Every Monday during the season, NESCAC Players of the Week will be selected based on information submitted by the athletic communications offices at member institutions.

NESCAC Football Offensive Player of the Week
Christian Shapiro – Tufts – Sr. – RB – South Salem, N.Y.
Shapiro became the first Tufts running back to score four rushing touchdowns in a single game since 2018, helping the Jumbos post a 42-28 win over Hamilton in the season opener. Shapiro rushed for 110 yards on 27 carries, scoring from 17 yards out along with a pair of 2-yard touchdowns and a 1-yard score. Shapiro has scored in nine straight games for the Jumbos.

NESCAC Football Defensive Player of the Week
Jordan Summers – Amherst – So. – DB – Arlington, Mass.
Summers made six tackles (4 solo) and returned an interception 18 yards for a win-clinching touchdown in the fourth quarter of the Mammoths' 24-14 victory over Bates. Summers also added one pass break-up in the victory.

NESCAC Football Special Teams Player of the Week
Leonardo Maiuolo – Williams – Sr. – P/K – San Jose, Calif.
Maiuolo performed his punting and placekicking duties to perfection in Williams’ 17-7 victory over visiting Bowdoin on Saturday. As a punter, he crushed five punts for an average of 46.6 yards, the second-best average in a game in his career. Three punts ended up inside the Polar Bear 20, and his longest boot of the day went 57 yards, with another traveling 53 yards, and Bowdoin did not attempt to return the ball once. Maiuolo also scored five points for the Ephs with two PATs and a 20-yard field goal.

NESCAC Weekly Honor Roll
Amherst – Jadon Davis (White Plains, Md.) had five receptions for 47 yards and a touchdown in the Mammoths' 24-14 season-opening win over Bates. The sophomore also returned two kickoffs for 47 yards in the victory … Efe Illgar (New York, N.Y.) made six punts against the Bobcats, averaging 40.3 yards per boot. The sophomore pinned one boot inside the 20 and had a long of 53 yards in the victory.

Bates – In only the second game of his collegiate career, junior Riley Provencher (Old Orchard Beach, Maine) caught six passes for a game-high 78 yards Saturday at Amherst … Senior Payton Francis (Foxborough, Mass.) recorded his first career interception and became the first Bobcat to return an interception for a touchdown since 2018 against the Mammoths. His pick-six put the Bobcats up 14-10 with 3:13 left in regulation. Francis was part of a Bates pass defense that held the Mammoths to 170 yards through the air, the second-fewest passing yards in the conference in Week 1 … Marcos Ruiz (Haskell, N.J.) stepped in at punter despite having only tried one punt in his collegiate career entering the Amherst contest. The senior managed to average nearly 32 yards per punt, pinning Amherst inside its own 20 once. Ruiz also handled kickoffs and made both PAT attempts against the Mammoths.

Bowdoin – Sophomore quarterback Soren Hummel (San Francisco, Calif.) completed 20 passes for 190 yards and a touchdown, with eight different Polar Bears recording a reception at Williams on Saturday … Bowdoin's defense forced three turnovers, collecting two interceptions and a fumble recovery, while holding the Ephs to just 9-of-19 passing for 93 yards. Junior defensive lineman Charlie Saurack (Rye, N.Y.) led the Polar Bears with nine tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack.

Colby – Sophomore Alex Clapp (New Canaan, Conn.) made his first collegiate reception count on Saturday, opening the third quarter with a 64-yard touchdown to help the Mules close the gap against the Bantams … After notching a pair of games with double-digit tackles a year ago, Lincoln Merrill (West Paris, Maine) opened his senior campaign with 10 stops against Trinity, two of which sent the Bantams backward as tackles for loss.  

Hamilton – Sophomore Mitchell Ivatts (Barrington, R.I.) tied a career best with nine catches and set a career high with 123 yards receiving in a 42-28 setback at Tufts. Ivatts also returned two kickoffs for a total of 29 yards … Senior Mat Bucher (Half Moon Bay, Calif.) led all players with 12 tackles (6 solo), including a half tackle for a loss, against the Jumbos. Ryan Torello (Fairfield, Conn.) was credited with a career-high nine stops … Senior Carmelo Velardo (Fort Lee, N.J.) was a perfect 4-for-4 on extra points versus Tufts.

Middlebury – Jordan Angstreich (Rumson, N.J.) recorded 10 receptions for 130 yards and a touchdown against Wesleyan. The sophomore's yardage total is the most by a Panther in a season opener since Tom Cleaver posted 137 yards receiving in Middlebury's 2003 lidlifter against the Cardinals. Angstreich’s performance also paced the NESCAC during the conference's opening weekend … Matt Shaw (North Andover, Mass.) tied his personal best in a Middlebury uniform with 13 tackles in the season opener. The senior’s 13 stops paced the NESCAC and marked his fifth game with 10 or more tackles. Shaw also added two quarterback hits in Saturday’s contest … Ty Brinkmann (Brentwood, Tenn.) averaged 38.4 yards over five punts versus Wesleyan, with two being downed inside the 20-yard line. The junior’s 49-yard punt near the end of the first quarter matched his season high from a year ago.

Trinity – Senior Jaxon Carroll (Fitchburg, Mass.) helped lead the Bantams to a season-opening 34-14 victory over Colby at Jessee/Miller Field. Carroll matched a career high, completing 22-of-30 passes for a career-high 334 yards with three touchdowns. On the Bantams opening drive, Carroll went 5-for-5 for 48 yards en route to a score, followed by a 35-yard touchdown strike to Nolan O'Brien to hand Trinity an early 14-0 lead. The senior added touchdown passes to Jack Tosone and Josh Woodford in the win … Junior Lincoln Moore (Foxborough, Mass.) anchored the Bantams defense with a game-high 11 tackles versus the Mules. Moore and the Bantams held Colby to 22 rushing yards in the game, the fewest yards on the ground allowed by Trinity since 2024.

Wesleyan – Matt Fitzsimons (Somers, N.Y.) completed 19-of-24 passes (79.1%) for 269 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions in the season opener at Middlebury. The senior signal caller also rushed for 36 yards, completed at least four passes to four different receivers, and wasn't sacked on 60 plays … Sophomore Tommy Kilroy (Norfolk, Mass.) made five tackles and had the defensive play of the game, returning his first career interception 33 yards for a touchdown that gave Wesleyan a 28-7 advantage after Middlebury was in the midst of a second-half comeback bid. Wesleyan led 21-0 at halftime, but Middlebury scored a touchdown late in the third quarter and had the ball back early in the fourth trying to make it a one-score game.

Williams – Making his collegiate debut, first-year running back Jack Fabiano (Topsfield, Mass.) was Williams’ most consistent offensive performer in the Ephs’ 17-7 victory over visiting Bowdoin, carrying the ball 16 times for 106 yards (6.6-yard average) without being dragged down behind the line of scrimmage once. The rookie’s longest run of the day was a 25-yarder in the third quarter that set up a 20-yard Eph field goal, making it a two-score game at 10-0. Fabiano is the first Williams first-year to post a 100-yard game on the ground since Mario Fischetti ’25 in 2021, and the first to do so in his collegiate debut in over 30 years … Sophomore Sean Rooney (Bronxville, N.Y.) tied for the team lead with a career-high seven tackles (6 solo), two going for a loss, one of which was a 6-yard sack, not to mention hauling in a key interception. With the Ephs holding a 7-0 lead late in the second quarter, a turnover gave the Polar Bears the ball at the Williams 22 with 1:48 before halftime. But the Bowdoin quarterback was hit as he threw. Rooney snared the ball at the 2-yard line to preserve the 7-point lead. The pick and the sack were both the first of his collegiate career. Williams held the Polar Bears to 137 yards of offense until the final two minutes of the game.