Sunshine State Conference

Sunshine State Conference Weekly Awards: April 1 - 7

04.08.24

Weekly Honors in baseball, softball, lacrosse, golf, tennis, and rowing

SSC Athletes of the Week | April 1 - 7, 2024

Sunshine State Conference Athletes of the Week are chosen from a pool of nominees for their performances during the week of April 1 - 7, 2024. Athletic Communication Directors of member institutions nominate athletes.

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Baseball Player of the Week

Leon Paulino - Lynn
Junior - Outfield - Lawrence, Massachusetts

Paulino grabs Player of the Week accolades for his performance in a single game at St. Thomas and a three-game set against Embry-Riddle. The junior slashed .455/.478/.682 last week following a 10-for-22 performance at the plate. He totaled 12 runs batted in, two runs scored, three extra-base hits (including his league-leading 11th home run), and a walk. The Lawrence, Massachusetts, native recorded multiple runs batted in and hits in all four contests. Defensively, Paulino recorded 11 putouts and an assist in 13 chances in the outfield.

Baseball Pitcher of the Week

Edward Berry - Rollins
Junior - Mountain Brook, Alabama

Berry is tabbed Pitcher of the Week for the second time in 2024 for his performance on the bump versus No. 1 Tampa. The Mountain Brook, Alabama hurler led the Tars to a win following a nine-inning complete-game shutout of Division II's third-highest scoring offense. The junior righty allowed two hits and five walks in the game. He struck out eight batters, four looking, as he held the Spartans to a .077 average.
 

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Softball Player of the Week

Alyssa Drogemuller - Nova Southeastern
Senior - Right Field - Mokena, Illinois

Drogemuller picks up Player of the Week after leading Nova Southeastern in a sweep of Saint Leo from the plate and circle. The Sharks' leadoff hitter was 6-for-8 at the plate with three runs batted in, three runs scored, two walks, and two HBP. The Mokena, Illinois product finished the week with a .750 batting average, .833 on-base percentage, and a 1.000 slugging percentage in three games against Saint Leo. Drogemuller tossed 15 innings in the circle, allowing five runs (two earned), three walks, and 17 hits. She struck out five Lions, earned two wins, and registered a 0.93 ERA.

Softball Pitcher of the Week

Mariah Galhouse - Tampa
Senior - Spring Hill, Florida

Galhouse is awarded Pitcher of the Week for the second time in 2024 by helping Tampa win a series over Rollins. The Spring Hill, Florida native earned the start in game two of the series, tossing a nine-inning complete game shutout in a 1-0 Tampa win. Galhouse allowed two hits, no earned runs, and no walks while striking out ten. The senior then appeared in relief in the series finale, taking the circle in the seventh and throwing for 3.1 innings. Galhouse allowed just one hit and no walks. Tampa scored the game's winning run in the bottom of the 10th, giving Galhouse her second win in two appearances. She tallied a 0.00 ERA and 0.77 opponent batting average for the week. This week's accolade is the fifth of her career.
 

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Men's Lacrosse Offensive Player of the Week

Canyon Birch - Tampa
Senior - Attack - Brielle, New Jersey

Birch gathers Offensive Player of the Week for the second time in 2024 after leading Tampa to wins at Embry-Riddle (18-14) and against Lynn (20-4). The Brielle, New Jersey native scored eight goals for the Spartans in the win over ERAU, which is tied for third-most in SSC single-game history. Additionally, Birch had a groundball and an assist in the victory. Against Lynn, Birch tallied six points from four assists and two goals. His 10 goals scored last week came on 23 total shots and 17 shots on goal.

Men's Lacrosse Defensive Player of the Week

Ricky Fedorchak - Florida Tech
Grad Student - Defender - West Friendship, Maryland

Fedorchak receives Defensive Player of the Week for the second time in 2024 following his record-setting performance against Embry-Riddle. The West Friendship, Maryland native caused eight turnovers and picked four groundballs in the Panthers' 16-14 win. Fedorchak's eight CTO effort against ERAU ties former Panther Jordan Carlock's single-game SSC record set in 2015.

Men's Lacrosse Specialist of the Week

Alex Poma - Tampa
Grad Student - FOS - Marietta, Georgia

Poma earns Specialist of the Week for the fourth time in 2024 after helping Tampa win at Embry-Riddle (18-14) and against Lynn (20-4). The grad student from Marietta, Georgia, won 22-of-35 face-offs against ERAU. He also gave the Spartans 15 groundballs, a goal, and an assist in the win. Against Lynn, Poma won 16-of-17 from the X while picking up 13 ground balls and scoring a goal. He tallied a .731 face-off winning percentage for the Week, 28 groundballs, and three points. This latest weekly award marks the fifth in his career.
 

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Women's Lacrosse Offensive Player of the Week

Jackie Stoller - Florida Southern
Grad Student - Attack - Wayland, Massachusetts

Stoller secures Offensive Player of the Week for the third time in 2024 for her performance in FSC's wins at No. 11 Embry-Riddle (20-10) and No. 17 Rollins (20-11). The Wayland, Massachusetts native began the week with a game-high seven points against ERAU, following five goals and two assists. Stoller then poured in three goals at Rollins and had three assists for a game-high six points. She also tallied two groundballs, two caused turnovers, and a draw control across the two contests. This week's accolade is the fourth of her career.

Women's Lacrosse Defensive Player of the Week

McKenzie Gaghan - Florida Southern
Grad Student - Goalkeeper - North Massapequa, New York

Gaghan is tabbed Defensive Player of the Week following her efforts between the pipes in FSC's road wins at No. 11 Embry-Riddle (20-10) and No. 17 Rollins (20-11). The Massapequa, New York native recorded 10 saves and allowed 16 goals while facing 35 shots across the two Top-25 wins. Gaghan also picked up nine groundballs in her 93 minutes played last week.
 

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Men's Golfer of the Week

Alex Heck - Saint Leo
Senior - Franklin, Indiana

Heck earns Golfer of the Week following his win at the Battle of the Shores at Normandy Shores Golf Club in Miami Beach. The Franklin, Indiana product carded a 10-under score of 203 with rounds of 66-69-68. Heck carded 16 birdies and an eagle on the final hole of the tournament to defeat the 92-person field by two strokes. With the win, Heck led Saint Leo to a second-place team finish in a 16-team field.


Womn's Golfer of the Week

Charlotte Brook - Lynn
Freshman - Poole, England

Brook captured Golfer of the Week for the second time in 2023-24 following her performance at the Lady Moc 2.0 at The Club at Eaglebrook in Lakeland, Florida. The Briton tied for fourth at the tournament by carding a 2-under performance, following scores of 72-71-71. With Brook's play, Lynn finished fifth in the 16-team field.
 

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Men's Tennis Athlete of the Week

Charlie Putrino - Rollins
Senior - Lakewood Ranch, Florida

Putrino wins Athlete of the Week accolades by guiding Rollins to a 4-3 win over No. 9 Barry. The Lakewood Ranch, Florida native, along with teammate Guillermo Castaneda, helped deliver the Tars the doubles point against Barry with a 6-3 in the #1 spot. Putrino then delivered the final blow to Barry, winning at #5 singles (6-3, 6-7, 7-6). Additionally, Putrino was victorious in singles play against Eckerd (3-6, 6-4, 10-6) and in doubles play with Castaneda (6-4).

Women's Tennis Athlete of the Week

Laura Cuesta Bret - Embry-Riddle
Freshman - Madrid, Spain

Cuesta Bret garners Athlete of the Week after leading an undefeated week facing No. 1 Nova Southeastern and No. 2 Barry. Against NSU, the Madrid native and partner Itxaso Blanco took the #1 doubles win (6-4) over the No. 1 ITA duo of Natalie Espinal and Freya Davies. She then defeated No. 61 Davies (6-2, 6-1) at #3 singles as ERAU fell 4-3 to the Sharks. Cuesta Bret kept it rolling in singles play, earning the #3 win (6-7 (0-7), 6-2, 1-0 (10-5) over No. 24 Alina Michalitsch. Along with Blanco, they defeated Barry's #1 doubles team (6-1), while ERAU fell 4-3 to the Buccaneers.
 

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Women's Rowing Boat of the Week

Embry-Riddle Varsity 4

Embry-Riddle's Varsity 4 claims Boat of the Week following a top performance at the Pioneer/Pilot Invitational in Vancouver, Washington. The boat of Shelby Ernst, Sofia Glaser, Soleil Edwards, Alexandra Weilert, and Laurel Grein (coxswain) finished the race in 8:34.1. In the 2000-kilometer race, ERAU beat out No. 2 Cal Poly Humboldt, No. 3 Seattle Pacific, and No. 4 Western Washington, as well as two NCAA Division I institutions, Portland and Seattle.
 

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