Field Hockey | 9/8/2026 1:00:00 PM
Below are the Empire 8 Players of the Week, released on September 8, 2026, for games played from September 1 - September 7. It is the first Empire 8 weekly honors release of the 2026-27 season. Sports featured include men’s and women’s cross country, field hockey, men’s golf and women’s golf, men’s and women’s soccer, women’s tennis, and women’s volleyball.
MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
RUNNER OF THE WEEK – Bennett Melita, Utica, Sr., Johnstown, NY/Fonda-Fultonville
Bennett Melita opened the 2026 season in impressive fashion, winning the individual title at the SUNY Poly Wildcat Short Course Invitational with a time of 19:26.1 over the 6,000-meter course. Melita’s victory helped lead the Pioneers to their fifth consecutive team title at the event as Utica placed five runners among the top six finishers. The individual victory marked Melita’s third consecutive win at the SUNY Poly Short Course Invitational and the 10th individual victory of his career.
WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
RUNNER OF THE WEEK – Emberlynn Nolt, Houghton, Jr., Dalton, OH/Dalton
Nolt opened the 2026 season finishing in fourth place overall out of 110 runners at the 8th Annual St. John Fisher Rodenbeck Invitational. Nolt crossed the finish line in 15:30.5 over the 4,000-meter course, finishing just over one second behind the runner-up and was the top Division III and Empire 8 finisher in an event that featured four league opponents. She was Houghton’s top finisher by more than 47 seconds.
FIELD HOCKEY
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Ava Harman, SUNY Geneseo, Jr., F, Putnam Valley, NY/Putnam Valley
Harman led the Knights to a 3-0 start, picking up road wins over Liberty League opponents RPI, Skidmore, and Vassar. Harman was dominant on the offensive end, tallying nine points on three goals and three assists, including the game-winning goal over the Engineers in the season-opener Tuesday. She added a goal and an assist in the win at Skidmore and scored in a 3-2 victory at Vassar.
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK Courtney Walbridge, Houghton, So., F, Doylestown, PA/Plumstead Christian
Walbridge scored four goals for the Highlanders, totaling eight points on the week. She scored two goals to contribute to a 9-0 win against Lancaster Bible College Friday and two more goals to help lead the Highlanders past Neumann University, 4-2 the following day.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Lauren Mastromarco, SUNY Brockport, Jr., GK, Wappingers Falls, NY/John Jay
Mastromarco delivered a stellar defensive performance in goal by stopping 16 shots for an .889 save percentage and allowing just two goals over 165 minutes to earn two victories on the week. She recorded a stout 0.73 goals against average on the week, highlighted by nine saves in a 3-1 win over John Carroll University to kick off the season on Tuesday.
FOOTBALL
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Noah Currier, Alfred State, Sr., RB, Oakfield, NY/Oakfield-Alabama
Currier, a 2026 D3football.com Preseason All-American, led the stout Pioneers offense, rushing for four touchdowns and 217 yards on just 14 carries while averaging an impressive 15.5 yards per attempt. Three of his touchdowns were from over 30 yards out. He recorded 60-yard, 45-yard, and 35-yard rushing touchdowns as Alfred State set a program record for points in a game, defeating Thiel College, 74-13 on Saturday.
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Ryan Whitney, St. John Fisher, Sr., QB, Geneseo, NY/Geneseo
Whitney completed 60.9 percent of his passes (14-of-23) for 320 yards, and a career-high four touchdown passes, including a 45-yarder to Mykel Whyte and a 72-yarder to Gavin Horton, as St. John Fisher routed FDU Florham, 38-8, on Saturday at Growney Stadium. He added 66 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries for a five-touchdown day.
CO-DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Jack Bierman, St. John Fisher, Jr., LB, Corning, NY/Corning
Bierman set career highs in total tackles (10), tackles for a loss of yards (4) and sacks (2) in St. John Fisher's 38-8 Week 1 victory over FDU-Florham at Growney Stadium on Saturday. Both of his sacks came on fourth down inside St. John Fisher territory in the first half, and the Cardinals' offense cashed in for touchdowns after each.
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Zavion Daniels, Morrisville, Jr., DB, West Hampstead, NY/Malverne
Daniels assisted the Mustangs to a 33-30 season opening win over Kean University Saturday, collecting six total tackles and two interceptions. Daniels collected his second interception of the day with 1:33 remaining in the contest to seal the win for Morrisville. He also added three pass breakups in the win.
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Nico Duarte, Utica, Sr., K/P, Kearny, NJ/Saint Peter’s Prep
Duarte went 6-for-6 on kicks during Saturday’s Believe Bowl victory over Washington & Jefferson, converting four field goals and two extra points in the 26-11 win. Duarte outscored the Presidents on his own, accruing 14 points throughout the course of the season-opening showdown. Duarte hit from 22, 22, 27, and a career-high 41 yards on his four field goals, keeping the Pioneers in the lead as the offense began to find its footing. His accuracy allowed the team to still notch points, despite a few red zone stops from a rugged Presidents defense. Duarte became just the third Pioneer kicker to ever hit four field goals in a game, guiding the team to its eighth consecutive Believe Bowl victory.
MEN’S GOLF
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Ryan Jones, St. John Fisher, Jr., Canton, NY/Rider University
In his debut for the Cardinals after transferring from Division I Rider University, Jones was the St. John Fisher Collegiate Invitational Individual Champion over the weekend. He carded a 146 across two rounds, shooting 73 in both each round. His performance helped the Cardinals win the invitational as a team.
WOMEN’S GOLF
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Sarah Burgess, St. John Fisher, Sr., Syracuse, NY/Jamesville-DeWitt
Burgess kicked off her 2026-27 season at the St. John Fisher Collegiate Invitational. She competed as an individual, where she shot an 82 on Sunday and another 82 on Monday. Burgess finished tied with teammate Emma Sweazy for first at 164 strokes.
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Emma Sweazy, St. John Fisher, So., Rush, NY/Rush-Henrietta
Sweazy started her 2026-27 season at the St. John Fisher Collegiate Invitational. Competing as an individual Sweazy shot an 80 in round one and an 84 in round two. She ended the tournament tied with teammate Sarah Burgess for first at 164 strokes.
MEN’S SOCCER
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Samuel Burton, Nazareth, So., M, Webster, NY/Webster Schroeder
Burton and the Golden Flyers got off to a hot start in their two opening games of the season. Burton, the reigning Empire 8 Rookie of the Year, registered three goals in Nazareth’s two wins. He netted two goals in the season-opening 3-1 win over SUNY Potsdam and posted another goal in their 3-1 victory at Maritime. He totaled five shots on the week.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Jesus De La Torre, Alfred, Sr., D, Malaga, Spain/The Woodstock Academy
Jesus De La Torre led the Saxons from the back line in a key non-conference win over Westminster College on Saturday at Yunevich Stadium. He helped hold the Titans to only 10 total shots while driving his team forward. He drew the primary assists on the game-tying and game-winning goal and shut things down defensively to secure the victory.
WOMEN’S SOCCER
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Emily Woolingham, St. John Fisher, Jr., F, Buffalo, NY/Williamsville East
Reigning Empire 8 Offensive Player of the Year Emily Woolingham recorded nine points on four goals and two assists as St. John Fisher opened the 2026 season with convincing wins over Clarkson (4-2) and Neumann (6-0) last week. Woolingham scored twice in each game, becoming the first Fisher player to score four goals in the first two games of a season since Carli Kovarik did so in 2021. Woolingham is the first Cardinals student-athlete to open a season with back-to-back multi-goal games since 2000.
CO-DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Hailey Blake, Russell Sage, Jr., GK, Schenectady, NY/Colonie
Blake held strong in goal for the Gators in their three-game start to the 2026 season. She did not allow a goal in their three contests against SUNY Potsdam, Nichols and SUNY Cobleskill. In three starts, Blake made five saves, keeping a clean slate for her and the Gators defense.
CO-DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Emily McLouth, SUNY Geneseo, Sr., GK, Clarence, NY/Clarence
McLouth recorded two clean sheets in the opening week of the season for the Knights, tying RIT 0-0 and defeating Allegheny 3-0. McLouth faced 17 shots against RIT, and six against Allegheny, recording five saves against the Gators. She added four saves against RIT.
WOMEN’S TENNIS
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Natalie Pipes, SUNY Geneseo, Sr., Victor, NY/Victor
Pipes, the reigning Empire 8 Player of the Year, led Geneseo to three-straight sweeps in the opening week, defeating SUNY Oswego, SUNY Cortland, and E8 opponent Russell Sage College. Pipes defeated her opponent from Oswego 6-2, 6-3, SUNY Cortland, 7-5 6-2, and Russell Sage 6-0 6-0, all at first singles. Pipes also won all three of her doubles matches in the first spot with teammate JoAnn Catalano by scores of 6-2, 6-1, and 6-0, respectively.
DOUBLES TEAM OF THE WEEK – Emma Mihajlovic, St. John Fisher, So., New Hartford, NY/New Hartford
DOUBLES TEAM OF THE WEEK – Lily Miller, St. John Fisher, Sr., Skaneateles, NY/Skaneateles
Mihajlovic and Miller earned a victory at second doubles in St. John Fisher's season-opening 5-2 win over Hartwick on Saturday. In their first match as a tandem, they beat Elise Beauharnois and Autumn Millington 7-5. Their doubles win helped earn the Cardinals the point in the doubles matches, helping them snap a 33-match Hartwick conference win streak. The last time Hartwick was defeated in league play was on Sept. 18, 2021.
WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Paige Kemmer, Russell Sage, So., OH, Voorheesville, NY/Clayton A. Bouton
Kemmer tallied 34 kills (3.78 per set) on a .386 hitting percentage across the Gators three matches this week. She finished out the weekend leading the conference in kills per set (3.78) and hitting percentage (.386). Kemmer helped the Gators go 2-1 on the week with wins over SUNY Plattsburgh and SUNY Potsdam. She had at least 10 kills in all three matches, including 11 with a .450 hitting percentage in the season-opening sweep at Plattsburgh.
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Elsie Logan, SUNY Brockport, Sr., DS, Tonawanda Seneca Nation, NY/Akron
Logan, the 2024 Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Week, enjoyed an elite defensive week, anchoring Brockport's back row with a team-leading 64 digs at 6.40 digs per set average across 10 sets played. Her steady passing and high volume of digs kept key rallies alive and gave the Golden Eagles their most consistent match-to-match production over the four-game stretch. She recorded 22 digs against Clarkson and 18 against St. Lawrence.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Averleigh McFarlan, Elmira, Fr., M, Cross City, FL/Dixie County
In her collegiate debut and first week of competitions, McFarlan started in three of four matches for the Soaring Eagles. She competed in all four matches, recording 34.5 points for an average of 2.65 points per set. She added 29 kills, seven digs, and five service aces. McFarlan had 13 kills and four digs against Geneva.