North Coast Athletic Conference Athletes of the Week | October 27, 2026

Field Hockey - Hendrika Maher, Kenyon
Kenyon sophomore Hendrika Maher (Grand Rapids, MI/East Grand Rapids High) led the Owls to a double overtime victory over John Carroll, scoring the game-winning goal to keep Kenyon’s playoff hopes alive. Maher set career marks for both shots (9) and shots on goal (7), with both totals setting Kenyon’s high-water mark for the season. Maher took six shots in overtime, including the final four, and her relentless effort paid off with the game-winner in the 76th minute.

Football (Offensive) - Devin Taylor, John Carroll
John Carroll sophomore Devin Taylor (Pittsburgh, PA/Baldwin) set the tone in a 69-23 victory when his first career touchdown gave the Blue Streaks a 7-0 lead over Wooster. The running back then broke off for an 80-yard touchdown in the second quarter, the longest NCAC rushing play this season. Taylor finished with 161 yards on just 10 carries, both career highs, and added a five-yard reception to round out the career day.

Football (Defensive) - Brett Kersemeier, WashU
WashU senior Brett Kersemeier (Arlington Heights, IL/John Hersey) helped keep the Bears unbeaten with a strong defensive effort in a 27-17 win over Wabash. The cornerback tied for the team lead and set a career high with nine total tackles, tying for the game-high with six solo tackles and adding three assists. Kersemeier also grabbed his second interception of the season and contributed a pass breakup to help WashU improve to 7-0 for the first time since 1948.

Men's Golf - Wade Boyle, John Carroll
John Carroll senior Wade Boyle (Greensburg, PA/Greensburg Central Catholic) guided the team to a nine-stroke victory and won medalist honors at JCU’s fall finale, the Jeff Roope Invitational. Boyle, the No. 14-ranked Div. III men’s golfer in the Scoreboard/Clippd rankings, finished first out of 80 golfers by two strokes, shooting 209 (-7) overall after a consistent 71-67-71 outing. The senior’s third round featured an eagle on No. 5 and a birdie on No. 17, clinching the win after an impressive six-birdie second round.

Women's Golf - Julia Gulla, John Carroll
John Carroll sophomore Julia Gulla (Sagamore Hills, OH/Nordonia) finished the team’s fall schedule on a high note, winning medalist honors and helping the Blue Streaks claim the team championship at the 2026 Buffalo Wild Wings Cleveland Cup. The sophomore led the 42-golfer field by an impressive eight strokes, finishing with a two-round total of 153 (+9) after shooting a 75 in round one and 78 in round two. Gulla got the job done late in the second round, going birdie-par-par on the final three holes to help JCU win the team title by three strokes.

Men's Soccer - Liam Walsh, Denison
Denison senior Liam Walsh (Alexandria, VA/St. Stephen's and St. Agnes Upper School) played a crucial role on the Big Red’s backline, playing all 180 minutes across back-to-back 1-0 victories over No. 8-ranked Kenyon and Ohio Wesleyan. Against the Owls, Walsh helped Denison defend 11 shots, four of which were on goal, while stopping seven corner kick attempts. On Saturday, Walsh and the defensive line held the Battling Bishops to just five shots and gave up only one corner on the day.

Women's Soccer - Josie Bencic, Wooster
Wooster junior Josie Bencic (West Chester, OH/Lakota East) scored her first career hat trick in a 3-1 win over Wittenberg and helped the Fighting Scots go 2-0-0 to secure the program's first NCAC title since 2010. Bencic's midweek performance marked her season’s first multi-goal game, and it was the forward’s fifth consecutive conference game with a goal. On Saturday, she added two shots in Wooster’s 1-0 win over John Carroll. Her 10 goals this season lead the league.

Men's Swimming & Diving - Ozzy Jankowski, Wabash
Wabash freshman Ozzy Jankowski (Evansville, IN/Mount Vernon Senior) broke a 15-year-old school record and established two freshman records while tallying three individual event victories in meets against Rose-Hulman, Lewis and Davenport over the weekend. On Friday, Jankowski won the 100 (49.97) and 200 (1:53.51) butterfly events, and swam the butterfly leg of Wabash's winning 200 medley relay (1:36.86) while contributing to the Little Giants' second-place 200 freestyle relay (1:28.33). On Saturday, Jankowski set the school’s 200 fly record and established a Wabash freshman record at 1:49.52 to break David Birrer's previous record of 1:50.93 set in 2011. Jankowski later won the 100 butterfly in a freshman-record time of 49.06.

Women's Swimming & Diving - Maya Goldstein, John Carroll
John Carroll first-year Maya Goldstein (Ann Arbor, MI/Skyline) helped secure a 167.5-126.6 win over Grove City, adding a pair of individual wins and one second-place finish. Goldstein led the way in both the 200 backstroke and 200 individual medley, posting winning times of 2:09.72 and 2:15.56, respectively. In the 100 back, the first-year touched second at 1:00.42. She shaved over three seconds off her season-opening 200 IM time and nearly 1.5 seconds off her previous-best 100 back time.

Volleyball - Kaitlin Colahan, Wittenberg
Wittenberg senior Kaitlin Colahan (Vermilion, OH/Vermilion) helped the Tigers tally two conference wins, sweeping John Carroll before battling back in a five-set win over Ohio Wesleyan to sit atop the NCAC standings. Against JCU, Colahan led all players with 14 points, tying for the lead with 12 kills while hitting .320 and adding three total blocks and four digs. In the five-set victory over OWU, the senior had a season- and game-high 22 kills, hitting .415. She chipped in three digs and two blocks to finish with 23.5 points, also a season high.

Milestones and Records (Oct. 19-25)

Denison, Field Hockey - Senior Emma Gebhart (Newbury, NH/Concord Carlisle) scored a career-high seven goals and added an assist, totaling 15 points in a 10-0 victory on Senior Day. She is now four goals away from both the program's season and career goals record.

Ohio Wesleyan, Football - Junior Jordan Ghant (Suwanee, GA/Peachtree Ridge) made the second-longest kick return in modern OWU football history – third-longest recorded – taking the opening kickoff against Oberlin back 97 yards for a touchdown. First-year Nadir Langston (Columbus, OH/Hamilton Township) made the third-longest pick six in OWU football history – second-longest this season – with a 98-yard interception return touchdown as the Battling Bishops earned their third straight win.

Wabash, Football - Junior Gage Gulley (Noblesville, IN/Noblesville) turned in a career-best performance Saturday against nationally-ranked WashU, recording a game-high 12 tackles and two interceptions while adding a forced fumble, all of which were career highs. Gulley finished with six solo tackles and six assists while accounting for all three of Wabash's defensive takeaways.

Wittenberg, Men’s Soccer - The Tigers defeated Ohio Wesleyan for the first time in 24 years, earning a 3-2 victory on Wednesday.