Sunshine State Conference

SSC Weekly Awards Presented by Pollo Campero: September 29 - October 5

10.06.25

Weekly Honors in Volleyball, Soccer, Cross Country, Golf, & Swimming

SSC Athletes of the Week | September 29 - October 5, 2025

Sunshine State Conference Athletes of the Week are chosen from a pool of nominees for their regular season performances during the week of September 29 - October 5, 2025. Athletic Communication Directors of member institutions nominate athletes.

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Volleyball Offensive Player of the Week

Cordelia Kearns, Florida Tech
Junior - Outside Hitter - Lake Mills, Wisconsin - 2nd SSC Weekly Award

Kearns led Florida Tech offensively in SSC wins against Embry-Riddle and Saint Leo. The Lake Mills, Wisconsin product began the week with a match-high 29 kills on 87 attempts with 13 errors, 17 digs, three blocks, and an assist in a five-set victory at Embry-Riddle. The junior then recorded a match-high 16 kills on 30 attempts with four errors, 10 digs, a service ace, and a block in a sweep of Saint Leo. For the week, Kearns averaged 5.63 kills, 3.38 digs, and  0.50 blocks per set while sporting a .239 hitting percentage. The weekly award is the second of her career.

Volleyball Defensive Player of the Week

Ana Rivera, Tampa
Junior - Defensive Specialist - Gurabo, Puerto Rico

Rivera averaged 6.63 digs per set during Tampa's 2-0 record on the road last week. The Gurabo, Puerto Rico product started the week with 19 digs in a 3-1 win at Palm Beach Atlantic. She followed with a match-high 34 digs in a four-set win at Nova Southeastern. Additionally, Rivera provided the Spartans with 14 assists and two service aces across her eight sets played.

Volleyball Setter of the Week

Ula Gorjup, Lynn
Sophomore - Ljubljana, Slovenia - 4th SSC Weekly Award

Gorjup led Lynn to a pair of conference road wins with 9.86 assists per set last week. The sophomore from Ljubljana, Slovenia, piloted the Fighting Knights to a 3-1 win at Eckerd with a match-high 42 assists. She followed with a match-high 27 assists in a sweep at Rollins. Gorjup also gave Lynn 19 digs, five kills, three blocks, and two service aces last week. The weekly award is her third this season and the fourth of her career.
 

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Men's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week

Tin Vastic, Palm Beach Atlantic
Junior - Forward - Split, Croatia - 2nd SSC Weekly Award

Vastic tallied eight points off four goals as Palm Beach Atlantic registered two conference wins last week. The Croatian scored twice in a 3-1 win at Barry, with a penalty kick equalizer in the 51st minute and the game winner in the 59th minute. Vastic then scored both goals in a 2-0 win against Florida Southern. The junior knocked in the game-winner in the 20th minute and added an insurance score via PK in the 31st minute. For the week, the forward had two game-winning goals, nine shots, and five shots on goal, while averaging 70.5 minutes per game. The weekly award is his second this season.

Men's Soccer Defensive Player of the Week

Flavio Giannini, Palm Beach Atlantic
Graduate Student - Goalkeeper - Rome, Italy

Giannini tallied a .923 save percentage last week, leading Palm Beach Atlantic to a pair of conference victories. The Italian faced 19 total shots in a 3-1 win at Barry, making 11 saves and allowing one score in his 90 minutes on the pitch. Six of his saves came in a second-half shutout of the Buccaneers. Giannini also made one save while facing six shots in 90 minutes during a 2-0 victory over Florida Southern. 
 

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Women's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week

Genesis Hernandez, Nova Southeastern
Sophomore - Forward - Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

Hernandez registered eight points off three goals and two assists as Nova Southeastern defeated Edward Waters and Saint Leo last week. The Ft. Lauderdale, Florida native scored once and had an assist in a 5-0 win over Edward Waters. Hernandez assisted Sofia Suarez's game-winner against EWU in the 20th minute and knocked in a goal of her own in the 63rd minute. In a 4-1 win at Saint Leo, Hernandez scored the game-winner in the 26th minute, assisted Suarez in the 31st minute, and knocked in NSU's fourth score in the 71st minute. For the week, the forward had five shots and four shots on goal, while averaging 57.0 minutes per game.

Women's Soccer Defensive Player of the Week

Marlen Hernandez, Barry
Freshman - Goalkeeper - Austin, Texas - 2nd SSC Weekly Award

Hernandez repeats as Defensive Player of the Week after holding Palm Beach Atlantic and Embry-Riddle to zero goals while making 10 saves. The Austin, Texas native tallied four saves while facing 17 total shots and three corner kicks in a 0-0 draw at PBA. In a 0-0 result with RV ERAU, Hernandez totaled six saves while facing 13 shots and three corners. The weekly award is her second this season. 
 

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Men's Cross Country Runner of the Week

Simon DeVoss, Florida Southern
Senior - Mims, Florida

DeVoss captured the 26th Annual FLRunners.com Invitational title, leading Florida Southern to a perfect team score of 15 points. The senior from Mims, Florida, finished the 8,000-meter race with a time of 26:09.7. DeVoss topped a field of 61 runners to earn his first career victory.

Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week

Leena Saidi, Nova Southeastern
Senior - Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania - 2nd SSC Weekly Award

Saidi won the 26th Annual FLRunners.com Invitational title following a 22:49.38 mark on the 6,000-meter track. Saidi bested the field of 57 runners by over 30 seconds, helping Nova Southeastern finish second of six squads. The weekly award is the second of her career. 
 

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Men's Golfer of the Week

Ivan Ponsdomenech, Nova Southeastern
Junior - Blanes, Spain

Ponsdomenech won the Jay Jennison Cup at the King & Bear course at the World Golf Village in St. Augustine, Florida. The Spaniard topped a field of 96 golfers with a 54-hole score of 8-under, 208, following rounds of 71-71-66. Ponsdomenech recorded just seven birdies, while pouring in  33 pars and 14 birdies or better. With the play of Ponsdomenech, NSU finished fifth of 18 programs. 

Women's Golfer of the Week

Tereza Zavrelova, Barry
Junior - Drasov, Czech Republic

Zavrelova finished tied for 14th place at the Pat Bradley Invitational at Trump National Doral in Miami, Florida. The Czech finished second among non-Division I athletes with a 54-hole score of 6-over, 222, following rounds of 73-76-73. Zavrelova ranked in the top 10 on pars, totaling 40, and made five birdies for the tournament.
 

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Men's Swimmer of the Week

Efe Ongoren, Florida Tech
Sophomore - Sakarya, Turkey

Ongoren was the top performer for Florida Tech in a 156-106 dual meet victory at Rollins to open the 2025-26 season. The Turk was victorious in the 200 free with a time of 1:42.04, nearly one second better than the field. Ongoren then won the 500 free with a time of 4:46.30. He also swam lead off on Florida Tech's runner-up 200 free relay squad with a 50 free time of 22.42.

Women's Swimmer of the Week

Abby Briggs, Florida Tech
Sophomore - Houston, Texas

Briggs delivered three wins to Florida Tech in a 149-112 dual meet victory at Rollins to open the 2025-26 season. The Houston, Texas product was first victorious in the 1000 free with a time of 11:00.94. She then won the 500 free by nearly 10 seconds with a 5:24.13 mark. She also swam anchor on Florida Tech's winning 200 free relay team with a 50 free time of 24.61.
 

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