Monday, September 23, 2019

PORTLAND, Ore. – After setting a pair of GNAC single-game records in a 36-27 win over Western New Mexico on Saturday, Central Washington senior kicker Gavin Todd headlines the GNAC Player of the Week awards.

Todd was named the GNAC Football Special Teams Player of the Week after he went 5 for 5 on field goals in the win. That eclipsed the former record of four field goals in a game set seven different times, most recently by Azusa Pacific’s Jamie Cacciatore in 2013. Combined with his three extra points, Todd also set a GNAC record with 18 points scored kicking. That betters the previous mark of 16 set three times, most recently by Azusa Pacific’s Jacob Hall last year.

Western Oregon collected the remaining two football awards after the Wolves won at Azusa Pacific, 42-36, for the first time since 2012. Sophomore running back Omari Land was named the Offensive Player of the Week after he carried the ball 18 times for 122 yards and three touchdowns. He scored what proved to be the winning touchdown with 9:43 left in the fourth quarter. Freshman defensive lineman Tyrell Cummings earned defensive honors after he finished with seven tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble.

Saint Martin’s senior forward Brandon Madsen picked up the Men’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Week award after he scored six goals in three wins, notching two goals in each match. He had both goals in Thursday’s 2-0 win at Academy of Art, had two in the 4-1 win at Stanislaus State on Saturday and a pair of goals in Sunday’s 3-2 win over Lubbock Christian.

Northwest Nazarene sophomore goalkeeper Alex Nadermann earned the Defensive Player of the Week honor after he gained shutouts in the Nighthawks’ 2-0 road wins at Notre Dame de Namur on Thursday and at Dominican (Calif.) on Saturday.

Western Oregon junior forward Alyssa Tomasini was honored as the Women’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Week after she scored two goals and had an assist as the Wolves went 2-0-1 in three matches. She assisted on the game-winner at home over Hawaii Pacific on Thursday and tallied single goals in Monday’s 2-2 tie with Academy of Art and the 3-2 overtime win over Cal State Dominguez Hills on Saturday.

Western Washington senior midfielder Jordyn Bartleson is the Defensive Player of the Week for her efforts in leading the Vikings in a pair of hard-fought matches. The week included holding Texas Woman’s without a shot on goal in a 2-0 shutout on Thursday.

Alaska Anchorage right-side hitter Eve Stephens is the Volleyball Player of the Week after she finished with 30 kills and a .361 hitting percentage in two road wins to open GNAC play. Stephens finished with seven kills at Seattle Pacific on Thursday and 23 kills at Saint Martin’s on Saturday.

Western Washington freshman outside hitter Calley Heilborn earned the Defensive Player of the Week award after she finished with 32 digs and eight blocks in a pair of victories. She finished with 19 digs, four blocks and 11 kills against Northwest Nazarene on Thursday and with 13 digs, four blocks and 10 kills against Central Washington on Saturday.

Seattle Pacific sophomore Kaylee Mitchell ran to Women’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week honors after she won the PLU Invitational on Saturday. She covered the 6,000-meter course in 21:04.4 as she won her season-opening race for the second year in a row. Western Oregon senior Justin Crosswhite was named the Men’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week after placing third at the Sundowner Invitational, clocking a time of 24:57.1 for 8,000 meters.

Northwest Nazarene junior Isaac Emerson and Western Washington senior Ethan Casto share the first Men’s Golf Player of the Week award of the season after the two players tied for second at the Saint Martin’s Invitational. Each player carded a score of 11-under-par 205, which included identical low rounds of 6-under-par 66 on the final round.

Simon Fraser senior Jaya Rampuri is the first Women’s Golf Player of the Week for 2019-20 after she won the True North Classic in Richmond, B.C., last Tuesday. Rampuri scored a pair of even-par 72 rounds to finish with a score of 144, winning the tournament by three strokes.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 4
FOOTBALL
Offensive: Omari Land (Western Oregon, RB, 5-11, 185, So., Oakland, Calif. – San Leandro): Land was a big factor in the Wolves 42-36 GNAC season-opening win at Azusa Pacific. Land rushed for 122 yards on 18 carries with three touchdowns and a long rush of 31 yards. He contributed what proved to be the winning touchdown in the fourth quarter, making his 10-yard scoring run with 9:43 left in the game. Also Nominated: Michael Roots (Central Washington), Gavin Cobb (Simon Fraser).

Defensive: Tyrell Cummings (Western Oregon, DL, 6-0, 315, Fr., Seattle, Wash. – Univ. of Central Oklahoma): Cummings was one of three Western Oregon players to finish with seven tackles in the Wolves’ 42-36 win at Azusa Pacific. He had two solo tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss for 11 yards, one sack for seven yards and forced a fumble. Also Nominated: Jeremiah Vasquez (Central Washington), Brendan Lowry (Simon Fraser).

Special Teams: Gavin Todd (Central Washington, P/K, 6-2, 190, Sr., Simi Valley, Calif. – Moorpark Coll.): Todd set a GNAC single-game record by connecting on five field goals in the Wildcats’ 36-27 win at Western New Mexico. He connected on four of his five field goals in the second half and twice hit for a long of 38 yards. The five field goals surpassed the GNAC record of four reached on seven occasions, most recently Jamie Cacciatore of Azusa Pacific in 2013. Combined with his three extra-point conversions, Todd scored 18 points kicking to surpass the GNAC record of 16 in a game, most recently accomplished by Jacob Hall of Azusa Pacific in 2018. Also Nominated: Aidan Pearce (Simon Fraser), Curtis Anderson (Western Oregon).

MEN’S SOCCER
Offensive: Brandon Madsen (Saint Martin’s, F, 6-1, Sr., Auburn, Wash. – Seattle Univ.): Madsen scored a total of six goals in the Saints’ three wins last week, tallying two in each match. Madsen scored both goals in Thursday’s 2-0 win at Academy of Art. He needed just four minutes to open scoring in Friday’s 4-1 at Stanislaus State and netted an insurance strike in the 53rd minute. Madsen closed with two goals in the Saints’ 3-2 win on Sunday against Lubbock Christian. Madsen now has nine goals and has scored two goals in four of the Saints’ last five matches. Also Nominated: Brendan Luan (Concordia), Jake Levine (Northwest Nazarene), Matteo Polisi (Simon Fraser), Georg Cholewa (Western Washington).

Defensive: Alex Nadermann (Northwest Nazarene, GK, 6-0, So., Redmond, Ore. – Ridgeview): Nadermann was in goal as the Nighthawks notched a pair of shutouts on the road. He made two saves against 11 shots in a 2-0 shutout at Notre Dame de Namur on Thursday and then had two more saves against eight shots in a 2-0 shutout at Dominican (Calif.) on Saturday. Also Nominated: Klaus Huovila (Concordia), Dylan Shaw (Saint Martin’s), Marcello Polisi (Simon Fraser), Jeremiah Lee (Western Washington).

WOMEN’S SOCCER
Offensive: Alyssa Tomasini (Western Oregon, F, 5-8, Jr., Camas, Wash. – Camas): Tomasini finished with two goals and an assist as the Wolves finished the week with a 2-0-1 record. She took nine shots in the three matches, including five on goal. Tomasini scored the opening goal in Monday’s 2-2 tie at Academy of Art. She then assisted on the game-winner in Thursday’s 1-0 shutout of Hawaii Pacific and scored the Wolves’ second goal in a 3-2 overtime win over Cal State Dominguez Hills on Saturday. Also Nominated: Kyra Radcliffe (Concordia), Lexie Bloyder (Montana State Billings), Shea McKnight (Saint Martin’s), Liv Larson (Western Washington).

Defensive: Jordyn Bartleson (Western Washington, M, 5-4, Sr., Puyallup, Wash. – Puyallup): Bartleson anchored the Western Washington defense in a pair of hard-fought matches. She played 71 minutes in the Vikings’ 1-0 overtime loss at Cal State LA on Monday and then was part of a defense that allowed Texas Woman’s no shots on goal in a 2-0 shutout on Thursday. Also Nominated: Erinn Harder (Montana State Billings), Sara Christensen (Saint Martin’s), Nicole Anderson (Simon Fraser), Alex Qualls (Western Oregon).

VOLLEYBALL
Offensive: Eve Stephens (Alaska Anchorage, RS, 6-1, So., Palmer, Alaska – Colony): Stephens led the Seawolves to conference-opening road wins in the Puget Sound region with 30 kills, averaging 4.29 kills per set, with a .361 hitting percentage. Stephens finished with seven kills, seven digs, an ace and two blocks in the Seawolves’ three-set sweep of Seattle Pacific on Thursday. She then led UAA with 23 kills, a .392 hitting percentage, nine digs and two blocks in Saturday’s four-set win at Saint Martin’s. Also Nominated: Cate Whiting (Alaska), Gabrielle Aihara (Central Washington), Katelyn Brandenburg (Concordia), Maddi Vigil (Montana State Billings), Britney Duvall (Saint Martin’s), Betsie de Beer (Simon Fraser), Gabby Gunterman (Western Washington).

Defensive: Calley Heilborn (Western Washington, OH, 6-1, Fr., Auburn, Wash. – Auburn Riverside): Heilborn finished with 32 digs and eight blocks to go along with 21 kills as the Vikings improved to 10-0 with a pair of road wins. She finished with 19 digs and four blocks to go with 11 kills in Thursday’s four-set win over Northwest Nazarene. Heilborn then came up with 13 digs and four blocks to go with 10 kills in Saturday’s three-set sweep of Central Washington. Also Nominated: Makena Overbey (Alaska), Vera Pluharova (Alaska Anchorage), Julia Mellander (Central Washington), Kahua Tilton (Concordia), Marissa Logozzo (Montana State Billings), Kiana Pel (Saint Martin’s), Bianca Te (Simon Fraser).

CROSS COUNTRY
Men: Justin Crosswhite (Western Oregon, Sr., Hood River, Ore. – Hood River): Running on his home course, Crosswhite was the top GNAC placer at Friday’s Sundowner Invitational. Crosswhite placed third as he covered the 8,000-meter course in a time of 24:57.1 and sat 21 seconds behind the winner. He led the Wolves to a fifth-place team finish. Also Nominated: Trevor Allen (Central Washington), Carlos Vargas (Simon Fraser), Alec Ritter (Western Washington).

Women: Kaylee Mitchell (Seattle Pacific, So., Salem, Ore. – Sprague): Mitchell was the individual champion on Saturday at the PLU Invitational, covering the 6,000-meter course in a time of 21:04.4. She finished with a 28-second cushion ahead of teammate Kate Lilly, who placed second. It was the second career win for Mitchell, who led the Falcons to the team victory with a score of 24 points. It is the second year in a row that Mitchell has won in her season-opening meet. Also Nominated: Molly Mattson (Central Washington), Olivia Willett (Simon Fraser), Grace Knapp (Western Oregon), Jane Barr (Western Washington).

GOLF
Men: Ethan Casto (Western Washington, Sr., Snohomish, Wash. – Snohomish): Casto tied for second at the season-opening Saint Martin’s Invitational, carding a three-round score of 11-under-par 205. He shot two rounds under 70, led by his 6-under-par 66 in the final round.

Isaac Emerson (Northwest Nazarene, Jr., Greenacres, Wash. – Central Valley): Emerson tied with Casto for second at the Saint Martin’s Invitational with a score of 11-under-par 205. None of his rounds were above 70 for the whole tournament as he carded a low-round of 6-under-par 66 on the final 18 holes. Also Nominated: Sebastian Lundberg (Concordia), Dennis Geissler (Saint Martin’s), Ryan Stolys (Simon Fraser).

Women: Jaya Rampuri (Simon Fraser, Sr., Coquitlam, B.C. – Charles Best): Rampuri was the medalist in the season-opening True North Classic, the first tournament that Simon Fraser has hosted as a Division II school. Rampuri turned in identical rounds of even-par 72 to finish with a score of 144. She bested second-place Cammie Decker of Concordia by three strokes and led the Clan to a 26-stroke win in the team competition. Also Nominated: Cammie Decker (Concordia), Megan Billeter (Western Washington).