Monday, March 11, 2019

PORTLAND, Ore. – It is one thing to have a great hitting weekend, but another thing to put up video game numbers like Central Washington’s Theresa Moyle did against Northwest Nazarene.

The sophomore leads the list of honorees for GNAC Player of the Week, collecting Softball Player of the Week numbers after she hit .778 in four games, going 7 for 9 with nine runs, 10 RBI, a double and four home runs. She finished the week with a .833 on-base percentage and a 2.222 slugging percentage as the Wildcats swept the Nighthawks in Nampa, Idaho. Moyle essentially accomplished her feats in three games, entering solely as a pinch-runner in the series opener on Friday.

Western Washington senior Shearyna Labasan and Montana State Billings freshman Alyssa Etheridge shared the Softball Pitcher of the Week award. Labasan returned from a knee injury to earn three wins on the Vikings’ Oregon road trip. In 16.2 innings, Labasan allowed two runs on 16 hits, striking out eight, as she amassed a 0.84 earned run average for the week. Etheridge threw the third no-hitter in the conference this season on Sunday against Saint Martin’s, allowing one unearned run on a bases-loaded walk while striking out five.

The Yellowjackets swept the baseball awards after taking three of four games at Northwest Nazarene. Senior Connor Linebarger was named the Baseball Player of the Week after he went 10 for 17 with eight runs, three RBI, two doubles and a home run with a .882 slugging percentage. He had five hits in Friday’s opener, which tied the MSUB school record. Freshman Dylan Barkley was named the Baseball Pitcher of the Week after he allowed four hits and two walks and struck out eight over six innings to win Friday’s nightcap, 4-1. It was Barkley’s first collegiate win.

Western Washington athletes earned two of the conference’s four track awards, both thanks to performances in the 400-meter hurdles. Junior Cordell Cummings was named the Men’s Track Athlete of the Week after he won the 400-meter hurdles at the PLU Open in a time of 54.17 seconds, which is fifth-fastest in Division II this season. Sophomore Molly House picked up Women’s Track Athlete of the Week accolades with her 400-meter hurdles win in 1:06.03, which ranks her 17th in Division II this season.

Concordia senior Josh Koch was honored as the Men’s Field Athlete of the Week after he won the shot put at the Saints Open in Gresham, Oregon, by over four feet with a mark of 53 feet, 2.75 inches. The NCAA Championships provisional qualifying mark is fourth in Division II this season. Saint Martin’s senior Liz Larson was named the Women’s Field Athlete of the Week after she won the hammer at the PLU Open. Her mark of 172 feet, 10 inches, ranks No. 3 in Division II this season.

Simon Fraser junior Jaya Rampuri was named the Women’s Golf Player of the Week after she led GNAC golfers at the Tim Tierney Pioneer Shootout. Rampuri tied for sixth place with a two-day score of five-over-par 149. Concordia senior Jake Wiley was selected as the Men’s Golf Player of the Week after he tied for 17th place at the SoCal Intercollegiate, carding a three-round score of six-over-par 222.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 28
BASEBALL PLAYER
Connor Linebarger (Montana State Billings, IF, 6-2, Sr., Lake Oswego, Ore. – Univ. of Portland): Linebarger batted .588 in the four-game series at Northwest Nazarene, going 10 for 17 with eight runs, three RBI, two doubles and a home run as the Yellowjackets went 3-1. He finished with a .882 slugging percentage. Linebarger opened the series on Friday by going 5 for 5, tying the MSUB school record for hits in a game, and hit a solo home run in the 13-6 victory. He then had two hits in each of Saturday’s games, including going 2 for 4 with a run, two RBI and two doubles in the opener. Also Nominated: Jordan Farhat (Concordia), Ryne Oshiro (Saint Martin’s), Derek Maiben (Western Oregon).

BASEBALL PITCHER
Dylan Barkley (Montana State Billings, LHP, 5-11, Fr., Missoula, Mont. – Missoula): Barkley picked up his first collegiate win as he won Friday’s 4-1 nightcap against Northwest Nazarene. In six innings, Barkley allowed four hits and two walks while striking out eight. He threw 95 pitches, 57 for strikes. Also Nominated: Trevor Huddleston (Concordia), Aaron Shoup (Saint Martin’s), Austin Crowson (Western Oregon).

SOFTBALL PLAYER
Theresa Moyle (Central Washington, IF/C, 5-4, So., Weiser, Idaho – Weiser): Moyle led the Wildcats to a four-game sweep at Northwest Nazarene by hitting .778, going 7 for 9 with nine runs, 10 RBI, a double and four home runs. She finished the week with a .833 on-base percentage and a 2.222 slugging percentage. Moyle went 2 for 3 with three runs and a three-run homer in the first in Saturday’s 9-6 second-game win. Moyle opened Sunday by going 3 for 4 with three runs and six RBI, five of which came on a pair of home runs, in a 10-9 victory. She closed by going 2 for 3 with two runs and an RBI in the 10-4 win. Also Nominated: Mckenzie Smith (Concordia), Emery Norwood (Saint Martin’s), Tyler Creach (Western Oregon), Seli Aholelei (Western Washington).

SOFTBALL PITCHER
Shearyna Labasan (Western Washington, P/3B, 5-3, Sr., Mililani, Hawaii – Maryknoll): Playing her first games of the season after a knee injury, Labasan proceeded to win go 3-0 and compiled a 0.84 earned run average for the week. She allowed two runs on 16 hits in 16.2 innings, striking out eight and walking just two. Labasan earned the win in Saturday’s 3-2 opener at Concordia in relief, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out two in 1.2 innings. She then won the nightcap, allowing five hits and striking out five. At Western Oregon on Sunday, Labasan allowed three hits in two innings of relief in the opener before allowing two runs on seven hits in the nightcap, a 10-2, six-inning victory.

Alyssa Etheridge (Montana State Billings, P/1B, 5-9, Fr., Grants Pass, Ore. – Grants Pass): Etheridge threw the third no-hitter in the GNAC this season, and the first in MSUB history, in Sunday’s 8-1 win over Saint Martin’s. She allowed seven walks and struck out five, with the one run allowed coming via a bases-loaded walk. Also Nominated: Mckenzie Smith (Concordia), Brandi Schoessler (Saint Martin’s), Haley Fabian (Western Oregon).

MEN’S TRACK
Cordell Cummings (Western Washington, Jr., Lake Stevens, Wash. – Arlington): Cummings won the 400-meter hurdles at Saturday’s PLU Open in Tacoma. His winning time of 54.17 seconds is the best in GNAC this season and fifth-best in Division II this season.

MEN’S FIELD
Josh Koch (Concordia, Sr., Dayton, Nev. – Dayton): Koch opened his outdoor season by notching an NCAA Championships provisional qualifying mark in the shot put at the Saints Open in Gresham, Oregon. He won the event by over four feet with a mark of 53 feet, 2.75 inches, which currently ranks fourth in Division II. Koch also placed fourth in the discus with a mark of 143 feet, 4 inches. Also Nominated: Avery Lux (Western Washington).

WOMEN’S TRACK
Molly House(Western Washington, So., Auburn, Wash. – Auburn Mountainview): House was the winner of the 400-meter hurdles at the PLU Open in Tacoma, clocking a time of 1:06.03. It is the best time in the GNAC this season and No. 17 in Division II.

WOMEN’S FIELD
Liz Larson (Saint Martin’s, Sr., Snoqualmie, Wash. – Mount Si): Larson opened her outdoor season with a win and an NCAA Championships provisional qualifying mark in the hammer at the PLU Open. Larson won by over 18 feet with a mark of 172 feet, 10 inches, which also ranks No. 3 in Division II this season. Also Nominated: Katrina Linenko (Concordia), Darian Wilson (Western Oregon), Paige Shimkus (Western Washington).

MEN’S GOLF
Jake Wiley (Concordia, Sr., Portland, Ore. – Sunset): Wiley was the top GNAC finisher at the SoCal Intercollegiate, tying for 17th place with a three-round score of six-over-par 222. He shot a low score of even-par 72 in the second to lead the Cavaliers to a ninth-place team finish at 893.

WOMEN’S GOLF
Jaya Rampuri (Simon Fraser, Jr., Coquitlam, B.C. – Charles Best): Rampuri tied for sixth to lead the GNAC field at the Tim Tierney Pioneer Shooting, carding a two-round score of five-over-par 149. She shot a low round of 73 on the opening day and led the Clan to a 10th-place team finish. Also Nominated: Shantel Antonio (Concordia), Shealyn Hafer (Montana State Billings), Katherine Swor (Saint Martin’s), Megan Billeter (Western Washington).