The Missouri Western football team got back on the winning track with a 30-0 win over Northeastern State Saturday inside Spratt Stadium. The Griffons move to 2-1 on the season.

Missouri Western’s last shut out came against William Jewell in 2012. Marc Harrison’s 100-yard interception return for a touchdown in the second quarter tied a school record.

The Griffons were able to move the ball offensively, collecting 322 total yards of offense. Raphael Spencer finished the night with 105 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries. Also making a solid contribution on the ground was Tra Brown, who added 47 yards on nine carries. Skyler Windmiller got the start for the Griffons but split time with TJ LaFaver, who returned to the rotation after missing last week’s game at Central Oklahoma with a concussion.  Windmiller finished 7-17 with 64 yards passing LaFaver was 5-7 for 60 yards passing and picked up 19 yards on three rushes.

Defensively, Missouri Western forced four turnovers, all coming on interceptions. Cornerback Michael Jordan had two picks off of RiverHawks quarterback Kevin Pantastico. Stephen Juergens and Meshack Kennedy each made seven tackles on the night to lead the team.

The Griffons next head to St. Charles, Missouri to take on Lindenwood this Thursday and you can hear the game on 680 KFEQ AM and the Griffon Sports Network.

— MWSU Sports Information —

A busy day for Griffon Athletics got off to an incredible start Saturday with the Missouri Western volleyball team knocking off No. 5 Washburn in three sets, 25-22, 25-21 and 25-20.

It was the first time MWSU beat Washburn since Nov. 9, 2001 and the Griffons first win over a ranked team since 2009. Missouri Western had not topped a top-10 team since 2005 when they defeated No. 10 Central Missouri.

Offensively, Missouri Western had a balanced attack with four players having at least eight kills. MWSU was led again by Jessie Thorup for the second straight day. Thorup posted a .361 kill percentage and finished with 16 total kills. Kelsey Olion was second on the team with nine kills and a .438 kills percentage. Amanda Boender and Erica Rottinghaus had eight kills each.

Jordan Chohon continued her effective play with 36 assist in the match. The Griffons relied on Rottinghaus and Sarah Faubel each posting 10 digs.

The win moves the Griffons to 8-3 overall and 2-1 in MIAA play. Washburn is now 10-1. MWSU heads to Maryville Tuesday night for a 7 p.m. match with the Bearcats.

— MWSU Sports Information —

The Missouri Western volleyball team got their first win of MIAA play Friday night in a three-set sweep of Emporia State, 25-17, 25-22 and 25-23.

With the win, the Griffons improve to 7-3 on the season and 1-1 in the MIAA. Emporia State dropped to 4-3 overall and 0-2 in MIAA play.

Jessie Thorup improved her team lead with 17 kills, the most on the team. Thorup was extremely efficient at the net, hitting .773 on the night. Erica Rottinghaus added 12 kills.

The Hornet hitters avoided Sarah Faubel, who finished with just four digs. Jordan Chohon had a strong performance once again, with 37 of the team’s 40 assists.

Missouri Western’s tough opening stretch continues Saturday in the Fieldhouse when No. 5 Washburn comes to town for a 1 p.m. start.

— MWSU Sports Information —

The Missouri Western soccer team opened MIAA play with a 1-1 draw at Northwest Missouri State Friday night. MWSU is now 3-1-1 on the season and 0-0-1 in MIAA play.

The Griffons were able to create some opportunities with three corner kicks early in the first half. Northwest was able to strike first in the 21st minute with a header by sophomore Cassie Phillips off a corner kick sent into the box. Western responded quickly with a goal by Tara Russell. She scored her first goal of the season in the 33rd minute to tie the game, 1-1.

The second half was a defensive struggle with both teams only creating eight total shots. In overtime, Missouri Western had a majority of control creating five shots and pressuring the Bearcats defense. Goalkeeper Sarah Lyle had five saves on the night.

Missouri Western continues MIAA play heading to Lindenwood University on Sunday, Sept. 21 with a 1 p.m. start.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Missouri Western State University Director of Athletics Kurt McGuffin has announced the hiring of Chris Canady as Head Women’s Tennis Coach at MWSU.

“I am excited to welcome Chris to our department and family,” McGuffin said. “He is from Missouri and played and coached at MIAA foe Southwest Baptist. He brings a pedigree of having been in successful programs and it is my belief he will build a tradition of excellence both on and off the court with our tennis team.”

Canady replaces Tom Smith, who took over the program in 2013 after a 25 year run as the head men’s basketball coach at Missouri Western. Canady will officially take over the program in October. He becomes Missouri Western’s first full-time women’s tennis coach.

“I want to thank Coach Smith for everything he has done the last few months as tennis coach.  He stepped up and did our department a huge service and has done everything I asked him to do, and more, when he agreed to take this position,” McGuffin said.

Most recently, Canady has been the director of high performance for Upper St. Clair Tennis Development in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Canady is familiar with the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association, having played and coached at Southwest Baptist University.

Since joining USC Tennis Development Program in 2011, Canady worked tirelessly developing a culture that helped produce numerous nationally and sectionally ranked players. Players Canady has worked with in the program have attended some of the top tennis programs in the country.

“Having both competed and coached in the MIAA, I have a clear understanding of what it takes to be successful at this level,” Canady said. “Combining that with all the experience I have gained over the last six years coaching at the Division I level and developing high performance junior players, I am confident we can have MWSU competing for MIAA championships in relatively short order.”

After graduating with a B.S. in recreation from SBU in 2007, Canady worked as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, helping both the men’s and women’s tennis programs claim MIAA championships in 2008. Canady then moved on to Stony Brook University where he assisted both the men’s and women’s tennis programs for two seasons (2008-2010), focusing on player development and domestic recruiting. Since then, Canady has been a volunteer assistant with the California University of Pennsylvania women’s team, primarily working on international recruitment.

— MWSU Sports Information —

The Missouri Western volleyball team battled through three close sets Tuesday night, eventually falling to No. 14 Central Missouri 3-0.

The Griffons dropped the first set 25-23, then lost the second 25-18 before falling 26-24 in the third after allowing the Mules to come back.

MWSU spread offense around but no players finished with double-digit kills. Erica Rottinghaus led the team with nine. Jordan Chohon finished with 27 assists. Sarah Faubel led the team with 12 digs, followed by 11 from Rottinghaus.

The loss dropped the Griffons to 6-3 on the year and 0-1 in MIAA play. They host Emporia State in the MWSU Fieldhouse Friday night.

— MWSU Sports Information —

The Missouri Western women’s golf team finished in fourth place on Tuesday after completing the final round of the Northeastern State University Golf Classic in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.

MWSU sat in fourth place after day one and held their ground with a 312 team score in the second round. The winner of the tournament was Central Oklahoma winning with a team score of 604 through the two days of competition.

Maidson Romjue again set the pace for the Griffons with a 73 second round. She finished the tournament with a 148 placing her in a tie for third place. The other top-10 finisher for MWSU was Celine Lim she recorded a total score of 153 placing her in eighth place.

Arkansas Tech’s Megan Jeffery and Central Oklahoma’s Marla Souvannasing finished the tournament atop the leader board shooting a 147 in the two rounds of golf.

The Griffons are back in action on Sept. 29-30 at the Fort Hays State University Invitational with an expected start time of 8 a.m.

— MWSU Sports Information —

The Missouri Western soccer team allowed their first goals of the season and they dropped their first game of the year with a 2-0 loss to Augustana (S.D.) Sunday at Spratt Stadium.

The Vikings scored the first goal of the season on Sarah Lyle when Annie Thorensen snuck past Lyle and rolled one in past a sliding Taylor Gant from 20 yards out in the 19th minute. Augustana struck again in the 23rd minute on a rebound goal from Payton Pry.

MWSU was outshot for the first time this season – 14-9. Augie got 10 of those shots on frame with just four for the Griffons. Despite allowing her first goals of the season, Lyle saved 10 Augustana shots.

The Griffons fall to 3-1. They hit the road to take on Northwest Missouri State on Sept. 19 and Lindenwood University on the 21st.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Central Oklahoma held the lead for just 17 seconds Saturday night, but it was enough to drop the Missouri Western football team to 1-1 on the season in MWSU’s first-ever loss to UCO, 26-17.

Seth Hiddink’s 18 yard field goal with 17 seconds remaining gave the Bronchos their first lead of the game. Cody Jones padded the UCO margin with a 42-yard pick-6 as time expired. The loss snapped a 14-game, regular season road winning streak for the Griffons and delivered MWSU’s first ever loss to an opponent from Oklahoma.

Missouri Western jumped out to a 14-0 lead on two Skyler Windmiller touchdown passes. It was 14-10 at halftime. John Schmiemeier gave the Griffons a 17-10 lead before Chas Stallard’s three-yard scamper tied the game with 9:44 left.

Western returns home to face Northeastern State this Saturday at 6:00 p.m. for Military Appreciation Day and Family Day at Missouri Western.

— MWSU Sports Information —

The Missouri Western soccer team is off to a program-best 3-0 start after an overtime goal Friday night from Bridget Blessie lifted the Griffs past Bemidji State 1-0. Just three games into the season, the 2014 squad has surpassed the 2013 win total and equaled the goal output from last year’s team.

The 201 people in attendance may have wondered if it would ever happen, but it did. Five minutes into the first overtime, Blessie took a swing at the ball from 30 yards out. It sailed over the head of her waiting teammates, took a bounce over Bemidji goalie Sonja Barr’s head and into the net.

It may have been the Griffons first goal but was far from their first offensive threat. For the third straight game, MWSU controlled the action, outshooting Bemidji 23-7. The Griffons managed 12 shots on goal past a stingy Bemidji defense. Sarah Lyle is now 3-0 on the season and has yet to allow a goal. The sophomore saw little action with just one Bemidji shot making it to the Griffon goalie.

Teddi Serna paced the Griffons with five shots, followed by four each from K.C. Ramsell and Bailey Dervin.

Missouri Western looks to remain perfect on the season Sunday when they host Augustana at noon. Admission to all home matches is free.

— MWSU Sports Information —