Mount Hood

Baseball crowned GNAC champions

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

After playing a total of four games on home field this year, baseball returned to Monmouth conference champions.

The Wolves swept their way through the GNAC tournament, winning three games to take the trophy. Having earned the title of regular season GNAC champions a week prior, the Wolves used the May 10 through 12 playoffs to reaffirm their dominance. They outscored their opponents by a collective 26-10.

The first game was the tightest of the tournament as the Wolves pulled out the win over Montana State Billings, 4-2.

Junior pitcher Cam Walker threw a complete game for the Wolves, striking out 10 batters to set a new single game record for the GNAC tournament.

Senior Joey Crunkilton scored the first run of the day in the second inning. He was walked at the start of the inning and advanced the bases before being batted in by junior Garrett Anderson.

Then, in the fourth inning, with junior Jacob Martinez on base, Crunkilton hit a home run over right field.

The low-scoring game was the product of clean defensive play and a lethal pitching performance. Eleven straight Billings players were retired to open the game before picking up their first hit.

In a Facebook live interview broadcast by the GNAC after the game, Cam Walker said “I just felt good. Established the strike zone, up and down in and out. Just throwing everything for strikes.”

The second game was against the Central Washington Wildcats, the number two seed in the tournament. The Wolves found themselves in a bind as they trailed 1-7 going into the sixth inning. They mounted a comeback, amassing 12 runs over the last three innings to secure the win and their place in the championship game.

The rally began when Crunkilton was batted in by first-year student Torreahno Sweet with a leadoff double in the sixth inning. Sweet was later batted in for his own run by Garrett Anderson, but after six the Wolves still trailed 3-7.

They picked up two more runs in the eighth, as Sweet crossed home plate again and so did junior Nyles Nygaard. The Wolves were in shouting distance.

“Our team never gives up,” said Nygaard. “We knew what we had to do and what we have worked so hard for.”

The eighth inning would prove the explosive decider, as the Wolves put up eight runs.

Nygaard picked up his second run while Sweet scored a third time and earned a second RBI. Sophomore Justin Wakem hit a two RBI single to bat in Crunkilton’s second run and also score junior Jacob Martinez.
The final score was 13-7, Wolves.

“We took one pitch at a time and started to get big hits when we needed them,” said Nygaard. “Our pitchers did a nice job of minimizing runs late in the game and it gave us a chance to score and have a chance to win the game. It was great to be a part of.”

The championship game was against the Northwest Nazarene Crusaders.

Junior Brady Miller was the starting pitcher and struck out nine in his seven innings, while Wolves bats opened up to power the team to a 9-1 win.

Seven of the runs came in the second inning.

A single from senior Brock Pradere batted in two, as Anderson and senior Boog Leach both crossed home plate. With Pradere on base, junior Jay Leverett hammered the first pitch he faced and they rounded the bases for an inside-the-park home run.

“We had great energy from the dugout and our batters were able to slow the game down and take it one pitch at a time,” said Pradere.

First-year student Connor McCord picked up two RBIs from two singles in the third and seventh inning as the Wolves rolled to victory.

For his 10-strikeout performance, Walker was named tournament MVP.

The Wolves finish the year with a 31-15 record, the best record they’ve posted under coach Kellen Walker’s tenure.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

Track tournament held in Monmouth

By: Burke De Boer 
Sports Editor

The conference’s best came to Monmouth for the GNAC Outdoor Track and Field Championship.

The two days of competition on May 12 and 13 featured many Wolves wins, and a conference record was broken.

Senior Wesley Gray set a conference record in the triple jump competition, when he hopped, stepped and jumped to a distance of 15.5 meters, or 50’10.25”. No one had cleared 50 feet in conference history, and a new tape had to be fetched from the storage area to record the distance.

The event win earned the men’s team 10 points and replaced a 13-year-old conference record.

Senior Aaron Whitaker won his 400-meter race, crossing the finish line in 47.59 seconds, breaking his own school record time of 47.96 seconds that he had set earlier this year.

Junior David Ribich earned 20 points for the men’s team on his own, winning two events.

Ribich won the men’s 800-meter with a time of 1:52.71. He was soon followed by senior Michael Chin, whose 1:54.94 finish earned him fourth place.

Ribich also claimed the title for the 1500-meter race, finishing in 3:47.37. Sophomore Dustin Nading came in second in this event, with a time of 3:47.63, while junior Thomas Normandeau completed the race in 3:58.04 for eighth place to grab the final available point. Wolves men picked up 19 points from the 1500-meter, alone.

Nading also scored a fifth place finish in the 5000-meter, with a time of 15:34.79.

First-year student Alani Troutman won the long jump contest, leaping to a distance of 7.08 meters, or 23’2.75”. The first conference championship of Troutman’s career, it speaks to a promising future for the Western Oregon competitor.

The men’s team picked up another ten points when it won the 4×100-meter relay. Seniors Gray, Devonte Woods and Whitaker and junior Codi Blodgett made up the victory team. They finished the event in 41.62 seconds.

In the sprints, junior Cody Warner took second in the 200-meter with a time of 22.33. Blodgett finished behind him, taking fifth place in 22.81 seconds. Blodgett also claimed fifth in the 100-meter with a time of 11.15.

The women’s throwing team did well, as senior Rachael Huffman earned a second place distance in the discus, with a throw of 42.92 meters, or 140’10”. First-year student Halie Korff came in eighth in the contest, with a throw of 38.67 meters, or 124’8.25”. First-year Mariah Gronbach came in 10th with a 38-meter throw, or 124’8.25”.

Huffman claimed a fourth place finish in the shot put, throwing it a distance of 13.16, or 43’2.5,” which advances her place in the school record book from fourth to fifth.

Korff also placed eighth in the javelin, with a throw of 41.01 meters, or 134’6.75”.

The women’s team picked up a total of 12 points on the 800-meter race, with fourth, fifth and sixth place finishers. Junior Megan Rose came in fourth place with a time of 2:11.65. Junior Suzanne Van De Grift placed fifth with a time of 2:12.53 and sophomore Olivia Woods rounded out the Wolves finishers with a sixth-place time of 2:13.14.

The men’s team amassed a total of 107 points, finishing fourth overall in the two days of competition. The women’s team picked up 36 points to finish ninth out of the 10 teams. Alaska Anchorage took the conference championships, both men’s and women’s teams.

The NCAA Division II Outdoor National Championship will be held in Bradenton, Florida May 25 through 27. Multiple Wolves have posted qualifying and provisional marks over the season and now await the announcement of official selections.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

End of the road for the Road Warriors

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

On April 7, Wolves softball was bottom of the GNAC, with only one win in conference play. On May 7, they played in the conference championship game.

Because they were the fourth and final seed in the playoffs, the Wolves were slated to face the Central Washington Wildcats in the first round on Thursday, May 4.

The Wildcats were the top ranked team in the conference and the regular season champions. They were also the team that defeated Western Oregon in the 2016 championship game to win the GNAC crown.

But they were also the team that the Wolves swept in a doubleheader on April 30 to claim their playoff spot. And, after not playing a home game all year, the team that call themselves the Road Warriors were undaunted by the trip to Lacey, Washington.

That confidence helped the Wolves pull the 4-3 upset.

The game started on May 4 but wouldn’t be finished until May 5, as severe thunderstorms swept across Lacey force a delay.

After nearly 26 hours, the winning run was scored by sophomore Ryanne Huffman in the sixth inning. Huffman hit a single and was able to advance to second and third on two wild pitches before senior Ashlee Lynch batted her in on a sacrifice fly.

Sophomore pitcher Haley Fabian picked up the win, advancing to 13-8 on the season with five strikeouts.

The double-elimination tournament meant that Central Washington would keep playing, but through the loser’s bracket. Western Oregon advanced to face the Western Washington Vikings.

The Vikings were the number two team in the tournament and, much like the Wolves, were on a hot streak. They had won nine games in a row. Their last loss was on April 22, when the Wolves beat them 1-0.

The tournament meeting turned out to be a pitcher’s duel between Fabian and Vikings ace Anna Kasner. The game went into extra innings before the Wolves fell 1-2. Kasner recorded 13 strikeouts in the game.

The Wolves had one more shot to make the championship game, but they had to take on the Wildcats again to get there. This game was much more explosive, and the Wolves won 8-6.

Senior Destiny Kuehl and first-year student Chandler Bishop each slugged home runs in the fourth inning. Senior Kelsie Gardner scored three runs on the day as the Wolves topped Central Washington for a fourth consecutive game and returned to face Western Washington.

Again Kasner took the mound for the Vikings, while junior Lizzet Dominguez started for the Wolves.

The game began as tight as the first game, with three up and three down for both sides in the first inning.

In the second inning, things fell apart. Western Washington scored two runs on Dominguez, who was pulled for senior Sammi Cadwallader, before the Vikings scored three more.

“Walks were our downfall,” said Ku’ulei Siolo, senior catcher. “I was feeling the pressure and knew we couldn’t let them score more than a few runs to stay in the game because our hitting hadn’t been strong against Kasner.”

Dominguez was pulled after giving up a walk with bases loaded, which gave the Vikings their second run.

Cadwallader inherited the loaded bases with two outs but wasn’t able to shut the Vikings down. Two of the runners had been walked and one hit by a pitch to reach base. All three would cross home plate before Cadwallader forced the final out.

The rest of the day was a pitcher’s affair with little offensive action. The Wolves ultimately lost 0-5.

“Of course I’m sad it’s over,” Siolo said. “I never really thought it would end, but here I am. But I think this season will be a great example for future WOU softball players, that no matter the circumstances, we can overcome the worst situations. I’ll miss this sport, but I think this program will make a name for itself.”

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

Alpha Wolves are top dogs once more

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

For the 14th time in the past 17 years, Wolves baseball are the regular season GNAC champions.

The 2017 title was secured over the course of two days of action in Monmouth – the only baseball played on Western Oregon’s campus all year.

In two days of double headers against Northwest Nazarene, the Wolves won one and lost one on each day.

The first split came on May 4. The Wolves lost the home opener 2-5, then came thundering back to win the afternoon game 11-3.

That victory secured at least a share of the conference title.

The Wolves went into the third inning trailing 0-1 when they were able to open up scoring. First-year student Connor McCord hit a single with junior Garrett Anderson on base. A throwing error by the Northwest Nazarene infield brought Anderson across home plate.

The Wolves picked up five total runs in that inning alone, the start of a three-inning burst from the Wolves. They held an 11-2 lead in the fifth when the game was put on pause.

After a season full of games being canceled and relocated due to weather, it was only fitting that a game finally played in Monmouth would get a weather delay. The May 4 thunderstorm that swept across the Northwest sent a few bolts into the Monmouth-Corvallis area. Fans in the aluminum bleachers were encouraged to find shelter as the game was halted for 30 minutes.

When the game continued, the Wolves were able to coast on their huge lead to the victory.

In the second day of action, the Wolves put up an even bigger win, at 20-2. This game made the Wolves the outright regular season champions.

Seniors Joey Crunkilton and Brock Pradere and junior Jacob Martinez each scored three runs. Martinez recorded two doubles and three RBIs.

15 runs came in the first two innings.

“Going into every game we have the mentality of applying pressure first,” said Nyles Nygaard, junior third baseman, who had two runs and three RBIs in the win. “The first two innings were huge for us, we applied a ton of pressure which made us slow the game down and take quality at bats. It was a great team effort.”

Though this was the 14th time the Wolves accomplished this in the past 17 years, it was the first one in two years. After a 13-year streak, the last two seasons were dry ones for Western Oregon baseball.

First-year student Torreahno Sweet joined the team just in time to skip the two-year title gap. “Sweet T,” as his teammates call him, has made a quick impact, posting a batting average of .345 over the season. Only the veteran catchers, redshirt sophomore Justin Wakem and senior Boog Leach, had better averages.

“It was great to play with this group of guys,” Sweet said. “We are one big family and we play the game hard.”

The Wolves are the number one seed and will face Montana State Billings in the first round of the playoffs. In the regular season, Western Oregon went 7-1 in their eight games against the Yellowjackets, where they scored a total of 62 runs to average 7.75 runs a game.

“We are all excited,” Nygaard said. “We have practiced and prepared so much for big situations so we are ready to get after it.”

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

Springing into action

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

Under blue skies and bright sun, the football team hosted the 2017 spring game.

The May 6 game was held at McArthur Field and gave Wolves fans a look at the work the team has put in over spring practice.

Last year’s two quarterbacks, Philip Fenumiai and Nick Duckworth, are seniors in the fall and competed against one another as Western Oregon players divided into a red team and white team. Underclassmen Ty Currie, Wyatt Hutchinson and Blake Walker were also tested.

“I honestly think it’s a group effort,” said Trey Shimabukuro, quarterback coach for the Wolves. “Offensively we simplified things for our guys which allowed them to play fast and understand the ‘why’ behind the playcall. We still have a long way to go as a position, but I am excited to see the progress we have made.”

Last year’s defensive leader was Bo Highburger, who will be a junior in the fall.

“Took some big steps as a team today,” Highburger said. “Two players that stood out to me, although I’m pretty preoccupied with playing the game myself, were linebackers Andrew Weber and Nate Proctor.”

Highburger also had praise for wide receiver Harrison White, who was redshirted last season.

“It was cool to see our young guys progress and make plays on both sides of the ball,” said wide receiver Zack Suarez, who will be a senior. “As a whole I think it went really well. It was nice to be in that environment after the last few weeks of spring ball.”

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

Track and field finds success in two meets

By: Burke De Boer
Sports Editor

Western Oregon track and field competed in Eugene and McMinnville, as they took on the Oregon Twilight and the Linfield Open.

Junior David Ribich won the men’s 1,500-meter at the University of Oregon on May 5. His winning time was 3:45.01.

Sophomore Dustin Nading won his event in the 1,500-meter as well. The Oregon Twilight hosted a B Section of the 1,500-meter, giving Nading the opportunity to take the victory with a time of 3:50.24.

Women sprinters also did well for the Wolves, as first-year student Grayson Burke claimed second place in the 400-meter, crossing the finish line in 58.67 seconds. The women’s 4×100 relay team took another second place finish. The team, composed of Burke, senior Laura Patrick, junior Sara Madden and sophomore Madeline Bernard, finished in 49.68 seconds.

Success continued for the Wolves on May 6, when some competed in the Linfield Open.

Two event wins were recorded, as sophomore Olivia Woods took the women’s 400-meter with a time of 57.19. Junior Megan Rose came in right behind her with a second-place time of 57.89.

The other event win was claimed by first-year student Sawyer Heckard in the men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase, finishing in 10:05.24.

Grayson Burke claimed another second-place finish, running the 800-meter in 2:21.21.

The Wolves track and field team now focuses on the GNAC outdoor championships, which will be hosted in Monmouth on May 12 and 13.

Contact the author tat journalsports@wou.edu

Closing in on the conference title

By: Burke De Boer
sports editor


Wolves baseball swept St. Martin’s and then split a pair of doubleheaders with Central Washington, remaining top of the GNAC after the week’s six games.

The April 26 games against St. Martin’s were played on neutral ground in Portland’s Porter Park, where the Wolves won 5-3 and 5-1.

In bottom of the first game’s eighth inning, the game was tied at 3-3. Junior Nyles Nygaard hit a double to score senior Joey Crunkilton, for Crunkilton’s second score of the game. Nygaard was shortly batted in by sophomore Justin Wakem for the two point lead.

St. Martin’s never threatened in the second game, as junior pitcher Brady Miller recorded eight strikeouts and gave up only one run while pitching a complete game.

On April 28, the Wolves faced the Central Washington Wildcats in Ellensburg, Washington. The number two team in the conference, the Wildcats had a lot to gain from defeating the Wolves. On the first day of competition, the Wolves were able to prove why they’re top in the standings, winning 6-4 and 11-7.

Wakem and junior Garrett Anderson each recorded three hits and two RBIs in the first game, and Crunkilton hit his second home run of the season.

The second game featured four lead changes as the offenses went back and forth in the later innings. Junior Cody Dykstra scored on a wild pitch for the lead in the eighth inning. Nygaard then singled to bat in junior Jacob Martinez.

Nygaard went on to steal second and third base before being batted in, along with first-year student Torreahno Sweet, off a Wakem single.

The second day of action in Ellensburg was tougher on the Wolves, who lost 11-13 and 6-8.

The two games were massive scoring affairs. In the last two frames of the first game, a total of 12 runs were scored.

At the start of the eighth inning, the Wolves trailed 5-7, with the game still in reach, when Central Washington put up six runs on first-year pitcher Justin Doleful.

The Wolves answered with six runs of their own, including a three-run homer from junior Jay Leverett. But it wasn’t enough. Justin Wakem, who had previously scored two runs and an RBI, struck out swinging to end the game.

Late-inning drama again unfolded in the day’s second game; the Wolves went up 6-2 only to give up six more runs and fall again.

The Wolves maintain their top spot in the conference, with four games left to play before the playoffs begin on May 10.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

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