BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) announced its Athlete of the Week award winners for basketball, hockey, and tennis on Monday. Student-athletes from Bethel, Carleton, Gustavus, Hamline, Saint Benedict, Saint John's, and St. Scholastica 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, hockey, and tennis) 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
Blake Schmitz
Bethel University
So. | Guard
Hermantown, Minn. / Hermantown
Blake Schmitz recorded a pair of 26-point performances in a split week for the Royals. Schmitz shot 10-for-15 in both games - a 96-82 loss to St. Olaf on 2/4 and an 85-70 win over St. Scholastica on 2/7 - and went a combined 5-for-8 from long range. He added 12 rebounds, three assists, a pair of steals, and a blocked shot on the week.
MIAC Men's Basketball Defensive Player of the Week
Myles Barnette
Gustavus Adolphus College
Jr. | Guard
Maple Grove, Minn. / Wayzata
Myles Barnette led the defensive effort with 11 rebounds and seven steals in road wins over Saint John's and Macalester last week, extending the Gusties' win streak to 19 consecutive games. Barnett collected seven boards, four steals, and a blocked shot in a 72-61 win over the Johnnies on 2/4 and added four rebounds, three steals, and another block in a 91-58 rout of the Scots on 2/7. He also averaged 26.0 points on the offensive end of the floor, pouring in 28 at SJU and 24 at Macalester.
MIAC Women's Basketball Offensive Player of the Week
Ava Haus
The College of St. Scholastica
So. | Guard
St. Michael, Minn. / STMA
Ava Haus logged back-to-back 20-point performances in a pair of road contests for the Saints last week. Haus scored 20 points in a 70-49 victory over Macalester on 2/4 before tallying a season-high 25 points in a 77-71 loss to Bethel on 2/7. Haus was 8-for-11 from the field and 2-for-4 from beyond the arc against the Royals. She has scored at least 20 points in three of her last four games.
MIAC Women's Basketball Defensive Player of the Week
Josie Schmidt
Hamline University
So. | Guard
Belle Plaine, Minn. / Belle Plaine
Josie Schmidt came away with 11 steals in a split week for the Pipers. After collecting four steals and a blocked shot in a 20-point win at Augsburg on 2/4, Schmidt recorded a season-best seven takeaways and blocked another shot attempt in a five-point loss to nationally-ranked Concordia on 2/7. Schmidt has multiple steals in ten of her last eleven games.
MIAC Men's Hockey Offensive Player of the Week
Chris Kernan
Saint John's University
Jr. | Forward
Maple Grove, Minn. / Maple Grove
Chris Kernan totaled four points and a team-leading seven shots on goal in a weekend split against Gustavus. Kernan recorded a career-high three assists in a 5-4 overtime loss in St. Peter on 2/6 before scoring the game-winning goal on an unassisted breakaway in a 3-2 overtime victory in St. Cloud the following night. Kernan has factored into the scoring in five of the Johnnies' last six games.
MIAC Men's Hockey Defensive Player of the Week
Adam Prokop
Saint Mary's University
Fy. | Goaltender
Wausau, Wis. / Wausau West
Adam Prokop totaled 66 saves and one shutout in two starts for the Cardinals in their weekend series with Bethel. Prokop had 29 saves in a 5-3 home win on 2/6 before posting 37 stops in a 2-0 road win for the first shutout of his collegiate career on 2/7. Prokop has won each of his last five starts.
MIAC Women's Hockey Offensive Player of the Week
Kaiya Sandy
Hamline University
Fy. | Forward
Warroad, Minn. / Warroad
Kaiya Sandy led the Pipers with five points in two victories over Concordia last weekend. Sandy was credited with the assist on the game-winning goal in overtime of a 4-3 win on 2/6 before scoring twice and assisting on two other goals in a 9-1 victory on 2/7. She has had at least one assist in each of her last four games.
MIAC Women's Hockey Defensive Player of the Week
Lexi Badali
College of Saint Benedict
Fy. | Goaltender
St. John, Ind. / Lake Central
Lexi Badali allowed just one goal in nearly two hours of game time as the Bennies split with Gustavus over the weekend. Badali recorded the first shutout against the Gusties in CSB hockey history with her 30-save performance in a 3-0 win on 2/6. Her lone goal allowed in the series came late in the third period of an eventual 2-0 loss on 2/7. Badali collected 37 saves in the game.
MIAC Men's Tennis Player of the Week
Akshay Garapati
Carleton College
So.
Chicago, Ill. / Latin School of Chicago
Akshay Garapati picked up three points in the Knights' doubleheader against Carthage and Carroll on 2/7. Garapati began the day with a 6-4 win at No. 1 doubles before dropping a tight match at No. 1 singles 7-6 (7-4), 6-4. Garapati bounced back versus Carroll, securing a 6-2 triumph atop the doubles lineup, followed by a 6-2, 4-6, 1-0 (10-8) victory at No. 1 singles.
MIAC Women's Tennis Player of the Week
Lanie Davis
Gustavus Adolphus College
So.
St. Louis, Mo. / Cor Jesu Academy
Lanie Davis won all three of her singles matches against NCAA Division I, Division II, and NAIA opponents last week. Davis earned the lone point for Gustavus against Creighton on 2/8, taking the No. 5 singles match by a score of 6-2, 6-4. A day earlier, Davis collected another win at No. 5 singles against Nebraska-Kearney, 7-6 (8-6), 6-1, along with a 6-0, 6-0 singles win and a 6-3 victory at No. 2 doubles against McPherson.