SUNY Canton's LaFave and Valentin Sunrise Conference Players of the Week

(Canton, N.Y.)- Senior forward Shannon LaFave (Ogdensburg, N.Y.) and senior guard Tony Valentin (Perth Amboy, N.J.) have been honored as the Sunrise Conference Players of the Week in women’s and men’s basketball respectively after reaching career milestones on Jan. 16.

Both players scored their 1,000th point on the same day against Fisher College. LaFave needed 16 points to reach the mark and did so scoring eight points in each half against the Falcons. Valentin, who was 21 points away followed suit in the next game by scoring 14 second-half points to finish with 22. LaFave scored her final basket on an assist from Abbey Shoen (Waddington, N.Y.) and Valentin sank a pair of free throws to complete his scoring.

Shannon LaFave

Lafave has led the Roos in total points the past three years and is doing so again this season with 161. The reigning Sunrise Conference Player of the Year is shooting 41 percent from the floor, 72 percent from the free throw line and is tied for the team lead in rebounding at 7.1. She is third in the conference in scoring (14.6), third in field goal percentage, fourth in free throw shooting and sixth in rebounding. SUNY Canton head coach Bruce Tallon says LaFave is the ultimate team player.

“Shannon just goes out each game and gets the job done,” said Tallon. “She is a terrific team player and she really appreciates her teammates. Hopefully that spills over to the younger players on the team and they strive to reach that goal and to have such a tremendous career that Shannon has had.”

Tony Valentin

Valentin has also been the leading scorer for the men’s team the past three years and earned all-conference honors during his first season with the Roos. This year he leads the team in scoring (16.9), field goal percentage (42.1), free throw shooting (72.9) and minutes played (34.9). He’s also averaging 5.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists and is fifth in the conference in scoring, fourth in free throw shooting and ninth in field goal percentage. SUNY Canton head coach Keith Sullivan says it’s quite an accomplishment for Valentin in a short amount of time.

“This is a huge accomplishment for any college player and it’s very special that Tony did it in just over 2 ½ years,” said Sullivan. “His offensive explosiveness has been a real asset to this program and the entire team and staff are very proud of him. Tony will definitely go down as one of the all-time leading scorers at SUNY Canton.”