MLAX Wins Three B1G Weekly Awards
Apr 27 | Men's Lacrosse
PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- On the heels of its 17-10 victory over No. 10/11 Ohio State to close the regular season, Rutgers won three weekly awards from the Big Ten Conference on Monday. Senior midfielder Joe Nardella won Specialist of the Week, junior midfielder Zack Sikora was named Defensive Player of the Week and Jules Heningburg was named Co-Freshman of the Week.
Nardella had a stellar performance in Rutgers' win over No. 10 Ohio State, the team's first top-10 win since 2003. His effort in the first half was especially clutch as RU established an 11-4 halftime lead thanks to Nardella winning 11-of-17 faceoffs, including going 7-of-8 in the second quarter when Rutgers went on a 7-0 scoring run. The Cazenoivia, N.Y. native also scored two goals, tying his career-high, led the team with nine ground balls and caused one turnover. On the season, Nardella leads the conference in ground balls (125) and faceoff winning percentage (66.7). He has also scored six goals and had nine assists on the year. It was Nardella's third Specialist of the Week honor this season.
Sikora was a big part of Rutgers' defensive effort in the Scarlet Knights' first Big Ten win. The Clifton, Va. native gathered a career-high seven ground balls in the win, and also contributed one goal and one assist. On the year, the midfielder had six goals and two assists and was second on the team with 48 ground balls.
Heninburg earned Co-Freshman of the Week, his second straight week earning a weekly honor. The Maplewood, N.J. native had his second straight hat trick in the defeat of the No. 10/11 Buckeyes. Heninigburg led Rutgers with 10 goals in conference play and had 14 goals in the season's final six games. The Seton Hall Prep product's hat trick was his third of the season and his seventh multi-goal game of his freshman campaign. Overall, Heningburg was third on the team with 21 goals and 29 points.
