Monday, May 9, 2016

PORTLAND, Ore. – A Montana State Billings sweep of the baseball awards leads the final list of selections for GNAC Player of the Week for the 2015-16 season.

The Yellowjackets’ Kyle Durbin was named the Baseball Player of the Week after he helped lead the team to a sweep of Saint Martin’s in the final weekend of the regular season. Durbin hit .600 (9 for 15) with 11 runs, two doubles, a home run and five RBI while also amassing a .933 slugging percentage and a .700 on-base percentage. He went 5 for 5 in Thursday’s second game, his second five-hit game of the season, with three runs and drew the game-winning bases loaded walk in Friday’s 6-5, 10-inning victory.

Tanner Johnson earned Baseball Pitcher of the Week honors after he threw his first complete game of the season in Thursday’s opener, a 10-1 win over the Saints. Johnson allowed just one run and nine hits in nine innings and did not walk a batter while striking out 11. He did not allow a base runner after the sixth inning and retired his final 11 batters.

In the last week before the GNAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships, another pair of school records were broken by this week’s honorees. Alaska Anchorage’s Tevin Gladden was selected as the Men’s Field Athlete of the Week after he broke the Seawolves’ record at the Linfield Open. His winning mark of 6 feet, 9.75 inches surpassed the previous record of 6 feet, 9.5 inches set by Eric Draper in 2006. The performance also moves Gladden to No. 2 on the GNAC all-time list.

Central Washington’s Madison Garcia was named the Women’s Track Athlete of the Week after she reset the Wildcats’ 200-meter record for the second time in three weeks. Garcia won the event at the CWU GNAC Last Qualifier with a time of 24.61 seconds, bettering her record by six-hundredths of a second. It also moves Garcia to No. 7 on the GNAC all-time list.

Cameron Proceviat of Simon Fraser was selected as the Men’s Track Athlete of the Week after he ran a personal best in the 800 meters at the Oxy Invitational. Finishing 10th out of over 80 athletes, Proceviat finished with a time of 1:49.28, a time that is sixth best in Division II this season and moves him up to No. 2 on the GNAC all-time list. Taylor Fettig of Central Washington is the Women’s Field Athlete of the Week after she won the high jump and finished third in the long jump at the CWU GNAC Last Qualifier.

This is the final Player of the Week selections in the GNAC this season. Over 36 weeks, the program recognized over 200 athletes from all 11 GNAC full member schools and three affiliate institutions.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 36
BASEBALL PLAYER
Kyle Durbin (Montana State Billings, IF, 6-1, Sr., Idaho Falls, Idaho – Coll. Of Eastern Utah): Durbin hit .600 (9 for 15) with 11 runs, two doubles, a home run and five RBI in the Yellowjackets’ sweep of Saint Martin’s. He also finished the weekend with a .933 slugging percentage and a .700 on-base percentage. In Thursday’s second game, During went 5 for 5 with five RBI and three runs in the 15-2 victory. In Friday’s opener, Durbin drew the game-winning bases loaded walk in the 10th inning for the 6-5 win. Also Nominated: Jake Huskey (Saint Martin’s), Spencer Pollock (Northwest Nazarene).

BASEBALL PITCHER
Tanner Johnson (Montana State Billings, P, 6-3, Sr., Belgrade, Mont. – Salt Lake CC): Johnson threw his first complete game of the season to beat Saint Martin’s in Thursday’s opener, 10-1. In the nine-inning effort, Johnson allowed one run on eight hits and did not allow a walk while striking out 11. He retired the final 11 Saint Marti’s batters of the game and did not allow a base runner after the sixth inning. Also Nominated: Blake Mitchell (Northwest Nazarene), Mickey Walker (Saint Martin’s).

MEN’S TRACK
Cameron Proceviat (Simon Fraser, Sr., Burnaby, B.C. - Moscrop): Proceviat ran a personal best in the 800 meters at the Oxy Invitational. His 10th place time of 1:49.28 currently ranks sixth in Division II (the top provisional qualifying mark) and moves Proceviat to No. 2 on the GNAC all-time list. Also Nominated: Nathan Morgan (Saint Martin’s), Carlos Ortiz (Concordia), Robert Peterson (Montana State Billings).

MEN’S FIELD
Tevin Gladden (Alaska Anchorage, Jr., Fairbanks, Alaska - Lathrop): Gladden broke the Alaska Anchorage record in the high jump at the Linfield Open, winning with a mark of 6 feet, 9.75 inches. That broke the previous Seawolves’ record of 6 feet, 9.5 inches, set by Eric Draper in 2006. The mark ties Gladden for No. 2 on the GNAC all-time list and ties him for 20th in Division II this season. Also Nominated: Craig Boyle (Saint Martin’s), Josh Koch (Concordia), Brady Ostermiller (Montana State Billings).

WOMEN’S TRACK
Madison Garcia (Central Washington, Jr., Sedro Woolley, Wash. – Sedro Woolley): For the second time in three weeks, Garcia set the Central Washington record in the 200 meters, running 24.61 seconds to win at the CWU GNAC Last Qualifier. The mark was a six-hundredths improvement over her previous record and moves her to No. 7 on the GNAC all-time list. Also Nominated: Kiernan Hawthrone (Saint Martin’s), Della Lyle (Montana State Billings), Rachel Sultan (Concordia).

WOMEN’S FIELD
Tayler Fettig (Central Washington, Sr., Olympia, Wash. - Olympia): Fettig won the high jump at the CWU GNAC Last Qualifier, coming just short of her season best with a clearance of 5 feet, 8.25 inches. She also finished third in the long jump with a mark of 17 feet, 7 inches. Also Nominated: Deanna Avalos (Saint Martin’s), Tori Johnson (Concordia), Megan Mortensen (Western Washington).