BOSTON – After playing all 90 minutes in Saturday night's 0-0 draw, graduate student Shunnosuke Nakajima (Yokohama, Japan) of the UMass Lowell men's soccer team has been named the America East Defensive Player of the Week, as announced by the conference on Monday morning.

In Saturday's scoreless draw against the reigning national champion #2 Vermont, Nakajima left his mark on both ends of the field, highlighted by playing a key role on a defense that held the Catamounts scoreless at home for the first time since 2022. Meanwhile, on the offensive end, he also finished with a game-high three shots on goal. This marks the first weekly award of the year for the graduate student.

Nakajima and the River Hawks are back in action this Saturday, October 18, when they visit the NJIT Highlanders. The match is set to kickoff at 3 p.m. at Lubetkin Field at Mal Simon Stadium in Newark, New Jersey.