The Doug Lange Network 

June 6, 2019 

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BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Western Washington University Department of Athletics celebrated another successful season in 2018-19 with the annual Dub Dub Blue Awards Ceremony and BBQ held this week on the WWU campus.

 

Six student-athletes were presented with awards recognizing their outstanding athletic and academic achievements from the 2018-19 season. The large gathering of student-athletes, coaches and staff on the lawn outside of historic Old Main helped celebrate a banner athletic and academic season that featured nine teams represented at the NCAA Division II Championships, 75 All-GNAC honorees, 51 GNAC Athletes of the Week, 41 All-West Region selections, 13 All-Americans and a record 94 GNAC Academic All-Stars. WWU also led the Great Northwest Athletic Conference with five team championships (women’s soccer, volleyball, men’s indoor and outdoor track & field, men’s golf).

 

“It is always great to celebrate the success of our programs and to get everyone together at this end-of-year event,” said WWU Director of Athletics Steve Card. “I am proud of all the great work being done by our coaches and staff, and especially our student-athletes, as they continue to make WWU Athletics a shining piece of our campus community.”

 

Here are the 2018-19 WWU Athletics award winners:

 

2018-19 WWU ATHLETICS AWARDS

Female Athletes of the Year - Abby Phelps (Volleyball) & Emily Benson  (Softball)

Male Athlete of the Year - Cordell Cummings (Track & Field)

Female Scholar Athlete of the Year - Maddie Bangasser (Rowing)

Male Scholar Athletes of the Year - Trevor Jasinsky (Basketball) & Jeremiah Lee (Soccer)

 

The Male and Female Athletes of the Year will have their names added to the G. Robert Ross Memorial Trophy honoring the top athletes that have participated for WWU.

 

In addition to the Athlete of the Year and Scholar Athlete of the Year awards that were presented to each student-athlete, WWU’s 13 All-Americans were presented with commemorative photos and members of Western’s national runner-up varsity four were recognized for their outstanding performance at last week’s NCAA Rowing Championships.

 

 

WWU student-athletes that earned All-America honors in 2018-19

 

ABBY PHELPS Female co-Athlete of the Year

Abby Phelps (Sr., OH, Manson, WA/Chelan) was named the co-Female Athlete of the Year after helping lead the volleyball team to a national runner-up season with a 30-4 overall record and perfect 20-0 mark in conference play. Phelps was named the GNAC Player of the Year and First Team AVCA All-American for the second consecutive season after averaging 3.94 kills and 4.47 digs per set. Phelps ended her career as the WWU and GNAC all-time leader in kills (1,628) and points (1853.0) and was just the second player in conference history to earn four First Team All-GNAC awards. She was also named the WWU Female Athlete of the Year following her junior season in 2017.

 

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EMILY BENSON Female co-Athlete of the Year

Emily Benson (Sr., 1B, West Richland, WA/Kamiakin) returned to the diamond as a fifth-year senior and rewrote the WWU record books in her final collegiate season to earn co-Female Athlete of the Year honors. She became WWU’s first NFCA All-American, earning second-team honors, and was a top-10 finalist for NFCA National Player of the Year. Benson set WWU single-season records for batting average (.448/56-for-125), slugging percentage (.896), on-base percentage (.567), OPS (1.463), home runs (14) and extra-base hits (27). She ended her career as WWU’s all-time leader in home runs (45), batting average (.377), on-base percentage (.477), slugging percentage (.692), hits (208), walks (104) and extra-base hits (82).

 

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CORDELL CUMMINGS Male Athlete of the Year

Cordell Cummings (Jr., Lake Stevens, WA/Arlington) was the recipient of the Male Athlete of the Year after a dominating season in both the indoor and outdoor track & field seasons. The junior won three individual GNAC titles, winning the 60m Hurdles at the Indoor Championships and swept the 110m and 400m Hurdles at the Outdoor Championships. He became the second athlete in the 17-year history of the outdoor conference championships to sweep the hurdles events. Cummings also moved up to the No. 2 spot in WWU history in the 110m Hurdles (14.52) and the 400m Hurdles (51.77). The junior also made his NCAA Championships debut in the 400m Hurdles. He helped contributed 53 points to WWU’s indoor (23 points) and outdoor (30 points) conference titles.

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MADDIE BANGASSER Female Scholar Athlete of the Year

Maddie Bangasser (So., Sammamish, WA/Eastlake) was awarded the Female Scholar Athlete of the Year Award rewarding her accomplishments in the classroom and as a member of the varsity eight on the rowing team. Bangasser maintains a 3.97 GPA while pursuing a degree in Kinesiology, while also balancing the rigorous schedule that includes early-morning 5 am practices on Lake Samish. She was a mainstay in the varsity eight that finished 3rd at the NCAA Division II Rowing Championships in Indianapolis. Bangasser was also WWU’s nominee for the Elite 90 Award at the NCAA Rowing Championships with the highest GPA on the team. A WWU rower has now been awarded the Female Scholar Athlete of the Year Award in each of the last four seasons.

 

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TREVOR JASINSKY Male co-Scholar Athlete of the Year

Trevor Jasinsky (Jr., F, Camas, WA) was a co-recipient for the Male Scholar Athlete of the Year after a tremendous performance both on the court and in the classroom. Jasinsky had a standout junior season on the hardwood averaging 19.1 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. He was a unanimous First Team All-GNAC selection and a consensus All-West Region selection. He was also named to the GNAC All-Academic and District 8 All-Academic teams with a 3.43 GPA as a marketing major. Jasinsky also became the 26th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point milestone for a career and is currently 21st in program history with 1,075 career points heading into his senior season.

 

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JEREMIAH LEE Male co-Scholar Athlete of the Year

Jeremiah Lee (Jr., D, Marysville, WA/Grace Academy) shared Male Scholar Athlete of the Year honors after earning both GNAC and All-District 8 Academic awards during his junior season in 2018. A standout defender on the men’s soccer team, Lee helped lead the Vikings to a second-place finish in the GNAC with a 7-4-1 league record and a 11-6-1 overall mark. He was voted as a Second Team All-GNAC selection while starting all 18 games for the Vikings. Lee also earned a pair of GNAC Defensive Player of the Week honors. In the classroom Lee carries a 3.68 GPA as a business management major, will graduate this June and will be pursuing his master’s at WWU while playing his senior season.

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2018-19 WWU ATHLETICS HIGHLIGHTS

• Had nine teams with representation at the NCAA Championships, including three teams at the Fall Championships Festival in Pittsburgh.

• Five teams won GNAC titles to lead all conference schools, with volleyball, women’s soccer, men’s golf and indoor and outdoor men’s track & field taking home top conference honors.

• The Volleyball team played for the national championship at the NCAA Division II Fall Festival, after winning a second consecutive GNAC title and the NCAA II West Regional Championship in Carver gym.

• The Women’s Soccer team played in the NCAA II West Regional Championship match for the fourth consecutive season.

• Finished 2nd in the GNAC All-Sports standings for the third consecutive season, continuing a tradition that has seen our programs place 1st (12 times) or 2nd (6 times) in the history of the GNAC.

• Had a record 94 student-athletes named to the GNAC All-Academic team in their sports, with several sports setting program records for conference academic awards.

• Awarded 13 All-America honors, 41 All-West Region and 75 All-GNAC selections.

• For the second consecutive year were among a select number of schools to earn the NCAA President’s Award for Academic Excellence for having an academic success rate of 90% or higher.

 

2018-19 TEAM HIGHLIGHTS

• Volleyball advanced to the NCAA Championships for the seventh consecutive season, hosting the West Regional in Carver Gym. After an exciting regional championship victory over Cal State San Bernardino, WWU advanced all the way to the national championship match finishing at the national runner-up. Finished 30-4 overall and a perfect 20-0 in GNAC play. Abby Phelps was named the GNAC Player of the Year and First Team AVCA All-American.

• Women’s Rowing placed 3rd at the NCAA II Rowing Championships in Indianapolis, with the Varsity Four placing 2nd.

• Women’s Soccer won its seventh GNAC regular-season title and advanced to the NCAA Championships for the ninth time in program history. Went 18-3-2 overall and played in the West Region title game for the fourth consecutive season, falling in penalty kicks to rival UC San Diego.

• Men’s Golf won its 9th GNAC title and was a top five team throughout the 2018-19 season. Had Six players earn All-GNAC honors, led by Player and Freshman of the Year Jordan Lee. Made 21st consecutive trip to the regional championships.

• The Softball team recorded the 10th-most wins in program history (27-18) under first-year head coach Sheryl Gilmore. Senior first baseman Emily Benson rewrote the WWU record books with an All-American season to lead the list of five players that earned All-GNAC honors.

• The Men’s Track & Field team swept the Indoor and Outdoor GNAC Championships, led by junior Cordell Cummings who was named the Outdoor Track Athlete of the Meet sweeping the hurdles races.

  • The men’s and women’s teams combined for four All-America awards and 21 All-West Region honors.

• Women’s Basketball advanced to the semifinal round of the GNAC Championships hosted in Carver Gym.

• Men’s Soccer finished 2nd in the GNAC with a 7-4-1 league record and 11-6-1 overall, earning its first ever national ranking and upset top-ranked and previously unbeaten Simon Fraser.

• Men’s Basketball tied for 6th in the GNAC, led by junior forward Trevor Jasinsky who earned First Team All-GNAC and All-West Region honors.

• Women’s Golf placed 3rd at the GNAC Championships, with junior Lacy Sheldon winning individual medalist honors and conference co-Golfer of the Year honors.

• The men’s and women’s Cross Country teams both qualified for nationals at the DII Fall Championships Festival.

 

2018-19 BY THE NUMBERS

• 94 – GNAC Academic All-Stars

• 75 – GNAC All-Conference Selections

• 51 – GNAC Athlete of the Week awards

• 41 – All-Region honors

• 11 – Academic All-Region awards

• 12 – All-America awards

• 9 – Teams had representation at the NCAA Championships

• 6 – GNAC Team of the Week awards

• 5 – GNAC Championships (Volleyball, Women’s Soccer, Men’s Golf, Men’s Indoor Track, Men’s Outdoor Track)

• 3 – GNAC Coaches of the Year

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WWU’S ALL-AMERICANS IN 2018-19

• Volleyball » Abby Phelps, Brette Boesel, Kayleigh Harper, Aubrey Stephens

• Women’s Soccer » Gabriela Pelogi, Taylor Hallquist, Natalie Dierickx

• Softball » Emily Benson

• Indoor Track & Field » Maddie Taylor, Anna Paradee

• Outdoor Track & Field » Amanda Short, Alex Barry

• Men’s Golf » Jordan Lee (Freshman)

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-- @WWUAthletics --

Posted by Doug Lange Bellingham