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Case Western Reserve University junior Rowan Matorin, a member of the men's tennis team, and sophomore Izzy Probst, a forward on the women's soccer team, have been named the Spartan Club Athletes of the Week for their performances this past week.

Matorin won the singles draw at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Fall Central Region Championship in Brownsburg, Indiana, over the weekend. Matorin, who entered the tournament as a ninth seed, went on to win all six of his singles matches, including five straight-set victories. He bested the second-, fifth-, seventh-, and ninth-seeded singles players in the draw, en route to the title, including a 6-2, 7-4 win over Denison's Aidan Borosko in the championship match. Matorin also teamed with junior Leon Chen as the third-seeded pairing in the doubles draw, going 2-1 and reaching the round of 16 of the draw. He became the third Spartan to win an ITA Regional Singles title, joining former Spartans James Hopper (2019 and 2021) and Ajay Mahenthiran (2023). Matorin improved to 7-3 in singles matches and 4-2 in doubles play this season with the wins.

Matorin will compete in the singles draw of the ITA Cup in Rome, Georgia, from October 15-18. More information on the event, including draws and seedings, will be posted to athletics.case.edu prior to the start of competition.

Probst scored both the Spartans' goals in a 2-1 win on the road over 10th-ranked Rochester on Saturday night. After a scoreless first half, Probst broke the deadlock in the 51st minute. Senior Kat Tsarouhas sent a long ball from the defensive third to the attacking area. Probst was the first to reach the pass, sprinting past a pair of defenders at the top of the box. She sent a left-footed shot past the goalkeeper for the score. With less than five minutes remaining in a 1-1 tie, Probst found the back of the net for a second time, receiving a through ball from first-year Sonora Hale and firing the shot low to the ground for the game-winning tally. Probst leads the Spartans with 17 points on seven goals and three assists this season. CWRU improved to 7-3-1 with the win and 1-0-0 in University Athletic Association play. 

The Spartans will face another challenging road match next week, facing top-ranked WashU in St. Louis on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. ET.

The Spartan Club Athletes of the Week are selected by the CWRU Department of Athletics each Monday, based on their performance during the previous week of competition.

Honorable Mentions

Senior defender Cormac Apostolides (men's soccer) played all 90 minutes on the back line in a scoreless shutout of Rochester on Saturday evening in Rochester, New York. Apostolides was one of four CWRU defenders who did not leave the field during the game, holding the Yellowjackets to just two shots on goal and eight overall attempts. The senior has played 90 minutes in four of the team's 10 games and at least 75 minutes in eight contests, helping the squad shut out seven of its last eight foes. CWRU moved to 8-0-2 with the draw and 0-0-1 in University Athletic Association play.

The Spartans will make the trip to St. Louis next Saturday for a matchup against WashU starting at 11 a.m. ET.

Junior setter Avery Basinger (volleyball) was the main director of the Spartan offense during the team's non-conference split on Saturday in Granville, Ohio. Basinger paced the squad with 56 assists across 10 sets (5.6 per set) while adding 11 digs, four kills, and two service aces. In a five-set victory over Ohio Wesleyan, she had 24 assists and four digs. Later in the day, Basinger assisted on a career-high 32 kills while adding seven digs and three kills of her own in a five-set loss to Denison. This season, she is averaging 5.08 assists (325 total) and 1.72 digs (110 total) per set. The Spartans moved to 9-8 with the non-conference split.

The Spartans will resume conference play with the second University Athletic Association Round Robin on Sunday, October 11. New York University will host the event in Manhattan, New York, with CWRU taking on Brandeis at 10 a.m. and 10th-ranked WashU at 12 p.m.

Sophomore punter Nick Delfau (football) helped the Spartans win the field position battle during the team's 36-29 come-from-behind win at Westminster College on Saturday. Delfau averaged 42.8 yards on his four punts in the game, including a season-long 47-yard punt early in the third quarter, and a 43-yard punt later in the frame that pinned the Titans at their own four-yard line. Three of his four punts were 43 yards or longer. Delfau has punted 10 times this season for an average of 40.0 yards (second among Presidents' Athletic Conference players), forcing three fair catches and planting one inside the opponents' 20-yard line. The Spartans improved to 3-1 overall with a 1-1 PAC record following the win over the Titans.

The Spartans will return home to host Saint Francis University on October 10 at 1 p.m. at DiSanto Field in Cleveland, as part of Homecoming Weekend at Case Western Reserve University.

Sophomore defensive end Dominic Ghilani (football) recovered a pair of fumbles and forced a third, helping the Spartans come from behind for a 36-29 win over Westminster College on Saturday afternoon. Ghilani finished the game with four tackles (all solo), including one sack, while also breaking up a pass. His first fumble recovery came at the 4:01 mark in the second quarter, leading to a CWRU touchdown that put the Spartans ahead 14-3 at the time. With the Spartans down seven with 8:11 left in the game, he recovered a second fumble at the Westminster 47-yard line that led to the game-tying score. He added a strip sack late in the first half and deflected a pass on the final drive of the game to help secure the win.

Senior quarterback Pierce Olsen (football) helped lead the Spartans to a 36-29 come-from-behind road win in the first start of his career at Westminster on Saturday afternoon. Olsen completed 23-of-36 passes for 232 yards and a touchdown with one interception, while also running for 11 yards and an additional score. He put the Spartans on the board with a six-yard touchdown run with 7:50 on the clock in the opening quarter and extended the CWRU lead to 14-3 with a nine-yard touchdown pass to Will Maisenbacher. 

Junior goalkeeper Ellie Palaian (women's soccer) posted a shutout and set a career high in saves during the Spartans' 2-0-0 week, including a victory in conference play. On Tuesday night, Palaian saved a pair of shots at home against Heidelberg in a 1-0 victory, earning her second shutout of the season. On Saturday night in a 2-1 road win over Rochester, she set a new career high with eight saves. This season, Palaian has a 1.23 goals against average and 34 saves in 10 starts for the Spartans. 

First-year outside hitter Maya Zarow (volleyball) led the Spartan offensive attack during a split of two five-set matches on Saturday in Granville, Ohio. Zarow totaled 37 kills across 10 sets (3.7 per set). In a five-set win over Ohio Wesleyan, she had 17 kills with a .368 attacking percentage, committing just three errors. Later in the day, Zarow had a career-high 20 kills and a .417 hitting percentage in a five-set loss to Denison. This season she is averaging 3.40 kills per set, leading CWRU with 214 kills. 

2026-27 Spartan Club Athletes of the Week

Sept. 8: Aaron Filips (football) & Izzy Probst (women's soccer)
Sept. 14: Micah Rossen (men's soccer) & Maya Zarow (volleyball)
Sept. 21: Andy Kavcic (football) & Reid Smith (women's cross country)
Sept. 28: Carter Shedd (men's soccer) & Gabby Lee (women's tennis)
Oct. 5: Rowan Matorin (men's tennis) & Izzy Probst (women's soccer)