GNAC Adds Basketball, Soccer Tournaments

Hannan

The Great Northwest Athletic Conference Management Council has approved inaugural post-season conference championship tournaments in men's and women's basketball and men's and women's soccer.

The first basketball tournaments will be held this coming season, however the first soccer events will not be held until Nov., 2011 due to conflicts with previously scheduled contests.

The GNAC has been just one of two NCAA Division II conferences (along with the PacWest Conference) that has not held a basketball post-season tournament to determine its automatic qualifiers for the NCAA tournament.

All games in the two basketball tournaments will be played at host sites. Eight men's teams and eight women's teams will compete in the opening round on Saturday, Feb. 26 with the top four regular-season finishers hosting games.

The two highest surviving seeds will host semifinal games on Tuesday, Mar. 1. The top remaining men's and women's seed will then host the championship games on Saturday, Mar. 5.

The soccer tournaments will include four men's and four women's teams and will be held at a site to be determined.

"We're really excited about adding post-season tournaments in basketball this coming season and in soccer in 2011," Hannan said. "We're still a fairly young conference and we see this as another step in the continual growth and development of our conference.

"This is something the athletic directors and our Management Council have examined for years," Hannan said. "Due to travel challenges because of our geographical setting we have been unable to move forward. The Management Council felt it was time to explore this format and the opportunities it presents."

2009-10 Post-Season All-Star Teams

Banchero, Poole Selected to Division II Bulletin All-American Team

Banchero

Seattle Pacific's Chris Banchero was the top selection from the GNAC on the Division II Bulletin All-American basketball team. Banchero was named to the Bulletin's second team.

Joining Banchero, who earlier was named to the first team NABC All-American squad, on the Division II Bulletin team was Saint Martin's forward Blake Poole. Both players are juniors.

Poole, who led the conference in scoring (21.0), rebounding (12.2) and field goal percentage (60.7), was an honorable mention pick. Banchero was the conference's top scorer in conference games (21.2) edging Poole by one point (21.1).

NABC (Coaches): First Team - Chris Banchero, Seattle Pacific (G, 6-0, Jr., Seattle, WA). Daktronics (SIDs): No GNAC player selected. Division II Bulletin: Second Team - Chris Banchero, Seattle Pacific (G, 6-0, Jr., Seattle, WA). Honorable Mention - Blake Poole, Saint Martin's (F, 6-5, Jr., Eugene, OR).

Vikings' Jackson Voted Top Coach In NCAA Division II West Region

Brad Jackson

Brad Jackson of Western Washington and Greg Kamansky of Cal Poly Pomona have been voted the NABC Division II West Region Co-Coaches of the Year.

Kamansky led the Broncos to the NCAA Division II national title.. CPP edged Western Washington 76-75 in overtime in the West Regional semifinal game.

Western Washington placed two players on the West Region all-star team. Guard Morris Anderson was a first team selection and forward Derrick Webb was voted to the second team.

Joining Anderson on the first team were Chris Banchero of Seattle Pacific and Blake Poole of Saint Martin's. Webb was the lone GNAC player named to the second team.

Anderson, Banchero and Poole were earlier named to the Daktronics first team selected by the region's sports information. Joining Webb on the Daktronics second team was Brandon Larrieu of Seattle Pacific.

NABC (Coaches): First Team: Chris Banchero, Seattle Pacific (G, 6-0, Jr., Seattle, WA); Morris Anderson, Western Washington (G, 6-3, Sr., Port Orchard, WA); Zac Tiedeman, Humboldt State (G, 6-1, Sr., Santa Rosa, CA); Austin Swift, Cal Poly Pomona (G, 6-5, Sr., Santa Cruz, CA); Blake Poole, Saint Martin's (F, 6-5, Jr., Eugene, OR); Bryan LeDuc, CSU San Bernardino (F, 6-8, Sr., Corona, CA). Second Team: Jordan Lawley, UC San Diego (G, 6-4, Sr. Lodi, CA); Lucas Alves, BYU-Hawaii (F, 6-9, Sr., Casa Branca, Brazil); Derrick Webb, Western Washington (F, 6-3, Sr., Port Orchard, WA); Tom Whitehead, Dixie State (F, 6-6, Jr., St. George, UT); Brian Morris, Humboldt State (F, 6-9, Jr., Portland, OR). Coaches-of-the-Year - Brad Jackson, WWU; Greg Kamansky, Cal Poly Pomona.

Banchero Selected NCAA Division II West Region Player-of-the-Year

Chris Banchero of Seattle Pacific has been seleted the NCAA Division II Daktronics Men's Player-of-the-Year. Banchero was joined on the first team by Morris Anderson of Western Washington and Blake Poole of Saint Martin's.

Brandon Larrieu of Seattle Pacific and Derrick Webb of Western Washington were second team picks. The Daktronics team is selected by the region's sports information directors, while the WBCA is selected by the region's coaches.

DAKTRONICS (SIDs): First Team - Chris Banchero, Seattle Pacific (G, 6-0, Jr., Seattle, WA); Jordan Lawley, UC San Diego (G, 6-4, Sr. Lodi, CA); Morris Anderson, Western Washington (G, 6-3, Sr., Port Orchard, WA); Blake Poole, Saint Martin's (F, 6-5, Jr., Eugene, OR); Bryan LeDuc, CSU San Bernardino (F, 6-8, Sr., Corona, CA). Second Team - Zac Tiedeman, Humboldt State (G, 6-1, Sr., Santa Rosa, CA); Austin Swift, Cal Poly Pomona(G, 6-5, Sr., Santa Cruz, CA); Lucas Alves, BYU-Hawaii (F, 6-9, Sr., Casa Branca, Brazil); Brandon Larrieu, Seattle Pacific (G, 6-0, Sr., Puyallup, WA); Derrick Webb, Western Washington (F, 6-3, Sr., Port Orchard, WA).

Banchero, Looney Voted GNAC Player, Coach-of-the-Year

Banchero was joined on the all-conference first team by teammate Brandon Larrieu. Banchero, Larrieu and Looney led the Falcons to a 22-5 record and to their fourth conference title in the nine-year history of the GNAC this winter.

Banchero was the GNAC's leading scorer in conference games and finished second overall to Saint Martin's forward Blake Poole with a 19.5 average.

He edged Poole for the conference game scoring title by a single point. Banchero also ranked 11th in the conference in field goal percentage (52.7) and assists (3.0) and 13th in steals (1.33).

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