Monday, September 17, 2012

PORTLAND, Ore. - Chip Jackson of Western Washington won the open division at the UW Sundodger cross country meet Saturday at Lincoln Park and is one of 11 athletes recognized as Red Lion Players of the Week for their performances during the period of Sept. 10-16, 2012:

Cross Country

Men – Chip Jackson, Western Washington (Jr., Shoreline, WA – Shorewood) won the UW Sundodger Open division in a time of 24:54.55 Saturday at Lincoln Park in Seattle to claim Red Lion Male Athlete of the Week honors.  Jackson joined Paul Keyes of Western Washington (2002), David Kiplagat of Alaska Anchorage (2006), John Riak of Saint Martin’s (2007) and Kyle Van Santen of Saint Martin’s (2010) as the only GNAC athletes to win the event. “Chip  ran a great race, a very smart race,” WWU coach Pee Wee Halsell said.  “He was 15th or 20th around the mile mark, far enough back that nobody was worried about him, but he gradually picked them all off.”

Women - Lindsey Butterworth, Simon Fraser (Jr., North Vancouver, BC) finished 12th in the women’s invitational division at UW in a time of 21:45.18 to post the best time by a GNAC athlete and grab the Red Lion Female Athlete of the Week award.  The only non-Division I (or unattached) runner to beat the Clan athlete was Maria Bernard of UBC who placed fifth in a time of 21:00.24.

Honorable Mention - AJ Baker, Seattle Pacific; Jesse Baggenstos, Northwest Nazarene; Katelyn Steen, Western Washington; Katie Morris, Seattle Pacific.

Football

Offense -   Nick Ricciardulli, Humboldt State (RB, 5-8, 190, Jr., Poway, CA) rushed for a career-high 204 yards on 33 carries, averaging 6.2 yards to lead the Lumberjacks to a 41-21 home win against Simon Fraser and earn the Red Lion Offensive Player of the Week award.  Ricciardulli scored a touchdown and broke a long run of 48 yards to set up another. He also caught two passes for 18 yards as the ‘Jacks improved to 3-0.

Defense - Cedrique Chaney, Central Washington (DB, 6-0, 188, Fr., Kelso, WA) saved four potential Western Oregon touchdowns in the Wildcats’ 21-14 overtime win at Monmouth to earn Red Lion Defensive Player-of-the-Week honors.  Chaney had a GNAC-record tying three interceptions, two in the end zone and another at the Wildcat 11-yard line.  He also forced a fumble deep in CWU territory in the fourth quarter which was returned 56 yards by defensive back Kevin Puckett to set up a 34-yard, five-play drive which culminated with a nine-yard touchdown run by Johri Fogerson to tie the game with 4:13 remaining in regulation.  Chaney, who also had five tackles, got his first interception in the end zone on a third-and-goal play from the 10-yard line, on Western Oregon’s first drive of the game.   In the second quarter,  on a first-and-10 play from the 13, he earned another end zone interception to set up a CWU kneel down to end the first half.   In the third quarter, he intercepted a pass on a first-and-10  from the 36-yard line to end another WOU drive. His fourth-quarter forced fumble came after Western Oregon had drove to CWU to set up a potential game-clinching score.

Special Teams -   Cache Morgan, Dixie State (KR/DB, 5-11, 190, Sr., West Jordan, UT – Utah State) is the Red Lion Special Teams Player of the Week.  Morgan had three kickoff returns for 135 yards, including the second 100-yard return of his career to equal his own GNAC record.  He also had a five-yard interception return and a total of six tackles from his defensive back position as the Red Storm beat Azusa Pacific 24-22 to improve to 2-0 in GNAC play.

Honorable Mention – Johri Fogerson, CWU; Kevin Cooper, HSU; Zack Fox, DSC; Matt Tanuvasa, DSC.

Volleyball

Offense - Sarah Johnson, Alaska Anchorage (OH, 6-1, Fr.,   Anchorage, AK - South) had 34 kills and hit for a .308 percentage to earn Red Lion Offensive Player of the Week honors as the Seawolves ran their win streak to six with 3-2 home wins over Central Washington and Northwest Nazarene.  She had double-doubles in both victories, including career-highs of 18 kills  and 17 digs in Saturday's win over NNU. She leads UAA with four double-doubles on the season.

Defense – Samantha Hutchinson, Western Washington (L, 5-8, So., University Place, WA – Curtis) had 35 digs as the Vikings held their opponents to a .098 hitting percentage in sweeps of Montana State Billings and Seattle Pacific.  Hutchinson, who was selected the Red Lion Defensive Player of the Week for the second week in a row, also had three aces as WWU had a 28-11 point advantage from the service line, including a 18-2 edge in aces.

Honorable Mention – Kayla Erickson, Western Washington; Keri Knight, Alaska Fairbanks; Katy Ferguson, Saint Martin’s.

Women’s Soccer

Offense – Heidi Greenback, MSU Billings (F, 5-7, Jr., Woodinville, WA) scored both of the Yellowjackets’ goals as MSUB handed Seattle Pacific its first-ever loss at Billings 2-1.   She also  turned in a solid performance in Saturday’s 2-0 shutout of Central Washington to earn Red Lion Offensive Player of the Week honors as MSUB improved to 6-0 on the season.

Defense -  Brian Sych, Western Washington (M, 5-6, Jr., Vancouver, WA – Union)  played excellent defense from her right back position as the Vikings allowed just one goal in road wins at Western Oregon (2-0) and Saint Martin’s (3-1).  Sych, who was selected the Red Lion Defensive Player of the Week, also contributed offensively, scoring the first goal against the Saints and then earning an assist on the game-winning goal against Saint Martin’s.

Honorable Mention - Kristin Maris, Western Washington; Abby McFaul, Saint Martin’s; Adrienne Biglow, MSU Billings.

Men's Soccer 

Offense –  Christopher Morris, Seattle Pacific (M, 6-0, Sr., Mercer Island, WA) is the Red Lion Offensive Player of the Week.  Morris contributed two goals and an assist as the Falcons equaled their best start (6-0) in school history with three victories, including 2-0 and 3-1 conference wins against Sioux Falls and the University of Mary.  He had the game-winning goal against USF, then scored the first goal and had an assist on the third goal against the Marauders.

Defense – Stephen Marshall, Northwest Nazarene (D, 5-10, 5-10, Sr., Palm Springs, CA – Cal Poly SLO) keyed the Crusader defense as NNU earned four road points by playing Western Washington to a scoreless tie, then beating 12th ranked Simon Fraser 2-1 snapping the Clan’s GNAC-record tying 24-game unbeaten streak. That performance earned Marshall Red Lion Defensive Player of the Week accolades.   "Marshall showed this weekend why he is one of the best defenders in our region,” NNU coach Coe Michaelson said.  “His leadership and ability to read the game are second to none."

Honorable Mention – Sujinda Dangvan, Western Washington; Dylan Gaydosh, Saint Martin’s; Jaime Torres, Northwest Nazarene; Keegan Rogers, Western Washington; Richard Evoy, Seattle Pacific.