BLOOMINGTON, Minn. –Â The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) launched its league-wide Athlete of the Week program ahead of the 1999-2000 academic year. In the two decades since, the conference has recognized hundreds of student-athletes for exceptional performances in competition. In the absence of competitive athletics this fall, the MIAC will take time each week to revisit some memorable performances from the last 20 years of the Athlete of the Week program.
Today’s Athlete of the Week Rewind revisits some outstanding achievements for the dates of December 1-7 over the last 20 years.
MIAC Men’s Basketball Athlete of the Week
Joe Snowden (December 5, 2000)
Concordia College
Sr. | Guard
St. Paul, Minn. | Roseville
Joe Snowden averaged 26.3 points in three games as he helped the Cobbers win the University of Redlands Tournament, earning the tourney’s Most Valuable Player honors. His 42-point performance in the championship game, a 109-107 quadruple overtime victory over Willamette (OR), was the third-highest single-game output ever for a Concordia player. He started the tournament with 14 points against previously unbeaten Chapman (CA) and then put up 23 points in the Cobbers’ semifinal victory over Redlands. Snowden was 25-for-56(.446) from the field in the tournament and shot 15-for-30 from three-point range.
MIAC Women’s Basketball Athlete of the Week
Niki Fokken (December 5, 2016)
College of Saint Benedict
Jr. | Forward
Oronoco, Minn. | Pine Island
Niki Fokken led Saint Benedict in scoring twice last week as it won a pair of MIAC games to push its record to 6-0 for the first time since 2003-04. The junior forward had a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds against St. Catherine and followed that up by scoring a career-high 25 points in an 88-52 win over Carleton – the first time CSB has scored 88 points since Feb. 4, 2013. She averaged 18.5 points and eight rebounds per game in last week’s two big wins.
MIAC Men’s Hockey Athlete of the Week
Keith Detlefsen (December 5, 2005)
Gustavus Adolphus College
Sr. | Defender
Lakeville, Minn. | Holy Angels
Keith Detlefsen had three goals and six assists in a weekend sweep over Concordia. In Friday’s 7-0 win, Detlefsen scored a short-handed goal and an even-strength goal and added assisted on three other goals, including the game-winner. In Saturday’s 7-1 victory, Detlefsen opened the game with an even-strength goal just 3:47 into the first period and added three assists.
MIAC Women’s Hockey Athlete of the Week
Mackenzie Torpy (December 3, 2018)
University of St. Thomas
Sr. | Goaltender
Oregon, Wis.
Mackenzie Torpy stopped 60 of 61 shots in a pair of close wins against previous MIAC co-leader Augsburg over the weekend. Torpy increased her streak of scoreless minutes in net to 354 before finally surrendering a power-play goal early in the second period of Saturday’s 3-1 win. She has allowed just three goals in her last 11 games dating back to the 2017-18 season finale and leads all 341 NCAA goalies of both genders in shutouts (seven), goals-allowed average (0.31), and save percentage (.984). She moved past Alise Riedel into No. 1 at St. Thomas and into a tie for No. 2 in MIAC history for goalie wins at 54 last week and also had her 16th career shutout – one off the school record – for the 10-0 Tommies, who are currently riding an NCAA-best 23-game unbeaten streak (18-0-5).
MIAC Men’s Swimming & Diving Athlete of the Week
Nelson Westby (December 3, 2007)
St. Olaf College
Jr.
Salem, Ore.
Nelson Westby won five events at the Carthage Invitational, finishing with two NCAA ‘A’ cuts and four ‘B’ cuts. Westby’s first win was in the 200 IM with an ‘A’ cut time of 1:50.51, establishing a new school and conference record and finishing faster than his national championship performance last year. It is also the top time in DIII this season. In the 200 breaststroke, Westby finished in an ‘A’ cut time of 2:02.23, also a new school record and the fastest time in DIII. Westby additionally posted a ‘B’ cut in the first 100 going out in 57.76. He added a third individual win in the 50 freestyle swimming his fastest time in preliminaries with a ‘B’ cut of 21.02. Westby also swam on two winning medley relays splitting 21.98 and 49.21 in each of the butterfly legs.
MIAC Women’s Swimming & Diving Athlete of the Week
Maggie Menso (December 4, 2018)
St. Catherine University
Fy.
Barrington, Ill.
Maggie Menso rewrote the St. Kate’s record book at the Rochester Invitational over the weekend, setting new program-highs with her first-place finishes in the 500 (4:56.43) and 1650 (16:47.83) freestyles. The first-year swimmer was also part of the second-place 400 and first-place 800 relay teams that set new team records with times of 3:29.64 and 7:35.30, respectively. Menso contributed 239 points to help the Wildcats become the top finishing D-III program at the meet.
