Northwestern College Athletics

Mike Anderstrom

Mike Anderstrom Voted UMAC Player of the Week
ST. PAUL, Minn. (Dec. 5, 2007) -- After his recent play, Mike Anderstom, a member of the Eagles men’s basketball team was selected as the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Player of the Week.

Anderstrom was strong on both offense and defense last weekend, earning all-tournament honors at the Judson University tournament as the Eagles went 1-1 in non-conference play. Versus Davenport (Mich.) on Friday, Anderstrom was 7-of-8 for 22 points while bringing down seven rebounds. He also had two blocks and two steals in a one-point loss. Against Indiana-Northwest on Saturday, Mike tallied eight points while racking up 11 boards to go with two steals and a block.

For the season, Anderstrom is averaging 13.8 points per game and a team-high 8.4 rebounds per game. This was Mike’s third time being selected for the award.

Men’s Basketball Pre-Ranked First in UMAC Coaches’ Poll
ST. PAUL, Minn., Nov. 8, 2007 – The Northwestern College men’s basketball team topped the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference preseason coaches’ poll, earning seven first-place votes in the process. The Eagles had the second-best season of their storied history last year, winning 22 games and boasting a 12-2 record in conference play.

Head coach Tim Grosz returns all five of his starters from last year’s team that placed fourth at the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) National Tournament.

The Eagles’ women’s basketball team was voted to finish sixth in the UMAC, trailing the College of St. Scholastica by one point. Northwestern wrapped up the 2006-07 campaign with an even 7-7 conference record to go with their 9-16 overall record.

Northland was picked to win the women’s conference championship with four first-place votes, followed by the University of Minnesota-Morris.

Women’s coach Linda Schuck lost her top three scorers from last year’s team due to graduation, and will rely heavily on the remaining two starters from a year ago.

Both of Northwestern’s teams will begin their season at home, when they co-host the Northwestern Tip-Off Tournament on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 16 and 17. The Eagle men’s team plays local opponent North Central, while the women’s squad will face off against Simpson.

NWC will begin its conference rotation the weekend of January 11-12.

Men's and Women's Soccer Teams Claim All-Conference Awards
St. Paul, Minn., Nov. 7, 2007 -- The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference released its men’s and women’s soccer all conference awards on Monday, with Northwestern’s men’s team claiming three First Team All-Conference awards, while the women’s squad had two first team elections.

On the men’s side, the Eagles’ Josiah DeFelice (Temuco, Chile/Xenia Christian), Julio Batista (Belo Horizonte, Brazil/American School of Belo Horizonte) and David Mugambira (Waltham, Uganda/Vienna Mamugongo Kampala UG) were all selected for First Team All-Conference

DeFelice, a senior defender, scored two goals in the 2007 campaign, adding to his four assists for a team-high eight points. Mugambira, a midfielder who finished playing in his first season as an Eagle, scored two goals this year, combined with an assist for five points.

Batista, who finished last year on a strong note, had one goal on the season.

Two more players on Greg Wheaton’s roster received Honorable Mention accolades, including Chris Applegate (Andover, Minn./Meadow Creek) and Jake Fast (Eagan, Minn./Henry Sibley). Applegate, a sophomore midfielder, had an assist in 2007, while Fast contributed two goals to the Eagles offense.

12 men on Northwestern’s roster finished the season with two or more goals.

The Eagles finished the season with an 8-11-2 overall record and a 7-5-2 mark in UMAC play.

Switching gears to Northwestern’s women’s team, head coach Josh Pettit’s squad boasted two UMAC First Team All-Conference selections. Freshman Kyrie Jorgenson (Decorah, Iowa/Decorah) seemed like a lock for the award, as she led the league with 20 goals in the Eagles’ 14 conference affairs. Adding to her already impressive resume as a rookie, Jorgenson also had five assists to produce a total of 45 points this season.

Joining Jorgenson on the conference’s First Team All-Conference list was junior captain Nikki Seviola (Circle Pines, Minn./Centennial). Seviola, who had a shortened season due to a leg injury, was Northwestern’s second leading scorer with four goals and four assists, amassing 12 points. The captain is the team’s voice in the midfield, and was a strong contributor in the Eagles’ eight wins. Northwestern finished the 2007 campaign with an 8-9-1 record, including an 8-5-1 conference mark.

With Jorgenson and Seviola’s talent on the field, things for Northwestern’s near future are looking up.

Northwestern Volleyball Tops All-Conference Selections
St. Paul, Minn., Nov. 6, 2007 – The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) announced its All-conference selections following the culmination of Saturday’s UMAC Post-Season Tournament at Northwestern College in St. Paul, Minn.

Northwestern, the conference’s top team in the regular season with a 13-1 conference record and an impressive 41-5 game record in conference play, topped all teams with four first team honorees and two more honorable mention selections, totaling six all-conference winners. Due to the Eagles’ success on the court, Northwestern head coach Beth Wilmeth was voted 2007 UMAC Coach of the Year.

Starting Northwestern’s list was Kathryne Engel (Wayzata, Minn./West Lutheran), a junior outside hitter. Engel averaged 3.80 kills per game in UMAC matches, averaging a .250 hitting percentage and 3.78 digs per game.

Joining Engel was fellow outside hitter Steph Koth (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing). The sophomore led the Eagles squad with an even 4.0 kills per game in 14 conference matches, amassing 184 total kills while hitting .259. Koth also led Northwestern in the Digs department, tallying 219.

Moving to the middle of the court, Northwestern boasted middle hitters Laura Bicket (Zion, Ill./Zion Benton Township) and Sarah Whitmore (Prior Lake, Minn./Prior Lake Christian), who were also selected as first team all-conference members. Bicket averaged 1.28 blocks per game, while Whitmore was right behind her at 1.20 per game. Switching to offense, both were similar stories, as Bicket had 2.52 kills per game, while Whitmore added 2.43 per game.

The Eagles’ two setters were also recognized for their work, as Leah Kostek (West Des Moines, Iowa/Des Moines Christian) and Hillary Slagter (Prinsburg, Minn./Central Minnesota Christian) were chosen for Honorable Mention All-Conference accolades. With Northwestern running a 6-2 offense most of the season, Kostek and Slagter’s numbers were very similar, as both averaged over 6.15 assists per game in UMAC contests. Slagter was also beneficial to the team when not setting, contributing 1.83 kills per game, 3.35 digs per game and 1.04 blocks per game.

To view a complete listing of the volleyball all-conference awards, click HERE.

NWC now shifts its attention to the National Christian College Athletic Association’s National Championship Tournament, which the Eagles will host in the Ericksen Center on Nov. 29 – Dec. 1.

Zack Tarter

Eagles Land 10 on First Team All-Conference List
St. Paul, Minn., Oct. 31, 2007 – Following their dramatic 28-27 overtime victory over Rockford College on Friday night at the Metrodome, the Northwestern College football team has something new to be proud about as ten Eagles were selected to the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference’s (UMAC) first team all-conference list. Joining those ten were 11 more on the all-conference second team, followed by two who received Honorable Mention accolades.

Northwestern’s Zack Tarter was selected by the UMAC coaches as the UMAC Co-Offensive Player of the Year after his strong sophomore season under center. In seven conference affairs, Tarter was 101-of-152 passing for 1,557 yards and 18 touchdowns, generating a 66.4 percent completion rate and an efficiency rating of 187.62, which was first in the conference.

Nate Fehr

Also joining the top-tier awards list was defensive lineman Nate Fehr, who was honored as the North Divison’s Lineman of the Year. Fehr, a junior, had 40 tackles in UMAC contests, including seven tackles for a loss and two sacks.

A list of Northwestern’s all-conference award winners can be seen below. Click HERE to view the conference’s full press release for a listing of the complete all-conference teams.

First Team All-Conference
Zack Tarter, Quarterback
Josh Lundeen, Wide Receiver
Clint Wolcyn, Offensive Line
Nate Fehr, Defensive Line
Andrew Magaard, Linebacker
Max Meagher, Linebacker
Mike Polley, Cornerback
Taylor Swanson, Cornerback
Ty Crabtree, Safety
Cody Crum, Kicker

Second Team All-Conference
Marshall Sartain, Offensive Line
Kyle Weber, Offensive Line
Jeremy Daggett, Wide Receiver
Nathan Clanton, Tight End
Aaron Pennington, Fullback
Steven Boggess, Running Back
Kyle Nash, Linebacker
Jake Stroud, Safety
Josh Lundeen, Punt Returner
Mike Polley, Kick Returner

Honorable Mention
Kyle Schmidtke, Offensive Line
Zach Holsman, Punter
Lee Nelson, Defensive Line