Monday, October 28, 2013

PORTLAND, Ore. - Seattle Pacific middle blocker Madi Cavell, who led Seattle Pacific to road volleyball wins over Western Washington and Simon Fraser last week, has been selected as the GNAC Red Lion Offensive Volleyball Player of the Week (@redlionhotels) for the week of Oct. 21-27.

Cavell was one of 12 GNAC athletes to claim Red Lion Player of the Week honors. 

Following is a recap of last week's winners:

Volleyball

Offense -  Madi Cavell, Seattle Pacific (MB, 6-0, Jr., Keizer, OR - McNary) had back-to-back career highs in  leading the Falcons to road wins at Western Washington and Simon Fraser by 3-1 scores.  After producing 22 kills including match-point in a win against the nationally eighth-ranked Vikings, Cavell, who finished the weekend with 29 digs, had 24 more kills at Simon Fraser.  "They had no answer for Madi," SPU head coach Chris Johnson said after Saturday’s win. "They couldn't stop her. She only got blocked once and was just overpowering everyone.” 

Defense – Erin Smith, Central Washington (MB, 5-10, Sr., Selah, WA) had nine blocks in seven sets increasing her career total to 303.  She also added 20 kills, hitting .447 as the Wildcats earned a sweep in Alaska, defeating Alaska Fairbanks 3-1 and Alaska Anchorage 3-0. Her nine blocks moved her up five spots on the GNAC all-time career block list from 24th to 19th as she became the 19th player in GNAC history to reach 300.  “In addition to her blocks, she also hit well in transition,” CWU coach Mario Andaya said. 

Honorable Mention – Kaely Kight, Central Washington; Elayna Rice, Northwest Nazarene; Taylor Roberts, Northwest Nazarene; Kelsey Robinson, Simon Fraser; Becky Blees, Western Oregon.

Women's Soccer

Offense – Catherine Miles, Western Washington (F, 5-7, So., Anacortes, WA – Anacortes) notched the second hat trick in the GNAC this season and pushed her conference-leading goal total to 12 on Saturday against Northwest Nazarene. The sophomore needed just 23 minutes to complete the hat trick, scoring all three goals in the second half of a 6-0 victory over NNU that kept the Vikings in first place in the GNAC standings.

Defense – Morgan Wood, Central Washington (M, 5-5, Sr., Maple Valley, WA – Tacoma CC) played 200 minutes on CWU’s back line last week, helping the Wildcats earn four points with a win and a draw. On Thursday, the senior helped shut out Western Oregon, and on Saturday she played 90 minutes and limited Saint Martin’s to just three shots on goal in CWU’s 2-1 victory. Both wins came on the road and helped CWU maintain a grip on second place in the GNAC standings.

Honorable Mention – Kelli Bannerman, Saint Martin's; Reilly Retz, Central Washington; Laura Moore, Seattle Pacific; Amanda Rose Johnson, Western Oregon; Brianna Jones, Western Washington. 

Men's Soccer

Offense – Ryan Dhillon, Simon Fraser (M, 5-10, So., North Delta, BC – North Delta) led the GNAC with three goals last week, as No. 4 SFU displayed its offensive dominance with a pair of 7-0 victories. Dhillon twice found the net on Thursday against Northwest Nazarene, and then set the tone on Saturday with the Clan’s first goal against Montana State Billings in the 25th minute. 

Defense – Cody Lang, Seattle Pacific (GK, 6-4, Fr., Spokane, WA – Lewis & Clark) notched his conference-leading sixth and seventh shutouts of 2013 as SPU collected six points with two wins last week. The Falcon keeper made six saves and faced 15 total shots in the two games. On Thursday, Lang kept the University of Mary’s offense quiet for 90 minutes, and then gave SPU the chance for the game winner in the 85th minute on Saturday against South Dakota Mines by silencing the Hardrockers’ offense. Lang has not allowed a goal in his last 290 minutes between the posts. 

Honorable Mention – John DiLulo, Northwest Nazarene; Daniel Day, Northwest Nazarene; Andrew Weishaar, Western Washington; Magnus Kristensen, Simon Fraser; Rene Caro, SMU.

Football

Offense – Griff Robles, Dixie State (QB, 6-5, 230, Sr., Spanish Fork, UT – Utah) rushed for 217 yards and three touchdowns and passed for 267 yards and one score leading the Red Storm to a 28-19 home win over Humboldt State.  His 484 yards in total offense is the third highest single-game total in GNAC history and is rushing total ranks 11th all-time in conference history.  He is the first player in conference history to rush and  pass for at least 200 yards in the same game.  Robles scored on runs of two, 21 and 50 yards in the first, second and fourth quarters, respectively.  The latter touchdown came with 7:56 remaining after the Lumberjacks had pulled to within two points with 9:41 left on a 39-yard field goal by Matt Bruder. 

Defense – Steven Fanua, Azusa Pacific (LB, 6-1, 227, Jr., Milpitas, CA – California) had 15 tackles and a key forced fumble to lead the Cougars to a 24-17 road win at Central Washington as the Cougars took over first place in the GNAC.  Ten of his 15 tackles were solos and he also broke up two passes.  His forced fumble, which he also recovered, came with 2:59 left in the fourth quarter after CWU had executed its second successful onside kick of the game.  Following Fanua’s recovery, APU got two first downs to run out the remaining time left on the clock and preserve the victory.

Special Teams – Tarik Myles, Azusa Pacific (KR, 5-6, 152, Fr., Rancho Cucamonga, CA – Summit) and Jesse Correa, Western Oregon (5-10, 185, So., Mililani, HI – St. Louis) ... Myles gave the Cougars the lead at 14-10 in the second quarter returning a kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown.  He also had a 22-yard return on another kickoff ... Correa kicked field goals of 46, 48 and 32 yards in the Wolves’ 30-16 win against Simon Fraser.  His 48-yarder was the third longest this fall in the GNAC and his 46-yarder equaled the fourth longest.

Honorable Mention – Devauntee Hoffman, Western Oregon; Gustave Benthin, Western Oregon .

Men’s Golf

Chris Hatch, Western Washington (Fr., Mukilteo, WA – Kamiak) shot a career-high 67 and finished with a 54-hole score of three-over-par 219 to place 12th in the Cal State Monterey Bay Men’s Golf Invitational at the Black Horse Golf Club in Seaside, Calif.  Hatch finished off the tournament acing the 194-yard 18th hole with a seven-iron.  It was his first career hole-in-one as he finished the fall season with a 76.6 scoring average.

Women’s Golf

Kristen Hansen, Western Washington (So., Spokane, WA – Mead) tied for third place with a 36-hole score of 150 to lead the Vikings to a fourth-place finish in the Sonoma State Women’s Golf Fall Invitational at the Santa Rosa Golf and Country Club.  It was the fourth Top 10 finish in four outings for Hansen, who finished three shots behind the leader.  She finished the fall season leading the GNAC in scoring with a 76.1 scoring average.