Dave Riggert – Page 760 – St. Joseph Post Archive

Missouri’s Anderson officially adds Brad Loos to basketball coaching staff

Posted on May 13, 2014May 13, 2014

Mizzou Basketball Head Coach Kim Anderson continued to add to his coaching staff on Tuesday as he announced the hiring of Brad Loos as an assistant coach.

Loos, 35, spent 12 seasons with Anderson at the University of Central Missouri and was the program’s Associate Head Coach over his final five years in Warrensburg. The Mules accumulated an impressive 274-95 record in those 12 seasons overall and won 116 games his five years as Associate Head Coach, which included the 2014 NCAA Division II National Championship.

“I am very pleased to add Brad to our coaching staff and know our student-athletes and our fans will enjoy getting to know him, his wife Jennifer and their children, Brady, Rhyan and Charli,” Anderson said. “Brad was an instrumental part in our recruiting and player development at Central Missouri. He understands how we will build our program’s culture and what it takes every day from a player development standpoint to get the maximum out of our young men in practice and in the classroom.”

A native of Clarksville, Tenn., Loos began his career as a graduate assistant at UCM in 2002 and was quickly elevated to a full-time assistant role two years later. He was instrumental in the success of the Mules as a part of three NCAA Final Fours, six MIAA regular season championships, four MIAA tournament titles, and seven NCAA Tournament appearances.

Loos also recruited numerous all-conference and all-region performers, as well as three All-Americans for the program. Last season UCM welcomed 10 newcomers to its National Championship roster and Loos played a key role in attracting that talent to Warrensburg.

“I want to thank Coach Anderson, Mike Alden and everyone affiliated with Missouri Basketball for this incredible opportunity,” Loos said. “Our family has deep respect for Mizzou and what the program means, not just within the state, but nationally as well. I look forward to working with our student-athletes and our staff and am ready to get to work to help our young men reach their maximum potential.”

Loos is the son of current Austin Peay State Basketball Head Coach Dave Loos and was a student assistant coach for the Governors after playing four years for his father. Loos was an outstanding student-athlete, and was named to the Ohio Valley Conference Commissioner’s Honor Roll four times as a player, and was the top basketball scholar-athlete for three years.

He earned his bachelor’s degree from Austin Peay in 2002 with a 3.8 grade-point average in Health and Human Performance. He received a master’s degree from UCM in Sports Administration in 2004.

— MU Sports Information —

Kansas announces 2014-15 non-conference basketball schedule

Posted on May 13, 2014May 13, 2014

Known for its schedule strength, Kansas men’s basketball will face traditional powers Kentucky, Florida, Georgetown, Utah, Temple and UNLV with the potential to meet up with the likes of Michigan State, Tennessee, Marquette, Georgia Tech and Rhode Island, making the 2014-15 non-conference schedule another difficult slate for the Jayhawks.

There is no doubt Kansas’ 2013-14 men’s basketball schedule was the toughest in the nation and KU’s 2014-15 non-conference schedule potentially includes six opponents who advanced to the 2014 postseason (four NCAA and two NIT). Add in the Big 12’s round-robin format and KU could play as many as 16 games versus 2014 NCAA Tournament teams and four against 2014 NIT squads.

“Obviously, next year’s non-conference will be very challenging,” head coach Bill Self said. “We always play a good schedule, but this past year was rated by many to be about as tough of a non-conference schedule that a team has played in years. Certainly, next year’s schedule will be one of the better non-conference schedules that anyone in America plays, as well. When you think about two teams that were in the Final Four last year with Kentucky and Florida, then you throw in the Orlando Classic, which is loaded, including Michigan State, then on the road at Georgetown and Temple along with other tough non-conference contests like Utah and UNLV, all of those will certainly prepare our guys to make another strong push at a conference championship.”

Along with the non-conference schedule unveiling, Kansas also announced the beloved tradition that kicks it all off. Late Night in the Phog will be held on Oct. 10.

The 2014-15 non-conference slate, paired with its home-and-home meetings against league foes, will help keep Kansas’ strength of schedule among the nation’s best. In KU head coach Bill Self’s 11 seasons in Lawrence, the Jayhawks’ strength of schedule has ranked 10th or higher six times, including four of the last five years dating back to 2009-10.

Strength of schedule is a factor in the RPI, one of the tools the NCAA Basketball Committee uses to select and seed teams in the NCAA Tournament. Kansas’ RPI has checked in at No. 5 or better each of the last five seasons, including No. 1 in 2010 and 2011. The Jayhawks ended 2013-14 at No. 4 in the final RPI.

Kansas will play 2014 NCAA runner-up Kentucky Nov. 18 in Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis in the fourth Champions Classic. KU and UK last met in the Champions Classic in 2011 in Madison Square Garden in what was an early preview to the 2012 NCAA Championship game at the Final Four in New Orleans. This historic contest pits the two winningest teams in college basketball history with Kentucky at 2,140 wins and Kansas at 2,126 victories.

Kansas will open the regular season playing host to UC Santa Barbara on Nov. 14 as historic Allen Fieldhouse enters its 60th season. The Gauchos feature the 2013-14 NCAA rebound leader in senior Alan Williams who averaged 11.5 boards per game as a junior.

Kansas will make its first appearance in the Orlando Classic in Orlando, Florida, Nov. 27-30. The brackets have yet to be set, but the eight confirmed teams participating in the event include: Kansas, Michigan State, Tennessee, Marquette, Georgia Tech, Rhodes Island, Santa Clara and Rider. Kansas will host Rider on Nov. 24 in an early Orlando Classic matchup.

Non-Conference Opponent Breakdown

–UC Santa Barbara (Nov. 14 in Lawrence) improved 10 wins from the 2012-13 season by going 21-9 and finishing second in the Big West with a 12-4 league record in 2013-14. In 16 seasons as head coach at UCSB, Bob Williams has guided the Gauchos to 20-plus victories 11 times. Senior forward Alan Williams lead the NCAA with an 11.5 rpg in 2013-14. Kansas won the only meeting with UCSB, 72-52, in the opening round of the Wolf Pack Holiday Classic, Dec. 20, in Reno, Nevada, in Bill Self’s first season at Kansas.

–Kentucky (Nov. 18 in Indianapolis at the Champions Classic) finished runner-up to Connecticut in the 2014 NCAA title game in Dallas, posting a 29-11 overall record. The Wildcats tied Georgia for second in the Southeastern Conference with a 12-6 record and finished runner-up in the SEC Tournament to Florida, KU’s Dec. 5 foe in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. After a Kansas three-game win streak versus Kentucky, the Wildcats have won the last two meetings, both during the 2011-12 season: 75-65 in the Champions Classic at Madison Square Garden and 67-59 in the NCAA Championship game at the Mercedes Benz Superdome in New Orleans.

–Rider (Nov. 24 in Lawrence, Orlando Classic) went 14-17 in 2013-14 and tied for sixth in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference with a 9-11 record. The Broncs are coached by Kevin Baggett, who led Rider to a 19-15 record in 2012-13, his first season at Rider. Kansas is 2-0 versus Rider with both games in Allen Fieldhouse: 110-72 on Dec. 12, 1987, and 103-51 on Dec. 15, 1990.

–Pairings for the Orlando Classic (Nov. 27, 28 and 30) have not been announced. Joining Kansas in the eight-team field is Michigan State (MSU leads the series 6-4 and has won the last three meetings with the previous 67-64 in Atlanta in the 2012 Champions Classic); Tennessee (series is tied at 1-1 with UT winning the last meeting 76-68 on Jan. 10, 2010, in Knoxville); Marquette (KU leads 6-1 and has won the last three meetings. The previous matchup was in the 2003 Final Four, a KU 94-61 victory in New Orleans); Georgia Tech (KU leads 5-1 with the last meeting a 71-66 Jayhawk win in Atlanta on Dec. 18, 2007, during KU’s 2008 NCAA National Championship season); Rhode Island (KU leads 2-1, including an 80-69 win on Dec. 30, 2006, in Allen Fieldhouse in the last matchup); Santa Clara (KU leads 5-0 with the last meeting a 99-73 KU victory on Nov. 14, 1997, in Allen Fieldhouse) and Rider, who Kansas will play Nov. 24 in Lawrence.

–Florida (Dec. 5 in Lawrence) will face Kansas in the second SEC/Big 12 Challenge with this year’s meeting in Allen Fieldhouse. The Gators went 36-3 in 2013-14, posted a perfect 18-0 in winning the SEC regular-season title, won the SEC Tournament and entered the NCAA Tournament as the No. 1 overall seed. Kansas leads the overall series with Florida 3-2 with three of the five meetings being top-10 nationally-ranked contests. Last year Florida defeated Kansas, 67-61, in Gainesville.

–Georgetown (Dec. 10 in Washington, D.C.) finished the 2013-14 season with an 18-15 record advancing to the second round of the NIT. The Hoyas were 8-10 in the BIG EAST, placing seventh. Kansas has a 2-1 series edge against Georgetown after last year’s 86-64 win on Dec. 21 in Allen Fieldhouse. A traditional power, Georgetown won the first meeting, 70-57, in the 1987 NCAA Tournament Elite Eight in Louisville, Ky., and Kansas edged GU, 67-63, in the opening round of the 2011 Maui Invitational.

–Utah (Dec. 13 at Sprint Center in Kansas City) went 21-12 and finished tied for eighth in the Pac-12. The Utes fell to St. Mary’s in the first round of the 2014 NIT. It was Utah’s first postseason appearance under third-year head coach Larry Krystkowiak. Kansas won the only meeting with Utah, 79-68, on Nov. 25, 1995, at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri, in The Classic.

–Lafayette (Dec. 20 in Lawrence) is located in Easton, Pennsylvania, and the Leopards went 11-20 overall and tied for seventh in the Patriot League with a 6-12 record. Lafayette head coach Fran O’Hanlon will be entering his 20th season on the Leopards’ sidelines. O’Hanlon has guided Lafayette to three conference titles and two NCAA Tournament appearances. The Jayhawks and the Leopards have yet to face each other in men’s basketball.

–Temple (Dec. 22 in Philadelphia) is looking to rebound from a 9-22 season in 2013-14 where the Owls tied for eighth in the American Athletic Conference with a 4-14 league record. In his eight seasons at Temple, head coach Fran Dunphy has guided the Owls to three Atlantic 10 titles and six NCAA Tournament appearances. Kansas has won the last three meetings with Temple and leads the overall series 8-3. The Jayhawks defeated the Owls, 69-62, on Jan. 6, 2013, in Allen Fieldhouse in their last meeting.

–Kent State (Dec. 30 in Lawrence) went 16-16 last season, including a 7-11 record which ended the Golden Flashes fifth in the Mid-American Conference East standings. Kent State head coach Rob Senderoff has guided the Golden Flashes to two 20-win seasons and postseason appearances in his three years at Kent State.

–UNLV (Jan. 4 in Lawrence) went 20-13 in 2013-14 and finished tied for third in the Mountain West Conference with a 10-8 record. In head coach David Rice’s first two seasons at UNLV, the Running Rebels advanced to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances going 26-9 in 2011-12 and 25-10 in 2012-13. Kansas has won all four meetings with UNLV with the last being in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, a KU 75-56 win in Omaha on March 22, 2008, en route to its NCAA National Championship.

Kansas will open the 2014-15 season with home exhibition games against Washburn (Nov. 4) and Emporia State (Nov. 11).

For the third-straight year, KU will have home-and-home meetings against all nine Big 12 Conference foes. Besides Kansas, other conference teams that participated in the 2014 NCAA Tournament included Baylor, Iowa State, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Texas. West Virginia played in the 2014 NIT. The Big 12 traditionally releases that schedule in July.

Season ticket sales for KU’s 18 home games, the 17 in Allen Fieldhouse and the Dec. 13 game against Utah in the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., are on sale now. To order tickets fans must be active members of the Williams Education Fund, which can be done by making a minimum gift pledge of just $100.

KU has led its conference in home attendance each of the last 28 seasons, dating back to the 1986-87 season. The Jayhawks will look to capture a 11th consecutive Big 12 regular-season championship in 2014-15.

2014-15 Men’s Basketball Non-Conference Schedule

Nov. 4 vs. Washburn (Exh.)
Nov. 11 vs. Emporia State (Exh.)
Nov. 14 vs. UC Santa Barbara
Nov. 18 vs. Kentucky (at Indianapolis)
Nov. 24 vs. Rider (Orlando Classic)
Nov. 27 vs. TBA (Orlando Classic)
Nov. 28 Semifinals (orlando Classic)
Nov. 30 Championship (Orlando Classic)
Dec. 5 vs. Florida
Dec. 10 @ Georgetown
Dec. 13 vs. Utah (Sprint Center)
Dec. 20 vs. Lafayette
Dec. 22 @ Temple
Dec. 30 vs. Kent State
Jan. 4 vs. UNLV

— KU Sports Information —

Five Bearcats earn USTFCCCA All-Region honors

Posted on May 13, 2014May 13, 2014

Five members of the Northwest Missouri State University track and field teams have earned U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Region honors. The top five individuals in each event from each region earned the All-Region distinction, in addition to each of the members of the regions’ top three relay teams.

For the women, Anne Herbert earned honors in the 3,000 steeplechase, Lekiesha McKnight was honored in the shot put and Ashton Nibert garnered distinction in the 400 meter dash. For the men, John Petroff was honored in the discus andRyan Cox earned the award in the 1,500 meter run.

Northwest will now await selections for the 2014 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships. This year’s championships will be held at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, MIch., on May 22-24.

— Northwest Sports Information —

Missouri Western finalizes 2014 football schedule

Posted on May 13, 2014May 13, 2014

With the finalization of road game times, the 2014 Griffon Football is complete. The 11 game schedule features seven teams with winning records from a season ago including two teams with double digit wins (Northwest Missouri State and Pittsburg State). The combined record of Griffon opponents was 71-50.

The season begins with the first of five home games as Central Missouri comes to Spratt Stadium on Thursday, September 4 with game time set for 7 PM.

A return to national television is set for Thursday, September 25 as the Griffons will play their first ever meeting with Lindenwood in St. Charles, Missouri as part of the CBS Sports Network Division II Game of the Week package. It’s the second appearance for the Griffons as part on CBS Sports Network with the previous appearance coming at Washburn during the 2011 season and marks the twelfth TV appearance in the Jerry Partridge era.

In addition to the home opener, other regular season Spratt Stadium appearances include; Family Day on Saturday, September 20 against Northeastern State, the Hall of Fame Game on October 4 against Pittsburg State, Homecoming on October 25 against Emporia State and Senior Day against Nebraska-Kearney on November 8.

Another marquee date on the schedule is Saturday, November 1 as the Griffons renew the rivalry with Northwest Missouri State at Bearcat Stadium in Maryville with kickoff set for 1 PM.

The season culminates with the NCAA Division II Football National Championship Game on Saturday, December 20 which moves from its longtime home in Florence, Alabama to Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kansas hosted by the MIAA.

As the MIAA Television Network has yet to release their television schedule, game times are subject to change.

Season tickets are on sale now by calling 816-271-5904 or log on to gogriffons.com. Single game tickets will go on sale mid-summer.

2014 GRIFFON FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Thur. 9/4 CENTRAL MISSOURI 7:00 PM
Sat. 9/13 at Central Oklahoma 6:00 PM
Sat. 9/20 NORTHEASTERN STATE 6:00 PM
Thur. 9/25 at Lindenwood 7:00 PM CBS SPORTS NETWORK
Sat. 10/4 PITTSBURG STATE 6:00 PM
Sat. 10/11 at Fort Hays State 7:00 PM
Sat. 10/18 at Washburn 1:00 PM
Sat. 10/25 EMPORIA STATE 1:30 PM
Sat. 11/1 at Northwest Missouri State 1:00 PM
Sat. 11/8 NEBRASKA-KEARNEY 1:30 PM
Sat. 11/15 at Missouri Southern 1:00 PM

— MWSU Sports Information —

MWSU’s Bishop, Gillaspy named to Daktronics Central Region 1st-Team

Posted on May 13, 2014May 13, 2014

Missouri Western softball players Jackie Biship and Tiffany Gillaspy have been named to the Daktronics Central Region First team which was released Monday afternoon. Bishop was also named the region Pitcher of the Year for the second time in her career.

Bishop is completed one of the most successful playing careers in Missouri Western softball history. The Kirksville, Mo., natvie is a four-time First Team All-MIAA selection, two time MIAA Pitcher of the Year (2012-2014), four-time First Team All-Region recipient and an All-American selection in 2012. Bishop was also the MIAA Freshman of the Year in 2011. Bishop holds MWSU softball career records for wins (96), strikeouts (977), innings pitched (828.0), appearances (142) complete games (105) and shutouts (29). Additionally the two-time MIAA Pitcher of the Year holds MWSU single-season records for strikeouts (291) and shutouts (12) and is an integral member of a senior class that went 159-62 in its time dawning the Black and Gold. This season, the right-handed pitcher finished with a 26-10 overall record with a 1.36 ERA. The 26 wins is the most she had in a single season. She finished leading the MIAA with 291 strikeouts. She pitched 31 complete games with 12 shutouts and two saves this season. She gave up just 4.4 hits per games while striking out 8.3 per game. She thrw three no-hitters this season and four in her career. She was named the MIAA AstroTurf Pitcher of the Week four times this season and 11 times in her career.

Gillaspy topped off an impressive junior campaign being named first team All-Region and first team All-MIAA for the first time in her career. Gillaspy a two-time MIAA AstroTurf Hitter of the Week finished her season getting a hit in 23 of her last 25 games and had an 19 game hitting streak during that run. She also hit safely in 45 of the Griffons 57 games this season. She finished the season leading the Griffons and was in the top-10 in the MIAA in batting average (.390), hits (73), doubles (13), home runs (13), RBI (60), total baseas (125) and slugging percentage (.668). Gillaspy was an honorable mention All-MIAA selection a in 2013. She had double digit hits in 21 games including going 4-for-4 against Central Missouri on March 14. She has also had five RBI in a game three times and hit two home runs and a double against Lincoln on April 12. On the final day of the season she went 4-for-7 with two runs scored, four RBI a double and a home run in the NCAA Central Regional.

The Griffons finished their season 39-18 overall and won their first ever MIAA Tournament Championship going 4-0 and outscoring their opponents 41-9. They Griffons have won 30+ games in four straight seasons.

Each member of the first-team All-Central Region squad will join first-team members from each of the other seven regions on the ballot for the Daktronics All-America Team.

The D2SIDA All-America softball team is sponsored by Daktronics, Inc., an acknowledged world leader in scoring, timing and programmable display systems for virtually every sport at every level of competition. The teams are voted on by the members of D2SIDA, NCAA Division II Sports Information Directors Association.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Northwest’s Adams earns All-Central Region honors

Posted on May 13, 2014May 13, 2014

The Northwest Missouri State University softball freshman Chantel Adams earns NCAA Division II All-Central Region softball honors on Monday.

Adams was named the MIAA Freshman of the Year while also earning second team All-MIAA honors. During the 2014 season, Adams led all freshmen in the MIAA in hitting and RBI, as she posted a .378 batting average with 42 RBI. The shortstop started in all 48 games for the Bearcats this season and finished the regular season tied for team lead in home runs with 10.

Thirteen other MIAA softball players earned NCAA Division II All-Central Region softball honors.

— Northwest Sports Information —

Kansas City uses four-run seventh to rally past Mariners

Posted on May 11, 2014

SEATTLE (AP) — Johnny Giavotella took advantage of a rattled Seattle reliever to lift the Kansas City Royals.

His three-run homer in the seventh inning helped the Royals beat the Mariners 9-7 on Sunday.

The Royals’ seventh began with a double by Eric Hosmer. Reliever Danny Farquhar then struck out Billy Butler and appeared to strike out Danny Valencia on a 2-2 curveball. But home plate umpire Marcus Pattillo called it a ball, causing Farquhar to throw up his arms in disgust.

`’I’m pretty sure umpires don’t like that,” Valencia said.

Farquhar certainly was miffed and it seemed to have an impact on the rest of his inning. He would go on to walk Valencia and Alex Gordon, loading the bases. Lorenzo Cain tied the game with a sacrifice fly to center. Then Giavotella, promoted from Triple-A Omaha on Thursday, hit Farquhar’s first pitch for his first home run.

“Sometimes you want pitches and they are not called,” Farquhar said. “You can’t let that affect you. I want everything called a strike, so that is nothing different for me.”

Valencia added, `it’s part of the game. It’s going to happen. No one’s perfect out there. Fortunately, it was in my favor.”

Alcides Escobar had given the Royals the early lead with a second-inning grand slam off starter Roenis Elias.

But the Mariners rallied behind Dustin Ackley’s two homers and Kyle Seager’s two-run shot to take a 7-5 lead by the fifth.

As the Royals began to rally in the seventh, manager Ned Yost, with his bullpen rested and ready, turned to batting coach Pedro Grifol and said, “if tie or take the lead here, we’re pretty set up with (Aaron) Crow, (Wade) Davis and Holly (closer Greg Holland) ready. Then, boom, it happened. And, boom, it worked out.”

Crow and Davis held the Mariners to one hit each and Holland came on in the ninth to pick up his ninth save in 10 opportunities.

Louis Coleman (1-0), who worked a scoreless sixth, earned the victory.

The Mariners committed a season-high five errors.

“One thing I don’t do is make excuses for guys,” Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon said, “so the onus is on the players in the locker room today. You got a question about errors, you go talk to them.”

McClendon would use Pattillo’s inconsistent strike zone as an excuse.

“I’m not going to argue for that type of stuff,” he said. “Listen, we didn’t play a very good game. You can analyze any way you want to. I told the team, `we didn’t play very good.’ We kicked ourselves in the ass today. It’s that simple.”

Yost, when asked about Farquhar’s borderline pitch, said, “we were upset when we didn’t get a third strike on (Mike) Zunino, too, which ended up costing us two runs. That’s part of the game.”

That pitch came in the Mariners three-run, second-inning rally. After Ackley hit his first home run to open the inning, Stephen Romero was hit by a pitch, bring up Zunino.

Starter Jeremy Guthrie believed he had Zunino struck out but it was called a ball. Zunino then singled to right and both runners scored on a double by Brad Miller, ending a 0-for-19 slide.

A pair of errors in the fourth allowed the Royals to build the lead by to 5-3. Giavotella walked and Escobar singled. Catcher Zunino tried to pick Giavotella off second but his throw scooted into center for an error, with the runners advancing. First baseman Justin Smoak then bobbled Nori Aoki’s bouncer, allowing Giavotella to score.

Seager, who missed the previous two games with flu-like symptoms, hit his sixth home run in the fourth followed by Ackley’s second, his first career multiple home-run game. Ackley also had a home run in the sixth inning Saturday, giving him three in three straight at-bats. He has four on the season.

“I’ve been seeing the ball pretty well,” Ackley said, “putting good swings on balls and not missing things.”

The Mariners added a run in the fifth on Corey Hart’s two-out single, scoring James Jones from second.

— Associated Press —

Mizzou softball to host NCAA Regional for sixth-straight year

Posted on May 11, 2014

COLUMBIA, Mo.- The Mizzou softball team will serve as one of 16 NCAA Regional hosts this weekend, announced Sunday by the NCAA Division I Softball Selection Committee. The Tigers received the No. 15 overall seed in the national bracket and are the top-seeded squad in the Columbia Regional with a 41-16 overall record.

This marks the sixth-straight year, and eighth year overall, that the Tigers have played hosts to the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Head coach Ehren Earleywine led the Tigers to a third-place finish (15-9) in the program’s second season in the Southeastern Conference.

Joining the Tigers in the bracket are Bradley (27-30, 15-12 Missouri Valley), Kansas (32-21, 7-11 Big 12) and Nebraska (40-14, 18-5 Big Ten). Mizzou will open play on Friday, May 16, against Bradley at 12:30 p.m. at University Field.

Mizzou has won an NCAA Regional title each of the last six seasons and have won eight in the program’s history. Last season, the Tigers went 3-1 in their regional to advance to the program’s sixth-straight NCAA Super Regional.

Tickets for the Columbia Regional will be on sale Monday, May 12, beginning at noon at the Mizzou Arena Box Office (1-800-CAT-PAWS) and online at MUTigers.com.

All games from the Columbia Regional will be streamed live through Mizzou Network.

COLUMBIA REGIONAL SCHEDULE (CT)
Friday, May 16
12:30 p.m. – Game One: Nebraska vs. Kansas
3 p.m. – Game Two: No. 15 Mizzou vs. Bradley

Saturday, May 17
3:30 p.m. – Game Three: Winner G1 vs. Winner G2
6 p.m. – Game Four: Loser G1 vs. Loser G2 (loser eliminated)
8:30 p.m. – Game Five: Loser G3 vs. Winner G4 (loser eliminated)

— MU Sports Information —

Cardinals hold on to beat Pirates 6-5

Posted on May 11, 2014

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Shelby Miller won his fourth straight start and Trevor Rosenthal induced a bases-loaded double play to end the game as the St. Louis Cardinals held off the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-5 on Sunday night.

Allen Craig and Yadier Molina had two hits each, including RBI singles in a four-run first inning. Craig went 5-for-11 in the three-game series after entering with a .202 batting average. Molina was 0-for-12 in his previous four games.

Miller (5-2) walked four and allowed four hits in 5 1/3 innings, but held the Pirates to just two runs — which came on Jordy Mercer’s first home run of the season in the fourth inning.

Rosenthal gave up a run in the ninth that made it 5-4, but got Mercer to hit into a 1-2-3 double play to end it.

Charlie Morton (0-5) took the loss.

— Associated Press —

Griffons fall short of MIAA Tournament title as they lose twice to Emporia

Posted on May 10, 2014

The Missouri Western made a great run but fell twice on Saturday in the MIAA Tournament held in Springfield, Mo. The Griffons fell in game one 3-2 before falling 6-0 in the final game of the tournament. The Griffons finish the season 32-20.

Game 1
ESU 3
MWSU 2

Despite scoring the first two runs of the game the Griffons gave up three unaswared run falling 3-2 in the first game of the MIAA Championship. The Griffons got two runs in the 5th inning on three hits. Mitch Thorman singled to right field and scored on a two out single by Ryan Degner. Cody Childs then hit his first triple of the year scoring Degner and giving the Griffons the 2-0 lead.

Josh Lansangan had a no hitter going into the 5th inning but three one out hits helped the Hornets cut the Griffon lead to 2-1 after five innings. In the 6th the Hornets were able capitalize on an error on Childs leading off the inning. They followed the error up with a couple more singles giving the Hornets the 3-2 lead after six innings.

In the 8th the Griffons got runners on the corners with no outs but the Griffons were unable to push the tying or go ahead run accross the plate. The Griffons did not get anything going in the ninth as they dropped their first game of the tournament.

In the contest the Griffons had seven hits with David Chew going 3-for-4 and Degner going 2-for-5 with a run scored and an RBI. Lansangan went 5.2 innings with four hits and one earned run with four strikeouts. He falls to 3-3 with the loss. Tyler Sanders went 2.1 innings with one strikeout.

The Hornets improve to 39-17 on the season as they scattered six hits. Price Jacobs got two hits with an RBI and a run scored. Travis Hendry went 4.2 innings giving up five hits and two earned runs with four strikeouts. Brenton Higgins went 2.1 innings in relief giving up two hits. He improves to 7-1 with the win while Shawn Talkington went 2.0 innnings picking up his first save of the year.

Game 2
ESU 6
MWSU 0

In the second game Emporia State got three runs in the third inning and would not look back. At the plate Jacobs hit a solo home run going two for five with two runs scored. Dean Long was two for three scoring a run and driving one in while Aaron Gile went two for four and drove in a run.

On the mound just one day after throwing a complete game Jarrod Miller pitching four innings of two hit baseball. He would be relieved by Matt Hinkley who pitched three innings of scoreless baseball to earn his second win of the season.

The Griffons had just five hits in the gmae with Will Carter and LaHonta each getting two. Cody Childs had the other hit in the game. Tyler Tuepker falls to 2-3 on the season going 2.1 innings giving up two hits and two earned runs.

The Hornets will earn the league’s automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament which begins with the Central Regional on May 15.

— MWSU Sports Information —