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Author: Dave Riggert

Missouri Western fires head football coach Jerry Partridge after 20 seasons

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partridge2MWSU AD Kurt McGuffin talks about the decision to fire Partridge

Missouri Western announced on Thursday that head football coach Jerry Partridge has been relieved of his coaching duties after 20 years in charge of the program.

Partridge took over his alma mater in 1997 and finishes with an overall record of 149-83, which is the third most wins of any coach in MIAA history.  He had a record of 117-68 against MIAA opponents during his tenure.

Partridge had only four losing season during his 20 years and two of them came in his first two seasons.  He guided Missouri Western to ten postseason appearances, including four trips to the NCAA Division II Playoffs.  MWSU played in the postseason for eight consecutive years between 2005 and 2012, advancing to the quarterfinals in 2012 and finishing 12-2.  Prior to Partridge, Missouri Western had only qualified for postseason play three times.

“Coach Partridge has been a part of Griffon football for most of his adult life as a player, assistant coach and head coach, and I thank him for his hard work, his passion and his loyalty,” said Kurt McGuffin, Western’s Dir. of Athletics in a statement on the school’s website. “Our goal is to find a coach who can build on the foundation Jerry established to position our student-athletes for continued success on the field and in the classroom.”

The Griffons won two MIAA championships under Partridge in 2003 and 2012.  They shared the 2003 title and won it outright in 2012 for the first time in school history.

Missouri Western finished 4-7 this past season, which snapped a streak of 11 consecutive years with a winning record in the regular season.  After winning the 2012 MIAA championship, the Griffons have finished 8-3, 7-4, 6-5 and 4-7.

After playing at Missouri Western, Partridge was a graduate assistant at Notre Dame and Missouri.  He returned to MWSU and was the defensive coordinator for five seasons before coaching at Murray State and Austin Peay.

Bearcat women improve to 3-0 with 69-55 win over Bellevue

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Northwest2013riggertThe Northwest Missouri State University women’s basketball team picked up a 69-55 win over Bellevue University on Wednesday evening at Bearcat Arena in Maryville, Mo.

– Northwest improves to 3-0 on the year. The game for Bellevue was counted as an exhibition. Bellevue is in the program’s first year.

– Arbrie Benson scored a career-high 16 points and also set a career mark with five assists. She tied a career high with six rebounds.

– Tanya Meyer led all scorers with 23 points on 9-of-13 shooting. She grabbed seven rebounds with one steal.

Key Northwest Statistics
– Northwest shot 50 percent from the field (25-of-50) and hit 9-of-21 (42.9 percent) from beyond the arc.

– The Bearcats also hit 10-of-12 from the charity stripe (83.3 percent).

– Northwest never trailed in the game and led by as many as 23 points late in the third quarter.

– At halftime, the Bearcats led the Bruins, 35-22.

– Taryne Shull finished with 10 points and seven rebounds. She had two steals and two assists. She was 4-of-4 from the charity stripe and hit a pair of three pointers.

– Macy Williams dished out six assists with a pair of steals.

– Jasmin Howe was 4-of-8 from the field, finishing with nine points and six rebounds. She also had four assists and a steal.

– Mallory McAndrews hit both of her three-point attempts, scoring six points for the Bearcats.

Key Northwest Sequence
– With time winding down in the first half, a scramble and a ball on the floor led to an open three point look for Howe who knocked it down with eight seconds to go to give Northwest a 35-22 lead. After halftime, the Bearcats stayed hot, getting a layup and a three-pointer from Benson to go up, 40-22. After an empty posession by both teams, Meyer hit a layup with 7:00 to go in the third to make it a 20-point lead, 42-22.

Up Next
– Northwest will host Rockhurst University on Saturday, Nov. 19, at 3 p.m. at Bearcat Arena in Maryville, Mo.

— Northwest Athletics —

Missouri Western softball adds four during early signing period

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riggertMissouriWesternST. JOSEPH – Missouri Western softball head coach Jen Bagley Trotter has announced the signings of four individuals for the 2018 team.

Kaili Hinds | P
Centralia, Mo. | Centralia HS
“We are thrilled to add Kaili to our pitching staff,” Trotter said. “She has incredible spin and a ton of upside!”

Part of 2013 and 2016 Missouri State Championship teams … named to both academic and athletic All-State teams

Emma Hoffart | UT
Omaha, Neb. | Millard North HS
“Emma will offer depth to our catching and third base positions,” Trottter said. “She is a great young lady and has much to offer our team with the way she swings the bat.”

Had a career .472 batting average at Millard North … hit 19 career home runs … batted .406 as a senior with a .997 fielding percentage … first team All-State and All-Metro as a senior … All-Nebraska second team … second team Super State

Kayln Damgaard | OF
Council Bluffs, Iowa | Abraham Lincoln HS
“Kalyn is a triple-threat and has blazing speed,” Trotter said. “We look to her to help fill the void of Morgan Rathmann’s departure from our line-up after the 2017 season.”

Stole 40 bases as a junior … had a team-high 45 hits as a junior and batted .352 with 16 RBIs … three-time first team All-Conference … three-time All-City … 2016 Omaha World Herald All-Western Iowa second team

Morgan Frost | OF
Gilbertville, Iowa | Kirkwood Community College
“Morgan is a powerful left handed batter with great outfield instincts,” Trotter said. “Her experience in championship play at Kirkwood Community College will be an asset to the mentality of our team.”

Batted .498, slugged .749 and hit 10 home runs last year at Kirkwood … named ICCAC All-Region and second team NFCA All-American at Kirkwood … was a four-time All-State selection at Don Bosco Catholic High School, earning three first team selections … batted .614 as a senior in high school and never hit below .504 in four-years as a high school player

The 2017 season will be Trotter’s 16th as head coach of the Missouri Western softball team. She has amassed 535 career victories with two MIAA regular season and tournament championships, including sweeping both titles in 2016.

— MWSU Athletics —

Kansas women remain winless with home loss to SMU

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riggertKULAWRENCE, Kan. – A slow start plagued Kansas women’s basketball as SMU capitalized on an early offensive surge to even the series with a 75-63 victory over the Jayhawks on Wednesday night inside Allen Fieldhouse.

The Mustangs opened the seventh meeting in program history with a 15-0 run, which the Jayhawks couldn’t overcome as SMU halted each comeback attempt. Both the 16 percent shooting performance from Kansas and SMU’s early run allowed the Mustangs to secure a 14-point lead going into the second quarter. The Mustangs shot 43 percent from the field against KU, while holding Kansas to just 29 percent.

Redshirt sophomore guard McKenzie Calvert led the Jayhawks in scoring with 17 points, her second-straight game in double figures. Also scoring in the double digits, redshirt junior guard Jessica Washington had 13 points along with five rebounds and three assists. Just shy of a double-double sophomore guard Aisia Robertson rounded out the trio of Jayhawks in double figures with 11 points and nine rebounds.

SMU saw double-digit scoring performances from four different players, two of which recorded double-doubles for the night. Junior guard Kiara Perry led the team with 17 points, behind a 7-for-13 effort from the field, and 14 rebounds. Junior forward Alicia Froling added 16 points to the scoreboard for the Mustang, while also grabbing 10 boards.

SMU started the game with a 15-0 run, but junior guard Chayla Cheadle ended that run with a layup for the first KU points of the night. In addition to the Jayhawk’s slow start, SMU’s defense held Kansas to a field goal percentage of just 16 percent in the opening 10 minutes. Offensively, SMU ran away with a 63 percent field goal percentage for the quarter.

Kansas came out strong for the second quarter, scoring six points in the first two minutes. Calvert’s second three-point play of the quarter put the Jayhawks within single digits of the Mustangs for the first time all game. The Mustangs responded with an 8-0 run, taking back their double-digit lead. Sophomore center Chelsea Lott ended that run with her first basket of the game. While Kansas outscored SMU, 18-16, in the second quarter, KU still struggled to take control of the game.

SMU came out looking to repeat the first quarter, kicking off the second half with another 11-0 run. The Mustangs extended their lead to a comfortable 25 points. Finally, senior forward Caelynn Manning-Allen ended that run with a free throw. Washington sunk a basket from beyond the arc to spark a 10-0 run. Robertson followed up with a layup as Calvert continued the run with another 3-pointer.

Washington began the fourth quarter with five-straight points, which brought Washington’s scoring total to double digits, joining Calvert. Sophomore guard Kylee Kopatich then hit her second 3-pointer of the game, she finished the night with seven points. With just three minutes left, senior guard Timeka O’Neal and Robertson hit back-to-back treys to continue the momentum in favor of the Jayahwks. Robertson hit two free-throws to become the third Jayhawk scorer in the double digits. O’Neal then hit her second bucket from behind the 3-point line as KU’s bench helped chip away at SMU’s lead in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. The Jayhawks outscored SMU, 22-10, in the final quarter, but it wasn’t enough as SMU left Allen Fieldhouse with a 75-63 victory over Kansas.

UP NEXT: Kansas hits the road for the first time in 2016-17 and travel to Memphis on Sunday, Nov. 20. Tipoff is slated for 2 p.m.

— Northwest Athletics —

Northwest women’s basketball signs six student-athletes; Softball adds two

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Northwest2013riggertMARYVILLE, Mo. – Northwest Missouri State University head women’s basketball coach Buck Scheel has announced the signings of six student-athletes to the Bearcats’ 2017-18 roster. The six-member class includes Kylie Coleman (Waukee HS), Jaelyn Haggard (St. Joseph Central HS), Zoie Hayward (Leavenworth HS), Mallory McConkey (South Nodaway HS), Bailey Owens (North Mercer HS) and Tamia Stillman (St. Joseph Benton HS).

“My staff and I are very excited about this signing class and feel they will be a great addition to the foundation of this program,” said Scheel. “All of these young ladies have experienced a large amount of success throughout their high school careers and will have a tremendous impact on the program both on and off the court. Throughout each signees recruiting process they have already started to buy in to what it means to be a Bearcat and we look forward to them being a part of our future.”

Owens, a 5-10 guard, was the 2016 Wendy’s Heisman State winner and was an All-State performer in each of her first three years. She has earned all-district, all-Northwest District, All-HDC Conference and KAAN Radio All-Star honors all three seasons as well. In 2016, she earned St. Joseph News Press first team honors. In three years, she has scored 1,658 points and has hit 293 three pointers, second most in Missouri High School history and just 26 away from the record. She has hit a three pointer in 44 consecutive games and knocked down 123 three pointers last year, the second highest mark in history. Through her junior year, North Mercer has gone 82-4.

Coleman, a 5-9 guard, won an Iowa 5A state title in 2015 at Waukee High School. The sharpshooter hit 49 three pointers last year, connecting on 43.4 percent of her attempts. She also hit 88.9 percent of her free throw attempts. For her career, Coleman has knocked down 77 three pointers and was named All-CIC East honorable mention last year.

Haggard, a 5-7 guard, has been named all-city, all-district and all-conference each of the past three seasons at St. Joseph Central High School. She was named to the Liberty North All-Tournament team twice and also garnered North Kansas City Tournament MVP honors twice.

Hayward, a 5-8 guard helped lead Leavenworth High School to a pair of Kansas 5A titles and a runner-up finish last season. She’s played in every one of Leavenworth’s 75 games since her freshman year, starting 30 times. She was a Sunflower League honorable mention performer as a junior, averaging 8.0 points, 2.8 assists and 2.3 steals per game while hitting 35.71 percent of her long range attempts. The team has gone 67-8 during her prep career.

McConkey, a 5-8 guard, scored 1,000 points as a junior, earning KAAN and KKWK-KMRN Radio All-Star team honors. She was a unanimous Platte Valley All-Conference performer and earned first team all-district honors from the Missouri Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association. She was also named All-County by the Maryville Daily Forum and the Nodaway News Leader.

Stillman, a 5-11 forward, was a second team All-City performer for St. Joseph Benton High School. She was named to the All-Tournament teams at the State Farm Holiday Hoops Classic in Jefferson City and the Kearney Bulldog Classic last year. She earned all-district and all-conference honorable mention accolades as a junior.

Northwest Missouri State University softball coach Ryan Anderson has announced two additions to the Bearcats’ 2018 roster. Hunter Sherman joins Northwest from Bradley-Bourbannis Community High School in Bourbonnais, Ill., while Lynnlee Parrott has signed from Sherwood Cass-R-VIII High School in Garden City, Mo.

Sherman, a pitcher and a first baseman, recorded 25 wins and 287 strikeouts in the past two seasons. She had a sub-2.0 ERA both years, leading her team to a 2015 Southwest Suburban Conference Tournament title. She played for team USA twice, taking trips to the Dominican Republic and Holland. As a senior, she hit .333 with a pair of home runs, leading her team to a record 22 wins. Sherman was a member of the National Honor Society, was named to the Dean’s list and served as her class Vice President. She lettered four times in softball and volleyball.

“Hunter is a tall, strong pitcher that has a lot of upside,” said Anderson. “She visited and had a good workout for us last year and we hope that she is someone that can help us right away.”

Parrott was a four-time first team All-Crossroads Conference performer, earning first team All-State accolades as a junior and again as a senior. She set a multitude of offensive school records including single season hits (57), singles (49), doubles (15) and runs scored (42). She also holds the team’s career records in runs scored (123), single (125), doubles (27) and hits (160). She won back-to-back district titles and also won sectionals as a junior. Parrott earned four first team all-district and all-region honors as well.

“Lynnlee is one of those players that you love to have on your team,” Anderson said. “She isn’t going to be outworked and she just wants to compete. We are excited to get her here.”

— Northwest Athletics —

Griffon men come up short at William Jewell 79-73

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mwsuLIBERTY, Mo. – The Missouri Western men’s basketball team overcame a big second half deficit to give itself a chance to win the game, but came up short in a 79-73 loss at William Jewell on Tuesday night.

William Jewell led by as many as 17 points in the second half and led by ten with 4:15 to go, but an 11-2 run by the Griffons cut the lead to one with 45 seconds remaining off a three pointer by TJ Evans. From there the Griffons couldn’t get the points they needed to jump ahead and William Jewell went 5-6 from the free throw line over the final 33 seconds to stretch the lead back to six.

Missouri Western was plagued by cold shooting in the first half, going 12-31 from the field after getting off to a hot start. Meanwhile, William Jewell was red-hot, shooting 67 percent from the field and three-point range in the first half. The Griffon defense forced 12 William Jewell turnovers in the second half and held the Cardinals to 37 percent shooting from the field in the final 20 minutes. Still, William Jewell shot 54 percent from the field for the game compared to 40 percent for Missouri Western.

Joe Hamilton led Missouri Western with 22 points, including 6-8 shooting from behind the arc. TJ Evans added 20 points and four rebounds. Cole Clearman scored 13 of his 15 points in the second half and added six assists and four rebounds. Beau Baker paced the Griffons on the glass, pulling down five boards as Missouri Western was out-rebounded 41-27 in the game.

The loss dropped the Griffons to 0-3. Missouri Western next plays Monday, Nov. 21 when the team hosts Lake Superior State in the MWSU Fieldhouse.

— MWSU Athletics —

Missouri Western women fall at Minnesota State for first loss of the season

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riggertMissouriWesternMANKATO, Minn. – They’ve lived by the three, and on Tuesday night, the Missouri Western women’s basketball team died by the three.

The Griffons shot just 16.7 percent (5-30) from behind-the-arc in a 65-54 loss at Minnesota State. It was the season opener for the Mavericks (1-0). Missouri Western (2-1) made a combined 24 three pointers in their first two games of the season, but couldn’t replicate that number in their first road game of 2016-17. The Mavericks limited Western to 31.7-percent shooting from the field and outrebounded MWSU 54-30.

Western did force 24 turnovers in defeat but also struggled from the free throw line, shooting just 53-percent (9-17) from the charity stripe. Dwanisha Tate led three Griffons in double figures, finishing with 14 points on 4-16 shooting and 5 rebounds. Chelsea Dewey and Sefulu Faavae added 11 points and 10 points respectively.

Next up for the Griffons, a first-time-ever road trip to Hawaii. They will face Hawaii Pacific on Friday, November 18 at 9 p.m. central time. They finish out the island trip on Saturday with an 11 p.m. tip-off against Brigham Young-Hawaii.

— MWSU Athletics —

Frank Mason’s jumper with 1.8 seconds left lifts No. 7 Kansas over No. 1 Duke

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riggertKUNEW YORK (AP) — Kansas had already gone through a tough loss this season, falling in overtime to Indiana in Honolulu.

On Tuesday night, the Jayhawks went from looking like easy winners to facing another excruciating loss. But a short jumper by Frank Mason III with 1.8 seconds to go gave the Jayhawks a 77-75 victory over top-ranked Duke in the State Farm Champions Classic at Madison Square Garden.

“The play was to [isolate] me, and my teammates did a good job of spacing the floor,” Mason said. “It felt good when it left my hand.”

A long 3 at the buzzer by Duke’s Frank Jackson was off line.

The Jayhawks (1-1) beat a top-ranked team for the eighth time.

Seventh-ranked Kansas held off top-ranked Duke behind 21 points from Frank Mason III.
“This was more of a must-win for us than it was for Duke. Not that there’s must-win this time of year, but I think it will do something for us because for the first time, we won a game where we shot it like crap,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “So hopefully we learned some lessons and know that you cannot be great offensively and still win if you [don’t] do little things and play aggressively. So I think it should bode well for us moving forward.”

Self was all smiles talking about his senior point guard.

“He’s made a lot of big plays for us,” Self said of Mason. “I don’t know if he’s made any game winners, but he’s made plays to put us in overtime. Yeah, he’s a stud.”

“Mason made a big-time play, and it was well-guarded,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “He just made a big-time play.”

Kansas was ahead 62-50 with eight minutes to play, but the Blue Devils (2-1) — despite a terrible shooting game by Grayson Allen, the leading vote-getter on The Associated Press’ preseason All-America team — managed to suddenly start hitting shots, and they tied the game at 75 with 15 seconds left on a 3-pointer by Jackson.

Kansas called a timeout with 8.2 seconds left and set up the game winner.

“That was quite a play we called, just get out of his way,” Self said.

“I just took advantage of the separation I created, and I just shot the ball,” Mason said. “It felt good when it left my hand, and I just thank God that it went in.”

Mason, who had a career-high 30 points in the loss to Indiana, led Kansas with 21 points. Freshman Josh Jackson added 15, and Devonte’ Graham had 13.

Luke Kennard led five Duke players in double figures with 22 points. Allen finished with 12 points on 4-for-15 shooting.

“I think Grayson had a very frustrating game,” Krzyzewski said of Allen, who started the game by making one of 12 shots from the field. “I think you can’t expect to get a foul. I think he’s going to a point where he makes a move and it’s a good move, and he expects a foul. I’m not saying they’re not calling fouls. You can’t do that. That can’t be what you’re doing. The last few minutes, he moved well. He’s playing hard when he gets the ball, and he needs to play harder when he doesn’t have the ball. It’s what he did in the last few minutes.”

Kansas finished 2-for-17 from 3-point range, but the Jayhawks shot 50.8 percent overall (33-of-65), including making 60.6 percent (20-of-33) in the second half.

Duke shot 48.9 percent (23-of-47) for the game, including 8-for-19 on 3s.

BIG PICTURE

Duke: In their first two games, the Blue Devils held opponents to 55.0 points per game on 32.3 percent shooting, including 16.2 percent from 3-point range, while forcing an average of 17 turnovers. … This was the 950th consecutive game in which the Blue Devils made at least one 3-pointer. That’s the fourth-longest stretch in Division I history. … Duke again played without freshmen Harry Giles and Jayson Tatum. Krzyzewski has said they will be brought along slowly as they rehab from injuries.

Kansas: The Jayhawks were facing an AP No. 1 team for the 24th time and the first time since the 2014 Champions Classic, in which they lost to Kentucky 72-40. They are 8-16 all-time against No. 1s. … The Jayhawks’ opening game was a 103-99 overtime loss to then-No. 11 Indiana in Honolulu. “If you’re going to travel 11,000 miles, you might as well get a win,” Self said.

Duke was No. 1 in the preseason poll and the first voting of the regular season. That will change with the loss. Kansas was No. 3 in the preseason poll and dropped to seventh with the loss to Indiana, but the Jayhawks should move up a couple spots with the win over Duke.

HELLO, MELO

Krzyzewski walked onto the court before the game and went straight across to see Carmelo Anthony of the New York Knicks. The two shared a hug and a laugh. They combined to win three Olympic gold medals for the United States.

UP NEXT

Duke: The Blue Devils stay in the Northeast, heading to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off at Uncasville, Connecticut, on Friday and Saturday. They open against Penn State.

Kansas: The Jayhawks finally get to play in Allen Fieldhouse when they face Siena on Friday.

— Associated Press —

MWSU volleyball loses in three sets at No. 11 Washburn in MIAA Quarterfinals

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riggertMissouriWesternTOPEKA, Kan. – Missouri Western’s Volleyball season came to an end Tuesday night as they lost 3-0 (27-25, 25-17, 26-24) to # 11 Washburn in the quarterfinals of the MIAA Tournament.

The Griffons started well and carried a 6-0 run with Kayla Ruff at the service line to take a 13-5 lead. Washburn eventually gained back the momentum with a rally of its own and won the first set. Another rally midway through the second set allowed the Ichabods to extend their match lead to 2-0. Missouri Western would not go down easy as they jumped out to a 5-1 advantage to start the set. Washburn again countered with a run midway through the set to win the match.

Kayla Ruff finished with 23 digs as Stephanie Doak led the MWSU attack with nine kills. Lauren Murphy finished with a match high 35 assists.

Missouri Western finishes the season 17-15 and 9-10 in the MIAA. The Griffons also had five players named to All-MIAA teams for 2016.

— MWSU Athletics —

Big run carries Kansas State to 81-68 win over Omaha

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riggertKansasStateMANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — The first few minutes of Tuesday night’s contest against Nebraska-Omaha were not the greatest if you’re a Kansas State fan. However, things turned in their favor and the worries in Bramlege Coliseum turned to cheers.

After opening up the game going 1 for 6 from the field, Kansas State went on a 21-0 run to defeat Nebraska Omaha 81-68 victory.

The Wildcats (2-0) were down 13-4 when the run came. DJ Johnson and Barry Brown capped the run with back-to-back 3-point plays for a 12 point lead at the 9 minute mark.

“We always want to get out and get going in those first five minutes,” Johnson said. “We just started off slow tonight.”

Kansas State led 42-31 at the half and ended up shooting 51 percent.

Brown finished with 15 points and Wesley Iwundu and Kamau Stokes had 14 apiece for K-State.

Stokes sandwiched a pair of 3-points around a Xavier Sneed 3 as the Wildcats opened the second half with nine quick points. Iwundu had a 3-point play at the 11:19 mark to push the lead to 20 points.

Tre-Deon Hollins led the Mavericks (1-2) with 12 points. Zach Jackson had 11 points and eight rebounds. This was the third game in four days for the Mavericks but head coach Derrin Hansen remains optimistic as his team continues in the early part of the season.

“I think we have a good basketball team,” Hansen said. “I think we have a chance to have a good year. I know it was hard, but it was set up in a situation where we are going to learn a lot about ourselves.

“We have to play every possession. We cannot hit home runs. Give K-State credit in this game. I really like their guards.”

BIG PICTURE

Omaha: Marcus Tyus has led the Mavericks in scoring through the first two games of the season but was held to only two points as he dealt with foul trouble most of the night.

Kansas State: Starting forward Dean Wade was the only starter to not score in double figures as he finished with three points.

STAT OF THE NIGHT: Kansas State was plus-7 on assist-to-turnover ratio while Nebraska-Omaha was minus-3.

INJURY: Kansas State forward Dante Williams returned to practice this week but sat out during Tuesday night’s contest as he is recovering from a concussion suffered this past week.

UP NEXT

Omaha: After opening up the season with their first three games on the road, the Mavericks will play their first home game against Rice on Saturday.

Kansas State: The Wildcats host Hampton on Sunday in the third game of a four game home stand to start the season.

— Associated Press —

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