JASINSKY, WESTERN WASHINGTON JUGGERNAUT ROLLS ON

  by Harry Cummins

Paced by 24 points from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference leading scorer Trevor Jasinsky, the nation's 15th ranked Western Washington University Vikings (6-1) cruised to a convincing 83-66 road win over the Concordia Cavaliers Thursday night, serving notice once again that the road to the GNAC championship must pass thru Bellingham,Wa.

In the conference opener for both teams, Jasinsky was sensational.  He hit 9 of 14 from the field, including 6 of 9 from 3 point range.  He now leads the GNAC in scoring with a 20.1 pt average thru the season's first 7 games.  Jasinsky also had 7 rebounds in the contest

The Vikings breakneck Southern California backcourt of Tyler Payne (Long Beach) and Micah Winn (Los Angeles) were also instrumental in the victory. Winn finished with 19 points and played 36 minutes without a single turnover.  Payne's non-stop aggressive play netted a game-leading and career high 9 rebounds and 6 assists.

Concordia (3-4) was led by senior guard Jarrett Gray, who scored 19 points and is now just one point shy of 1,000 career points.  He will attempt to reach the historic milestone at home Saturday night against Simon Fraser.  Dominique Bradley just missed his 4th double double of the season, grabbing 9 rebounds to go with 8 points.  6'7 So. Dakota Ayala made a case for increased playing time by hitting 3 of 4 shots in a limited stint. 

For Western Washington, traditionally one of the premier programs in NCAA Division 11, their quest for yet another 20-win season and a GNAC championship continues Saturday night with a visit to rival Western Oregon (4-1) in the new PE Building in Monmouth.  The Vikings, who are currently playing without Preseason All-Conference selection Siaan Rojas, have the look of a team that is only going to get better and will return nearly all of their core players next season, including 7-footer Logan Schilder who is utilizing his redshirt senior season.

For you geography buffs, Western Washington is the northermost university in the contiguous United States, often priding itself on its ecological footprint.   Its tracks on the hardwood are pretty impressive as well!!