Conference Announces this Week's Athletes of the Week
LA GRANDE, Ore. -- Five schools are represented in this week's Red Lion Cascade Collegiate Conference Athletes of the Week for the period ending Feb. 5, the conference office announced Monday.
The honorees:
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Corban University’s Tara Vanweerdhuizen, a 6-2 freshman center from Spokane, Wash., has been named the Red Lion Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the period ending Feb. 5.
Vanweerdhuizen helped the No. 13 Warriors win a pair of games over teams that appeared in the national poll. The freshman totaled 37 points, 14 rebounds and 13 blocks in the sweep at home. She also shot 66 percent from the field over the weekend.
Vanweerdhuizen had 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting from the field against EOU Friday. The Spokane native recorded nine blocks against the Mountaineers. Saturday, she finished with a double-double in the win over C of I. Vanweerdhuizen scored 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
Honorable mention: Chelsey Christensen, Warner Pacific; Karissa Dixon, Oregon Tech; Jessalyn Jackson, Northwest; Felicity Jones, College of Idaho; Courtney May, Concordia; Ratanya Newsome, Southern Oregon; Lindsey Shearer, Northwest Christian; Danielle Swain, Evergreen.
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Corban University’s Jordan Carter, a 6-2 sophomore guard from Salem, Ore., has been named the Red Lion Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for the period ending Feb. 5.
Carter receives the award for the second straight week after guiding the Warriors to a pair of wins at home over Eastern Oregon and The College of Idaho. He averaged 23.5 points, six rebounds and 3.5 assists over the weekend. The sophomore shot 41 percent from the field, made four of his nine three-points, and went 17-of-22 from the free-throw line.
Friday, Carter scored 21 points in the 79-73 win over Eastern. He also grabbed seven rebounds and threw six assists. The following night he helped the Warriors hold off C of I, 47-42. Carter totaled 26 points on 8-of-16 shooting from the field.
Honorable mention: Krispin Banks, College of Idaho; Ahmaad Cook, Northwest; Elzie Dickens, Evergreen; Jordan Highland, Southern Oregon; Bobby Hunter, Oregon Tech; Brody McGowan, Northwest Christian; Trent Roos, Eastern Oregon; William Sharp, Warner Pacific; Kevan West, Concordia.
WOMEN'S INDOOR TRACK
Concordia University’s NyEma Sims, a sophomore from Portland, Ore., has been named the Red Lion Women’s Indoor Track Athlete of the Week for the period ending Feb. 5.
Sims shattered the school record in the 60 meters for the second straight week with a 7.41 on Friday in the finals of the invitational meet held at the University of Idaho.
Sims has taken .31 off the school mark in two meets this year, having raced to a 7.53 last week to overtake the former mark. Sims' performance is the No. 2 time in the NAIA and easily eclipsed the 7.64 NAIA ‘A' standard.
Honorable mention: Erin Adams, Warner Pacific; Alma Garcilazo, Eastern Oregon.
WOMEN'S INDOOR FIELD
Concordia University’s Kristin Sass, a junior from Vancouver, Wash., has been named the Red Lion Women’s Indoor Field Athlete of the Week for the period ending Feb. 5.
Sass jumped a 34-11 (10.65m) in the triple jump at the Vandal Open on Friday. Her mark was just 0.01m off her career best in the event which ranks No. 3 in Concordia's all-time performance list.
Honorable mention: Deb McCloud, Warner Pacific.
MEN'S INDOOR TRACK
Eastern Oregon’s Brian Bragg, a senior from Burbank, Wash., has been named the Red Lion Men’s Indoor Track Athlete of the Week for the period ending Feb. 5.
Bragg ran a lifetime best of 4:19.78 in the men's mile, nearly seven seconds faster than his previous top time. The senior won the second heat with the third best indoor mile time in EOU history.
Bragg finished eighth in the 25-participants field, which featured many NCAA Div. 1 runners. He hit an NAIA auto-mark in his first race of the season.
Honorable mention: Jasen Brown, Concordia; Elton Cody, Warner Pacific; Mike Hurd, College of Idaho; Sullivan Stevens, Southern Oregon.
MEN'S INDOOR FIELD
Southern Oregon’s Max Perry, a senior from Florence, Ore., has been named the Red Lion Men’s Indoor Field Athlete of the Week for the period ending Feb. 5.
The senior beat the automatic qualifying mark by over a meter in the shot put to post a second-place throw of 55-3 (16.84 meters). Only NCAA Div. I Boise State's Will Lohman posted a better distance than Perry. Perry's mark is the third-best in the NAIA this season.
Perry then posted a fifth-place finish in the weight throw. He had a toss of 55-3.75.
Honorable mention: Robbie Haynie, Eastern Oregon; Eric Whalen, Concordia.
BASEBALL PITCHER
College of Idaho’s Taylor Nicholson, a junior from Emmett, Idaho, has been named the Red Lion Baseball Pitcher of the Week for the period ending Feb. 5.
Nicholson recorded a save in the Yotes to a 7-2 opening day win over Wayland Baptist in Anthem, Ariz. The junior allowed two hits and no runs in 3.1 innings.
He threw seven strikeouts and one walk. While the Emmett, Idaho native was in the game, seven of the 10 outs were strikeouts courtesy of Nicholson.
BASEBALL PLAYER
College of Idaho’s Jarel Lewis, a junior catcher from Boise, Idaho, has been named the Red Lion Baseball Player of the Week for the period ending Feb. 5.
Lewis and the Yotes won two of their four games in Anthem, Ariz. He finished the opening-season tournament with a .438 batting average and .813 slugging percentage. The junior had seven hits in four games, recording three RBI.
Against Wayland Baptist in the season opener, Lewis went 3-for-4 with three doubles. He had a pair of RBI against Point Loma. And, in an 11-3 win over No. 11 Fresno Pacific, the Boise native scored twice.
Honorable mention: Brad Walters, Oregon Tech.