General | 3/7/2022 12:57:45 PM
Below are the Empire 8 Players of the Week, released on March 7, 2022, for games played from February 28-March 6. It is the 25th Empire 8 weekly honors release of the 2021-22 season. Sports featured include baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s lacrosse, women’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s indoor track and field, softball and men’s volleyball.
BASEBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Joe Battista, Utica, Gr., INF, South Glens Falls, NY/South Glens Falls
Battista slashed .571/1.143/1.714 after going 4-for-7 with a home run and double in the Pioneers’ season-opening doubleheader sweep over Yeshiva on Sunday. Battista drove in five runs while scoring four times, while four of his RBI came in a 3-for-3 effort at the dish with a home run in Utica’s 17-1 win in the second game.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK – Ryan Newtown, Houghton, Sr., P, Winthrop, NY/St. Lawrence
Newtown pitched a complete game against SUNY Maritime on Friday, surrendering just two earned runs while striking out five batters and earning an 8-4 win for Houghton.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Jack Krug, Utica, Fr., P, Amsterdam, NY/Canajoharie
Krug earned his first career win in his first start as a Pioneer in the team’s 17-1 win over Yeshiva on Sunday. Krug allowed just two hits and one run in four innings of work, while striking out six of 14 batters faced. He was also quite efficient in the outing, throwing 52 pitches over four innings for an average of 13 pitches per frame.
SOFTBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Carlee Miller, Houghton, So., SS, Fillmore, NY/Fillmore
Miller batted .400 (12-for-30) in Spring break action in Florida as the Highlanders competed in nine games. Miller ripped two doubles and a home run. She notched 11 RBI on the week and had four multiple-hit games to lead the Houghton offense. On Friday, Miller went 3-for-4 with a double, home run, three runs scored and four RBI in a win over Cornell College.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK – Kayla Loomis, Houghton, Jr., P, Selkirk, NY/Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk
Loomis picked up three wins for the Highlanders on their trip to Florida last week with a 2.55 earned run average and 1.28 WHIP over nine appearances and seven starts. In 46.2 innings of work, Loomis struck out 33 batters to just 11 walks. She did not allow an earned run over seven innings against Rose-Hulman and followed that up later in the week by allowing just one earned run over nine innings in a victory over Cornell College.
MEN’S LACROSSE
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Ian Evans, St. John Fisher, Sr., A, Lafayette, NY/Lafayette
Evans was the focal point of the No. 7 Cardinals' offense last week as Fisher overwhelmed No. 17 Cortland, 20-8 before defeating No. 11 St. Lawrence, 14-4. Overall, Evans finished with six goals, an assist and 13 shots as Fisher outscored its two nationally-ranked foes 34-12. Against Cortland, Evans posted a game-high five goals and nine shots before adding a goal and an assist in Fisher's 14-4 win over the No. 11 Saints. It is his second straight E8 weekly accolade.
GOALIE OF THE WEEK – Ben Hammond, St. John Fisher, So., G, Manlius, NY/Fayetteville-Manlius
Hammond picked up two more wins against nationally-ranked opponents after Fisher defeated both No. 17 Cortland and No. 11 St. Lawrence last week. Hammond allowed just 10 goals on the week and had 28 total saves overall including a career-high 18 stops against No. 11 St. Lawrence. He finished the week with a sparkling .737 save percentage en route to winning his second straight E8 weekly honor.
WOMEN’S LACROSSE
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Amelia Booth, Alfred, Fr., A, Staatsburgh, NY/FDR
Booth made her first collegiate game one to remember on Wednesday, finishing with a school record 20 draw controls, while tallying seven goals and three assists for 10 points in the 19-3 win over Wells. She ripped 11 of her program record tying 16 shots on target while one of her goals was from free position. Booth rounded out her historic performance with four caused turnovers and one ground ball.
GOALIE OF THE WEEK – Annaliese Black, Keuka, So., G, Scranton, PA/Lakeland
Black made her first ever appearance in goal (high school or collegiate) and made four saves in Keuka's victory over Wells College on Friday.
MEN’S INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD
TRACK ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Malcolm Smith, Houghton, So., Marietta, GA/Sprayberry
Smith represented Houghton at the All-Atlantic Regional Championships at Nazareth where marked Houghton's second fastest 200-meter dash time of 23.08 seconds. Smith finished in 16th in the event, and also aided in the team's 4x200-meter relay that finished 11th overall with the second fastest time in school history.
FIELD ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Kyle Rollins, St. John Fisher, Gr., Jumps, Groveland, NY/Geneseo
Rollins put on a clinic at the All-Atlantic Regional Championship at Nazareth over the weekend after breaking the meet and facility record in the high jump with a mark of 2.20 meters, a career-best. Rollins missed on 2.18 and decided to forgo his final attempt to take a stab at 2.20. He cleared that mark on his first attempt to win the event as the mark was the third-highest height in Division III history.
WOMEN’S INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD
TRACK ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Ciarra Franz, St. John Fisher, Fr., Hurdles, Pittsford, NY/Honeoye Falls-Lima
Franz led off the All-Atlantic Regional Championship at Nazareth with her fourth-straight career-best and a school record performance in the 60-meter hurdles in the final round of the race. She enjoyed a 9.00 second-flat performance in the event, to best her personal record by .07 seconds and earn a third-place finish in the regional championship. Her mark now stands as the 28th best nationally on the national leaderboard.
FIELD ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Lea Richard, Nazareth, So., Throws, Gansevoort, NY/South Glens Falls
Richard broke her own school record in the weight throw and placed second at the All-Atlantic Regional Championships from the Golisano Training Center over the weekend. Her throw was 16.24 meters (53' 3 1/2").
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Jake Baker, St. John Fisher, So., OH, Burnt Hills, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake
Baker led the Cardinals to a pair of signature wins last week as St. John Fisher defeated No. 2 Vassar and No. 11 NYU. Baker, who averaged 5.0 points per set over nine sets played, combined to produce 37 kills, seven aces and 10 digs over the two matches. Against No. 2 Vassar, he hit .390 and collected 18 kills, three aces and five digs before adding a match-high 19 kills, four service aces and five more digs in a five-set win over the Violets.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Alberto Mauricio, Elmira, Fr., OH, San Pedro De Macoris, Dominican Republic/Liceo Gaston Fernando Deligne
Mauricio slammed 38 kills to go along with 23 digs in three matches last weekend. He helped guide the Soaring Eagles to a key win on Friday at MIT as Mauricio led the team with 15 kills and 11 digs. On Saturday, Mauricio combined for 23 kills (15 against Endicott and eight against No. 1 ranked Springfield). The win over MIT was Elmira's first win over the Engineers since the 2015 season.
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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