The Missouri Western came out on the losing end of a tough, grind-it-out game in “The Jungle” Wednesday night, falling at Pittsburg State, 77-71.

The two teams traded leads all night, but an Eric Ray 3-pointer with 1:23 remaining proved to be the final lead change, as the Gorillas went ahead 72-70 and held on for the victory.

Western had four players in double figures, led by T.J. Johnson’s 13 points.  Johnson left the game midway through the 2nd half with a sprained ankle and did not return.

Dylan Frantz added 12 for the Griffons, while James Harris and Shawn Tarver added 10 apiece.

The Griffons fall to 5-2 overall and 0-1 in MIAA play, while Pittsburg improves to 5-2 and 1-0 in the conference.

Western is home Saturday against Emporia State at 3:30 p.m.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Jessica Koch’s 24  points were not enough to save Western from the jungle Wednesday night, as the Griffons fell at Pittsburg State  82-57 in the MIAA opener for both teams.

Western shot just 30.8% (20-65 fg) for the game.

The Griffs took their only lead of the game in the opening seconds when a Brittany Griswold 3-pointer made the score 3-0.  Pitt then answered with a 15-0 run..

The Griffons went to half down 40-29, but stayed cold in the second half, as Pitt extended its lead to as many as 30.

Koch finished with 24 points (8-20 fg), 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals.  Brittany Griswold was the only other Griffon player in double figures with 11 (4-18 fg).  Drew Roberts led three Lady Gorillas in double figures with 14 points.

The loss drops Western to 2-3 overall and 0-1 in the MIAA.  Pitt improves to 7-0 and 1-0 in the conference.

The Griffons return home Friday, December 3rd, to host Emporia State at 1:30 pm in the Fieldhouse.

— MWSU Sports Information —

A layup by Shawn Tarver with 10 seconds left to play gave Western the 77-76 victory on the road against a very good St. Mary’s squad in the final contest of the River City Classic. The Griffons had four players in double digits with Lavonte Douglas leading the charge with 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Western improves to 5-1 on the season.

The Griffons looked to be outmatched early on as the Rattles jumped out to a 12-0 lead four minutes into the game. The Griffons settled down and began to chip away when James Harris hit their first shot of the game from long range with 14:35 to play in the half.

The Griffons used a 32-21 run cutting the St. Mary’s lead to 33-32 after a Douglas layup with 3:37 to play in the half. The rest of the half belonged to the Rattlers scoring seven of the final nine points taking the 40-34 lead into the break. The Griffons bench gave them a spark scoring 18 first half points. Deionta Mitchell led the charge off the bench with eight points on 3-of-4 shooting.

The Rattlers shot 60-percent (15-25) in the frame with Ray Marshall and Kevin Kotzur each scoring nine points. They combined to go 7-of-9 from the field.

Western never gave up in the second half getting down by as many as seven points at 59-52 after a Kotzur layup with 10:47 to play. From there Western went on a 13-4 run claiming their first lead of the game at 65-63 after a jumper by Mitchell with 4:53 left.

The Rattlers went on another run going up 73-68 with 2:11 to play but a three pointer by TJ Johnson and a jumper by Douglas tied the score at 73 with 1:17 to go. The lead changed four times down the stretch with the Griffons dropping St. Mary’s to 2-1 on the season.

Western finished shooting 52.7-percent (29-55) from the field which included 62.1-percent (18-29) in the second half. The Griffons made 6-of-14 three point field goals while dishing out 14 assists. Reed Mells led the way with five. Johnson finished with 11 points while Mitchell and Harris finished with 14 and 13 respectively.

The Rattlers finished shooting 54.5-percent (20-55) from the field but struggled from the free throw line making just 14-of-21 attempts. Kotzur finished with a double-double scoring 31 points and snaring 14 rebounds.

The Griffons open up MIAA action on Wednesday, November 30 traveling to Pittsburg, Kan. to take on the Pittsburg State Gorillas. Tip time is set for 7:30 pm from John Lance Arena.

— MWSU Sports Information —

The temperature at tip time reached the mid 70s outside as the Griffons got set to take on Southeastern Oklahoma State, however that did not translate inside the building for the Griffons on the offense end as they shot just 27 percent for the game in losing their first game of the season to Southeastern Oklahoma State 68-49 in the first round of the River City Classic in San Antonio, Texas.

The Griffs shot just 18 of 65 from the field including 3 of 18 from three point range.   In games where the score finished as such, it would appear that the Griffs had an off performance.  While that was ultimately the case offensively, the team did some positive things in the game.  On the defense end, the Griffs played with great energy most of the game and hung with a bigger Savage Storm team on the glass getting outrebounded 48-38.

Lavonte Douglas and Justin Reid both posted double doubles on the night as Douglas had 17 points and 11 rebounds while Reid added 13 points and 10 rebounds.  The night was not so kind to T.J. Johnson and James Harris.  Johnson the reigning MIAA Player of the Week and Harris both coming off great offensive outputs (both scored 22 points on Saturday night against Rockhurst) both did not score in the game.

The Griffons fall to 4-1 on the year and return to action tomorrow night against the host school in the River City Classic St. Mary’s.  Southeastern Oklahoma improves to 2-4 overall.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Missouri Western place kicker Greg Zuerlein and punter Scott Groner earn Beyond Sports Network’s player of the week honors for their performances against 10th ranked Northwest Missouri State last weekend.

Zuerlein, a senior out of Lincoln, Neb., was a perfect 3-for-3 on field goals against the Bearcats. All three of them were from 50+ yards with a 58, 57 and 52 yarder. He was also 2-for-3 on extra point attempts. On the season Zuerlein made 23-of-24 field goal attempts making 21 straight field goals with nine being of 50+ yards. He broke a school record for most field goals in a row, longest field goal (58) and for points in a season with 107. His 21 straight field goals is also a DII record.

Groner, a junior punter out of Australia, also had a good day booting the ball. He punted seven times for 363 yards for an average of 51.9 yards per kick. He had three inside the 20 and booted a career long 80 yards punt late in the contest pinning the Bearcats inside their 20. His 80 yard punt was four yards shy of a school record. On the season he punted 50 times for an average of 43.9 yards per kick which a new single season record. He had 17 inside the 20 and 13 that were of 50 or more yards.

Western finished the season with a 9-3 overall record. The nine victories ties a single season record which they have done in six of the last nine seasons. They have also made the DII playoffs in two consecutive seasons and have played in a postseason game in seven straight seasons (3 playoff appearances and 4 bowl games).

— MWSU Sports Information —

The Missouri Western women’s basketball squad outscored the Rockhurst Hawks 30-18 in the second half lifting the Griffons to a 57-50 victory in Kansas City, Mo. Western made 23-of-27 free throws evening their record to 2-2 on the season.

The Griffons led just twice in the first half at 7-6 and 9-8 after Jessica Koch nailed a three pointer with 17:40 to play in the frame and a jumper with 16:23 to play. The Hawks went on a 14-5 run during the next eight minutes claiming an eight point lead after a Gabbie Binion three with 8:45 to play.

The Griffons cut the lead to three twice but another 8-2 run by the Hawks pushed its lead to 32-23 with 42 seconds play in the half after a jumper by Megan Cook. Four free throws down the stretch by Koch helped Western close the Rockhurst lead to 32-27 at the half.

The Hawks opened up the second half pushing their lead to 36-27 but a 15-4 run by Western and a layup by Charlonda Bozeman with 10:53 to play gave Western a 42-40 lead which was their first lead since the 16:23 mark of the first half.

Western was able to tighten up their defense down the stretch allowing the Hawks just 10 points in the final 10:53 of the game dropping Rockhurst to 0-4 on the season.

The Griffons did not shoot the greatest from the field making just 16-of-43 shots and 2-of-16 from long range.  Western forced 27 turnovers scoring 21 points off those turnovers. They also had 20 points in the paint to the Hawks 14.

Koch made a career best 13 free throws in the game finishing with a game high 28 points. She also had two assists and four steals in the game. Brittany Griswold scored 12 points on 4-of-9 shooting with four rebounds while Bozeman dumped in seven points off the bench.

The Hawks shot 35.7-percent (20-56) from the field and made 6-of-8 free throw attempts. Chrissy Sarcone and Allison Streich both had 10 points for the Hawks. Kara McFarland led the charge on the boards with seven.

Western will return to action on Wednesday, November 30 when they travel to Pittsburg, Kan. for the MIAA opener. The Griffons take on the Pittsburg State Gorillas at 5:30 pm from John Lance Arena.

— MWSU Sports Information —