Tuesday, February 5, 2019

THIS WEEK'S GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Hannah Wandersee
Alaska Anchorage
F/C • 6-2 • Sr. • Kodiak, Alaska

Wandersee led the Seawolves to two wins with 43 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 54.8 percent from the field and 9 of 10 from the free throw line. She opened with a 15-point performance in a 74-55 win at Western Washington on Thursday before leading all scorers with 28 points in Saturday’s 68-63 win at Simon Fraser, making 11 of 18 from the field and 6 of 6 from the free throw line to go with six rebounds.

Also Nominated: Taylor Shaw (Central Washington), Erin Higbie (Concordia), Hannah Collins (Montana State Billings), Avery Albrecht (Northwest Nazarene), Claire Dings (Saint Martin’s), Sophie Swant (Simon Fraser), Tresai McCarver (Western Oregon).

AROUND THE GNAC
ALASKA
• The Nanooks dropped a pair of road games against Simon Fraser (85-48) and Western Washington (66-36) last week.

• Senior Emily Evans led Alaska on the week, averaging nine points and three assists per game. Holding down things in the post was fellow senior Ashlie Blackburn, who tallied a total of 16 points and 14 rebounds on the road trip.

• Senior Marian Wamsley leads the team in scoring as the team enters the final month of the regular season. The forward is averaging 13.1 points per game with guard Kylie Wallace following closely at 11.2 points per game.

• The Nanooks will return home now, hosting rival Alaska Anchorage on Tuesday night. They will then hit the road and close the week at Montana State Billings two days later. Both games will tip-off at 7 p.m local time.

ALASKA ANCHORAGE
• Alaska Anchorage emerged from last week’s pair of games with two more wins, running its record to 19-1 on the season. The team blew out Western Washington for a 74-55 victory in Bellingham before topping Simon Fraser to end the week.

• The team’s 68-63 victory in Burnaby snapped a six-game winning streak for the Clan. Senior Hannah Wandersee poured in a game-high 28 points while pulling down six rebounds to lead the Seawolves to the big win.

• Wandersee’s exploits helped clinch her the title of GNAC Player of the Week. The award is the Kodiak product’s third of the season.

• Wandersee is the team’s leader in scoring, averaging 14.8 points per game. She is followed by guard Yazmeen Goo, who is scoring at a clip of 9.4 points per game.

• Alaska Anchorage is ranked No. 10 in the latest WBCA Division II Coaches Poll and No. 15 in the D2SIDA Poll.

• The team stays on the road this week, traveling to Fairbanks to face rival Alaska on Tuesday before closing the week at Montana State Billings on Saturday.

CENTRAL WASHINGTON
• The Wildcats dropped a pair of tight decisions last week, falling in overtime to Concordia before falling 74-70 to Western Oregon. The team finds itself in fourth place as the final month of the regular season gets underway.

• The team’s best performance of the week came from forward Taylor Shaw, who totaled a game-high 25 points against the Wolves. The junior is averaging 10.1 points game, one of five Wildcats averaging in double figures.

• Guard Alexis Pana leads the team in both scoring (15.4 points per game) and assists (5.5 per game).

• The team is sharing the ball at some of the highest rates in the country, dishing out a total of 17.5 assists per game. That has CWU ranked second in the GNAC and 13th nationally.  

• The Wildcats will hit the road this week, traveling south to face Seattle Pacific on Thursday night and Saint Martin’s two days later.

CONCORDIA
• Concordia split its two-game trip last week, taking down then third-place Central Washington in overtime on Thursday night before falling to No. 8 Northwest Nazarene on Saturday.

• The defeat to the Nighthawks snapped a three-game winning streak for the Cavaliers.

• Guard Olivia Vezaldenos shined in her team’s 78-69 victory up in Ellensburg, scoring a game-high 21 points. She was one of three Cavaliers to finish scoring in double figures.  

• Vezaldenos leads the team in scoring, averaging 15.3 points per game through 13 weeks of play. On the glass, senior Keesha Sarman tops CU with 7.7 rebounds per game.

• The Cavaliers will return to the floor on Thursday evening to host Simon Fraser. They will then round out the week two days later with a Saturday afternoon date against Western Washington.

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
• The Yellowjackets hit the road last week and split a pair of games, falling in a tight contest at Seattle Pacific before topping Saint Martin’s, 76-69.

• Sophomore Hannah Collins led her team in the road victory, tallying 18 points to go along with three rebounds and a pair of assists. Collins leads the team in scoring with 16.1 points per game while freshman Taryn Shelley paces the club in rebounds (8.0 per game).

• The team has shined at taking care of the ball this year, leading the GNAC and ranking 14th nationally in fewest turnovers (246).

• Montana State Billings is back in action this week, hosting Alaska on Thursday at 7 p.m. and Alaska Anchorage two nights later at 5 p.m.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
• The Nighthawks got back to their winning ways last week, blowing out Western Oregon for a 77-43 victory before handling Concordia to cap the week. Prior to a late-January defeat at Simon Fraser, the team was one of the country’s final five unbeatens.

• Guard Avery Albrecht shined for NNU in the week’s victories, leading her team with an average of 20.5 points and three rebounds per game. She was one of five players to finish at least one game scoring in double figures.  

• Albrecht leads the team with 13.4 points per game as the fourth month of the season begins. Senior Ellie Logan is following closely behind at a clip of 11.9 points per game.

• The Nighthawks are ranked No. 7 in the latest WBCA Division II Coaches Poll and No. 9 in the D2SIDA Poll.

• Northwest Nazarene hits the road this week, facing Saint Martin’s in Lacey on Thursday before a Saturday afternoon date with Seattle Pacific.

SAINT MARTIN’S
• Saint Martin’s was in action for two contests last week, blowing out rival Seattle Pacific for a 91-70 victory on the road before suffering a tight loss to Montana State Billings.

• The 91 points scored in Seattle marked the club’s highest regulation total this season.

• Guard Makenna Schultz led SMU in the contest, compiling a game-high 23 points while dishing out five assists. She was one of four Saints to finish scoring in double figures.  

• Sophomore Saniah Simpson-Patu has led Saint Martin’s this season, averaging 14.2 points per game. Simpson-Patu leads the conference in field goal attempts (273).

• Saint Martin’s is back home this week, welcoming in Northwest Nazarene and Central Washington to Lacey. Both games will tip-off at 7 p.m.

SEATTLE PACIFIC
• Seattle Pacific was in action for a pair of games last week, splitting its pair of home contests. The team topped Montana State Billings for a 79-74 victory after falling to Saint Martin’s.  

• The Falcons were led in the win by guard Riley Evans, who finished with 18 points and seven rebounds against the Yellowjackets.

• Evans leads the team in scoring through 13 weeks of play at a clip of 14.5 points per game. Senior Cici West is next at an average of 9.9 points per game.

• Seattle Pacific will be home again this week, beginning on Thursday against Central Washington. Two days later they will cap the week against Northwest Nazarene.

SIMON FRASER
• The Clan split a visit from the Alaska schools last week. The team blew out Alaska for a 85-48 victory before falling in the final seconds against Alaska Anchorage.

• Senior Sophie Swant led the team in the win, scoring a game-high 20 points while tallying four assists. Sophomore Jessica Jones followed Swant with 11 points and four assists of her own.  

• Swant is at the top of the SFU scoring list after 19 games, averaging a clip of 14.9 points per game. Jones is closely behind at 12.0 per game.

• The team will head south of the border this week for its Oregon swing. Simon Fraser will be in Portland to face Concordia on Thursday before closing the week at Western Oregon two nights later. 

WESTERN OREGON
• Western Oregon was in action for a pair of games, posting an important 74-70 victory at Central Washington after falling at Northwest Nazarene earlier in the week.

• Forward Natalie DeLonge led the Wolves in the big win, compiling 19 points and six rebounds. DeLonge added a team-high 12 points earlier in the week against the Nighthawks.

• DeLonge leads Western Oregon with an average of 14.6 points per game. Sophomore Keyonna Jones is next on the team, scoring at a clip of 10.1 points per game.

• The Wolves return home this week, hosting Western Washington on Thursday at 7 p.m. before Simon Fraser comes to town two nights later. 

WESTERN WASHINGTON
• The Vikings were in action twice last week, blowing out Alaska for a 66-36 victory after falling to Alaska Anchorage.  

• Western Washington was led in the win by sophomore Kelsey Rogers, who tallied a game-high 17 points while pulling down six rebounds.

• Rogers leads the team in scoring, averaging 14.3 points per game after 13 weeks of action. Two other Vikings, Dani Iwami (12.1 points per game) and Anna Schwecke (11.7 points per game), are scoring in double figures as the fourth month of the season begins.  

• The Vikings will hit the road this week, beginning with a trip to Monmouth to face Western Oregon on Thursday at 7 p.m.. The week will then conclude two days later at Concordia.