Marlborough, Mass.- The NEWMAC has announced its Athlete of the Week honorees for the week ending 10/19/25, presented by SKYBOKX 109.  The full list of honorees can be found below.
 
Men’s Cross Country  
 
Runner of the Week- Renne Cooper (So.), MIT 

Sophomore Renne Cooper (Austin, Texas) finished 12th in 24:21.13 in the Men's 8k Blue Championship Race on Saturday at the Conn College Invite, helping to lead No. 23 MIT to a sixth-place finish in the team standings. Cooper made a big move from the 1.65K mark, jumping up from 56th place in the early going to as high as 8th at the 5.7K mark before taking 12th at the finish. 
 
Women’s Cross Country  
 
Runner of the Week- Gillian Roeder (GS), MIT
 
Graduate student Gillian Roeder (Delmar, N.Y.) was the top finisher for the Engineers in a loaded field at this weekend’s Conn College Invite. Roeder finished in seventh with a time of 21:04.44 as the No. 5 Engineers secured a second-place finish in the Women's 6k Caroline Grape '22 Memorial Blue Championship Race, a race that featured each of the top-five ranked teams in the nation. Roeder improved throughout the race, jumping from 19th at the 2.6K mark to her seventh-place finish to lead MIT.
 
Field Hockey
 
Offensive Athlete of the Week- Caroline DiGiovanni (Sr., F), Babson College
 
Senior Caroline DiGiovanni (Harwich, Mass.) scored four goals, including a pair of game winners, and surpassed 100 points for her career as No. 4 Babson extended its winning streak to 10 games with a pair of home victories. The senior forward broke a scoreless deadlock 1:05 into the fourth quarter to lift the Beavers to a 1-0 triumph over No. 8 Bowdoin on Tuesday and then recorded her second career hat trick with three goals over the first 17 minutes of Saturday’s 6-0 win against Clark. 
 
Defensive Athlete of the Week- Anna Bonazzoli (Fy., B), Babson College
 
First-year Anna Bonazzoli (Clinton, Mass.) led a Babson defense that allowed just six total shots and three on goal in a pair of shutout victories last week. The first-year center back helped the fourth-ranked Beavers limit No. 8 Bowdoin to season lows in shots (2) and shots on goal (1) in Tuesday’s 1-0 win, and then allowed just two shots over the first three quarters of Saturday’s 6-0 triumph over Clark to post the team’s fifth consecutive shutout. Football
 
Offensive Athlete of the Week- Bubba Mustain (So, QB), U.S. Merchant Marine Academy
 
Sophomore Bubba Mustain (Oro Valley, Ariz.) delivered a clutch, career-best performance in leading the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy to a dramatic 38-34 comeback victory over Salve Regina in NEWMAC action on Saturday. Mustain accounted for 293 yards of total offense, rushing for 160 yards and a touchdown while adding a career-high 133 passing yards and two passing touchdowns through the air on 7-of-15 completions. With the Mariners trailing late, Mustain engineered a 13-play, 66-yard game-winning drive, capped by a 17-yard touchdown strike to Caleb Callahan on 3rd-and-17 with just 16 seconds remaining to secure the victory. Mustain also threw a 68-yard touchdown strike earlier in the contest, helping the Mariners to their second NEWMAC victory of the season.
 
Defensive Athlete of the Week- Tyler Sordillo (Jr., DL), Springfield College
 
Junior Tyler Sordillo (Hull, Mass.) anchored the Pride defense in a 24-10 NEWMAC victory at WPI on Friday night. The junior defensive lineman was a disruptive force up front, recording four tackles, three sacks, a forced fumble, and a quarterback hurry to help Springfield remain unbeaten in conference play. Sordillo’s relentless pressure consistently collapsed the pocket and set the tone for a defensive unit that limited WPI to just 10 points in the road win.
 
Special Teams Athlete of the Week- Karson Bye, (Jr., K), U.S. Merchant Marine Academy
 
Junior Karson Bye (Liberty Hill, Texas) was perfect in the kicking game, going 5-for-5 on PATs and connecting on a 28-yard field goal in the Mariners’ 38-34 NEWMAC victory over Salve Regina. Bye’s field goal just before halftime stretched the lead to 24-20, providing crucial momentum going into the break. His consistency on all six scoring opportunities proved vital in a back-and-forth contest as the Mariners secured their second conference win of the season.
 
Men’s Soccer
 
Offensive Athlete of the Week- Gael Vera (So., F), Wheaton College
 
Sophomore Gael Vera (Westminster, Mass.) tallied two goals in two matches, with one in each game. The forward netted a marker in the Lyons’ 3-0 win at Union College on October 14 and capped the week by scoring a goal in a 3-0 victory at Massachusetts Institute of Technology on October 18.
 
Defensive Athlete of the Week- Leao Nelson (Sr., B), Wheaton
 
Senior Leao Nelson (Bar Harbor, Maine) netted a goal and helped the Wheaton defense limit its opponents to 10 total shots in a pair of shutouts. The senior tallied the eventual game-winning score with the first goal of the day in a 3-0 shutout at Massachusetts Institute of Technology on October 18. Nelson helped the Lyons defense hold the Engineers to just seven shots, including one on frame in the match. The Maine native was part of a backline that surrendered just three shots and two on goal to host Union College on October 14.
 
Women’s Soccer
 
Offensive Athlete of the Week- Rowan McCrary (Fy, F), Emerson College
 
First year Rowan McCrary (Washington, D.C.) had a hand in all three Lions goals in a 2-0 week with two goals and an assist for five points over the two matches. She scored both Emerson goals in Wednesday's 2-1 win over Smith, marking the first multi-goal match of her career. McCrary scored both goals in the first 21 minutes of the contest to spot Emerson a lead it would not relinquish. She opened the scoring 12:46 into the match, converting a cross from the right flank into the right side of the goal, and then doubled the Lions' lead less than eight minutes later when she followed her own rebound and fired in her team-leading fourth goal of the season in the 21st minute. McCrary assisted on the Lions' lone goal in Saturday's 1-0 triumph over Mount Holyoke with a cross from the left side for Tatum Cohen's 80th-minute winner. McCrary has now played a role in four of the Lions' last six goals with two goals and two assists to take over the team scoring lead with four goals and three assists for 11 points.

Defensive Athlete of the Week- Sasha Ceol (So., D), MIT  
 
Sophomore Sasha Ceol (Sherborn, Mass.) played an instrumental part in helping the No. 8 MIT women's soccer team earn two more shutouts in NEWMAC play as she anchored the defense, which allowed just nine shots in two games, with only two on target. Ceol and the rest of the Engineer defense have yet to allow a goal in seven NEWMAC contests, and the team currently ranks tops in Division III with 12 total shutouts this season. Opponents also earned just five corner kicks against the Engineers during the week. In addition, Ceol also registered an assist in MIT's 5-0 win over Clark. 
 
Volleyball
 
Offensive Athlete of the Week- Eileen Sadati (Jr., RS), MIT
 
Junior Eileen Sadati (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.) averaged 4.29 kills per set and hit .333 in a 2-0 week for MIT. She led all players with 17 kills and had a hitting percentage of .400 in a 25-20, 25-23, 25-17 win against Emerson on Tuesday. Sadati went on to produce 13 kills and four aces in a 22-25, 25-6, 25-20, 25-20 victory over Springfield on Saturday.
 
Defensive Athlete of the Week- Laila Baameur (Sr., L), U.S. Coast Guard Academy  
 
Senior Laila Baameur (Bakersfield, Calif.) was a force in the back row for Coast Guard, totaling 92 digs and averaging 6.13 per set over four matches last week. The libero posted a career-high 30 digs in Wednesday’s match at Connecticut College and added 12 service aces and 10 assists on the week. Baameur’s consistency and court coverage anchored the Bears’ defense and provided steady leadership throughout their non-conference and NEWMAC action.
 
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 eight Associate Members: Brandeis University (Women's Lacrosse, 2026-2027), New York University (Men's Volleyball, 2026-2027), Norwich University (Football), Simmons College (Rowing), SUNY Maritime College (Football), SUNY New Paltz (Men's Volleyball, 2026-2027), U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (Football), and Vassar College (Men's Volleyball, 2026-2027), while sponsoring 20 sports.