WALTHAM, Mass. – Junior women’s track and field athlete
Aïana Colas of
Strasbourg, France, and senior men’s basketball forward
Toby Harris of
Durham, North Carolina, have been named the Brandeis University Athletes of the Week for the week ending January 26. The Brandeis Athlete of the Week program is presented by The Chateau Restaurant and Jake N Joes Bar and Grill.
Colas, a transfer student competing in her second meet for the Judges, won the high jump at the Wheaton College Lyon Invitational. Her height of 1.67 meters (5 feet, 5 ¾) inches tied the Brandeis indoor school record set by Suzanne Bernier '10 in 2010. She set the mark on her second attempt at the height. Colas improved her standing in the Division III national rankings to a tie for seventh place.
Brandeis returns to action this weekend with another meet at Wheaton, the Wheaton College Invitational.
Harris a senior forward, helped Brandeis to a 2-0 week on the road in the University Athletic Association, joining the 1,000-point club in the process. He averaged a team-best 19.5 points per game, along with 7 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game.
In a 101- 93 win at Case Western Reserve on Friday night, he scored a team-high 21 points, leading six Judges in double digits in scoring in their third 100-point game of the season. He also grabbed eight rebounds and had three assists.
In a 92-76 win at Carnegie Mellon, Harris had 18 points and six boards, helping the Judges to their first road sweep of Case and Carnegie since 2009. He also helped keep the UAA's leading scorer and the #2 scorer in Division III, Justin Allen, to 11 points, 15 below his season average.
With 21 seconds left in regulation against the Tartans, he hit a pair of free throws to become Brandeis's 36th career 1000-point scorer, reaching the plateau in just 68 games.
Overall this season, Harris leads the Judges in scoring at 18.7 points per game, good for fourth in the UAA. His 5.9 rebounds per game also top the team and rank 11
th in the league. Harris leads the league in 3-point percentage at .462 and ranks fourth in overall field goal percentage (.531) and fifth in free throw percentage (.836).
As a team, the Judges are 12-4, 3-2 in the UAA, in head coach
Jean Bain’s sixth season. Their two conference losses came to the teams ranked among the top five in Division III this season by D3hoops.com. Brandeis leads all of Division III in both overall field goal percentage (51.2%) and 3-point field goal percentage (43.1%). The Judges return to action on Friday, January 31
st, at #6-ranked Washington University with a trip to #22 Chicago to follow on Sunday, February 2
nd.
This is the ninth year that the Brandeis Athlete of the Week program has been presented by The Chateau Restaurant Group. The Athlete of the Year Program highlights a top Brandeis student-athlete who has had an outstanding athletic achievement from the week prior. Each selected student-athlete will be featured on the Brandeis athletics homepage and inside the Chateau Waltham and Jake N Joes
Owned and operated by the Nocera Family, the Chateau Restaurant of Waltham opened in 1933 and set the standard for providing the tradition of Italian family dining, friendly service and quality food at reasonable prices for its customers. Located on 195 School Street, with 900 seats, the Chateau is always ready to accommodate large parties.
The Nocera Family consists of 6 brothers who have always had a passion for playing sports. In 2010, The Nocera Family launched a new concept, Jake n JOES Sports Grille. Jake n JOES Waltham opened in 2014 and is the best place to watch a game and enjoy quality food.
"Brandeis student-athletes are fantastic role models in our community,” says Chateau President Joe Nocera, “They exemplify the ideals of excellence and commitment both on and off the playing field. The Chateau Waltham and Jake n JOES Waltham are proud to partner with Brandeis Athletics to continue to enhance a positive focus within the Waltham Community."
Colas is a 2022 graduate of Le Gymnase Jean Sturm. For more information on Brandeis track and field, visit their web page at
https://brandeisjudges.com/sports/wtrack.
Harris is a 2021 graduate of Durham Academy. For more information on Brandeis men’s basketball, visit their web page at
https://brandeisjudges.com/sports/mbball.
For more information on Brandeis athletics, visit our web page at
www.brandeisjudges.com or follow us on Instagram and Facebook @BrandeisJudges.
