Friday, February 22, 2019

PORTLAND, Ore. – The strength of the GNAC, both on the court and in the classroom, was recognized Thursday with the selection of four conference players to the Google Cloud Division II Academic All-District 8 Men’s Basketball Team as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Concordia senior guard Jarrett Gray, Western Washington junior forward Trevor Jasinsky, Alaska Anchorage junior guard Jack Macdonald and Seattle Pacific senior forward Sam Simpson all earned selection to the team, which honors athletic and academic achievement.

The GNAC took four of the six spots on the All-District 8 Team, which is comprised of players from the GNAC, the California Collegiate Athletic Association and the PacWest Conference. The four will now have their names forwarded on to the ballot for the Google Cloud Division II Academic All-America Team, which will be announced in March.

Gray, who has a perfect 4.00 grade point average as a student in Concordia’s Master’s of Business Administration program, is finishing his career as one of the top scorers in the GNAC. Gray is seventh in the GNAC in scoring at 15.1 points per game and is fourth in the league with a .877 free throw percentage and a .455 three-point percentage. He has scored in double digits in all but two conference games this season, paced by 23-point performances against Seattle Pacific on Jan. 17 and Western Oregon on Feb. 5.

Jasinsky, who has a 3.44 GPA as a business marketing major, is one of three players ranked in the GNAC’s top-10 in both scoring and rebounding. He is second in the league at 19.5 points per game and fourth at 6.9 rebounds per game. Jasinsky is also second in the GNAC and 29th in Division II with a .883 free throw percentage. The junior has scored in double digits in 24 games, led by a 33-point outburst against Central Washington on Feb. 7, and has four double-doubles on the year.

A starter at guard in 22 of the Seawolves’ 25 games, Macdonald has a 3.79 GPA as an accounting and marketing major. The junior is averaging 10.6 points per game and is tied for 10th in the GNAC with a .825 free throw percentage. A double-digit scorer in 13 games this season, Macdonald finished with a season-high 23 points against Central Washington on Jan. 17.

Simpson, a four-year performer for Seattle Pacific, has a .389 GPA as a biochemistry major while filling a key reserve role for the Falcons. The senior is averaging 8.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per game in 22 contests and has scored in double digits in nine games. He posted a season-high 17 points against Northwest Nazarene on Nov. 29.

To be eligible for the Google Cloud CoSIDA All-Academic All-America nomination process, student-athletes must be a starter or important reserve with at least a 3.30 cumulative grade point average and must have completed one full calendar year at the nominating institution. Nominated athletes must also have participated in at least 50 percent of the team's games at the position listed.