General | 4/6/2026 1:00:00 PM
PITTSFORD, N.Y. – Eight St. John Fisher University student-athletes have earned weekly honors from the Empire 8 Conference.
Hunter Fales (Freshman, Baseball) – Empire 8 Rookie of the Week
Fales had three hits in seven at-bats over two games last week, including a solo home run in a 9-5 victory over SUNY Poly on Wednesday. The catcher threw out two runners attempting to steal and had a pair of hits on Saturday in a 7-5 win over St. Joseph's Long Island.
Avery Kielbasinski (Freshman, Men's Volleyball) – Empire 8 Rookie of the Week
Now a four-time E8 Rookie of the Week honoree, Kielbasinski totaled 18 points on 16 kills and two service aces to lead St. John Fisher to a four-set win over SUNY Potsdam on Saturday. The match marked Kielbasinski's fourth this season with 15 or more kills and his fifth with 15 or more total points.
Jake Vernieri (Freshman, Men's Lacrosse) – Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Week
Vernieri, a two-time E8 Defensive Player of the Week honoree, recovered nine ground balls, caused three turnovers and tallied an assist as Fisher dominated Utica and Alfred last week. He caused two turnovers and had an assist against Utica on Wednesday. Against Alfred on Saturday, he caused a turnover and picked up six ground balls.
Chelsea Lopata (Junior, Women's Lacrosse) – Empire 8 Co-Offensive Player of the Week
Lopata tallied 14 points on six goals and eight assists to lead No. 24 St. John Fisher to lopsided victories over Utica and Alfred last week. The junior attacker tallied a career-high 10 points on four goals and six assists, tied for the second-most in a game in program history, as the Cardinals defeated Alfred 23-1 on Saturday at Yunevich Stadium. With the performance, she joined Jordan Johnson (10 in two games) and Sydney Carpenter (nine in two games) as the third player in program history to have two career games with nine points or more. Lopata's first such offensive outburst came last season in a victory over Hartwick, when she scored two goals and added seven assists for nine points.
Lopata had two goals and two assists in a win over Utica on Wednesday.
Taylor Shackleton (Junior, Softball) – Empire 8 Player of the Week
Shackleton led the Cardinals to a 6-0 week with conference sweeps over Houghton, Russell Sage and Hartwick. She played in all six games and hit .619 (13-for-21) with 18 RBIs, six doubles and four home runs. On Monday against Houghton, she went 4-for-7 with five RBIs, two doubles and a home run across the doubleheader. On Friday against Russell Sage, she finished 5-for-6 with seven RBIs, hitting two home runs in game one and adding two doubles in game two. She closed out the week against Hartwick, going 4-for-8 with six RBIs, two doubles, and a home run. It is Shackleton's second E8 weekly honor of 2026.
Molly Kuhn (Junior, Softball) – Empire 8 Pitcher of the Week
Kuhn led the Cardinals in the circle to a perfect week with conference sweeps over Houghton, Russell Sage and Hartwick. Overall, Kuhn was 4-0 with a 0.37 earned run average, 0.48 WHIP and 23 strikeouts across 19 innings. On Monday against Houghton, Kuhn pitched a complete game in a 6-0 win, allowing three hits while striking out eight and walking none over seven innings. On Friday against Russell Sage, she threw all five innings in a 9-1 run-rule victory, giving up four hits and one walk while striking out five. She returned on Saturday against Hartwick and pitched a complete game in a 10-1 run-rule win, allowing two hits with no walks, and eight strikeouts over six innings. In game two against Hartwick, Kuhn entered in the top of the seventh with the Cardinals trailing by two runs and retired the side, striking out two of the three batters she faced to secure the win.
Hayden Penna (Junior, Men's Track & Field) – Empire 8 Field Athlete of the Week
Penna once again bested his school pole vault record in the Geneseo Early Season Invite on Saturday with a second-place mark of 5.10 meters, which currently ranks second on the Division III performance list. The performance also qualified Penna for the regional meet.
Penna broke his outdoor pole vault record last week in the Fisher Tri-Meet and did so multiple times last spring. This marks the second consecutive week that Penna has been named E8 Field Athlete of the Week.
Juliana Riemersma (Freshman, Women's Track & Field) – Empire 8 Track Athlete of the Week
Riemersma placed first and qualified for regionals in the 400-meter run with a time of 57.53 seconds in the Geneseo Early Season Invite on Saturday, good for second on Fisher's top five list for the event. The time is also the 35th-fastest in Division III to date this season. She also placed fourth in the 200-meter run, clocking a time of 25.81.
