WePlayed Sports Players of the Week - Mar. 23

Men's Lacrosse

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – The South Atlantic Conference has announced its WePlayed Sports Men's Lacrosse Players of the Week for games played during week seven of the 2026 season. Wingate's Vinny Butrico was named the Offensive Player of the Week and his teammate Graham Tillett was named the Defensive Player of the Week, while Lenoir-Rhyne's Matthew Mancini was named the Specialist of the Week.

Butrico, a senior from Levittown, N.Y., had a historic week, leading the No. 6 Bulldogs to a pair of SAC road wins, including a victory at No. 2 Anderson. In that contest, he poured in 11 goals to lead Wingate to a 19-18 win, helping the Bulldogs overcome a six-goal deficit and remain perfect in league play. He followed that performance with five more goals in Saturday's win over Mars Hill, adding a pair of ground balls. His 11 goals are the most scored by a player in a single Division II game this season.

Tillett, a senior from Huntingtown, Md., anchored the Wingate defense in wins over Anderson and Mars Hill. He totaled five caused turnovers and nine ground balls across the two conference victories. He opened the week with four ground balls and two caused turnovers in the 19-18 win over No. 2 Anderson, then added three caused turnovers and five ground balls in the win over Mars Hill.

Mancini, a senior from Middletown, Md., was dominant at the faceoff X for the Bears who defeated Catawba and Lincoln Memorial last week. Mancini won 31-of-35 faceoffs for the week, earning a 88.6 success rate. He scooped up 15 ground balls and added a pair of assists. He was 19-of-22 against Catawba and 12-of-13 against LMU.

2026 SAC Men's Lacrosse Players of the Week

Offensive Player of the Week

Feb. 9 – Ben Royer, Tusculum
Feb. 16 – Radyn Badraun, Anderson
Feb. 23 – Gage Vigar, Newberry
Mar. 2 – Ryan Bitterman, Anderson
Mar. 9 – Bradley David, Newberry
Mar. 16 – Kyle Spence, Wingate
Mar. 23 – Vinny Butrico, Wingate

Defensive Player of the Week

Feb. 9 – Graham Tillett, Wingate
Feb. 16 – Lennon Connolly, Coker
Feb. 23 – Owen Conway, Catawba
Mar. 2 – Chris Czulada, Anderson
Mar. 9 – Ryan Morrison, Newberry
Mar. 16 – Trey O'Callaghan, Wingate
Mar. 23 – Graham Tillett, Wingate

Specialist Player of the Week

Feb. 9 – AJ Rush, Anderson
Feb. 16 – Adin Laughlin, Anderson
Feb. 23 – Jayden Herman, Lincoln Memorial
Mar. 2 – Ben LoPiccolo, Catawba
Mar. 9 – Houston Horton, Newberry
Mar. 16 – Aiden Dixon, Anderson
Mar. 23 – Matthew Mancini, Lenoir-Rhyne

Women's Lacrosse

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – The South Atlantic Conference has announced its WePlayed Sports Women's Lacrosse Players of the Week for games played during week seven of the 2026 season. Wingate swept the weekly honors, with Stacy Glover being named the Offensive Player of the Week and Kathryn McCabe earning the Defensive Player of the Week.

Glover, a freshman from Oviedo, Fla., had a monster week, leading No. 13 Wingate to a pair of SAC victories as the Bulldogs stayed perfect in league play. Glover poured in 13 goals in two games, needing just 15 shots to do so. She started her week with eight goals on 10 shots to lead the Bulldogs to a big 17-12 victory at No. 22 Anderson. She scored five goals on five shots Saturday in the 17-1 win at Mars Hill. Glover added four ground balls and a caused turnover on the week.

McCabe, a junior from Alpharetta, Ga., anchored a defense that helped the Bulldogs pick up a pair of SAC road wins. She piled up 15 draw controls, four caused turnovers and six ground balls on the week. McCabe started her week by notching 10 draw controls, three caused turnovers and three ground balls in the victory at No. 22 Anderson, then helped the Bulldogs hold Mars Hill to just one goal on Saturday. She added five more draw controls, three ground balls and another caused turnover (CT) in that contest.

2026 SAC Women's Lacrosse Players of the Week

Offensive Player of the Week

Feb. 9 – Ellie Wilkins, Anderson
Feb. 16 – Ellie Wilkins, Anderson
Feb. 23 – Julia Garvin, Wingate
Mar. 2 – Ava Skeffington, Anderson
Mar. 9 – Stacy Glover, Wingate
Mar. 16 – Elisha Stack, Tusculum
Mar. 23 – Stacy Glover, Wingate

Defensive Player of the Week

Feb. 9 – Kathryn McCabe, Wingate
Feb. 16 – Chloe Huston, UVA Wise
Feb. 23 – Olivia Schmidt, Coker
Mar. 2 – Krysta Churns, Wingate
Mar. 9 – Sophie Pavlick, Wingate
Mar. 16 – Skylar Duval-Lewis, Newberry
Mar. 23 – Kathryn McCabe, Wingate

Tennis

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – Catawba's Santiago Passoni has been named the South Atlantic Conference WePlayed Sports Men's Tennis Player of the Week and Wingate's Fernanda Castillo has been named the Women's Tennis Player of the Week for matches played during week five of the 2026 season, the Conference announced today.

Passoni, a sophomore from Rosario, Argentina, led Catawba to a 2-0 week, including a win over #16 Lincoln Memorial on Saturday. He was a perfect 4-0 on the week, going 2-0 at No. 2 singles and 2-0 at No. 2 doubles. He earned a 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 win over UVA Wise to open the weekend's singles play and added a straight-set 6-4, 6-2 win over LMU. In doubles, he won 7-6 over Wise and 6-4 over the Railsplitters.    

Castillo, a senior from Hidalgo, Mexico, was 2-0 in singles play and 1-0 in doubles play, leading #19 Wingate to a pair of SAC road wins against ranked teams. She won twice at #30 Anderson, winning 6-3, 6-4 at #3 singles and 6-3 at #2 doubles. She prevailed 6-3, 6-0 at #3 singles at #13 Newberry, while her #2 doubles match was tied 5-5 when the point was clinched.

2026 SAC WePlayed Sports Women's Tennis Players of the Week

Feb. 9 – Salome Sierra, Coker
Feb. 16 – Claudia Vallejos, Wingate
Feb. 23 – Ilona Hernandez-Sanchez, Coker
Mar. 2 – Nellie Wahlberg, Lenoir-Rhyne
Mar. 9 – Rin Igarashi, Catawba
Mar. 16 – Sofia Antolini, Catawba
Mar. 23 – Fernanda Castillo, Wingate

2026 SAC WePlayed Sports Men's Tennis Players of the Week

Feb. 9 – Ethan Hirons, Lincoln Memorial
Feb. 16 – Vicent Fenollar, Anderson
Feb. 23 – Ruben Lebron, Wingate
Mar. 2 – Samuil Sivinov, Lenoir-Rhyne
Mar. 9 – Luca Bergonzi, Catawba
Mar. 16 – Louis Keenan, Carson-Newman
Mar. 23 – Santiago Passoni, Catawba

Women's Outdoor Track & Field

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – The South Atlantic Conference announced its WePlayed Sports Women's Outdoor Track and Field Athletes of the Week for meets contested during the first week of competition. Wingate's Dounia Routbi earned the track honor while Anderson's Maggie Long earned the field honor.

Routbi, a senior sprinter from Figueres, Spain, ran a personal-best 400 meters time of 56.78 in the Charlotte 49er Classic this weekend. Her mark is the fourth-fastest time in the SAC this outdoor season.

Long, a junior long jumper from Mt. Pleasant, S.C., smashed Anderson's long jump record at the Charlotte 49er Classic this past weekend with an 11-inch personal best mark of 5.76m. Long finishes fourth out of 45 jumpers in the field and now sits first in the South Atlantic Conference for the event.

2026 SAC Women's Outdoor Track and Field Athletes of the Week

Track
Mar. 24 – Dounia Routbi, Wingate

Field
Mar. 24 – Maggie Long, Anderson

Men's Outdoor Track & Field

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – The South Atlantic Conference announced its WePlayed Sports Men's Outdoor Track and Field Athletes of the Week for meets contested during the first week of competition. Carson-Newman's Cadence Dolgin earned the field honor while Anderson's Gavin Malloy earned the track honor.

Dolgin, a freshman vaulter from Lebanon, Tenn., made an impact during the indoor season, breaking the school record in the pole vault multiple times. He started doing the same thing when he made his outdoor collegiate debut, as his 4.85-meter pole vault is a Carson-Newman record, and he took second at the Lee University Invitational. The freshman now holds both the indoor and outdoor pole vault records.

Malloy, a freshman mid-distance runner from Harrisburg, N.C., ran a personal best 1:52.02 in the men's 800m at the Charlotte 49er Classic to finish fourth. He now sits first in the South Atlantic Conference for the event.

2026 SAC Men's Outdoor Track and Field Athletes of the Week

Track
Mar. 24 – Gavin Malloy, Anderson

Field
Mar. 24 – Cadence Dolgin, Carson-Newman

Baseball

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – Catawba's Logan Dyer was named the South Atlantic Conference WePlayed Sports Baseball Player of the Week while Carson-Newman's Kolton Casson was named Pitcher of the Week for games played during week eight of the 2026 season, the conference office announced today.

Dyer, a sophomore infielder from Salisbury, N.C., hit .579 for the week with 11 hits, including multi-hit games in each of Catawba's four games this week. He added two doubles, four RBI and nine runs, including eight hits and eight runs in Catawba's series win over Wingate in a matchup of the top two teams in the SAC heading into the weekend. Dyer added a four-hit game with two doubles in the rubber match win on Saturday evening.

Casson, a sophomore from Benton, Tenn., tossed his second career complete game shutout, both of which have come this season. In a 7-0 win over Tusculum, Casson tossed seven innings, allowing eight hits and no runs with just one walk. He struck out three batters and ran his streak of consecutive innings without allowing a run to 14.

2026 SAC Player of the Week
Feb. 3 – Bowen Powell, Wingate
Feb. 10 – Braeden Harrison, Anderson
Feb. 17 – Matthew Connolly, Catawba
Feb. 24 – Seth Christmas, Lenoir-Rhyne
Mar. 3 – Brandon Crabtree, Catawba
Mar. 10 – Landon Dockery, Tusculum
Mar. 17 – Matt Procopio, Lenoir-Rhyne
Mar. 24 – Logan Dyer, Catawba

2026 SAC Pitcher of the Week
Feb. 3 – Chad Harvey, Wingate
Feb. 10 – Kellen Gradisar, Lenoir-Rhyne
Feb. 17 – Chad Harvey, Wingate
Feb. 24 – Kaleb Owens, Anderson
Mar. 3 – Jacob Nester, Emory & Henry
Mar. 10 – Kolt Nelson, Wingate
Mar. 17 – Paul Toovalian, Lenoir-Rhyne
Mar. 24 – Kolton Casson, Carson-Newman

Softball

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – Catawba's Brianna Gallagher was named the South Atlantic Conference WePlayed Sports Softball Player of the Week, while Mars Hill's Kamryn Akins was named Pitcher of the Week for games played during week seven of the 2026 season, the conference office announced today.

Gallagher, a junior from Graham, N.C.., hit .667 for the week, tallying multiple hits in each of Catawba's four wins on the week. Gallagher added two homers, 11 RBI and seven runs scored for a Catawba offense that piled on 31 runs in a weekend sweep of Newberry. On Saturday, Gallagher eclipsed Catawba's career hits record, previously held by her Head Coach Allie Lyerly.

Akins, a junior from Union, S.C., threw 14 dominant innings in a pair of wins for the Lions last week. Akins didn't allow an earned run, posting a perfect 0.00 ERA and added a 0.86 WHIP. In her 14 innings, she allowed just seven hits and five walks while striking out 18 batters. In a 4-1 win over Emory & Henry, she threw a 2-hitter with 10 strikeouts.      

2026 SAC Player of the Week
Feb. 10 – Ella Majchrzak, Tusculum
Feb. 17 – Grace Flynn, Catawba
Feb. 24 – Madison Primm, Lenoir-Rhyne
Mar. 3 – Macauley Bailey, Carson-Newman
Mar. 10 – Hannah Booth, Emory & Henry
Mar. 17 – Sadie Cecil, Mars Hill
Mar. 24 – Brianna Gallagher, Catawba

2026 SAC Pitcher of the Week
Feb. 10 – Katie Morris, Anderson
Feb. 17 – Olivia Shockley, UVA Wise
Feb. 24 – Chelsey Stonesifer, Tusculum
Mar. 3 – Madison Wilson, Lenoir-Rhyne
Mar. 10 – Chelsey Stonesifer, Tusculum
Mar. 17 – Malorie Reeves, Emory & Henry
Mar. 24 -Kamryn Akins, Mars Hill

Beach Volleyball

ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – Wingate's Lilou Thieme and Kate Beezerwere named the South Atlantic Conference WePlayed Sports Beach Volleyball Pair of the Week for matches played during week six of the 2026 season, the conference office announced today.

Thieme and Beezer went 5-0 at #1 pairs on the week for the Bulldogs, as Wingate went 4-1 overall. The duo did not drop a set all week, starting things off by going 2-0 at Catawba, which included a 3-2 win in league play. The pair rolled to a 21-13, 21-12 win over Liberty on Friday to kick off the home tourney, while picking up two more wins Saturday over Richard Bland and Salem.

2026 SAC Beach Volleyball Pair of the Week
Feb. 17 – Camryn Ehlers / Addie Smith, Carson-Newman
Feb. 24 - Siri Aasgard/Ally Doty, Tusculum
Mar. 3 - Sydney Wattles / Taylor Vecchione, Catawba
Mar. 10 – Addie Smith / Camryn Ehlers, Carson-Newman
Mar. 24 - Lilou Thieme / Kate Beezer, Wingate