Monday, May 1, 2023

PORTLAND, Ore. – Western Oregon secured the GNAC baseball regular-season championship with a five-game sweep of Montana State Billings. The two performances that led the way in that sweep headline the GNAC Player of the Week Awards.

Senior Jacob Maiben was named the Baseball Player of the Week after he hit .619 in the five games, going 13 for 21 with two doubles, two triples eight runs and nine RBIs. While Maiben had hits in all five games, he was most effective in the first two of the series. On Thursday, Maiben went 3 for 4 and had a two-RBI single in the 11-5 win. He opened Friday by going 4 for 5 with a two-run triple and a pair of RBI singles in the 25-8 win and finished a home run short of hitting for the cycle.

Senior pitcher Chris Hardin was named the Baseball Pitcher of the Week after earning the complete-game victory in Friday’s 3-2 win. In the seven-inning effort, Hardin allowed two runs on five hits with a walk and seven strikeouts to improve to 6-3 on the season. The performance led all GNAC pitchers in strikeouts and innings pitched for the week.

In the final week of the regular season, Central Washington senior Alyssa Benthagen was selected as the Softball Player of the Week after she hit .440 in eight games, going 11 for 25 with seven runs, three home runs, seven walks and 10 RBIs. She did most of her damage in a series victory over Simon Fraser. She went 3 for 5 with a three-run homer in Monday’s 11-6 win and then went 2 for 3 with a pair of solo homers in the 10-4 second-game win.

Northwest Nazarene junior Sidney Booth claimed Softball Pitcher of the Week honors after she threw a pair of shutouts in two wins at Western Oregon. In Friday’s opener, Booth allowed one hit and struck out nine in the 10-0, five-inning win. She came back on Saturday to allow four hits and strike out six in a 1-0 victory. Booth now shares the GNAC lead with 16 wins on the year.

Cal Poly Humboldt’s varsity 8+ was selected as the Women’s Rowing Crew of the Week after winning the D2/D3/Club varsity 8+ grand final at the Western Intercollegiate Rowing Championships in California. The Lumberjacks won on Sunday in a time of 6:59.884, four seconds clear of second-place Central Oklahoma. Humboldt opened the weekend by winning its preliminary heat on Saturday in a time of 6:56.87. Members of the crew include coxswain Sonja Scollon and rowers Molly Urtz, Elizabeth Walters, Kealey Scott, Cassidy Hollenbeck, Dana Foley, Gabriella Griffin, Alyssa Paynton and Malia Seeley.

A quartet of NCAA Championships provisional qualifying marks earned the Track and Field Athlete of the Week awards. Western Washington swept the men’s awards as junior Jaydon Tryon was named the Men’s Field Athlete of the Week for his win in the javelin at the Ralph Vernacchia Invitational. His mark of 196 feet, 3 inches leads the GNAC and ranks 29th in Division II this season.

Vikings sophomore Jonah Bloom was named the Men’s Track Athlete of the Week after winning the 800 meters at the Ralph Vernacchia Invitational in a time of 1:50.75. The time ranks third in the GNAC and 30th in Division II this season.

Central Washington junior E’lexis Hollis earned Women’s Track Athlete of the Week honors after she won the 100 meters at the Ralph Vernacchia Invitational in a time of 11.63 seconds. The time bettered her own school record by .15 seconds. It moved Hollis to No. 2 on the GNAC all-time list and ties her for 25th in Division II this season.

Northwest Nazarene sophomore Kinsey Yenor earned Women’s Field Athlete of the Week honors after placing second in the pole vault at the Bengal Invitational with a school-record clearance of 13 feet, 0.75 inches. The performance moves Yenor to No. 3 on the GNAC all-time list and is 16th in Division II this season.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 36
BASEBALL PLAYER
Jacob Maiben (Western Oregon, OF, 5-9, Sr. Newberg, Ore. – Newberg): Maiben batted .619 as the Wolves swept all five of their games with Montana State Billings. On Thursday, Maiben went 3 for 4 in the 11-5 win with a two-RBI single. Maiben went 4 for 5 and was a home run short of the cycle in the 25-8 victory, hitting a two-run triple and a pair of RBI singles. He followed that with a 1 for 3 performance in a 3-2 win in the nightcap. Maiben opened Saturday by going 2 for 5 with a triple and two runs scored in the 9-8 win before going 3 for 4 with a double and two runs scored in another 9-8 win in the finale. Also Nominated: Payton Flynn (Montana State Billings), Kyle Payne (Northwest Nazarene), Brady Bean (Saint Martin’s).

BASEBALL PITCHER
Chris Hardin (Western Oregon, P, 6-2, Sr., Highland, Calif. – Univ. of Redlands): Harding earned the complete-game victory in Friday’s 3-2 win over Montana State Billings, In seven innings, Hardin allowed two runs on five hits with a walk and seven strikeouts to improve to 6-3 on the season. Hardin threw 81 pitches in the win, 61 for strikes. Also Nominated: Ty Pohlmann (Northwest Nazarene), Mattingly Milledge (Saint Martin’s).

SOFTBALL PLAYER
Alyssa Benthagen (Central Washington, C/IF, 5-6, Sr., Spokane Valley, Wash. – University): Playing eight games in the final week, Benthagen led the Wildcats with a .440 batting average, going 11 for 25 with seven runs, three home runs, seven walks and 10 RBIs. Benthagen went 3 for 5 in Monday’s opener against Simon Fraser, hitting a three-run homer and an RBI single. She then went 2 for 3 in the nightcap with a pair of solo home runs. On Tuesday, Benthagen went 1 for 4 with an RBI single and went 2 for 2 in the nightcap with a pair of RBI singles. In the weekend series with Saint Martin’s, Benthagen’s best effort came in Saturday’s second game where she went 2 for 4 with two more RBI singles. Also Nominated: Lauren Blaschak (Montana State Billings), Sidney Booth (Northwest Nazarene), Haley Agena (Saint Martin’s), Megan Duclos (Simon Fraser), Hailey Rath (Western Washington).

SOFTBALL PITCHER
Sidney Booth (Northwest Nazarene, P/UT, 5-4, Jr., Puyallup, Wash. – Puyallup): Booth threw a pair of shutouts against Western Oregon to close the regular season and move into a tie for first in the GNAC with 16 wins on the season. In Friday’s 10-0, five-inning win, Booth allowed just one hit and struck out nine. She faced just three batters over the minimum. In Saturday’s 1-0 victory, Booth allowed four hits and struck out six. She threw 80 pitches in the game, 61 for strikes. Also Nominated: Ashlee Laver (Central Washington), Alyssa Etheridge (Montana State Billings), Chloe Leverington (Saint Martin’s), Shaneika Hollingworth (Simon Fraser), Mareena Ramirez (Western Washington).

MEN’S TRACK
Jonah Bloom (Western Washington, So., Spokane, Wash. – Ferris): Bloom won the 800 meters in front of his home crowd at the Ralph Vernacchia Invitational. His NCAA Championships provisional qualifying time of 1:50.75 was a personal best, ranks third in the GNAC this season and 30th in Division II.  Also Nominated: Enrique Campbell (Alaska Anchorage), Johan Correa (Central Washington), Ben Ralston (Montana State Billings), Hunter Braseth (Northwest Nazarene), Kainalu Pagente (Saint Martin’s), Isaiah Archer (Seattle Pacific), Jesaiah Penson-Mccoy (Simon Fraser).

MEN’S FIELD
Jaydon Tryon (Western Washington, Jr., Woodinville, Wash. – Woodinville): Tryon won the javelin at the Ralph Vernacchia Invitational with the best mark in the conference this season of 196 feet, 3 inches. The NCAA Championships provisional qualifying mark was a personal best and ranks 29th in Division II this season. Tryon also competed in the discus for the first time in his collegiate career, finishing 12th with a mark of 121 feet. 7 inches. Also Nominated: Wyatt Franklin (Central Washington), Forrest Cross (Montana State Billings), Bryan Cortes (Simon Fraser).

WOMEN’S TRACK
E’lexis Hollis (Central Washington, Jr., Ellensburg, Wash. – Ellensburg): Hollis moved up to No. 2 on the GNAC all-time list with her victory in the 100 meters at the Ralph Vernacchia Invitational. Her time of 11.63 seconds improved her school record of 0.15 seconds and improved her NCAA Championships provisional qualifying time, which is tied for 25th in Division II this season.  Also Nominated: Kailee Stoppel (Montana State Billings), Abbey Wood (Northwest Nazarene), Cassidy Walchak-Sloan (Saint Martin’s), Kate Cameron (Simon Fraser), Caitlin Heldt (Western Oregon), Caitlyn Cheney (Western Washington).

WOMEN’S FIELD
Kinsey Yenor (Northwest Nazarene, So., Meridian, Idaho – The Ambrose School): Yenor broke the NNU record in the pole vault, placing second as the only non-Division I competitor at the Bengal Invitational. Her clearance of 13 feet, 0.75 inches improves her NCAA Championships provisional qualifying mark, ranks No. 3 on the GNAC all-time list and is 16th in Division II this season.  Also Nominated: Erica Cabanos (Central Washington), Ryann Moline (Montana State Billings), Lizzy Daugherty (Seattle Pacific), Sydney Kania (Simon Fraser), Katie Potts (Western Washington).

WOMEN’S ROWING
Cal Poly Humboldt Varsity 8+: The Lumberjacks won the women’s varsity 8+ D2/D3/Club grand final at the Western Intercollegiate Rowing Championships on Lake Natoma. Humboldt won its opening heat on Saturday with a time of 6:56.87, seven seconds ahead of second-place UC Santa Barbara. On Sunday, the Lumberjacks were four seconds clear of GNAC rival Central Oklahoma and six seconds ahead of Seattle Pacific, winning in a time of 6:59.884. Members of the crew include Sonja Scollon (coxswain), Elizabeth Walters, Kealey Scott, Cassidy Hollenbeck, Dana Foley, Gabriella Griffin, Alyssa Paynton and Malia Seeley.