General | 4/27/2026 1:00:00 PM
PITTSFORD, N.Y. – Four St. John Fisher University student-athletes have earned weekly honors from the Empire 8 Conference.
Grady Swidersky (Freshman, Men's Lacrosse) – Empire 8 Co-Offensive Player of the Week
Swidersky scored five goals and tallied 12 assists for 17 total points while leading St. John Fisher to lopsided victories over Keuka and Hartwick last week to claim his first career E8 Player of the Week honor.
Swidersky had three goals and five assists for eight points in a 30-1 victory over Keuka on Wednesday. On Saturday, in a 24-7 drubbing of Hartwick, he erupted for nine points with a pair of goals and seven assists. His nine points and seven assists matched the Cardinals' third-highest single-game totals for those respective categories.
Swidersky's 34 assists currently stand seventh on the Cardinals' single-season record book.
Ellie Leisen (Junior, Women's Lacrosse) – Empire 8 Co-Offensive Player of the Week
Leisen scored eight goals and set up eight others while racking up 16 total points over two games last week. She has earned E8 Offensive Player of the Week honors in each of the last three weeks and four times overall this season.
Leisen had six points on four goals and two assists in a 27-0 thrashing of Keuka on Wednesday before exploding for 10 points – tied for the second most in a game in Fisher history – on four goals and six assists in a 22-1 victory over Hartwick on Saturday. Her six assists marked a career high and matched the Cardinals' second-best single-game total.
With the pair of offensive outbursts, Leisen cracked the top 10 on Fisher's single-season lists for points (78, tied for 8th) and assists (34, 7th). She has tallied five points or more in 10 games this season.
Maddie Lowney (Senior, Women's Lacrosse) – Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Week
Lowney continued to produce big numbers for the Cardinals last week, recording 12 draw controls, eight caused turnovers and six ground balls over two games. She has been named E8 Defensive Player of the Week in each of the last three weeks and five times overall this season.
Lowney caused a pair of turnovers and controlled seven draws against Keuka on Wednesday. In a 22-1 Senior Day victory over Hartwick on Saturday, she caused a season-high six turnovers to go with five draw controls and five ground ball recoveries.
Lowney has caused four or more turnovers in seven games this season. She has recorded 53 total caused turnovers over 17 games, an average of 3.12 per contest (16th in Division III).
Brandon Kaplan (Senior, Men's Track and Field) – Empire 8 Field Athlete of the Week
Kaplan moved up to No. 6 on the DIII national performance list for the hammer throw with a season-best mark of 60.07 meters on Saturday in the Cardinal Classic. He placed first in the event.
Kaplan has been named E8 Field Athlete of the Week twice this season.
