Washington College athletes earn GNAC honors
MIKE MAYNARD | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 weeks, 5 days AGO
Colton Magruder for the Central Washington University Wildcats crosses the finish line at a previous race earlier this season. He was named Male Freshman of the Year by the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.
COURTESY PHOTO/NATHAN HERDE/CWU ATHLETICS
Maurice Woodring from Western Washington University leaps over a hurdle during a prior race. Woodring was named the 2026 Male Track Athlete of the Year by the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.
MOSES LAKE — Several Washington college athletes received special awards from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Friday. According to a press release by the GNAC, eight awards were announced, with Maurice Woodring, Colton Magruder and Ben Stensland bringing home individual accolades.
Maurice Woodring – Western Washington
Woodring was named the 2026 Men's Track Athlete of the Year after a third-place national finish in the men’s 400-meter hurdles, according to the GNACs statement.
Solidifying himself as the top 400-meter hurdler in conference history, Woodring broke his own GNAC record in the final race of the season as he went 50.50 around the track to claim the NCAA bronze medal.
He narrowly missed out on the national title, with the champion Rinaldo Moore of Minnesota State running just 50.25 seconds. Woodring won his third GNAC Championships title in the event earlier this spring, running what was at the time a conference record of 50.73 seconds.
He finished in a top three spot in his primary event in five of the six meets that he competed in this spring. Woodring became the fourth Viking to claim the top outdoor athlete honor and the first since Slater Hirst in 2015. He is also the eighth in conference history to win GNAC Freshman of the Year (2023) as well as Athlete of the Year.
Ben Stensland – Western Washington
Earning the GNAC Coach of the Year awards on both the women’s and men’s sides was Western Washington Head Coach Ben Stensland, according to the GNAC.
Leading his teams to the GNAC trophies, Stensland helped extend the Vikings streak of team wins across the sports of outdoor track & field, indoor track & field and cross country to 20 in-a-row dating back to the spring of 2023.
It came down to the narrowest margin in conference history on the women’s side, but the Vikings held off Central Washington University 208.5-206.5 to win the conference trophy for the fourth consecutive season.
It was another blowout victory on the men’s side, as WWU racked up 254 points to win by 128.25 points ahead of runner-up Central Washington. It was WWU’s seventh consecutive men’s team outdoor trophy and its conference-record 13th overall.
Stensland joined former Viking head coach Pee Wee Halsell as the second men’s coach to win four straight awards, and it marks the first time in league outdoor history a women’s coach has received four consecutive honors.
Colton Magruder – Central Washington
The Ellensburg native has already left his mark on the program in just his first collegiate season, according to a statement by CWU Athletics.
In his first season as a Wildcat, he already has two top 10 marks in GNAC history, with one also serving as a CWU school record, according to GNACs statement. He first set the school record and tied for the fourth fastest time in GNAC history in the 100m at home in the CWU Wildcat Invitational, running for a time of 10.43.
After earning Athlete of the Week honors earlier this season, Head Coach Jonathan Hill had high praise for his young athlete, according to a previous statement by CWU Athletics.
“He's executing better and better and is learning how to run a very technical event in the 200,” Hill said. “He's setting up segments he's never had before, and we're excited to see what's next for him.”
He then added another tied for fourth in GNAC history honor, this time in the 200m when he ran a 21.04 time at the WSU Cougar Classic. He can now add the GNAC Outdoor Men's Freshman of the Year with his USTFCCCA West Region Indoor Men's Track Athlete of the Year.
Maurice Woodring from Western Washington University leaps over a hurdle during a prior race. Woodring was named the 2026 Male Track Athlete of the Year by the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.ARTICLES BY MIKE MAYNARD
Wildcats’ Asher Cai named Female Athlete of the Year
MOSES LAKE — After a strong senior season with the Wildcats women's basketball program, Asher Cai was named the GNAC Female Athlete of the Year, according to a statement by GNAC. The GNAC Athlete of the Year award is presented annually to one male and one female deemed to have achieved the highest performance athletically. “To be recognized among so many talented student-athletes across our conference is truly amazing,” Cai said in the GNAC’s statement. “While this is an individual award, it’s a reflection of the people who’ve supported me throughout this journey. I am especially thankful for my teammates and the commitment they made this season was so special. Every practice, game and challenge we faced together helped shape me into the player I am today, and I share recognition with them in this.”
Sixers 11U continue strong season despite 1-2 weekend
MOSES LAKE — Despite a 1-2 weekend, the Central Washington Sixers 11U (17-10) are off to a strong start to their season, according to Head Coach Sonny Garza. “Season's going pretty good overall,” Garza said. “We won a tournament a few weeks back. We have a couple second places, and the last couple weekends we've been facing some pretty good all-star teams that have kind of been put together. It's good to start facing those types of teams again, and we're still seeing some of those same tough teams that we've played the last couple years, which is also really good.”
Othello All-Stars 10U punch their ticket to state tournament
OTHELLO — The Othello Little League All-Stars are the district 5 champions and have punched their ticket to the Washington State tournament. “It's a good group of kids,” Head Coach Rudy Ochoa II said. “It's a really fun group, they're hard working, they come with a lot of baseball experience, so it's been fun with my staff and with the kids.”