The Spartan Club, comprised of Case Institute of Technology (CIT), Western Reserve University (WRU) and Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) alumni, parents of current students, faculty and staff, and friends of the University, is aimed at helping foster and honor the proud tradition of athletics at the University, while also supporting the current student-athletes. For more information on the Spartan Club, and to help support its purpose by becoming a member, CLICK HERE.
Case Western Reserve University senior Matthew Plunkett, a member of the men's tennis team, and senior Arianna Holbrook, a runner on the women's track and field team, have been named the Spartan Club Athletes of the Week for their performances this past week.
Plunkett won both of his matches at no. 2 singles last weekend to help guide the fifth-ranked Spartans to the NCAA Division III Quarterfinals. Plunkett put together a dominant weekend of play, winning each match in straight sets, and was the first Spartan to claim a singles point in each contest. He bested Ohio Northern's Tyler Wood 6-1, 6-1 in CWRU's 4-1 win in the second round on Saturday, and secured another 6-1, 6-1 win on Sunday, this time against Trevor Rein in a 4-0 Spartans' victory over 15th-ranked Mary Washington in the third round. Plunkett, ranked 29th in Division III, improved to 18-12 in singles matches this season. The Spartans improved to 28-8 overall and will make their sixth consecutive appearance in the NCAA Division III Quarterfinals.
The Spartans continue their NCAA Division III Championship run in the quarterfinals against fourth-ranked Denison in a rematch of last year's NCAA Division III Championship match. The match will be held at the Champions Club in Chattanooga, Tennessee, on Tuesday, May 19.
Holbrook set a school record at the Harrison Dillard Twilight on Friday afternoon on the campus of Baldwin Wallace University in Berea, Ohio. Holbrook ran a program-best time in the 800-meter run, finishing the race in 2:14.45, to eclipse the previous record of 2:14.64 set by Melissa Phung-Rojas in 2023. Her time ranks 77th in Division III and fifth in the Great Lakes Region, putting her in position to receive All-Region honors. Holbrook placed fourth in the event and third among Division III runners.
Members of the track and field teams will have one final chance to record qualifying marks for the 2026 NCAA Division III Men's and Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships with the Mount Union Last Chance Meet in Alliance, Ohio, on Thursday, May 14. Entering the weekend, two Spartans are in position in three events to reach the postseason.
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
First-year pitcher Josephine Alspaw (softball) earned a win in her only start to help the Spartans sweep a three-game series from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh on Friday and Saturday. Alspaw toed the rubber in the second game of the series, a 7-1 Spartan victory, allowing just one run in five innings. She conceded only two hits and struck out a pair of batters, letting hitters bat just .125 in the contest. This season, Alspaw is 9-3 with a 3.22 earned run average, striking out 70 batters in 69 and two-third innings while allowing opponents to hit just .241. CWRU finished the regular season with a record of 27-12 and placed third in the UAA with a 12-6 mark in conference contests.
The CWRU softball team will await the announcement of the NCAA Tournament field on Monday, May 11 during a selection show on ncaa.com at 11 a.m. ET.
First-year catcher Sophia Becker (softball) helped lead the Spartan offense to a three-game sweep of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh on Friday and Saturday. Becker went four-for-eight at the plate with all four of her hits going for extra bases. She had three doubles and a home run, driving in three runs and scoring three times in the series. Becker also walked twice and stole a base, finishing the weekend with a .500/.636/1.250 slash line and 1.886 on-base plus slugging. Her best game was the first game of the set, when the first-year backstop hit a pair of doubles and a home run, scoring three times and driving in two runs in an 8-4 win. She reached base twice in the second game, a 7-1 victory, and drove in the go-ahead run with a double in a 5-4 come-from-behind win in the series finale. This season, Becker is batting .281 in 37 games, driving in 22 runs and scoring 23 times with four home runs and eight doubles.
Sophomore runner Donovan Crowley (men's track and field) ran a top-50 national time at the Harrison Dillard Twilight on Saturday in Berea, Ohio. Crowley finished the 1,500-meter run in a season-best time of 3:51.42, the 43rd-fastest time in Division III this season and the third-quickest time in the Great Lakes Region. He placed fifth in the event and second among Division III runners competing in Berea.
Senior Ellior Rose (women's tennis) won all three of her matches for the 15th-ranked Spartans in the first and second rounds of the 2026 NCAA Division III Women's Tennis Championship in Baltimore on Saturday and Sunday. In the team's 4-0 win over Albright the opening round, Rose and Katie Wong won 6-0 at second doubles. In singles play, Rose did not drop a point in the fifth position, defeating Alaina Smith, 6-0, 6-0 to put the team ahead 2-0. The following day in a 4-1 loss to 10th-ranked Carnegie Mellon, Rose and Wong won 6-2 at second doubles to help the team claim the doubles point and a 1-0 lead in the match. Rose did not finish her singles contest, but led 7-6 (7-3), 3-5 when the match was decided.
The Spartans ended the season with a record of 13-7 in dual matches. Two members of the CWRU women's tennis team were selected to the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships, which will be held from May 22-25 in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
2025-26 Spartan Club Athletes of the Week:
Sept. 2: Jacob Slater (men's cross country) & Jamie Goldfarb (women's soccer)
Sept. 8: Mitchell Fein (men's soccer) & Maggie Farra (women's soccer)
Sept. 15: Bradley Winter (men's soccer) & Ceci Dapino (women's soccer)
Sept. 22: Daniel King (football) & Halina Tompkins (women's cross country)
Sept. 29: Sam DeTillio (football) & Kalli Wall (volleyball)
Oct. 6: Osi Chukwuocha (football) & Ceci Dapino (women's soccer)
Oct. 13: Kalli Wall (volleyball) & Claire Kozma (women's swimming and diving)
Oct. 20: Jacob Slater (men's cross country) & Halina Tompkins (women's cross country)
Oct. 27: Bradley Winter (men's soccer) & Ellie Palaian (women's soccer)
Nov. 3: Art Martinez (wrestling) & Sohalya Rawlins (women's swimming and diving)
Nov. 10: Thomas Wagner (wrestling) & Emily Plachta (women's basketball)
Nov. 18: Jacob Slater (men's cross country) & Kalli Wall (volleyball)
Nov. 24: John Drumm (men's swimming and diving) & Claire Kozma (women's swimming and diving)
Dec. 1: Andrew Fox (men's basketball) & Maura Schorr (women's basketball)
Dec. 8: Antonio Sidoti (men's track and field) & Gianna Phipps (women's track and field)
Jan. 5: Anand Dharmarajan (men's basketball) & Mya Hartjes (women's basketball)
Jan. 12: Thomas Wagner (wrestling) & Mya Hartjes (women's basketball)
Jan. 20: Hunter Keane (wrestling) & Grace Misiunas (women's track and field)
Jan. 26: William Froass (men's swimming and diving) & Michelle Lee (women's track and field)
Feb. 2: Ethan Edwards (men's basketball) & Lillian Paley (women's swimming and diving)
Feb. 9: Alexander Goldman (wrestling) & Maura Schorr (women's basketball)
Feb. 16: Art Martinez (wrestling) & Gianna Phipps (women's track and field)
Feb. 23: Ethan Edwards (men's basketball) & Claire Kozma (women's swimming and diving)
March 2: Mathew Gummere (wrestling) & Gianna Phipps (women's track and field)
March 16: Art Martinez (wrestling) & Kate Coonan (softball)
March 23: John Drumm (men's swimming and diving) & Claire Kozma (women's swimming and diving)
March 30: Garrett Myers (men's track and field) & Katalina Wang (women's tennis)
April 6: Santiago Salazar Garza (men's tennis) & Gianna Phipps (women's track and field)
April 13: Anthony DeCarlo (men's track and field) & Josephine Alspaw (softball)
April 20: Ayush Shetty (baseball) & Elizabeth Berry (softball)
April 27: Donovan Crowley (men's track and field) & Gianna Phipps (women's track and field)
May 4: Sophia Becker (softball) & Sean Donahue (baseball)
May 11: Matthew Plunkett (men's tennis) & Arianna Holbrook (women's track and field)
