LINFIELD UNIVERSITY BASKETBALL VERSUS WHITMAN • JANUARY 20, 2023

WELCOME TO LINFIELD UNIVERSITY

TONIGHT’S MATCHUP: WHITMAN AT LINFIELD

game operations | event staff

ATHLETIC DIRECTOR

Dr. Garry Killgore

EVENT MANAGERS

Doug Hire, Steve Simmons, Zayn Khan

COMMUNICATIONS

Kelly Bird, Kaho Akau, Joe Stuart

STATISTICS

Mariah Ohman, Alexis Garner

PUBLIC ADDRESS Jeremy Nettrouer

SCOREBOARD

Nick Alder, Jackson Koons, Grant Jackson

VIDEO WEBCASTS

Joe Stuart, Isaac Milner, Eric Albios, Cole Runion

GAME PROGRAM

Kelly Bird, Felip Unker, Kaho Akau

WILDCAT SPOTLIGHT

home is where the heart is

A Division I talent, McMinnville’s Jacob Barnes is finding the Division III experience at Linfield more to his liking

by marissa dolson ’24

Adversity hasn’t stopped Linfield University’s Jacob Barnes from pursuing his passion for wrestling. He previously attended Oregon State University and was a member of the Beavers wrestling program last winter, but quickly realized he wanted to step out of his comfort zone. Now Barnes is helping the nascent Linfield wrestling program build an identity at the NCAA Division III level.

“The transfer process was hectic for me,” says Barnes about migrating from an established Division I program. “I decided I wanted to transfer and the next day I got into a car accident and I got a bad concussion. I was worried I may never wrestle again. But my brain had other plans.”

Having grown up in McMinnville, Barnes is thrilled to be back in his hometown, which he calls “the best city in the country.” While helping forge a reputation for the Wildcats wrestling program, Barnes is creating new memories while competing at the 285-pound weight class.

“My favorite memory so far was our first home dual meet against Pacific,” he says. “Seeing everyone (in Ted Wilson Gym) to support us in our first win was super uplifting. All the students, fans, parents and other spectators built such an exciting atmosphere. It made me feel like we were competing in a championship match.”

Wrestling is a family affair for the Barnes family, which includes his mother Angie, father John, older brothers J.T. and Brian, and sister Katie. Growing up in an athletic family shaped Barnes’ strong work ethic while providing him with unconditional support.

“My family has helped me grow and thrive tremendously. They’ve always been there to cheer me on and pick me up after losses.

“My family has shaped me in many ways. They’ve always reassured me by letting me know that even if I’m not successful as an athlete, I’m still extremely loved and valued. I’ve always looked up to my two older brothers; they’ve shown me the importance of working hard and never giving up.”

Growing up in a wrestling household provided Jacob built-in mentors and role models.

“J.T. won a state title in wrestling and Brian won three state titles. They have truly shown me that hard work does pay off.”

When Jacob isn’t on the mat, he is working toward earning bachelor’s degrees in history and secondary education. He plans to teach history at the high school level while continuing his love for wrestling by becoming a head coach.

As far as short-term goals, he hopes he can be an inspiration to his teammates, similar to his role models, Jordan Barich and Micah Houston.

“I met some of my biggest role models in life throughout my high school wrestling career,” he says. “My coaches at the time, Jordan Barich and Micah Houston, always believed in me despite my abilities. Both of them have motivated me to push through the hard times and ultimately have both played a huge role in my life.”

As the season progresses, Barnes is optimistic about his team’s success, knowing the hard work and dedication the team has shown thus far.

“My main mindset this year is to just have fun and let it fly. I clear my head of any negative thoughts like Qui-Gonn Jinn and I go into matches calm and level-headed. We have a very young team this year, but it makes me happy because I know that we’re all working hard and growing, not just as wrestlers but as human beings.”

Wildcats freshman Jack Barrett offered his perspective on his influential teammate. “Jacob brings the energy every day. He is constantly leading by example and inspiring the people around him, especially when it comes to having a positive attitude. His success on the mat just proves how hard he works and how passionate he is about the sport and his teammates. Right now, he’s ranked 19th in the country but I know he has all the potential and mentality to be the best. I’m excited to continue watching him dominate his opponents on the mat.”

Despite the transfer process, physical adversity and the uncertainty of joining a new program, Jacob Barnes has found his new home at Linfield and is making the most of his journey. He is now creating history from the ground up with his teammates one match at a time.

WOMEN’S COACH CASEY BUNN-WILSON

Casey Bunn-Wilson is in her eighth season as women’s basketball coach at Linfield. In her first year with the Wildcats, she helped guide the women to the program’s first winning record in five seasons (13-12) and a share of sixth place in the Northwest Conference, one of the premier women’s basketball leagues in NCAA Division III. In 2018-19, the Wildcats reached the NWC Tournament despite a competing with an injury depleted roster.

Bunn-Wilson spent three seasons as girls basketball coach at Tualatin High School, compiling a 39-32 win-loss record while leading the Timberwolves to three straight OSAA Class 6A state playoff appearances.

At Oregon State, Bunn-Wilson led the Pacific-10 Conference in scoring as a senior in 2007, averaging 20.0 points per game. She graduated from OSU with a bachelor’s degree in Public Health Promotion and Education.

A star athlete at Stayton High School, Bunn-Wilson earned varsity letters in basketball, volleyball, softball and track. On the basketball court, she was a four-time all-state, all-region and all-conference honoree. The Capital Conference Player of the Year for three straight seasons, Bunn-Wilson led Stayton to the league championship her freshman and junior seasons. She set SHS career records for points (1,831), rebounds (783), assists (342) and steals (306) and went on to represent Stayton in the Oregon Class 3A All-Star game following graduation.

Bunn-Wilson played professionally in Greece, Spain, Portugal, Ireland and Australia. While competing overseas, she earned allleague honors on the Portuguese All-Star team. At Linfield, Bunn-Wilson also co-directs the athletic department’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

WOMEN’S GAME DAY

PREVIEW

THE RECORDS

Linfield and Whitman enter the week in a three-way tie for second place with Pacific with identical 4-2 records in Northwest Conference play. The Wildcats are 8-7 overall while the Blues are 9-5.

LINFIELD AT A GLANCE

The Wildcats are coming off a 1-1 week, completing a comeback victory at Lewis & Clark on Friday before falling to first-place and nationally-ranked Puget Sound on Saturday. Jordan Worthington has emerged as an X factor. The senior has started in 10 straight games and ranks fifth in the NWC with a 48.8 field goal percentage. Freshman Eve Burke is shooting 41.7 percent from the field, including an NWC-leading 42.2 percent from three-point range. Sophomore Gillyan Landis leads the team with 10.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game.

WHITMAN AT A GLANCE

The defending NWC champion Blues are second in the league with 65.3 points per game. They are holding opposing teams to 35.3 percent shooting from the field. Korin Baker is nearly averaging a double-double with 12.6 points and 9.9 rebounds per game. She leads the NWC with a 51.5 field goal percentage. Sydney Abbott is right behind Baker with 12.1 points per game while Elena McHargue is scoring 11.8 points per game. McHargue leads the team with 41 assists and 35 steals.

THE SERIES

Linfield is 19-50 in the all-time series with Whitman and 12-23 at home. The Blues took both meetings in 2021-22, winning 65-48 in Walla Walla and 82-45 in McMinnville. The ‘Cats are looking to beat the Blues for the first time since the 2006-07 season.

15 ANNA DAZEY

MEET THE LINFIELD WOMEN

logan roberts | 1 5-9 | Freshman | Guard Twin Falls, Idaho

miki vermeulen | 3 5-10 | Freshman | Guard/Forward Renton, Washington

ella koebelin | 5 5-4 | Freshman | Guard Silverdale, Washington

jordan roberts | 2 5-8 | Freshman | Guard Twin Falls, Idaho

paige lafountain | 11 5-6 | Senior | Guard Tigard, Oregon

jordan worthington | 21 6-0 | Senior | Forward Woodinville, Washington

laurel quinn | 14 5-8 | Freshman | Guard Vancouver, Washington

riley cusack | 12 5-2 | Sophomore | Guard Auburn, Washington

alexis heald | 20 5-9 | Senior | Guard Portland, Oregon

peyton bergevin | 23

5-11 | Junior | Forward Walla Walla, Washington

elise waldal | 24 5-10 | Sophomore | Forward Snohomish, Washington

eve burke | 4 5-7 | Freshman | Guard Port Angeles, Washington

Anna Dazey | 15 5-6 | Sophomore | Guard Corvallis, Oregon

kaylee schow | 22 5-7 | Senior | Guard Tenino, Washington

janessa yniguez | 30 5-3 | Senior | Guard Santa Cruz, California

gillyan landis | 32 6-2 | Sophomore | Center Yakima, Washington

MEET THE LINFIELD WOMEN

Back row (l to r): Jordan Roberts, Alexis Heald, Elyse Waldal, Logan Roberts, Gillyan Landis, Jordan Worthington, Peyton Bergevin, Miki Vermeulen, Lauren Quinn. Front row: Kaylee Schow, Anna Dazey, Ella Koebelin, Riley Cusack, Head Coach Casey Bunn-Wilson, Rowan Cusack, Janessa Yniguez, Paige LaFountain, Eve Burke.

LINFIELD WOMEN

HEAD COACH: Casey Bunn-Wilson (eighth year)

ASSISTANT COACHES: Jeremy Vandenboer, Maggie Smith

WHITMAN WOMEN

HEAD COACH: Michelle Ferenz (22nd year)

ASSISTANT COACHES: Brian Griffith, Marnie Ketelsen, Chris Ferenz, Kylee Reibel, Anna Forge

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LINFIELD SPORTS NETWORK

The Linfield Sports Network will again bring fans live action of all home Linfield basketball games during 2022-23. Fans can enjoy live video webcasts with play-by-play commentary on their computer, tablet, mobile device or smart TV.

Live coverage begins 15 minutes prior to the start of each game. Broadcasts include a complete postgame wrap-up with analysis and statistical breakdown. Linfield will also provide live audio-only webcasts of all of the Wildcats’ Northwest Conference road contests.

McMinnville native Joe Stuart begins his fourth season as the play-by-play voice of the basketball Wildcats. The 2020 Linfield graduate is the Athletics Broadcast Operations Coordinator, managing all aspects of Linfield’s webcasting outreach and handling lead play-by-play duties on Linfield football, baseball

and softball webcasts in addition to basketball. Stuart also assists with other external sports communications and social media needs.

Linfield junior Isaac Milner will contribute occational play-by-play and color analysis on Linfield basketball broadcasts this winter. Milner, who also serves as lead play-by-play voice for Linfield soccer, began his broadcasting career with the LSN last year covering soccer, providing color commentary on basketball webcasts, handling occasional play-by-play duties for volleyball, basketball and softball, as well as crucial production support on football, softball, tennis and swimming webcasts.

All LSN broadcasts, both live and on demand, can be accessed at golinfieldwildcats.com/watch or in the Linfield Athletics app on mobile, tablet or smart TVs.

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MEN’S COACH SHANAN ROSENBERG

Shanan Rosenberg is in his 10th year as Linfield men’s basketball coach. Since taking over leadership of the program, Rosenberg has guided Linfield through a “worst-to-first” transformation, capping it in 2019-20 with a share of program’s first Northwest Conference title since 2001. Linfield followed with a second co-championship in 2021-22. Under Rosenberg’s direction, the Wildcats have reached the NWC Tournament in four consecutive seasons, ending a seven-year playoff drought.

In nine seasons as head coach, hIs career record at Linfield stands at 116-99 overall and 74-64 in NWC play.

Rosenberg has twice been named Northwest Conference Coach of the Year. His first league honor came in 2017 after guiding the program to its first winning season since 2008 and first conference playoff berth in five seasons. The most recent NWC accolade came in 2020. That season, the Wildcats went 20-6 and were

crowned conference co-champion during a run that included victories over nationally ranked Whitman and Whitworth on consecutive nights. Over a six-season span after taking over the program, the Wildcats elevated their conference record from 2-14 to 14-2.

Rosenberg was previously head men’s basketball coach for 11 years at Foothill College, a two-year college near Palo Alto in the south San Francisco Bay region. At Foothill, he compiled a 186-131 win-loss record. His 2012-13 team went 22-5, achieving the best regular-season finish in program history.

A native of central California, Rosenberg starred in basketball at St. Francis High School in Mountain View, leading the Lancers to a Central Coast Section championship in 1988. As a student-athlete and three-year letterman at UC-Davis, he earned all-North Coast Athletic Conference honors while leading the Aggies in rebounding his final two seasons.

MEN’S GAME DAY PREVIEW

THE RECORDS

Linfield enters the week with a 5-9 overall record and a 2-4 record in Northwest Conference play. Whitman is 12-3 overall and is tied for first place with rivaling Whitworth with a 5-1 NWC mark.

LINFIELD AT A GLANCE

The Wildcats rank fourth in the NWC in scoring defense, allowing 71.4 points per game. Most of the offensive fuel has relied on sophomore guard Trey Bryant, who’s fourth in the league with 15.1 points per game while also leading the team with 6.3 rebounds per game. Bryant’s 5.5 assists per game are second in the NWC, and his 2.3 steals per game rank third. Carson Bonine is averaging just under double figures, scoring 9.9 points per game. Bryant, Bonine and Reece Gibb have combined for 86 three-pointers.

WHITMAN AT A GLANCE

The Blues were silenced by Whitworth at home to take their first loss in NWC play last week. They got back in the win column with a victory over George Fox. The Whitman defense leads the NWC with 65 points allowed per game. Xzavier Lino leads the team with 14.3 points per game on 49.7 percent shooting, including an NWC-leading 44.7 percent from three-point range. Jai Deshpande is scoring 13.6 points per game, primarily coming off the bench.

THE SERIES

Linfield is 56-50 in the all-time series with Whitman. The mark includes a 36-18 record at home. The Blues won 19 straight meetings between the 2010-11 and 2019-20 seasons. The Wildcats are 2-3 in the series since then. The two teams split their regular season meetings in 2021-22, but the Blues got the last laugh when they beat the top-seeded ‘Cats, 82-79, in the semifinals of the NWC Tournament at Ted Wilson Gymnasium.

31 JACK STALLARD

MEET THE LINFIELD MEN

jake downing | 0 6-4 | Sophomore | Guard Seattle, Washington

jack greenwood | 2 5-11 | Junior | Guard San Rafael, California

treyvaughn bierlink|4 6-5 | Freshman | Guard Quincy, Washington

chase bennett | 1 5-10 | Freshman | Guard Moraga, California

mikey hinkle | 5 6-2 | Senior | Guard Camarillo, California

jt estes | 14 5-9 | Junior | Guard Walnut Creek, California

trey bryant | 11 6-0 | Sophomore | Guard Springfield, Oregon

carson bonine | 10

| Senior | Guard Camas, Washington

braedyn benhard | 13 6-7 | Freshman | Forwards Santa Ana, California jacob hjort | 21 6-2 | Junior | Guard Vancouver, Washington

milap owens | 22 5-11 | Sophomore | Guard Prescott, Arizona

philip rosenfeld| 25 6-6 | Freshman | Forward Portland, Oregon

jack stallard | 31 5-11 | Junior | Guard Danville, California danilo petrovic | 35 6-5 | Freshman | Forward Seattle, Washington

logan morrill | 44 6-9 | Freshman | Forward Astoria, Oregon

donovan johnson | 50 6-0 | Freshman | Guard Antelope, California

Nick tripaldi | 3 6-0 | Junior | Guard Menlo Park, California

jackson dupree | 12 6-3 | Junior | Guard San Jose, California alex jaczko | 32 6-5 | Senior | Forward Newberg, Oregon

anthony flint | 42 6-5 | Freshman | Guard Durango, California

josh puccinelli | 15 6-2 | Sophomore | Guard San Francisco, California

reece gibb| 23 6-5 | Senior | Forward Longview, Washington

cayden lowenbach | 24 6-6 | Sophomore | Forward Prineville, Oregon

grant lyon | 40 6-2 | Freshman | Guard San Francisco, California

Back row (l to r): Assistant Coach Loren Gehrke, Head Coach Shanan Rosenberg, Anthony Flint, Jake Downing, Reece Gibb, Braedyn Benhard, Logan Morrill, Philip Rosenfeld, Cayden Lowenbach, Alex Jaczko, TreyVaughn Bierlink, Assistant Coach Isiah Quintero, Assistant Coach Mark Swenson. Front row: Chase Bennett, Jack Greenwood, Donovan Johnson, Trey Bryant, Carson Bonine, Josh Pucci-nelli, Danilo Petrovic, Jackson Dupree, Jacob Hjort, Mikey Hinkle, Grant Lyon, Nick Tripaldi, Milap Owens, Jack Stallard. Not pictured: JT Estes.

LINFIELD MEN

HEAD COACH: Shanan Rosenberg (10th year)

ASSISTANT COACHES: Isiah Quintero, Mark Swenson, R. Loren Gehrke

WHITMAN MEN

HEAD COACH: John Lamanna (second year)

ASSISTANT COACHES: Ethan Engeman, Shawn James, Aden Lepp

taetum kalani

zuraide Hart

mckenna mills

ashlyn mcpherson

grace heimbigner

jennifer sandoval-rivera

haley ott abram nelson

tanya rangel

brenna mitchell

angela serna leah stone karista untiet

miki dunham

kylie cecchini

ellie campbell

meadow evenson ariel ceja

tess goff grace fjermedal deiana gutwig

matigan dodge elizabeth blough camille baptista kalysa dombrigues

cindy borja tinoco yesenia esquivel

yazalea heredia merida mariza hoogerheide

rylee meagher

abby labuhn charlotte ingalls

ava meade

kayley dombrigues kaho handa

hallie mertl elizabeth olivan

ryan wahlstrom olivia welsh

daniella wongsomadi jacquelynn bravo