Athletes of the Week for November 19, 2018
Women’s Cross Country
Paige Lawler — Washington University — Lexington, MA (Lexington)
Junior Paige Lawler of Washington University won the individual title at the 2018 NCAA Division III Women’s Cross Country Championship and helped lead the second-ranked Bears to the team title. She covered the six-kilometer course in 20:55.0 and keyed the team’s one-point win over two-time defending champion and top-ranked Johns Hopkins University.
Men’s Cross Country
Brad Hodkinson — Washington University — Snohomish, WA (Snohomish)
Senior Brad Hodkinson became the fourth Washington University men’s runner to post a top-10 finish at the NCAA Division III Men’s Cross Country Championship. He placed seventh in a time of 24:39.1 over the eight-kilometer course to lead the Bears to a program-best second-place finish.
Football – Offense
Alex Cline — Carnegie Mellon University — Dublin, OH (Dublin Jerome)
Senior quarterback Alex Cline became the all-time Carnegie Mellon University leader in touchdown passes after throwing four in the Tartans’ 35-14 win over Geneva College. He completed 33 of 47 passes for 332 yards, eclipsing the 300-yard mark for the fourth time in his career. Cline’s 56 touchdown passes surpassed the previous mark of 53 set by Chris Dee (1991-94).
Football – Defense
Quinn Zsido — Carnegie Mellon University — New Windsor, NY (Cornwall Central)
Senior linebacker Quinn Zsido recorded 11 tackles, including five solo hits, in a 35-14 Carnegie Mellon University victory over Geneva College. He also recovered two fumbles and recorded one tackle for loss.
Football – Special Teams
Brandon Nguyen — Carnegie Mellon University — Maitland, FL (Lake Highland Preparatory)
Freshman Brandon Nguyen converted all five extra point attempts as Carnegie Mellon University closed its season with a 35-14 win over visiting Geneva College. Nguyen finished his rookie campaign hitting 33 of 35 extra points and connecting on seven of 11 field goals.
Women’s Soccer – Offense
Caroline Dempsey — Washington University — Lincolnshire, IL (Adlai E. Stevenson)
Washington University senior midfielder Caroline Dempsey converted a late penalty kick to give the Bears a 2-1 sectional final victory over 15th-ranked Wheaton College (IL). The game-winning goal was her first of the season and fifth of her career and helped send the Bears to the NCAA Division III Women’s Soccer Championship semifinals for the third time in four seasons.
Women’s Soccer – Defense
Maggie Crist — Washington University — Wayzata, MN (Minnetonka)
Washington University senior midfielder Maggie Crist led the Bears’ defense that limited opponents to four shots on goal in a pair of wins in the sectional round of the NCAA Division III Women’s Soccer Championship. She tallied a goal and an assist, while anchoring the back line that limited 23rd-ranked University of Wisconsin-La Crosse to one shot on goal in a 3-0 Bears’ win on Friday. The Bears held 15th-ranked Wheaton College (IL) to three shots on goal in a 2-1 win that sent the Bears to the national semifinals for the third time in four years.
Men’s Soccer – Offense
Max Lopez — University of Chicago — Tulsa, OK (Cascia Hall)
Senior forward Max Lopez scored all three University of Chicago goals as the Maroons posted back-to-back shutout wins to advance to the NCAA Division III Men’s Soccer Championship semifinals for the second consecutive season. He scored in the 74th and 80th minutes in the Maroons’ 2-0 win over fifth-ranked Trinity University and then tallied in the 98th minute in a 1-0 overtime victory over 13th-ranked Luther College.
Men’s Soccer – Defense
Nicco Capotosto —University of Chicago — Holland, MI (Zeeland East)
Senior midfielder Nicco Capotosto spearheaded the defensive effort in the midfield to lead University of Chicago to shutout wins over fifth-ranked Trinity University and 13th-ranked Luther College that sent the Maroons back to the NCAA Division III Men’s Soccer Championship semifinals. He consistently broke up attacking chances in the midfield and defense as the Maroons outshot their opponents by a combined 48-18 and allowed just one shot in the second half of both games.
Patrick Conway —University of Rochester — Acton, MA (Acton-Boxborough)
Senior goalkeeper Patrick Conway earned two wins and set a program record for solo shutouts as University of Rochester won two matches to advance to its first NCAA Division III Men’s Soccer Championship semifinals. He earned his program-best 10th solo shutout in a 1-0 Yellowjackets’ win over Eastern University and then he made three stops in a 2-1 victory over top-ranked Messiah College.
Volleyball
Mady Arles — Emory University — Richmond, VA (St. Catherine’s School)
Senior setter Mady Arles was named Most Outstanding Player at the NCAA Division III Championship after helping lead Emory University to its second national title. She averaged 10.8 assists, 1.7 digs, and 0.60 blocks over three matches. The Eagles defeated 25th-ranked Ithaca College in the quarterfinals, sixth-ranked Juniata College in the semifinals, and top-ranked Calvin College. Arles, who also contributed 11 kills and hit .364, totaled 35 assists, five kills, five digs, and three aces in a sweep of Calvin in the championship match as the Eagles hit .364 as a team.
Elyse Thompson — Emory University — Tallahassee, FL (Leon)
Junior libero Elyse Thompson earned all-tournament honors at the NCAA Division III Championship after helping lead Emory University to its second national title. She led the Eagles in digs in all three matches, including a match-high 24 in a sweep of top-ranked Calvin College in the championship match. Thompson registered 20 digs in the Eagles’ four-set win over 25th-ranked Ithaca College in the quarterfinals and finished with 19 digs in a semifinal sweep of sixth-ranked Juniata College.
Women’s Basketball
Madeline Homoly — Washington University — Kansas City, MO (Bishop Miege)
Senior forward Madeline Homoly earned all-tournament honors at the Washington University McWilliams Classic. She scored 22 points in both games of a Bears’ split and averaged 8.0 rebounds per game. Homoly, who shot 57.1 percent from the floor (20-for-35), registered a double-double in a win over Blackburn College with 11 rebounds.
Men’s Basketball
Seth Henry — Carnegie Mellon University — Fulton, MD (Reservoir)
Senior Seth Henry of Carnegie Mellon University opened the season averaging a double-double with 23.0 points and 10.0 rebounds. He shot 68.0 percent from the field (17-of-25) and made all 11 of his free throws. Henry scored a game-high 26 points and added 11 boards against Chatham University and then totaled 20 points and nine rebounds against Penn State-Behrend College,
Women’s Fencing
Joanne Carminucci — Brandeis University — Brewster, NY (North Salem)
Senior Joanne Carminucci posted a 13-0 record in the foil to lead Brandeis University to a 5-1 record at the first Northeast Fencing Conference meet. She finished 3-0 in the team’s three varsity matches, wins over Massachusetts Institute of Technology (16-11) and Sacred Heart University (14-13) and a loss to Wellesley College (17-10). The Judges’ foil squad finished 6-0.
Men’s Fencing
Alex Holtman — Brandeis University — Bad Üeberkingen, Germany (Kantmannische Geislingen)
Sophomore Alex Holtman led the Brandeis saber squad and overall team to 5-0 records at the first Northeast Fencing Conference meet. He posted 3-0 records in the team’s two varsity wins, 14-13 over Massachusetts Institute of Technology and 17-10 over Sacred Heart University.
Women’s Swimming and Diving
Suhan Mestha — Case Western Reserve University — Fairport, NY (Fairport)
Senior Suhan Mestha won one individual event and swam on two victorious relays to help Case Western Reserve University to wins over Gannon University, Grove City College, and University of Rochester. Mestha won the 50-yard freestyle (24.09 seconds) and her 50-yard split (23.89 seconds) in the winning 200-yard freestyle relay ranks third in NCAA Division III this season. The 200 free relay posted a time of 1:39.01, while the 200-yard medley relay won in 1:48.91.
Agnes Lo — University of Chicago — Fremont, CA (Mission San Jose)
Junior Agnes Lo of University of Chicago surpassed the NCAA Division III Regional Diving standard in winning both diving events at the Maroons’ Phoenix Fall Classic. She won the one-meter dive with a score of 470.20 and the three-meter board with a mark of 435.35.
Men’s Swimming and Diving
Byrne Litschgi — University of Chicago — Tampa, FL (Jesuit)
University of Chicago junior Byrne Litschgi broke school records in the 100- and 200-yard backstroke events at the Maroons’ Phoenix Fall Classic. His time of 1:45.07 in the 200 back broke the pool record and ranks as the fastest time in NCAA Division III this season by more than three seconds. He provisionally qualified for the NCAA championship in that event as well as the 100 back (48.50 seconds) and the 100-yard butterfly (49.27 seconds). Litschi swam on four relays that all met the NCAA “B” cut, the 200-yard freestyle relay (1:21.43), 200-yard medley relay (1:29.96), 400-yard freestyle relay (3:01.07), and the 400-yard medley relay (3:17.47).
Judson Kyle — Carnegie Mellon University — Austin, TX (St. Stephen’s Episcopal School)
Carnegie Mellon University freshman Judson Kyle qualified for the NCAA Division III Zone Diving meet on both boards at the Tartans’ home diving invitational. He set a pool record in winning the three-meter event with an 11-dive score of 527.75 points and posted a score of 463.65 on the three-meter board.
Cole Vertin — NYU — San Jose, CA (St. Francis)
NYU freshman Cole Vertin won both events at the United States Merchant Marine Academy Memorial Invitational on Saturday. He recorded NCAA Division III Zone Diving marks on both the one- (308.50) and three-meter (310.25) boards.
Wrestling
James Murdoch — NYU — Clifton, NJ (Clifton)
Sophomore James Murdoch became the second NYU wrestler in program history to win a title at the New York State Championships, an event that includes multiple NCAA Division I teams. He won the 165-pound weight bracket at Sunday’s event, earning four victories to improve his season record to 13-2.
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.