Paul Starkebaum, Sports Information Director
College Place, Wash. – The Wolves play their last two home basketball games of the season this weekend. Saturday night is Senior Night for the Wolves, and we will be celebrating seven seniors who will be playing their last game at home.
Women's Basketball
Kaitlyn Friesen has been a member of the women's basketball team for four seasons. She has seen a lot of change in the Wolves program over the last four season, and has been a steadfast leader for the young Wolves team this year. She is playing some of the best basketball of her career right now, recording a career high in points Saturday night with 8 points. Kaitlyn is finishing her bachelor's degree in Health Science and she plans on going on to earn a Doctor of Chiropractic's degree.
February 3, 12:30 p.m. Lady Wolves vs. #3 Southern Oregon University (21-2, 14-1)
Almost four weeks ago, the Wolves were in Ashland, Ore. facing off against the Raiders. Southern Oregon is #3 in the country for a reason, and their up-tempo style is difficult for anyone to deal with and Walla Walla struggled against them. However, after this game, the Wolves demeanor on the court has changed and you can see them playing more confidently after facing the Raiders. For Southern Oregon, guards Toria and Tiani Bradford and forward Autumn Durand have been giving teams fits all season. The three of them combined for 37 points, 17 assists and 12 steals last time these teams faced off. The Wolves will be prepared to take on the Raiders relentless pressing attack on defense and their fast-paced style on offense.
February 4, 6:00 p.m. Lady Wolves vs. Oregon Tech (20-5, 13-2)
The Wolves struggled to get their offense going against Oregon Tech when these teams played a month ago. Walla Walla shot less than 30% from the field. OIT's post player, Bailey Nelson had a big game, with 26 points and 13 rebounds. The Wolves struggled on the glass as well. Since that game, Lexi Ehlers and Emily Downs have stepped up their rebounding in a big way, and we can expect this ever-improving team to have an improved showing in this weekend's rematch.
Men's Basketball
The Wolves men's basketball team is saying good-bye to six seniors this season. These men have been an important part of the Wolves this season and over the last several years.
Andrew Nye has been a member of the Wolves basketball team for 3 seasons, starting in 2013. For his career, Andrew has scored 313 points and 142 assists. Andrew's best individual performance was a 16 points 8 assist 2 steals performance against The Evergreen State College in February of 2016. Andrew has one more year of school, after graduating with his bachelor's degree in Physical Education he plans to earn his Master's degree in Occupational Therapy.
Chad Torkelsen has played for four nonconsecutive seasons for the Wolves. He started his career at Walla Walla in 2012 and took the 2014-2015 season off to work in Australia and travel in Southeast Asia. Chad's career high in points came against Northwest University on February 13, 2016. He scored 23 points and made 5 three-pointers. For his career, Chad has scored 734 points, has made 143 three-point field goals, and pull down 192 rebounds. Chad will be finishing his bachelor's degree in Business this year.
David Reischach has been on the Wolves basketball team since 2014. Before playing basketball, David was a part of the Wolves soccer team for three seasons. In three seasons of play, David has hauled in 175 rebounds, and scored 180 points. On November 15, 2015 against New Hope Christian College, David had 15 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals for his best individual performance of his career. David is getting his bachelor's degree in Health Science and plans on going to school for Physical Therapy.
Ethan Osias first year on the basketball team was the 2013-2014 season. In four seasons, Ethan has scored 801 points, grabbed 267 rebounds, and made 126 three-point field goals. Ethan scored his career high in points on January 17, 2016 when he scored 28 against The Evergreen State College. Ethan will be finishing his bachelor's degree in business and plans to attend medical school after he graduates.
Isaiah Taylor is in his first season with the Wolves after playing at Northwestern College (Iowa) for three seasons. Isaiah's career high in points with the Wolves was 22, against New Hope Christian College. Isaiah's combined career totals (between Walla Walla University and Northwestern College (Iowa)) are 495 points, 85 made three-point field goals, 100 assists and 138 rebounds. Isaiah has one more year left of school to finishing his degree in Journalism, and plans on going into media relations after graduating.
February 3, 2:30 p.m. Wolves vs. Southern Oregon University (16-9, 10-5)
The Wolves had one of their most heart breaking loses of the season in their first match-up with the Raiders. With just under 2:30 left on the clock, Zayne Browning hit a lay-up to tie the score at 81-81. After a pair of free throws put the Raiders up 83-81, the Wolves failed to score on their next two possessions while Southern Oregon put in another pair of free throws and Jordan Hunt hit a three-pointer to widen the lead to seven points, putting the game out of reach for Walla Walla. Despite failing to make the comeback, the Wolves had been up for big stretches in the first half and should be looking forward to the rematch. The Wolves made 16 three-point field goals, shot over 45% from the field and had 19 assists against the Raiders. The Wolves will be looking to avenge their loss in an effort to reach the eighth spot in the Cascade Collegiate Conference, which is the final spot into the conference playoffs.
February 4, 8:00 p.m. Wolves vs. Oregon Tech
Last time these two teams met, the Owls needed an 11-3 run in the second half to pull away from the Wolves. Walla Walla's Andrew Nye had a career high 23 points, Alec Calloway had 18 points and 8 rebounds, and Austin Jennings the first double-digit scoring night of his career with 13 points. Nevertheless, the Wolves did not have an answer for Joel Yellow Owl, who had 33 points, including going 15-15 from the free throw line. As a team, Oregon Tech made 32 free throws that night, and getting to the line is something they have done well all season. Joel is one of the hardest players to guard in the CCC, and the Wolves will be looking to slow him down on Saturday night. If the Wolves sweep the Raiders and the Owls this weekend that would potential put them in a tie with Warner Pacific College for eighth place in the conference.
Make sure to be at Windemuth Court this Saturday night as we say good-bye to our seniors! The women's basketball game starts at 6:00 p.m. See you in the WEC!
For the Men's Basketball Schedule CLICK HERE
For the Women's Basketball Schedule CLICK HERE
Follow @theUwolves Wolves on Twitter
Follow theuwolves on Instagram
Like Walla Walla University Wolves on Facebook
