LINFIELD UNIVERSITY BASKETBALL VERSUS WHITWORTH • JANUARY 21, 2023

WELCOME TO LINFIELD UNIVERSITY

TONIGHT’S MATCHUP: WHITWORTH 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

3 MIKI VERMEULEN

WILDCAT SPOTLIGHT

finding his way back home

Blessed with the talent to earn a Division I scholarship, Garrett Sutton soon found that bigger isn’t necessarily better

by marissa dolson ’24

Garrett Sutton is making the most of his Linfield University opportunities.

The fifth-year graduate student began his college swimming career at the University of Utah. Now the McMinnville native is thrilled to call Linfield his “home away from home,” just a few short miles from where he grew up.

Since his first year in college in Salt Lake City, Sutton has been flourishing at Linfield, both academically and athletically.

“I swam my freshman year at the University of Utah and while I very much prefer being at Linfield, I would be lying if I said that living in Salt Lake City for a year was unexciting. To make a long story short, I struggled when I was over in Utah,” Sutton says. “Thankfully, when I traveled back to Oregon for winter break of 2019, I met with (Linfield head swim coach) Kyle Kimball and we talked about a transfer.”

Sutton realized that what he desired for his college experience was a more intimate environment, which ultimately led him back to Linfield.

“The motivations behind the move were wanting to attend a university where I could take classes without 80+ people in the classroom, and to be able to swim with the people who I knew back from growing up in McMinnville,” he says, reflecting back on his thought process.

He now finds himself in the same town as his primary support system, namely his mother, Mindy, and his father, Robert.

“My mother has taught me compassion and the necessity of fostering healthy relationships,” he says. “My father is helping me understand that I must be disciplined if I am to be free to live my life as I see it. I use the term ‘helping’ in tentionally because while I am very aware of the wisdom of my father’s teachings, putting them into practice has proven to be significantly more difficult than I would’ve ever thought. I still have a long way to go, however, I can take comfort in the fact that simply doing my best is enough to make my parents proud.”

Aside from the class sizes, Sutton has touched on how his journey at Linfield has become so memorable since he stepped on campus.

“My time at Linfield has taught me how necessary and wonderful it is to be surrounded by like-minded teammates. Getting the chance to spend four goofy and exciting years with my second family – the Linfield swim team – has helped me stay motivated in the classroom and stay healthy,” says Sutton.

Throughout the last four years, he came to accept that change is completely normal. In the classroom, Sutton is closing in on a bachelor’s degree in history, although, some newfound passions are leading him in a slightly different

“If you would’ve asked me a year and a half ago, I would have confidently stated that I would be a history teacher. The original plan was to start with working at the high school level, then accumulate credits on the side to get my Ph.D. for teaching at the college level. However, I scrapped that plan and am working towards getting into Fire Services,” Sutton says.

Fully entrenched in the current season, Sutton and his teammates are working relentlessly to achieve their one common goal: Snagging the conference team championship from Whitworth University.

“I haven’t seen the team so motivated to train since I have been at Linfield, and regardless of the outcome, the amount of growth we have all earned is more than worth the amount of effort we have put in,” Sutton says. “In regards to my goals for this year, I would love if I could win the 50 freestyle conference title. Ultimately, my main goal is to make the NCAA cut so I can keep training into

Despite the adversity, hardships and change of plans that Garrett Sutton has faced, he remains grateful for the opportunities, memories and support system, crediting the strong relationships he’s built with friends, teammates, coaches and professors.

“Most importantly, these lovable crazy people have shown me that everything is better with good company. The fact that I was able to spend time with such high-quality people is something that I will never forget.”

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 sits in a three-way tie for second place with Whitman and Pacific. The Wildcats are 8-7 overall and 4-2 in Northwest Conference play. Whitworth enters the week with a 5-10 overall record and a 2-4 NWC mark.

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. Eve Burke is shooting 41.7 percent from the field, including an NWCleading 42.2 percent from three-point range. Gillyan Landis leads the team with 10.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game.

WHITWORTH AT A GLANCE

The Pirates rank No. 3 in the NWC with 63.3 points per game but have allowed 63.7 points per game at the other end of the court. Olivia Mayer is averaging a double-double, ranking second in the NWC with 17.3 points per game while leading the league with 12.2 rebounds per game. Kimberly Dewey is averaging 11.7 points and 6.3 rebounds per game while Quincy McDeid is also scoring in double figures with 11 points per game. McDeid is second in the NWC in both three-point percentage and free throw percentage.

THE SERIES

Linfield has won 12 of its 67 meetings with Whitworth. Eight of those wins came at home. The Pirates won five of the last nine matchups. They won the first meeting of the 2021-22 season, an 81-64 decision in Spokane. The ‘Cats took the second meeting in McMinnville, winning 62-59 on a buzzer-beater three-pointer.

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

WHITWORTH WOMEN

HEAD COACH: Kenny Love (first year)

ASSISTANT COACHES: Maddie Johnson, Preston Roth

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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. Whitworth is tied for first place with Whitman at 10-5 overall 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 point 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 threepointers.

WHITWORTH AT A GLANCE

The Pirates stormed Whitman’s Sherwood Center with a 72-58 win over the Blues last week. JT McDermott led the Pirates in that game with 18 points, nine rebounds and four assists. McDermott ranks seventh in the NWC with 14.3 points per game. Jake Holtz is shooting 58 percent from the field, averaging 13.5 points per game. Jerry Twenge is putting up 10.6 points per game and is second in the league with 7.1 rebounds per game.

THE SERIES

Linfield has played Whitworth 97 times. Linfield is 34-63 against the Pirates, one of two teams the ‘Cats shared last year’s NWC regular-season title with. The ‘Cats took two of the last three meetings. They split the 2021-22 season, with the Pirates winning 90-43 in Spokane and the ‘Cats winning 71-65 in McMinnville.

4 TREYVAUGHN BIERLINK

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

WHITWORTH MEN

HEAD COACH: Damion Jablonski (fourth year)

ASSISTANT COACHES: Elijah Gurash, Reed Brown, Luke Dobler

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