Monday, February 18, 2019

PORTLAND, Ore. – Northwest Nazarene’s Obi Megwa and Simon Fraser’s Sophie Swant turned in big performances to help their teams clinch spots in the GNAC Basketball Championships, earning the duo selection as GNAC Players of the Week.

Megwa was named the Men’s Basketball Player of the Week after he had 57 points, seven rebounds and six assists, shooting 65.7 percent from the field, in the Nighthawks’ wins over Alaska Anchorage and Alaska. Megwa scored 23 points on 9 of 16 from the field against the Seawolves before leading all scorers with 34 points against Alaska, making 14 of 19 from the field and 5 of 6 from the free throw line.

Swant earned Women’s Basketball Player of the Week honors after her 44 points and 10 rebounds earned the Clan wins over Seattle Pacific and Saint Martin’s. She finished the week shooting 50 percent from the field and 52.9 percent from three-point range. Swant led all scorers with 34 points against Seattle Pacific, connecting on 12 of 22 from the field and 8 of 13 from three-point range with five assists and five steals. She then scored 10 points and had seven rebounds against Saint Martin’s.

Simon Fraser also earned the sweep of the softball weekly awards following a 5-1 start to the season at the Cactus Classic in Tucson, Arizona. Amanda Janes was named the Softball Player of the Week after she hit .318 in the six games, going 7 for 22 with four runs, 10 RBI, two doubles, a triple and two home runs. Janes went 2 for 4 with a run and a two-RBI double in Saturday’s 7-1 win over Biola and followed that by going 3 for 5 with an RBI triple and a two-run homer in a 13-12 win over Colorado Mesa.

Jessica Fasolino was named the Softball Pitcher of the Week after she went 4-0 for the Clan in the circle. She earned two wins in starting roles, allowing two hits and striking out one in a 9-0 win over UT-Permian Basin on Friday and going 5.1 innings in the Saturday game with Colorado Mesa.

Saint Martin’s Micah McNicoll was named the Baseball Player of the Week after he hit .467 as the Saints went 3-2 in a series at the College of Idaho, going 7 for 15 with five runs, four RBI, two doubles and a home run. He went 2 for 4 with a pair of doubles and two runs, which included the game-winning run, in Saturday’s 3-2 second-game win. McNicoll then went 4 for 5 with four RBI and two runs, including a two-run homer, in Sunday’s 11-5 win.

Central Washington’s Hunter French turned his first win in a Wildcats’ uniform into a selection as the Baseball Pitcher of the Week. Against Corban on Sunday, French allowed three hits and one walk, striking out eight, en route to a 6-1 victory. He allowed just one extra-base hit and only one runner past second base.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 25
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Obi Megwa (Northwest Nazarene, G, 6-0, Sr., Phoenix, Ariz. – Mesa CC): Megwa led the Nighthawks as they clinched their first GNAC Championships berth in four years with 57 points, seven rebounds and six assists in two home wins, shooting 65.7 percent from the field and 9 of 11 from the free throw line. Arms shared top scoring honors in Thursday’s 87-77 win over Alaska Anchorage with 23 points, connecting on 9 of 16 from the field and 4 for 5 from the free throw line. He then led all scorers with 34 points in Saturday’s 104-75 victory over Alaska, making 14 of 19 from the field and 5 of 6 from the free throw line to go with three rebounds, five assists and two steals. Also Nominated: Brennan Rymer (Alaska Anchorage), Gamaun Boykin (Central Washington), Brendan Howard (Montana State Billings), Rhett Baerlocher (Saint Martin’s), Michael Provenzano (Simon Fraser).

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Sophie Swant (Simon Fraser, F, 5-11, Sr., North Vancouver, B.C. – Argyle): Swant led the Clan with 44 points and 10 rebounds in two wins as Simon Fraser clinched a berth in the GNAC Championships. Swant went off for 34 points in Thursday’s 82-61 victory over Seattle Pacific, connecting on 12 of 22 from the field and 8 of 13 from three-point range to go with five assists and five steals. Swant finished the week with 10 points in Saturday’s 77-57 win over Saint Martin’s to go with seven rebounds, seven assists and a block For the week, Swant shot 50 percent from the field and 52.9 percent from three-point range. Also Nominated: Sydni Stallworth (Alaska Anchorage), JonNae Richardson (Central Washington), Olivia Vezaldenos (Concordia), Avery Albrecht (Northwest Nazarene), Claire Dingus (Saint Martin’s), Anna Schwecke (Western Washington).

BASEBALL PLAYER
Micah McNicoll (Saint Martin’s, IF, 5-7, Jr., Kaneohe, Hawaii – Kamehameha): McNicoll finished the five-game series at the College of Idaho with a .467 batting average, going 7 for 15 with five runs, four RBI, two doubles and a home run. His best efforts came later in the series. McNicoll went 2 for 4 with two doubles and two runs, including the winning run in the ninth inning, in Saturday’s 3-2 victory. He closed the series by going 4 for 5 with four RBI and two runs in Sunday’s 11-5 win. McNicoll had an RBI single in the first and a two-run homer in the second. Also Nominated: Jon Pinto (Central Washington), Jake Wikel (Concordia), Jalen Garcia (Montana State Billings).

BASEBALL PITCHER
Hunter French (Central Washington, RHP, 6-4, Jr., Richland, Wash. – Columbia Basin CC): French collected his first win in a Central Washington uniform in the Wildcats’ 6-1 victory over Corban on Sunday. In six innings, French allowed just three hits and one walk while striking out eight. He allowed just one extra-base hit and allowed only one runner past second base. Also Nominated: Jeffrey Lusink (Concordia), Jarrod Molnaa (Montana State Billings), Benjamin Wadowski (Saint Martin’s).

SOFTBALL PLAYER
Amanda Janes (Simon Fraser, C, 6-0, Jr., Brampton, Ont. – Brampton Centennial): Janes led Simon Fraser’s season-opening effort at the Cactus Classic by hitting .318, going 7 for 22 with four runs, 10 RBI, two doubles, a triple and two home run as the Clan went 5-1. Janes opened the season with a solo home run in Friday’s 8-0 win over UT-Permian Basin. She then went 2 for 4 with a run and a two-RBI double in Saturday’s 7-1 win over Biola and followed by going 3 for 5 with an RBI triple and a two-run homer in Saturday’s 13-12 win over Colorado Mesa. Also Nominated: Devyn Connolly (Saint Martin’s).

SOFTBALL PITCHER
Jessica Fasolino (Simon Fraser, RHP, 5-2, So., Surrey, B.C. – Douglas Coll.): Fasolino went 4-0 to lead the Clan to a 5-1 record in the team’s season-opening games at the Cactus Classic. In 19 innings, she allowed 10 runs, nine earned, on 18 hits with three walks and five strikeouts. Fasolino opened her SFU career with six innings in Friday’s 9-0 complete-game win over UT-Permian Basin, allowing two hits and striking out one. She also picked up wins in relief over Biola on Saturday and Fort Lewis on Sunday and earned the win in a start in Saturday’s 13-12 win over Colorado Mesa. Also Nominated: Brandi Schoessler (Saint Martin’s).