Monday, September 9, 2019

PORTLAND, Ore. – Central Washington gave Division I-FCS Idaho all it could handle in the Kibbie Dome on Saturday. Two of the Wildcats’ key contributors in the close 41-31 loss lead the selections for GNAC Players of the Week.

Junior wide receiver Tony Archie was selected as the Offensive Player of the Week while senior linebacker Donte Hamilton warned Defensive Player of the Week honors. Archie finished with 185 yards of total offense, including 146 receiving yards, and ran for a pair of touchdowns. He also passed for a 39-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, which brought the Wildcats to within four points late in the game.

Hamilton led all defensive players in the game with 17 tackles, which included seven solo tackles. He also had 2.5 tackles for loss for 16 yards and one of CWU’s three sacks for eight yards.

Azusa Pacific freshman kicker Ramzee Jardily was named the Special Teams Player of the Week after he made all three field goal attempts and his only point-after try in his first collegiate game at West Texas A&M. Two of the three field goals were longer than 30 yards, including a game-long 39 yarder in the third quarter.

Western Washington opened the season by sweeping the volleyball and women’s soccer honors. Redshirt freshman right-side hitter Calley Heilborn was named the Volleyball Offensive Player of the Week after she averaged 3.50 kills and 2.75 digs per set in the Vikings’ four wins at the West Florida Invitational. Her weekend was topped by a 20-kill, 17-dig effort in a four-set win over Spring Hill on Friday.

Sophomore Gabby Gunterman earned Volleyball Defensive Player of the Week honors after she averaged five digs and 0.19 blocks per set in the four matches. Her weekend was highlighted by a 25-dig, 16-kill effort in a four-set win over No. 13 Wheeling on Friday.

Senior forward/midfielder Karli White contributed to both game-winners to earn Women’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Week honors. White scored the game-winner unassisted in the 87th minute of Thursday’s 1-0 win at MSU Denver. She then had one of the two assists on the game-winner in Saturday’s 1-0 shutout of St. Edwards in Denver.

Senior defender Annaliese Laurila was named the Women’s Soccer Defensive Player of the Week for her role in a Western Washington defense that allowed just four shots on goal in the two shutouts. Laurila played in all 180 minutes on the backline.

Concordia sophomore midfielder Nicholas Denley is the first Men’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Week for 2019 for his role in a pair of Cavaliers’ home wins. On Thursday, Denley assisted on the game-winner in the 18th minute of the Cavs’ 1-0 shutout of Adams State. He then provided for the game-winning strike on a 3-1 victory over Regis on Saturday.

Montana State Billings freshman goalie Jessy Martin was named the Men’s Soccer Defensive Player of the Week for his 16 saves in two matches in Canada. Most notably, Martin finished with 11 saves against just one goal allowed in an impressive 1-1 tie of No. 2 ranked Cal Poly Pomona.

Northwest Nazarene senior Godfrey Kemboi was named the Men’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week after he placed sixth at the CSI Invite on Friday. He covered the 7,000-meter course in a time of 22:15.18.

Montana State Billings’ senior Nikki Aiken is the Women’s Cross Country Athlete of the Week after she won Saturday’s South Dakota Mines Hardrocker Classic, covering the 5,000-meter course in 21:45.40. She is the first MSUB women’s athlete to win a cross country race since 2014.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 2
FOOTBALL
Offensive: Tony Archie (Central Washington, WR, 6-1, 180, Jr., Tacoma, Wash. – Lincoln): Archie finished with 185 yards of total offense and a pair of touchdowns in the Wildcats’ 41-31 loss to Division I-FCS Idaho. Archie caught eight passes for 146 receiving yards. Both of his touchdowns came in the second quarter, including one with 9:13 left in the quarter that gave CWU a 14-10 lead. Archie also threw for a 39-yard touchdown pass to JoJo Hillel with 7:13 left in the fourth quarter that brought the Wildcats back to within 34-31. Also Nominated: Brandon Jackson (Azusa Pacific), Rysen John (Simon Fraser), Ty Currie (Western Oregon).

Defensive: Donte Hamilton (Central Washington, LB, 6-3, 215, Sr., Mission Viejo, Calif. – Saddleback CC): Hamilton led all defensive players in the game with 17 tackles (7 solo, 10 assisted) in the Wildcats’ 41-31 loss at Division I-FCS Idaho. He also had 2.5 tackles for loss for 16 yards and one of three CWU sacks for a loss of eight yards. Also Nominated: Ben Sakut (Azusa Pacific), Joey Sinclair (Western Oregon).

Special Teams: Ramzee Jaridly (Azusa Pacific, K, 6-1, 175 Fr., Chino Hills, Calif. – Ayala): In his first collegiate game, Jaridly went 3 for 3 on field goals and 1 for 1 on his only point-after attempt in the Cougars’ 35-16 loss at West Texas A&M on Saturday, accounting for the majority of APU’s points. He connected on second-quarter field goals on 35 and 23 yards and added a long attempt for 39 yards in the third quarter. Also Nominated: Gavin Todd (Central Washington).

MEN’S SOCCER
Offensive: Nicholas Denley (Concordia, M, 5-7, So., McMinnville, Ore. – McMinnville): Denley finished with a goal and an assist as the Cavaliers scored a pair of home wins to open the season. On Thursday, Denley assisted on the game-winning goal by Kyle Dearborn in the 18th minute of the 1-0 win over Adams State. He then provided for the game-winning goal of Paul Seydel’s assist in the 83rd minute of the Cavs’ 3-1 win over Regis on Saturday. Also Nominated: Sebastian Navarro (Saint Martin’s), William Raphael (Simon Fraser), Drew Farnsworth (Western Washington).

Defensive: Jessy Martin (Montana State Billings, GK, 5-11, Fr., Chateauroux, France – Blaise Pascal): Martin opened his collegiate career with 16 saves in a pair of matches in Burnaby, B.C. Martin made five saves before allowing a 76th minute goal in Thursday’s 1-0 loss to Cal State San Bernardino. He then came up huge as the Yellowjackets’ forced No. 2 Cal Poly Pomona to a 1-1 tie, making 11 saves and ceding just a 26th minute goal. Also Nominated: Liam Kiger (Concordia), Jose Marquez (Saint Martin’s), Camron Miller (Western Washington).

WOMEN’S SOCCER
Offensive: Karli White (Western Washington, F/M, 5-5, Sr., North Bend, Wash. – Seattle Univ.): White scored a goal and had an assist and was involved in both game-winners as the Vikings scored a pair of road wins in Colorado. White scored the unassisted game-winner in Thursday’s 1-0 season-opening victory at MSU Denver. She then had one of the two assists on Grace Eversaul’s 83rd minute game-winner in the Vikings’ 1-0 shutout of St. Edwards. Also Nominated: Sydney Lowe (Central Washington), Isabelle Morales (Concordia), Haylee Gunter (Montana State Billings), Brooke Felzien (Northwest Nazarene), Jessica Moskowitz (Saint Martin’s), Alyssa Tomasini (Western Oregon).

Defensive: Annaliese Laurila (Western Washington, D, 6-0, Sr., Portland, Ore. – Grant): Laurila was a key part of a Western Washington defense that did not allow a goal and just four shots on goal in a pair of 1-0 road wins. Playing in all 180 minutes over the weekend, Laurila and the defense allowed just five shots, three on goal, in Thursday’s 1-0 shutout over MSUB Denver. The defense then allowed just one shot on goal in Saturday’s 1-0 win over St. Edward’s. Also Nominated: Maci Parke (Central Washington), Ali Campigotto (Saint Martin’s), Alex Qualls (Western Oregon).

VOLLEYBALL
Offensive: Calley Heilborn (Western Washington, RS, 6-1, R-Fr., Auburn, Wash. – Auburn Riverside): Heilborn had a big opening weekend to her career, averaging 3.50 kills and 2.75 digs per set as the Vikings went 4-0 at the West Florida Invitational. Heilborn opened with 11 kills, 11 digs and three blocks against No. 24 West Florida. On Friday, Heilborn notched 13 kills against No. 13 Wheeling and added 20 kills, 17 digs and three blocks against Spring Hill. She ended the tournament with 12 kills, 10 digs and a .303 hitting percentage in a sweep of Florida Tech. Also Nominated: Diana Fa’amausili (Central Washington), Jessica Wheeler (Concordia), Bayli Monck (Montana State Billings), Brooke Foster (Northwest Nazarene), Mackenzie Carter (Saint Martin’s), Betsie de Beer (Simon Fraser), Sianna DeCarli (Western Oregon).

Defensive: Gabby Gunterman (Western Washington, OH, 5-10, So., Lake Stevens, Wash. – Lake Stevens): Gunterman averaged five digs, 3.31 kills and 0.19 blocks per set in the Vikings’ four wins at the West Florida Invitational and scored double-doubles in three matches. She opened with 15 digs and 17 kills against No. 24 West Florida, provided for 25 digs and 16 kills against No. 13 Wheeling and notched 12 kills and 21 digs against Spring Hill. Gunterman closed out with 19 digs and eight kills against Florida Tech. Also Nominated: Kyla Morgan (Central Washington), Callie Wilkins (Concordia), Kylie Alos (Saint Martin’s), Julia Tays (Simon Fraser), Allyson Crisp (Western Oregon).

CROSS COUNTRY
Men: Godfrey Kemboi (Northwest Nazarene, Sr., Iten, Kenya – Anin School): Kemboi opened the season by placing sixth at the CSI Classic on Friday, covering the 7,000 meters in a time of 22:15.18. He averaged 5:09 per mile. The top non-Division I athlete in the race, Kemboi was just 10 seconds behind winner Tyson Green of Weber State. Also Nominated: Josh Scheetz (Concordia), Ase Ackerman (Montana State Billings), Bryce Medford (Western Oregon).

Women: Nikki Aiken (Montana State Billings, Sr., Belgrade, Mont. – Manhattan Christian): Aiken picked up her first career win and the first for an MSUB female athlete since 2014 at the South Dakota Mines Hardrocker Classic. She finished in a time of 21:25.40 over a hilly 5,000-meter course and led the Yellowjackets to a third-place finish. Also Nominated: Gabby Hobson (Concordia), Bethany Danner (Northwest Nazarene), Caylin Cantu (Western Oregon).