Landmark Names Players Of The Week

Madison, N.J. - The Landmark Conference has recognized nine student-athletes as Players of the Week after another full weekend of conference competition. The selections are made by the Landmark Conference office.

Men's Cross Country:
Scranton senior Rob Olechna turned in a strong performance at the DeSales Invitational this past weekend. In a meet featuring three other Landmark teams he was the first conference runner across the line as he placed eighth in the 184-runner field. He cov­ered the 8K course in a time of 26:57.48, his fastest 8K time of the season, and earned a top-10 finish for the fourth-consecutive race.

Women's Cross Country:
Freshman Alycia Woodruff paced the Susquehanna women's team at the DeSales Invitational this past weekend. Woodruff was the third runner across the line out of a field of 203 runners and helped Susquehanna to a sixth-place finish as a team. She was the top Landmark runner at the meet, and also continued her streak of being the top Susquehanna finisher in each of the team's meets this season.

Field Hockey
Offensive Player of the Week:
Juniata senior forward Kim Wagner provided the Eagles with offensive firepower as the team enjoyed a 3-0 week. Wagner had the first goal of the game, and then added an assist late in the first half en route to a 3-2 victory over Landmark foe Scranton. She provided a goal and an assist earlier in the week in Juniata's 2-0 victory over Frostburg State, and also found the cage once in Juniata's 3-0 win over SUNY-Oneonta.

Defensive Player of the Week:
Drew's Stef Rutkowski turned in a pair of strong performances in goal to help the Rangers to a pair of victories. The sophomore made 10 saves during play, and then stopped another two shots in the penalty shootout to give Drew a 2-1 win over Catholic in Landmark play. She also had nine saves as Drew blanked Stevens Tech 2-0 earlier in the week. Overall she allowed just one goal in 170 minutes of action.

Men's Soccer:
Offensive Player of the Week:
USMMA midfielder Chris Flanagan netted the game-winning goal in a victory that moved the Mariners to the top of the confer­ence standings. The junior found the back of the net with just 32 seconds remaining in regulation to give USMMA a 1-0 win over Goucher. It was his third game-winning goal of the season and his fourth score overall.

Defensive Player of the Week:
Senior defender Chris Nitta of USMMA captures another Player of the Week honor after helping the Mariners claim two wins. The senior co-captain helped the USMMA defense post a pair of 1-0 wins including an upset of fourth-ranked Stevens Tech. Nitta also led a defense that allowed just three shots on goal in a win over Landmark foe Goucher. USMMA surrendered no goals in 180 minutes of action and opponents averaged just 4.5 shots on goal in two matches.

Women's Soccer:
Offensive Player of the Week:
Scranton freshman Chelsea Paskman played a key offensive role as the Royals earned a Landmark win over Juniata. She opened the scoring in the fourth minute when she drove a long shot into the net to give Scranton a 1-0 lead. She later added an assist on the Royals' final goal as Scranton claimed a 3-0 victory in its only match of the week.

Defensive Player of the Week:
Moravian junior keeper Caitlin Corrigan earns the honor for the second-consecutive week after recording two shutouts. Her sec­ond, a 2-0 victory over Susquehanna, was the 23rd of her career which established a new Moravian career record. Corrigan also posted a shutout in a 0-0 draw against Lebanon Valley in a match that was called after 81 minutes due to lightning. She finished the week with no goals allowed and two saves in 171 minutes of action.

Volleyball:
Juniata junior Amber Thomas produced four strong performances as Juniata defeated three nationally-ranked foes at the Wisconsin-Oshkosh Invitational. Thomas was named the Tournament MVP as she knocked out 11 or more kills and had 10 or more digs in all four matches at the event. She had 17 kills in wins over ninth-ranked Carthage and fifth-ranked Wisconsin-Oshkosh, and added 16 in a win over third-ranked Wisconsin-Whitewater. Her high of 17 digs came in Juniata's lone loss at the event, to 19th-ranked Wisconsin-La Crosse. Thomas totaled 61 kills and 57 digs over the two-day event, and aldo contributed six blocks and four aces.