General | 2/9/2026 12:58:57 PM
Below are the Empire 8 Players of the Week, released on February 9, 2026, for games played from February 2-February 8, 2026. It is the 24th Empire 8 weekly honors release of the 2025-26 season. Sports featured include men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s ice hockey, men’s and women’s indoor track and field, men’s volleyball, and men’s wrestling.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Lamar Lovelace, Keuka, Sr., G, Rochester, NY/Northeast College Prep
Lovelace continued his tremendous season for the Wolves, averaging 30.5 points per game while leading Keuka College to a pair of road conference wins as they clinched a spot in the conference tournament. He opened with 29 points, four assists, and five rebounds at Hartwick on Friday. He then leveled up his efforts at Russell Sage on Saturday. Lovelace posted 32 points, five assists, and nine rebounds in the win over the Gators. Lovelace currently leads the Empire 8 with 448 points, 20.4 per game. His point total is already in the top five in program history at Keuka College with games still to play for the Wolves.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Pharell Aybar, SUNY Brockport, Fr., G, Washington Heights, NY/A. Phillip Randolph
Aybar was the catalyst for a perfect 3-0 week for Brockport, averaging an impressive 16.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game. Aybar displayed elite poise and versatility, balancing his role as a facilitator with 13 points and seven assists in a win over Geneseo Tuesday before exploding for a career-high 29 points on 63 percent shooting (12-of-19) in a 94-85 win over St. John Fisher Saturday. It is Aybar’s fourth E8 weekly honor of 2025-26.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Stephanie Jean-Baptiste, SUNY Brockport, Sr., G, Jersey City, NJ/John Jay
Jean-Baptiste turned in a historic week for the SUNY Brockport, averaging 25.0 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.7 steals per game, while shooting 56 percent from the floor in three games. After posting 20 points against Nazareth. Jean-Baptiste set a new single-game program record with 41 points (15-of-19) with eight rebounds and five steals in a win over St. John Fisher. Her 41 points were just one shy of the E8 single-game record of 42 points.
CO-ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Jessica Bowens, Hartwick, Fr., F, Malta, NY/Ballston Spa
Bowens was stellar in two conference contests, averaging 11.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game, while shooting 77 percent from the floor (10-for-13). She scored 10 points against Keuka Friday, before adding 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the floor with six boards in a 77-71 win over Elmira.
CO-ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Olivia Simser, Houghton, Fr., G, Constable, NY/Franklin Academy
Simser averaged 12.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in Houghton's 1-1 week. She also hit 5-of-12 from long range. She totaled 10 points and added four assists and a pair of rebounds in Friday's 87-45 win over SUNY Poly before recording 15 points, five boards and three assists in a loss to Utica on Saturday. She has reached double figures scoring in six straight games and 10 games overall on the season. It is her second straight E8 weekly honor.
MEN’S ICE HOCKEY
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Charles Ross, Nazareth, So., D, Des Peres, MO/Bishop Brady
Ross led the Golden Flyers with three key goals from the blueline and was plus-two, as Nazareth swept a home-and-home series against UCHC rival St. John Fisher. On Friday, Ross scored two key goals in a 4-2 win at St. John Fisher. He followed that up by scoring the game-winning, shorthanded goal 6:29 into the third period that broke a 1-1 tie and vaulted the Golden Eagles to a 2-1 win.
CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Eric Vitale, Utica, Jr., F, Toronto, Ontario
Vitale returned to his scoring ways this past weekend, slotting away three goals, adding an assist and was plus-3 in a weekend sweep over Elmira, as Utica extended its winning streak to 11 games. Vitale would have a pair of two-point nights in each win, getting a goal and an assist in Friday’s 6-4 road victory, before continuing his stellar run on the Nexus Center ice, with two goals on Saturday in a 5-2 win to sweep the series.
GOALTENDER OF THE WEEK – Jacob Torgner, SUNY Geneseo, Jr., G, Mjolby, Sweden
Torgner helped lead Geneseo to an upset over No. 6 Oswego on Saturday night, only allowing one goal while making 29 saves. He stopped five shots in the opening period and 17 in the second, as the Knights opened a 2-0 lead after 40 minutes of play. Torgner made eight more saves in the third period, as Geneseo improved to 14-6-1 in 2025-26 with the win.
WOMEN’S ICE HOCKEY
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Nikki Sharp, Nazareth, Jr., F, Perth, Australia/Bishop Kearney
Sharp led the Golden Flyers with two goals and an assist in two wins over Elmira that put Nazareth in the driver’s seat to earn the No. 1 seed in the upcoming UCHC Championship Tournament and secured the Empire 8 Championship. On Friday, Sharp scored the game-winning goal with less than 30 seconds left to lift Nazareth over Elmira, 3-2. She added a goal in Saturday’s 4-3 win at Elmira.
GOALTENDER OF THE WEEK – Alex Venning, Utica, So., G, Courtice, Ontario/Holy Trinity Courtice
Venning and the Pioneers battled swept St. John Fisher in a key home-and-home set. She made 54 saves on 55 shots for a .982 save percentage over the two-game series home her second and third wins of the season, and the first shutout of her collegiate career. Venning made saves on all but one of 26 shots in game one before turning away all 29 in game two. Her game two shutout win was highlighted by an 18-save third period, shutting the door on the Cardinals' attempts to work back into the game.
MEN’S INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD
TRACK ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Corinthian Reed, St. John Fisher, So., Sprints, Rochester, NY/McQuaid Jesuit
Reed placed second in the 200-meter run with a time of 22.18, setting Fisher's indoor record for the event, in the Utica Invite on Saturday. He also moved into a tie for 41st nationally in the event.
FIELD ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – David Dobrowolski, Nazareth, Jr., Throws, Baldwinsville, NY/C.W. Baker
Dobrowolski recorded a throw of 18.35 meters (60’2.5”) while earning runner-up honors in the weight throw at the Utica Blue & Orange Invitational and Multi on Saturday. His throw, which was also a career-best, moved him into 17th nationally in the event.
WOMEN’S INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD
TRACK ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Jillian Ambler, SUNY Geneseo, Jr., Sprints/Jumps, Fairport, NY/Fairport
Ambler, who broke an E8 record in the 60-meter hurdles last week (8.61 seconds). Nearly duplicated that time in winning the 60-meter hurdles, posting a time of 8.63, which is a facility record. Ambler was also on the winning 4x400 relay team, which crossed the finish line at 3:57.27.
FIELD ATHLETE OF THE WEEK – Lauren Jaklitsch, SUNY Geneseo, Sr., Throws, Mt. Sinai, NY/Mt. Sinai
Jaklitsch provided a big highlight for the Knights at the Utica Invitational by posting a distance of 18.12 meters (59’5.5”) in the weight throw, marking a new program record and the fourth best distance so far this season in Division III.
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
PLAYER OF THE WEEK – Andrew Baaki, SUNY Poly, So., MB, Amsterdam, NY/Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons
Baaki had 28 kills over three matches during the weekend, hitting a combined .588 in Polys three wins. He took a total of 44 swings with only three errors. Baaki contributed 10 total blocks over the weekend, as he averaged 2.8 kills, 1.0 block and 3.6 total points per set. He hit .625 with 11 kills against Houghton Friday and hit .727 with eight kills in a sweep over Regis College.
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK – Jordan Prusky, Poly, Fr., MB, Cohoes, NY/Shaker
Prusky had 13 kills over two matches on Saturday. He had six kills on seven attempts, hitting .714 in the sweep over Hartwick College. In the sweep over Regis College, Prusky hit a solid 0.500 with seven kills. Overall, Prusky hit .364 in three matches over the weekend.
MEN’S WRESTLING
WRESTLER OF THE WEEK – Luke Yorke, St. John Fisher, Jr., 141 lbs., Summit, NY/Cobleskill-Richmondville
In St. John Fisher's 31-10 dual victory over Oswego State on Friday, junior Yorke beat Michael Santoro, ranked fifth in the region at 141 pounds, 4-2 by decision. The victory was one in a string of five in a row for Fisher, which dropped the first match in the dual before the run began.