Junior forward Trevor Jasinsky has hit 130 free throws this season while shooting 88.4 percent from the line. // Photo by Claudia Cooper
By Alex Barnes
Women’s Basketball
Women’s basketball found itself with a two-game winning streak this week after the Vikings beat the Saint Martin’s University Saints and the Seattle Pacific University Falcons with final scores of 66-50 and 60-43, respectively.
The game against the Saints took place on Thursday, Feb. 14, and saw the Vikings play a dominant brand of defense, holding their opponents to just 22.4 percent shooting from the field. That defense continued into their next game against the Falcons on Saturday, Feb. 16, as the Vikings’ defense limited the Falcons to just 30.8 percent shooting from the field. Junior center Anna Schwecke came within one rebound of back-to-back double-doubles, recording 13 points and 10 rebounds against the Saints, and following up with 16 points and 9 rebounds against the Falcons.
The Vikings will look to extend their winning streak to three games when they travel to Ellensburg for their next match against the Central Washington University Wildcats on Thursday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m..
Men’s Basketball
Men’s basketball saw a comeback fall just short in their 94-90 loss against the Montana State University Billings Yellowjackets on Saturday, Feb. 16. The Vikings trailed by as many as 17 points in the first half after the Yellowjackets went on a 27-10 run.
The Vikings cut the Yellowjackets’ lead back to within four points at halftime after going on a 13-5 run that was capped off by a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from junior guard Micah Winn. The Vikings and Yellowjackets went back and forth in the second half, each going on their own 10-2 run during the period. In the end, a game-tying 3-pointer was missed by junior forward Trevor Jasinsky, and the Yellowjackets were able to take the victory with the score finishing 94-90.
The team saw its Tuesday, Feb. 12 game against Simon Fraser University postponed due to inclement weather in both Bellingham and Burnaby, BC. That game has been moved to Tuesday, Feb. 26 at 7 p.m., and will take place in the West Gym in Burnaby. The Vikings’ next game will be against the University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolves on Thursday, Feb. 21 at 6 p.m. in Anchorage.
Track & Field
Men’s and women’s track & field took part in the 2019 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships on Friday, Feb. 15, and Saturday, Feb. 16. The men’s team ended day one of the the competition in second place with 42 points, while the women’s team ended day one in fourth place with 31 points. On the final day of the competition, the men’s team finished first place overall with 138.5 points, and the women’s team finished fourth place overall with 79 points. The next closest men’s team was the University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolves with 114.5 points, while the women’s team finished just four points behind the third-place Seawolves.
The men’s team was also named the GNAC Team of the Week, recording four individual title wins and scoring points in all 17 events during the Championships.
Day One - Friday, Feb. 15
Western athletes claimed three individual titles on day one, and 12 runners advanced to the finals on Saturday after placing top-eight in their preliminary events.
Senior J.T. Konrad, junior Maddie Taylor and redshirt freshman Seren Dances were the three Vikings competitors to take home individual titles on Friday. Konrad won the men’s pole vault title by clearing 4.78 meters, Taylor won the women’s high jump by clearing 1.69 meters, and Dances won the men’s long jump by setting a personal record of 7.02 meters.
Day Two - Saturday, Feb. 16
The Vikings finished the event with 11 athletes earning All-GNAC honors by placing top-three in their respective events, with another nine students just missing out by finishing fourth-place.
Junior Cordell Cummings, senior Kyle Sager, and redshirt senior Anna Paradee all won individual titles in their events, adding to the three individual titles secured on day one of the championships. Cummings became the third Western student to win the 60 meter hurdles, finishing with a personal record time of 8.33 seconds. Sager became the second Western student to win the 800 meter indoor title after he set a school-record time of 1:53.29. Paradee won a career-second individual GNAC Indoor Championships women’s pole vault title after clearing 3.89 meters in her first attempt.
Junior Sophia Galvez, senior Tupre Wickliff and sophomore Heather Faretta all finished second place for the Vikings in the women’s 5000 meter, men’s high jump, and women’s high jump, respectively.
Sophomore Bryant Welch and junior Chanelle Eddy rounded out the Vikings’ All-GNAC finishers, both placing third in the men’s 200 meter dash and women’s shot put, respectively.
The Track and Field teams will complete the 2019 Indoor season at the Seattle Pacific University Final Qualifier on Saturday, Feb. 23 at the Dempsey Indoor in Seattle. After that, the Vikings will compete in the 2019 NCAA Division II Indoor Championships on Friday, March 8 and Saturday, March 9 at the Robert W. Plaster Center in Pittsburg, Kansas.
