BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) announced its Athlete of the Week award winners for basketball and hockey on Monday. Student-athletes from Augsburg, Concordia, Gustavus, Hamline, Macalester, Saint Benedict, Saint Mary's, and St. Olaf claimed the Conference's weekly honors for November 28 - December 4, 2022.
The MIAC Athlete of the Week awards are nominated by the Conference's sports information directors and selected by MIAC staff. Throughout the winter season, team sports (basketball and hockey) Athletes of the Week will be recognized on Monday afternoons, with individual sports (swimming & diving) announced on Tuesday afternoons. The winners of the latest Athlete of the Week awards are listed below, along with details on their outstanding performances.
To view each sport's 2022-23 Athlete of the Week home page, navigate to the 2022-23 Athlete of the Week archive for complete details on each week's selections and winners.
MIAC Men's Basketball Offensive Player of the Week
Owen Ziegler
Saint Mary's University
Jr. | Guard
Mount Horeb, Wis.
Owen Ziegler shot 21-for-36 from the field - including 16-for-27 from three-point range - with an average of 29.0 points per game in a pair of contests for the Cardinals last week. Ziegler scored a then-career-high 26 points on 9-of-14 shooting in SMU's 75-69 loss to St. Olaf on 11/30 before pouring in 32 points in an 85-66 win over previously unbeaten Carleton on 12/3.
MIAC Men's Basketball Defensive Player of the Week
Austin Holt
Hamline University
So. | Guard
Highlands Ranch, Colo. | Thunder Ridge
Austin Holt collected 19 rebounds, eight steals, and five blocked shots in a pair of Piper victories last week. He had nine boards, three steals, and two blocks in a win over Bethel on 11/30 and totaled 10 rebounds, five steals, and three blocks against St. Olaf on 12/3.
MIAC Women's Basketball Offensive Player of the Week
Sophia Jonas
College of Saint Benedict
So. | Guard
Hudson, Wis.
Sophia Jonas averaged 19.5 points and hit 55.6 percent on threes (10-of-18) to lift the Bennies to wins versus St. Scholastica (11/30) and Augsburg (12/3) last week. Jonas tied her career high for made-threes in both games, going 5-of-8 against St. Scholastica and 5-of-10 against Augsburg. She totaled 17 points in the road win over the Saints before recording her second career 20-point game with 22 in a double-digit win over the Auggies.
MIAC Women's Basketball Defensive Player of the Week
Emma LaFrenz
Macalester College
Sr. | Forward
Edina, Minn.
Emma LaFrenz corraled 21 rebounds and blocked a pair of shots in two games for the Scots last week. Sixteen of her 21 boards and both blocks came against St. Catherine on 11/30. She added five more rebounds against Gustavus on 12/3.
MIAC Men's Hockey Offensive Player of the Week
Jonathan Young
St. Olaf College
So. | Forward
Pelham, N.H.
Jonathan Young scored the game-tying and game-winning goals in the third period to lead the Oles to a 4-3 victory over No. 2-ranked Augsburg on 12/3. With the Auggies leading 3-2, the sophomore tied the game at 9:38 in the third before netting the game-winner at the 14:51 mark.
MIAC Men's Hockey Defensive Player of the Week
Aaron Dickstein
Concordia College
Jr. | Goaltender
Dayton, Ohio | Miami Valley
Aaron Dickstein made 24 saves and came within 13 seconds of a shutout in the Cobbers' 2-1 series-clinching win over Hamline on 12/2. Dickstein has collected at least 24 saves in all three of his starts this season.
MIAC Women's Hockey Offensive Player of the Week
Emily Cronkhite
Augsburg University
So. | Forward
Eagan, Minn.
Emily Cronkhite had two goals and two assists for a four-point weekend as the Auggies claimed a pair of shutout wins over St. Olaf. In a 2-0 road victory on 12/2, Cronkhite scored an unassisted goal with 17 seconds left in the second period. She then had a goal and two assists in Augsburg's 6-0 home win on 12/3.
MIAC Women's Hockey Defensive Player of the Week
Katie McCoy
Gustavus Adolphus College
Sr. | Goaltender
Grafton, Wis. | Cedarburg
Katie McCoy was perfect in the Gusties' two wins over Saint Mary's, posting a pair of shutouts in 4-0 and 3-0 wins. McCoy made 16 saves on 12/2 and followed the performance with nine more the next day, giving her and the team the nation's lead in shutouts.