season. Cherry earned an 8-0 win in doubles and singles win versus Utica Saturday. Against Alfred on Sunday, Cherry picked up a win at No. 1 singles, by a score of 6-0, 6-1. She teamed with senior Taylor Gillespie for an 8-0 win in doubles play, as the duo is 4-0 playing together this season. It is Cherry’s second straight E8 Player of the Week accolade.
WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Lindsey DeBonis, St. John Fisher, Jr., OH, Scotia, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake
DeBonis posted three straight matches with double-digit kills as the Cardinals finished the week with three wins in conference play to sit atop the Empire 8 standings. She combined to produce 37 kills, 33 digs, two aces and two blocks in wins over Elmira, Hartwick and Russell Sage. Against Elmira, DeBonis chipped in with 10 kills and a .286 hitting percentage before adding a double-double in a 3-2 win over Hartwick on Friday behind 15 kills and a career-high 25 digs. The Scotia native finished the week with 12 kills and four digs in a sweep of Sage on Saturday.
CO-ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Tessa Grover, Nazareth, Fr., RS/S, Penfield, NY/Penfield
Grover filled the stat sheet again with 54 assists, 27 kills, 12 digs, six aces and four blocks as Nazareth split a pair of Empire 8 matches over the weekend with a four-set win at Russell Sage and a five-set loss at Hartwick. She hit .257 with 23 assists and 14 kills versus Russell Sage and recorded a triple-double with 31 assists, 13 kills and 10 digs versus Hartwick. It is Grover’s third E8 Rookie of the Week honor in 2021.
CO-ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Julie Immel, Houghton, Fr., OH, Orville, OH/Central Christian
Immel led the Highlanders at the net, accumulating 46 kills, while hitting .257 as the Highlanders went 2-1 on the week. On Wednesday, Immel hit .550 with 13 kills and three aces in a win over Hilbert. She had 16 digs and 14 kills in a five-set win over Utica to open up conference play Friday and hit .325 with 19 kills and 10 digs versus Elmira Saturday.
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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