General | 9/18/2023 12:54:37 PM
Below are the Empire 8 Players of the Week, released on September 18, 2023, for games played from September 11 - September 17. It is the third Empire 8 weekly honors release of the 2023-24 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 – Ethan Billings, St. John Fisher, Sr., Wantage, NJ/High Point Regional
Billings placed 45th overall out of 256 runners at the Yellowjacket Invitational hosted by the University of Rochester on Saturday, completing the 8,000-meter course in a time of 26:53.5 (mile rate of 5:24.6). He competed against several Division I teams and Division III regionally-ranked institutions.
WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
RUNNER OF THE WEEK – Elizabeth Ingellis, Russell Sage, Jr., Kingston, NY/Kingston
Ingellis finished ninth out of 71 runners (fourth best Division III finisher) at Saturday's RPI Harvest Festival Invitational with a time of 22:29.5 (6:01.9 mile rate) over the 6,000-meter course. It is her second E8 weekly accolade of the season.
FIELD HOCKEY
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Julie Ruzzi, Hartwick, Sr., M, High Falls, NY/Rondout Valley
Ruzzi accounted for three of Hartwick's five goals (first three tallies) in a 5-2 non-conference win at home against DeSales on Saturday. Ruzzi also added one assist on the fourth goal of the game for the Hawks.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Madilyn Satter, Nazareth, Jr., GK, Brick NJ/Brick Memorial High School
Satter stopped 24-of-27 shots for a .889 save percentage in a 3-0 loss to William Smith College on Tuesday. She made 10 saves in the opening half and stopped 14 shots in the second half, as she notched a career-high for saves in a single game.
FOOTBALL
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – JJ Laap, Cortland, Sr., WR, Stony Brook, NY/Ward Melville
Laap caught five passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns in Cortland's 38-35 loss to No. 22 Susquehanna on Saturday. He caught an 80-yard TD pass on Cortland's first play from scrimmage as well as an 89-yard scoring catch in the second quarter. His 250 receiving yards are the third-highest single-game total in school history. Laap now holds the first and third spots on that list.
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Peyton Nolan, St. John Fisher, Jr., RB, Newton, NJ/Newton
Nolan was incredible on the day for the Cardinals, rushing 32 times for 189 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-20 road win over Keystone College on Saturday. He scored on touchdown runs of 1-, 1- and 7-yards.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Joe Copp, Alfred, Sr., LB, Minoa, NY/East Syracuse-Minoa
Copp recorded season-best with 13 solo tackles and 15 total against No. 20 Ithaca on Saturday. Out of those tackles, he assisted on one for a loss, leading a defense that held the Bombers to their lowest-scoring head-to-head game since 2018.
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Mike Talbert Jr., Brockport, Jr., LB, Wyandanch, NY/Saint Anthony’s
Talbert came through with a key blocked a field goal in the second quarter which helped contribute to Brockport’s 31-7 win at Wilkes Saturday. He also totaled a team-high eight tackles (three solo, five assisted) and a pass breakup from his linebacker position. Mike even got involved with a big special teams play.
MEN’S GOLF
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Vincent Falgiatano, Nazareth, So., Syracuse, NY/Bishop Grimes
Sophomore Vincent Falgiatano fired a one-under par 71 on Sunday to earn medalist honors at the Nazareth Fall Invitational from Stafford Country Club. He was the lone golfer to finish under par on the day and had a pair of birdies on the back nine (No. 10 and No. 13).
MEN’S SOCCER
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Sean Burke, Hartwick, Jr., M, West Midlands, England/Medaille University
Burke was instrumental in Hartwick's 2-0 week, including a win in their Empire 8 opener against Alfred. He began the week with one goal in the Hawks' win over SUNY Delhi on Wednesday. He followed that up with another goal on Saturday against Alfred.
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Jake Pawlika, Nazareth, Jr., M, Oneida, NY/Vernon-Verona-Sherill
Pawlika kept his scoring streak alive with at least a goal in every game this season (six straight) as he converted a penalty kick in the 2-0 win over Russell Sage Saturday to start Empire 8 play. Earlier in the week, he tallied the lone Nazareth goal in a 1-1 tie at Hobart.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Dante Gesamondo, Hartwick, Jr., GK, Lynnfield, MA/Medaille University
Gesamondo recorded four saves in Hartwick's 2-0 win over SUNY Delhi on Wednesday. He followed that up with another four saves on Saturday as the Hawks defeated Alfred 2-0 in their Empire 8 opener.
WOMEN’S SOCCER
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Olivia Badalucco, Russell Sage, So., D, Rotterdam Junction, NY/Schalmont
Badalucco scored a pair of goals to help lead Russell Sage in an 8-0 win over SUNY Poly on Wednesday. She tallied early in the first half and completed the scoring in the final minute for her first two goals of the season.
CO-DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Kiani Barnard-Pratt, Alfred, So., GK, Westford, MA/Westford Academy
Barnard-Pratt stopped 24-of-26 shots (.923 save percentage) in a pair of ties last week for the Saxons. On Tuesday, she set a new career-high for saves in a game, with 16 in a 1-1 draw. Barnard-Pratt opened Empire 8 play by adding another eight saves against St. John Fisher University in a 1-1 tie.
CO-DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Nevaeh Winston, Elmira, Jr., GK, Wilson, NY/Mount Saint Mary Academy
Winston helped lead the Soaring Eagles to a 1-1 record while posting a .933 save percentage, stopping 14-of-15 shots on goal. Winston pitched a shutout on three saves against the Pioneers from Alfred State on the road, a 1-0 Elmira victory Wednesday, before putting together her best effort to begin conference play against Houghton on Saturday. Against the Highlanders, Winston made 11 saves for a .917 save percentage, in a 1-0 loss.
WOMEN’S TENNIS
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Macy Youngberg, Alfred, Sr., Falconer, NY/Falconer Central
Youngberg helped the Saxons continue their undefeated streak and open up Empire 8 play with a 9-0 sweep over Utica. She was undefeated in singles at the No. 2 spot while going 2-1 at No. 1 doubles with Alina Zabihailo. She finished the Penn State-Behrend match with a 6-3, 6-2 win at second singles in the 6-2 home win. Youngberg and Zabihailo took an 8-3 win against SUNY Brockport in doubles, just before Youngberg won No. 2 singles, 6-2, 6-1. She closed out her week with Empire 8 play, hosting Utica and winning No. 1 doubles, 8-3 and No. 2 singles, 6-0, 6-0 as she celebrated her Senior Day.
WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Maddie Boucher, Elmira, Sr., OH, Red Hook, NY/Red Hook
In four matches this week, Boucher helped lead the Soaring Eagles to a 2-2 record, including a perfect 2-0 mark inside Speidel Gymnasium. For the week, Boucher was able to set a new career-best in single-match kills (18) against Keystone on Tuesday, before lifting Elmira to a straight-sets victory over the visiting Wildcats from Penn College on Friday, where she hit .440 to go along with 14 kills. Additionally on the week, Boucher was able to collect five service aces, nine digs, and four total blocks. She averaged 3.46 kills and 4.0 points per set on the week.
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Staecia Silofau, Hartwick, Jr., RS, Kapolei, Hawaii/Maryknoll
Silofau led the Hawks to sweeps over Alfred State and SUNY Delhi, after averaging 4.17 kills, 5.0 points and 1.93 digs per set, while hitting .254. On Friday against the Pioneers, she tallied nine kills, picked up two aces, assisted on three blocks, and recorded six digs. Silofau was dominant on Saturday against SUNY Delhi, recording 16 kills on 30 attempts in the three-set win. She also picked up one ace, one block assist, and four digs.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Ana Gutman, St. John Fisher, Fr., MB, Rochester, NY/Penfield
Gutman led the Cardinals to a 3-1 mark, while recording 26 kills for a .284 hitting percentage, to go along with five service aces. Defensively she collected seven digs and was involved for 16.0 total blocks. Her best match came in a five-set win over Brockport, when she had 13 kills on a .407 hitting percentage and 6.0 total blocks.
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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