Monday, February 15, 2016

PORTLAND, Ore. – A pair of impressive conference distance records, among four set over the weekend, lead this week’s list of GNAC Players of the Week.

Alaska Anchorage’s Joyce Chelimo was named the Women’s Track Athlete of the Week after she smashed the GNAC record in the 3,000 meters at the Husky Classic on Saturday. Winning the second section of the race in a time of 9:17.97, best in Division II this season, Chelimo eclipsed the previous record of 9:23.24 set by Seattle Pacific’s Jessica Pixler in 2009. In addition, Chelimo ran the anchor leg on the UAA distance medley relay team that ran the sixth fastest time in GNAC history.

Her Seawolves’ teammate, Dominik Notz, earned the Men’s Track Athlete of the Week after he broke the men’s 3,000-meter record. Notz placed third in the first section at Sunday’s UW Open with a time of 8:10.19, bettering the previous mark of 8:10.99 set by Micah Chelimo in 2014. Notz led a corps of four Alaska Anchorage runners in the race that set or improved spots on the GNAC all-time top-10 list.

Concordia’s Tyler Lamott was named the Men’s Field Athlete of the Week after finishing just short of the GNAC record in the weight throw. Lamott finished seventh in his flight at the Husky Classic with a mark of 60 feet, 8 inches, making him just the fourth athlete in conference history to throw over 60 feet. The performance is 18th best in Division II this season. Amanda Youngers of Central Washington claimed the women’s field honor with her mark of 50 feet, 4.5 inches, at the UW Open.

Alaska’s Travante Williams was named the Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for the second time this season afrer he averaged 24 points and seven rebounds per game in two contests. Williams scored 22 points and grabbed seven rebounds in the Nanooks’ close 76-71 loss at Alaska Anchorage on Thursday. He turned around to lead Alaska with 26 points on 9 of 18 from the field and 6 of 7 from the free throw line in their 66-61 win on Saturday over Montana State Billings.

Western Washington’s Kayla Bernsen earned Women’s Basketball Player of the Week honors as she averaged 16.5 points and eight rebounds in a pair of wins. She scored 18 points on 8 of 10 from the field and had six rebounds in the Vikings’ 60-43 win over Seattle Pacific on Thursday before notching a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds in an 81-52 victory over Saint Martin’s on Saturday.

Montana State Billings swept this week’s baseball honors. Outfielder Luke Reinschmidt was named the Baseball Player of the Week as he led the Yellowjackets with eight runs and a .625 slugging percentage in five games at the Dixie State Classic. Tanner Johnson was tabbed as the Pitcher of the Week after he threw eight shutout innings in the Yellowjackets’ 3-0 win over Holy Names on Friday. He allowed four hits and one walk, struck out five and allowed just just two base runners past first base.

Central Washington’s Taylor Ferleman was named the Softball Player of the Week after she hit .480 in six runs, two triples, a home run and seven RBI as the Wildcats won six games on their Bay Area road trip. In 25 at-bats, Ferleman struck out just once and went 4 for 5 in stolen base attempts. She went 6 for 9 in the Wildcats’ two wins over Dominican (Calif.) on Saturday, including going 3 for 5 with two RBI in the nightcap.

The Wildcats Kiana Wood and Saint Martin’s Loryn Williams shared the Softball Pitcher of the Week award. Wood went 4-0 in four starts and amassed a 0.66 earned run average in five appearances. In 21.1 innings, she allowed two runs on 21 hits, striking out six. Wood opened the week by allowing three hits with five strikeouts in a 4-0 shutout at Academy of Art on Friday and allowed six hits in Saturday’s 4-0 second game win over Dominican (Calif.).

Williams amassed a 2-0 record and had a save in four appearances. In 19.2 innings, she allowed one earned run on 15 hits with two walks and 18 strikeouts as the Saints went 5-1 on their Hawaii road trip. She earned the win in relief at BYU-Hawaii on Thursday, allowing one run on four hits in 4.2 innings of work. Willliams also won her only start of the trip, allowing one unearned run on nine hits with four strikeouts in Sunday’s 5-1 win over Hawaii Pacific.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 24
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Travante Williams (Alaska, F, 6-4, 200, Sr., Anchorage, Alaska – Adams State Coll.): Williams averaged 24 points and seven rebounds in two games. He led the Nanooks with 22 points and seven rebounds in Alaska’s 76-71 loss at Alaska Anchorage on Thursday. He then scored 26 points on 9 of 18 from the field and 6 of 7 from the free throw line and added seven rebounds in the Nanooks’ 66-61 victory over Montana State Billings. Also Nominated: Andy Avgi (Western Oregon), Tyler Copp (Saint Martin’s), Riley Hawkin (Concordia), Emmanuel Johnson (Montana State Billings), Ricardo Maxwell (Western Washington), Detwon Rogers (Northwest Nazarene).

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Kayla Bernsen (Western Washington, C, 6-3, Sr., Moses Lake, Wash. – Moses Lake): Bernsen averaged 16.5 points and eight rebounds in a pair of wins over Puget Sound regional rivals Seattle Pacific and Saint Martin’s. She scored 18 points on 8 of 10 from the field and pulled down six rebounds in Thursday’s 60-43 win over the Falcons. Bernsen then added a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds in an 81-52 victory over the Saints. Also Nominated: Monica Grimsrud (Montana State Billings), Emily Howey (Western Oregon), Megan Mullings (Alaska Anchorage), Taylor Simmons (Northwest Nazarene), Kaillee Skjold (Alaska), Megan Wiedeman (Saint Martin’s).

MEN’S TRACK
Dominik Notz (Alaska Anchorage, Sr., Dettingen, Germany): Notz broke the GNAC indoor track record in the 3,000 meters, placing third in the first section at Sunday’s UW Open in 8:10.19. That bettered the previous record of 8:10.99 set by UAA’s Micah Chelimo in 2014. He led four Seawolves’ runners setting GNAC all-time top-10 performances in the race. The time leads the GNAC and is 11th best in Division II. Also Nominated: Ebu Camara (Northwest Nazarene), Austin Collins (Concordia), Jackson Hand (Saint Martin’s), David Ribich (Western Oregon).

MEN’S FIELD
Tyler Lamott (Concordia, Jr., Chico, Calif. – Radford Coll.): Lamott surged to the No.2 spot on the GNAC all-time list in the weight throw, finishing seventh in his flight at the Husky Classic with a mark of 60 feet, 8 inches. He became just the fourth athlete in conference history to surpass 60 feet in the event. The performance leads the GNAC and is the 16th best in Division II this season. Also Nominated: David Durden (Saint Martin’s), Payton Lewis (Northwest Nazarene), Brandon Pless (Western Washington).

WOMEN’S TRACK
Joyce Chelimo (Alaska Anchorage, Sr., Kapsowar, Kenya): Chelimo smashed the GNAC record in the 3,000 meters by six seconds, winning the second section of the event at the Husky Classic in 9:17.97. She bettered the previous record of 9:23.24 set by Seattle Pacific’s Jessica Pixler in 2009. The performance is the best in Division II this season. Chelimo also ran the final leg on the Seawolves’ distance medley relay that ran 11:39.44, the sixth best performance in GNAC history. Also Nominated: Taylor Deskins (Northwest Nazarene), Brittany Grant (Western Washington), Lisa Petersen (Saint Martin’s).

WOMEN’S FIELD
Amanda Youngers (Central Washington, Sr., Brewster, Wash. - Brewster): Youngers put together a season-best mark of 50 feet, 4.5 inches at the UW Open. She enters the GNAC Championships with the seventh best mark in the event. Also Nominated: Cassidy Apo (Saint Martin’s), Kawena Warren (Northwest Nazarene).

BASEBALL PLAYER
Luke Reinschmidt (Montana State Billings, OF, 5-11, Sr., Billings, Mont. – Wayland Baptist Univ.): Reinschmidt drove in eight runs, finished with 15 total bases and had a .625 slugging percentage as the Yellowjackets won two games at the Dixie State Classic. He went 3 for 6 with a bases-clearing double in the Yellowjackets’ final game of the tournament against the host Red Storm. Also Nominated: Alec Hagerman (Saint Martin’s), Josh Hatfield (Northwest Nazarene), Kyle Henderson (Concordia).

BASEBALL PITCHER
Tanner Johnson (Montana State Billings, RHP, 6-3, Sr., Belgrade, Mont. – Salt Lake CC): Johnson threw eight shutout innings in his first start of the season, a 3-0 win over Holy Names on Friday at the Dixie State Classic. His ledger included four hits allowed with one walk and five strikeouts. Johnson allowed just two base runners past first base. Also Nominated: Garrett Alvarez (Western Oregon), Torin Dooley (Saint Martin’s), Harrison McGhee (Concordia), Ryan Nyborg (Northwest Nazarene).

SOFTBALL PLAYER
Taylor Ferleman (Central Washington, SS/OF, 5-5, Jr., Bellevue, Wash. – Lake Washington): Ferleman led the Wildcats by hitting .480 (12 of 25) with six runs, two triples, a home run and seven RBI as the Wildcats in six wins on a Bay Area road trip. She went 3 for 4 with a run and a triple in Saturday’s 4-0 game one win over Dominican (Calif.) and then went 3 for 5 with 2 RBI in the 9-2 nightcap victory. In 25 at-bats, Ferleman struck out just once and went 4-5 in stolen base opportunities. Also Nominated: Kiahna Brown (Northwest Nazarene), Cameron Cassinelli (Montana State Billings), Taylor Copher (Concordia), Alexie Levin (Western Washington), Jackie Schmaeling (Saint Martin’s).

SOFTBALL PITCHER
Kiana Wood (Central Washington, LHP, 5-6, Jr., Aloha, Ore. - Aloha): Wood went 4-0 in four starts an amassed a 0.66 earned run average as she appeared in five of the Wildcats’ six games. In 21.1 innings, she allowed two runs on 21 hits and struck out six. Wood opened the week by allowing three hits with five strikeouts in a 4-0 complete game shutout of Academy of Art on Friday. She then allowed six hits and struck out six in a 4-0 complete game shutout over Dominican (Calif.) on Saturday.

Loryn Williams (Saint Martin’s, P/IF, 5-5, Fr., Fairview, Ore. – La Salle): In four appearances, one start and 19.2 innings pitched, Williams allowed one earned run on 15 hits with two walks and 18 strikeouts as the Saints went 5-1 on their Hawaii road trip. She earned a win on relief at BYU-Hawaii on Thursday, allowing one run on four hits in the 14-2 victory. Williams allowed one hit in three innings to earn the save in a 5-2 win over Chaminade on Saturday before winning her lone start against Hawaii Pacific on Sunday, allowing one unearned run on nine hits with four strikeouts. Also Nominated: Brooke Bonsen (Northwest Nazarene), Megan Dettling (Montana State Billings), Stephanie Morgan (Western Oregon).