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Author: Dave Riggert

Western women lose in overtime at Northwest Missouri

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The Griffon women had their chances down the stretch but two shots came up short as time expired in overtime against Northwest Missouri State. The Griffons are still winless on the road in MIAA play falling to 0-8. Alicia Bell dumped in a career high 19 points as Western falls to 6-16 overall and 4-12 in MIAA play.

Western struggled in the early going on the offensive end of the floor making just one of its first ten shots getting down 15-2. Westetn turned things around at the 13:00 minute mark starting a 17-1 run which put Western up 19-16 after a layup by Ashleigh Curry.

Northwest responded with another run of their own outscoring Western 12-2 regaining a seven point lead with 5:13 to play. Once again Western responded closing on a 15-4 run taking a three point lead (36-33) into the locker room.

The Bearcats opened up the second half like the did the first outscoring the Griffons 15-6 claiming a six point lead after an three point play by Tara Roach with 12:16 to play. Western responded like the did in the first half going on a 12-3 run claiming a three point lead after a Bell three with 7:05 to play.

The rest of the half would be back and forth with neither team holding more than a three point lead. Bell nailed a jumper with 1:05 to play tying the score at 63. Last second shots by Jessica Koch and Alex Noble bounced off the rim as the teams went to overtime.

The story of overtime was the long range shot as the teams combined to hit five shots from beyond the arc. Northwest’s Abby Thayer opened the period with a three giving the Bearcats the three point lead. Western responded with a Kallie Schoonover jumper and a Bell three giving Western the 68-66 lead with 3:25 to play.

The two teams traded three’s with Western going up 71-69 after a Schoonover bomb, but the Bearcats used a second chance three by Shelly Martin with 21 seconds to play sealing the victory. Northwest improves to 5-19 overall and 3-13 in MIAA action.

Koch continued her streak of consecutive games in double figues dumping in 12 points. She has scored in double figures in 32 straight games. Ashleigh Curry collected a double double scoring 13 points and dumping in 13 rebounds. Schoonover was the only other Griffon in double figures scoring 10 points.

The Bearcats were led by Abby Henry and Martin with 16 and 15 points respectively. They scored 25 points off 20 Griffon turnovers and had 18 second chance points to the Griffons four.

Western returns to action on Wednesday, February 15 when they take on Lincoln Blue Tigers in Jefferson City, Mo. Game time is scheduled for 5:30 pm in Jason Gym.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Robinson, Withey lead Kansas past Oklahoma State

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Nothing was going to stop Kansas (No. 10 ESPN/USA Today, No. 7 AP) in the first half, not even 5-foot-9 Keiton Page.

The senior guard for Oklahoma State tried setting a screen on Thomas Robinson, the Jayhawks’ 6-foot-10, 237-pound forward, who steamrolled right over him.

“That was the game plan going in, for me to set more screens,” Page said. “He got a hold of me over in front of the Kansas bench. It didn’t feel too good.”

That pretty much summed up the first half Saturday, when Page scored 10 of his 19 points. Kansas held a commanding 51-24 lead heading into the locker room and withstood a big second-half comeback by the Cowboys for an 81-66 win.

“We’ve been through this before,” said Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford. “We’ve been punched in the mouth before. Our guys didn’t like the taste of it at halftime.”

The first half was similar to the one Oklahoma State (12-13, 5-7 Big 12) played against Baylor on Jan. 14. The Bears led 46-31 at halftime and went on to win 106-65.

This time, the Cowboys fought to within 12 at one point in the second half.

“Our guys decided to change it a little bit,” Ford said. “It could have gotten worse, the day they were having. I told our team, Kansas is a Final Four-type team.”

Markel Brown led Oklahoma State with 21 points.

“They attacked the area and we didn’t fight back until the second half,” Brown said. “We had to turn it around the second half and show we’re capable of playing with anybody.”

Jeff Withey finished with 18 points and a career-best 20 rebounds, while Robinson burnished his player of the year credentials with 24 points and 14 boards for Kansas (20-5, 10-2).

Tyshawn Taylor added 12 points, Elijah Johnson had 11 and Travis Releford 10.

Kansas spent the afternoon honoring the 1952 national championship team.

The Jayhawks wore throwback uniforms, the cheerleaders were dressed in skirts that touched the floor, and a pregame video montage showed grainy, black-and-white clips of the team that knocked off St. John’s in the final for the school’s third national title.

Several members of the team were introduced at halftime, including Bill Hougland and Clyde Lovellette, who was the MVP of the Final Four and later became a four-time All-Star in the NBA.

Also on hand were Chiefs coach Romeo Crennel and offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, who are good friends with Jayhawks football coach Charlie Weis. The three of them, whose ties extend to their days with the New England Patriots, sat together along the baseline.

They had plenty to cheer about in the first half.

The Jayhawks led 16-13 about 8 minutes into the game when they started to ramp things up, turning missed shots and turnovers into easy baskets at the other end. The few times the Cowboys got back on defense, Kansas simply ran its offense to create easy looks at the basket.

The lead eclipsed 20 when Releford scored off a nifty feed from Taylor with 5:17 to play, and Elijah Johnson’s 3 and a pair of foul shots by Robinson made it 51-22 late in the half.

Kansas wound up shooting 64.5 percent before the break, outrebounding the Cowboys by a staggering 22-6. The Jayhawks also doled out 13 assists to just three turnovers — six of them by Taylor, whose ball-handling and decision-making has improved dramatically this season.

Oklahoma State tried to get back in the game in the second half, clamping down on defense and doing a better job of hanging onto the ball on offense.

Page’s 3-pointer with 8:01 left trimmed Kansas’ lead to 66-52, and a basket by Le’Bryan Nash a couple minutes later made it 68-56, the smallest gap for the Cowboys since 28-17.

Kansas managed to get things under control in time to wrap up its 10th conference win.

The Jayhawks remained in a tie for the Big 12 lead with fourth-ranked Missouri, which knocked off Baylor earlier in the day, despite the poor second half.

“We played awful,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “The first half was about the best that we could play, but we’re so immature at this point. We took the second half for granted and played miserably down the stretch.”

— Associated Press —

MWSU softball takes down Delta State & Rockhurst

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The 23rd ranked Missouri Western softball team took both games on the second day of the Henderson State Tournament. Keri Lorbert hit a three run homerun in the first game of the day giving Western a 5-2 victory over Delta State. In game two Western got a stellar pitching performance from Emily Moe coming away with the 2-1 victory. Western sits at 3-1 on the year.

Game One: MWSU 5, Delta State 2

Jackie Bishop pitched a solid game against Delta State giving up just one early run while striking out 11 in the complete game victory. Bishop sits at 2-0 on the season.

The Lady Statesman got on the board first in the second inning when Taylor Hughes scored on a throwing error by Griffon shortstop Sarah Elliot. Western responded in the bottom of the third when Elliot and Kat Steponovich got on base allowing Lorbert to blast her first homer of the season giving Western the 3-1 lead.

Western scored again in the 5th and once more in the sixth taking a 5-1 lead into the final inning. The Statesman got a solo homerun from pinch hitter Marisa Sanders but Bishop struckout the final two batters earning the victory.

Elliot scored two runs for Western while Lorbert smacked two of the Griffons six hits. The Statesman had two hits with one coming from Sanders and one from Raina Stiffler.

Ashleigh Allgood pitched five inning giving up six hits and four earned runs for Delta State. She falls to 1-1 overall while the Statesman fell to 2-1 with the loss.

Game 2: MWSU 2, Rockhurst 1
Western got a strong outing from Emily Moe in her first game in the circle as a Griffon. She threw a complete game giving Western their third victory of the tournament and season.

Western will play the final two games of the tournament on Sunday, February 12. The Griffons play Arkansas-Monticello at 11:00 am and Henderson State University at 1:00 pm.

— MWSU Sports Information —

K-State blows 13-point halftime lead and loses at Texas

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J’Covan Brown scored 23 points and Texas got a career effort from senior forward Alexis Wangmene to rally to a 75-64 victory over Kansas State on Saturday.

The Longhorns’ third win in a row is an important one for a team desperate to build its NCAA tournament resume over the final weeks of the regular season.

Texas trailed 40-27 at halftime before battling back. Brown, the Big 12’s leading scorer, made a deep 3-pointer to put the Longhorns ahead with just over 8 minutes to play.

Wangmene had his first career double-double for Texas (16-9, 6-6 Big 12). His 15 points and 13 rebounds were both career highs.

Angel Rodriguez scored 15 points for Kansas State (17-7, 6-6), but the point guard also had six of his team’s 16 turnovers.

— Associated Press —

Missouri Western softball opens season with split

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The 23rd ranked Missouri Western softball team opened up the 2012 season with a dramitic 2-1 extra inning victory over host school Henderson State before falling 6-0 against Ouachita Baptist on the opening day of the Henderson State Tournament. Western has won their opening game four out of the last five years which includes the last two.

Game One – Missouri Western 2, Henderson State 1 (8 innings)
The opening game of the 2012 season was a thriller with Jackie Bishop pitching an outstanding game going all eight innings. She pitched seven innings of shutout softball before the Reddies got on the board in the bottom of the eighth using the international tie breaker rule where the inning starts with a runner on second.

The Griffons scored two in the top of the eighth using the international tie breaker. Michelle Stevenson started the inning on second. Kim Robinson beat out a bunt putting runners on first and third with Kendall Sorenson coming to the plate. Sorenson laid down a successful suicide squeeze scoring Stevenson giving Western the 1-0. The Griffons pushed one more across the plate before the inning was over giving them the cushion needed to come away with the victory.

Game Two – Ouachita Baptist 6, Missouri Western 0
Western’s junior college transfer pitcher, Annelee Rubio struggled in the circle in her first start as a Griffon. Rubio gave up eight hits in the contest with three coming in the first. Ouachita Baptist scored three of their six runs in the opening frame. The Tigers scored one in the third and two in the fifth taking the victory.

The Griffons had just three hits in the contest and did not get their first hit until the fourth inning when Kat Steponovich double to right field. The Griffons other two hits came in the sixth off the bats of Blair Stalder and Keri Lorbert. Western left eight runners on base in the contest, two in the first, fourth, sixth and seventh innings.

Rubio pitched all six innings giving up four earned runs while striking out six and walking three. She also gave up five doubles in the contest.

Jocelyn Jones went 3-for-4 for Ouachita Baptist with two doubles. Abbie Frakes picked up the victory for the Tigers improving to 1-1. The Tigers sit at 2-2 overall after falling to Delta State 4-3 earlier in the day.

The Griffons will take on Delta State and Rockhurst University tomorrow. Game times are set for 12:00 pm and 3:00 pm respectively.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Royals and Fox Sports KC annouce schedule and broadcast team

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The Kansas City Royals and FOX Sports Kansas City Friday announced a 142-game television schedule for the 2012 season, featuring two exhibition games and 140 regular season games.

The Royals and FOX Sports Kansas City are entering the fifth season of a long-term agreement in which FOX Sports Kansas City is the exclusive television home of Royals baseball.  The 140-game regular season television schedule features 66 road games and 74 from Kauffman Stadium.  Every game on FOX Sports Kansas City will be preceded by a 30-minute pre-game show, “Hy-Vee Royals Live,” and followed by the “Boulevard Royals Live” post-game show.  All 140 regular season telecasts will be presented in High Definition.

In the booth, Ryan Lefebvre returns for his fifth season as the play-by-play voice of the Royals on FOX Sports Kansas City and he will be joined in 2012 by former major leaguer Rex Hudler as the analyst.  Also joining the Royals’ broadcast booth this year is play-by-play announcer and Kansas State University alum, Steve Physioc.  Both Physioc and Hudler worked together in the television booth of the Angels for 11 seasons.  Lefebvre and Physioc have each agreed to multi-year contracts, with Ryan slated for 90 regular season telecasts while Steve provides the call on 50 games.

“During the winter months, Ryan relayed to us a desire to expand his responsibilities and have a larger presence in the radio booth, thus bringing in a strong veteran announcer like Steve Physioc enabled us to give Ryan that flexibility,” said Mike Swanson, Royals Vice President of Communications and Broadcasting.  “The addition of Steve brings a familiar voice back home to the Midwest and affords us the luxury of having both he and Ryan on radio and television throughout the season.  As for the addition of Rex, he was a ‘run through a wall’ type of player and brings that same high-energy style to the broadcast booth.  His enthusiasm for the game of baseball is infectious and it translates very well on the air.”

“This is a great day for our broadcast team,” said Lefebvre.  “For me professionally, I get to work with two of the most enthusiastic and respected men in our business, and personally, I’m grateful the Royals have allowed me to return to the Royals radio booth in a larger role.”

FOX Sports Kansas City’s coverage of Royals baseball kicks off with a Spring Training telecast from Surprise, Ariz., on Friday, March 30, when the Royals host the Chicago White Sox at 8:05 p.m. (CDT).  A second exhibition game will be broadcast on Tuesday, April 3, when Kansas City visits the San Diego Padres at PETCO Park in a 9:05 p.m. (CDT) start.

FSKC will air Kansas City’s Opening Day contest on April 6 at the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

— Royals Media Relations —

Northwest softball series at Drury postponed

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The season opening series for the Northwest Missouri State softball team with Drury University this weekend has been pushed back to Tuesday, Feb. 14, due to impending weather in southwest Missouri.

Start times for the double header with the Bearcats and Panthers are still set for a first pitch at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.

Northwest is coming off a 25-19 season and an MIAA postseason tournament berth. Under sixth-year head coach, Ryan Anderson, the Bearcats have appeared in four MIAA tournaments and earned one NCAA Regional berth in 2008.

The Panthers are coming off their best season ever under second-year head coach Chantiel Wilson with a 26-30 record. Last year Drury advance to the GLVC postseason tournament for the first time in the program’s young four-year existence.

— NWMSU Sports Information —

Kansas City signs 12 players to one-year contracts for 2012

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The Kansas City Royals have announced that the club has agreed to terms on 2012 Major League contracts with right-handed pitchers Nate Adcock, Kelvin Herrera, Jeremy Jeffress, Sean O’Sullivan and Blake Wood; left-handed pitchers Everett Teaford and Ryan Verdugo; catcher Manuel Pina; first baseman Clint Robinson; and outfielders Jarrod Dyson, David Lough and Derrick Robinson.  Consistent with club policy, terms of the contracts were not disclosed.

The Royals now have 12 unsigned players on the 40-man roster with zero to three years of service time: right-handed pitchers Louis Coleman, Greg Holland, Vin Mazzaro and Luis Mendoza; left-handed pitchers Tim Collins and Danny Duffy; catcher Salvador Perez; infielders Alcides Escobar, Johnny Giavotella, Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas; and outfielder Lorenzo Cain.

Pitchers and catchers will report to Surprise, Ariz., on Monday, February 20.  Workouts for pitchers begin the following afternoon, Tuesday, February 21.  The remainder of the squad will report on Friday, February 24 and begin workouts for the 2012 campaign on Saturday afternoon, February 25.

— Royals Media Relations —

Cardinals sign RHP Scott Linebrink to minor league contract

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The St. Louis Cardinals announced Friday that they have agreed to terms with veteran pitcher Scott Linebrink on a minor league contract for the upcoming 2012 season.  The deal includes a non-roster invite to the Cardinals Major League Spring Training camp.

Linebrink, 35, appeared in 64 games for the Atlanta Braves last season, seeing his most work since the 2007 season.  The 6-3, 220-pound right-hander finished the 2011 season with a 4-4 won-loss mark and a 3.64 ERA, striking out 42 batters in his 54.1 innings pitched.

Linebrink had an excellent two-month stretch in June and July, going a combined 3-1 with a 1.61 ERA (22.1 IP/4 ER) during that time period before a lower back strain forced him to the disabled list from August 1-14.  He posted solid season totals when pitching with runners on base, limiting the opposition to a .235 BA, including a .182 mark with runners in scoring position and two outs.   He stranded 23 of 33 inherited runners, the 2nd best mark amongst Braves relievers in 2011.

Linebrink is a veteran of 10-plus seasons in the majors, debuting with the San Francisco Giants in 2000.  His career has also included stints with Houston (2000-03), San Diego (2003-07), Milwaukee (2007), Chicago White Sox (2008-10) and Atlanta (2011).  He brings a lifetime mark of 42-31, 3.51 ERA and 8 saves in 607 games into the 2012 campaign.

The Austin, Texas native currently stands fourth in career ERA (3.51) among active Major League pitchers who have made 600 or more career appearances, trailing only Mariano Rivera (2.21), Francisco Cordero (3.17) and Brian Fuentes (3.44).

— Cardinals Media Relations —

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