Athletes of the Week for May 14, 2018
Baseball
Rocco Maue — Case Western Reserve University — Moon Township, PA Moon Area)
Junior second baseman Rocco Maue batted .462 (6-for-13) with five runs scored, two doubles, three runs batted in, and five stolen bases as Case Western Reserve University swept University of Chicago in a three-game series. He hit 3-for-5 with two runs and two doubles in an 11-7 Spartan win in the first game on Saturday. Maue hit the game-tying single in the ninth inning of the second game, a 7-6 walk-off win on Sunday.
Matt Levine — Case Western Reserve University — Boca Raton, FL (Olympic Heights Community)
Freshman Matt Levine allowed just two runs over eight innings in an 11-4 Case Western Reserve University win over University of Chicago on Sunday, completing a three-game sweep. He walked one and yielded six hits, needing just 81 pitches to navigate his eight innings of work. Levine finished the season 6-1 with a 3.18 earned run average.
Women’s Golf
Navika Kuchakulla — NYU — Orlando, FL (Lake Highland Preparatory School)
NYU first-year golfer Navika Kuchakulla finished as the individual runner-up at the NCAA Division III Women’s Golf Championship. She shot a 14-over par 306 (79-73-75-79) over the four rounds with her 73 on Wednesday matching par. Kuchakulla helped lead the Violets to a program-best fourth-place finish.
Softball
Nicole Doyle — Case Western Reserve University — Mount Vernon, OH (Mount Vernon)
Case Western Reserve University junior Nicole Doyle batted .412 (7-of-17) with two doubles and two triples to lead the Spartans to the NCAA Division III Softball Championship regional title in Notre Dame, Indiana. She scored four times and drove in four runs in a 4-1 weekend. Doyle, who earned all-regional honors, finished 2-for-3 with a double, triple, and two RBI in a 5-1 Spartan win over Ohio Northern University on Sunday that secured the regional championship.
Ilissa Hamilton — Case Western Reserve University — South Abington Township, PA (Scranton Prep)
Case Western Reserve University sophomore Ilissa Hamilton finished 4-1, allowing only three earned runs in 29 innings, to help lead the Spartans to the NCAA Division III Softball Championship regional title in Notre Dame, Indiana. She was named the regional Most Valuable player for her effort, which included a four-hitter over six innings in a 5-0 win over Ohio Northern University on Sunday. Hamilton added four hits and two runs batted in at the plate.
Women’s Tennis
Stephanie Taylor — Emory University — Fort Lauderdale, FL (Pine Crest School)
First-year player Stephanie Taylor went undefeated in singles and doubles to lead Emory University to its 11th consecutive NCAA Division III Women’s Tennis Championship quarterfinal appearance. She teamed with Anna Fuhr for a pair of wins at No. 2 doubles, defeating Hanover College (8-1) and host Sewanee: The University of the South (8-5). Taylor won 6-0, 6-1 at sixth singles to clinch the win over the Tigers and led 6-0, 5-1 at No. 3 singles in the Eagles’ opening match.
Men’s Tennis
David Liu — University of Chicago — Omaha, NE (Millard North)
Senior David Liu returned to competition after 14 months to post a 4-0 combined record in singles and doubles and help send University of Chicago to its third NCAA Division III Men’s Tennis Championship quarterfinal appearance in four years. He teamed with classmate Nicolas Chua for an 8-5 win over Augustana College and 8-3 victory over Carnegie Mellon University at No. 3 doubles. Liu won both his matches at fifth singles, dropping nine games in four sets.
J.J. Kroot — Washington University — Indianapolis, IN (North Central)
Sophomore J.J. Kroot posted a combined 4-0 record in singles and doubles as Washington University defeated Hope College and host Kenyon College to advance to the NCAA Division III Men’s Tennis Championship quarterfinals for the 12th consecutive year. He teamed with senior Johnny Wu for two wins at No. 3 doubles and did not drop a set in singles victories at sixth singles.
Women’s Outdoor Track and Field
Aly Wayne — Washington University — Lowell, MA (Phillips Academy Andover)
Washington University senior Aly Wayne broke the program record in the 5,000-meter run at the North Central College Dr. Keeler Invitational on Thursday. She finished the race in 16:51.50, which ranks 10th in NCAA Division III this season.
Heidi Nassos — Washington University — Wheaton, IL (Wheaton Warrenville South)
Washington University junior Heidi Nassos set a personal-best mark in the pole vault on Thursday at the North Central College Dr. Keeler Invitational. She cleared 3.92 meters to claim the event title and post the fifth-best mark in NCAA Division III this season.
Men’s Outdoor Track and Field
Irie Gourde — Brandeis University — Portland, OR (York Academy, Toronto)
Brandeis University graduate student Irie Gourde set a program record in all five of his races at the NEICAAA Championships, twice in the preliminaries and three times in the finals. He won the 200- (21.41 seconds) and 400-meter (47.46 seconds) dashes in Saturday’s finals. Gourde, who ran the opening leg of the program-record 400-meter relay that finished in 41.68 seconds, is ranked third in NCAA Division III this season in the 400 and 10th in the 200.
Jacob Schofel — Carnegie Mellon University — Livingston, NJ (Livingston)
Carnegie Mellon University senior Jacob Schofel placed second in the hammer throw at the Allegheny College Gator Invitational. He recorded a personal-best mark of 56.99 meters, which currently ranks 14th in NCAA Division III.
Athlete of the Week selections are drawn from nominees submitted by member institution coaches and sports information directors. UAA Athletes of the Week are selected in each sport in which the UAA sponsors competition. They are selected on the basis of their individual performances and contributions to team efforts during the past week in both Association and non-Association competition.