Monday, December 3, 2018

PORTLAND, Ore. – Thanks to their efforts in helping lead their teams to 2-0 starts to conference play, Western Washington junior center Anna Schwecke and Montana State Billings senior guard/forward Zack Rollins lead this week’s GNAC Player of the Week award winners.

Schwecke was selected as the Women’s Basketball Player of the Week after posting a pair of monster double-doubles in victories over Simon Fraser on Tuesday and Montana State Billings on Saturday. She opened the week with a double-double of 24 points and 12 rebounds in Tuesday’s 70-62 win at Simon Fraser on Tuesday, going 11 of 16 from the field. Schwecke then posted a double-double of 20 points and 15 rebounds to beat Montana State Billings on Saturday, 63-57. For the week, Schwecke finished with 44 points and 27 rebounds and shot 56 percent from the field.

Rollins was named the Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for his role in leading the Yellowjackets to two wins over the Alaska schools to open GNAC play, scoring 46 points and shooting 60 percent from the field and 50 percent from three-point range. Rollins opened with 16 points and five rebounds in Thursday’s 79-77 win over Alaska. He then exploded for 30 points in Saturday’s 89-74 win over Alaska Anchorage, making 9 of 15 from the field and a perfect 9 of 9 from the free throw line.

Following the first meets of the 2018-19 indoor track and field season, Central Washington took three of the four weekly awards. Sophomore Braydon Maier was named the Men’s Field Athlete of the Week after he won the pentathlon at the Candy Cane XI Meet with an NCAA Championships provisional qualifying score of 5,156 points. The total improves his No. 6 position on the GNAC All-Time List.

Senior HarLee Ortega earned the Women’s Field Athlete of the Week award after she took second in the pentathlon with a score of 3,707 points. The mark is an NCAA Championships provisional qualifying mark and improves her No. 6 score on the GNAC All-Time List. In addition, Ortega earned a second NCAA provisional mark in the long jump with a leap of 18 feet, 9.25 inches, which moved her to No. 7 on the GNAC All-Time List.

Wildcats’ senior Katie Collins was named the Women’s Track Athlete of the Week after she placed third in the pentathlon 800 meters in a time of 2:26.82 and then placed second in the open 600 meters in a time of 1:44.44. Montana State Billings’ senior Mark Hovland earned the first Men’s Track Athlete of the Week award of the season after placing second in the mile at the Bobcat Preview in a time of 4:34.43.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 15
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Zack Rollins (Montana State Billings, G/F, 6-6, Sr., Pelham, N.Y. – San Bernardino Valley Coll.): Rollins led Montana State Billings to a 2-0 start to GNAC play with 46 points and eight rebounds in two games, shooting 60 percent from the field and 50 percent from three-point range. He opened with a 16-point, five-rebound performance in Thursday’s 79-77 win over Alaska. Rollins then led all scorers with 30 points in the Yellowjackets’ 89-74 win over Alaska Anchorage on Saturday. He made 9 of 15 from the field and went a perfect 9 of 9 from the free-throw line in the contest. Also Nominated: Brian Pearson (Alaska Anchorage), Jeryn Lucas (Central Washington), Jarrett Gray (Concordia), Adonis Arms (Northwest Nazarene), Chandler Redix (Saint Martin’s), Julian Roche (Simon Fraser), Riley Hawken (Western Oregon), Trevor Jasinsky (Western Washington).

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Anna Schwecke (Western Washington, C, 6-3, Jr., Evergreen, Colo. – Univ. of Colorado-Colorado Springs): Schwecke led the Vikings to two wins with a pair of big double-doubles. She led the Vikings with 24 points and 12 rebounds in Tuesday’s 70-62 road win at Simon Fraser, making 11 of 16 from the field to go with an assist, a steal and two blocks. Schwecke then led all players with 20 points and 15 rebounds in Saturday’s 63-57 victory over Montana State Billings. She made 7 of 16 from the field and had two steals and two blocks. For the Week, Schwecke finished with 44 points and 27 rebounds and shot 56.3 percent from the field. Also Nominated: Hannah Wandersee (Alaska Anchorage), Alexis Pana (Central Washington), Keesha Sarman (Concordia), Ellie Logan (Northwest Nazarene), Saniah Simpson-Patu (Saint Martin’s), Keyonna Jones (Western Oregon).

TRACK & FIELD
Men’s Track: Mark Hovland (Montana State Billings, Sr., Billings, Mont. – Billings West): Opening the season at the Bobcat Preview, Hovland, the only Division II competitor in the field, took second in the mile with a time of 4:34.43. He finished just two seconds behind Noah Adams of Montana.

Women’s Track: Katie Collins (Central Washington, Sr., Nine Mile Falls, Wash. – CC of Spokane): During the Candy Cane XI Meet heptathlon, Collins placed third in the 800 meters with a time of 2:26.82, trailing leader Erika McLeod of Montana by one second, and ran 9.11 seconds in the 55-meter hurdles. Collins went on to finish second in the open 600 meters in a time of 1:44.44.

Men’s Field: Braydon Maier (Central Washington, So., Selah, Wash. – Selah): Maier opened the indoor season with an NCAA Championships provisional qualifying mark in the heptathlon at the Candy Cane XI Meet. His score of 5,156 points is tops in Division II on the opening weekend and improved his No. 6 spot on the GNAC All-Time List.

Women’s Field: HarLee Ortega (Central Washington, Sr., Payette, Idaho – Payette): Ortega opened the season by placing second in the pentathlon at the Candy Cane XI Meet, scoring a lifetime-best 3,707 points that improved her No. 5 mark on the GNAC All-Time List. The total is an NCAA Championships provisional qualifier and is the top mark in Division II of the opening weekend. Ortega also hit a provisional qualifying mark in the long jump. Her mark of 18 feet, 9.25 inches moved her up to No. 7 on the GNAC All-Time List.