HILLSBORO, Ore.—Lewis & Clark College football first year quarterback Oa Kamakawiwoole became the second player in program history to be named the Northwest Conference Rookie of the Year and nine total Pioneers were named to the NWC All-Conference Team on Tuesday afternoon. 
 
Kamakwiwoole joins Cameron Chang (2019) as the only two L&C players to earn Rookie of the Year accolades - since the conference started issuing the award in 2016. Senior wide receiver Devon Guest and junior running back Jordan Lahusky were each named to the NWC First Team for the first time in their careers. Seniors Ben Burnham (wide receiver) and Justin Hope (linebacker) and sophomore tight end Julius Walker carved out spots on the NWC Second Team. Kamakawiwoole, sophomore running back Chili Stephens, senior offensive lineman Nathan Lien, sophomore kicker Thien Hoang and Lahusky, as a kick returner, all earned spots on the NWC Honorable Mention Team. 
 
Kamkawawiwoole became only the third Pioneer to earn a major NWC award since the league office restructured their awards program in 1996. He joins fellow quarterback Keith Welch, who earned the NWC Offensive Player of the Year Award in 2011, and Chang (defensive lineman), as the only Lewis & Clark players to be honored. 
 
The first year burst onto the scene in a huge way this fall. After splitting time with two others QBs the first two games of the season, Kamakawiwoole took over the starting job in week three and started seven of the Pioneers final eight games. He finished the season 177-254 for 2,376 passing yards and 19 touchdowns against just four interceptions. Kamakawiwoole tacked on two rushing touchdowns. The Hawaii native finished the year third in the NWC in passing yards, second in passing touchdowns and led the entire conference with his 69.7 completion percentage. Kamakawiwoole set the single-season record for completion percentage and finished fifth in passing yards and tied for fifth in passing touchdowns. He threw for over 300 yards four times, including a pair of 400+ yard games. He joined Mike Fanger (six times) as the only quarterbacks in Lewis & Clark program history to post multiple 400+ yard games. 
 
Guest earned his third career NWC All-Conference award and his first First Team honor. After being named to the NWC Second Team the past two years, the senior put together the best season of his career. He went off for career-highs in catches (59), receiving yards (932) and receiving touchdowns (nine) and new career-best averages with 15.8 yards per catch and 93.2 receiving yards per game. He tacked on three punt returns for 88 yards and a touchdown. Guest finished third in the conference in catches and receiving yards and second in touchdown catches. He ended the year seventh in program history in receiving yards, tied for sixth in receiving touchdowns and ninth in catches. He wraps up his career second in program history in career catches (174), sixth in receiving yards (2,348 yards) and fifth in receiving touchdowns (21). He put together the best game of his collegiate career on Homecoming. Guest corralled eight catches for 236 yards (third all-time) and three touchdowns. 
 
Lahusky was named to the NWC All-Conference Football Team for the second and third times in his career. He repeated on the NWC Honorable Mention Team as a kick returner and was named to the First Team as an at-large selection for his production out of the back field. The junior served as a triple threat: finishing with over 300 yards as a rusher, receiver and kick returner. He ended the year first on the team and seventh in the conference with 1,069 all-purpose yards yards in 10 games (106.9 per game). As a runner, Lahusky averaged a team-leading 7.3 yards per carry with a career-high 49 rushes for 374 yards (second on the team) and three touchdowns. He added 23 catches for 318 yards (fourth on the team) and two more scores. As a kick returner, Lahusky led Lewis & Clark with 15 returns for 377 yards (25.13 average) and the team's only kick return touchdown. He closed out the season with the best game of his career thus far. He registered his first career 100-yard rushing game (123) and added his first career 100-yard receiving game (107) to finish the game with 230 yards and two touchdowns on just 17 touches. 
 
Burnham was named to the NWC All-Conference Team for the second-straight year and earned his highest-ever honor with a Second Team spot. The senior wide receiver finished second on the team with 48 catches for 597 yards. Burnham added two receiving touchdowns and posted five punt returns for 61 yards (12.20 average). He ended the season sixth in the NWC in receiving yards and fifth in total receptions. He finishes his career 13^th in program history in receiving yards (1,779), 16^th in catches (122) and tied for 24^th in touchdown catches (nine). Burnham recorded his second and third career 100-yard receiving games as a senior. He posted 11 catches for 122 yards and a touchdown against nationally-ranked Montana-Western. 
 
Hope carved out a spot on the NWC All-Conference Team for a second-straight year and moved up a spot to the NWC Second Team. The leader of the Pioneers defense posted career-highs in nearly every category in his fifth-season with the program. The middle linebacker paced the defense with 39 solo tackles, 68 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and one interception (tied for first). He tacked on two sacks, three pass break-ups and three quarterback hurries. Hope ended the season tied for seventh in the NWC in solo tackles and eighth in total tackles. His two forced fumbles are tied for first in the conference. He wraps up his career with 125 solo tackles, 233 total tackles, 16 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, five forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and two interceptions. Hope registered his second and third career double-digit tackle games this season with back-to-back 10 tackle games against Pacific and Pacific Lutheran. 
 
Walker emerged as one of the Pioneers top options, especially in the red zone, during his sophomore season. The tight end recorded career-highs with 30 catches for 353 yards to finish third on the team in both categories. Walker ended the season tied for seventh in the conference in receiving touchdowns, second on the Pioneers, with his six touchdowns. He posted scores in four-straight games and six out of seven games during the middle part of the season. He put together the best game of his career on October 19, when he notched five catches for 94 yards in the Pioneers' Homecoming win over Pacific. In just two seasons, Walker has caught nine touchdown catches (tied for 24^th in program history). 
 
Hoang earned a spot on the NWC Honorable Mention Team for a second-straight year, after resetting his own program record for points in a single-season. The sophomore kicker once again proved to be one of the top kickers in the NWC. He finished 10-13 on field goals (new career-high) and hit all 39 of his point-after-attempts. Hoang finished the year with a single-season program record 69 points. He ranked third in the NWC for points by a kicker and tied for second in made field goals. With his 69 points this season, Hoang set the program record for career points by a kicker with 137 points. He also set the career record for made field goals with 19. Hoang put together the best game of his season on Homecoming when he hit all three of his field goals and went 6-6 on PATs for a season-high 15 points. He posted a career-long field goal of 45 yards against Montana Western on September 21. 
 
Lien earned a spot on the All-Conference Team for a third-straight year. He was selected to the NWC Second Team as a sophomore and junior and earned a spot on the Honorable Mention Team this season. Lien joins Devon Franklin (2017-19) as the only Pioneers offensive lineman to earn All-Conference honors in three-straight seasons. He started nine games this Fall at right guard to help lead the Pioneers offensive line. As a unit, Lewis & Clark led the entire conference with 445.9 yards per game. They finished second in yards per play (6.8) and third in total touchdowns (42). The Pioneers finished third in the conference with 33.8 points per game. Lien helped Lewis & Clark rush for over 100 yards seven times, including 286 yards against Puget Sound in the opener and 247 against the Loggers on November 9. 
 
Stephens joins Walker and Kamakawiwoole as first-time All-Conference honorees. The Pioneers lead running back was named to the NWC Honorable Mention Team after serving as Lewis & Clark's starting running back for the first time. He led the team with 113 rushes and 612 yards. Stephens racked up three touchdown rushes and averaged 5.4 yards per carry. The sophomore ended the year fourth in the conference in rushing yards and seventh in total rushes. Through two seasons, Stephens has recorded 751 rushing yards and four scores. He rushed for over 100 yards three times, including 134 yards on just 13 carries against Puget Sound on November 9.