Yankee Ford LEC Men’s Lacrosse Athletes of the Week: April 27, 2026

4/27/2026 3:42:54 PM

Offensive Player of the Week

Michael Zapatka (Newington, Conn.) - Graduate Student - Western Connecticut
Zapatka netted back-to-back hat tricks in LEC action for the first time this season, helping the Wolves win the LEC regular season title and secure the No. 1 Seed for next week’s championship tournament. He scored three goals as WestConn rallied from a 5-1 deficit to defeat UMass Boston on the road, 9-6, and clinch the No. 1 Seed. He then had a career-high five goals in the regular season finale, a 12-5 win at Plymouth State.

Defensive Player of the Week

Charlie Guidera (Redding, Conn.) - Senior - Western Connecticut
Guidera totaled 14 ground balls and three caused turnovers over a pair of league wins for the LEC regular season champion Wolves. He  picked up five ground balls and caused one turnovers in a 9-6 win at UMass Boston before scooping up a career-high nine ground balls with two caused turnovers in a 12-5 win over Plymouth State. 

Goalkeeper of the Week

Jake Kelly (Bethpage, N.Y.) - Sophomore - Western Connecticut
Kelly was 2-0 with a 5.57 goals against average and .718 save percentage for WestConn last week. He totaled 19 saves in the victory over the Beacons and had nine stops over 58:34 of the triumph over the Panthers. 

Rookie of the Week

Nicholas Hall (Hilton Head Island, S.C.) - Freshman - Massachusetts Maritime
Hall picked up two wins between the pipes for the Buccaneers in conference this week, making 16 saves and allowing eight goals. He made 13 saves in a 19-8 win over Eastern Connecticut that clinched the No. 2 Seed in the LEC tournament for the Bucs, and he made three saves over while allowing no goals during his time between the pipes in the Bucs’ 20-5 win over Southern Maine on Friday.