Monday, February 8, 2016

PORTLAND, Ore. – Elisa Homer’s three-point record performance on Thursday leads a long list of GNAC Player of the Week selections.

Homer, a sophomore guard for Simon Fraser, was named the Women’s Basketball Player of the Week after she nailed a GNAC single-game record 12 three-pointers in the Clan’s 87-65 win on Thursday at Northwest Nazarene. She smashed the previous record of nine set by Seattle Pacific’s Kelsey Burns in 2009 and equaled by Alaska Anchorage’s Sasha King in 2013. The 12 treys bolstered a 40-point scoring performance for Homer, tying her for the fourth best single game scoring performance in GNAC history. Homer has helped lead Simon Fraser to a four-game win streak.

Alaska Anchorage’s Brian McGill earned the Men’s Basketball Player of the Week after turning in back-to-back 30-plus point performances in road wins over Western Washington and Simon Fraser. McGill scored 31 points to go along with two assists and three steals and set a UAA record by going a perfect 15 for 15 from the free throw line in the Seawolves’ 108-105 double overtime win at Western Washington on Thursday. He then scored a season-high 34 points on 11 of 15 from the field in UAA’s 86-66 win on Saturday at Simon Fraser. McGill went an impressive 26 for 26 from the charity stripe in the two contests.

The final two meets at Portland’s Nike House of Track yielded all four track athletes of the week. Western Washington’s Travis Milbrandt earned the men’s track award after he won the 60 meters at Friday’s TrackTown USA High Performance Meet #4 in 8.14 seconds. He ran a season-best 8.13 in his preliminary heat. Saint Martin’s Shannon Porter earned the women’s track award after she broke her school record in the 3,000 meters for the third time this season. She won the B section at Friday’s High Performance Meet in a time of 9:51.99, a provisional qualifier for the NCAA Championships.

Simon Fraser jumpers swept the field athlete of the week honors. Vladislav Tsygankov earned the men’s award for the second straight meet after he won the long jump at Thursday’s Portland Indoor Invitational with a leap of 23 feet, 5.5 inches. Ella Brown claimed the women’s honor after she won the triple jump on Thursday with a mark of 37 feet, 6.75 inches.

The Montana State Billings Desert Stinger tournament yielded the first softball players of the week for the year. Western Washington’s Emma Blauser earned Softball Player of the Week honors after she hit .583 (7 for 12) in the Vikings’ five games with six runs, two home runs and 3 RBI. She went 2 for 2 in Friday’s win over Augustana (S.D.) and had a homer that jump-started a rally from a 4-0 deficit as WWU beat No. 21 Regis on Sunday, 7-4.

Central Washington’s Kiana Wood was named Softball Pitcher of the Week after she earned two wins and a save as the Wildcats finished the Desert Stinger with a 4-1 record. She allowed three runs on six hits in the Wildcats’ 5-3 win on Friday over Regis and earned the win in relief on Saturday to beat Hawaii Hilo 4-2. Wood collected a save in Friday’s 7-3 win over No. 25 Cal State Monterey Bay. In 22 innings pitched, Wood allowed seven runs on 14 hits and amassed a 2.23 earned run average.

Western Oregon’s Nathan Etheridge earned the first Baseball Player of the Week award of 2016 after hitting .429 in the Wolves’ five games with six hits and five RBI. He went 3 for 4 in Saturday’s season finale at Azusa Pacific and had the game-winning RBI on a sacrifice fly in the Wolves’ 7-6 win at Cal State Dominguez Hills on Sunday.

Northwest Nazarene pitcher Colton Loomis earned Baseball Pitcher of the Week honors after he earned the win in relief in the Crusaders’ 8-4 season-opening win over Corban on Saturday. He allowed two hits and one walk and struck out two in 4 2/3 innings of work.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 23
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Brian McGill (Alaska Anchorage, G, 6-2, 185, Sr., Clackamas, Ore. – Western Oregon Univ.): McGill turned in back-to-back 30-plus point performances to lead the Seawolves to a pair of road wins. He scored 31 points to go along with two assists and three steals in Thursday’s 108-105 double-overtime win at Western Washington. McGill then scored a career-high 34 points on 11 of 15 from the field in UAA’s 86-66 win at Simon Fraser on Saturday. McGill went a perfect 26 of 26 from the free throw line in the two games, with his 15 of 15 on Thursday setting a UAA single game record. Also Nominated: Andy Avgi (Western Oregon), Kyle Impero (Western Washington), Trey Ingram (Saint Martin’s), Gary Jacobs (Central Washington), Drew Martin (Concordia), Marc Matthews (Montana State Billings), Gonzo Santana (Northwest Nazarene), Travante Williams (Alaska).

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Elisa Homer (Simon Fraser, G, 5-10, So., North Vancouver, B.C. - Handsworth): Homer opened her week by scoring 40 points and made a GNAC record 12 three-pointers to lead the Clan in an 87-65 win at Northwest Nazarene on Thursday. Her 12 threes smashed the record of nine set by Seattle Pacific’s Kelsey Burns in 2009 and equaled by Alaska Anchorage’s Sasha King in 2013. The 40 points ties Homer for the fourth best single game performance in conference history. She went on to score 11 in SFU’s Saturday win at Central Washington as she averaged 25.5 points in the two contests. Also Nominated: Danielle Hartzog (Concordia), Courtney Hollander (Seattle Pacific), Jaylee Mays (Alaska), Megan Mullings (Alaska Anchorage), Taylor Peacocke (Western Washington), Taylor Simmons (Northwest Nazarene), Megan Wiedeman (Saint Martin’s).

MEN’S TRACK
Travis Milbrandt (Western Washington, Sr., Longview, Wash. – Mark Morris): Milbrandt won the 60-meter hurdles at the TrackTown USA High Performance Meet #4, clocking a time of 8.14 in the finals. He ran a season-best 8.13 seconds in the preliminary heats, which ranks as the 13th best mark in Division II. Also Nominated: David Cornish (Western Oregon), Isaac Mitchell (Northwest Nazarene), Robert Peterson (Montana State Billings), Cameron Proceviat (Simon Fraser), Paris Seidel (Concordia), Latrelle Swayne (Saint Martin’s).

MEN’S FIELD
Vladislav Tsygankov (Simon Fraser, So., Moscow, Russia - 1521): Tsygankov earned the honor for the second straight week after winning the long jump at Thursday’s Portland Indoor Invitational with a leap of 23 feet, 5.5 inches. He went on to finish fourth in the 200 meters in Friday’s TrackTown USA High Performance Meet #4 with a time of 22.35 seconds. Also Nominated: Craig Boyle (Saint Martin’s), Kyle McLaughlin (Northwest Nazarene), Morgan Shipp (Concordia).

WOMEN’S TRACK
Shannon Porter (Saint Martin’s, Sr., Vancouver, Wash. – Treasure Valley CC): Porter set another school record in the 3,000 meters, winning the B section at the TrackTown USA High Performance Meet #4 in a time of 9:51.99. The performance is a NCAA Championships provisional qualifier and ranks her 18th in Division II. Porter is now provisionally qualified in both the 3,000 meters and 5,000 meters. Also Nominated: Della Lyle (Montana State Billings), Alana Mussatto (Simon Fraser), Caitlyn Safley (Concordia), Taylor Van Valey (Northwest Nazarene).

WOMEN’S FIELD
Ella Brown (Simon Fraser, Jr., Armstrong, B.C. – Pleasant Valley): Brown won the triple jump at Thursday’s Portland Indoor Invitational with a leap of 37 feet, 6.75 inches. The performance is the second best in the GNAC this season and just missed a NCAA Championships provisional qualifier. Also Nominated: Emmi Collier (Western Oregon), Christina MacDonald (Concordia), Kirby Neale (Saint Martin’s).

BASEBALL PLAYER
Nathan Etheridge (Western Oregon, 1B, 6-5, 225, Sr., Grants Pass, Ore. – Grants Pass): Etheridge opened the 2016 season by hitting .429 in five games with six hits five RBI. He went 3 for 4 in Saturday’s series finale at Azusa Pacific and had the game-winning RBI on a sacrifice fly in the Wolves’ 7-6 win at Cal State Dominguez Hills on Sunday. Also Nominated: Andrew Helmstadter (Northwest Nazarene).

BASEBALL PITCHER
Colton Loomis (Northwest Nazarene, RHP, 6-0, 160, Sr., Cashmere, Wash. – CC of Spokane): Loomis earned the win in 4 2/3 innings of relief in the Crusaders’ 8-4 win over Corban. He allowed two hits and one walk while striking out two.

SOFTBALL PLAYER
Emma Blauser (Western Washington, 3B, 5-6, Sr., Federal Way, Wash. – Todd Beamer): Blauser hit .583 (7 for 12) with six runs, two doubles, two home runs and 3 RBI as the Vikings went 3-2 at the Desert Stinger in Las Vegas. She went 2 for 2 in Friday’s win over Augustana (S.D.) and had the homer that started a rally from four runs down at the Vikings beat No. 21 Regis 7-4. Also Nominated: Kailyn Campbell (Central Washington), Lauren Diuco (Saint Martin’s), Cassidy Fifield (Northwest Nazarene), Kelsey Gardner (Western Oregon), Megan Luebbert (Concordia), Nicole Ratel (Simon Fraser), Bella Rovens (Montana State Billings).

SOFTBALL PITCHER
Kiana Wood (Central Washington, LHP, 5-6, Jr., Aloha, Ore. - Aloha): Wood went 2-0 in three starts and earned a save as the Wildcats opened the season with a 4-1 record. She allowed three runs on six hits in Central Washington’s season-opening 5-3 win on Friday over No. 21 Regis and earned a save later that day in a 7-3 win over No. 25 Cal State Monterey Bay. On Saturday, Wood earned the win in relief as the Wildcats beat Hawaii Hilo 4-2. In 22 innings, Wood allowed seven runs on 14 hits and amassed a 2.23 earned run average. Also Nominated: Megan Dettling (Montana State Billings), Kendall Goodwin (Northwest Nazarene), Kim Nelson (Saint Martin’s).