PSAC Athletes of the Week - 5
Golf
Men’s Golf Athlete of the Week
Gannon
Abe Holmes
Senior
Barrie, Ontario, Canada / Barrie North Collegiate
Abe Holmes claimed his third individual title in four tournaments this season when he won Allegheny's College's Guy and Jeanne Kuhn Memorial tournament. Holmes shot a second round of 3-under-par 69 on Monday after shooting an even-par 72 on Sunday. He shot those scores despite playing in wet, windy conditions at The Country Club of Meadville. He also helped Gannon to a 28-stroke win for its fourth team title in four tournaments. He tied teammate Ryan Ferry (71-70-141) with the low total, but Holmes won by virtue of his lower second round. Earlier in the year, Holmes won the California Vulcan Invitational and Mercyhurst's Evann Parker Memorial.
Women’s Golf Athlete of the Week
Bloomsburg
Gianna Pelzer
Sophomore
Naperville, Ill. / Neuqua Valley
Pelzer was the overall individual winner at the Ursinus Invitational on Tuesday and helped the Huskies win the event by placing first overall in the team standings with a score of 335 (+51). Pelzer finished with a 77 (+6) to finish as the top golfer in an event that saw players compete from seven different schools.
Field Hockey
Field Hockey Athlete of the Week
East Stroudsburg
Madison Kline
Forward
Senior
Oley, Pa. / Oley Valley
Madison Kline paced the Warriors offensively in a 5-0 victory at Adelphi, recording five points on a pair of goals and an assist. Her initial goal in the contest was the first of the game turning out to be the game winner.
Field Hockey Defensive Athlete of the Week
Millersville
Kerstin Koons
Goalkeeper
Sophomore
Lewisburg, Pa. / Lewisburg
Kerstin Koons posted her third-straight shutout, blanking Saint Thomas Aquinas by a 4-0 score. The 6-0 Marauders played their first road game of the season and Koons recorded four saves on STAC's eight shots.
Cross Country
Men’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week
Slippery Rock
Troy Hart
Sophomore
Fredonia, Pa. / Reynolds
Hart was the highest finisher from the Atlantic Region at the LHU Invitational over the weekend with a 16th place showing in 24:58. He led Slippery Rock to a fifth-place finish in the team standings in a field of 35 teams. SRU topped all the other teams from the Atlantic Region in the race.
Women’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week
Seton Hill
Hannah Smrcka
Sophomore
Corry, Pa. / Corry
Smrcka led the Griffins to a third-place finish in the Crimson Race at the Lock Haven Open. She placed 4th overall in a time of 21:34.70. It was one of the 10 fastest 6K times in school history.
Men's Soccer
Eastern Division Athlete of the Week
Bloomsburg
Sammy Ames
Forward
Junior
Holly Ridge, N.C. / Dixon
Sammy Ames scored a goal and assisted on another during the team's 2-0 win over East Stroudsburg on Saturday. Ames brought his point total to seven with the performance and the junior is tied as the team leader in points and goals (3).
Eastern Division Defensive Athlete of the Week
Lock Haven
Duc Do
Defense
Sophomore
New Oxford, Pa. / New Oxford
Duc Do helped stack the brick wall for the Bald Eagles defense this week as LHU defeated Shippensburg 3-0. The sophomore played a full 90 minutes, not allowing the attack of the Raiders to make an impact as the LHU defense held a clean sheet. The defender also grabbed an assist on the second goal of the game, placing a pass in the midfield to help set up Lock Haven's second goal. The assist marked his first career assist as a Bald Eagle.
Western Division Athlete of the Week
Gannon
Sergio Del Castillo
Midfield
Senior
Madrid, Spain
Sergio Del Castillo had another prolific offensive week, scoring a hat trick on Monday against D'Youville (just two days after another hat trick versus Wheeling) and following that performance up with two more goals (Gannon's only two of the game) in the 2-0 win over Slippery Rock on Saturday. He currently leads the PSAC with 13 goals in 2022.
Western Division Defensive Athlete of the Week
Gannon
Bautista Corti
Defense
Sophomore
Manuel Alberti, Argentina / Adultos 2000
Bautista Corti continues to be a rock in defense for the Golden Knights at center back, playing all 90 minutes in both of Gannon's victories this week--even in the 12-1 blowout over D'Youville. He also played a huge part in the shutout of Slippery Rock on Saturday (a 2-0 final score).
Women's Soccer
Western Division Athlete of the Week
Gannon
Sarah Fails
Forward
Senior
Gerard, Pa. / Villa Maria
Sarah Fails continues to be an offensive weapon for the Golden Knights and was a key part of both 2-1 victories this week (over Mercyhurst and California (Pa.). Fails assisted on both goals in the match versus then-first-place Mercyhurst. She also scored the game-winner against Cal (Pa.), bursting through defenders in the second half and firing home a strike—her fourth of the season.
Western Division Defensive Athlete of the Week
Slippery Rock
Emma Yoder
Goalkeeper
Graduate Student
Marietta, Ga. / Forest Hills Central
Emma Yoder helped lead the Slippery Rock women's soccer team to an 1-0 week with a 1-0 shutout victory over PSAC West opponent Edinboro on the road Saturday. Facing seven shots, Yoder made five saves while allowing no goals. Yoder earned her first shutout victory of the season.
Eastern Division Athlete of the Week
Shepherd
Sara Hohn
Forward
Senior
Frederick, Md. / Thomas Johnson
Sara Hohn had two goals and an assist in a 2-0 week for the Rams. She scored two goals, including the game-winner, in a 4-3 win over Mansfield. She then added an assist in a 2-1 win over Lock Haven. She now has three game-winning goals on the season.
Eastern Division Defensive Athlete of the Week
West Chester
Hayley McGee
Goalkeeper
Senior
Mechanicsburg, Pa. / Cumberland Valley
Hayley McGee had two more great performances a week ago for West Chester, registering two victories and one shutout with 13 saves to help West Chester remain unbeaten on the season. McGee started her week on the road at Kutztown and played very well, making four big saves to slow the potent Golden Bear offense and help West Chester to a 1-0 victory over its rivals. On Saturday night at East Stroudsburg, McGee played well once again, making nine saves and allowing just one goal, her first goal surrendered in three weeks as West Chester cruised to a 4-1 victory. Saturday night’s victory also allowed McGee to pass Heather Rinker for eighth in career wins as she registered the 25th victory of her career with the win over East Stroudsburg.
Volleyball
East Athlete of the Week
Shippensburg
Rachel Verhoef
Middle Blocker
Senior
Greencastle, Pa. / Greencastle-Antrim
In a 1-1 week for the Raiders, Verhoef posted a hit .297, totaling 27 kills and only eight errors. In the match against East Stroudsburg, she was one shy away from a tying her career-high 19 kills. Verhoef totaled 18 kills with only three errors and a .405 hit percentage. She added two block solos. She averages three kills per sets and leads the team in kills this season. Against Kutztown, she had nine kills and four blocks.
East Defensive Athlete of the Week
Shepherd
Riley Moreno
Middle Blocker/Outside Hitter
Freshman
Elburn, Ill. / St. Charles North
Moreno in a 1-1 week for the Rams, played outstanding on the defensive side of the ball. In the game one loss against PSAC East favorite ESU, she totaled nine blocks and four kills, and in match two, she had five blocks including a solo block totaling 14 for the week.
West Athlete of the Week
Gannon
Madde Blake
Outside Hitter
Junior
Crystal Lake, Ill. / Crystal Lake Central
Madde Blake had a huge week for the second week in a row as she led Gannon to two wins and a share of first place in the PSAC West. She turned in career highs of 19 kills, 20 digs, and 20 points on Saturday while helping the Golden Knights to a four-set win over rival Edinboro. In 44 attacks in that match, Blake had zero attack errors and a season-high hitting percentage of .432. Her kills on the final two points secured the victory. Earlier in the week, Blake had 11 kills, 12 digs, 4 aces, and a team-high 16 points in a four-set win over Mercyhurst. She now has 116 kills, 131 digs, and a team-high 20 aces.
West Defensive Athlete of the Week
Gannon
Emma Hall
Libero
Sophomore
Lowell, Mich. / Lowell (Mich.) High School
Emma Hall’s defense was critical last week in Gannon’s PSAC West wins over Mercyhurst and Edinboro. The sophomore libero was all over the court on Tuesday, September 20, against Mercyhurst as she compiled a team-best 28 digs in a four-set win. She then made a series of spectacular saves in a four-set victory against Edinboro on Saturday on her way to a team-high 25 digs. It was the sixth time this season she has had more than 20 digs in a match. Hall has a team-high 253 digs this season.
Football
East Offensive Athlete of the Week
Shepherd
Tyson Bagent
Quarterback
Senior
Martinsburg, W.Va. / Martinsburg
Bagent continued his impressive start to 2022 with a huge performance with Eastern Division rival, Kutztown. He finished 30-of-41 for 456 yards and three touchdowns while also running in for a touchdown in a crucial 42-35 win over the Golden Bears.
Eastern Defensive Athlete of the Week
Shippensburg
Matt Feeney
Linebacker
Sophomore
Reading, Pa. / Exeter Township
In a 31-17 road win at Bloomsburg, Shippensburg got an impressive defensive performance from redshirt-sophomore linebacker Matt Feeney, who set a single-game school record with 6.5 tackles-for-loss (TFLs) among his team-high 10 tackles. Feeney's 6.5 TFLs were all achieved in the first three quarters of play and resulted in a total loss of 17 yards. His performance breaks the previous single-game school record of 6.0 TFLs set by Jake Metz against Seton Hill on Oct. 5, 2013. He has totaled 40 tackles through the first four games of the season, which leads the Raiders.
Eastern Division Special Teams Athlete of the Week
Shepherd
Ronnie Brown
Running Back
Junior
Baltimore, Md. / Dundalk
Ronnie brown helped in a huge way for Shepherd in their 42-35 PSAC East win over Kutztown. His big moment came when he returned a 100-yard kick back for a touchdown getting Shepherd back in the game at 21-14 with 8:26 left in the second quarter.
Western Offensive Athlete of the Week
Gannon
Kory Curtis
Quarterback
Redshirt Junior
Cape Coral, Fla. / Island Coast
For the second straight week Curtis enjoyed a career-best day, this time throwing for 418 yards with 3 TDs in a 47-24 win at Clarion. A week ago, he passed for 362 yards against West Chester. He completed 25-of-38 passes and added 19 yards rushing for 437 yards. His TD passes covered 16, 7, and 3 yards. The 418 yards ranks fourth in a game at Gannon, while the 437 yards in total offense is ninth. While playing in just 15 games at Gannon Curtis has moved into sixth place in career passing yards with 3,359 and is fifth in career total offense with 3,529 yards. Curtis has now thrown 124 passes without an interception this season. Gannon finished the day with 629 yards, the sixth-highest single-game total.
Western Defensive Athlete of the Week
California (Pa.)
Noah Dillow
Linebacker
Junior
Alum Bank, Pa. / Chestnut Ridge
Dillow posted a 72-yard interception return for a touchdown and was a key member of a stifling defense on Saturday, as California started PSAC West action with a 49-7 win against Edinboro. In addition to the pick-six, he tallied six tackles (three solo) and 1.0 TFL. Late in the first quarter, the Fighting Scots recovered an onside kick near midfield after trimming the deficit to 14-7 on fourth-and-goal. On the third play of the drive, Dillow registered his first interception of the year at the California 28-yard line and returned the turnover for a touchdown – the second of his collegiate career – with 3:58 left in the first quarter. The Vulcans held the Fighting Scots to only 177 yards of total offense, including just 21 rushing yards on 26 attempts.
Western Division Special Teams
Gannon
Eric Scarpino
Place Kicker
Redshirt Junior
Waterford, Pa. / Fort LeBoeuf
Eric Scarpino made field goals of 22 and 19 yards and was 5-of-6 on extra points in Gannon’s 47-24 win at Clarion. The redshirt junior has made 16-of-20 field goals in his career, moving into seventh place in career field goals made and tied for seventh in career field goals attempted.