Van Edwards

Sophomore

Running back

Football

Edwards was the Zips’ offense in the first half on Saturday versus Ball State while Thomas Woodson knocked off the rust after missing three games. Edwards’ 45-yard touchdown run in the second quarter was the Zips only score of the first half. The rest of the offense caught up with him as the Zips blew past the Cardinals in the second half, and Edwards kept playing well. The sophomore finished with 112 yards on 16 carries, earning himself MAC Offensive Player of the Week.

Samara Yurchak

Freshman

Goalkeeper

Women’s Soccer

Yurchak continued to dazzle in her third career game last Thursday, picking up her first career win. The win was the Zips first win of the season against a conference opponent, and Yurchak had a lot to do with it. Yurchak made nine saves on the 11 shots that she faced against the Chippewas. With senior goalkeeper Annabelle Hegeman graduating after this season, expect to see Yurchak between the pipes a lot over the next few years.

Thomas Woodson

Junior

Quarterback

Football

The Zips survived three weeks without Woodson, going 2-1 against MAC opponents. But on Saturday, Woodson returned in a fury to slice up the Ball State defense for 338 yards and two touchdowns. Once again, Woodson didn’t turn the ball over, allowing the Zips to control the ball for over 20 minutes in the second half. The quarterback has completed nearly 67 percent of his passes this season for 1,585 yards, 15 touchdowns, and only four interceptions.

Brad Ruhaak

Senior

Defender

Men’s Soccer

The Zips lost their first home game of the season on Saturday against the West Virginia Mountaineers, 3-1. There weren’t a lot of positives, but the consistent play of senior captain Brad Ruhaak was one of them. Ruhaak scored the Zips’ only goal of the game with four minutes left, his fourth of the season. Ruhaak was second on the team in the game with four shots, and his solid defense has been a huge factor for the Zips this season.

Austin Wolf, Jojo Natson, Jerome Lane

Wide Receivers

Football

The dynamic duo of Natson and Lane from the first few weeks of the season has become a dynamic trio over the past few weeks. This was even more evident on Saturday as the three thrived with starting quarterback Thomas Woodson’s return. Each of them (Natson with seven catches, 109 yards; Lane with seven catches, 90 yards; and Wolf with six catches, 91 yards) caught a touchdown pass as the Zips’ offense got back to their high-flying ways. Expect to see a lot of these three as the Zips fight for the MAC Championship.