Monday, March 13, 2023

PORTLAND, Ore. – After leading Northwest Nazarene to a 3-1 start to conference play in a four-game series with Montana State Billings, senior infielder Maia McNicoll and junior pitcher Sidney Booth lead the GNAC Player of the Week selections.

McNicoll was named the Softball Player of the Week after she hit .455 in the four games, going 5 for 11 with three runs, two home runs and six RBIs. McNicoll opened with a two-run homer in Thursday’s 6-3 win before going 3 for 3 with a three-run shot in the nightcap, which NNU won 4-1. McNicoll closed the week going 1 for 4 in Saturday’s 6-3 loss.

Booth picked up Softball Pitcher of the Week honors after she threw a pair of complete-game victories. She allowed three runs on five hits and struck out 10 in Thursday’s 6-3 win. She then threw a two-hit shutout in Saturday’s 2-0 win, striking out 10 as she improved to 7-5 on the season.

The Nighthawks also saw sophomore infielder Mason Leavitt named the Baseball Player of the Week after he batted .429 in five games with nine hits, three runs, a double and four RBIs. He had a hit in each of NNU’s five games, going 3 for 5 with an RBI single in Thursday’s 6-5, 12-inning win over Montana State Billings. He added a 3 for 4 performance in Saturday’s game one loss to the Yellowjackets.

Western Oregon sophomore Bryce Bond picked up Baseball Pitcher of the Week honors after he finished one out short of the complete-game win on Sunday against Central Washington. In the 5-2 win, Bond allowed two runs, one earned, on four hits with a walk and 11 strikeouts to improve to 2-0 on the season.

Western Washington earned three of the four track awards thanks to winning performances at the PLU Open on Saturday. Sophomore Ila Davis was named the Women’s Track Athlete of the Week after she won the steeplechase in a time of 10:36.03 that is an NCAA Championships provisional qualifier and leads Division II this season.

Sophomore Katie Potts was selected as the Women’s Field Athlete of the Week after she won the discus by nearly two feet with her mark of 138 feet, 4 inches. The throw ranks No. 5 in Division II this season.

Freshman Gabe Menicke picked up Men’s Field Athlete of the Week honors after he won the long jump with a mark of 21 feet, 4 inches.

Saint Martin’s sophomore Isaac Cortes was named the Men’s Track Athlete of the Week thanks to his win in the 800 meters in a time of 1:56.26. He won by nearly two seconds over second-place Ryan Stracke of Pacific Lutheran.

Montana State Billings junior Carson Garner earned the Men’s Golf Player of the Week award after he led GNAC golfers at the NNU Poppy Ridge Invitational. Garner placed ninth with a two-round score of 5-over-par 149, which included a low round of 74 on the second day. Garner led the Yellowjackets to a fourth-place team finish.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 29
BASEBALL PLAYER
Mason Leavitt (Northwest Nazarene, IF, 5-10, So., Eagle, Idaho - Eagle): Leavitt batted .429 in five games, including a 3-1 series against Montana State Billings. He went 9 for 21 with three runs, a double and four RBIs. Leavitt had one hit in Monday’s 4-3 loss to Division I Utah Valley. He opened the MSUB series by going 3 for 5 with an RBI single in Thursday’s 6-5, 12-inning win. He added a 3 for 4 performance in Saturday’s 7-4 game one loss. Leavitt had a hit in all five games and finished with a .458 on-base percentage and .476 slugging percentage. Also Nominated: Kevin Varner, Jr. (Central Washington), Payton Flynn (Montana State Billings), AJ Cortese (Western Oregon).

BASEBALL PITCHER
Bryce Bond (Western Oregon, P, 6-4, So., Simi Valley, Calif. – Sierra Canyon): Bond threw 6.2 solid innings to lead Western Oregon to a 5-2 win over Central Washington on Sunday. Finishing one out short of the seven-inning complete game, Bond allowed two runs, one earned, on four hits with a walk and 11 strikeouts to improve to 2-0 on the season. Also Nominated: Brayde Hirai (Central Washington), Trevor Cassell (Montana State Billings), Ty Pohlmann (Northwest Nazarene).

SOFTBALL PLAYER
Maia McNicoll (Northwest Nazarene, OF, 5-5, Sr., Kaneohe, Hawaii – Maryknoll): McNicoll batted .455 as the Nighthawks went 3-1 against Montana State Billings, going 5 for 11 with three runs, two home runs and six RBIs. McNicoll opened the week with a two-run homer in Thursday’s 6-3 win before going 3 for 3 with a three-run shot in the 4-1 victory in the nightcap. She closed the week with a 1 for 4 effort in Saturday’s 6-3 loss. For the week, McNicoll finished with a .538 on-base percentage and a 1.000 slugging percentage. Also Nominated: Laney Kaysner (Central Washington), Marin Penney (Montana State Billings), Shelby Lawson (Saint Martin’s), Megan Duclos (Simon Fraser), Hailey Rath (Western Washington).

SOFTBALL PITCHER
Sidney Booth (Central Washington, P/UT, 5-4, Jr., Puyallup, Wash. – Puyallup): Booth amassed a 1.50 ERA in two wins over Montana State Billings, allowing three runs on seven hits with 19 strikeouts. In Thursday’s 6-3 win, Booth allowed three runs on five hits and struck out 10. She threw a two-hit shutout in Saturday’s 2-0 victory, striking out 10 as she improved to 7-5 on the season. Booth also batted .333 in the four games. Also Nominated: Ashlee Laver (Central Washington), Abby Runyon (Saint Martin’s), Julia Hansen (Simon Fraser), Maddie Mayer (Western Oregon), Mareena Ramirez (Western Washington).

MEN’S TRACK
Isaac Cortes (Saint Martin’s, So., Granite Falls, Wash. – Granite Falls): Cortes ran the fastest time in the GNAC this season in the 800 meters, winning the event at the PLU Open on Saturday. Cortes crossed the line in 1:56.26 and was over a second ahead of second-place Ryan Stracke of Pacific Lutheran. Also Nominated: Jaden Edwards (Western Washington).

MEN’S FIELD
Gabe Menicke (Western Washington, Fr., Whitefish, Mont. – Whitefish): Menicke won the long jump at the PLU Open on Saturday. His winning mark of 21 feet, 4 inches was over three inches better than second-place teammate Anouthai Vongphet and is No. 2 in the GNAC this season.

WOMEN’S TRACK
Ila Davis (Western Washington, So., Spokane, Wash. – Lewis & Clark): Davis won the steeplechase at the PLU Open on Saturday. She won the race by 51 seconds with a time of 10:36.03 that is an NCAA Championships provisional qualifying mark and is the top mark in Division II this season.

WOMEN’S FIELD
Katie Potts (Western Washington, So., Everett, Wash. – Glacier Peak): Potts was the winner by nearly two feet in the discus at the PLU Open on Saturday. Her winning mark of 138 feet, 4 inches is the fifth-best mark in Division II so far this season.

MEN’S GOLF
Carson Garner (Montana State Billings, Jr., Hot Springs, Ark. – Univ. of Arkansas-Monticello): Garner was the leading GNAC golfer at the NNU Poppy Ridge Invitational, finishing in ninth place with a two-round score of 5-over-par 149. He shot a low round of 2-over-par 74 in the second round and led the Yellowjackets to a fourth-place team finish.