Monday, March 14, 2022

PORTLAND, Ore. – Not only was it a winning weekend for Northwest Nazarene on the diamond but it was a record-setting one for Nighthawks junior Duke Pahukoa, who leads this week’s GNAC Player of the Week awards.

The third baseman was named the Baseball Player of the Week after he batted .833 with a .786 on-base percentage and a 1.250 slugging percentage in the four games against Saint Martin’s, going 10 for 12 with four runs, two runs scored, five doubles and an RBI. Four of those doubles came in a 4 for 4 effort in Friday’s 16-5 opening-game win, breaking the GNAC single-game record of three doubles set by 52 different players, most recently Austin Ohland of Central Washington in 2021. Pahukoa had two hits in each of the final three games of the series.

The NNU/SMU series also yielded the Baseball Pitcher of the Week in Saints sophomore Justice Yamashita. He earned the complete-game win to beat the Nighthawks 1-0 in Friday’s second game, allowing just three hits and four walks in the seven innings, striking out six.

The Saints also swept the softball awards after going 6-0 in a non-conference week. Sophomore infielder Destiny Conerly was named the Softball Player of the Week after she batted .643, going 9 for 14 with seven runs, eight RBI, a double and a home run while drawing seven walks. Her week included 2 for 3 performances in Wednesday’s 11-3 second-game win at Northwest (Wash.) and in Saturday’s 8-0 opening-game win over Bushnell.

Sophomore Tia Ridings earned Softball Pitcher of the Week honors after going 2-0 with a 0.64 earned run average in three appearances, allowing one run on two hits with 20 strikeouts in 11 innings. She allowed one run on four walks and no hits while striking out seven against Northwest (Wash.) on Wednesday before earning the six-inning 8-0 win over Bushnell on Saturday by allowing one hit and two walks while striking out seven.

Saint Martin’s also received both men’s track and field awards thanks to winning efforts at the PLU Open. Senior Josh Schulz was named the Men’s Field Athlete of the Week after he won the long jump with a mark of 22 feet, 0.25 inches. Sophomore Andrew Boyd earned the Men’s Track Athlete of the Week award thanks to his win in the 110-meter hurdles in a time of 15.23 seconds.

Western Washington swept the women’s track and field honors. Freshman Ila Davis was named the Women’s Track Athlete of the Week after she won the steeplechase by over two minutes in a time of 10:54.62. She became the first Division II female athlete to provisionally qualify for the NCAA Championships in the event this season. Freshman Raine Westfall earned Women’s Field Athlete of the Week honors after winning the hammer by 24 feet with her winning mark of 162 feet.

On the links, Montana State Billings senior Riley Kaercher was selected as the Men’s Golf Player of the Week after he tied for third at the NNU Poppy Ridge Invitational, carding a two-round score of even-par 144. Western Washington junior Megan Billeter picked up Women’s Golf Player of the Week honors after she tied for seventh at the Cal State San Marcos Fujikura Invitational with a score of 6-over-par 150.

Cal Poly Humboldt picked up its first-ever Women’s Rowing Crew of the Week award. The Lumberjacks’ varsity 8+ boat won their race at Sunday’s Aggie Invite with a time of 7:13.3. The crew also placed third at the spring season-opening Sacramento State Invitational.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 29
BASEBALL PLAYER
Duke Pahukoa (Northwest Nazarene, IF, 6-2, Jr., Maui, Hawaii (Univ. of Nevada-Las Vegas): Pahukoa led the Nighthawks to a 3-1 week against Saint Martin’s, batting .833 with a .786 on-base percentage and a 1.250 slugging percentage. He went 10 for 12 with four runs, two RBI and five doubles. Pahukoa set the GNAC single-game record with four doubles in Friday’s 16-5 opening-game win, going 4 for 4 with two runs scored and an RBI. He then had two hits in each of the remaining games of the series, which included an RBI single in Saturday’s opener and two runs and a double in the nightcap. Also Nominated: Zach Berryman (Central Washington), Diego Hernandez (Montana State Billings), Aaron Renaud (Saint Martin’s), Derek Maiben (Western Oregon).

BASEBALL PITCHER
Justice Yamashita (Saint Martin’s, P, 5-10, So., Honolulu, Hawaii – Maryknoll): Yamashita earned the complete-game win in the Saints 1-0 win over Northwest Nazarene on Saturday. In the seven-inning win, Yamashita allowed three hits and four walks while striking out six. He threw 110 pitches, 68 for strikes. Also Nominated: Josh Touhey (Central Washington), Shane Martin (Northwest Nazarene), Sebasten Boivin (Western Oregon).

SOFTBALL PLAYER
Destiny Conerly (Saint Martin’s, IF, 5-9, So., Spanaway, Wash. – Puyallup): Conerly led Saint Martin’s to a six-win week with a .643 batting average, going 9 for 14 with seven runs, eight RBI, a double and a home run while drawing seven walks. Her week included a 2 for 3 effort in Wednesday’s 11-3 second-game win over Northwest (Wash.), which included an RBI double. Conerly went 2 for 3 in Saturday’s opener with Bushnell and went 2 for 2 in Sunday’s opener, including an RBI single and a three-run home run. Also Nominated: Alyssa Benthagen (Central Washington), Alexis Tovar (Montana State Billings), Ivy Hommel (Northwest Nazarene), Hannah Finkelstein (Simon Fraser), Kira McGlothan (Western Oregon), Lauren Lo (Western Washington).

SOFTBALL PITCHER
Tia Ridings (Saint Martin’s, P, 5-4, So., Tualatin, Ore. – Tualatin): Ridings went 2-0 with a 0.64 earned run average in three non-conference games, allowing one run on two hits with 20 strikeouts in 11 innings. Ridings allowed one run whole throwing four innings of hitless ball, walking four and striking out seven in Wednesday’s 8-3 win at Northwest (Wash.). Ridings went four innings against for the 8-0, six-inning win over Bushnell on Saturday, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out seven. She closed the week with a three-inning outing in Sunday’s 7-3 win over the Beacons, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out six. Also Nominated: Jenna Kister (Montana State Billings), Tori Hensley (Northwest Nazarene), Shaneika Hollingworth (Simon Fraser), Sydney Brown (Western Washington).

MEN’S TRACK
Andrew Boyd (Saint Martin’s, So., Olympia, Wash. – Gonzaga Univ.): Boyd was the winner in the 110-meter hurdles at Saturday’s PLU Open with a time of 15.23 seconds. Also Nominated: Ryan Greenwalt (Western Washington).

MEN’S FIELD
Josh Schulz (Saint Martin’s, Sr., Pe Ell, Wash. – Washington State Univ.): Schulz won the long jump at the PLU open, finishing with a mark of 22 feet, 0.25 inches. He beat a field of 15 competitors and was the conference’s lone winner in the men’s field events. Also Nominated: Jaydon Tryon (Western Washington).

WOMEN’S TRACK
Ila Davis (Western Washington, Fr., Spokane, Wash. – Lewis & Clark): Davis became the first athlete in Division II this season to hit an NCAA Championships in the steeplechase, winning the event at the PLU Open. Running virtually alone, Davis won in a time of 10:54.62 and beat second-place Annika Deazley of Pacific Lutheran by over two minutes. Also Nominated: Gabriela Cintron (Saint Martin’s), Vanessa Aniteye (Seattle Pacific).

WOMEN’S FIELD
Raine Westfall (Western Washington, Fr., Port Angeles, Wash. – Crescent): Westfall won the hammer at the PLU Open by 24 feet, beating the field of 16 competitors with a mark of 162 feet. The mark ranks No. 7 this season among Division II competitors. Also Nominated: Briana Cabrera (Saint Martin’s).

MEN’S GOLF
Riley Kaercher (Montana State Billings, Sr., Billings, Mont. – Billings West): Kaercher was the top placing GNAC golfer at the NNU Poppy Ridge Invitational, finishing in a four-way tie for third at even-par 144. He had a low round of 1-under-par 71 on the opening day to help lead the Yellowjackets to a third-place team finish, five strokes behind team champion Cal State East Bay. Also Nominated: Grayson Giboney (Northwest Nazarene), Dennis Geissler (Saint Martin’s), Ryan Hodgins (Simon Fraser).

MEN’S GOLF
Megan Billeter (Western Washington, Jr., Spokane, Wash. – Mount Spokane): Billeter finished in a three-way tie for seventh place at the Cal State San Marcos Fujikura Invitational, carding a two-round score of 6-over-par 150. She finished strong with a low-round of even-par 72 on the final day and led the Vikings to a 10th-place team finish. Also Nominated: Katherine Swor (Saint Martin’s).

WOMEN’S ROWING
Cal Poly Humboldt Varsity 8+: The Lumberjacks won the varsity 8+ race at Sunday’s Aggie Invitational in Sacramento, finishing in a time of 7:13.3 to cross the line seven seconds ahead of UC Davis. On Saturday, Cal Poly Humboldt opened the season with a third-place finish at the Sacramento State Invitational. They were in the middle of a cadre of Division I teams with a time of 7:20.4. The crew was comprised of coxswain Sophie Reich, Malia Seeley, Kealey Scott, Cassidy Hollenbeck, Dana Foley, Emily Marsolais, Kierstyn Hughes and Chloe Pieper-Wasem. Megan Franco rowed in place of Foley in Saturday’s regatta. Also Nominated: Central Oklahoma Varsity 4+.