NEWTOWN, Pa. (Conference News) – The Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) has announced its conference weekly award recipients for the week ending September 1, 2024. A total of 18 student-athletes were recognized for performances from Aug. 26, 2024 to Sep. 1, 2024.

CROSS COUNTRY (#MACxc)
MAC Men’s Runner of the Week
Jake Aylmer (Stevens / Gr. / Haddon Twp., N.J.) placed 4th overall at the Vassar Season Starter on Friday. He finished the 4K with a PR of 12:31.7, which missed first place by 6.6 seconds.

MAC Women’s Runner of the Week
Grace Gallagher (Misericordia / Jr. / Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.) finished first in an 88-runner field with a time of 15:06 in the 4K to lead the Cougars to a first place finish at the Misericordia Invitational.

FIELD HOCKEY (#MACfh)
MAC Commonwealth Offensive Player of the Week
Emma Gladstein (Stevenson / Gr., F / Sykesville, Md.) emerged from Stevenson's opening weekend with six points. In Friday's 3-1 victory over Washington (Md.), she contributed an assist to Haley Palmer off of a corner. In the 3-0 win over Sewanee on Saturday, Gladstein scored the Mustangs' first and third goals and once again assisted Palmer on Stevenson's second goal.

MAC Commonwealth Defensive Player of the Week
Haley Palmer (Stevenson / Sr., D / Owings Mills, Md.) scored a goal in each of the Mustangs' victories this past weekend. Against Washington (Md.), the senior defender netted Stevenson's third and final goal before scoring the Mustangs' second goal of the afternoon on Saturday against Sewanee. After opening weekend, Palmer is tied for first on the team in scoring.

MAC Freedom Offensive Player of the Week
Lily Metress (Misericordia / Sr., F / Burke, Va.) scored a natural hat trick to lead the team to a 4-0 win over Gwynedd Mercy in the season opener. She gave MU the lead in the 11th minute and scored twice in a five-minute span in the second half.

MAC Freedom Defensive Player of the Week
Ella Weidenhammer (Lebanon Valley / So., GK / Newport, Pa.) had a spectacular first game as a Dutchman with eight saves in 51 minutes of action during LVC's 4-0 season-opening victory over Elizabethtown on Friday. The sophomore transfer stopped all eight shots she faced including a great sequence in the third quarter where she stopped four shots in a period of 15 seconds.

MEN’S SOCCER (#MACsoc)
MAC Commonwealth Offensive Player of the Week
Christian Bowles (Albright / So., F / York, Pa.) led the Lions to back to back shutout wins to begin the season. In the first game of the year, Bowles scored twice and assisted on another for three total points in Albright's 4-0 win over Penn State Berks. On Sunday, Bowles found the back of the net again in the 78th minute of play to send the Lions past Wilson College 1-0. In his first two games as an Albright Lion, Bowles has three goals, two game winning goals and one assist. 

MAC Commonwealth Defensive Player of the Week
Evan Solley (Alvernia / Sr., GK / Oley, Pa.) did not allow a goal in a 1-0-1 weekend for the Golden Wolves. In a 0-0 tie to Muhlenberg on Friday night, Solley recorded a career-high 12 saves in 89 and a half minutes of action. On Sunday afternoon, Solley recorded the complete game shutout in a 3-0 win over Farmingdale State. Solely made three saves in net to bring his weekend total to 15 saves.

MAC Freedom Offensive Player of the Week
Liam MacDonald (DeSales / Jr., M / Hamilton Twp., N.J.) led DeSales to a 3-0 win over Gwynedd-Mercy University in the season opener on Friday with two of DSU's three goals.  He scored both the first and third goals in the win.

MAC Freedom Defensive Player of the Week
Dalton Fitterling (Lebanon Valley / Gr., GK / Womelsdorf, Pa.) led the Dutchmen to two shutout victories this weekend including a 1-0 clean sheet against fourth-ranked Washington College on Friday. The graduate student made five saves in 162 minutes of action over the two games with four coming against the Shoremen in a thrilling victory. Fitterling faced 13 total shots against Washington as the Dutchmen handed last year's Final Four participant a defeat in the first game of the year. Fitterling made one save and faced just four shots in 72 minutes of action during LVC's 5-0 victory over Alfred on Saturday.

WOMEN’S SOCCER (#MACsoc)
MAC Commonwealth Offensive Player of the Week
Mia Zucker (Eastern / So., F / Jenkintown, Pa.) recorded a four-point weekend in Eastern's two matches against Rutgers-Newark and New Jersey City at the Brick Classic. The sophomore forward provided a spark off the Eastern bench in both matches. Against Rutgers-Newark, she scored the game-winning goal in the 88th minute to lift the Eagles to a 3-2 triumph. On Sunday, after stealing an errant pass, she notched the game-tying tally against NJCU in a 1-1 draw.

MAC Commonwealth Defensive Player of the Week
Joss Metz (York / Fy., GK / Sparrows Point, Md.) led the Spartans to a 1-0-1 week including her first career shutout on Sunday. In Friday's season opener, Metz played the opening 45 minutes of the game for the Spartans as she made one save in the York win. On Sunday, Metz was outstanding as she faced 17 shots at Ithaca but kept the Bombers off the board as the Spartans forged a 0-0 tie. Metz made three saves for the Green and White. For the week, Metz played 135 minutes, made four saves and allowed one goal on the 20 shots she faced.

MAC Freedom Offensive Player of the Week
Emma Sweitzer (Misericordia / Sr., F / Dallas, Pa.) scored four goals in a 2-0 start.  Had a hat trick in an 8-0 win at Susquehanna and converted a PK for the game's first goal in a 2-0 win over Emerson. Scored twice early in the first half in the opener and completed the hat trick early in the second half.

MAC Freedom Defensive Player of the Week 
Ava Gianni (FDU-Florham / Jr., GK / North Brunswick, N.J.) collected her first collegiate shutout with 5 saves, on five shots faced. In 77 minutes of play, the junior goalkeeper accounted for a 1.000 save percentage as well as critical saves that allowed FDU the 1-0 win. 

WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL (#MACvb)
MAC Commonwealth Offensive Player of the Week
Bridgette Kelly (Eastern / Sr., MH / Coatesville, Pa.) put together a tremendous weekend of volleyball in Gettysburg, earning All-Tournament honors after Eastern's 4-0 weekend at the Gettysburg Battlefield Classic. In four matches, which included a hard-fought five-set win over regional foe Franklin & Marshall and a four-set victory over a perennially talented Wisconsin-Eau Claire squad, Kelly finished with 33 kills, a .468 hitting percentage, and seven service aces. Kelly also shined defensively, recording 12 blocks, five of which were solo, to go along with 12 digs. She finished with 10 kills against Franklin & Marshall while hitting .529 or better in the Eagles' three other matches. 

MAC Commonwealth Defensive Player of the Week
Morgan Nolte (York / Jr., MH / Townsend, Del.) had an outstanding weekend guarding the net for the Spartans. She led the team in blocking as she averaged an impressive 1.46 blocks/set and contributed to 19 total blocks with six solo blocks in four matches. She put together her top performance of the weekend in York's win over Southern Virginia as she contributed to eight total blocks in the four-set victory.

MAC Freedom Offensive Player of the Week
Cleo Shannon (Stevens / Sr., OPP / Charlotte, N.C.) tallied 36 kills and 8 blocks in a 3-0 week. She notched 6 kills in a straight set victory over Keene State and hit .324 (16-5-34) while adding five blocks as the Ducks topped No. 19 Ithaca in five sets. Shannon capped off the week with 14 kills and 2 blocks in a five-set victory over RV Springfield.

MAC Freedom Defensive Player of the Week 
Liz Patterson (Stevens / Gr., L / Midland Park, N.J.) led the Ducks with 59 digs over three matches while adding 11 assists and 2 aces. Patterson picked up 27 digs (one off her career-high) as the Ducks topped No. 19 Ithaca before tallying 23 digs in the five-set victory over RV Springfield.