Friday, May 14, 2021

PORTLAND, Ore. – Northwest Nazarene has had sole possession of first place in the conference standings since the first week of conference play, and the Nighthawks will be the team to beat at the 2021 GNAC Baseball Championships, beginning on Thursday in Nampa, Idaho.

The Nighthawks won their first-ever solo GNAC baseball regular-season championship after sharing the regular-season title with Montana State Billings in 2016. They finished in first place with a 21-3 conference record (29-7 overall) to earn the No. 1 seed in the GNAC Championships, which will be played on their home field.

Northwest Nazarene sits atop the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Division II West Region Rankings with 48 points and three first-place votes. The Nighthawks are ranked No. 8 in the NCBWA National Rankings while also ranking No. 20 in the Collegiate Baseball poll. The Nighthawks lead the conference with 312 runs scored and 287 RBI and are 26th in Division II with 8.7 runs per game.

Senior third baseman Shawn Grandmont is batting .346 on the season with a .461 on-base percentage and .631 slugging percentage. Grandmont is tied for the conference lead and ranks 15th nationally with 52 RBI. Junior outfielder Ryan Dearing leads the Nighthawks with a .379 batting average and also owns a .500 on-base percentage. Dearing and Grandmont lead the conference with 21 stolen bases.

Freshman pitcher Kyle Ethridge is 5-1 on the season. He allowed 29 runs, 22 earned, on 44 hits in 46.2 innings of work in the regular season. Ethridge enters the GNAC Championships with a 4.24 earned run average and is tied for the conference lead with 67 strikeouts.

Western Oregon (20-6, 19-5 GNAC) secured the No. 2 seed in the tournament riding an eight-game winning streak. The Wolves swept Montana State Billings and Saint Martin’s in back-to-back series to close their regular season. The Wolves also had a 10-game stretch that saw them win nine of those games. They made their season debut in the NCBWA top-25 this week, coming in tied for the No. 23 spot.

The Wolves lead the GNAC in both batting average (.328) and earned run average (4.56). Senior Mike Peterson leads the team with a 6-0 record. He allowed 16 earned runs on 37 hits with 11 walks and 30 strikeouts in the regular season. Peterson is second in the conference behind teammate Matthew Dunaway (3.04) with a 3.40 earned run average. Dunaway also leads the conference with a .196 opposing batting average.

Senior first baseman/pitcher Connor McCord enters the tournament with a .395 batting average and a .485 on-base percentage and leads the conference with a .864 slugging percentage. McCord’s 1.43 RBI per game ranks No. 17 in Division II.

Central Washington (16-12, 14-10 GNAC) returns to the GNAC Championships for the first time since 2018 as the No. 3 seed. It has been a long season for the Wildcats, who weren’t able to take the field for over three weeks in the middle of the season due to health and safety protocols and a bye week.

Senior outfielder Justin Hampson (.465) and sophomore utility man Zach Berryman (.422) are first and second in the GNAC in batting average, respectively. Hampson leads the conference with a .542 on-base percentage while also ranking No. 2 with a .746 slugging percentage. Berryman is right behind Hampson with a .535 on-base percentage to go with 38 runs scored.

Freshman Reid Rasmussen is 5-2 on the season and enters the tournament with a 3.41 earned run average and a .224 opposing batting average. Senior Dillon Larsen is tied with Ethridge for the conference lead with 67 strikeouts.

The GNAC Championships begin on Thursday with Western Oregon and Central Washington playing at 10 a.m. Central Washington will then play Northwest Nazarene at 2 p.m. before the Nighthawks play Western Oregon in the nightcap at 6 p.m.

Following the round-robin, if teams are 2-0, 1-1 and 0-2, the 0-2 team would be eliminated and the other two teams would compete on Friday for the championship. If teams are in a three-way tie at 1-1 after the round-robin, top-seeded Northwest Nazarene would get an automatic bid to the championship game. The other two teams would compete on Friday in an elimination game with the winner advancing to the championship game against the Nighthawks.

To protect the health and safety of the student-athletes, coaches and support staff, spectators are not permitted at the GNAC Championships. Live stats and video links are available at GNACSports.com.

GNAC BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS
at Northwest Nazarene University, Nampa, Idaho

Thurs., May 20
No. 2 Western Oregon vs. No. 3 Central Washington, 10 a.m.
No. 3 Central Washington at No. 1 Northwest Nazarene, 2 p.m.
No. 2 Western Oregon at No. 1 Northwest Nazarene, 6 p.m.

Fri., May 21
Game 4, Noon
Game 5 (if necessary), 4 p.m.