Monday, October 1, 2018

PORTLAND, Ore. – For the second straight week, Western Washington succeeded in a sweep of the women’s soccer weekly honors to lead the honorees for GNAC Player of the Week.

And for the second straight week, freshman forward Dayana Diaz finds herself as the conference’s selection for Women’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Week. Diaz earned the award after she scored the 58th hat trick in conference history, scoring three goals in the Vikings’ 4-0 win at Saint Martin’s on Thursday. The performance ended a run of scoring in three consecutive matches as Diaz now has five goals this season.

Junior midfielder Jordyn Bartelson was named the Defensive Player of the Week after anchoring a WWU defense that did not allow a shot in goal in the two matches. Bartelson also had an assist in each match, including an assist on Diaz’s game-winner on Thursday.

The Vikings also earned a sweep of the golf weekly awards. Senior Cody Roth was named the Men’s Golf Player of the Week after he placed fourth at the Western Washington Invitational. He led the Vikings to the team title with a score of 4-under-par 212, which included a pair of under-par rounds.

Junior Lacy Sheldon earned Women’s Golf Player of the Week honors after she tied for third place at the Western New Mexico Fall Intercollegiate last Monday and Tuesday. Sheldon carded a two-round score of 1-under-par 143 and led Western Washington to a third-place team finish.

On the gridiron, Azusa Pacific sophomore wide receiver Brandon Jackson was named the Football Offensive Player of the Week after he caught 13 passes for 149 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the Cougars’ 37-21 victory over Humboldt State. He scored the Cougars’ first touchdown of the game and their last.

Western Oregon sophomore defensive back Curtis Anderson was named the Football Defensive Player of the Week after he finished with four tackles, two interceptions and had a blocked punt in the Wolves’ 54-13 win over Simon Fraser. Anderson had two of the Wolves’ seven picks, which tied a GNAC single-game record, and returned his second interception 49 yards for a touchdown.

Central Washington defensive lineman Chase DeMoor picked up Football Special Teams Player of the Week honors after he blocked a pair of kicks in the Wildcats’ 28-26 loss to West Texas A&M. His blocked field goal in the second quarter eventually led to a Central Washington touchdown while his blocked point-after attempt was returned by Tyler Hasty for a defensive two-point conversion.

Montana State Billings’ senior midfielder Guillaume Kremer was selected as the Men’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Week after he scored three goals in two matches for the Yellowjackets. Concordia senior goalkeeper Grant Alcorn earned the Defensive Player of the Week award for his 15 saves in two matches, including 13 in a 1-0 loss to No. 1 ranked Simon Fraser on Thursday.

On the court, Western Washington senior outside hitter Abby Phelps was named the Volleyball Offensive Player of the Week after she finished with 37 kills and 28 digs in two matches and became the Vikings’ all-time record holder in kills. Her week was topped by a 27-kill, 15-dig performance in Tuesday’s five-set win over Simon Fraser. It is Phelps’ seventh all-time Player of the Week selection, tying her for the most selections in GNAC volleyball history.

Central Washington junior defensive specialist Kyla Morgan was named the Volleyball Defensive Player of the Week after averaging 6.48 digs per set in a pair of wins. She finished with 21 digs in Thursday’s three-set sweep of Saint Martin’s and added 27 digs in Saturday’s four-set win over Seattle Pacific.

Seattle Pacific freshman Colby Otero was named the Men’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week after he ran 25:17.9 for 8,000 meters at the Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational. He was the top GNAC finisher in the race and led the Falcons to a sixth-place team finish. Central Washington senior Alexa Shindruk earned Women’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week honors after she placed fourth at the Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational, covering the 5,000-meter course in 17:21.0.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 6
FOOTBALL
Offensive: Brandon Jackson (Azusa Pacific, WR, 6-4, 210, So., Sutter, Calif. – Sutter): Jackson posted a huge receiving day for the Cougars, catching 13 passes for 149 yards and a pair of touchdowns in a 37-21 victory over Humboldt State. He scored the Cougars’ first touchdown of the game on an 11-yard pass from Tyrone Williams, Jr., in the second quarter and later scored APU’s final touchdown in the fourth quarter. Also Nominated: Reilly Hennessey (Central Washington), Miles Richardson (Simon Fraser), Anthony Bradley (Western Oregon).

Defensive: Curtis Anderson (Western Oregon, DB, 6-2, 205, So., Klamath Falls, Ore. – Mazama): Anderson finished with four tackles, had two of the Wolves’ seven interceptions and had a blocked punt in Western Oregon’s 54-13 win over Simon Fraser. Anderson returned his second pick 49 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter. Anderson also three kick returns and finishes with 110 all-purpose yards in the game. Also Nominated: Ju’wan Murphy (Humboldt State), Gabe Lopes (Simon Fraser).

Special Teams: Chase DeMoor (Central Washington, DL, 6-5, 245, Sr., Eatonville, Wash. – Coll. Of the Siskiyous): DeMoor blocked a West Texas A&M field goal attempt and also blocked a punt. The blocked field goal in the second quarter would later result in a Central Washington touchdown while the blocked point-after would be returned by Tyler Hasty for a defensive two-point conversion in the third quarter. Also Nominated: Ju’wan Murphy (Humboldt State), Dominic Akina (Western Oregon).

MEN’S SOCCER
Offensive: Guillaume Kremer (Montana State Billings, M, 5-7, Sr., Metz, France – Univ. of Strasbourg): Kremer scored three goals in two matches for the Yellowjackets. He scored the game-tying goal in the 50th minute of MSUB’s 3-2 loss to Seattle Pacific on Thursday and then tallied a pair of unassisted goals in the 44th and 82nd minutes to keep things close in a 4-2 loss to Northwest Nazarene. Also Nominated: Titus Grant (Seattle Pacific), Drew Barker (Western Washington).

Defensive: Grant Alcorn (Concordia, GK, 5-10, Sr., Vancouver, Wash. – Union): Alcorn finished with 15 saves in a pair of tough road matches. He recorded a career-high 13 saves as 26 total shots in a 1-0 loss on Thursday at No. 1 Simon Fraser. He then added three more saves in a 2-0 loss at Western Washington on Saturday. Also Nominated: Brandon Wolter.

WOMEN’S SOCCER
Offensive: Dayana Diaz (Western Washington, F, 5-7, Fr., Granite Falls, Wash. – Granite Falls): Diaz picked up her second-straight Offensive Player of the Week award after she scored the conference’s first hat trick of the season in the Vikings’ 4-0 win at Saint Martin’s on Thursday. She scored the first goal in the 38th minute and notched the final two goals in the 76th and 82nd minutes for the 58th three-goal match in GNAC history. Also Nominated: Kyra Radcliffe (Concordia), Julia Keller (Montana State Billings), Claire Neder (Seattle Pacific).

Defensive: Jordyn Bartelson (Western Washington, M, 5-4, Jr., Puyallup, Wash. – Puyallup): Bartelson anchored a Western Washington defense that did not allow a shot on goal and allowed eight shots total in road wins over Saint Martin’s and Western Oregon. She picked up an assist in each match, including one on Dayana Diaz’s game-winner on Thursday at Saint Martin’s. Also Nominated: Aspen Jeter (Concordia), Courteney Shovlin (Montana State Billings), Nicole Anderson (Simon Fraser), Jackie Beristain (Western Oregon).

VOLLEYBALL
Offensive: Abby Phelps (Western Washington, OH, 5-10, Sr., Manson, Wash. – Chelan): Phelps became the all-time kills leader at Western Washington as she finished 37 kills and 28 digs in two wins, averaging 4.62 kills per set. She finished with 27 kills, 15 digs and three blocks in the Vikings’ five-set win at Simon Fraser on Tuesday and then surpassed the WWU all-time kills mark with 10 kills in Saturday’s three-set sweep of Montana State Billings. The two performances were her 13th and 14th double-doubles of the season. Also Nominated: Ellen Floyd (Alaska Anchorage), Shelby Mauritson (Central Washington), Hailey Gaines (Seattle Pacific), Julia Tays (Simon Fraser), Sophie Hall (Western Oregon).

Defensive: Kyla Morgan (Central Washington, DS, 5-4, Jr., Graham, Wash. – Bethel): Morgan averaged 6.86 digs per set (48 total) as the Wildcats improved to 13-2 on the season and extended their current win streak to four matches. She came up with 21 digs and a service ace in Thursday’s three-set sweep of Saint Martin’s and then added 27 digs, five assists and an ace in Saturday’s four-set win over Seattle Pacific. Also Nominated: Taylor Noga (Alaska Anchorage), Sierra Stultz (Western Oregon), Aubrey Stephens (Western Washington).

CROSS COUNTRY
Men: Colby Otero (Seattle Pacific, Fr., Kailua, Hawaii – Kalaheo): Running in his second collegiate meet, Otero led the Falcons and all GNAC runners at the Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational, finishing 22nd in a time of 25:17.9 over 8,000 meters. He helped lead Seattle Pacific to a sixth-place team finish. Also Nominated: Josh Moats (Concordia), Rowan Doherty (Simon Fraser), Sawyer Heckard (Western Oregon).

Women: Alexa Shindruk (Central Washington, Sr., Bellingham, Wash. – Lynden): Shindruk took fourth place at the Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational, covering the 5,000-meter course in 17:21.0. She averaged 5 minutes, 35 seconds per mile as she was the top non-Division I placer in the race as Central Washington placed eighth as a team. Also Nominated: Bailey Fjelstul (Concordia), Addy Townsend (Simon Fraser), Cassie McKinney (Western Oregon).

GOLF
Men: Cody Roth (Western Washington, Sr., Bellingham, Wash. – Bellingham): Roth earned his second-straight Player of the Week award after he placed fourth at the Western Washington Invitational. He carded 4-under-par 212 and shot both his second and third rounds under par (2-under-par 70 in round two, 3-under-par 69 in round 3). Roth led Western Washington to the team title with a three-round score of 831, two strokes ahead of Chico State. Also Nominated: Jaxson Daskalos (Concordia), Sy Lovan (Simon Fraser).

Men: Lacy Sheldon (Western Washington, Jr., Dallas, Texas – Montevallo Univ.): Playing in her first tournament for the Vikings, Sheldon tied for third at the Western New Mexico Fall Intercollegiate as she carded a 1-under-par 143, just three strokes off the pace set by Cal State San Marcos’ Sarah Garcia, and shot a 1-under-par 71 in the opening round. Sheldon led the Vikings to a third-place team finish.