SESP's Big Ten Players of the Week
Northwestern University School of Education and Social Policy alumnus Braydon Brus and undergraduate Ashley Sessa were named Big Ten Player of the Week in their respective sports.
Brus, a fifth-year linebacker and one of six SESP captains on the Wildcats football team, received Defensive Player of the Week honors after recording nine tackles, a sack, interception and pass breakup in Northwestern’s 34-13 victory over Penn State.
He's the first Northwestern player to earn Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors since SESP’s Aidan Hubbard (BS25) received it on October 10, 2023.
The Glendora, Calif., native is the second Wildcat to earn Big Ten weekly honors this season, after fourth-year quarterback and SESP undergraduate and captain Aidan Chiles was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week on September 21.
In field hockey, Northwestern Ashley Sessa was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season. The senior forward logged 10 points over the weekend, helping the No. 1 ‘Cats improve to 12-0 (3-0 Big Ten).
Collecting her eighth weekly accolade of her career, Sessa earned the honor after posting four goals and two assists in a pair of road victories. The senior notched a goal in Northwestern's 5-0 win at Ohio State and logged her fifth career hat trick in Sunday’s 6-1 victory over No. 15 Michigan.
Sessa has the second-most assists, points and game-winning goals in the conference through her 10 games of play. Her ten-point performance increases her ‘Cats’ career scoring tally to 159 points (2024-present), good for third place on Northwestern’s career scoring leaderboard.
The reigning back-to-back Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year also collected First Team All-Conference and NFHCA All-American honors in 2025. Last season, Sessa was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week three times as well as NFHCA National Offensive Player of the Week.
Sessa is a member of the senior U.S. Women’s National Team, the U.S. Women's National Indoor Team, and she competed for the U.S. Women’s National Team in 2024 Paris Olympics.