Seven New Names Grab Athlete of the Week Honors

St. Louis, Mo. - The St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC) has announced the Athletes of the Week for the week of October 11-17.

MEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
Principia College's Drew Clark, a junior from Hopkinton, Mass., has been named the Men's Cross Country Runner of the Week for the week of October 11-17.

Clark placed third out of 100 runners at the Illinois College Invitational. He ran a personal best time of 24:57 on the 8K course, knocking 1:30 off his time on the same course last year. Principia finished second overall out of nine teams competing.

WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY
Principia College's Casey Powell, a sophomore from Colorado Springs, Colo. (Cheyenne Mountain), has been named the Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week for the week of October 11-17.

Powell posted a time of 22:42 on the 6K course at the Illinois College Invitational to place second out of 93 runners competing. Her time was a personal best and was nearly a minute faster than her time last year on the same course. Principia finished second out of 10 teams.

MEN'S SOCCER - OFFENSIVE
Greenville College's Craig Allen, a junior from St. Louis, Mo. (McCluer), has been named the Men's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week for the week of October 11-17.

Allen, a forward, had a hand in half of the total goals scored by Greenville last week. He had one goal and one assist in a 3-0 victory on the road at Spalding University. In the Panthers 9-0 shutout over MacMurray College he recorded two goals and two assists.

MEN'S SOCCER - DEFENSIVE
Principia College's Samuel Thomas, a junior from Chesterfield, Mo. (Principia Upper), has been named the Men's Soccer Defensive Player of the Week for the week of October 11-17.

Thomas, a goalkeeper, recorded back-to-back shutouts in double overtime draws versus Fontbonne University and Webster University. He recorded six saves against Fontbonne and two saves against Webster.

"Samuel [Thomas] has been our only goalkeeper all season long and has done an exceptional job of keeping the team in every game that we play by making phenomenal saves at critical moments," commented Principia head coach Vitalis Otieno. "This week against both Fontbonne and Webster, Samuel prevented goal scoring opportunities with his quick reflexes and strong positioning."

WOMEN'S SOCCER - OFFENSIVE
Principia College's Kristen Crandall, a sophomore from Ballwin, Mo. (Principia Upper), has been named the Women's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week for the week of October 11-17.

Crandall, a midfielder, scored the lone and game-winning goal for Principia in a 1-0 victory versus Webster University. She was also aggressive offensively in the Panthers 6-1 win over Fontbonne, making dangerous runs down the field to keep the Fontbonne defense alert.

WOMEN'S SOCCER - DEFENSIVE
Principia College's Hayley MacWilliams, a freshman from Fullerton, Calif. (Troy), has been named the Women's Soccer Defensive Player of the Week for the week of October 11-17.

MacWilliams, a midfielder, helped the Principia defense post two victories last week, including a 1-0 shutout versus Webster University. She has played attacking mid for the Panthers all season, but stepped in to play stopper last week. MacWilliams went full speed towards a player to intercept passes or shots versus Fontbonne, and against Webster she contended every air ball and made hard tackles.

"What is so special about Hayley [MacWilliams] is her aggressive mentality," said Principia head coach Lee Ellis. "She is never out of control; she just plays hard. Defensively, she was the game changer against Webster and Fontbonne. Her intensity inspired her teammates to play hard."

VOLLEYBALL - OFFENSIVE
Spalding University's Alex Marquardt, a junior from Louisville, Ky. (Atherton), has been named the Volleyball Offensive Player of the Week for the week of October 11-17.

Marquardt, a middle hitter, recorded 36 kills, four digs, three blocks and had a .601 attack percentage in three matches played last week. She had 15 kills and zero errors on 19 total attempts for a .789 attack percentage in a 3-0 victory versus Eureka College. She followed that with 14 kills and zero errors on 25 total attempts for a .560 attack percentage in a 3-0 win against Westminster College (Mo.). Marquardt also had three digs and one block solo in that win. She ended the week with seven kills and a .455 attack percentage in another 3-0 victory versus Eureka College.