Albion College gained a sweep of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Player of the Week awards in men's lacrosse Monday.
Gerald Haadsma, a first-year face-off specialist from Battle Creek, Mich., was named the Defensive Player of the Week for the first time in his career. The Lakeview High School product and sole captain for the 2019 Britons won the face-off 73 percent of the time (36-of-49) and collected 17 groundballs as Albion defeated Trine University and Alma College to maintain a share of first place in the MIAA.
Haadsma was also involved in the offense, producing a goal and an assist against Trine and a goal and two assists against Alma.
A junior attackman from Bloomfield Hills, Mich., Shepard is collecting his first MIAA Offensive Player of the Week award after piling up nine goals and two assists last week. Shepard played a vital role in the Britons 14-10 victory over Alma by scoring two goals and assisting on the other two in the fourth quarter.
Shepard is fourth on the team in goals (18) and points (25) through 12 contests this season.
"It is great to see these two guys getting recognition. They both have done a great job battling on and off the field all year as we have had our share of challenges with non-league play, not to mention prepping for this season," Albion Head Coach Jake DeCola said.
"Scott went through a really tough situation with the accident involving him and his mom, and watching him succeed through that has been awesome and inspiring," DeCola added.
"And for Gerry, he has been doing a great job on the field and off. It must be a challenge for a first-year student-athlete to be the sole captain of an established program, but he is doing awesome and is getting some guidance from our seniors – especially Drew Harm," DeCola continued.
"Being 3-0 in the MIAA is just part of the process right now for us with a young team," DeCola finished. "There have been plenty of folks telling us we are 'down' this year, yet we were still picked to finish as the number two team. We have a lot of kids right now playing at a high level, and I imagine that we will do what we can to try to finish in the top two in the league. Assuming we get there, these two kids will have everything to do with that situation."
Albion travels to Kalamazoo College on Saturday for its next MIAA contest.
Twitter: @Albion_MLax
Joe and Julie Serra have given a $5 million leadership gift to launch a fundraising initiative to make two dreams a reality at Albion College. The first is a newly expanded fitness and student activity facility at the site of the current Dow Recreation and Wellness Center. The second is a new or renovated competition facility for the volleyball, men's basketball and women's basketball that currently call Kresge Gymnasium home.
The College is continuing to raise funds in support of both projects. To learn more, call 517/629-0446 or email advancement@albion.edu.