COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.— After helping lead the Colorado Mesa University Mavericks to a 3-1 start and a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference opening win over preseason conference favorites Westminster on Sunday, Dylan Checketts and James Steinke swept the RMAC Men's Lacrosse Player of the Week honors on Wednesday.
 
Checketts, a sophomore out of Herriman, Utah, was named as the Defensive Player of the Week while Steinke, a redshirt sophomore from Castle Rock, Colorado picked up the Offensive Player of the Week plaudit.

Wednesday's honors were the first the conference has bestowed in 2022 and are based on all games played to date.
 
Checketts has won 80 percent (64-80) of his face-offs and scooped up 36 ground balls in the Mavericks' first four games of the season.  He won 22 of 29 draws and claimed a season-high 14 ground balls in Sunday's conference opening win over Westminster and ranks fourth in the country for face-off winning percentage and 11th for ground balls per game (9.00).  He leads the RMAC in both of those categories after being selected as the RMAC Freshman of the Year in 2021.
 
Steinke recorded a career-high seven points (2 goals,  5 assists) and matched a CMU record for assists in a game to lead the Mavs to a RMAC-opening win over pre-season favorite Westminster on Sunday.  He also had a career-high seven ground balls in that win. 
 
The 2021 RMAC Midfielder of the Year has scored five goals in the Mavericks' first four games, netting at least one in every game,  and has claimed 13 ground balls, equal to the most of anyone in the RMAC besides the Mavs' top two face-off men.  He has scored in seven of the Mavs' last eight games dating back to last season and has 22 career goals in just 21 games.
 
The Mavericks continue their season on Saturday playing at Adams State University in Alamosa, Colorado.