Tuesday, May 2, 2023

THIS WEEK'S GNAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Player
Jacob Maiben, Western Oregon
OF • 5-9 • Sr. • Newberg, Ore.

Maiben was dominant in Western Oregon’s five-game sweep of Montana State Billings last week. He finished the week with a .619 batting average, going 13 for 21 with two doubles, two triples, eight runs and nine RBIs. Maiben had hits all five of the five games, including multi-hit efforts in four. In Friday’s dominant 25-8 win, Maiben went 4 for 5 with seven RBIs on a triple and a double, only a home run short of hitting for the cycle. Maiben’s performances also earned him selection as the NCBWA Division II West Region Player of the Week.

Also Nominated: Payton Flynn (Montana State Billings), Kyle Payne (Northwest Nazarene), Brady Bean (Saint Martin’s).

Pitcher
Chris Hardin, Western Oregon
RHP • 6-2 • Sr. • Highland, Calif.

Hardin went the distance for the Wolves in Friday’s 3-2 win, allowing two runs on five hits and a walk with seven strikeouts through seven innings of work. His performance led all GNAC pitchers in strikeouts and innings pitched for the week.

Also Nominated: Ty Pohlmann (Northwest Nazarene), Mattingly Milledge (Saint Martin’s).

AROUND THE GNAC

CENTRAL WASHINGTON
• Central Washington had the week off from conference competition last week. The Wildcats hosted the final non-conference game of their regular season on Wednesday, taking a 7-5 win over Lewis-Clark State.

• Sophomore Ben Leid led the way for the offense in the win, going 3 for 5 with a pair of RBIs. Leid was one of five CWU players to hit for extra bases in the game with an RBI double in the fourth inning.

• Sophomore Gabe Bustamante picked up the win on the mound for Central Washington, throwing two innings and allowing two runs, one earned,  on five hits. Fellow sophomore Aaron Robertson earned the save, throwing two innings and giving up just two hits.

• Central Washington needs to win just one game this week to punch its ticket to the GNAC Championships. Three or more wins would earn CWU the No. 2 seed.

• The Wildcats will face Montana State Billings for a pair of doubleheaders on Thursday and Friday to determine which of the two teams will earn the final conference championships berth.

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
• Montana State Billings dropped five straight games to Western Oregon last week, losing a rain make-up on Thursday 11-5 before falling 25-8 and 3-2 on Friday. On Saturday, the Yellowjackets took a pair of 9-8 walk-off losses.

• Sophomore Jack Nehler was the most reliable batter for MSUB last week, picking up at least one hit in every game to finish the series 8 for 16. Nehler opened the series with a 2 for 4 effort on Thursday, scoring two runs and hitting a double. He then went 3 for 3 with a stolen base and an RBI triple in Friday’s 3-2 loss.

• Junior Payton Flynn also picked up a hit in every game, finishing the week 7 for 18 with five RBIs, six runs scored, a walk, a double and a pair of home runs. Flynn put together one of his best performances of the week in the series finale, going 2 for 2 with two RBIs and two runs scored on a walk and a solo home run in the fifth inning.

• Montana State Billings holds its fate in its own hands heading into the final week of the regular season. The Yellowjackets will need to sweep Central Washington in a pair of doubleheaders at home on Thursday and Friday to earn a berth to the GNAC Championships. Montana State Billings owns a 9-5 record on home soil this year while Central Washington is 9-8 on the road.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
• Northwest Nazarene ended its conference slate at home by taking three of four games against Saint Martin’s. The Nighthawks split Friday’s doubleheader with a 9-5 win and a 7-5 loss before sweeping Saturday’s games 6-5 and 12-3 to secure a berth to the GNAC Championships.

• Junior Kyle Payne was an offensive machine for NNU last week, finishing the series 7 for 15 with 10 RBIs and seven runs scored with two home runs, two stolen bases and a walk. Payne bookended the series with a pair of four-RBI performances. In Friday’s opener, he went 2 for 4 with four RBIs and a run scored with an RBI single in the second inning and a three-run blast in the sixth. Payne closed the series with a 3 for 4 effort that included a stolen base along with a grand slam in the fifth inning.

• Senior Spencer Schwehr finished the week with a 3.60 ERA after picking up the win on the bump in Friday’s 9-5 victory. Schwehr threw five innings in the win and allowed two runs on three hits and three walks while striking out three.

• Sophomore Mason Leavitt racked up the hits last week, going 8 for 14 with an RBI and two runs scored while also drawing four walks. Leavitt put together his best performance of the week in Saturday’s 6-5 win, going 3 for 4 with a run scored, a double, a walk and three stolen bases.

• With its conference schedule complete, Northwest Nazarene will watch to see its seeding position for the GNAC Championships. If Central Washington wins at least three games, NNU would drop to the No. 3 seed after trailing the season series, 5-3, to the Wildcats.

SAINT MARTIN’S
• Saint Martin’s dropped three out of four games against Northwest Nazarene last week. The Saints split Friday’s doubleheader with a 9-5 loss in the opener before bouncing back with a 7-5 win in the nightcap. They dropped Saturday’s games 6-5 and 12-3.

• Sophomore Damon Ingram led the way for the offense last week, finishing the series with a .364 batting average in three appearances. He went 4 for 11 at the plate with six RBIs and two runs scored with a walk and a home run. Ingram did most of his damage on Friday, going 1 for 3 with a three-run homer in the first inning in game one. He followed that up with a 2 for 4 effort in the Saint’s 7-5 win with two RBIs and a run scored.

• Junior Justice Yamashita picked up the win on the mound for Saint Martin’s last week, improving to 4-5 on the season. Yamashita allowed five runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out three in 5.1 innings of work. Fellow junior Mattingly Milledge earned his third save of the season, rounding out the final 2.1 innings while allowing just one hit and two walks.

• Saint Martin’s will host Western Oregon for its final series of the season with doubleheaders on Thursday and Friday.

WESTERN OREGON
• Western Oregon extended its win streak to 10 games, by taking all five of its contests against Montana State Billings at home last week. The Wolves opened their week with an 11-5 victory in Thursday’s rain make-up. On Friday, WOU took a pair of contrasting wins, exploding for a 25-8 victory in game two before taking a narrow 3-2 win in game three. The Wolves closed out the series with a pair of 9-8 walk-off wins on Saturday to secure its second consecutive GNAC regular season title.

• Senior Jacob Maiben earned GNAC Baseball Player of the Week honors with a dominant series at the plate. Maiben finished the week with a .619 batting average, going 13 for 21 with two doubles, two triples, eight runs and nine RBIs. He had hits all five of the five games, including multi-hit efforts in four. In Friday’s dominant 25-8 win, Maiben went 4 for 5 with seven RBIs on a triple and a double, only a home run short of hitting for the cycle. His efforts also earned him selection as the NCBWA Division II West Region Player of the Week.

• Senior Chris Hardin was named the GNAC Baseball Pitcher of the Week after going the distance for the Wolves in Friday’s 3-2 win. Hardin allowed two runs on five hits and a walk with seven strikeouts through seven innings of work. His performance led all GNAC pitchers in strikeouts and innings pitched for the week.

• Senior Curran Mitzel put in another stellar effort for WOU at the plate last week, finishing the series with a .615 batting average and a .727 on base percentage while slugging .923. Mitzel was 8 for 13 against MSUB, racking up seven RBIs and six runs scored with four walks, a double and a home run. In Friday’s 25-8 victory, Mitzel went 3 for 4 with four RBIs, two runs scored and a walk including a three-run blast in the fifth inning.

• Western Oregon will get a preview of the host site for the GNAC Championships this week as it travels to face Saint Martin’s in Lacey, Washington for its final series of the regular season.