Mount Hood

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

Westbrook makes his closing argument

By: Burke De Boer
sports editor


After the first round of the NBA playoffs, Russell Westbrook is now home watching the remaining teams compete.

The frontrunner for the NBA Most Valuable Player award, Westbrook is reduced to a civilian. His only MVP competitor is James Harden.

Unlike Westbrook, Harden has advanced to the second round of the playoffs. His Houston Rockets team took down Westbrook’s Oklahoma City Thunder in four games.

The series put the two teams head-to-head, and was predicted to be the indicator for which player truly is the most valuable.

Harden edged Westbrook out of the playoffs. The question now is if he will take the award as well.

Cameras caught Houston fans taunting Westbrook in the Rockets-Thunder series, by holding a sign reading, “The real MVP is over there.” Westbrook is seen looking at the sign, which has an arrow pointing toward Harden.

It was good-natured, competitive ribbing that we can expect from organized sports and fan bases. It was funny because there was some truth to it. After all, wouldn’t the real MVP be able to get his team to advance in the playoffs?

Though he bowed out of the big dance early, Westbrook still leads the MVP voting by an ever-increasing margin, because the head-to-head matchup of the two teams seemed to have the opposite effect from their outcome.

Westbrook, in his first season without Kevin Durant, averaged a triple-double on the season. Only one other player had ever done that, and that was 55 years ago.

The Thunder finished sixth place this season, which is well below the finish of a typical MVP candidate. First round exits aren’t typical MVP fodder either, but these games against the Rockets served to show how much Westbrook is truly doing.

Harden had the most points and assists on his team in most of the games of the series. The fourth game was a poor showing from Harden, but he still led his team in assists.

Westbrook had the most points, assists and rebounds on the Thunder every game, and was often the overall leader of these numbers.

He outscored Harden in three out of five games, he out-assisted Harden in four out of five games and he outrebounded Harden in every single game.

Westbrook put the Thunder on his back and took them as far as he could. If this translates to an MVP award remains to be seen, but it would be a surprise to see him surpassed.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

Road wins take Wolves to the playoffs

By: Burke De Boer
sports editor

The 2017 Wolves softball team call themselves the Road Warriors.

After 49 regular games, with every home game being canceled and relocated due to weather and field conditions, they traveled 14,655 miles to play ball. The Road Warriors will travel again come May 4. This time to Lacey, Washington, to compete in the GNAC championships.

One month earlier, the Wolves were dead last in the conference.

“This whole season has been a string of bad luck, with injuries and ineligibilities,” said Ku’ulei Siolo, senior catcher. “But now that everyone is back together, I think we’re really finding our groove.”

Corvallis is as close as Western Oregon Softball would get to playing on the Western Oregon Softball Field in 2017. They “hosted” two double headers at Oregon State, facing St. Martin’s on April 29 and Central Washington on April 30.

The Wolves split their first day of competition, first beating the Saints 9-5 then losing 4-5.

After the split series, the Wolves needed to win only one game against Central Washington to secure a playoff spot. They came out and took both legs of the doubleheader, 5-1 and 4-0.
The game was tied 1-1 when sophomore pitcher Haley Fabian took the mound in the first game. She threw four shutout innings on the way to the playoff-clinching victory.

“We had nothing to lose,” Fabian said. “We needed to secure our spot in the GNAC. I just had to trust my stuff and my team.”

Even after clinching their playoff berth, the Wolves didn’t slow down.

“It was such a relief to get the first win and a huge confidence booster to win the second game,” Siolo said. “When we first p
layed Central, we played phenomenal and barely lost on a couple ill-timed errors. So being able to shut down Central and show them we won’t be rolling over any time soon was amazing.”

Central Washington are the top seed this year, so the Wolves meet them again in the first round. Last year the Wildcats defeated Western Oregon in the GNAC championship game. But the Road Warriors feel confident heading into the matchup.

“Coming off that sweep is huge for us and really fired us up,” said Hailee Watilo, senior right fielder, who hit a home run in the 4-0 win. “We know it’s going to be a battle and that’s what our team’s always looking for.”

“I think Central will need to rearrange their strategy a lot if they plan on winning on Thursday,” Siolo said. “We’re peaking at the perfect time right now.”

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

Track and field shines in Corvallis contest

By: Burke De Boer
sports editor

As they prepared for the GNAC championships, the Western Oregon track and field team traveled to Corvallis to compete in the Oregon State High Performance, a two-day meet on April 28 and 29.

Senior Aaron Whitaker set a new school record in the men’s 400-meter dash. His time of 47.96 was enough for a second place finish at the meet, and places him third in the GNAC this year. He was named the GNAC player of the week for his accomplishment.

Junior David Ribich took first place in the men’s 1500-meter. His time of 3:41.45 was the quickest in a field that featured runners from Division I schools, such as Colorado and Washington. It was also a new personal record for Ribich.

Sophomore Dustin Nading took the 11th spot in the race, with a time of 3:47.17, which was a lifetime personal best for him. Junior Thomas Normandeau took 30th place and first-year student Justin Crosswhite took 36th. Normandeau’s time of 3:56.15 was also a personal best.

Junior Alan Ekanger ran the men’s 3000-meter steeplechase for an 11th place finish. His time of 9:30.90 set his new personal record, improving by 20 seconds.

Another personal best was set by sophomore Tyler Jones in the men’s 5000-meter. His time of 14:54.95 took him to a 24th place finish.

In the women’s 800-meter, sophomore Olivia Woods became the first Division II runner across the finish line, for a 14th place finish overall. She finished the race in 2:08.65. Juniors Megan Rose and Suzanne Van De Grift were close behind, finishing in 2:09.05 for 16th place and 2:09.47 for 18th place, respectively.

The men’s 800-meter saw another Division II-leading finish, as senior Michael Chin came in 12th place with a time of 1:52.76. First-year student Curt Knott won his heat of the 800-meter. His time of 1:56.28 was a personal best, and earned him a 25th place finish overall.
Sara Madden set a lifetime best in the 400-meter hurdles, with an eighth-place time of 1:03.84.

Wolves continued to excel in throwing competitions. Junior Sheila Limas De La Cruz improved on her earlier NCAA provisional distance in the javelin contest. With her throw of 44.14 meters, De La Cruz is now ranked number 11 in the nation.

Junior Kegan Allen set a new personal record in the hammer throw, adding two meters to his previous distance with a throw of 51.30. The throw earned him a third place finish, and saw him finish top among Division II throwers.

Wolves also had strong finishes in jumps. Senior Wesley Gray took second in the men’s triple jump contest, with a distance of 14.69 meters. First-year student Alani Troutman came in fourth among the men’s long jump, with a distance of 7.03 meters.

The Wolves continue to prepare for the GNAC outdoor championships, which will be hosted in Monmouth on May 12 and 13.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

Baseball splits series with Concordia

By: Burke De Boer 
Sports Editor

The Wolves went 2-2 across a pair of doubleheaders over the weekend facing Concordia.

The matchup positioned the top of the GNAC Wolves against the conference’s bottom ranked team for a surprisingly even two days of competition. In the first day of games, Concordia cleaned house, as the Wolves lost 2-9 and 3-5 on April 21. They got back on track the second day, winning 5-1 and 6-0.

Concordia opened up scoring early in the first game, putting up two runs in the first inning on the starting pitcher, first-year student Connor McCord.

McCord would give up a total of five runs before being pulled. But even after pitching changed, Concordia runs kept coming in. Sophomore Jacob Fricke, first-year student Justin Dolezal and senior Alex Emerson would all serve time on the mound, giving up four more runs.

On offense, McCord was able to bat in the only two runs for the Wolves.

The second game of the day was much closer, and went into extra innings to reach a decision. Senior Justin Spinner and first-year student Hunter Johnson scored runs in the bottom of the seventh to tie the game. But two runs in the ninth secured the win for Concordia.

The Wolves regrouped and swept Concordia on April 22.

Junior Craig Grubbe pitched the first game, striking out seven on the way to the 5-1 victory.

“Two losses in a day is pretty strong fuel for a team,” said senior Joey Crunkilton. “We took those losses to heart and were able to use it to our advantage.”

Crunkilton had three runs over the two games. He also hit in two RBIs, batting in McCord and junior Jacob Martinez with a fourth inning double in the 6-0 second game victory.

Junior Nyles Nygaard helped lead the way in scoring, and batted in Crunkilton on a triple after Crunkilton’s fourth inning double. He also opened the scoring of the game with a solo home run.

With eight games left to play, the Wolves remain on the top of the GNAC standings. Their remaining games all come against second-place Central Washington and third-place Northwest Nazarene.

Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu

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