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Case Western Reserve University senior Aidan Nathan, a member of the men's cross country team, and junior Amanda Ngo, a middle blocker on the volleyball team, have been named the Spartan Club Athletes of the Week for their performances this past week.

Nathan opened his 2024 campaign by leading the Spartans to a team win and claiming an individual first-place finish at the Bill Sudeck Invitational in Hunting Valley, Ohio at the University Farm. Nathan was the top finisher among 31 competitors in the race, completing the 6K course in a time of 19:08.17. He bested the second-place finisher by nearly 25 seconds and his time was an 11-second improvement from his mark in 2022, the last time CWRU hosted the event. With Nathan's performance, the Spartans bested John Carroll by a final score of 22-39.

CWRU will be back in action this weekend, traveling to the Grizzly Invitational in Shelbyville, Indiana, on Saturday, September 7 for the squad's first 6K race of the season. 

Ngo led the Spartans offensively during the team's 4-0 opening weekend at the Cedar Point Sports Center in Sandusky, Ohio, pacing the team in points per set, kills per set, blocks per set, and hitting percentage. Ngo ended the weekend with averages of 3.71 points, 3.17 kills, and 1.00 blocks per set. She also recorded a hitting percentage of .359 during the four-match stretch. Her best match was the team's fourth this season, when she put down 17 kills with a .333 hitting percentage and totaled six blocks in a four-set win over LeTourneau. Additionally, Ngo had eight-kill matches against Ohio Northern and Greenville. For her career, she has averaged 2.04 kills and 0.81 blocks per set. 

The Spartans, who began the season with a 4-0 record for the second consecutive season, will next welcome the University of Mount Union to Horsburgh Gymnasium on Wednesday, September 4 at 7 p.m. for a key early-season regional match to start a five-match homestand.

Honorable Mentions:

Junior midfielder/forward Ceci Dapino (women's soccer) led the relentless attack of the 16th-ranked Spartans during the team's 5-0 win over Kenyon on Friday at DiSanto Field in Cleveland. She scored the fourth tally of the contest in the 21st minute, secured her own rebound after a saved shot from close range and sent the ball into the upper right corner of the goal. It was her seventh career goal and first of the season. Dapino also led the team with seven total shots and matched a team-high with three shots on goal. CWRU improved to 1-0-0 on the season with the season-opening victory.

Case Western Reserve will be on the road for its next four contests, starting with a trip to Washington to face the University of Puget Sound on Friday, September 6 at 8 p.m. ET.

Senior forward Kysen Kroeger (men's soccer) recorded the first multi-goal game of his career to lead the 22nd-ranked Spartans to a 4-0 win over the College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio, on Sunday. Kroeger started the scoring for CWRU in the sixth minute, netting his first tally of the season to give the visitors a 1-0 advantage. It ended up becoming the third game-winning goal of his career. Late in the contest, Kroeger put his team up by four, scoring his second goal of the contest in the 86th minute. This season, the senior has a team-leading two goals, increasing his career total to eight. Case Western Reserve improved to 1-1-0 with the road victory. 

The Spartans will next head to Williamsport, Pennsylvania, for a matchup against Lycoming University on Saturday, September 7 at 4 p.m.

Junior Ashley Novak (women's cross country) opened the 2024 season with a first-place finish out of 25 runners at the Bill Sudeck Invitational on Friday afternoon at the University Farm in Hunting Valley, Ohio. Novak crossed the finish line of the 4K race in a time of 15:12.49, just over 12 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher. It was the second straight time she had won the Sudeck Invitational after she claimed the win as a first-year runner in 2022. Despite Novak's performance, the Spartans suffered a 24-36 loss to John Carroll. 

Senior setter Carly Scott (volleyball) directed the Spartan offense during the team's 4-0 opening weekend at the Cedar Point Sports Center. Scott averaged 7.87 assists and 3.20 digs per set across 15 games for CWRU. She started the season with a career-high 45 assists in a five-set victory over Ohio Northern adding 12 digs defensively. After contributing 19 assists and 22 assists in wins over Chatham and Greenville, Scott finished the weekend with a 32-assist, 20-dig performance in a four-set victory over LeTourneau. It was her first career 20-20 match.

Graduate student goalkeeper Maggie Storti (women's soccer) recorded her 50th career win during the 16th-ranked Spartans 5-0 victory over Kenyon on Friday night. She recorded two saves in 90 minutes as the Spartan defense allowed just three total shots in the contest. For her career, Storti has 27th shutouts and a record of 50-5-7 with both her win total and shutout total standing as program records. 

Junior goalkeeper Bradley Winter (men's soccer) registered his ninth career shutout and first of the season in the 22nd-ranked Spartans' 4-0 road victory over the College of Wooster on Sunday. Winter, who faced nine shots in the contest, recorded two saves to keep the Fighting Scots off the board for 90 minutes. Earlier in the week, Winter saved a pair of shots in a 1-0 home loss to Otterbein on Friday. This season, he has a goals against average of 0.50 in 180 minutes.

2024-25 Spartan Club Athletes of the Week:
Sept. 3: Aidan Nathan (men's cross country) & Amanda Ngo (volleyball)