ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) announced its Athlete of the Week award winners Tuesday in the sports of volleyball, men's and women's soccer, men's and women's cross country, and men's and women's golf. The UMAC Athlete of the Week awards are nominated by UMAC coaches and athletics communications staff and selected each week by the latter group.
VOLLEYBALL OFFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Sydney Carlson, Sophomore, North Central
Blaine, Minn. / Blaine
- Carlson had a good showing in her first weekend of action, leading the Rams to a hot 3-0 start. The sophomore totaled 35 kills (4.38 per set) with a .414 hitting percentage. She also contributed defensively, totaling 34 digs (4.25 per set) from her outside position.
VOLLEYBALL SETTER OF THE WEEK
Colleen Claude, Junior, UW-Superior
Centuria, Wis. / Homeschool
- Claude dished out 101 assists, averaging 5.94 per set, while adding three service aces over the weekend in the Lone Star State, leading to the Yellowjackets winning all four matches to begin the 2024 year.
VOLLEYBALL DEFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Jenna Anderson, Senior, UW-Superior
Bemidji, Minn. / Bemidji
- Anderson commenced her senior season on a high note. Seeing action in all 17 sets she finished with 100 digs, averaging 5,88 per set, leading the ‘Jackets' defensive efforts to start the 2024 season a perfect 4-0.
MEN'S SOCCER OFFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Daniel Almeida, Sophomore, Bethany Lutheran
Lisbon, Portugal / ESCFB
- Almeida propelled the Viking to their first win of the season on Sunday afternoon, scoring the only two goals in a 2-0 win over Bethel. He took a through ball for his first goal of the contest and dodged the BU keeper for a tap in, before flying through the air and knocking home a cross in the second half to give the Vikings an insurance goal.
MEN'S SOCCER DEFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Alex Paredes, Senior, UW-Superior
Mequon, Wis. / Homestead
- Paredes made his season debut last Friday versus Augsburg. The Yellowjacket all-time leader in shutouts added another, making eight saves in net while playing a full 90 minutes.
WOMEN'S SOCCER OFFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Brynne Crystal, Junior, UW-Superior
Wayzata, Minn. / Wayzata
- Crystal's offensive output helped the Yellowjackets defeat UW-River Falls in non-conference action Sunday. Taking a feed from Niya Wilson in the 83rd minute, she buried the game-winning goal, giving UWS its first victory in 2024 and the program's second victory over the Falcons in program history.
WOMEN'S SOCCER DEFENSIVE ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Rachel Fuller, Sophomore, Crown
Becker, Minn. / Becker
- Fuller grabbed a whopping 9 saves in one contest in a tight contest with Augsburg.
MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Garrett Converse, Junior, North Central
Lexington, Nev. / Lexington
- Converse won the Falcon Heights Meet, which was between Northwestern, Oak Hills Christian, and North Central. He finished his 5k in a time of 16:49.0 to beat out all other runners.
WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Emery Maki, Sophomore, Northwestern
Hibbing, Minn. / Hibbing
- The track star made her cross country debut on Friday in a triangular with North Central and Oak Hills Christian, finishing in first place. Maki won the 5k race with a time of 20:26.
MEN'S GOLF ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Jacob Brown, Sophomore, North Central
Rochester, Minn. / Mayo
- Brown led the Rams at the Culvers Edgewood Classic hosted by Edgewood College. The sophomore posted 75 (+4) and 73 (+2) to tie for 20th place out of a loaded field of 117 golfers.
WOMEN'S GOLF ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Morgan Eckman, Sophomore, Northwestern
Jordan, Minn. / Jordan
- Finished in 5th place at the Battle on the Border event in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Her two-day total of 155 (+11) was just one stroke behind a four-way tie for 1st place. Shot 76 (+4) in round 1 and 79 (+7) in round 2. Led the Eagles to a 5th-place team finish in the field of 18.
The UMAC is an NCAA Division III member comprised of eight full-time member schools from Minnesota and Wisconsin: Bethany Lutheran College, Crown College, Martin Luther College, North Central University, Northland College, University of Minnesota Morris, University of Northwestern, and University of Wisconsin-Superior.
Watch UMAC games this fall on the newly launched
UMAC Sports Network: available on the
web, as a mobile app for
iOS and
Android, and as a TV app for
Apple TV,
Android TV,
Amazon Fire, and
Roku.