She’s a real keeper
Third clean slate of season earns Marilena Spagnolo Brock athlete of the week honours
Soccer goalkeeper Marilena Spagnolo is Brock’s female athlete of the week, and baseball player Noah Koffman and field lacrosse player Brandon Slade are the university’s top male athletes for the week ending Sunday.
Spagnolo, a second-year kinesiology major, had a strong weekend in goal for the women’s soccer team. In two games, she posted a 0-1-1 record allowing just one goal on 16 shots for a .938 save percentage.
She blanked Windsor for her third shutout of the season versus Windsor. In nine games, Spagnolo has allowed 10 goals for a 1.11 goals-against average and currently ranks third in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) conference in saves with 56.
Koffman, a third-year business major, helped lead the Brock baseball team to three victories this weekend, including a sweep over the Laurier Golden Hawks on Alumni Day.
In four games, he batted .444 going 8-for-18, with a double and five RBIs. He collected three-hit games versus both Laurier and Western. On the season, Koffman is currently fifth in OUA with a .436 batting average, 17-for-39.
Slade, a fifth-year Kinesiology major, scored seven goals and assisted on seven others as the Badgers defeated McMaster and Western on the weekend.
He now has 281 career points, 19 shy of becoming just the second player in Brock lacrosse history to record 300 career points.
Mearns made the jump to the coaching ranks a decade later, serving as an assistant coach with the senior men’s field team at the 2006 and 2010 world championships, winning gold and silver, respectively.
He was promoted to head coach for the 2014 world championship, where his team defeated a heavily favored U.S. squad to win gold.
“This will be the fourth national team that Randy has coached with me,” men’s field lacrosse program director Dave Huntley said. “His understanding of our players, leadership of our staff, and passion for Canadian lacrosse is unparalleled.”
Application process for national team is ongoing, with a selection camp taking place in Buffalo Oct. 6-8.
A number of notable veterans, as well as some up-and-coming NCAA stars, have shown interest in trying out for the team.
“I look forward to the challenges that lie ahead as we move forward towards the world championship in Israel,” Mearns said.
“I’m confident that there will be an incredibly talented pool of players to choose from and am eager to begin the process of putting the pieces of the puzzle together that will help us repeat as world championship.”
In his collegiate career Mearns was a consistent scorer for Canisius College, where he still holds the school’s single season records for points, 94; and assists, 49.
The Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame member won a Minto Cup with the St. Catharines Athletics in 1990 and capturing five Mann Cups at the senior level with the Brampton Excelsiors and Six Nations Chiefs.
Mearns spent nine years in National Lacrosse League career, splitting time between the Rochester Knighthawks and Buffalo Bandits. He won a league championship in 1997 with the Knighthawks.