Tuesday, April 11, 2023

THIS WEEK'S GNAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Player
Colby Moran, Northwest Nazarene
IF • 6-2 • So. • Murrieta, Calif.

Moran was named the GNAC Baseball Player of the Week after leading the Northwest Nazarene against Western Oregon last week. Moran finished the series with a .571 batting average going 8 for 14 with four runs, two doubles, a triple, two home runs and five RBIs. He put one of his best performances of the week together in Saturday’s 6-5 game one win where he went 3 for 4 with a pair of two-run homers.

Also Nominated: Austin Ohland (Central Washington), Carson Green (Montana State Billings), Derek Maiben (Western Oregon).

Pitcher
Reid Rasmussen, Central Washington
LHP • 6-3 • So. • Selah, Wash.

Rasmussen earned GNAC Baseball Pitcher of the Week honors after throwing a complete-game victory for the Wildcats. Rasmussen allowed three runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out three.

Also Nominated: Daniel Naughton (Montana State Billings), Joseph Ihli (Northwest Nazarene), Dylan Chalmers (Western Oregon).

AROUND THE GNAC

CENTRAL WASHINGTON
• Central Washington split its week against Saint Martin’s at home, dropping both of Friday’s games, 7-6 and 7-1, before bouncing back to win both of Saturday’s games, 16-4 and 12-3, to cap off the series.

• Sophomore Reid Rasmussen earned GNAC Baseball Pitcher of the Week honors after throwing a complete-game victory for the Wildcats in the series finale on Saturday. The lefty allowed three runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out three to improve to 2-1 on the season.

• Senior Trevor Tripoli was the most reliable bat for the Wildcats last week, notching at least one hit in every game and leading the team with a .583 batting average while slugging 1.083. Tripoli finished the week 7 for 12 with four RBIs, five runs scored, two triples, two doubles and a walk. He had an extra-base hit in every game, with doubles in the opener and finale and triples in games two and three. Tripoli leads CWU and ranks 10th in the GNAC with a .330 batting average. He also leads the team and ranks seventh in the conference with a .421 on base percentage.

• Junior Austin Ohland brought the power last week, averaging a home run per game as he finished the series 5 for 15 with six RBIs and seven runs scored on four home runs, a double and two walks. Ohland opened his week with a pair of solo shots in Friday’s 7-6 loss and closed the series going 2 for 4 with a two-run homer in the first inning and a solo home run in the third. Ohland is tied for third in the GNAC with six home runs on the season.

• Central Washington caps off its season-long homestand with a non-conference game against Eastern Oregon on Tuesday before facing Western Oregon for a four-game series in Monmouth on Saturday and Sunday.

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
• Montana State Billings went 3-1 on the week in a four-game non-conference series against Colorado Christian. The Yellowjackets set a program record for runs in the series opener on Friday, winning 30-6 before dropping the second half of the doubleheader 6-2. On Saturday, MSUB secured the series win with 15-9 and 7-6 wins.

• Senior Carson Green led the charge for the Yellowjackets at the plate, finishing the series with a .533 batting average after going 8 for 15 with six RBIs, 11 runs scored, three doubles, a home run, four walks and three stolen bases. In Friday’s record-setting win, Green went 4 for 4 with three RBIs and a walk with a pair of doubles.

• Sophomore Sage Wayment earned a no-decision on the mound for the Yellowjackets after entering Friday’s loss in the fourth inning with the bases loaded and no outs. Wayment closed out the inning by forcing a pop out, a fielder’s choice and a ground out before throwing the remainder of the game. He finished the game allowing two hits and one walk with three strikeouts and held the Cougars to a .143 batting average.

• Montana State Billings returns to conference action this week, hosting Northwest Nazarene for a pair of doubleheaders on Friday and Saturday.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
• Northwest Nazarene went 3-1 against Western Oregon to jump the Wolves for first place in the GNAC standings last week. The Nighthawks dropped the series opener on Friday 8-3 before bouncing back to win the nightcap 11-7. They followed that up by winning Saturday’s games 6-5 and 9-1.

• Junior Joseph Ihli earned his eighth save of the season in Saturday’s 6-5 win, throwing 1.2 perfect innings with a pair of strikeouts. In the series finale, he threw another 1.2 frames, allowing just one hit and striking out a pair. Ihli is No. 3 in Division II in saves and owns a 1.71 ERA in 17 appearances.

• Sophomore Colby Moran earned GNAC Baseball Player of the Week recognition after finishing the series with a .571 batting average, going 8 for 14 with four runs, two doubles, a triple, two home runs and five RBIs. He put one of his best performances of the week together in Saturday’s 6-5 game one win where he went 3 for 4 with a pair of two-run homers. Moran is tied for eighth in the GNAC with 21 RBIs and owns a .322 batting average.

• Senior Shane Jamison only notched two hits last week, but flexed his muscles by crushing both for home runs. Jamison went 1 for 4 in Friday’s win with a three-run homer in the fourth inning and blasted a grand slam in the fourth inning of Saturday’s series finale while going 1 for 3.

• Northwest Nazarene hits the road this week to face Montana State Billings for a pair of doubleheaders on Friday and Saturday.

SAINT MARTIN’S
• Saint Martin’s split its four-game series at Central Washington last week, winning both of Friday’s games, 7-6 and 7-1, before falling in Saturday’s games, 16-4 and 12-3.

• Sophomore Alohi Arecchi led the Saints at the plate for the week with a .500 batting average, .643 on base percentage and a .700 slugging percentage. Arecchi finished the series 5 for 10 with three RBIs and two runs scored with two doubles and a pair of walks. He notched a pair of hits in both of Friday’s wins, going 2 for 4 with two RBIs, a run and a walk in game one before going 2 for 2 with an RBI and a walk in the second half of the doubleheader.

• Junior Justice Yamashita threw his third complete game of the season in Friday’s 7-1 win. Yamashita allowed just one run on seven hits and one walk while striking out three batters to improve to 3-4 on the season. He ranks fourth in the GNAC with a 4.47 ERA and is second in the conference with 46.1 innings pitched and 47 strikeouts.

• Freshman Brady Bean continued his strong debut campaign, going 7 for 19 in the series with four RBIs and three runs scored with three doubles and a pair of stolen bases. He recorded multi-hit performances in three of four games, including a 2 for 6 effort in the series opener where he tallied two RBIs, one run scored and a stolen base with a double.

• Saint Martin’s will play a non-conference game against Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington on Wednesday for its lone contest of the week.

WESTERN OREGON
• Western Oregon went 1-3 on the road against Northwest Nazarene last week, dropping to second below the Nighthawks in the GNAC standings in the process. The Wolves won the series opener on Friday, 8-3, before falling 11-7 in the nightcap. They dropped both of Saturday’s games, 6-5 and 9-1, to close out the series.

• Senior Derek Maiben was the most consistent presence at the plate for WOU last week, finishing the series 7 for 15 with an RBI, two runs scored, a double, two walks and a stolen base. Maiben went 3 for 5 with an RBI, a run scored and a stolen base in Friday’s win and was flawless at shortstop through the series. Maiben leads Division II as the toughest player to strike out, only going down on strikes once in 108 at-bats this season.  

• Sophomore Dylan Chalmers picked up the lone win on the mound for the week for the Wolves to improve to 4-0 on the season. Chalmers finished Friday’s outing allowing two runs on four hits and three walks with three strikeouts through six innings of work and threw 88 pitches. Chalmers leads the GNAC with a 2.72 ERA through seven starts and ranks second in the conference with a .214 opponent batting average.

• Western Oregon will face Bushnell on the road Tuesday for a non-conference game before returning home for a four-game set against Central Washington on Saturday and Sunday.