General | 3/16/2026 1:00:00 PM
Below are the Empire 8 Players of the Week, released on March 16, 2026, for games played from March 9-March 15, 2026. It is the 29th Empire 8 weekly honors release of the 2025-26 season. Sports featured include baseball, softball, men’s and women’s lacrosse, men’s tennis, and men’s volleyball.
BASEBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Joseph Karpierz, Russell Sage, Sr., IF, Cohoes, NY/Shaker
Karpierz batted .522 (12-for-23) with nine runs scored and 13 RBI across six games. He slugged .826 and recorded a 1.407 OPS to go along with five doubles, a triple, six walks, and went 4-for-4 on stolen base attempts. Karpierz had two separate five-RBI games, going 4-for-6 with a triple in a 14-11 win over Southern Maine on Thursday and doubled twice with the five RBI in a 15-5 win over NYU on Saturday.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK – Kyle Miller, Alfred, Fr., P, Corning, NY/Corning-Painted Post
Miller continued his impressive start to 2026 with a decisive win against Martin Luther College on Friday. Miller registered his first collegiate complete game, retiring five batters via strikeout. Miller allowed just an earned run, across four hits in the seven-inning effort. He collected at least one strikeout in four separate innings as part of his second win of the 2026 season. It is Miller’s second straight E8 weekly honor.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Matthew Paolucci, Utica, Fr., IF, Toronto, Ontario/Silverthorn Collegiate Institute
Paolucci homered and drove in 10 runs in addition to six hits while slugging .500 in five games during the Spring Break slate last week. He hit a three-run home run in a 6-5 win over University of Rochester on Monday and scored twice and drove in a pair against Dominican on Tuesday. On Thursday, he drove in three of Utica’s four runs against Drew. It is his second E8 weekly honor of 2026.
SOFTBALL
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Annalise Tyler, Russell Sage, Jr., IF, Schenectady, NY/Schalmont
Tyler slashed .462/.654/.533 as the Gators opened their spring in Florida last week. She scored eight runs, tallied four RBI, laced three doubles, a triple, and totaled 17 bases out of the leadoff spot. Tyler registered four multi-hit efforts and stole four bases across the eight games.
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Samantha Vidal, Alfred, Jr., OF, Lake Worth, FL/Forest Hill
Vidal started her season strong with a .462 batting average, resulting in a total of 13 scores (eight runs and five RBI). One of her runs was an in-the-park home run as she slapped a perfect shot down the left field line, over the bag against Pittsburgh-Greensburg, helping notch a win that was Coach Wesneski’s career win record 249th. Vidal totaled 12 hits on 26 at-bats with one double. She was walked three times and went 11-for-12 on stolen bases. Defensively, Vidal had 20 putouts, playing mainly at right field and spent some time at center.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK – Gabriella Petroski, SUNY Geneseo, Jr., P, Lancaster, NY/Sacred Heart
Petroski led Geneseo to a shut-out win over Babson in their season opener on Sunday morning, throwing six innings while only allowing two hits and striking out four batters without a walk. Petroski only allowed a batting average of .105 to lead the Knights to the victory in the first game of the year.
MEN’S LACROSSE
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Cole Loewke, Alfred, Sr., A, Hilton, NY/Hilton
Loewke led all Saxon scorers last week against Nichols College and the University of Mount Union with 17 points on 11 goals and six assists. He led all scorers, recording six goals and two assists against the Bison on Tuesday with 10 shots, nine of them on frame. In Saturday's home-opening win against the Raiders, he raided their net with his offensive prowess. He led all scorers once again with five goals while dishing off four assists. He again was consistent with his shots, recording eight of them with seven on frame.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Jonah Vormwald, St. John Fisher, Fr., FO, Syracuse, NY/West Genesee
Vormwald owned the face-off X as No. 11 St. John Fisher opened a challenging non-conference stretch with a 15–10 win over Washington College on Saturday. The Cardinals finished 23-of-28 on face-offs, with Vormwald going 16-of-19 and scooping up a season-high 15 ground balls. St. John Fisher improved to 6-0 on the year with the win.
WOMEN’S LACROSSE
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Katie Rajkowski, SUNY Geneseo, Jr., M, Cazenovia, NY/Cazenovia
Rajkowski recorded five goals on eight shots on goal in a pair of road wins for the Knights, 11-8 over Hamilton and 15-5 to open league play at Hartwick. She began the week with three goals, four ground balls, two draw controls and a caused turnover in the win over Hamilton and added a pair of goals, four ground balls and three caused turnovers at Hartwick.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Arianna Reed, SUNY Brockport, Jr., G, LaFayette, NY/East Syracuse Minoa
Reed stopped 20 shots in a pair of close wins for the Golden Eagles during the week, allowing just eight goals in each contest, while recording a .556 save percentage. On Wednesday, Reed made 12 saves in a 9-8 win over Union. She stopped eight shots in an overtime victory over SUNY Oneonta on Saturday. It is Reed’s second E8 weekly honor of the season.
MEN’S TENNIS
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Jaxson Redmond, Norwich, So., Kennebunkport, ME/Kennebunk
Redmond led Norwich from the top of the lineup during a 2-0 week to open the 2026 season, remaining undefeated in both singles and doubles competition. Competing at No. 1 singles, he delivered a flawless performance in a season-opening 7-0 sweep over Vermont State University Lyndon, securing a dominant 6-0, 6-0 victory without dropping a game. Redmond followed with another strong showing against cross-divisional opponent Houghton University, battling through a competitive matchup at the top flight to earn a straight-set win, 6-4, 7-5, helping Norwich secure a 6-1 team victory. He also contributed significantly in doubles action, teaming with Terrance Bayly-Henshaw for victories at No. 1 doubles in both contests. The pairing opened the week with a decisive 6-0 win before adding a 6-2 triumph against Houghton to help Norwich claim the doubles point.
DOUBLES TEAM OF THE WEEK – Ricardo Alvarez Janik, Alfred, So., La Orotava, Spain/Casa Azul
Anlun Zwerver, Alfred, Gr., Koog Aan De Zaan, Netherlands/Blaise Pascal College
Alvarez Janik and Zwerver and played doubles for the first time as a pair during Alfred’s spring break trip. Zwerver and Alvarez won three matches at first doubles. Zwerver and Alvarez swept their matches against Curry (Wed) and Franciscan (Thurs.), 6-0. The pair wrapped up spring break with a 6-3 victory against Muhlenberg on Friday, helping the Saxons claim the doubles point.
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Anthony Ruggiero, Hartwick, Fr., OH, Schenectady, NY/Guilderland
Ruggiero exploded for a season-high 22 kills, while hitting .488 in a five-set win over E8 foe Houghton University on Saturday. He added 10 digs and three service aces in the victory.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Sean Frawley, Nazareth, Fr., RS, Liverpool, NY/Liverpool
Frawley slammed 29 kills to go along with five blocks and a pair of service aces in a three-match week, all against UVC competition for the Golden Flyers. He began the week by hitting .455 with 13 kills, three blocks and two services aces in a four-set win at Elmira. On Saturday, he hit .278 with eight kills at No. 8 SUNY New Paltz and added eight more kills at No. 7 NYU.