SPOKANE, Wash. - Northwest Nazarene University men's basketball player Brian Barkdoll, women's basketball player Krisitin Hein and track & field standout Ashley Puga have all been named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player or Athlete of the Week in their respective sports, announced today by the GNAC office in Spokane.

 

Barkdoll (So./Portland, Ore./Central Catholic HS) earned the men's basketball honor by scoring 44 points, grabbing 24 rebounds and handing out six assists as the Crusaders earned a split on their road trip to Saint Martin's and Western Oregon.  Barkdoll made 16 of 22 shots and 12 of 15 free throws in the pair of games.

 

Hein (Jr./Tualatin, Ore./Tualatin HS) also scored 44 points (18-32 FG) on the weekend, had 26 rebounds and six assists.  She made all eight of her three-point attempts pulling within one of the GNAC record for most consecutive three-pointers made.  On Saturday night in the Crusader's upset of #1 Alaska Anchorage, Kristin scored 21 points, made all five of her three-point attempts, and earned 12 rebounds in a 71-48 defeat of the Seawolves.

 

Puga (Sr./Meridian, ID/Nampa Christian HS) added to her already impressive list of exploits on the track with perhaps the most "memorable performance" in GNAC meet history, winning the mile and 800 in meet record times of 4:47.37 and 2:09.86 and also running the second leg on NNU's winning 4x400 relay team that set a meet record with a time of 3:55.58.  In the mile, she overcame a 40-yard deficit on the final lap and in the 800 she made up a 15-yard deficit in the last lap.  She also came from behind to give NNU a lead at the midway point of the relay.

 

This marks the first time in NNU's history in the GNAC that three Crusaders have been named the conference Players of the Week during the same week.