Red Lion Players of the Week Announced
The following CCC and NAIA West student-athletes have been recognized as Red Lion Players of the Week for their performances during the period April 14 – 20.
Softball Pitcher
Northwest Christian’s Jill Suratt has been named the Red Lion Softball Pitcher of the Week.
Suratt, a junior from Beaverton, Ore., had one of the best weeks of pitching for NCU softball in over two years. Picking up both victories in NCU's first-ever sweep of Southern Oregon, she allowed two earned runs over 13 innings, including a three-hit shutout in game one. She took the a game-two loss against #24 College of Idaho but allowed just one earned run. Then on Saturday, Suratt got back in the win column in the second half of a double-header as the Beacons swept Eastern Oregon to remain alive in the hunt for the fourth and final playoff spot. She allowed just two earned runs while striking out four.
Honorable mention: Nickayla Skinner, C of I; McKenzie Marshall, CU
Softball Player
Northwest Christian’s Parker Bonife has been named the Red Lion Softball Player of the Week.
Bonife, a sophomore from Vancouver, Wash., collected 4 Home Runs, 10 RBI and 6 runs as NCU went 4-2 in CCC games this week to stay alive in the hunt for the final playoff spot. She opened the week batting 3-for-7 in NCU's first-ever sweep of Southern Oregon, collecting two RBI. Against C of I, batted 1-for-5 with a home run and 2 RBI. Then, against Eastern Oregon, batted 4-for-7 with three home runs and a double with six RBI and four runs scored. She had two home runs in the 5-2 victory in game-two collecting 4 RBI. Bonife is now tied for second in the CCC in home runs (8), 3rd in slugging percentage (.647) and fourth in RBI (28).
Honorable mention: Lounette Jackson, CRB; Kate Santos, CU
Baseball Pitcher
Corban’s Jacob Kopra has been named the Red Lion Baseball Pitcher of the Week.
Kopra, a senior from Gresham, Ore., established a new Corban single-season record with his ninth victory of the season as Corban won the opening game of its four-game series at #2-ranked Lewis-Clark State. Though he struck out only one batter, his effectiveness was evident with 18 of his 27 outs coming on ground balls. His fourth complete game and third shutout of the season marked the first complete-game shutout of a Lewis-Clark State team since Corban's Justin White threw a five-hitter in a 4-0 victory on March 4, 2012. Kopra improved his record to 9-0 and lowered his earned run average to 1.44.
Honorable mention: Daniel Aranda, CRB; Jon Yearout, CU
Baseball Player
British Columbia’s Bruce Yari has been named the Red Lion Baseball Player of the Week.
Yari, a sophomore from Waterloo, Ont., was a deadly force at the plate this past weekend against the Simpson (Calif.) Red Hawks, recording 11 hits in 18 at-bats, including a triple. The native of Waterloo, Ont. drove in six runs and scored five as the Thunderbirds swept the four-game series against Simpson. The four victories allowed UBC to clinch the No. 1 seed for the NAIA West Grouping playoffs, which the school will host May 2-5 in Vancouver. Yari finishes the regular season as the team leader in batting average (.372).
Honorable mention: Ryan Hayden, OIT
Women’s Field
Concordia’s Emma Buchholz has been named the Red Lion Women’s Outdoor Field Athlete of the Week.
Buchholz, a junior from Sheridan, Ore., had a pair of great efforts in the javelin last week, placing 6th at the Mt. SAC Relays and 5th at the Long Beach Invitational. Buchholz leads the NAIA with a 156-0 (4.54m) distance in the javelin.
Honorable mention: Enma Berg, CRB; Kelsea Hurliman, EOU
Women’s Track
College of Idaho’s Hillary Holt has been named the Red Lion Women’s Outdoor Track Athlete of the Week.
Holt, a senior from Meridian, Idaho, competed in the premier 1500m race at the Mt. SAC Relays against Olympians and World Champions. She ran the fastest time in the NAIA this season at 4:13.13, the second-fastest time in program history, missing the USATF National Championships qualifying standard by 0.13 seconds.
Honorable mention: Talissa Baldovino, EOU
Men’s Field
Concordia’s Nate Moses has been named the Red Lion Men’s Outdoor Field Athlete of the Week.
Moses, a senior from Fresno, Calif., rebroke his own school record in the discus throw with a 201-9 (61.49m) effort at the Mt. SAC Relays last week. Moses placed third overall behind UCLA's Justin Wruck (211-7) and Nike's Vikas Gowda (211-3) and remains No. 6 among all college athleteies and one of only nine collegiate throwers at any level to break the 200-foot mark in the discipline. Moses now leads the NAIA by a whopping 24 feet.
Honorable mention: Brian Wickham, EOU
Men’s Track
Concordia’s Matthew Clowes has been named the Red Lion Men’s Outdoor Track Athlete of the Week.
Clowes, a junior from Stoke-on-Trent, England, claimed the No. 1 spot in the 800 with a school record 1:50.16 while competing at the Beach Invitational on Saturday. Clowes entered the week with the top 1,500 mark in the nation with a 3:44.14, but had two runners top the mark, including one by CCC-rival Eric Avila of Southern Oregon. Moving down to the 800, where Avila paced the NAIA with a 1:50.89, Clowes returned to the top of the NAIA performance list with his record-breaking run, knocking Avila off the perch and tackling the school's previous all-time best of 1:50.57. The day before, Clowes took third overall in the 1,500 with a time of 3:45.35, which stopped just slightly slower than his school record of 3:44.14 that was established last week. Clowes won his section of the event by almost a full second over Montana State's Cristian Soratos and trailed only Texas-Pan American's Martin Casse (3:44.92) and Oklahoma State's Matthew Fayers (3:45.09) out of more than 100 competitors in the invitational rounds of the 1,500.
Honorable mention: Erica Avila, SOU; Hans Roelle, EOU
Men’s Golf
Corban’s Zach Mode has been named the Red Lion Men’s Golfer of the Week.
Mode, a sophomore from Bend, Ore., put together his best back-to-back rounds of the season to finish in second place with a one-over 145 at Broken Top Club in his hometown of Bend, Ore.. His 71 in the opening round tied for a season low shot one month ago at the Corban Invitational. The only golfer to beat him was Ryan Kukula from NCAA Division III and tournament host Willamette.
Honorable mention: None