Mount Hood

Men’s basketball on four-game win streak, looks to continue

Rachel Shelley
 Sports Editor

The men’s basketball team is currently on a four-game win streak, beating their most recent opponent, Academy of Art University (AAU) in San Francisco, Calif. 83-73 on Nov. 29.

The match-up between the Urban Knights concluded a three-game holiday road trip where the Wolves returned to Monmouth unbeaten. The game started off with a 10-0 lead for the Wolves after a pair of free throws by forward Lewis Thomas. Western increased their lead after guard Julian Nichols completed a fast break lay-in. The first half ended with the Wolves up 38-28.

The second half opened up with Western extending their lead to 16 with free throws from forward Andy Avgi. Guard Devon Alexander nailed a three pointer to take the Wolves to a 21-point lead. The Wolves went 6-for-6 from the free throw line during the final minutes, finishing with a victory of 83-73 securing a four game win streak before starting conference play.

“Our team has been very tough defensively,” said Head Coach Brady Bergeson. “We have found ways to make things hard for our opponents. Our goals for the games this week are no difference than they have been. We need to uphold our defensive standards and continue to progress offensively by sharing the ball and working for good shots.”

Nichols finished with a season and career-high 26 points and went 6-for-11 from the field and 13-for-14 from the free throw line. Three other Wolves were in double figures: Avgi, Thomas and forward Mawan Sarhan with 16, 12 and 12 points respectively. Avgi and Thomas tied with a team-leading and game-high seven rebounds. Nichols and guard Jordan Wiley each dished out four assists.
The team shot 49 percent from the field on 25-of-51, 30.8 percent on 4-of-13 from the three-point line and 87.9 percent from the free throw line with 29-of-33.

“We have a lot of talent returning from last year,” Alexander said. “There are high expectations. With that being said, we want to take it one game at a time and focus on our team’s trademarks. So far our strength is that we have at least five guys that can help us in scoring on any given night. We can be one of the top defensive teams in the country as well; we just have to prove that we are day in and day out.”

The Wolves play the next five games at home, two from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC). The Wolves welcome University of Alaska Anchorage Saturday, Dec. 6 at 2 p.m.

Football ends season with win on the road

Jacob Hansen
Freelancer

Western’s football team hit the road for one final trip last Saturday where they were greeted with below zero temperatures in Rapid City, South Dakota.

The Wolves defeated the South Dakota Mines in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) 18-15. This season-ending victory extended the Wolves winning seasons to nine straight years under Head Coach Arne Ferguson.

“The weather was nothing like any of us have ever played in,” said quarterback Ryan Bergman. “We adapted well to the conditions and were able to do enough to get a victory.”

The Wolves (6-5 4-2 GNAC) had their best day of the season on the ground racking up 212 rushing yards led by running backs Nathaniel Penaranda with 143, and Joe Harris with an 86-yard contribution. Bergman was 14-for-30 contributing 143 yards to the Wolves total.

The Wolves were first to score as Phillip Fenumiai caught a 10-yard pass from Bergman with 7:38 left on the clock. The Wolves failed to convert the extra point. The Mines took the lead just 34 seconds later with a touchdown, making the score 7-6 with 7:04 on the clock.

Just 12 seconds into the second quarter, Harris busted off a 66-yard run to pull ahead by five (12-7). The solid defense lead by senior defensive lineman Kraig Akins kept either team from scoring until the fourth quarter.

Akins who was named the GNAC defensive player of the week had a team high tying eight tackles, including two tackles for a loss along to go with a quarterback sack and a forced fumble.

“He gets overlooked a lot, everyone runs away from him,” Ferguson said. “I believe he is the best defensive player in GNAC history production wise.”

With five minutes left in the fourth, the Mines punched in a two-yard run to take a one-point lead, 13-12, as they failed the two-point conversion.

Bergman threw a pinpoint pass to wide receiver Paul Revis for a 20-yard touchdown with 8:46 remaining. Bergman’s 58th career touchdown put the Wolves up 18-13.

“He [Bergman] is one of the best quarterbacks in the nation,” said Ferguson.

The Wolves defense stepped up causing a turnover on downs to keep the game in their control for the 18-15 victory.

The Wolves finish up the season in a three-way tie for second in the final GNAC standings. They will lose nine seniors this year that all played a significant role on the team.

“We are losing the best threesome of players I have ever coached: Bergman, Akins and Tyrell Williams,” Ferguson said.

Volleyball sweeps Falcons, falls to Billings

By Rachel Shelley
Sports Editor

Wolves’ volleyball finished off their season with two home games, a 3-0 victory over Seattle Pacific on Nov. 13 and a 0-3 loss against Montana State Billings on Nov. 15.

The Wolves finished their sweep against the Falcons with 41 kills. 25 came from outside hitters Alisha Bettinson, Sam Moore and Lani Kalalau, while Christie Colasurdo added a match-high 32 digs after being named Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) defensive player of the week. Her 32 digs are a GNAC season-high for a three-set match.

Setters Jordin Ramos and Kiana Cash totaled 31 assists. Western finished with 10 blocks, Moore added eight for a match-high.

The Falcons were edged by the Wolves in kills, hitting percentage, .061 to the Wolves .162, blocks, 6-10, and aces 2-6.

Montana State Billings traveled to Monmouth for the Wolves senior night and the last game of the season. The Billings swept the Wolves in three matches edging the Wolves in hitting percentage, .257 to .186, kills 44-41 and blocks 7-6.5. Both teams had five aces in the match.

Opposite Hitter Hannah Deede led the Wolves with a season-high 16 kills, Bettinson added eight and Moore had seven on the night. Colasurdo led the Wolves defense with a match-high 17 digs. Setters Ramos and Cash combined for 34 assists.

Men’s basketball holds on for a huge upset

BY RACHEL SHELLEY
SPORTS EDITOR

Men’s basketball took on Division 1 Oregon State University (OSU) in an exhibition game on Nov. 7 where they upset the Beavers in Corvallis, Ore. 57-47.

The Wolves’ opened the first half strong, scoring the first seven points. OSU didn’t score until 16:09 in the first half. Forward Andy Avgi helped increase the lead by as much as 17 points (27-10) with a jumper at 5:36 in the first half and then hitting a three-pointer in the final seconds before the half.

The double-digit lead would remain as the Wolves went into halftime with the score 32-19.

Avgi finished the first half with 13 points and was 5-of-7 shooting from the field. He finished the night with a game-high 21 points and 6-of-13 from the field.

He also shot 8-for-9 from the free throw line. Guards Devon Alexander and Julian Nichols each had six points in the first half.

The Wolves started out the second half keeping their 17 point lead with a lay-in by Nichols before the Beavers went on a 19-8 run to come within six points, 51-45.

Guard Jordan Wiley jumpstarted the Wolves next 6-0 run with his third three-pointer of the night.

Western built another 12-point lead before finishing the game 57-47 to give them their first win over OSU in four games.

Wiley and Alexander finished with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Nichols had eight points and a team-high tying seven rebounds. Alexander and Nichols each had a team-high four assists each.

Western shot 29 percent from the field, 29.2 percent from behind the arch and 73.7 percent at the free throw line. OSU had 21 turnovers to the Wolves nine and only five steals to our 12.

“Our experiences last weekend were valuable both for the confidence to know that we can compete and play at a high level, but also to see the weak points in our execution at this early stage in the season,” said head coach Brady Bergeson.

“We have both success and failure to build off of, which is exactly what our group needed. Our kids are very focused on the task in front of them heading into this weekend.”

Western hosts 14th annual cross country championships

BY JENNIFER HALLEY
CAMPUS LIFE EDITOR

The men’s and women’s Cross Country team competed in the 14th annual Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) championships where the women placed seventh and the men finished eighth, on Saturday, Nov. 1.

David Ribich finished first for the Wolves in 25:56, which awarded him 26th place overall. The next Wolf to score was Zach Holloway in 27th place, with a time of 26:01.

Josh Hanna clocked in at 26:43 in 47th place. David McLeod, Riley Anheluk, Parker Marson and Joe Soik finished the Wolves’ scoring.

“The conference meet, we fell a little short finishing 8th; don’t know how or why but we did,” said Ribich. “We are bouncing back and continuing to train hard. Now is the time of cold season and it’s more important than ever to stay healthy and practice the best we can.”

Alaska Anchorage won the team title on the men’s side as well as swept the top three finishing spots.

Stephanie Stuckey was the first Wolf to finish in the women’s 6k, with a time of 21:47, which gave her a 21st place finish. Rachel Crawford was close behind in 26th place, with a time of 21:55.

Bailey Beeson and Nicole Anderson finished in 45th and 46th place with times of 22:36 and 22:37. Kolby Childers, Debora De Leon and Rachel Shelley finished the Wolves’ scoring.

“I am not excited about how we placed at conference,” said Stuckey. “I thought we ran our hearts out; but the results did not show it. It doesn’t mean we sucked; it just means we have to and can do better. I think the extra time to train is incredibly beneficial and will give us enough time to lay out a solid foundation to bring us up to our best for regionals.”

On the women’s side, the team title, as well as second and third place, was separated by just two points, the closest race in GNAC history. Simon Frasier won the women’s title with 62 points.

The men’s and women’s team travel to Billings, Mont. for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) West Regional meet on Nov. 22.

Football shows strength in victory against Simon Fraser

 

By: Freelancer Jacob Hansen

 

“It makes my job a whole lot easier when you have a dynamic player to throw to, yet alone two of them to throw to,” senior quarterback Ryan Bergman

 

With back to back touchdowns thrown to redshirt freshman wide receiver Paul Revis in the fourth quarter, the Wolves were able to secure their second Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) win against the Clan of Simon Fraser University, 27-16 during homecoming week on Oct. 25.

Western Oregon (4-4, 2-1 GNAC) struck first and fast against Simon Fraser (2-6, 2-2) during the Wolves homecoming game. Senior quarterback Ryan Bergman started off the game with a 35-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Tyrell Williams. Bergman completed 18-of-42 passes for 332 yards on the day and four touchdowns. Williams and Revis combined for 286 yards and three touchdowns on the day, making their presence known throughout the GNAC.

“It makes my job a whole lot easier when you have a dynamic player to throw to, yet alone two of them to throw to,” said Bergman.

Paul Revis was named the GNAC’s offensive player of the week for the first time in his career. He leads the Wolves and GNAC with 902 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. Revis is ranked third in division II for all-purpose yards averaging 205.1 yards per game.

“It’s a great honor to be acknowledged by the league and hope to earn many more in my future,” said Revis.

It was the Wolves’ defense that forced the Clan to field goals instead of touchdowns that really gave our boys in red the upper hand. Redshirt sophomore defensive back Danny Hankins led the Wolves defense with seven solo tackles and an interception. The defense allowed only one pass to be thrown over their head for 51 yards in the second quarter, which would be the last score before the half.

The Wolves came out of the half strong, finishing a drive with a one-yard touchdown pass from Bergman to junior wide receiver James DePew, putting the Wolves up 14-10.

The Clan answered back with two drives that would both result in field goals, giving them the two point advantage at the beginning of the fourth.

Bergman and Revis answered again when they connected for a 94-yard drive with a 29-yard touchdown pass to put the Wolves up 21-16.

A 54-yard touchdown pass from Bergman to Revis would wrap up this homecoming victory for the Wolves.

The Wolves travel to Glendora California to play the No. 25-ranked Azusa Pacific University Saturday, Nov. 1.

“Whoever wins this game will be the conference champs,” said head coach Arne Ferguson.

Volleyball serves up first conference win

BY RACHEL SHELLEY
AND CHIANNA TOLTON
SPORTS EDITOR
AND FREELANCER

 

Western Oregon University Volleyball
had their first Great Northwest Athletic Conference
(GNAC) win of the season in Lacey,
Wash. against Saint Martin’s University Saturday
Oct. 25, where they finished 3-1 (25-
12, 25-19, 21-25, 25-21) in the match.
Leading the team offensively was redshirt
freshman outside hitter Alisha Bettinson,
who added 10 kills and five aces for the
Wolves.
“We’ve been really close in a lot of
matches this year,” said Bettinson. “We finally
put everything together to put ourselves
on top.”
Senior setter Jordin Ramos added a
team-high 24 assists while freshman setter
Kiana Cash dished out 18 for the Wolves.
Senior opposite hitter Hannah Deede and
redshirt freshman middle blocker Sydney
Blankenship grabbed nine kills and a teamhigh
four blocks each.
Four Western players added doubledigit
digs led by sophomore outside hitter
Christie Colasurdo with a match-high 26.
Western started off on a 7-2 run in the
first set followed by a 6-3 run by Saint Martin’s
to bring the score within two, 10-8. Bettinson
got her third service ace of the first set
to bring the Wolves on a 6-1 run, bringing
the score to 16-10. The Wolves scored an unanswered
five points before closing the opening
set with a 4-1 run.
The second set saw an early 10-3 lead
by the Wolves where they were able to keep
their momentum with a 7-1 run and finishing
the set 25-19. The third set was won by
Saint Martin’s, where the Saint’s scored the
final seven points after being behind to earn
the 25-21 victory.
The fourth set opened up with the
Wolves scoring the first five points. Ramos
began the 6-2 lead with a kill. The score was
tied at 20-20 after the Saint’s made a run but
the Wolves were able to finish the set and the
match with 5-1 run, earning the Wolves their
first GNAC conference win.
“Error free is carefree,” said senior outside
hitter Sam Moore. “We really took that
into the match and the scores showed it.”
Moore had eight kills, three blocks and an
ace contributing to Saturday night’s success.
The Wolves welcome University of Alaska
to Monmouth Saturday, Nov. 1 where play
will start at 7p.m.

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