ST. JOSEPH – Griffon tennis (10-10) fell to No. 7 Central Oklahoma (15-2) 8-1 at Genesis Health Club Saturday.

Karolina Strom put Missouri Western on the board with a straight set victory 6-1, 6-3 in No. 1 singles and knocked off the 23^rd-rated player in Division II. It is her fifth win in the last six matches. Strom’s win is also her 13^th of the season, the most by a Griffon in more than a decade.

Central Oklahoma is the second consecutive top-12 nationally ranked opponent MWSU has played.

RESULTS
Singles
1. Strom,Karolina (MWSU) def. #23 Hodges,Alli (UCO) 6-1, 6-3
2. #16 Charbonnet,Laetitia (UCO) def. Abreu Roman,Joanna (MWSU) 7-6, 6-2
3. Bhat,Kirtana (UCO) def. Salmaso,Federica (MWSU) 6-0, 6-2
4. Landin,Paola (UCO) def. Aguilera,Sofia (MWSU) 6-1, 6-1
5. Van Eeckoudt,Sara (UCO) def. Yeacker,Katherine (MWSU) 6-1, 6-0
6. Williams,Alix (UCO) def. Dent,Emilee (MWSU) 6-0, 6-0

Doubles
1. #28 Bhat,Kirtana/Charbonnet,Laetitia (UCO) def. Abreu Roman,Joanna/Strom,Karolina (MWSU) 8-2
2. Hodges,Alli/Landin,Paola (UCO) def. Dent,Emilee/Salmaso,Federica (MWSU) 8-0
3. Van Eeckoudt,Sara/Williams,Alix (UCO) def. Aguilera,Sofia/Keim,Audrey (MWSU) 8-2

UP NEXT
Missouri Western hosts No. 6 Northeastern State at 11 a.m. at Genesis Health Club for Senior Day. The Griffons will honor senior Sofia Aguilera prior to the match’s first serve.

ST. JOSEPH – The Missouri Western men’s golf team is seventh in the latest NCAA Central Regional poll released on Friday.

The Griffons have five top-five finishes with one tournament championship on the season and has finished top three in the last two tournaments.

The top 10 teams in the Central Region poll at the end of the regular season advance to the NCAA Regional in Findlay, Ohio on May 7-9.

MWSU is in action on Monday at the Central Region Preview at Missouri Bluffs Golf Course in St. Charles, Missouri.

— MWSU Athletics —

ST. JOSEPH – Griffon Softball (19-22, 10-6) slugged its way to a sweep of Missouri Southern (19-23, 6-10), Thursday.

Missouri Western hit five home runs, three from Shelby Uhl, in the doubleheader along with three doubles. Uhl hit two of the team’s four home runs in game one and added another in game two. The Griffons got a 13-2, five-inning win in game one, before a 7-4 winner in game two.

NOTABLES

• Uhl went 5-for-6 with five RBIs and five runs scored. She also stole three bases in four attempts.
• Riley Wilson went 4-for-3 and started the home run parade in game one with a two-out, two-run blast to left. Wilson drove in six and scored three runs.
• Shelbie Atwell went 3-for-5 with a double and two runs scored
• Gabi Carter went 3-for-5 with a double, two RBIs and two runs scored
• Kaili Hinds pitched six scoreless innings in game two
• Kaili Hinds allowed two earned runs on four hits in game one

UP NEXT
The next games on the schedule for Missouri Western are a home doubleheader against Fort Hays State on Saturday, April 14.

— MWSU Athletics —

EMPORIA, Kan. – Griffon baseball (17-14) had its three-game winning streak snapped by Emporia State (18-13) with an 11-10 loss at the Trussler Sports Complex.

The Hornets hit hard early with 11 runs in the first three innings. Missouri Western’s Preston Bailey came in with one out in the third inning and cooled the ESU bats by retiring 11 straight batters. Bailey and Kellan Richards held ESU scoreless for the final 5 2/3 innings.

As the pitching quieted Emporia State, the offense answered back to chip away at the lead. A 2-run single by Brooks Day started a three-run fifth inning and allowed the Griffons to cut the deficit to 11-8. Home runs by Fahd Shakeel in the sixth and Casey Danley in the ninth had Missouri Western on the doorstep of a comeback before the Hornets escaped the threat.

NOTABLES

• Five different Griffons hit home runs in the game
• Brooks Day was 2-for-5 at the plate with three RBIs
• Nick Schranck drove in three runs and scored one run
• Fahd Shakeel went 2-for-4 on the day with two runs scored and an RBI
• Preston Bailey tossed 4 1/3 innings with six strikeouts and gave up one hit

UP NEXT
Missouri Western travels to Tahlequah, Oklahoma for a three-game series with Northeastern State. Game one of the series begins Saturday, April 7 at 2 p.m.

— MWSU Athletics —

BOLIVAR, Mo. – Griffon tennis (10-9) fell at No. 12 Southwest Baptist (11-3) 8-1. Three of the six singles match-ups were decided in a tie-breaking third set.

Joanna Abreu Roman picked up the Missouri Western win at No. 2 singles 3-6, 6-1, 10-7. With the win, Abreu Roman extended her winning streak to four matches.

Karolina Str?m fell in three sets at No. 1 singles to snap her four-match winning streak. Federica Salmaso was also defeated in a tough three-set match for MWSU.

RESULTS
Singles
#1 Singles Karolina Str?m lost to #41 Jill Van Den Dungen 6-2, 5-7, 10-6
#2 Singles Joanna Abreu Roman defeated Klara Vickov 3-6, 6-1, 10-7
#3 Singles Federica Salmaso lost to Lucia Diaz 4-6, 7-6(3), 10-6
#4 Singles Sofia Aguilera lost to Constanca Crespo 6-4, 6-3
#5 Singles Katherine Yeacker lost to Sarah Brown 6-1, 6-0
#6 Singles Emilee Dent lost to Courtney Potter 6-2, 6-2
Doubles
#1 Doubles Abreu Roman/Str?m lost to #5 Vickov /Van Den Dungen 8-5
#2 Doubles Aguilera/Yeacker lost to Diaz/Crespo 8-1
#3 Doubles Dent/Salmaso lost to Beatrix Federer/Brown 8-1

UP NEXT
Missouri Western hosts Central Oklahoma on Saturday, April 7 at 12 p.m. at Genesis Health Club.

MOUNTAIN HOME, Ark. – Missouri Western junior golfer Shi Qing Ong won the Henderson State Southern Bancorp Invitational with a 2-over-par 145 Tuesday. It’s Ong’s second title of the season as she led Missouri Western to a fifth-place finish with a score 619.

Chong Yong tied for 14th in the tournament with a 155 after dropping five strokes from her first round total. Tiffanie Yabut trimmed seven strokes from day one for a two-day total of 159. Jenna Kosmatka shot a 160 and Katie Irvin rounded out the MWSU scorecard with a 169.

Texas A&M – Commerce won the team title with a score of 608. Missouri Western travels next to the Central Region Spring Preview at Rivercut Golf Course in Springfield, Missouri on April 9 and 10.

— MWSU Athletics —

MOUNTAIN HOME, Ark. – Missouri Western junior Shi Qing Ong is tied for the lead after day one of the Henderson State Southern Bancorp Invitational in Mountain Home, Arkansas. Ong shot a 1-under-par 71 and she helped the Griffons to a 316 as they’re fifth after the first round.

Chong Yong shot an 80 for the opening round to finish inside the top-30. Jenna Kosmatka recorded an 82 to close out the first day. Katie Irvin and Tiffanie Yabut both carded an 83 in the round.

Taylor Loeb of Henderson State shares the lead with Ong. HSU and Texas A&M-Commerce sit a top of the team leaderboard with a 303. Missouri Western begins its final round Tuesday at 8:30 a.m.

— MWSU Athletics —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Missouri Western Athletics Hall of Fame member Becky Reichard was announced as part of the 2018 MIAA Hall of Fame Class.

Reichard, who also participated in women’s basketball at Missouri S&T before coming to Missouri Western, was inducted into the MWSU Hall of Fame in 2007. In her two seasons at MWSU (1997-99), she led the Griffons in scoring and assists.

She led the team to two second place finishes in the MIAA Conference and two NCAA Tournament appearances. Reichard’s efforts led her to many individual accolades including: First Team All-MIAA Selection (1998, 1999), Daktronics Honorable Mention All-America (1998), Pre Season All-America as selected by Dick Vitale (1999) and NCAA Division II Kodak All-America Team (1999). In route to all of these accomplishments, Reichard finished her career the all-time leading scorer in MIAA Conference history for women’s basketball tallying 2,159 points and currently ranks second.

Reichard was the 1996 MIAA Freshman of the Year at Missouri S&T and earned All-MIAA honors all four years.

The Hall of Fame induction will be held on June 4 at the Truman Forum Auditorium at the Kansas City Public Library – Plaza Branch. Reservations can be made on the MIAA website.

— MWSU Athletics —