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, Bethel, Carleton, Concordia, Gustavus, and Saint Mary's claimed the Conference's weekly honors.
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 and indoor track & field) announced on Tuesday afternoons. The winners of the latest Athlete of the Week awards are listed below, along with details on their outstanding performances.
The MIAC Athlete of the Week archive has complete details on each week's selections and winners.
MIAC Men's Basketball Offensive Player of the Week
Adam Mattes
Bethel University
Jr. | Guard
Newton, Iowa
Adam Mattes led the Royals to a pair of non-conference victories against Crown (12/12) and Martin Luther (12/14), averaging 24.0 points and 5.0 rebounds while shooting 64.5 percent from the field. In an 89-88 win over Crown, Mattes dropped a career-high 27 points on 11-of-15 shooting while adding five rebounds and two assists. In a 108-75 win against Martin Luther, Mattes had a game-high 21 points on 9-of-16 shooting with five rebounds and two assists in 23 minutes of action.
MIAC Men's Basketball Defensive Player of the Week
Spencer Goetz
Carleton College
Sr. | Forward
Chaska, Minn.
Spencer Goetz averaged 4.5 steals and 6.5 rebounds in helping the Knights secure a pair of narrow road wins against Macalester (12/11) and Northwestern-St. Paul (12/14). Goetz collected a career-best six steals as the Knights erased a nine-point, second-half deficit to win 63-60 at Macalester. He added eight points, three rebounds, and three assists to his well-rounded stat sheet. In another come-from-behind win (78-74) at Northwestern-St. Paul, Goetz contributed nine points, ten rebounds, five assists, and three steals in that contest.
MIAC Women's Basketball Offensive Player of the Week
Jordyn Kahler
Concordia College
Sr. | Guard
Wahpeton, N.D.
Jordyn Kahler scored a career-high 20 points in the Cobbers' 81-72 win over Augsburg on 12/14. Kahler went 7-for-9 from the floor and 3-for-4 from the free-throw line to lead all players in scoring.
MIAC Women's Basketball Defensive Player of the Week
Rylie Sternquist
Saint Mary's University
Fy. | Forward
Big Lake, Minn.
Rylie Sternquist set a career-high with five steals in a six-point loss to Saint Benedict on 12/10. Sternquist helped close the gap with less than four minutes to play, recording two of her five steals in the final minutes of regulation to help the Cardinals come back from 15 points down. Sternquist added five rebounds in the defensive effort.
MIAC Women's Hockey Offensive Player of the Week
Emma Abrahamson
Augsburg University
So. | Forward
Carpentersville, Ill. | Hampshire
Emma Abrahamson scored two goals with two assists for a four-point weekend as the Auggies split a pair of non-conference games in Wisconsin. On 12/13, she scored the opening goal, then assisted on two more goals in the Auggies' 6-0 win over UW-Stevens Point. On 12/14, she scored an unassisted goal in the Auggies' 4-2 loss at nationally-ranked UW-Eau Claire.
MIAC Women's Hockey Defensive Player of the Week
Lily Timmons
Gustavus Adolphus College
Fy. | Goaltender
Stillwater, Minn.
Lily Timmons backstopped the Gusties to a trio of non-conference wins last week. Timmons posted a career-high 33 saves against nationally-ranked UW-River Falls in leading the Gusties to a 7-2 victory over the defending national champions. Timmons added an eight-save performance in a period-and-a-half shutout against Aurora on 12/13 before posting 21 saves on 12/14 against the Spartans to earn her eighth victory of the season.