General 3/11/2024 2:30:00 PM United East Athletes of the Week - March 11, 2024 LATHAM, N.Y. - The United East conference has announced its Athletes of the Week for March 11, 2024. This includes Athletes of the Week for both the Skye and Volt Divisions in Baseball and Softball as well as Men’s Volleyball, Women’s Lacrosse, and Men’s Lacrosse This week’s selections included contests from Monday, March 4 through Sunday, March 10. A total of 14 student-athletes were recognized for their performances. Men’s Volleyball Offensive Player of the Week Bryan Choute / FY / Bryn Athyn College / Philadelphia, Pa. / Northeast HS Bryan Choute led the Lions to a 2-0 record while tallying 29 kills and 6 aces for 35 points over the two matches on Saturday. Choute attacked at .304% (29K - 8 E - 69 TA) on the day. Matching up in a doubleheader against Old Westbury, Choute had 11 kills and 4 aces to go with 12 digs during match one. In the nightcap, Choute swung for a .533% with 18 kills, 2 aces, and 6 digs. Choute is currently leading the United East with 30 total Service Aces and a 3.11 Kills per Set average. He is 2nd with 143 Total Kills and 2nd with 180 Total Points. This is the first Player of the Week honor for Choute. Defensive Player of the Week Adan Rodriguez-Sapien / FY / Bryn Athyn College / Newport News, Va. / Woodside HS Rodriguez-Sapien led the Lions to 2-0 week with two wins on Saturday over Old Westbury. The freshman libero racked up 5.33 digs per set and over all 32 digs between the two games. During the first match, Rodriguez-Sapien had 20 digs in a 3-0 sweep and picked up another 12 in the nightcap. This is the first Player of the Week honor for Rodriguez-Sapien who currently leads the United East in Total Digs (173) as well as Digs per Set (3.68) and is 7th in Total Aces with eighteen. Women’s Lacrosse Offensive Player of the Week Maria Storck / Jr / Bryn Athyn College / Philadelphia, Pa. / St. Basil Academy / Goldey Beacom Maria Storck led the Lions to a 2-0 week behind her 8 goals and 4 assists. Storck saved her most clutch performance for the final game of the week where she led the comeback charge for the Lions. Storck helped the Lions erase a four-goal deficit against Neumann by helping the Lions score 5 straight goals to win it in overtime. Storck was responsible for 4 of the 5 goals by the way of 3 goals and 1 assist in the fourth quarter and OT. She finished that game with 4 goals and 1 assist. In the 16-4 win over Gwynedd Mercy, Storck posted 4 goals, 3 assists and 5 ground balls. This is the first Player of the Week honor for Storck, who earned a Second Team All-Conference honoree in 2023 and an Honorable Mention nod in 2022. Defensive Player of the Week Jill Ahlgren / Sr / Wilson College / Mercersburg, Pa. / Mercersburg HS Ahlgren had another incredible week as she totaled 16 ground balls, 10 caused turnovers, and 10 draw controls to help Wilson split a pair of games. She started with seven ground balls, four caused turnovers, and four draw controls in a 16-15 victory at Goucher on Wednesday. Ahlgren later added nine ground balls, six caused turnovers and six draw controls at Lycoming on Saturday. She was decent on the offensive end as well with five goals and three assists in the two games as well. Ahlgren is currently third in the nation in ground balls per game and fourth in caused turnovers per game. This is the eighth Player of the Week honor during Ahlgren’s career as well as earning First Team All Conference in the CSAC last season. Men’s Lacrosse Offensive Player of the Week Jamal White / Sr / Bryn Athyn College / Philadelphia, Pa. / Springfield Township HS White led the Lions to a season opening 18-2 win over LaRoche. The senior attack netted 5 goals and logged 8 assists for 13 points. Additionally, White picked up 4 ground balls and caused three turnovers. This is the fourth Player of the Week honor for White, who previously won for the weeks of March 20, 2023, March 13, 2023, and April 5, 2021. White was earned a First Team All-Conference nod in 2023 and Honorable Mention in 2022 while a part of the CSAC. Defensive Player of the Week Tim Ragan / Gr / Bryn Athyn College / Philadelphia, Pa. / New Foundations Charter Ragan led the defensive unit for the Lions that opened their season with an 18-2 win. Ragan forced 5 turnovers and scooped 9 ground balls for the Lions. This is the second Player of the Week honor for Ragan, who won for the week of April 24, 2023 previously. Ragan was a First Team All-Conference honoree in 2023 while a part of the CSAC. Softball Player of the Week - Skye Division Taylor Barker / Sr / Wilson College / Chehalis, Wa. / WF West HS Barker was a bright spot for the Wilson lineup as she hit a blistering .750 over four games to close spring break in North Myrtle Beach. Against Hilbert on Monday, she went 3-for-4 with a triple, an RBI and a run scored. On Tuesday she went a perfect 4-for-4 with a double and a run scored. In the final game she was 2-for-3 with two doubles and two RBI. This is the third Player of the Week nod for Barker, who previously won for the weeks of March 21, 2022 and March 29, 2021. Pitcher of the Week - Skye Division Kami DeGaetani / So / Saint Elizabeth University / Nanuet, N.Y. / Nanuet Senior HS DeGaetani threw a complete game shutout as Saint Elizabeth wrapped up their spring break trip with a 3-0 win over Marymount University at the NMB Sports Complex in Myrtle Beach, SC. The sophomore righthander threw 7.0 innings, scattered six hits, struck out two, and only walked one as the Eagles picked up their first victory of the season. This is the first Pitcher of the Week honor for DeGaetani who was named Second Team All-Conference last season. Player of the Week - Volt Division Cara Biesecker / FY / Penn State Harrisburg / Maytown, Pa. / Donegal HS Biesecker was as tough an out as they come during Penn State Harrisburg’s 4-0 week in Myrtle Beach, S.C. The first-year racked up eight singles and a walk in 10 at-bats to slash .800/.818/.800 with a 1.618 OPS. She drove in four runs and scored four more. In wins over St. Elizabeth and Cedar Crest, she went a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate. She currently leads the United East Volt Division with a .600 batting average. This is the first Player of the Week nod for Biesecker. Pitcher of the Week - Volt Division Mackenzie Weaver / Jr / Penn College / Williamsport, Pa. / Montoursville HS Weaver started the season 3-1 with a 1.58 ERA in the circle at the Spring Break Classic in Myrtle Beach, S.C. She collected 36 strikeouts in 31 innings of work and held opposing hitters to a .197 batting average. Weaver became just the third Wildcat in program history to reach 300 career strikeouts with her sixth against Cairn - she tossed a game-high 10 Ks in just five innings against the Highlanders. For the week, Weaver tossed four complete games, and allowed a combined 24 hits and just seven earned runs. This is the third Pitcher of the Week honor for Weaver, who previously won for the weeks of April 17, 2023 and March 13, 2023 in addition to back-to-back United East Pitcher of the Year awards from the 2022 and 2023 season. Baseball Player of the Week - Skye Division Tyler Warr / Jr / Cairn University / Langhorne, Pa. / Neshaminy HS Warr was on fire at the plate this past week in Myrtle Beach, SC, collecting 11 hits in six games including a 6-6 day on Monday against Manchester going 4-4 in game one and 2-2 in the nightcap. The junior first baseman is hitting an even .500 on the season and is currently on a 38-game hitting streak, spanning back to last season. Warr was a First Team All-Conference selection in 2023 as well as an All-Region honoree from the ABCA and D3Baseball.com in addition to finishing the season Top 5 in NCAA Division II for Batting Average and Total Hits. This is the second Player of the Week nod for Warr, who previously won for the week of May 8, 2023. Pitcher of the Week - Skye Division Zachary Nutley / Jr / Rosemont College / Logan Township, N.J. / Kingsway HS Zach Nutley threw the first shutout and complete game in school history in a 19-0 victory over Penn State-Scranton on Sunday afternoon. Nutley went 7 innings scattering 4 hits and struck out three batters (all looking), all on 83 pitches. This is the first Pitcher of the Week honor for Nutley and second-ever for Rosemont College (David McKinney - March 27, 2023) as the Ravens began varsity play in the spring of 2022. Player of the Week - Volt Division Blake Greenly / Gr / Lancaster Bible College / Morgantown, Pa. / Conestoga Christian Greenly picked up the season right where he left off going 10-18 from the plate and leading the Chargers to a 4-1 week. Greenly notched seven runs scored, seven RBI's knocked in, and one homerun. He had a season high four hits versus St. Elizabeth on Tuesday. He also racked up three stolen bases for the week and didn't strike out once. Greenly is averaging .613 from the plate and 1.570 OPS while tallying a team best 19 total hits and 10 RBI's. Greenly was a 2024 Preseason All-American from D3Baseball.com after earning All-American status in 2023 as well as First Team All-Conference. This is the third Player of the Week nod for Greenly, who previously won for the weeks of April 10, 2023, April 4, 2022, and March 7, 2022. Pitcher of the Week - Volt Division Fisher Druck / So / Penn State Harrisburg / Lancaster, Pa. / Manheim Township HS Fisher Druck picked up his first win of the season in impressive fashion, as his start led to an 8-2 victory for Penn State Harrisburg over No. 11 Christopher Newport on Sunday afternoon. The sophomore threw five innings and held the nationally-ranked Captains scoreless while surrendering just two hits and three walks to go along with three strikeouts. His effort helped end the team’s four-game losing streak and sparked a doubleheader sweep of CNU. Druck was a First Team All-Conference honoree in 2023 and earned Pitcher of the Week for the week of April 3, 2023. FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA Instagram - gounitedeast | Twitter - @GoUnitedEast * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * The United East boasts 17 NCAA Division III full member institutions which include: Bryn Athyn College, Cairn University, Cedar Crest College, Clarks Summit University, Gallaudet University, Keystone College, Lancaster Bible College, Notre Dame of Maryland University, Penn College, Penn State Abington, Penn State Berks, Penn State Harrisburg, Rosemont College, Saint Elizabeth University, St. Mary's College of Maryland, University of Valley Forge, and Wilson College. For more information, please visit gounitedeast.com.