Linfield University

The National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) recently recognized all players who earned Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete recognition for the 2023-24 academic year. Each year, the NFCA recognizes collegiate softball athletes who maintain a 3.5 or higher GPA. Overall, 17 Wildcats were recognized for outstanding academic progress throughout the 2023-24 academic year. Read the full announcement at https://golinfieldwildcats.com/news/2024/8/23/softball-nfca-honors-17-wildcats-as-all-america-scholar-athletes.aspx

Fifteen collegiate cross country squads were greeted with oven-hot conditions Saturday morning at The Nines Golf Course where the Linfield Wildcats hosted the annual Harrier Classic. The women competed across a compressed four-kilometer course, while the men raced across a six-kilometer circuit. During competition, three Wildcats recorded personal-best times. Sophomore Jayden Taylor turned in the women's top time of 16:10.63, recording a personal best. Her mark placed the sophomore in 54th position in a field of 102 runners. Senior Alex Oathout led the Wildcat men with a 20th-place showing in a person-best time of 19:13.91. Sophomore Devin Harrison also turned in a personal-best effort of 19:28.33. Full story online at https://golinfieldwildcats.com/news/2024/8/31/cross-country-oathout-taylor-ignore-heat-clock-best-times-at-harrier-classic.aspx.

Four Linfield University athletes were recognized for their academic and athletic accomplishment during the 2023-24 academic year. They are Chris Cayford (Beaverton, Ore.), Zack LaPlaca (Bend, Ore.), Riley Lynch (Seattle, Wash.) and Trevor Price (Bullhead City, Ariz.). According to the Collegiate Golf website: "To be eligible for Cobalt Golf All-America Scholar nomination, an individual must be a sophomore, junior or senior both academically and athletically in NCAA Division I, II, III, and NAIA, or receiving their Associate's Degree and in their last year of athletic eligibility in the NJCAA. In addition, they must participate in 50% of their team's competitive rounds, have a stroke average under 76.0 in NCAA Division I, under 78.0 in NCAA Division II, under 79.0 in NCAA Division III, under 78.0 in NAIA, and under 77.0 in NJCAA, and maintain a minimum cumulative career grade-point average of 3.2. A recipient must also be of high moral character and be in good standing at their college or university." Linfield makes its 2024-25 season debut Sept. 22-24 when the Wildcats compete in the Orange & Black Invitational hosted by Lewis & Clark College at Tualatin Country Club.

Three members of the Linfield University football team have been recognized as Preseason All-Americans by D3Football.com, highlighted by a second-team selection for two-time All-American linebacker Blake Rybar. He is joined on the second-team by fellow fifth-year senior and All-American punter Thomas Tabor. Senior cornerback Chance Sparks was named to the third team. Read the full story at https://golinfieldwildcats.com/news/2024/8/9/linfield-trio-named-to-d3football-com-preseason-all-america-team.aspx

Linfield University is pleased to release its newest list of graduates. Following the spring 2024 semester, the university awarded 510 degrees to 505 graduates, with five awarded double degrees. The commencement ceremony was held on the university's McMinnville campus on May 26. Honors are determined once a student's final grades have been submitted. For undergraduate students, these include summa cum laude (3.9-4.0 cumulative GPA), magna cum laude (3.8-3.89 cumulative GPA) and cum laude (3.65-3.79 cumulative GPA). Graduate students earn honors or high honors for earning a GPA of 3.8-3.89 and 3.9-4.0, respectively.

Linfield University's inaugural Master's Entry into Professional Nursing (MEPN) cohort graduated this spring. The 25 students earned their Master of Science in Nursing and were celebrated during the Spring Commencement in May. Linfield's MEPN is the first in the state of Oregon. It allows students with a bachelor's degree in a non-nursing field to complete their nursing education and graduate with a master's degree just 15 months. More about the commencement ceremony is at https://news.linfield.edu/505-graduates-honored-at-2024-commencement/.

Five Linfield University students were awarded both a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Science at the May 2024 Commencement ceremony. The students were Emma Collins Campbell, Mariana Fernandez, Andrew James Goodwin, Laura C Heryford and Katie Elizabeth Jones. More about Linfield's May 2024 Commencement is online at https://news.linfield.edu/505-graduates-honored-at-2024-commencement/.

Linfield University congratulates the 629 students who earned Dean's List honors during the spring 2024 academic term. The Dean's List identifies undergraduate students who earned a GPA at least equivalent to a cum laude (3.65) while taking at least graded 12 credits. It is computed following the posting of grades at the end of each semester. See the full list at https://news.linfield.edu/spring-2024-deans-list/.

Congratulations to the 12 students earning their Master of Science in business from Linfield University. The Class of 2024 was celebrated in Spring Commencement in May. Students earning this degree focused their studies in design and innovation; sports leadership; or wine business leadership.

The student-led Majestic Tree Week, which pitted eight Linfield University campus trees against one another in an NCAA-style bracket, has won global recognition from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). Timed for peak fall foliage, the inaugural Majestic Tree Week was held in October 2023. Students in Professor William Fleeger 's Environmental Communication and Advocacy class mounted the multifaceted campaign, which included in-person events, digital design, social media and community outreach. See the full story at https://news.linfield.edu/circle-of-excellence-2024/.

The Northwest Conference has named the 2023-24 All-Northwest Conference Sportsmanship team. Nineteen student-athletes from Linfield University were selected for displaying good sportsmanship throughout the season. All nine member institutions elected one member from each sports team to be a member of the All-NWC Sportsmanship team. The Linfield Wildcat student-athletes included: Brett Joner (baseball), JT Estes (men's basketball), Miki Vermeulen (women's basketball), Bradley Kiltow (men's cross country), Jennifer Torres-Bermudez (women's cross country), Justin Pfau (football), Trevor Price (men's golf), Caitlin Hillman (women's golf), Maizri Chandler (women's lacrosse), Owen Schoner (men's soccer), Sidra Griffin (women's soccer), Jacey Leyvas (softball), Rocco Velie (men's swimming), Caley Haydu (women's swimming), Seth Lee (men's tennis), Sarah Forester (women's tennis), Jevon Cloy (men's track and field), Siera Crawford (women's track and field) and Marina Erosa (women's volleyball). See the complete All-NWC Sportsmanship team at https://golinfieldwildcats.com/documents/2024/7/15/2024_All_Sportsmanship_PDF.pdf.

The Linfield University-Good Samaritan School of Nursing honored several members of its most recent graduating class with awards for academic achievement and nursing excellence. Awardees were: - Megan Starr Morgan, Kamren Belden and Bella Miranda-Goeller for Senior Honors in Nursing - Ryan Connole, Courtney Bell and Sarah Roberts for the Professional Excellence in Nursing Award - Erin Gehrke for the Wilma Pope Alumni Award - Troy Gernhart, Courtney Bell and Nanea-Rose Ikeda for The Daisy Award for Extraordinary Nurses See the full announcement at: https://news.linfield.edu/graduating-student-nursing-awards-2024/

Recent Linfield University graduate Colton Smith has received distinction as the Male Vern Marshall Award, becoming the 13th member of the Wildcats football program to earn the honor. Presented annually, the award is named in honor of former Linfield student-athlete and longtime college and professional sports referee Vern Marshall Sr. It recognizes the top male and female athletes who compete with the greatest tenacity. A total of 20 honorees representing six programs have earned the men's accolade dating back to 2002. Read the full announcement at: https://golinfieldwildcats.com/news/2024/6/5/general-interest-colton-smith-presented-male-vern-marshall-award.aspx

Leading Linfield University to an historic softball season, Brynn Nelson has been named the female recipient of the Vern Marshall Award. Presented annually, the award was created in memory of former Linfield student-athlete and longtime college and professional sports referee Vern Marshall Sr. of the Class of 1957. Established in 2002, the Vern Marshall Award salutes the top male and female athletes who compete with the greatest tenacity.

Recent Linfield University graduate Sarah Forester has been appointed to the prestigious College Sports Communicators Academic All-America team for a second straight year. She received CSC Academic All-America second team honors after being named to the third team a year ago. Forester becomes just the second Linfield Wildcat student-athlete to earn Academic All-America acclaim in consecutive seasons, joining baseball's Nick Fisher, who achieved the feat a decade ago in 2013 and 2024.

Linfield University tied the second most All-Northwest Conference selections in program history with five in an announcement released by the conference in May. First-year student Madison De La Trinidad led the group with the first team selection while Gabby Crist and Mackenzie Kulick were named second team. Star Pfleiger and Grayce Miller rounded out the selections after being named honorable mention All-NWC. Linfield doubled its win total in 2024 improving to 6-9 overall and 4-8 in Northwest Conference play. Read the full announcement at https://golinfieldwildcats.com/news/2024/5/7/lacrosse-five-cats-land-on-all-northwest-conference-list.aspx.

Linfield University's Kira Hawaaboo is headed to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, this week to compete in the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The sophomore from Enumclaw, Washington, is among the leading challengers for a national championship in the women's long jump. She'll compete in that event Thursday at 11:30 a.m. PDT inside Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium. Hawaaboo enters the NCAA Championships ranked fourth in the long jump among a field of 22 entrants. Her best mark of the season came at the NWC Championships when she sailed 19 feet, 6 inches.

Nolan Ahmann '25, a finance major and accounting minor, has won a competitive scholarship for $2,000 from Financial Executives International (FEI).

The annual Lacroute Prizes in Poetry and Prose highlight the best student writing from across Linfield University. This year's contest honors the work of five students, including Sarah Reynolds, the Lacroute Prize in Poetry winner, and Lauren Hodgson, the Lacroute Prize in Prose winner. Reynolds is a senior from Beaverton, majoring in creative writing. She was a finalist in the 2023 Lacroute Prize in Poetry. Hodgson is a senior from Palo Alto, California, majoring in anthropology. Their winning entries, along with the work of all finalists, will be published in the spring issue of Camas: A Journal of Art & Literature. The winners in each category also receive a $500 prize. Creative writing faculty chose finalists from dozens of submissions, with final winners selected by award-winning poet and Linfield alumnus Shane McCrae '02. McCrae is the author of several books of poetry, including "In the Language of My Captor," which won the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award for Poetry and was a finalist for the National Book Award. He is recipient of several other accolades, including a Whiting Award, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship and a Guggenheim Fellowship. He will give a public reading of his latest publication, "Pulling the Chariot of the Sun: A Memoir of a Kidnapping," at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 30 in Nicholson Library as part of the MacReads program. See the full list of finalists at https://news.linfield.edu/2024-linfield-student-writing-prizes-announced/.

Linfield University's Kira Hawaaboo scored 4,495 points on her way to capturing the Northwest Conference women's heptathlon championship Tuesday afternoon at Willamette University's McCulloch Stadium. Competing in only her second heptathlon, the sophomore from Enumclaw, Washington, topped a field of eight competitors to become Linfield's first NWC heptathlon champion since Olivia Bannerot claimed the title in 2016. Her victory followed a memorable Saturday in which she broke a 26-year-old Linfield record in the long jump at the Jenn Boyman Memorial Invitational. Read the full story at https://golinfieldwildcats.com/news/2024/4/9/track-field-kira-hawaaboo-crowned-nwc-heptathlon-champion.aspx.

Linfield University's Ivan Galicia Sixto has received a Fulbright U.S. Student Program award from the U.S. Department of State and the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board. As a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant, he will support the teaching of English in Peru during the 2024-25 academic year. The Linfield student will earn his bachelor's degree from Linfield in May 2024. He is majoring in Spanish and secondary education with an ESOL endorsement. He previously attended the Academy of International Studies in Woodburn. "As a first-generation student, this feels unreal," he said. "My parents did not even complete their elementary education, so this accomplishment represents years of overcoming obstacles. However, I am proud to say that, even with the challenges and barriers of being the first, I am grateful for the opportunity to represent my school, community and country. This opportunity serves as the first step for my professional career as a bilingual educator and a representative of the United States." Read the full story at: https://news.linfield.edu/ivan-galicia-sixto-fulbright/.

Two Linfield University journalism and media studies students will intern in Oregon newsrooms this summer as part of the Charles Snowden Program for Excellence in Journalism. Mariah Johnston and Tori Schuller are members of the 2024 intern class, comprised of 20 students from universities across the state. Students selected for this paid internship spend 10 weeks reporting on community news in various media organizations. Especially of note, this is the first time that Linfield has had two students named to the same cohort. "We're thrilled that Tori and Mariah will continue this Linfield tradition and take their journalism talents into local Oregon communities. They're bound to find these experiences transformative," said Jennifer Rauch, chair of the Department of Journalism and Media Studies. "The skills and experience they developed as editors of The Linfield Review [student media] will be crucial to their success." The last Linfield journalism student selected for the Snowden program was Alexandra Feller. The 2021 graduate and former Linfield Review editor wrote for the Klamath Falls Herald and News. The Charles Snowden Program for Excellence in Journalism honors the life and career of Charles Snowden, a longtime editor at the Oregon Journal and The Oregonian. Snowden, who retired in 1986 and passed away in 1997, had a great passion for good writing, history and the practice of ethical journalism. He is remembered not only as a top-notch editor but also as a mentor for many young journalists. The Snowden family established an endowment for the program at the University of Oregon. Learn more about the Snowden internship program: https://snowden.uoregon.edu "This opportunity for the interns and news partners comes at an extraordinary moment when local journalism has never been more important," the program coordinators wrote in the cohort announcement. "We value these news media partners for their ongoing support and thank the Snowden family for creating and sustaining this experience." Read more of the latest Linfield news at news.linfield.edu.

Linfield University's Kirsti Keppo earned Co-Swimmer of the Year with Whitman's Shaye Agnew and is one of five Linfield women's swimmers named first-team All-NWC in a conference release announced on Wednesday. Sarah Arpag earned first-team honors in the 200 butterfly. Avery Campbell earned first-team selections in the 50 freestyle and 100 backstroke. Keppo earned honors in the 500 freestyle, 1650 freestyle and 400 individual medley. Two Linfield relays earned first-team awards. The team of Arpag, Whitney Averall, Kalea Mullins and Campbell comprised the 200-medley relay. Arpag, Campbell, Keppo and Mullins made up the 800-freestyle relay. Arpag, Averill, Campbell, Keppo and Mullins also made second-team in one or more events. Joining them with second-team honors in multiple events are Kaylee Elsom and Caley Haydu. Elsom earned honors in the 500 freestyle and 200 freestyle. Haydu made second-team honors in the 50 freestyle and was a part of three Linfield relays that made second-team All-NWC honors. At the NWC championships, Campbell bested her school record in the 50 backstroke and Keppo broke record marks in the 1650 freestyle and 1000 freestyle. The Wildcats finished the season with a 5-2 record in NWC dual meets and finished second overall in the team standings at the conference championships in early February with 460 points. Read the full Northwest Conference press release at https://nwcsports.com/news/2024/2/20/2024all-nwc-womens-swimming-team-announced-linfields-keppo-whitmans-agnew-whitworths-parrish-and-pacific-lutherans-lum-earn-top-honors.aspx.

Seven Linfield University men's swimmers were selected for All-Northwest Conference teams in a release announced by the conference on Wednesday. Senior Edan Donaldson earned first-team honors in the 50 freestyle, 100 butterfly and 100 freestyle. Sophomore Rocco Velie earned first-team honors in the 400 individual medley and junior Gavin Smith made first-team in the 1650 freestyle. Three Linfield relays earned their way onto the All-NWC second team. The foursome of Donaldson, Velie, Cam Wheeler and Carson Washburn led the way for the 800-freestyle relay. Washburn, Donaldson, Velie and Daniel Olson comprised the 400-freestyle relay while Donaldson, Velie, Washburn and Ivan Tontchev made up the 400 medley relay. In total seven 'Cats earned All-NWC honors. The Wildcats finished with a 5-2 record in NWC dual meets and finished fourth overall in the team standings at the NWC championships in early February. See the full Northwest Conference release at: https://nwcsports.com/news/2024/2/20/all-nwc-mens-swimming-team-announced-whitworths-washburn-hayashida-and-schadt-earn-top-honors.aspx

A short film by Linfield University student Andrew Goodwin '24 is hitting the big screen! "Hypnosis" was among those selected for the 2024 McMinnville Short Film Festival. This is the second time Goodwin has had a film featured at the event. His two-minute short titled "Thoughts and Prayers," a visual meditation on gun violence and shootings in America, was screened in 2023. "Hypnosis" is part of the festival's College Showcase, held at 11 a.m. Friday, Feb. 23. Inspiration for the 4.5-minute film about time came from an abstract ink drawing that Goodwin made during his freshman year of high school. "'Hypnosis' is part of a larger portfolio that evolved from wanting to reflect on my pre-collegiate art skills. My goal was to elevate some of my past works," he said. "For me, the film shows that there can both so much time and not enough of it." Goodwin is a senior from Hillsboro, majoring in digital art, literature, and creative writing. In addition to his studies, Goodwin is an assistant director of the Linfield University Writing Center and vice president of the Alpha Tau Nu chapter of the Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society. He previously attended Glencoe High School in Hillsboro, and earned a certificate in feature film writing from UCLA Extension in 2023. "I feel really gratified that I'd been accepted for a second consecutive year. Last year, I met some of the most fantastic people at the McMinnville Short Film Festival. I look forward to forging more connections this year," Goodwin said. "'Hypnosis' is a film that I'm proud of, and I'm excited for others to view it." Goodwin's cinematic portfolio - including "Hypnosis" and "Thoughts and Prayers" - is available on his YouTube channel -https://www.youtube.com/@andgo100.

Linfield University is pleased to release its newest list of graduates. Following the fall 2023 semester, the College of Arts and Sciences and the School of Business awarded 20 Bachelor of Science and 11 Bachelor of Arts degrees, with one student earning both a B.A. and a B.S. Honors are determined once a student's final grades have been submitted. For undergraduate students, these include summa cum laude (3.9-4.0 cumulative GPA), magna cum laude (3.8-3.89 cumulative GPA) and cum laude (3.65-3.79 cumulative GPA). Graduate students earn honors or high honors for earning a GPA of 3.8-3.89 and 3.9-4.0, respectively.

Linfield University congratulates 638 students who earned Dean's List honors during the fall 2023 academic term. The Dean's List identifies undergraduate students who have earned a term GPA at least equivalent to a cum laude (at least 3.650 GPA) for a given semester. It is computed following the posting of grades at the end of each semester. Congratulations to these students for their distinguished academic achievement.

The Linfield University cheer team advanced to the semifinals of the 2024 UCA College Cheerleading Nationals in Orlando, Florida, which took place Jan. 13-15. The Wildcats finished 19th out of 36 teams in the Open All Girl Game Day category. While the squad improved their score from 85.233 to 85.5 between the preliminary and semifinal rounds, it was not enough to advance to the final round of competition. The Open All Girl Game Day competition included colleges from all levels, including NCAA Division I, II and III, as well as two-year colleges and NAIA schools. Linfield was the only team from Oregon competing in the category. Ultimately, West Chester University, a NCAA Division II school from Pennsylvania, won the national title. Teams were evaluated on their ability to lead a crowd, motion techniques and execution of skills, among others. "We perform the fight song, a situational sideline cheer and then a band dance timeout!" former head coach Madesyn Samples said. "The routine is three-minutes long, and we never stop moving start to finish." Linfield received zero deductions to their score from the judges in either round of competition. This marks the second time in program history that the team has participated in the national competition. The team made its inaugural appearance in 2022. That year, the Wildcats placed ninth in the Small Coed Game Day division. More about the Linfield cheerleading squad is online at https://golinfieldwildcats.com/sports/cheerleading. See the full competition results at https://tv.varsity.com/events/11267291/results.

Linfield University student Annemarie Mullet won a design contest from Premier Press, a Portland-based creative production firm. The company gives holiday-themed wrapping paper to its clients each year, using a contest for college students to submit original designs. In total, Premier Press received more than 30 submissions from throughout the region. Mullet's design was selected among the top four designs and printed for distribution. The wrapping paper pattern, titled "Snowman Friends," features snowflakes on one side and sketched snowmen on the other. "The making of the design was a complex process, and a lot of fun to work on," she said. "I first sketched and carved the designs into linoleum blocks. I inked the blocks with black ink, then ran them through the press. Then, I scanned the prints into Photoshop, where I digitally altered the designs to have color. I chose blues for colors because I think blues are great colors for the holidays." Mullet is currently a senior at Linfield majoring in digital arts and minoring in creative writing, visual studies and studio art. She is the managing editor and digital art coordinator for The Linfield Review, a student-run media organization. She also works in the Digital Art Lab and at the Writing Center. Mullet is from Kirkland, Washington. "I have been learning printmaking through an independent study with art professor Thea Gahr this semester, and I wanted to use the skills I learned in the design for the wrapping paper," she said. "I had mostly entered the contest because I wanted a chance to try mixing printmaking with Photoshop as I love mixing art mediums, but I also felt very encouraged by my professors and classmates to have a go at it." The three other winners are Andre Saez of the University of Arkansas, Audrey Walch of California Polytechnic State University and Harper Pearce-Mitchell of the University of Oregon. Last year, two Linfield students - Emma Inge '23 and Meghan Mullaly '23 - were winners in Premier Press's 2022 holiday wrapping paper contest. "I feel very appreciative when other creative people see the effort and thought I put into my work and are willing to reward it," Mullet said. "I was also very excited when I received the printed wrapping paper in the mail from Premier Press. All my family's gifts were wrapped in it, and everyone was excited to open gifts with wrapping paper made by me!" See all the 2023 designs at https://www.premierpress.com/project/premiers-2023-holiday-wrapping-paper/.

Jayce Gillis, a December 2023 graduate of the Linfield University-Good Samaritan School of Nursing, was awarded the Senior Honors in Nursing Award at the Dec. 15 pinning ceremony.