Comets Topple Oklahoma City 4-3 in Shootout

March 7, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL) Utica Comets The Utica Comets overcame a strong Oklahoma City run during the third period and surged past the Barons with a 4-3 victory in a shootout Wednesday night at the Utica Memorial Auditorium. With the win, Utica pulled to within seven points of eighth place in the Western Conference, with 55 points and a 24-26-3-4 record.

Colin Stuart, Alex Friesen and Pascal Pelletier scored in regulation for the Comets, while Nicklas Jensen potted the game-winning goal in the shootout for the second time this season. Joacim Eriksson turned aside 32 of 35 for the victory, his 18th of the season. The Galve, Sweden native is now 10-5-2 over his past 17 starts. Pelletier also added another tally in the shootout for Utica.

The Comets got on the board first as Stuart redirected a slick feed from Jeremy Welsh past Richard Bachman with 4:08 left in the first period. The captain drove down the slot and into the crease where Welsh hit him with a perfectly timed pass for Stuart's 13th goal this season. With the helper, Welsh picked up his seventh point of the season and his first on home ice. Winger Patrick Kennedy also recorded an assist on the play, his second with the Comets.

Oklahoma City found the scoreboard for the first time at The AUD as Austin Fyten finished off a tic-tac-toe passing play for the goal. Anton Lander picked up his 27th assist on the season and his fourth in two games against Utica with the primary helper, which set up Fyten all alone in front. Tyler Pitlick also had an assist on the play, his 12th of the 2013-14 campaign.

The Comets would answer back late in the second as Friesen scored his first regular season goal with the Comets to put his team on top 2-1. The Utica center buried a Kellan Lain feed past Bachman, as he found himself in the goal column for the first time since Feb. 1, 2013, when he played for the Chicago Wolves. Defenseman Frank Corrado also picked up an assist for the Comets, his sixth of the season.

Utica added another goal just 2:41 into the third period, as Pelletier put his own rebound past Bachman to make it 3-1. Pelletier's power-play tally, his eleventh of the season, gave Utica its first two goal lead since the conclusion of the 3-0 win over the Milwaukee Admirals on Feb. 7. Nicklas Jensen and Cal O'Reilly picked up assists on the play, Jensen's first amidst 12 goals since Jan. 11 against San Antonio.

The multiple goal advantage was short lived, however, as Baron winger Steve Pinizzotto blasted a shot past Eriksson to cut the lead back to just one goal. Just five seconds after the Comets had killed off a Negrin minor for holding, the Barons struck with Pinizzotto's ninth of the season. Pitlick and Martin Gernat had the assists to get the Barons to within 3-2 with less than 12 minutes to play.

The Comets were unable to see out a regulation victory, as the Barons forced overtime with 4:10 on the clock. Jack Combs scored for the fifth time this season to knot the score at three and eventually force the extra session. Roman Horak picked up his 22nd assist of the season with the primary marker, while Mark Arcobello extended his scoring streak to ten games with the secondary helper.

After an overtime period that saw neither goaltender beaten, the Comets moved to 3-4 in shootout decisions this season with a 2-1 victory. After Combs and Pelletier traded goals in the first round, each team missed, before another highlight reel goal from Jensen put Utica in front 2-1. Eriksson would do the rest, as he turned aside four of the five shooters he faced to earn the Comets a critical two points.

Utica is back in action on Friday as they host the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for Irish Night at The AUD. Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. and the team will unveil its second set of specialty jerseys this season, which will be auctioned off after the conclusion of the game. The Comets take to the road the following evening, with a 7:00 p.m. tilt against Patrick Mullen and the Binghamton Senators.

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Comets Topple Oklahoma City 4-3 in Shootout

Comets continue uprise

ALEXANDRIA The Eastern boys basketball program entered Friday night having last won consecutive IHSAA sectional games in 1980. Jimmy Carter was the President at the time and Eastern beat Western and Haworth to reach the Kokomo Sectional final where the Comets dropped a 45-43 heart-breaker to the Wildkats.

Well, the Comets are still alive in 2014 despite that long streak of postseason futility and despite just a 3-17 regular-season record. The Comets used a late first-quarter barrage of 3-pointers to build a double-digit lead and it never looked back in a 62-53 win over Madison-Grant in a Class 2A Alexandria Sectional semifinal Friday night.

This is the first time this year we have won two games back to back, Eastern coach Mike Springer said. Were still hungry, too. Were going to come out [tonight] and get after it. Were trying to build up the program and we have kids that are working awfully hard and have a real positive attitude despite our record.

The Comets will face three-time defending sectional champ Tipton in the final.

Against Madison-Grant, Eastern (5-17) trailed only once at 2-0 after 6-foot-9 center Tanner Wise scored inside. Despite the huge size advantage that Wise had against the Comets, Eastern was able to contain him for much of the rest of the night.

He is a kid that does a great job around the basket and we really wanted to use our quickness on him, Springer said. We couldnt stand and push on him. We had to be moving all around him but the first line of defense was ball pressure and we did a great job of getting pressure and stopping them from getting looks into Wise.

A barrage of 3-pointers in the final two minutes of the first quarter proved to be a huge difference-maker for the Comets. Noah Cope connected from long range with 2:11 and 1:09 left in the quarter, while Jacob Kinder added one with 30 seconds left and Trey Thomas beat the buzzer with one of his own to give Eastern a 20-9 lead after one. The Comets hit 8 of their first 10 field-goal attempts.

We know you cant win a game in the first quarter, Springer said, but we put ourselves in a great position to win.

After opening the 11-point lead, Eastern was able to withstand and answer every run by the Argylls, keeping them at arms reach throughout. Eastern led 31-22 at the half and 46-37 after three, never letting Madison-Grant closer than six.

Kinder was a major answer to those brief runs by Madison-Grant, as the 6-2 sophomore posted a huge game of 20 points and 11 rebounds.

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Comets continue uprise

Gameday: Comets vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton

March 7, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL) Utica Comets WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON PENGUINS (30-20-3-4) @ UTICA COMETS (22-26-3-4)

Utica Memorial Auditorium, 7 pm

Radio: 94.9 K-Rock

Tonight's Game: The Utica Comets are in search of their third straight win as the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins are in town for Irish Night at The AUD. The Comets sit eight points out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference and the team looks to level their season series against the Penguins at one game apiece.

When They Last Met: The Comets lost a 1-0 decision to the Penguins back in early December at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza. Nick D'Agostino scored the lone goal for Wilkes-Barre Scranton, beating a screened Joe Cannata from the point. Eric Hartzell picked up the shutout with 22 saves, while Cannata turned away 17 of 18 in defeat.

Comets Outlook: The Comets defeated the Oklahoma City Barons 4-3 on Wednesday night at The AUD. Colin Stuart, Alex Friesen and Pascal Pelletier scored in regulation for the Comets, while Nicklas Jensen potted the game-winning goal in the shootout for the second time this season. Joacim Eriksson turned aside 32 of 35 for the victory, his 18th of the season. The Galve, Sweden native is now 10-5-2 over his past 17 starts. Pelletier also added another tally in the shootout for Utica.

Penguins Outlook: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton picked up a critical two points from the Albany Devils, in a 2-1 victory at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City on Saturday, Mar. 1. The Penguins got two goals in the game's final seven minutes to secure the win. Brandon Mikkelson knotted the score at the 13:33 mark of the third, before Tom Kostopoulos potted the game winner with just 3:52 remaining. Mike Sislo scored the lone goal for Albany. Peter Mannino was the victor, with 19 saves on 20 shots, while Keith Kinkaid took the loss for Albany after he stopped 12 of 14.

Special-T Challenge: The Utica Comets have recently thrived on both areas of special teams. Utica has successfully killed off 13 consecutive minor penalties and 39 of its past 43, good for a 90.6 conversion rate over its past nine games. The Comets have also scored on the power play in three straight games, in addition to six of its past eight.

The Eriksson Will Come Out Tomorrow: Goaltender Joacim Eriksson turned aside 32 of 35 shots on Wednesday, which improved his record to 10-4-2 over his past 16 starts. The Utica netminder has recorded a .925 save percentage over that time span. Eriksson is the AHL's third most worked goaltender this season, with over 2,221 minutes played.

Frie-sen Bird: Center Alex Friesen found the back of the net for the first time with the Comets against Oklahoma City. Friesen's goal was his first in the AHL since Feb. 1, 2013, when he played for the Chicago Wolves. Friesen previously scored twice during Utica's 4-2 preseason victory over Adirondack in September and now has three total points (1-2-3) during the 2013-14 season.

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Gameday: Comets vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton

Comets run past Bluejays

After a tight first quarter, Abington Heights put together a 20-0 run over the final 5:44 of the first half and rolled to a 70-42 win over Central Columbia in the first round of the PIAA Class AAA boys basketball playoffs at Lackawanna College March 7.

Abington Heights (27-1) will play Archbishop Carroll (24-4) in the second round on Tuesday at a time and date to be determined.

Central Columbia guard Kevin Krause hit a 3-pointer to pull the Bluejays to within 13-10 at the end of the first quarter. Two free throws by Payton Aucker, who led Central Columbia with 15 points, cut the lead to two with 6:02 left in the second quarter.

We gave up too many easy baskets on backdoor cuts, Abington Heights head coach Ken Bianchi said. We knew they were going to try to control the tempo of the game, so we wanted to pressure them into shooting, but not give them layups. I wasnt pleased with our defense at all, but I give a lot of credit to them. They were scrappy, they got a lot of loose balls.

Then, Abington Heights picked up its intensity on both ends of the floor.

Six-foot-10 center Evan Maxwell, who scored 20 points, scored nine during the Comets spurt.

We just played better defense, Bianchi said, that was the difference. Instead of giving up layups, we were getting deflections.

Bianchi has been pleased with the development of Maxwell, a Liberty recruit, as this season has progressed, but believes he still has room to improve.

This is his first year of starting, Bianchi said. He has to get more aggressive with the ball. We work on his inside moves every day. He looks to dunk, but he has an array of inside moves and doesnt use them enough.

The Comets got a boost from their bench after one starter, forward Tim Toro, picked up two early fouls and others struggled to find their game early on.

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Comets run past Bluejays

Eriksson's "Dawn of the Comets" Mask

March 7, 2014 - American Hockey League (AHL) Utica Comets For a professional goalie, the mask serves as a representation of who they are as an individual and a hockey player. Mask designs range from personal experiences to interesting artwork, uniquely designed by the goalie himself. For Comets goaltender Joacim Eriksson, getting a new mask this past week was the much-anticipated finished product after much hard work and planning.

Returning to Swedish artist David Gunnarsson, Eriksson's new mask is a huge step above his last one, in terms of both color and design. "This mask is more of my design," Eriksson explained. "Me and Nick Jensen designed it together. We have a big dragon on the top, with a warrior, and huge dragon wings on the side. On the back, I have the Comets logo with the Swedish flag, showing where I came from." Eriksson worked with the color scheme of blue and green, sticking true to the Canucks and Comets brand.

When asked if he was excited to use the mask in his upcoming games, Eriksson explained, "I always like when I get a new mask. It's always fun to see and design it." The Comets starting goaltender said that initially, he had no idea what he wanted, but after collaborating with Jensen and thinking of a cool concept, he was very happy with the finished product. This will serve as Eriksson's starting mask, while his old design will be his backup. Goalies typically receive a new mask every year, but because of the intense planning that goes along with mask artwork, Eriksson will have to begin designing his next one as soon as summer hits.

On David Gunnarsson's Instagram, he explained that it was a pleasure to work with Eriksson, and that he was pleased with how the design came out as a finished product. He went into detail describing the intricacies of the mask, staying, "The Vancouver green dragon is spitting fire in green and blue...this design is a continuation of Eriksson's dragon mark when he played in Leksand many years ago. The dragon slayer [on top] is trying to tame the dragon...if possible. Behind him the sky is fulled with green comets. Thanks Joacim, I am so proud to be your painter and evolve your mask art from mask to mask."

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Eriksson's "Dawn of the Comets" Mask

Comets cant pull out upset

VELMA When Velma-Alma senior Conner Sullivan hit a halfcourt shot at the halftime buzzer to trim Glencoes lead, the Panthers, who had gone 57-1 in the last 58 games had to be thinking oh no, here we go again.

That one loss was handed to them by the Comets in last years area tournament. This year, there would be no repeat, with Glencoe pulling away late to win 83-69 Thursday.

No. 14 Velma-Alma (21-7) put a scare in them anyway, hitting everything in the first half. Senior Jaz Gayanich went 4 of 5 from behind the arc and there wasnt too much going in for the No. 2 Panthers (27-0). They were relying heavily on their offensive rebounds to hold their lead and, with just a 56-50 lead at the end of the third quarter, the game was still up for grabs.

The collapse came quickly to open up the fourth quarter. With 7:28 left, Sullivan picked up his fourth foul. Less than a minute later, there was a scuffle in which a Glencoe player grabbed a rebound and elbowed sophomore Jake McGuire in the face. The Velma-Alma bench went livid, but there was no whistle.

Glencoe pushed the ball up the floor and, with 6:59 left, Alan Beck was called for his fourth foul when he looked like he had tied up a Glencoe attacker. It was a devastating blow, as Beck had been guarding Glencoes best player, Ty Lazenby, all game.

Alan has been our best defender all year, coach Kenny Bare said. That hurt Alan a little bit because he backed off some. When you get four fouls, you know if you foul out again, youre out.

It showed on the court with Lazenby following up a two-point performance in the third quarter with a 12-point fourth. He didnt miss a single shot in the final period after missing nine in the first three quarters.

He knows how to use his body and he had a big game for them, Bare said. He can weave his way through people and is really good at body contortion. We couldnt keep in front of him.

For the Velma-Alma senior class of Gayanich, Beck and Sullivan, it was the third consecutive state tournament appearance. Gayanich was the lone returning starter from last years team, which graduated eight seniors.

Not much was expected out of this years edition. Bare even admitted after the game that some of the players might not have thought this team was capable of achieving a state tournament berth. For Gayanich, being able to go toe to toe with one of Class As best teams in the state quarterfinal was special.

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Comets cant pull out upset

Massive Ring Of Carbon Monoxide Discovered In Turbulent Comet Field

March 7, 2014

Image Caption: This artist's concept illustrates the preferred model for explaining ALMA observations of Beta Pictoris. At the outer fringes of the system, the gravitational influence of a hypothetical giant planet (bottom left) captures comets into a dense, massive swarm (right) where frequent collisions occur. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/F. Reddy

[ Watch the Video: Colliding Comets Hint At Unseen Exoplanet ]

Brett Smith for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online

NASA scientists have found evidence of a highly-turbulent comet field circling a star 63 light years from Earth. This cosmic shooting gallery has produced a massive ring of carbon monoxide gas and dust that also encircles the star, according to a new report published in the journal Science.

According to the report authors, the comet field is probably the result of either two icy worlds the size of Mars crashing together or frozen debris trapped by a currently-undiscovered planet.

Although toxic to us, carbon monoxide is one of many gases found in comets and other icy bodies, said study author Aki Roberge, an astrophysicist at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. In the rough-and-tumble environment around a young star, these objects frequently collide and generate fragments that release dust, icy grains and stored gases.

Detected by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile, this cloud of dust envelops Beta Pictoris, a bright star thought to be about 20 million years old. The ALMA images show the huge belt is mostly gathered in a single clump located about 8 billion miles from the star, or virtually three times the gap between the planet Neptune and the sun. The overall quantity of carbon monoxide detected is greater than 200 million billion tons, similar to about one-sixth the mass of Earths oceans, the study team said.

Because ultraviolet starlight splits up carbon monoxide molecules in about a century, the researchers said the ringed cloud may not be what it first seems.

So unless we are observing Beta Pictoris at a very unusual time, then the carbon monoxide we observed must be continuously replenished, said study author Bill Dent, a researcher at the Joint ALMA Office in Santiago, Chile.

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Massive Ring Of Carbon Monoxide Discovered In Turbulent Comet Field

MISL Playoffs Begin with Classic Rivalry

March 7, 2014 - Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) Missouri Comets INDEPENDENCE, Missouri. (March 4, 2014) - For the Missouri Comets the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) Playoffs begin on Sunday at 3:10p.m. CT at the Independence Events Center. This is the fourth straight appearance for the Comets in the league's postseason tournament. Their opponent for the MISL Semi-Final series will once again be the Milwaukee Wave, who the Comets defeated last year to qualify for the MISL Championship.

Including playoffs, the Comets have played the Milwaukee Wave more than any other team in the MISL. The familiarity goes beyond regular season matchups, as these two squads have had to battle each other every year since 2011 for the right to advance past the first round of the playoffs. Falling at home in Game One of the 2013 Semi-Final series, the Comets came back to score game-winning goals in the final 40 seconds of Game Two and the series-deciding Mini-Game and advancing Missouri to their first MISL Championship Series.

The Wave finished the 2013-2014 regular season with a 16-4 record, all four losses coming to the Comets. Missouri finished 14-6 and held the season series between the two teams with a 4-2 record versus Milwaukee.

Forward Leo Gibson leads the MISL's highest scoring offense into the playoffs. The season's scoring and assists champion accumulated 25 assists and 76 points. The Comets have five players among the league's Top 25 scorers and averaged 16.45 points per game.

Milwaukee's success is also fueled by their high-powered offense. They scored an average of 16.20 points per game, led by forward Ian Bennett. However, the Comets defense and MISL Player of the Week, Danny Waltman, have kept the Wave under ten points four times. Twice they were held to only two goals.

Wave Head Coach, Keith Tozer, has more wins than nearly any other indoor soccer coach in history. He matches up against Vlatko Andonovski, who is in his first year as head coach of the Comets, but has many years of indoor soccer experience, both as a player and an assistant coach.

If history holds true, this MISL Semi-Finals between two teams who match up well and are very familiar with each other, will come down to the final minutes to decide a winner. Game One is at the Independence Events Center Sunday, March 9 at 3:10p.m. CT, with Game Two at Milwaukee's U.S. Cellular Arena on Monday, March 10 at 7:00p.m. CT. If the series is tied, a 15 minute 'Mini-Game' will be played immediately following Game Two.

For group tickets and information call 855.4KC.GOAL or email tictets@kcproscoccer.com.

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MISL Playoffs Begin with Classic Rivalry

Comets crush Blackhawks to start sectional play

ALEXANDRIA It may take a full four quarters to make a basketball game, but Eastern showed you can get the job done in just one during its Class 2A Sectional 39 opener with Sheridan Wednesday night.

Tied at 19-all two quarters in, the Comets busted out of the locker room on fire to start the second half, outscoring the Blackhawks 24-6 in the third frame to go up 43-25 and cruising to a 52-33 win.

Eastern (4-17) advances to face Madison-Grant (9-12), a 55-49 winner over Elwood in OT Wednesday, in Fridays second semifinal. Tipton and Taylor square off in the first semifinal. The Comets and Argylls didnt meet in the regular season.

Eastern blistered the nets at a 77 percent clip (10 of 13) in the third quarter on the way to the 18-point advantage heading into the final frame, including 3-of-3 from beyond the arc in the period.

Couldnt have asked for a better third quarter, Eastern coach Mike Springer said. We stressed at half time that we needed to win the third quarter and win it big. We called some plays for Noah [Cope] to get a three to start the half and he did. We hit some big shots and turned the tide our way.

Cope, who finished with 15 points to lead Eastern, connected from downtown just 12 seconds into the second half and when Sheridans Brock Kitchel answered with one at the other end, the Comet junior did it again, putting his squad up for good, 25-22, at 7:19.

Eastern strung together an 18-3 run to close out the period, its lead swelling to double digits, 34-24, on Blake Shraders trey at 3:24 and continuing to climb to the 18-point margin heading into the final eight minutes.

Comparatively, Sheridan (3-18) shot just 2 of 15 in the period and finished the second half shooting just 14 percent (3 of 21) from the field.

One team came out with desire. That team punched us in the mouth, and we just laid down and took it, Sheridan coach Cory Dunn said. They had some kids who shot better than they have every single time Ive watched them. You start giving guys confidence and then you cant do anything on the other end and turn the ball over, that just keeps building up that other teams momentum.

Things continued to collapse for Sheridan in the fourth quarter. The Blackhawks committed half of their 14 turnovers in the final eight minutes as the Comets lead grew to 23 points, 48-25, on Jacob Kinders hoop with 6:28 to play.

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Comets crush Blackhawks to start sectional play

1955 HITS ARCHIVE: Rock Around The Clock – Bill Haley & His Comets (a #1 record) – Video


1955 HITS ARCHIVE: Rock Around The Clock - Bill Haley His Comets (a #1 record)
(We #39;re Gonna) Rock Around The Clock (De Knight-Freedman) by Bill Haley And His Comets First recorded by Sonny Dae in March of 1954, the future "national anth...

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1955 HITS ARCHIVE: Rock Around The Clock - Bill Haley & His Comets (a #1 record) - Video

Comets' Danny Waltman Named Player of the Week

March 4, 2014 - Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) Missouri Comets INDEPENDENCE, Missouri (March 4, 2014) - The Major Indoor Soccer League announced on Tuesday that Missouri Comets goalkeeper Danny Waltman has been named the MISL Player of the Week for the final week of the 2013-14 regular season. Waltman only conceded two goals as the Comets took wins in St. Louis and Milwaukee to close out the regular season.

Waltman didn't concede a goal in the Comets' opening game of the weekend against the Ambush, as he was pulled early in the second half after making 15 saves with Missouri comfortably ahead of its in-state rivals. On Sunday he made 17 saves on 19 shots as the Comets claimed a 9-4 victory against the Wave. The performance reduced Waltman's points-against average to 10.29, his lowest regular-season total in his four seasons with Missouri.

Joining Waltman on the Team of the Week was his teammate Max Touloute, who had a five-goal game as the Comets took a 27-6 victory against St. Louis. A recent addition from the Pennsylvania Roar, Touloute finished his rookie season with 32 points in nine games.

Two players who recorded hat tricks were named to the Team of the Week's forward line. Milwaukee's Marcio Leite finished with an eight-point night as the Wave rallied past St. Louis, while Syracuse's Kenardo Forbes' hat trick helped the Silver Knights edge past Rochester. They were joined by Baltimore's Max Ferdinand, who had the opening two goals as Baltimore defeated Pennsylvania to claim the MISL regular season championship, and Rochester's Edgar Bartolomeu, who had a pair of 3-point goals in a losing cause as the Lancers fell against Syracuse.

The 2014 MISL Playoffs begin this weekend with the semifinals, as the No. 1-seed Baltimore Blast take on the No. 4-seed Syracuse Silver Knights and the No. 2-seed Milwaukee Wave face the No. 3-seed Missouri Comets. The Comets playoff action can be seen live on CometsIndoorSoccer.com/Live-Feed, with in-game updates available on Twitter (@CometsGameday) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/MajorIndoorSoccerLeague).

MISL Team of the Week

Pos. Player Team Highlights

GK Danny Waltman Missouri Recorded 32 saves on 34 shots over weekend.

D Edgar Bartolomeu Rochester Had pair of 3-pointers in losing effort for Lancers

M Max Touloute Missouri Had a five-goal game as the Comets defeated St. Louis

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Comets' Danny Waltman Named Player of the Week