Willamette University’s Natalia Agarycheva has been named Northwest Conference women’s tennis Player of the Year, while Abby Olbrich of Linfield College also is a First Team All-NWC selection in voting by conference coaches.
Prairie High School graduate Agarycheva, who transferred to the Bearcats from the University of Northern Colorado, is 18-2 in singles this spring, including 14-1 against NWC opponents during the regular season.
Ranked No. 8 in the NCAA Division III West Region, the junior will compete at the prestigious Ojai Tournament this week in California.
Agarycheva helped the Bearcats achieve a 12-9 dual match record. The Bearcats took fourth place in the NWC with a 10-6 record during the conference’s double round-robin schedule. She is 12-7 overall in doubles, including 10-5 with partner Shannon Palmer. Agarycheva and Palmer are ranked No. 4 in the West Region.
Willamette placed fifth at the NWC Tournament.
Olbrich, a sophomore out of Skyview High School, was 12-8 at No. 1 singles for Linfield and 12-8 overall in doubles with three different partners. In the consolation final match of last week’s NWC tournament, she reunited with former high school teammate Sarah Click for a victory at No. 1 doubles over Lewis & Clark.
The Wildcats finished 15-4 (14-2 NWC) during the regular season before finishing with losses to Whitman and Lewis & Clark.
Pac-10 honors OSU pitcher Peavey again
Oregon State right-handed pitcher Greg Peavey was named Pacific-10 Conference Pitcher of the Week for the second time this season, league commissioner Larry Scott announced on April 12.
Peavey spun a masterful two-hit performance April 9 against No. 3 UCLA, limiting the Bruins to one run and three walks while striking out six. UCLA came into the series batting .347 as a team, and managed a single through the left side in the fourth on a hit-and-run and a soft, knuckling liner in the seventh.
Only three runners got into scoring position against Peavey, and none after the fourth inning. His only run allowed came on a sacrifice fly in the fourth.
Peavey retired 10 of the first 11 batters he faced and 16 of the last 17 to come to the plate. Four of the last six outs he recorded came via strikeout.
With the honor, Peavey becomes the first Pac-10 Pitcher to earn the award twice this season. He was named the league’s Pitcher of the Week on March 1 after throwing a three-hit shutout against Tennessee.
The right-hander has been superb overall this season, going 3-0 with a 1.91 ERA, which places him second in the conference. His .167 batting average against also is good for second.
Meanwhile, in Pac-10 games, Peavey is fourth with an ERA of 1.12 and second with a batting average against of .098. He has struck out 16 in 16 innings in two combined starts against USC and UCLA.
Linfield’s Ducette NWC player of week
Linfield College sophomore shortstop Staci Doucette was named Northwest Conference player of the week after the Wildcats clinched a seventh consecutive NWC championship by winning six games.
Doucette hit .625 (10 of 16), leading the team with 11 RBI and scoring six runs while adding one double and one homer.
The Evergreen High School graduate leads the NWC with 13 home runs this season, helping the Wildcats set a school record with 50 this season.
As a freshman, Doucette was named the team’s co-MVP, Rookie of the Year, NWC Player of the Year, National Fastpitch Coaches Association first-team all-West Region, and NFCA first-team all-America.
Linfield (31-5, 23-1 NWC) posted its seventh consecutive 30-win season, and is ranked No. 18 in the most recent NFCA poll. Capping the Wildcats’ week was a doubleheader sweep of No. 25 Willamette that clinched the NWC title.
Click, SUU gymnasts third at regionals
Southern Utah University placed third at a six-team NCAA Regional in Morgantown, W.Va., the top finish in Thunderbirds history but just short of qualifying for the NCAA championships.
Skyview High School graduate Alyssa Click shared the team’s top mark in the uneven bars with a score of 9.750 points. The freshman, who competed for Multnomah Athletic Club of Portland, matched senior teammate Elise Wheeler in the event.
Click was tied for second on the team with her score of 9.800 on balance beam, matching junior Jenna Vogt. She and Lindsey Schultz each scored 9.750 on floor exercise, helping the Thunderbirds’ team score. Click does not compete in vault for Southern Utah.
“Our gymnasts looked awesome tonight,” SUU coach Scott Bauman told the school’s website. “… The team didn’t worry about the scores or the atmosphere and just took care of their business and did a great job.”
Stanford won the regional title with 196.776 points, followed by Michigan with 195.800 and SUU with 195.325. West Virginia, Kent State and North Carolina completed the team standings.
Porter breaks own record in 10,000
Western Washington’s Sarah Porter improved her own school record in the 10,000 meters Thursday at the Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut, Calif.
The Hockinson High School graduate was second in the Olympic Development division of the prestigious meet at Mt. San Antonio College. Her time of 34 minutes, 30.21 seconds was nearly a full minute faster than the automatic qualifying standard for the NCAA Division II championships, breaking her own school record by more than 18 seconds.
Mountain View High School graduate Lauren Breihof ran an NCAA-II provisional qualifying time of 36:02.54, placing sixth in the university/open division of the 10,000 meters.
Alvarez helps state win ‘War III’ meet
Seattle Pacific University freshman Amanda Alvarez won the triple jump as an eight-school state of Washington combination beat a contingent representing Oregon, Idaho and Montana in the War III meet held April 11 at Spokane Community College.
The Columbia River High School graduate’s mark of 38 feet in the triple jump gave her a fourth victory in five meets this season.
Alvarez and her twin sister Athena Alvarez placed sixth and seventh in the long jump.
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