Bruins Win Six Conference Titles, Land 14 All-American Honors
Bruin Notes
COVID-19 impacted college sports across the country this year, canceling games, and in some cases, entire seasons. But once the Bruins got back on the field of play this spring they couldn’t be stopped, winning six of the nine Northwest Conference races they competed in and earning 14 individual All-American honors.
Leading the way on the All-American front was the track and field program, which boasted eight such athletes and two national runner-up finishes. The Bruins also swept the NWC Championships in both the men’s and women’s competitions.
Track All-Americans included the 4x100-meter squad of Ashley Korb-Doty, Kennedy Taube, Emily Rohrer and Sydney Radigan, who set a school record with a 46.35-second time at the NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships to place second overall. Also running second at nationals was Bethany Gingerich, whose 1:00.1 time in the 400 hurdles also established a school record.
Joining them as All-Americans were teammates Berkley Hill (decathlon), Tayler Phillips (decathlon) and Christine Strickland (javelin), all of whom posted top-eight national finishes to earn the honor.
Meanwhile, in men’s tennis, the doubles team of Will Leach and Luke Lemaitre advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Individual Championships – a program first – and earned All-American honors. As a team, the Bruins reached the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history after winning their first-ever NWC title.
In lacrosse, George Fox continued its dominance of conference play by going 10-0 in league to win a fifth straight NWC title and advance to the NCAA Division III tournament, where the Bruins dropped a first-round game to Illinois Wesleyan by a tight 13-12 score. With their perfect NWC showing, the Bruins extended their conference win streak to 39, dating back to the 2016 season.
Finally, in softball, the Bruins’ Claire Fountain and Savannah Vargas were both named to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association’s All-American First-Team roster, marking the first time two Bruins landed that honor in the same season. The duo helped George Fox go 23-5 in conference play and win the program’s first-ever outright NWC title.
