Baseball | 6/30/2026 11:30:00 AM
The Empire 8 Conference is proud to announce the 2025-26 Torchbearer Award winners for academic and athletic excellence. Twenty-nine different student-athletes from eleven institutions earned the prestigious award throughout the year.
The Empire 8 Torchbearer is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average (GPA) participating in the championship game for each E8 sport. To be eligible for the Empire 8 Torchbearer Award, a student-athlete must be a junior, or senior and in at least their second season of competition with their current team. Graduate students are not eligible.
For sports where an individual is awarded all-conference honors at the conference championship, such as men’s and women’s cross country, the individual with the highest cumulative GPA amongst the first and second place finishing teams will receive the award. For sports that compete in a conference tournament, the student-athlete with the highest GPA from the championship finals contest will receive the honor. For football, the student-athlete with the highest GPA from the first or second place team in the conference standings is honored.
The torch has served as served as the Empire 8’s primary symbol since the league’s inception in 1999. A torchbearer is “a person who carries a torch at the head of a group of people; someone who leads a campaign, movement and who leads or inspires others in working toward a valued goal. The Empire 8 Torchbearer award captures the essence of Empire 8’s mission of “Tomorrow’s Leaders Compete Here Today” and commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes, which is the league’s hallmark.
2025 Fall Empire 8 Torchbearer Award Winners
Men’s Cross Country – Tobias Jeralds, Utica, Sr., Finance, 3.79 GPA
Women’s Cross Country – Emberlynn Nolt, Houghton, Jr., Adolescence Education/Biology, 4.0 GPA
Field Hockey – Heather Bliss, Nazareth, Sr., Elementary Education & Mathematics, 4.0 GPA
Football – Logan Frederick, Utica, Sr., Physical Therapy, 3.93 GPA
Women's Golf – Sarah Burgess, St. John Fisher, Jr., Biology, 4.0 GPA
Men's Soccer – Kyle Arraiano, SUNY Geneseo, Sr., Biology, 3.94 GPA
Women’s Soccer – Megan Gates, SUNY Brockport, Jr., Nursing, 3.94 GPA
Women’s Tennis – Samantha Lantzy, Hartwick, Jr., Biology, 3.87 GPA
Women’s Volleyball – Ellie Kalbach, Hartwick, Sr., Nursing, 3.97 GPA
2025-26 Winter Empire 8 Torchbearer Award Winners
Men’s Swimming and Diving – Alex Palmer, SUNY Geneseo, Jr., Finance, 3.82 GPA
Women’s Swimming and Diving – Erin Johannsen, SUNY Geneseo, Sr., Childhood/Special Education, 3.96 GPA
Men's Basketball – Ty LaBarge, Keuka, Jr., Management: Sport Management, 3.87 GPA
Women's Basketball – Eva Elliot, SUNY Geneseo, Sr., Psychology, 3.94 GPA
Hannah Farley, Houghton, Jr., Inclusive Childhood Education, 3.94 GPA
Men's Indoor Track and Field – Jeremy Chen, SUNY Brockport, Sr., Physical Education Teacher Certification, 4.0 GPA
Women's Indoor Track and Field – Kelsey Fahy, Nazareth, Jr., Sociology, 4.0 GPA
Samantha Luba, Nazareth, Sr., Public Health, 4.0 GPA
Men's Ice Hockey – Aydin Parekh, Utica, Jr., Cybersecurity/Business, 4.0 GPA
Women’s Ice Hockey – Alexis Jones, Nazareth, Sr., Biology and Public Health, 3.98 GPA
2026 Spring Empire 8 Torchbearer Award Winners
Men’s Volleyball – Connor Holmes, St. John Fisher, Jr., Biology, 3.9 GPA
Men's Golf – Ryan Arp, Russell Sage, Jr., Business Administration: Marketing and Branding, 3.94 GPA
Men's Outdoor Track and Field – Mitchell Ellsworth, SUNY Brockport, Jr., Childhood Inclusive Education, 3.99 GPA
Women's Outdoor Track and Field – Payton Mehalick, SUNY Geneseo, Sr., Biology, 3.99 GPA
Men's Lacrosse – Matt Slowinski, St. John Fisher, Sr., Biology, 4.0 GPA
Women's Lacrosse – Kaley Griffin, St. John Fisher, Sr., Accounting and Finance, 3.97 GPA
Softball – Rachel Stabler, St. John Fisher, Jr., Biology, 3.97 GPA
Baseball – Jake Crantz, St. John Fisher, Sr., Accounting and Finance, 3.86 GPA
Men's Tennis – Breece Erickson, Alfred, Jr., Business Analytics, 3.97 GPA
Flag Football – Faith Ingber, Elmira, Sr., Sociology, 4.0 GPA