Monday, May 2, 2022

PORTLAND, Ore. – Northwest Nazarene junior Maia McNicoll and Western Oregon senior Logan Carlos inked their names in the conference softball record books, earning the duo the lead spot in the GNAC Player of the Week awards.

McNicoll and Carlos shared the Softball Player of the Week award. McFadden led the Nighthawks to a series victory over Simon Fraser by batting .533 and going 8 for 15 with three runs, two doubles, a triple, a home run and 13 RBI. She tied the GNAC single-game record with eight RBI in the 14-3, five-inning series finale win. The final four RBI came on a grand slam in the fifth inning.

Carlos batted .500 for the Wolves in their series win over Central Washington, going 7 for 14 with five runs scored and five RBI. In the season finale on Sunday, Carlos became just the fifth GNAC player since 2014 to hit for the cycle, hitting a single, double, triple and a home run in the 15-4, five-inning win.

Western Washington senior Kira Doan was tabbed as the Softball Pitcher of the Week after she won both games for the Vikings in their series split with Saint Martin’s. She allowed one run on nine hits and struck out 13 in 16 innings and three appearances, which included a four-hit shutout in Sunday’s 4-0 opening game victory.

Northwest Nazarene swept the baseball weekly honors after taking all four games from Montana State Billings to take the driver’s seat in the quest for the regular-season championship. Senior Parker Price earned the Baseball Player of the Week award after batting .500 in the series, going 7 for 14 with four runs, two doubles, five RBI and three home runs. All three homers came on Friday as the Nighthawks won 4-3 and 5-2.

Senior Blake McFadden was named the Baseball Pitcher of the Week after he allowed just one baserunner in 5.2 innings of relief where he allowed just one hit. He earned the save in Friday’s 9-4 opening game win. He entered with just a one-run lead in the fifth and proceeded to allow just one hit over four innings. He then threw 1.2 innings of hitless relief in Saturday’s finale, striking out two.

On the water, the Western Washington Varsity 8+ was named the Women’s Rowing Crew of the Week after the Vikings won the D2/D3/Club grand final at the WIRA Championships. The eight crossed the line in a time of 6:50.64, finishing four seconds ahead of second-place Cal Poly Humboldt and eight seconds ahead of third-place Seattle Pacific.

Northwest Nazarene freshman Laurenz Waldbauer earned his second straight Men’s Field Athlete of the Week award after he won the javelin at the Bengal Invite with a mark of 237 feet, 6 inches. The mark leads Division II this season, moves him to No. 2 on the GNAC all-time list and is No. 13 this season across all college divisions.

Western Oregon freshman Kaylee Wright earned the Women’s Field Athlete of the Week honor after she moved to No. 4 in Division II this season and No. 8 on the GNAC all-time list in the javelin. She placed second at the OSU High Performance Meet with a mark of 158 feet, 8 inches.

Simon Fraser junior Aaron Ahl was named the Men’s Track Athlete of the Week after winning the 800 meters at the SFU High Performance No. 2 meet on Saturday. His time of 1:49.04 is No. 11 in Division II this season and ranks No. 3 on the GNAC all-time list.

Western Washington freshman Mia Crocker was tabbed as the Women’s Track Athlete of the Week after she won the mile at the Ralph Vernacchia Invitational in a school-record time of 4:52.95. Her converted time of 4:31.25 for 1,500 meters is an NCAA Championships provisional qualifying mark and ranks No. 47 in Division II this season.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 36
BASEBALL PLAYER
Parker Price (Northwest Nazarene, IF, 5-10, Sr., Boise, Idaho – Gonzaga Univ.): Price batted .500 as the Nighthawks swept a pivotal series from Montana State Billings, going 7 for 14 with four runs scored, two doubles, three home runs and five RBI. Price went 2 for 4 with a pair of home runs in Friday’s 9-4 opening-game win. He then went 4 for 4 in the nightcap, a 9-4 win, which included his third homer of the day and an RBI single. Price closed his week by going 1 for 4 with a run scored in Saturday’s 4-3 opening game victory. Also Nominated: Adam Fahsel (Central Washington), Aaron Renaud (Saint Martin’s).

BASEBALL PITCHER
Blake McFadden (Northwest Nazarene, P, 6-3, Sr., Meridian, Idaho – Treasure Valley CC): McFadden allowed just one hit in 5.2 innings of relief for the Nighthawks in the series sweep of Montana State Billings. McFadden entered Friday’s opener in MSUB’s four-run fifth and proceeded to allow just one hit and struck out two over four innings to earn the save in the 9-4 win. McFadden then threw 1.2 innings of relief to set up Max Holtzclaw in Saturday’s 5-2 second-game win, striking out two. Also Nominated: Nolan Miliman (Central Washington), Cole Hatton (Saint Martin’s).

SOFTBALL PLAYER
Maia McNicoll (Northwest Nazarene, UT, 5-5, Jr., Kaneohe, Hawaii – Maryknoll): McNicoll batted .533 for the Nighthawks in the four-game series with Simon Fraser, going 8 for 15 with three runs, two doubles, a triple, a home run and 13 RBI. McNicoll went 2 for 4 with a pair of RBI singles in Friday’s 5-0 opening game win and then went 1 for 4 with an RBI single in the 10-7 nightcap loss. She went 2 for 3 with an RBI double in the 10-1, five-inning opening game win on Saturday and closed by going 3 for 4 while tying a GNAC record with eight RBI and a grand slam in the 13-4, five-inning second game win.

Logan Carlos (Western Oregon, SS/2B, 5-2, Sr., Mililani, Hawaii – Maryknoll): Carlos batted .500 in the Wolves’ series victory over Western Oregon, going 7 for 14 with five runs scored and five RBI. She became just the fifth GNAC player to hit for the cycle since 2014, and the first since 2020, by going 4 for 5 in the final game on Sunday, a 15-4, five-inning win. Carlos also went 2 for 3 with an RBI single in Saturday’s 10-2, six-inning win and went 1 for 2 in Sunday’s opening game loss. Also Nominated: Makenna King (Central Washington), Malia Pinder (Saint Martin’s), Hanna Finkelstein (Simon Fraser), Dakota Brooks (Western Washington).

SOFTBALL PITCHER
Kira Doan (Western Washington, P/IF, 5-1, Sr., Brier, Wash. – Mountlake Terrace): Doan amassed a 0.44 earned run average in two starts and three appearances, winning both starts. Doan allowed one run on four hits with two walks and five strikeouts en route to a 6-1 win in the second game on Friday. She opened Sunday with a four-hit shutout in the 4-0 victory, walking two and striking out five. Doan closed the week by throwing two innings of relief in the nightcap, allowing one hit and striking out three. For the week, Doan allowed one run on nine hits and struck out 13. Also Nominated: Rhaney Harris (Central Washington), Sidney Booth (Northwest Nazarene), Tia Ridings (Saint Martin’s), Shaneika Hollingworth (Simon Fraser), Reilly Tidwell (Western Oregon).

MEN’S TRACK
Aaron Ahl (Simon Fraser, Jr., Calgary, Alta. – William Aberhart): Ahl outdueled former SFU standout Cameron Proceviat to win the 800 meters at the SFU High Performance No. 2 meet on Saturday. His time of 1:49.04 is an NCAA Championships provisional qualifier, ranking No. 11 in Division II this season, and is No. 3 on the GNAC all-time list. Also Nominated: Shun Yamaguchi (Central Washington), Bradley Graves (Montana State Billings), Tyler Shea (Northwest Nazarene), Isaac Cortes (Saint Martin’s), Bailey Smith (Western Oregon), Mac Franks (Western Washington).

MEN’S FIELD
Laurenz Waldbauer (Northwest Nazarene, Fr., Vilabiburg, Germany – Maxmilian Von Montgelas Gymnasium): Waldbauer took the Division II lead and set the NNU record in the javelin, winning the event at the Bengal Classic. His mark of 237 feet, 6 inches, moves Waldbauer to No. 2 on the GNAC all-time list and is the best in Division II this season by eight feet and ranks No. 13 across all college divisions. Also Nominated: Omar Young (Central Washington), Forrest Cross (Montana State Billings), Josh Schulz (Saint Martin’s), Zackary Kuzyk (Simon Fraser), Samuel Cole (Western Oregon), Ben Malquist (Western Washington).

WOMEN’S TRACK
Mia Crocker (Western Washington, Fr., Sammamish, Wash. – Skyline): Crocker set the Western Washington record in the mile at the Ralph Vernacchia Invitational, placing second in a time of 4:52.95. After conversion to 4:31.25 to 1,500 meters, the NCAA Championships provisional qualifying time ranks No. 47 in Division II and is third in the GNAC this season. Also Nominated: Lauryn Chandler (Central Washington), Kailee Stoppel (Montana State Billings), Abbey Wood (Northwest Nazarene), Eden Mortensen (Saint Martin’s), Megan Roxby (Simon Fraser), Maya Hopwood (Western Oregon).

WOMEN’S FIELD
Kaylee Wright (Western Oregon, Fr., John Day, Ore. – Grant Union): Wright moved up to No. 4 in Division II this season and No. 8 on the GNAC all-time list at the Oregon State High Performance Meet in Corvallis. Wright finished second with a mark of 158 feet, 8 inches, which also ranks No. 2 on the WOU all-time list. She is just the second GNAC javelin thrower since 2016 to surpass 158 feet. Also Nominated: Avery Fisk (Central Washington), Destany Herbert (Northwest Nazarene), Jocelyn Saribay (Saint Martin’s), Zuzanna Liniewski (Simon Fraser), Aliyah Dawkins (Western Washington).

WOMEN’S ROWING
Western Washington Varsity 8+: The Vikings won the grand final of the D2/D3/Club Varsity 8+ at the WIRA Championships on Sunday, finishing in a time of 6:50.64. Western Washington finished four seconds ahead of second-place Cal Poly Humboldt and nine seconds ahead of third-place Seattle Pacific. On Saturday, WWU had the top time in the preliminary heats with a time of 6:57.535. Members of the crew included Adele Houston (coxswain), Haley Moss, Lindsey Froelich, Morgan MacIntyre, Clarice Ruhlin-Hicks, Maddie Bangasser, Yuki Saburi, Olivia Pells and Sarah Ernst. Also Nominated: Cal Poly Humboldt Varsity 8+.