Monday, May 5, 2014

PORTLAND, Ore.  - Western Oregon middle distance runner Josh Hanna, who ran the second fastest 800 meter time in GNAC history Friday at Corvallis, has been selected the GNAC Red Lion Men's Track Athlete of the Week.

Hanna was one of six GNAC athletes to earn the final Red Lion award of the 2013-14 season as the regular-season came to a close for GNAC athletes last weekend.

Here are the final honorees for 2013-14:

Men’s Track and Field: Track - Josh Hanna, Western Oregon (So., Quincy, CA) finished sixth in the 800 meters at the Oregon State High Performance Invitational at Corvallis in a provisional national qualifying time of 1:50.45.  His time missed the auto standard by less than a second and was the second fastest in GNAC history.  Field - Greyson Kilgore, Northwest Nazarene (Sr., Kuna, ID), pole vaulted a GNAC season-best 14-7 ½ in the Idaho-Utah Border Clash after earlier in the week scoring 6,506 points to place second in the GNAC Multis at Ellensburg.

Honorable Mention: David Durden, Saint Martin’s (Fr., Olympia – Tumwater); Robert Peterson, Montana State Billings (So., Billings, MT); Tyrell Williams, Western Oregon (Fr., Agana Heights, Guam); Cameron Proceviat, Simon Fraser (So., Burnaby, BC).

Women’s Track & Field:   Track -   Megan Teigen, Saint Martin’s (Fr., Lacey, WA – Northwest Christian), running in just her second 400 hurdle race of the season, finished first at the Saint Martin’s Invitational in a provisional national qualifying and GNAC season-best time of 1:02.31.  The school-record time was the sixth best in GNAC history. Field - Rebecca Laible, Western Oregon (Jr., Salem, OR), grabbed the GNAC season lead in the triple jump at Oregon State with a leap of 38-4 ¼.  Last year she finished second in the event in the GNAC conference meet.

Honorable Mention:  Madison McClung, Western Oregon (Sr., Cottage Grove, OR); Jessica Pahkala, Alaska Anchorage (So., Wasilla, AK); Sarah Sawatzky, Simon Fraser (Sr., Chilliwack, B.C.).

Baseball: Player – Brad Birch, Montana State Billings (3B, R-R, 6-2, Sr., Eugene, OR – Treasure Valley CC) notched walk-off base hits for the Yellowjackets in the two final games of his collegiate career. The senior third baseman singled up the middle in the bottom of the ninth inning to push MSUB to a 6-5 win over Northwest Nazarene on Saturday. In the second game, Birch ended the Yellowjackets’ season on a high note with a base hit to left field in the ninth inning to complete a 3-2 extra-inning victory. Overall on the week, Birch went 11-for-25 with two doubles, a triple and four RBI in six games. Birch totaled 15 total bases and scored four runs, with an on-base percentage of .481 and a slugging percentage of .600. Pitcher – Josh Moss, Saint Martin’s (LHP, L-L, 6-1, Jr., Tenino, WA - Rochester) pitched the Saints to a critical 3-1 victory over Central Washington, logging a 7-inning complete game with no walks and a pair of strikeouts. Moss scattered eight hits throughout his performance, and the Wildcats’ only run came in the sixth inning on a base hit. Moss was excellent under pressure, pitching out of dangerous situations in the second, third, and fifth innings leaving runners in scoring position on base.

Honorable Mention – Bryon Baker, Montana State Billings (RHP, R-R, 6-2, Fr., Butte, MT - Butte); Zack Larsen, Saint Martin’s (SS, R-R, 6-0, Fr., Cosmopolis, WA - Aberdeen); Tate Glasgow, Northwest Nazarene (OF, R-R, 6-0, Jr., Portland, OR - Westview); Andrew Groves (RHP, R-R, 165, Jr., Mukilteo, WA - Kamiak); Ethan Sterkel, Central Washington (RF, R-R, 6-2, Sr., Ellensburg, WA - Ellensburg).