Monday, September 8, 2014

PORTLAND, Ore. - Linden Firethorne had 49 kills and seven blocks to lead Central Washington to four victories, including three over nationally ranked teams last weekend in the Hampton Inn Wildcat Volleyball Invitational in Ellensburg.

That earned the CWU junior outside hitter GNAC Offensive Player of the Week honors for volleyball.

She was one of 10 players to earn the weekly Player of the Week honor. 

Following is a recap of the recipients for volleyball, men's and women's cross country, football and men's and women's soccer.

Volleyball

Offense – Linden Firethorne, Central Washington (OH, 5-11, Jr., Clinton, WA – South Whidbey) had 49 kills, seven blocks and hit for a .280 percentage leading the Wildcats to four wins, including three over nationally Top 20 ranked teams in the Hampton Inn Wildcat Volleyball Invitational.  Firethorne, who was selected the tournament MVP, had 17 kills, including eight in the final set, in a 3-1 win over eighth-ranked Cal State San Bernardino.  She also had 13 kills in a 3-1 defeat of No. 11 UC-San Diego and 12 kills and a .417 hitting percentage in a 3-0 sweep of Cal State Stanislaus.  CWU finished off the tournament defeating 16th ranked Sonoma State 3-0. 

Defense – Haley Wells, MSU Billings (L, 5-5, Fr., Albany, OR) had 70 digs leading the Yellowjackets, who posted a 7-20 record last season, to four wins, including a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Minot State.  In that match, Wells had 21 digs as MSUB overcame a 2-0 set deficit.  Wells also hade a team-high six service aces in the tournament.

Honorable Mention -  Katelynn Zanders, Alaska Anchorage (OH, 5-9, Jr., Anchorage, AK - South); Kyndal Williams, MSU Billings (S, 5-9, Jr., Helena, MT); Andrea Terpstra, Northwest Nazarene (MB, 6-4, Jr., Ripon, CA – Ripon Christian); Taylor Roberts, Northwest Nazarene (L, 5-5, Sr., Nampa, ID – Vallivue); Hope Mortensen, Saint Martin’s (MB, 5-10, Fr., Olympia, WA); Jessica Riddle, Saint Martin’s (OH, 5-10, So., Anacortes, WA); Sara Biondi, Seattle Pacific (S, 5-10, Sr., Sacramento, CA – Christian Brothers); Samantha Moore, Western Oregon (OH, 6-0, Sr., Newport, OR); Kayla Erickson, Western Washington (MB, 6-0, Sr., Gig Harbor, WA – Peninsula);  Samantha Hutchinson, Western Washington (L, 5-7, Sr., University Place, WA – Curtis);

Cross Country

Men – Robert Peterson, MSU Billings (Jr., Billings, MT – Skyview) was the lone runner to break 19 minutes in winning the Carroll College Early Bird Invitational Friday at Helena in a 6,000-meter time of 18:52.07.  MSUB finished first with 26 points, 25 ahead of the host Saints. 

Women – Beatrice Decker, Alaska Anchorage (Jr., Erfurt, Germany) won the University of Hawaii Big Wave Invitational in a 5,000-meter time of 19:18.4.  It was her second Top 2 finish of the young season.  She finished second in a meet at Hawaii Hilo on Aug. 30 in a 5K time of 19:16, leading the Seawolves to wins in both meets.

Football

Offense – Terrell Watson, Azusa Pacific (RB, 6-2, 240, Sr., Oxnard, CA) rushed for 202 yards and three touchdowns as the Cougars upset nationally second-ranked Grand Valley State 26-23 in double overtime in a CBS Sports Network national broadcast Thursday.   In the overtime session, Watson, who had a career-high 42 carries, took the ball on all 11 of APU’s snaps, including a crucial 11-yard gain on 3rd-and-9 down to the one-yard line to set up the winning score.

Defense – C.J. Broussard, Azusa Pacific (CB, 6-0, 190, So., Clovis, CA) and Travis Hansen, Humboldt State (LB, 235, Sr., San Anselmo, CA – Siskiyous/Nevada) ... Broussard had eight tackles, forced and recovered a fumble in the red zone and had an interception near midfield returning it 24 yards to set up a go-ahead TD late in the third quarter in the Cougars’ 26-23 win.   He also had three pass breakups.  ... Hansen had six tackles, including three for losses of eight yards as the Lumberjacks rallied from a 14-3 deficit early in the second quarter to beat Texas A&M – Kingsville 27-14 and end a 13-game losing streak dating back to late in the 2012 season. He also forced a fumble and intercepted a pass as HSU held the Lone Star Conference team to 256 yards in total offense, including 98 rushing.

Special Teams – Paul Revis, Western Oregon (WR, 165, Fr.,  Scappoose, OR) had 265 all-purpose yards, including 129 on six kick returns and 27 on three punt returns in a 45-38 loss to NCAA Division I Football Championship Series (FCS) Portland State.  He also caught eight passes for  109 yards, including touchdown catches of 26 and 48 yards.  The latter came with 46 seconds left pulling the Wolves to within seven points.

Honorable Mention – Ja’Quan Gardner, Humboldt State (RB, 5-7, 175, Fr., Ceres, CA – Central Valley); Ryan Bergman, Western Oregon (QB, 6-2, 170, Sr., Issaquah, WA); Shane Kuenzi, Western Oregon (LB, 6-0, 195, Jr., Salem, OR – West Salem); Matt Bruder, Humboldt State (K, 5-9, 185, Sr., Jamul, CA – Steel Canyon); Hayden Gavett, Dixie State (QB, 5-9, 185, So., Corona, CA – Centennial/Santa Ana).

Men’s Soccer

Offense - Ty Hastings, Western Washington (M, 6-0, Sr., Mill Creek, WA – Jackson HS) scored the winning goal against No. 9 UC San Diego. Hastings, who took two shots in the Vikings first game of the season, scored from 30 yards out in the sixth minute. In two games, Hastings had five shots with three shots on goal.

Defense -  Alfredo E. Ontiveros, Northwest Nazarene (GK, 6-2, Sr., La Puente, CA – Arroyo HS) recorded five saves in a 2-0 shutout against Cal State Stanislaus. This was Ontiveros’s 10th shutout of his career, setting a new school-record. 

Honorable Mention – Thorge Jess, MSU Billings (F, 6-2, So., Kiel, Germany), Jaime Verdin, Northwest Nazarene (M, 5-8, Jr., San Diego, CA – Southwest HS), Stephen Macdonald, Seattle Pacific (F, 6-2, So., Phoenix, AZ – O’Connor HS); Kurtis Pederson, Western Washington (D, 6-1, Jr., Puyallup, WA – Bellarmine Prep).

Women’s Soccer  

Offense - Alisa Sagdahl, MSU Billings (F, 5-8, Jr., Edmonds, WA – Meadowdale HS) scored the game winning goal against the University of Mary in a 2-1 win. Sagdahl also recorded an assist for the first goal.

Defense - Daniele Ortiz, Northwest Nazarene (GK, 5-8, Fr., Sunnyvale, CA – Homestead HS) recorded 13 saves in her first two games with the Crusaders. Ortiz blocked seven shots in her first career shutout in a 0-0 draw against Colorado Christian.

Honorable Mention – Jessica Bertucci, Western Washington (F, 5-8, Jr., Bellingham, WA), Isabel Farrell, Seattle Pacific (M, 5-5, Jr., Redmond, WA – Interlake HS), Makana Pundyke, Western Oregon (M, 5-5, Jr., Kula, HI – Kamehameha Maui HS); Katherine Miccile, Western Washington (D, 5-5, Sr., Kent, WA – Kentlake HS), Shayla Page, Seattle Pacific (D, 5-6, Jr., Redmond, WA – Eastlake HS).