Wednesday, January 4, 2017

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Five teams in the GNAC have won at least three quarters of their games, while the remaining six have all won a quarter or less of their conference games so far this season.

Northwest Nazarene scored the win of the week on Saturday, beating then undefeated Seattle Pacific, but the Crusaders will have to back up that win with a pair of tough home tests this week.The Crusaders will host No. 22 Western Washington on Thursday. The Vikings have won four of their last five GNAC contests dating back to last year and boast the nation’s leading scorer in Taylor Peacocke, who was named GNAC Player of the Week.

On Saturday, NNU will host Simon Fraser, which was the first GNAC team to reach 12 wins this season and has Elisa Homer back in action.
The Oregon schools will host the Alaska schools this week, where Alaska Anchorage will be looking to improve its record of 11-1. The Seawolves are the last remaining team in the West Region that is undefeated against NCAA Division II teams. Alaska Anchoraged is now ranked No. 3 in the D2SIDA Media Poll and for the first time this year, earned all six first-place votes in the West Region  rankings.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Taylor Peacocke
Western Washington
G • 5-9  • Jr. • Kenmore, Wash.

Peacocke put together consecutive 29-point performances as Western Washington recorded GNAC wins over Concordia and Western Oregon. She finished the week shooting 56.8 percent from the field (21-37) and 46.7 percent from 3-point range (7-15). Against Concordia, Peacocke’s 29 came from an 11-for-19 shooting performance with four rebounds and four assists. Against WOU, Peacocke made 10 of 18 shots from the field and 5 of 9 from the 3-point range.

Also Nominated: Baylee Olson (Saint Martin’s), Kiki Robertson (Alaska Anchorage), Kizzah Maltezo (Concordia), Ellie Logan (Northwest Nazarene), Taylor Baird (Central Washington).

AROUND THE GNAC

ALASKA
• The Nanooks beat Montana State Billings, 71-53, on Thursday in their only game of the week.
• Kailee Skjold had 10 points, 16 rebounds and seven assists in the victory, which was the closest any player in the GNAC has come to a triple-double. She now leads the conference in rebounding with 9.2 per game.
• Jordan Wilson scored a team-high 24 points against the Yellowjackets. She has scored at least 20 points in eight of the 11 games and ranks third in the nation in points per game with 22.3.
• The Nanooks made 17 of 22 free throws in the victory, which slightly dropped the team average to .842, ranking second in NCAA Division II. Wilson leads the conference in free throws at .938, which also ranks fourth nationally.
• Alaska travels to Oregon this week to face Concordia on Thursday and Western Oregon on Saturday. The Nanooks got a split in Oregon last year.

ALASKA ANCHORAGE
• The Seawolves improved their win streak to seven games with an 87-44 win over Montana State Billings on Saturday. Both teams were in the regional tournament last year.
• Alaska Anchorage is undefeated against NCAA Division II teams with a 9-0 record. Alaska Anchorage is the last remaining team in the West Region that is undefeated against NCAA Division II teams.
• Alaska Anchorage is ranked No. 3 in the D2SIDA Media Poll and was the unanimous No. 1 in the West Region poll.
• The Seawolves are No. 1 in the nation in steals per game and turnover margin. Kiki Robertson ranks fourth in the nation in steals with 3.42 per game.
• Autummn Williams leads the Seawolves in scoring with 17.7 points per game. She also has 40 assists and 31 steals in 11 games.
• Alaska Anchorage is beating its opponents on average by 33.2 points, which is the second best scoring margin in NCAA Division II.
• Tara Thompson leads the conference in 3-point percentage, making 33 of 69 attempts and has not missed a free throw all year.
• The Seawolves will travel to Oregon this week to face Western Oregon on Thursday and Concordia on Saturday.

CENTRAL WASHINGTON
• The Wildcats remained at .500 this season after earning a split on the road with a loss at Seattle Pacific followed by a win at Saint Martin’s.
• Taylor Baird tallied 11 points and 12 rebounds exactly in both games. It was her fourth and fifth double-doubles this year to tie for most in the conference this year. Baird is tleads the conference in rebounds with 110 boards this year.
• Jasmine Edwards recorded 10 assists and 10 points in the win over SMU for her own double-double. It was the fourth time this year a player in the GNAC has recorded at least 10 assists in a game.
• All five starters scored in double digits in the 78-70 win over Saint Martin’s.
• Central Washington will host Simon Fraser and Western Washington this week. Both teams are ranked in the top five of the D2SIDA West Region poll. The Wildcats have already beat one regionally-ranked team this year when Cal State L.A. was still in the top 10.

CONCORDIA
• The Cavaliers dropped both games in its return to GNAC play against Simon Fraser and Western Washington, which are both ranked in the top five of the D2SIDA poll in the West Region.
• Danielle Hartzog scored a team-best 16 points against Western Washington, leading the team in scoring for the third time in four games.
• Against Simon Fraser, Kizzah Maltezo got a boost in playing time with Hartzog in foul trouble. Maltezo made the most of the opportunity, scoring a team-high 16 points. She made 6 of 10 shots from the field and 3 of 5 from beyond the arc.
• Jordyn Peacock tallied two blocks against Western Washington. Her 32 blocks this season are twice as many as anyone else in the conference. She also ranks 20th in rebounds with 4.8 per game.
• The Cavaliers will host the two Alaska schools next week. They will play Alaska on Thursday. The last time the Nanooks came to Portland, Concordia earned a 72-70 victory. Then on Saturday, Alaska Anchorage will be Concordia’s next test.

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
• The Yellowjackets dropped both games last week against the two Alaska schools, falling to Alaska 71-43 and Alaska Anchorage, 87-44.
• Marissa Van Atta led the team in scoring in both games after having never previously done so. She scored 13 points against Alaska and 12 against Alaska Anchorage to become the third Yellowjacet to eclipse 100 points this season.
• Tiana Hanson led the team in rebounds in both games with 13 in the two games combined. She has led the team in rebounding seven times this year. Her 15.8 points per game and 6.0 rebounds per game both lead the team.
• The ‘Jackets will travel to Washington this week to face Seattle Pacific on Thursday and Saint Martin’s on Saturday.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
• The Crusaders picked up two wins this week, including a win over previously undefeated Seattle Pacific to become one of two teams that remain undefeated in GNAC play.
• Northwest Nazarene beat Saint Martin’s 67-61 on Thursday and then beat No. 13 Seattle Pacific, 73-66. The Crusaders are undefeated on the road this year.
• Seattle Pacific led the Crusaders by as much as 10 in the first half, but NNU scored 19 points in a six-minute span to tie the score at halftime. Carly Parker hit consecutive 3-pointers early in the third quarter and the Crusaders never trailed again.
• Ellie Logan led the team in scoring in both games with a combined total of 26 points. Logan is now averaging 10.9 points per game, ranking 18th in the GNAC.
• The Crusaders will have to back up a solid week with two tough opponents at home, where they are undefeated, playing Simon Fraser and Western Wash.

SAINT MARTIN’S
• The Saints dropped all three games they played in the last week, falling to Northwest Nazarene, Central Washington and Seattle Pacific.
• Saint Martin’s is on a seven-game losing streak, but in three of the last five games, the Saints have kept the margin within 10, including an overtime loss to West Region No. 10 Cal State San Marcos.
• Elin Johansson tallied 40 points and 19 rebounds in the three games, including 18 of the team’s 59 points against Seattle Pacific.
• Saint Martin’s will host Montana State Billings on Saturday in its only game this week after playing on Tuesday.

SEATTLE PACIFIC
• The Falcons won two of three in the last week, taking their first loss of the season against Northwest Nazarene. Seattle Pacific was one of the last seven undefeated teams left in NCAA Division II.
• Seattle Pacific dropped to No. 15 in the WBCA poll and No. 11 in the D2SIDA poll while remaining No. 2 in the West Region poll.
• Courtney Hollander tallied 24 rebounds last week to become the first Falcon with 100 rebounds this season. She also leads the team in scoring with 12.8 points per game.
• Rachel Shim  leads the team in shooting from beyond the arc, making 39.5 percent. She had a team-high 12 points against NNU.
• The Falcons will host Montana State Billings in their only game of the week on Thursday. Seattle Pacific split against MSUB last year.

SIMON FRASER
• The Clan swept the Oregon schools last week to boost its active winning streak to four games. The Clan became the first team in the GNAC to reach 12 wins this season.
• In the second game of her return from injury, Elisa Homer scored a team-high 20 points against Western Oregon for a 71-57 win.
• Freshman Ozi Nwabuko made 9 of 10 shots from the field against Concordia for a team-high 18 points in a 80-58 win. The 9 of 10 mark from the field tied the GNAC season high for field goals made with one or less misses in a single game.
• The Clan has three players averaging double digit scoring this year, including Meg Wilson’s team-high of 13.6 points per game. Nwabuko also has 9.9.
• Simon Fraser is 5-0 at home this year, and has won its last six home games dating back to last season.
• For the third time this year, Simon Fraser is receiving votes in the WBCA and D2SIDA polls and is ranked No. 5 in the D2SIDA West Region Media Poll.
• The Clan will play at Central Washington on Thursday and then travel to Northwest Nazarene on Saturday.

WESTERN OREGON
• The Wolves dropped their last two games of the 2016 calendar year against Simon Fraser and Western Washington, which were both ranked in the West Region top five in the D2SIDA poll.
• Sydney Azorr was the only Wolf to scored in double digits in both games, equalling the team-high of 10 points against Simon Fraser before tallying 14 points against Western Washington.
• Shelby Snook scored 16 points against Western Washington, leading the team. However, she was 0 for 4 from beyond the arc, lowering her percentage on the season to 45.8, which ranks third in the GNAC.
• Jasmine Miller has a team-high 6.2 rebounds per game along with 9.6 points per game.
• The Wolves will host the two Alaska schools this week, playing Alaska Anchorage on Thursday and the Nanooks on Saturday.

WESTERN WASHINGTON
• The Vikings won both games in their trip to Oregon by a combined margin of 50 points to improve to 9-3 this season.
• Western Washington is one of five GNAC teams this year that has won at least three quarters of its conference games this year.
• Taylor Peacocke become the nation’s leading scorer this week with two 29-point games against Concordia and Western Oregon. She now has scored at least 20 points in 10 games this year. She averages 23.5 points per game and was named GNAC Player of the Week.
• Hannah Stopanovich went 7 for 10 from the free-throw line last week and now ranks No. 8 in NCAA Division II in free-throw percentage.
• Tia Briggs recorded 14 points and seven rebounds against Concordia, making 5 of 9 shots to help WWU become the GNAC leader in field goal percentage.
• The Vikings moved up one spot in the D2SIDA Media Poll to No. 22 in the nation and remained No. 4 in the West Region Rankings.
• Western Washington will travel to Northwest Nazarene and Central Washington this week, looking to improve on their two-game conference winning streak.