Thrope, Tibbetts Earn Weekly Honors
SWARTHMORE, Pa. -- Swarthmore seniors Yoi Tibbetts and Jason Thrope earned weekly honors from the Centennial Conference and the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) this week. Tibbetts was selected as the Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Week while Thrope was named Centennial Co-Defensive Player of the Week and ECAC Defensive Player of the Week for the Division III South Region.
Tibbetts (Sandwich, Mass. / Sandwich), a midfielder, scored two game-winning goals in a pair of victories for the Garnet this week. His first score of the week came in the 50th minute of a 4-1 victory at Washington on Oct. 1, while the second occurred mid-way through the second half of a 3-0 win at Gettysburg on Oct. 4, leading Swarthmore to just its second win over the Bullets in the last 16 meetings.
Thrope (Port Washington, NY / Schreiber) showed his versatility this week. He played right back in the 4-1 win at Washington, clearing a certain score off the goal line in the first half. Thrope then made an emergency start in goal against Gettysburg, his first career start in net, and posted two saves while registering a 3-0 shutout.
Thrope shared Centennial Defensive Player of the Week honors with Dickinson senior Mike O’Brien, and joins fellow Swarthmore goalkeeper Ryan Sutcliffe ’08 by receiving Centennial and E.C.A.C. honors during the same week. Sutcliffe turned the trick twice, collecting both honors on Sept. 10 and Oct. 15, 2007.
The Garnet stand at 8-2-1 overall (3-1 in the Centennial) with a No. 4 ranking in the Mid-Atlantic region, according to the latest National Soccer Coaches Association of America /adidas (NSCAA) poll.