Men's Soccer | 11/10/2026 2:00:00 PM
PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The St. John Fisher University men's soccer team claimed a major Empire 8 award and placed four players on the All-Empire 8 teams as the conference announced its honors for the 2026 season.
Graduate midfielder Adam Grover was named Empire 8 Offensive Player of the Year after a breakout final season that made him one of the top scorers in the conference. Grover headlined a Cardinals group that included one first-team, one second-team and two third-team honorees.
Grover earned first-team All-Empire 8 recognition, and sophomore goalkeeper Parker Stusek was named to the second team. Senior forward Jack Tamburino and freshman defender Jake Endich each earned third-team honors.
Senior defender Jack Darling was also chosen as St. John Fisher's representative on the conference's Tomorrow's Leaders Team. The team recognizes one student-athlete from each E8 school who has shown leadership in competition, in the classroom and in the community.
Grover drove the Cardinals' attack all season. He scored 10 goals in just 13 games, accounting for 10 of Fisher's 23 goals, and led the team with 20 points, 34 shots, 16 shots on goal and three game-winning goals. The Warsaw native converted both of his penalty-kick attempts, including one in the Empire 8 Tournament first round against Brockport. Grover more than tripled his 2024 total of six points (two goals, two assists) in his return to the Cardinals after a medical redshirt in 2025.
Stusek earned All-Empire 8 honors for the second straight season after making the second team as a freshman in 2025. The Wickliffe, Ohio, native started all 16 games in goal and played more than 1,406 of Fisher's 1,440 minutes. He made 80 saves with a .792 save percentage and a 1.34 goals-against average. Stusek recorded three shutouts and shared another, and Fisher allowed one goal or fewer in nine of its 16 games. His selection extends Fisher's streak of All-Empire 8 goalkeepers to seven straight seasons.
Tamburino is now a three-time All-Empire 8 selection. He was named to the second team in 2024 and the third team in 2025. The senior from Rome played in all 16 games with 15 starts and led the Cardinals with three assists, two of them on Grover goals. He finished with seven points and ranked second on the team with 31 shots and 13 shots on goal. Both of his goals came in a 3-0 win over Sage on Oct. 17.
Endich, a freshman from Buffalo, earned third-team honors in his first collegiate season. He played in 12 games with eight starts, logging 731 minutes and recording two assists. He was part of a back line that allowed one goal or fewer in nine games, and he played the full 90 minutes in Fisher's Empire 8 Tournament game.
St. John Fisher finished the season 7-6-3 and 6-3-2 in Empire 8 play, earning the No. 4 seed and hosting a first-round tournament game. The Cardinals' seven wins were one more than the 2025 team's total, and Fisher outscored conference opponents 20-14 in league play.
