Landmark Honors 10 Players of the Week

MADISON, N.J. - The conclusion of one winter sport season and the beginning of spring sports competition has earned 10 student-athletes the honor of Landmark Conference Players of the Week. The Player of the Week selections are made by the conference office.

Baseball Player:
Juniata freshman Adam Spadafora is off to a strong start to his career as he's turned in three strong games during the team's spring break trip to Florida. In his first three collegiate games he's hitting .651 (8-of-13) with two doubles and seven RBI. He has also swiped three bases. Spadafora enjoyed a 4-for-6 day at the plate with a pair of doubles in the team's extra-inning loss to Lebanon Valley.

Baseball Pitcher:
Joe Melchionna helped lead Moravian to a 5-1 victory over Franciscan in the first game of the team's spring break trip to Florida. He went six innings, allowing one unearned run on three hits. He fanned a pair of batters to earn his second victory of the season.  

Men's Basketball:
Freshman Zach Ashworth turned in two strong performances to help propel Scranton to the Landmark Men's Basketball Championship. He scored 15 points, grabbed three rebounds, and had an assist and a steal in Scranton's win over Juniata in the final. That came after he scored a career-high 20 points with four rebounds, three assists and two steals in the semifinal win over Moravian. He shot 45-percent from the floor while averaging 17.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 steals in the two postseason wins.

Women's Basketball:
Senior Kathleen Daly produced a pair of strong performances to help lead Scranton to the Landmark Women's Basketball Championship. She scored a game-high 22 points on 8-of-14 shooting while also grabbing six rebounds in Scranton's championship game win over Juniata. That came after she netted 17 points with five boards in a semifinal win over USMMA. She also contributed six steals, three assists and a block. She averaged 19.5 points and 5.5 rebounds while shooting 56-percent from the field in the two postseason games.   

Men's Lacrosse Offense:
Sam Fitzpatrick made a big offensive contribution as the Gophers collected a 10-5 victory over St. Vincent. Fitzpatrick had a part in five of his team's 10 goals as he found the back of the net twice, and assisted on three other scores. The junior also produced three ground balls for the Gophers.

Men's Lacrosse Defense:
Goucher defender William Beaver played a critical role as the Gophers earned a 10-5 victory over St. Vincent. Charged with covering St. Vincent's top goal scorer, Beaver helped limit the player to no points in the Goucher win. He also produced three ground balls and helped limit St. Vincent to 35 shots in the game.  

Women's Lacrosse Offense:
Freshman Meghan Sabo got her college career off to a strong start as she helped Catholic open the season with two victories. In a season-opening 13-11 win over Dickinson she had two goals and two assists for four points. She followed that up by exploding for six goals in a win over Greensboro. Four of her six tallies came in the second half as Catholic blew open a close game. She had five ground balls and two caused turnovers on the week as well as six draw controls in the Greensboro match.

Women's Lacrosse Defense:
Drew's Jen Schoepflin was a strong defensive presence for the Rangers as the team won its 2008 opener 10-7. Trailing 6-4 at halftime Schoepflin was switched to cover a Mt. St. Vincent attacker who had three goals in the first half, and held her without a shot in the second half as Drew rallied for the win. She finished the game with three ground balls and a pair of forced turnovers while helping to limit Mt. St. Vincent to 16 total shots.  

Softball Player:
Catcher Deanna Mangieri hit .385 last week as sixth-ranked Moravian opened the 2008 season with a 1-3 record at the Beach Bash in Virginia Beach. Mangieri collected five hits in 13 at-bats, including at least one in every game, and had a double, a runs scored and an RBI for Moravian. She also had 26 putouts, one assist and one error while playing all 30 innings behind the plate.

Softball Pitcher:
Susquehanna freshman Cara Swerdlow tossed a complete-game victory over five innings to help Susquehanna capture a win in its season-opener. The frosh fanned 13 batters over five innings and did not allow a hit as the Crusaders claimed a 9-0 win in a game halted due to the eight-run rule. Swerdlow allowed only one walk over the five innings to keep her from a perfect game.