OXFORD, Ohio - After sweeping gold at its competition over the weekend, both the junior and collegiate synchronized skating teams are the Miami Female Athletes of the Week connected by Frontier Communications while freshman defenseman Matthew Caito helped the hockey team to a sweep of its own, earning him Miami Male Athlete of the Week connected by Frontier Communications for the week of Jan. 21-27.
Caito (Coto de
Caza, Calif.) played a big role in Miami's sweep of Bowling Green over the
weekend. He handed out three assists in the two games while posting a +2
rating. Caito played on Miami's top penalty kill unit as the RedHawks went
7-for-7 on the PK against the Falcons, while he also blocked six shots. He was
on the ice for four of Miami's five goals on the weekend. In Friday's 2-1 win,
he assisted on both Miami goals, both on the power play, including the
game-winner. It was his first career multi-assist contest and third career
multi-point game. Caito was named the game's No. 3 star on Friday. In
Saturday's 3-1 win, he assisted on Miami's first goal of the game, which put
the RedHawks up 1-0 early in the first period. Caito is now riding a
career-long three-game point streak and has six points in his last five games.
The Miami Male Athlete of the Week honor is the first of Caito's career while he was also named CCHA Gladiator® Defenseman of the Week on Monday, his second time capturing that award.
Winning by an 11.74 margin, Miami's collegiate team
captured its 10th-straight first-place finish at the Midwestern
Championships in Kalamazoo, Mich. on Saturday, dating back to the start of the
2010-11 season. It also was the third time in as many competitions the RedHawk
collegiate team has won by a double-figure margin. Although the RedHawks
took a one-year hiatus from the Midwestern Championships last year and also in
2008-09, Miami's collegiate team has now won this competition the last six times
it has competed at the event.
Bolstered by two clean skates, Miami's junior
synchronized skating team won the Midwestern Championships Friday and Saturday
with a combined score of 122.52. Competing in the Midwestern Championships
for the fourth time in Miami junior program history, the RedHawks seized their
second first-place finish at the event and the first since 2007-08. It is just
the second first-place finish by a junior team at any event in program
history. For their Hollywood-themed free skate, the RedHawks earned a
score of 82.18, which was their best free skate score of the season.
The collegiate synchronized skating team was also named Miami Female Athletes of the Week twice last year but this is the first time the squad has garnered the honor this year. The junior team claimed Miami Female Athletes of the Week for the first time this week.
Caito and the No. 3/4 RedHawks are back on the ice this weekend, hosting No. 20 Alaska on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 1-2 at Steve Cady Arena with puck drop Friday at 7:35 p.m. and Saturday's game at 7:05 p.m., which is also Skate with the 'Hawks Night. The collegiate synchronized skating team will perform during an intermission at Friday's hockey game while the junior team will perform during an intermission at Saturday's hockey game. Both teams' next competition is the U.S. National Championships Feb. 28-March 2 in Plymouth, Mich. while all three teams (senior team) will host a Nationals Send-Off Exhibition at Steve Cady Arena in Oxford at 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 23.
The next Miami Athletes of the Week connected by Frontier Communications will be announced Tuesday, Feb. 5. For a list of previous winners, click here.
For more information on high speed internet, Dish Network satellite television and digital home phone service call Frontier Communications at 888.540.7999 or log onto www.frontier.com. Frontier Communication is an Official Corporate Partner of the Miami RedHawks.
--MURedHawks.com--
