INDIANAPOLIS--The Great Midwest Athletes of the week for April 3, 2023 are based on student-athlete performance from March 27, 2023-April 2, 2023.
Baseball
North Division
Pitcher
Devin Norton / Malone University / So. / Pitcher / Tallmadge, Ohio
Malone’s Devin Norton earned the North Division’s Pitcher of the Week after helping the Pioneers secure three wins on the week. Norton pitched seven total innings, while allowing only one hit. The Tallmadge, Ohio native struckout nine batters and earned the win against Cedarville.
Player
Danny Passinault / Hillsdale College / Jr. / Outfield / Traverse City, Mich.
Danny Passinault was 6-8 on the week with a batting average of .750. Passinault’s six hits included one home run and four doubles for a total of five RBIs, along with three runs-scored.
South Division
Pitcher
Elijah Pleasants / Trevecca Nazarene University/ Sr. / Pitcher / Clarksville, Tenn.
Trevecca’s Elijah Pleasants went 1-0 on the week with a win over Great Midwest Opponent Lake Erie. Pleasants pitched a total of 8.0 innings, while giving up three hits. He registered an ERA of 1.00 and only walked two batters, while striking out 11.
Player
Joey Parliament / Trevecca Nazarene University/ Jr. / Infield / Gordonsville, Tenn.
Joey Parliament led the Trojans to a 2-0 weekend over Lake Erie. Parliament was 5-7 from the plate for a batting average of .714. He scored five runs and had a slugging percentage of 1.143. Parliament’s five hits included one home run and two RBIs.
Men’s Golf
Johan Widal / Tiffin University/ Fr. / Halmstad, Sweden
Widal finished fourth out of 100 golfers at the Findlay Spring Invitational. He golfed rounds of 71,72, and 70 for a 213 total.
Men’s Lacrosse
Defensive
Mark Strunk / Seton Hill University / So. / Midfield / Stroudsburg, Pa.
Mark Strunk had a strong defensive performance for the Griffins as he won 34 of 55 faceoffs in two wins. He picked up 19 ground balls and added two goals and an assist as Seton Hill improved to 7-3 this season. Strunk is fourth in the league in ground balls per game at 6.80 and has a faceoff percentage of .597.
Offensive
Nicholas Mabe / Mercyhurst University / Gr. / Midfield / Webster, NY.
Nicholas Mabe helped No. 2 Mercyhurst improve to 6-1 this season as he led an offense that scored a total of 44 goals through two games. Mabe played strong offensively, netting six points in Saturday’s 16-10 win over nationally-ranked Mercy. He scored three goals and had three assists in the win.
Women’s Lacrosse
Defensive
Rachel Bornstein / University of Findlay/ Sr. / Goalkeeper / Wading River, NY.
Rachel Bornstein led the Oilers to a conference win over Tiffin. Bornstein registered four saves and gave up only five goals in the win.
Offensive
Danielle Dilorenzo / University of Findlay/ Sr. / Midfield / Poughkeepsie, NY.
For the second consecutive week, Danielle Dilorenzo has been named the offensive player of the week. Dilorenzo scored a season-high eight goals, which is the highest of any individual this season. She also dished out two assists, picked up two ground balls, won five draw controls, and caused two turnovers.
Softball Pitcher
Joni Russel/ Hillsdale College / So. / Pitcher / Cable, Ohio
Russel tabbed back-to-back complete game shutouts in 2-0 victories for the Chargers. She struck out 15 batters with just one walk and seven total hits conceded in 14.0 innings-pitched. The Cable, Ohio native leads the conference in both strikeouts (134) and ERA (0.72).
Softball Player
Molly Koesters / Tiffin University / Fr. / DP / Beavercreek, Ohio
Koesters hit a .615 for the week at the DP position. She hit one double and two home runs for a total of five RBIs. The freshman registered a slugging percentage of 1.154 and an on-base percentage of .688.
Men’s Tennis
Ruben Fonga / Tiffin University / Gr. / Nantes, France
Ruben Fonga had an undefeated week of 4-0 with a 7-5, 6-4, and 7-3 victory at No. 1 singles. Fonga also recorded doubles wins of 6-2, 6-4, and 7-6. In the national rankings, he rose to No. 2 in singles.
Women’s Tennis
Ana Penteado / Ashland University / Fr. / Jundial, Brazil
Ashland’s Ana Penteado led the Eagles to a 6-1 victory over Cedarville. She won 6-2 at No. 1 doubles. At No. 1 singles, Penteado registered wins of 6-3, 7-6, and 7-4.
Men’s Field
Matthew Lamb / Tiffin University / Sr. / Throws / Sandusky, Ohio
Matthew Lamb was awarded the men’s field athlete of the week for the second consecutive week. Lamb competed at the Tiffelberg open, where he won in the shot put with a throw of 15.84 m. He also took home the gold in he discus with a 50.02m mark.
Men’s Track
Dylan Randall / Tiffin University / Fr. / Sprints / Columbus, Ohio
Dylan Randall hit a provisional mark in the 100m with a time of 10.45. Randall was also a member of the first-place 4x400 relay team with a time of 3:24.80.
Women’s Field
Kelsey Kinsley / Ashland University / So. / Throws / North Canton, Ohio
Sophomore Kelsey Kinsley won the hammer throw at the Tiffelberg Open. She improved upon her previous provisional mark with a throw of 56.03m. Kinsley’s throw is currently ranked ninth in the country at the Division II level.
Women’s Track
Shura Ermakov / Hillsdale College / Jr. / Sprints / Berea, Ohio
Shura Ermakov took fourth in the 400m hurdles in a field of Division I athletes. Ermakov’s time of 1:01.10 is now the third-best time in the country to date. She also ran a personal-best time of 14.99 in the 100m hurdles.