Westwood, Mass.- The NEWMAC has announced its Athlete of the Week honorees for the week ending 10/6/24.  The full list of honorees can be found below.
 
Men's Cross Country
 
Runner of the Week- Anthony Rodriguez (Sr.), Babson College
 
Senior Anthony Rodriguez (Prairie View, Ill.) posted a time of 24:35 to finish sixth overall among 405 finishers at the Division III Pre-National meet on Friday night at the LaVern Gibson Course in Terre Haute, Ind. In a race that featured 23 regionally-ranked programs, Rodriguez recorded the third fastest time of his career and was the only New England harrier to finish among the top 10 as the Beavers placed 17th overall. 
 
Women's Cross Country
 
Runner of the Week- Kate Sanderson (Jr.), MIT
 
Junior Kate Sanderson (West Hartford, Conn.) paced the No. 4 ranked MIT women's cross country team to a dominate team performance to help the Engineers win the 6k DIII Pre-Nationals Meet at the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course on Friday evening in Terre Haute, Indiana. Sanderson set a new collegiate 6k PR with a time of 21:33.57 to finish third overall in the individual standings.
 
Field Hockey
 
Offensive Athlete of the Week- Ingrid Tomovski (So., M), MIT
 
Sophomore Ingrid Tomovski (Bosch en Duin, Netherlands) produced four goals in a 2-0 week for No. 16 MIT. After being limited to just one shot in a 3-2 win at Roger Williams on Wednesday, she rattled off the final four goals in a 6-0 victory over Wheaton on Saturday. Tomovski gave the Engineers a 3-0 lead in the 20th minute and then found the back of the cage twice in a span of 1:15 in the third quarter. She capped the scoring with 3:18 left to play, resulting in the 6-0 final.
 
Defensive Athlete of the Week- Berit Sharrow (Sr., B), Babson College  
 
Senior Berit Sharrow (Denver, Colo.) was terrific anchoring a Babson defense that posted a pair of shutouts last week. She helped the Beavers limit WPI to a season-low three shots, including just one on goal, in Tuesday's 3-0 victory in Worcester, and then led a stifling defensive effort on Saturday as the Green and White held Smith without a shot for the first time since 2022 in a 6-0 triumph. 
 
Football
 
Offensive Athlete of the Week- Blane Hart, (Sr., HB), Springfield College
 
Senior Blane Hart (East Lyme, Conn.) carried the ball 10 times for 165 yards and scored three touchdowns on distances of 44, 58, and 11 yards in a 51-7 win over WPI.  He was one of three Springfield rushers to total at least 100 rushing yards as Springfield eclipsed the 500-yard rushing mark for the third time in its first five games, ending the game with 591 yards of offense, including 525 on the ground.
 
Defensive Athlete of the Week- Nick Bostrom (Sr., DB), Salve Regina University  
 
Senior Nick Bostrom (Norwell, Mass.) had a pair of interceptions against Merchant Marine, as well as a pair of pass breakups to go along with three tackles (two solo) as the Seahawks pulled off a close 31-28 win.
 
Special Teams Athlete of the Week- Nathan DiRado (Fy., K), Salve Regina University  
 
First year Nathan DiRado (Carver, Mass.) made good on all four PAT attempts and connected on a game-winning 25-yard field goal with 6:50 remaining in the fourth quarter to defeat Merchant Marine, 31-28.
 
Men's Soccer
 
Offensive Athlete of the Week- Liam Rhatigan (Sr., F), Babson College
 
Senior Liam Rhatigan (Holderness, N.H.) recorded the first two-goal game of his career to help No. 12 Babson stay unbeaten with a 5-0 win over Emerson on Saturday. He gave the Beavers a 3-0 advantage with his first marker of the year 54 seconds before halftime and then completed his brace in the 70th minute as the Green and White recorded its largest margin of victory in league play since 2022. 
 
Defensive Athlete of the Week- Will Lloyd (So., M), Babson College
 
Sophomore Will Lloyd (Lexington, Mass.) was terrific in the midfield and winning balls in the box as No. 12 Babson remained unbeaten with a win and a draw. He played 77 minutes, one shy of his career high, on Tuesday night as the Beavers played to a 1-1 draw at No. 2 Tufts and then helped limit Emerson to just three shots and no corner kicks in a dominating 5-0 win on Saturday. 
 
Women's Soccer
 
Offensive Athlete of the Week- Linae Bezdek (Jr., F), Emerson College
 
Junior Linae Bezdek (Frisco, Texas) played a part in every Lion's goal, bagging two goals and adding an assist, as Emerson topped Coast Guard 3-0 to pick up its first NEWMAC win of the year.
 
Defensive Athlete of the Week- Lottie McLeod (Sr., B), WPI
 
Senior Lottie McLeod (Newton, Mass.) played a critical role as the Engineers went 1-0-1 in a pair of NEWMAC contests. McLeod anchored a defensive effort on Saturday that led to a 0-0 draw with Smith. Earlier in the week, she helped the Engineers defeat Babson, 3-1, including converting a penalty kick in the eighth minute for what proved to be the game-winning goal and later clearing a ball off the line.
 
Women's Volleyball
 
Offensive Athlete of the Week- Lauren Gips (Sr., MH), Babson College
 
Senior Lauren Gips (Winter Park, Fla.) put together a monster week, totaling 57 kills and 15 blocks while hitting .500 and averaging 4.38 kills, 1.15 blocks and 5.23 points per set in a 4-0 week for Babson. She put away 17 kills while hitting .485 and matched her season high with eight blocks in a 3-1 win at Wellesley on Tuesday, and then recorded 14 kills and four blocks in Friday's 3-0 sweep of Saint Michael's. Gips wrapped up the week with 10 kills and three blocks in a three-set triumph over Wheaton and had 16 kills in a 3-0 win over Roger Williams on Saturday. 
 
Defensive Athlete of the Week- Maeve Voltz (Jr., MB), Springfield College
 
Junior Maeve Voltz (Bay Shore, N.Y.) helped power Springfield to a pair of conference victories last week as the Pride bested Clark and Emerson.  In two matches, the junior middle blocker totaled 12 blocks, including a career-best nine blocks at Clark, to bolster a Springfield defense which limited their two conference opponents to a .124 hitting percentage on the week.  She also added 23 kills at a .395 clip. 
 
About the NEWMAC

The NEWMAC is an association of 12 selective academic institutions: Babson College, Clark University, U.S Coast Guard Academy, Emerson College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Mount Holyoke College, Salve Regina University, Smith College, Springfield College, Wellesley College, Wheaton College, and Worcester Polytechnic Institute, that are committed to providing high quality competitive athletic opportunities for student-athletes within an educational and respectful environment that embodies the NCAA Division III Philosophy. The conference also partners with four Associate Members: Norwich University (Football), Simmons College (Rowing), SUNY Maritime College (Football), and U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (Football), while sponsoring 20 sports.