Ohio Wesleyan University freshman McKenna Downing, senior Grace Egan, and sophomore Kaelyn Rodriguez have been named North Coast Athletic Conference Athletes of the Week for the week of May 1, it was announced by the NCAC.
Downing, a member of the Ohio Wesleyan women’s track & field team, was named Women’s Distance/Middle Distance Athlete of the Week; Egan, an attacker on the Ohio Wesleyan women’s lacrosse team, was named Women’s Lacrosse Athlete of the Week; and Rodriguez, a pitcher on the Ohio Wesleyan softball team, was named Softball Pitcher of the Week.
Downing won the 800-meter run in 2:22.18 at the Big Red Invitational on Friday, with her performance marking the seventh-fastest time in the NCAC this season. Downing also led off the Bishops’ 1,600-meter relay team, which won its event in 4:31.43.
Egan had 3 goals as Ohio Wesleyan built a 6-3 lead on the way to a 7-6 win at Wooster on Wednesday. Egan scored to kick off a game-opening 3-0 run, added a goal that gave the Bishops a 5-2 halftime lead, and completed a hat trick with a score that extended the Bishop lead to 6-3 during the third quarter. The win clinched a spot in this week’s NCAC tournament for Ohio Wesleyan, the Bishops’ first NCAC tournament berth since the 2010 season.
With Ohio Wesleyan facing a must-win doubleheader against Kenyon on Saturday, Rodriguez stepped up in the circle and picked up both wins. In the opener, Rodriguez came on in relief and blanked the Owls on one hit over the final 3.0 innings, striking out 2, as the Bishops rallied for a come-from-behind 8-2 win. In the nightcap, Rodriguez scattered 9 hits and allowed 2 earned runs as the Bishops completed the sweep with a 5-3 win.
The 2 wins clinched a spot in the upcoming NCAC tournament for Ohio Wesleyan, the Bishops’ first tournament berth since the 2016 season. On the week, Rodriguez was 2-0 with a 1.54 earned run average.
OWU Sports Information contributed to this report.
