BLOOMINGTON, Minn. — The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) announced its Athlete of the Week award winners for basketball, hockey, indoor track and field, and swimming and diving on Monday. Student-athletes from Bethel, Gustavus, Saint Benedict, Saint John’s, Saint Mary’s, and St. Thomas claimed the conference’s weekly honors for February 1-7, 2021.
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, Athletes of the Week will be recognized on Monday 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 2020-21 Athlete of the Week home page, navigate to the MIAC’s Awards page or visit the 2020-21 Athlete of the Week news archive for complete details on each week’s selections and winners.
MIAC Men’s Basketball Athlete of the Week
Raheem Anthony
Saint Mary’s University
So. | Guard
Chicago, Ill. | DePaul College Prep
Raheem Anthony put forth 25- and 26-point efforts in the Cardinals’ wins over Hamline and Gustavus last week. Anthony kicked off the week scoring 25 points and adding 10 rebounds en route to his fourth career double-double in Saint Mary’s 77-66 non-conference win over Hamline last Monday before adding 26 points, six rebounds, and four steals in the Cardinals’ 67-45 victory over Gustavus two days later. The sophomore guard has scored at least 20 points in all three games this season and currently ranks third in the MIAC with an average of 23.7 points per game overall.
MIAC Women’s Basketball Athlete of the Week
Maddie Schmitz
College of Saint Benedict
Sr. | Forward
St. Martin, Minn. | Albany
Maddie Schmitz averaged a double-double last week to help Saint Benedict start the season 2-0. Schmitz tied her career-high with 25 points and set a new career-best with 18 rebounds in a season-opening win against Concordia. On Saturday against Hamline, she added 22 more points, including 16 in the second half to help CSB overcome a seven-point halftime deficit to beat the Pipers by 14. She also had 12 rebounds in the contest and went 12-for-12 from the line to become the first CSB basketball player with a perfect free-throw percentage in a game since 2013.
MIAC Men’s Hockey Athlete of the Week
Travis Brown
Saint John’s University
Sr. | Defender
Otsego, Minn.
Travis Brown totaled six points with three goals and three assists in three Saint John’s wins last week. Brown became the first SJU defenseman to record a hat trick since 1998 in Friday’s non-conference win at Bethel. He also added an assist in a 5-2 non-conference win at St. Scholastica on Wednesday and logged two more helpers in an 8-2 conference victory over the Royals last Saturday.
MIAC Women’s Hockey Athlete of the Week
Ary Ziakas
Saint Mary’s University
Sr. | Goaltender
Palatine, Ill.
Ary Ziakas appeared in both games for the Saint Mary’s women’s hockey team last week. Ziakas split time in the Cardinals’ 3-1, season-opening loss to St. Scholastica last Wednesday, stopping all 17 shots she faced in 30:37 minutes of work, before following that up with a 35-save shutout in Saint Mary’s 0-0, conference-opening tie with Concordia three days later. Ziakas’ shutout – which included 12 saves in the second period, 10 in the third, and seven more in the five-minute overtime – was the second of her collegiate career.
MIAC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week
Taylor Rooney
Gustavus Adolphus College
Sr.
Andover, Minn.
Taylor Rooney had a pair of record-breaking performances on Saturday in Gustavus’ dual meet with Bethel. Rooney won the 60-meter hurdles with a school-record time of 7.87, which ranks first in NCAA Division III this season and is the fifth-fastest time in DIII history. He also won the 200-meter in 22.69, which ranks first in the MIAC and 12th in Division III. His second school record-setting performance was in the high jump with a leap of 6-9, which ranks first in Division III this year.
MIAC Men’s Field Athlete of the Week
Joe Hueg
University of St. Thomas
So.
Hammond, Wis. | St. Croix Central
Joe Hueg produced a 58-1 1-4 toss in the weight throw at St. Thomas’ dual meet against Augsburg last Saturday. The throw is a new career-best and currently ranks second in NCAA Division III this season.
MIAC Women’s Track Athlete of the Week
Kelsie Sealock
Bethel University
So.
Plymouth, Minn. | Osseo
Kelsie Sealock put up a chart-topping performance in her specialty, the 60-meter hurdles at Bethel’s dual meet versus Gustavus last weekend. Sealock blazed her way to victory by running an NCAA Division III-leading time of 8.85 seconds. Sealock then helped Bethel’s “A” 4×400-meter relay team to a 4:09.11 finish, winning by just 0.42.
MIAC Women’s Field Athlete of the Week
Megan Gehrke
University of St. Thomas
Jr.
Faribault, Minn.
Megan Gehrke made her 2021 season debut last Friday at home with Division III’s No. 5-ranked toss in the weight throw. Her distance of 53-7 1-2 is a career-best for the St. Thomas junior by four feet. Gehrke also had a top-12 mark in the shot put at 42-2 3-4.
MIAC Men’s Swimming & Diving Athlete of the Week
Nolan Larson
Gustavus Adolphus College
Sr.
West Des Moines, Iowa | Waverly-Shell Rock
Nolan Larson highlighted the Gusties’ dual against Hamline on Saturday with a pair of individual event victories and one relay win. He won the 200 butterfly in 1:57.94, which was more than six seconds faster than second place, and earned top honors in the 100 butterfly in 51.21, which was more than two seconds faster than second place. Larson was also part of the winning 200 free relay team and took second as part of the 200 medley relay team.
MIAC Women’s Swimming & Diving Athlete of the Week
Ellen Hofstede
Gustavus Adolphus College
So.
Hopkins, Minn.
Ellen Hofstede took first place in all four of her races in the Gusties’ season opener on Saturday. Hofstede and the 200 free relay team set a Vic Gustafson Pool record with a time of 1:37.72, which was 0.12 of a second faster than the previous record that stood for eight years. That time is also No. 1 in NCAA Division III this season. Her 200 medley relay time of 1:48.94 was just past one second from breaking the pool record. She also won the 100 free in 51.93, which ranks first in the nation. Her time of 1:59.53 in the 200 free rounded out her four-win day.
