General | 2/19/2024 1:07:28 PM
Below are the Empire 8 Players of the Week, released on February 19, 2024, for games played from February 12 – February 18, 2024. It is the 24th Empire 8 weekly honors release of the 2023-24 season. Sports featured include men’s and women’s basketball, men’s lacrosse, men’s and women’s swimming and diving, men’s and women’s indoor track and field and men’s volleyball.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Brad Fowler, St. John Fisher, Sr., F, Orchard Park, NY/Colden
Fowler came off the bench to play 24 minutes and make a major impact, as the defeated then top-seeded Nazareth University in the regular season finale on Saturday. Brad. Fowler scored 18 points on 7-for-11 shooting from the field, 1-for-1 from three and 3-for-4 from the free-throw line. He added eight rebounds (three offensive) and two blocked shots.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Hudson Idzi, Houghton, Fr., F, Oriskany, NY/Hamilton
Idzi averaged 11.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals, and 1.0 block per game while shooting 72.7 percent from the floor last week to help his Highlanders clinch their first ever Empire 8 Conference Tournament spot.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Olivia Dobrovosky, Nazareth, Gr., G, Skaneateles, NY/Skaneateles
Dobrovosky led Nazareth with 19 points as the Golden Flyers capped the regular season with a 73-65 win at St. John Fisher to earn a tie for the regular-season title. Dobrovosky was 8-for-10 (.800) from the field including 2-for-2 from 3-point range and grabbed six rebounds. She also had three assists and three steals. It is her third E8 weekly accolade of the season.
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Julia Rotando, Utica, Gr., G, Cold Spring, NY/Haldane
Rotando turned in her best week of the season at the perfect time playing a crucial role in the team's three E8 victories which led them to the fifth seed in the upcoming Empire 8 Conference Tournament. She averaged 13.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 2.7 steals per game over the three-game week and was a sharpshooter going 6-for-14 from beyond the arc. She also shot 54 percent from the floor.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Vanessa Hall, Utica, Fr., F, Whitesville, NY/Whitesville Central
Hall came up big in the final week of the regular season, averaging 19.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.0 steals, 1.7 assists and 1.7 blocks per game in three wins to lead the team to the fifth seed in the upcoming Empire 8 Conference Tournament. She shot a fantastic 23-for-38 from the field (61 percent) and played some great defense leading to some fast break buckets for Utica while hitting some timely jumpers during crunch time. She had 27 points and nine boards in the 82-63 win over Alfred Friday. It is her fifth E8 weekly accolade of the season.
MEN’S LACROSSE
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Matthew Kemmis, St. John Fisher, Sr., A, Jamesville, NY/Jamesville-Dewitt
Kemmis was an impactful player, tying for the team lead in points with six, as the Cardinals kicked off their season with a 21-9 victory over SUNY Brockport on Saturday. He tallied three goals and three assists on four shots, while also adding two ground balls and two caused turnovers.
GOALIE OF THE WEEK – McLean Ralston, Nazareth, So., G, Fairport, NY/Fairport
Ralston made his first career start at Springfield and finished with an impressive 15 saves (.625 save percentage) including 10 in the second half when Nazareth mounted a comeback to win 10-9 on Saturday.
MEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING
CO-ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Jack Armstrong, Hartwick, Sr., Diving, Windham, NH/Windham
Armstrong garnered Empire 8 Diver of the Championship Meet accolades for the second straight year, helping lead Hartwick to its first Empire 8 Championship since 2007. On Feb. 14, Armstrong opened the week by winning the E8 Championship in the 3-meter diving event with a score of 494.30. He completed the E8 sweep in the 1-meter event two days later, recording an impressive score of 439.05. It is Armstrong’s second E8 weekly accolade of the season.
CO-ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Mikey Schultz, Hartwick, Sr., Freestyle/Butterfly/Individual Medley, Binghamton, NY/Chenango Valley
Schultz was named the Empire 8 Swimmer of the Championship Meet for the third consecutive season and was also named Allegheny Empire Swimmer of the Meet after leading the Hawks to the team championship. He won both the 200-yard individual medley for the third straight season with a time of 1:53.61 on Feb. 15 and took the 100-yard butterfly the following evening in a time of 49.04 seconds. On Feb. 17, Schultz won the 200-yard butterfly, hitting the wall first in a time of 1:49.34. Schultz was also part of the winning 800-yard freestyle relay that recorded a time of 6:59.19, in addition to leading Hartwick to runner-up finishes in the 200- and 400-yard medley relays. It is Schultz’s fifth weekly honor of the season.
WOMEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING
CO-ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Courtney Pierce, Hartwick, So., Individual Medley/Breaststroke, Fulton, NY/G. Ray Bodley
Pierce was named the Empire 8 Swimmer of the Championship Meet for the second straight year at the 2024 Empire 8 and Allegheny Empire Championships, held at the Webster Aquatic Center. She won the 100-yard breaststroke in a time of 1:06.75 on Feb. 16 and took the 200-yard breaststroke on Feb. 17, hitting the wall first in an Allegheny Empire meet record time of 2:24.52. In addition, she was second in the 200-yard individual medley and helped Hartwick to second place finishes in the 400-yard medley relay events and 200- and 400-yard freestyle relay.
CO-ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Elizabeth Tripp, Nazareth, Sr., Diving, Hamburg, NY/Hamburg
Tripp garnered Empire 8 and Allegheny Empire Diver of the Championship Meet for the second time at the 2024 Empire 8 and Allegheny Empire Championships, held at the Webster Aquatic Center. Tripp was second to teammate Alexis Rizzo in the 1-meter diving event with an impressive score of 460.85 points and captured the 3-meter event for the second straight season with a score of 451.80. It is Tripp’s second weekly honor of the season.
MEN’S INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD
TRACK ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Tanner Warren, Utica, Fr., Sprints, Mohawk, NY/Central Valley Academy
Warren placed first in the 200-meters at the Colgate University Class of '32 Meet. Warren captured his personal best time with a mark of 22.86.
CO-FIELD ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Avery Belanger, Houghton, So., Jumps, Burnt Hills, NY/Ballston Spa
Belanger jumped two personal best performances of 13.19 meters in the triple jump, which is the best jump this season in the Empire 8, and 6.37 meters in the long jump (good enough for fourth in the E8 this season) at the Nazareth Conference Tune-Up Invitational over the weekend.
CO-FIELD ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Hayden Penna, St. John Fisher, Fr., Pole Vault, Hilton, NY/Hilton
Penna continued to set records for the Cardinals, tallying a mark of 4.60 meters in his first attempt in the pole vault at the Conference Tune-Up hosted by Nazareth University on Friday. That is not only a personal record but also another school record and regional qualifying mark. It is Penna’s second E8 weekly accolade of 2023-24.
WOMEN’S INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD
TRACK ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Arianna McClendon, Utica, Fr., Sprints, New York Mills, NY/New York Mills
McClendon broke her own school record in the 500-meter dash at the Colgate Class of '32 Meet. McClendon ran a time of 1:18.17 and also won the 200-meters with a time of 26.88. McClendon earned her third weekly honor of the season.
FIELD ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Anne Spila, Alfred, Sr., Multi-Events, Mechanicsburg, PA/Trinity
Spila had three top-10 finishes on Friday’s Nazareth University Conference Tune-Up Meet. Her best finish was in the long jump, hitting 5.37m (17’-7.5”) to take third place out of 32 jumpers. Sticking with jumps, Spila cleared 1.47m (4’-9.75”) in the high jump to take sixth out of 18 competitors. She rounded out her performance with a seventh place finish in the 200-meter dash, clocking in a new personal best time of 27.32. Her new time puts her at No. 5 in the Empire 8. It is her second E8 weekly accolade of the season.
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Owen Wickens, Nazareth, Sr., OH/L, Rochester, NY/McQuaid Jesuit
Wickens enjoyed a strong week against three teams that were either nationally ranked or receiving votes in the national poll. Nazareth was 1-2 on the road with a win over No. 19 Baldwin Wallace and losses to No. 9 North Central and Messiah, who was receiving votes. Wickens finished the three matches with 54 kills (4.91/set) including his 1,000th career kill midway through the 3-2 win over Baldwin Wallace and one of his season-high 29 kills in the match. He posted a .385 attack percentage and added 27 digs and seven aces for the weekend and averaged 5.7 points and 2.45 digs. It is Wickens’ second E8 weekly accolade.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Jerry Buno, Houghton, Fr., S/RS, Portland, OR/Skyview
Buno dished out 47 assists and added 14 digs, as Houghton split a pair of matches against Hilbert and Wells. Buno had season-best totals of 32 assists and 12 digs in a dramatic, five-set win over Wells on Wednesday.
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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