Monday, March 12, 2018

PORTLAND, Ore. – A pair of freshmen put together stellar performances on the softball diamond to lead this week’s honorees for GNAC Players of the Week.

Central Washington freshman Theresa Moyle was named the Softball Player of the Week after she finished with a .700 batting average to lead the Wildcats to a four-game sweep of Montana State Billings. She had seven runs, five RBIs and a home run in the four games. Moyle had two hits in three of the four games and hit a two-run homer in Saturday’s second game, which CWU won 6-4.

Northwest Nazarene’s Jordan Adams earned Softball Pitcher of the Week honors after she threw 14 scoreless innings to lead the Nighthawks to a series win over Saint Martin’s. In the two complete games, Adams allowed seven hits and two walks, struck out 17 and allowed just one runner past first base. She allowed two hits and struck out 12 in a 4-0 win over Friday and then allowed five hits and struck out five in a 7-0 win on Saturday.

Western Oregon’s Alex Roth also posted a scoreless performance to earn Baseball Pitcher of the Week honors. In an 8-0 win over Montana State Billings on Friday, Roth allowed four hits and a walk and struck out six in seven innings to earn his first win of the season.

Central Washington’s James Smith III was selected as the Baseball Player of the Week after he went 9 for 18 to lead the Wildcats to a series win over Concordia. His best performance came in Sunday’s opener in which he went 5 for 6 with a pair of RBI doubles and a solo home run. In addition to his .500 average on the week, Smith had four doubles, four runs, a double and six RBIs.

Western Washington collected three of the week’s four track awards. Raquel Pellecer repeated as the Women’s Field Athlete of the Week after she won the javelin at the PLU Open. Her winning throw of 147 feet, 8 inches, was a five-foot improvement on the season and moves her to No. 1 in Division II this season. Fellow javelin thrower Alex Barry earned the Men’s Field Athlete of the Week award after he won with a mark of 197 feet, ranking him third in the GNAC and fifth in Division II.

Vikings’ freshman Bryant Welch was named the Men’s Track Athlete of the Week for his efforts in his first collegiate meet. He placed second in the 200 meters at the PLU Open with a GNAC-leading time of 22.12 seconds and third in the 100 meters in 11.28 seconds. Welch also ran the anchor leg on the Vikings’ 4x100-meter relay team, which won in a time of 42.97 seconds.

Central Washington’s Alexa Shindruk was named the Women’s Track Athlete of the Week after she ran the fastest outdoor time in Division II so far this season in the 10,000 meters at the PLU Open. She won the race by three minutes as she crossed the line with a time of 36:46.70.

On the golf course, Simon Fraser’s Belinda Lin was named the Women’s Golf Player of the Week for the second consecutive week. She was the top GNAC golfer at the Tim Tierney Pioneer Shootout, tying for ninth with a score of 11-over-par 155. She shot a low round of 5-over-par 77 on the second day.

GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK SELECTIONS – WEEK 28
BASEBALL PLAYER
James Smith III (Central Washington, OF, 6-1, Sr., Riverside, Calif. – Fullerton JC): Smith led the Wildcats to a series victory over Concordia as he went 9 for 18 in the four games with four doubles, four runs, a home run and six RBIs. Smith opened the series by going 3 for 5 in the opener and had two RBIs on a double to left-center in the third in Saturday’s 12-7 victory. He then went 5 for 6 in Sunday’s opener, which included a pair of RBI doubles and a solo home run. Also Nominated: Dominic Enbody (Concordia), Kade Hall (Montana State Billings), Griffey Halle (Western Oregon).

BASEBALL PITCHER
Alex Roth (Western Oregon, P, 6-5, So., Peoria, Ariz. – Mountain Ridge): Roth threw seven scoreless innings to lead the Wolves to an 8-0 win over Montana State Billings on Friday. He allowed four hits and a walk and struck out six to earn his first win of the season. In the process, he allowed just two runners past first base. Also Nominated: Connor Stevenson (Central Washington), Jared Winslow (Montana State Billings).

SOFTBALL PLAYER
Theresa Moyle (Central Washington, IF/C, 5-4, Fr., Weiser, Idaho – Weiser): Moyle finished with a .700 batting average with seven runs, five RBIs and a home run to lead the Wildcats to a four-game GNAC sweep of Montana State Billings. She went 2 for 4 and scored three runs in Saturday’s opener and went 2 for 2 with a two-run homer in the nightcap. Moyle followed that by going 2 for 2 with a run and an RBI in Sunday’s opener and 1 for 2 with two RBIs in the nightcap. Also Nominated: Mckenzie Smith (Concordia), Brittany Genuardi (Northwest Nazarene), Dallas Tilley (Simon Fraser), Mariah Deleon (Western Oregon).

SOFTBALL PITCHER
Jordan Adams (Northwest Nazarene, P/1B, 5-8, Fr., Gig Harbor, Wash. – Gig Harbor): Adams threw 14 scoreless innings in the Nighthawks’ series win at Saint Martin’s. In the two games, Adams allowed seven hits and two walks while striking out 17. She allowed only one runner past second base. Adams won Friday’s opener, 4-0, as she allowed two hits and a walk while striking out 12. She then earned the victory on Saturday to improve to 7-4 on the year as she allowed five hits and a walk and struck out five in the 7-0 victory. Also Nominated: Lexie Strasser (Central Washington), Alia Stachoski (Simon Fraser), Haley Fabian (Western Oregon), Anna Kasner (Western Washington).

MEN’S TRACK
Bryant Welch (Western Washington, Fr., Burien, Wash. – Mount Rainier): Competing in his first collegiate meet, Welch placed second in the 200 meters at the PLU Open with a GNAC-best time of 22.12 seconds. He also placed third in the 100 meters in 11.28 seconds and ran the anchor leg on the Vikings’ winning 4x400-meter relay team (42.97 seconds).

MEN’S FIELD
Alex Barry (Western Washington, Jr., Sequim, Wash. – Sequim): Barry won the javelin at the PLU Open with a mark of 197 feet, defeating a field of 13 competitors. The mark currently ranks third in the GNAC and No. 5 in Division II this season. The mark is also an NCAA Championships provisional qualifier and helped WWU win the men’s team competition.

WOMEN’S TRACK
Alexa Shindruk (Central Washington, Jr., Bellingham, Wash. – Lynden) Shindruk won the 10,000 meters at the PLU Open by three minutes, crossing the line in 36:46.70. She currently leads the GNAC and Division II and is just 11 seconds off of the NCAA Championships provisional qualifying time. Also Nominated: Sophia Galvez (Western Washington).

WOMEN’S FIELD
Raquel Pellecer (Western Washington, So., Sandy, Ore. – Portland State Univ.): Pellecer earned her second-straight Athlete of the Week selection after she won the javelin at the PLU Open. Her mark of 147 feet, 8 inches, was a five-foot improvement on the season and is the leading mark in Division II this year. Pellecer helped lead WWU to a first-place finish in the team competition.

WOMEN’S GOLF
Belinda Lin (Simon Fraser, Jr., Surrey, B.C. – Semiahmoo): For the second-straight week, Lin led the GNAC as she tied for ninth at the Tim Tierney Pioneer Shootout. The carded a two-round score of 11-over-par 155 with a low-round of 5-over-par 77 on the second day. Also Nominated: Jenn Paul (Western Washington).