It's Senior Weekend for soccer and volleyball while the basketball season gets underway in a busy week for Bushnell Athletics.

WOMEN'S SOCCER

Friday 11/1 vs. Walla Walla (Scrimmage), 12:00 pm
Sunday 11/3 vs. Rocky Mountain, 12:00 pm
 
THIS WEEK: The Beacons will play their final game of the season on Sunday, and also host a scrimmage against Walla Walla, providing an opportunity for not one but TWO senior days, honoring the 20 seniors who will be leaving the program.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Bushnell lost twice last weekend to No. 11 College of Idaho and RV Eastern Oregon University, which eliminated them from post-season contention.
 
HISTORY WATCH: With another goal this past weekend, senior Emily Puita now has 12 goals in her career, which ranks fifth all-time. She is also tied for fourth in career assists (8) and fourth for career points (32). She is Bushnell's all-time leader for shots and shots-on-goal.
 
CONFERENCE OUTLOOK: No. 11- ranked College of Idaho (12-0-2, 10-0 CCC) clinched the CCC regular-season championship with their win over the Beacons on Friday. Four other teams (OIT, Carroll, Rocky Mountain, Eastern Oregon) have clinched a post season berth while four other schools battle for the final three spot.
 
Bushnell (5-12, 3-8 CCC) is currently 12th in the CCC in scoring, averaging 0.94 goals per game. The Beacons rank ninth defensively, allowing 1.59 goals per game. Individually Lexi Bates ranks sixth in saves with 5.4 saves per game.
 
WALLA WALLA: Bushnell will open the weekend with a scrimmage against Walla Walla, with a chance to honor the "Reserve Team" seniors before kickoff. Walla Walla is in their first year of relaunching a women's soccer program and they are officially 0-4 on the season with many CCC opponents choosing to make their games this season a scrimmage. In those four games, they have been outscored 42-1.  
 
ROCKY MOUNTAIN: The Bears (8-4-1, 6-3-1 CCC) are back in the CCC post-season after missing the tournament for the first time in 2023. They are currently tied for fourth-place, but could still finish as high as second or as low as eighth.  
 
RMC is ranked third in the CCC in scoring, averaging 2.23 goals per game. They are sixth defensively, allowing 1.23 goals per game. Emma Lensing is the most prolific attacker in the CCC, leading all players in the conference with 4.77 shot attempts per game. She ranks fifth for total points and points per game and she is tied for second in the CCC with 9 goals scored.
 
The Bears are 7-0-1 all-time against the Beacons with a 1-1 tie in Billings last season. Bushnell has been shutout in six of the eight games in the series.

MEN'S SOCCER

Friday 11/1 vs. Walla Walla, 2:30 pm
Sunday 11/3 vs. Rocky Mountain, 2:30 pm
 
THIS WEEK: The Beacons look to end the season on a high note with two more home games. Bushnell will celebration Senior Day before Sunday's game against Rocky Mountain.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Bushnell lost twice last weekend, 4-1 to College of Idaho and 3-0 to Eastern Oregon, officially ending their post-season aspirations.
 
CONFERENCE OUTLOOK: With 31 points, Carroll College holds a five-point lead over Southern Oregon and needs just a win or tie to clinch the CCC regular season championship this weekend. Five other schools have already clinched a spot in the post season while four other schools are still in contention for the final two playoff spots.
 
Bushnell is currently ranked 12th in the CCC in scoring, averaging 1.44 goals per game. The Beacons are ninth defensively, with opponents scoring 1.81 goals against.
 
Brady Housley is currently tied for eighth in the CCC with four assists and William Haberfield is ranked fourth in the CCC with a 1.28 Goals Against Average.
 
WALLA WALLA: The Wolves (1-10 overall, 1-10 CCC) are still looking for their first on-field win for the 2024 season and have officially lost ten straight. They were awarded a forfeit victory over Providence in their season opener. The Wolves have been out-scored 55-4 on the season, but have scored in each of their past two games.
 
WWU ranks 14th in the conference for goals (0.36/g) and goals against (5.0/g). Eniola Smith leads the team in scoring with 2 goals while Sebastian Vargas leads the conference in saves, averaging 7 per game.
 
Bushnell is 12-0 all-time against the Wolves and won in Washington last season, 2-0.
 
ROCKY MOUNTAIN: The Bears (7-5-2, 6-3-2) are back in the CCC post-season after missing the tournament for the first time in 2023. They are currently in sixth-place, but could still tie for second, or finish as low as eighth.  
 
The Bears rank seventh in the CCC in scoring, averaging 1.93 goals per game. They are fifth defensively, allowing 1.43 goals per game. Igor Soares leads the team in scoring, averaging 1.5 points per game. He has scored eight goals on the year which ranks seventh in the CCC.
 
Rocky is 7-1-1 all-time against the Beacons as Bushnell finally broke through with their first win in the series last season, 4-3 in Billings.

VOLLEYBALL

Friday 11/1 vs. Northwest, 6:00 pm
Saturday 11/2 vs. Evergreen, 4:00 pm
 
THIS WEEK: With two weekends left in the regular season, there is still a lot at stake for the Beacons as they play their final two home games of the season this week. Bushnell will host Senior Night on Saturday before the Evergreen game.   
 
LAST TIME OUT: The Beacons suffered a home weekend sweep for the first time this season, falling to both then-No. 5 Southern Oregon before being upset by unranked Oregon Tech.  
 
CONFERENCE OUTLOOK: The Battle for the Bye is in full swing, heading into the final four games of the season as Bushnell, College of Idaho and Lewis-Clark State all have their eyes set on fourth-place. The Beacons (11-7), who own the tie-breaker against No. 23 C of I (11-7)and still have one to play with the Warriors, are in the drivers seat and can clinch the four-seed by winning out. CI brought themselves back into a tie for fourth on Tuesday as they upset Eastern Oregon University.  LC State (10-8) is just one game back.
 
The race for the CCC championship is also in full swing. With the loss to CI, No. 3 Eastern Oregon dropped back into a three-way tie with No. 7 Southern Oregon and No. 8 Corban for the conference lead and all have a prime opportunity to share a piece of the regular-season championship by winning out.
 
Bushnell, still receiving votes in the NAIA national coaches poll, is ranked eighth in the CCC on offense with a .178 attack percentage. They are also seventh defensively, holding opponents to a .158 hitting percentage. The Beacons lead the CCC for service aces, averaging 1.9 per set. Amyah Semau leads the conference individually with 46 aces, averaging 0.5 per set.  
 
NORTHWEST: The Eagles (12-14, 7-11) are a dangerous team, having just knocked off No. 23 College of Idaho last weekend. NU is currently on the outside looking in for the CCC tournament, but sits just one game behind Oregon Tech and Walla Walla, who are tied for seventh, and they have won five of their last six games.  
 
Northwest ranks ninth in the CCC on offense (.134) and seventh on defense (.158). Ellie Van Berkum is currently ranked third in the CCC in digs with 4.95/g while Morgan Harter is fourth in assists with 6.05/g.
 
The Eagles are 20-15 all-time against the Beacons with Bushnell winning seven of the last ten meetings including a 3-0 sweep in Kirkland earlier this season.
 
EVERGREEN: The Geoducks (4-17, 4-14) come in having lost five straight games. The boast just two wins against playoff contenders this season, and are 2-10 away from home this year.
 
ESC ranks tenth in the CCC for both offense (.097) and defense (.211 against). Molly Packer has been the best Libero in the conference up to this point, leading the CCC with 5.16 digs per set.
 
With a win in Olympia earlier this season, the Beacons have now won nine straight against the Geoducks and hold a 26-9 advantage in the all-time series.  

MEN'S BASKETBALL

Friday 11/1 at Carroll, 3:00 pm (MT)
Saturday 11/2 vs. Providence (@ Carroll), 5:30 pm (MT)
Monday 11/4 at MSU-Northern, 7:00 pm (MT)
 
THIS WEEK: The Beacons will open up the season in Montana, taking on the second and third-place finishers from the Frontier Conference a year ago.
 
SEASON PREVIEW: A complete season preview story will be released on BushnellBeacons.com this Thursday!
 
CARROLL: Just one season removed from a 19-12 year and a second-place finish in the Frontier Conference (12-3) the Saints have been picked to finish sixth in the conference this year. Carroll will have a relatively new look in the 2024-2025 season with seven newcomers.
 
The Beacons face off with the Saints for just the second time ever and the first time since the 2021 preseason, when Carroll won 76-71 in overtime.
 
PROVIDENCE: Last season, the Argos went 15-15 including a 7-8 record in the Frontier Conference to take third-place. They have been picked to finish fifth in the conference this season. This will be the first-ever meeting between the programs.

MONTANA STATE-NORTHERN: Last season, the Lights finished tied for last-place in the CCC with a 3-12 conference record and they were 11-18 overall. They are picked to finish fourth this season, ahead of both Providence and Carroll.
 
This is the second meeting ever between the schools. MSU-Northern won on a neutral playing field back on December 10, 2022, 90-84.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

Saturday 11/2 at Boise State University, 1:00 pm (MT)
 
THIS WEEK: Before the Beacons official begin their season on November 11th, they will play two high-profile exhibition games, beginning Saturday in Boise against the Broncos.
 
SEASON PREVIEW: A complete season preview story will be released on BushnellBeacons.com this Thursday!

ESPORTS 

Wednesday 10/30 – Rocket League, 5:00 pm
Thursday 10/31 – Fortnite, 5:00 pm
Monday 10/4 – SSBU and TFT, 5:00 pm
Tuesday 10/5 – Rocket League, 5:00 pm

Rocket League (1-2) cruised to their first win of the season last week, defeating UNC – Charlotte, 4-1, in the best-of-seven series. Cole Vamos, Isaac Wagner, Brec Feehan and Kyle Foss all saw time in the match. The Beacons have three matches to go in the regular season, looking to finish among the top four in their division. Up next, Bushnell takes on Merrimack College on Wednesday, Oct. 30 at 5:00 p.m.
 
Nathan Farris, Grayson Bolanos, Nick McGowen and Lauren Cazares are representing Bushnell in Fortnite this fall. The Beacons finished with 150 points in the first trios tournament, putting them in 47th out of 112 teams on the leaderboard. They improved to 35th with a 208-point performance in the second tournament. Bushnell will need to find themselves within the top 33 teams at the end of the fourth tournament in order to qualify for the postseason. 
 
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (1-4) plays their final match of the fall on Monday, looking to rebound from a loss to Oklahoma Christian University. The format of SSBU is 4v4 Crew Battles. Matches are played as a best-of-three series.
 
Teamfight Tactics (TFT) continues the seven-week regular season on Monday. Zack Claunch, who was placed in the top division of competition, posted 14 points last week, moving him up to 18st on the leaderboard following the sixth week of play. The format of TFT is an eight-way free for all. Each week will consist of two matches. Claunch will need to finish among the top 16 in order to advance to the postseason.
 
Bushnell Valorant heads into their final match of the regular season following a bye last week. The Beacons enter the match among the top 4 on the leaderboard. With five teams still in contention, a win would guarantee Bushnell a spot in the postseason. The Beacons take on Ball State University on Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 5:00 p.m.