After four-point weekends that helped the Niagara men's hockey team to a sweep of Mercyhurst, Niagara juniors Ben Sokay and Noah Delmas have each earned a weekly award from Atlantic Hockey, as announced on Tuesday. Sokay was named as the AHA's Player of the Week, while Delmas was named the Defensive Player of the Week.
 
In a breakout weekend for the forward, Sokay registered four points (2 G, 2 A) against the Lakers. On Friday, Sokay earned an assist on Kris Spriggs' first period goal, then scored the team's next two goals himself, including the eventual game-winner midway through the third period. The next night, Sokay had a hand in Johnny Curran's second period goal that ignited a three-goal run for the Purple Eagles that helped them reclaim the lead for good.
 
Friday's outing was the first time in Sokay's career that he scored more than once and was also the first time he posted more than one point in a single game. The weekend marked the second occurrence of Sokay earning points in consecutive contests, something he hadn't done since notching assists in three straight games from December 1-8, 2017. This marks Sokay's first conference award.
 
For the seventh time this season, Delmas put up multiple points from the blue line. Delmas opened the scoring for the Purple Eagles in Friday night's 7-3 victory, then provided three points (1 G, 2 A) in the team's come-from-behind 5-4 win on Saturday.
 
The Mercyhurst series was the fifth series of the season in which Delmas recorded at least two points, and the fourth in which he recorded at least four. Delmas was previously named the Atlantic Hockey Defensive Player of the Week on November 20, and also earned Player of the Month honors for his 11-point (4 G, 7 A) performance in November.
 
Sokay and Delmas have earned the team's fifth and sixth weekly AHA awards for the 2018-19 season. Dylan Mills' opening weekend play earned him Rookie of the Week on October 16. Brian Wilson was named Goalie of the Week on October 30 following a 5-0 shutout win at Air Force. Along with Delmas, Ludwig Stenlund earned honors on November 20 as the league's Rookie of the Week.
 
Delmas – along with Eric Cooley and Justin Kendall – has also been nominated for the Hobey Baker Award. Fans can support Niagara's entrants by voting here.
 
The Purple Eagles (10-12-3, 9-7-3 AHA) are not in action this upcoming weekend as they prepare for their last road trip of the season to Springfield, Mass. on February 1-2. The series at AIC will have puck drops at 2:05 PM and 1:05 PM, respectively. After visiting the Yellow Jackets, Niagara will play at Dwyer Arena in six of its final seven games.
 
 
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