ST. JOSEPH – Griffon tennis (10-6) won their 10th match of the season with a 6-3 win against Fort Hays State (6-6). Missouri Western has now won 10 matches in three of the last of four seasons.

Two wins in doubles play allowed MWSU to take an early advantage in the match. Joanna Abreu Roman and Karolina Ström earned the team’s first point with an 8-6 victory at No. 1 doubles. Sofia Aguilera and Federica Salmaso cruised to an 8-2 win in No. 2 doubles. The win gave the Griffons momentum into singles action.

Joanna Abreu Roman earned her 10th win of the season 6-2, 6-1 at No. 2 singles. Sofia Aguilera clinched the Missouri Western win in straight sets 6-2, 6-3 and extended her winning streak to five matches. Emilee Dent won a tough match 6-3, 2-6, 10-5 at No. 6 singles. Karolina Ström picked her, team best, 12th win of the season by retirement in No. 1 singles.

RESULTS
Doubles Results
Abreu Roman,Joanna/Strom,Karolina (MWSU) def. Lindell,Lauren/Lubbers,Natalie (FHSU) 8-6
Aguilera,Sofia/Salmaso,Federica (MWSU) def. Ediger,Ellea/Moyers,Macy (FHSU) 8-2
Jimenez-Lendinez,L./Lubbers,Nicole (FHSU) def. Dent,Emilee/Yeacker,Katherine (MWSU) 8-2

Singles Results
Strom,Karolina (MWSU) def. Jimenez-Lendinez,L. (FHSU) 1-0, retired
Abreu Roman,Joanna (MWSU) def. Lubbers,Natalie (FHSU) 6-2, 6-1
Moyers,Macy (FHSU) def. Salmaso,Federica (MWSU) 6-1, 4-6, 6-2
Aguilera,Sofia (MWSU) def. Lindell,Lauren (FHSU) 6-2, 6-3
Ediger,Ellea (FHSU) def. Yeacker,Katherine (MWSU) 6-0, 6-1
Dent,Emilee (MWSU) def. Lubbers,Nicole (FHSU) 6-3, 2-6, 10-5

UP NEXT
Missouri Western travels to Southwest Baptist for Wednesday, March 28 for a 2 p.m. match.

— MWSU Athletics —

ST. JOSEPH – Griffon baseball (14-12) fell to Pittsburg State (19-9) 4-2 in 11 innings at the Spring Sports Complex.

Missouri Western tied the game in the bottom of the third inning when Dusty Stroup singled up the middle to score Maurice Bruce. Two innings later, Will Jibas gave the Griffons a one run lead with a RBI single to centerfield that scored Brooks Day. MWSU top six hitters in the lineup each recorded a hit

PSU tied the game in the eighth inning with a double down the left field line. The Gorillas scored two runs in the 11th inning to secure the series sweep.

NOTABLES
– Will Jibas was 3-for-5 at the plate with an RBI

– Dusty Stroup went 3-for-6 on the day and drove in a run

– Nate Hunter tossed 7 1/3 innings and allowed just two runs

– Kellan Richards threw three innings of relief work and gave up just one run with two strikeouts

– MWSU left 14 runners on base in the final game, PSU left eight runners stranded

– Missouri Western’s one through six batters each recorded a hit

– Pittsburg State pitchers combined to strike out 12 batters in the game

UP NEXT
Missouri Western hosts Missouri Southern for a three-game series in St. Joseph beginning on Thursday, March 29 at 5 p.m.

— MWSU Athletics —

ST. JOSEPH – Griffon Softball went 1-1 Friday in a doubleheader of the preseason No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the MIAA.

Central Oklahoma, (19-14, 8-4) picked to defend their 2017 conference title, took game one 3-2 on a run in the seventh. Missouri Western (15-18, 6-2), picked second in the preseason poll, took game two, 5-4. Riley Wilson delivered the game winner in game two with an RBI-single in the fifth. Kaili Hinds hung on for her second straight victory, going all seven innings and allowing four earned runs on eight hits.

Missouri Western was down 2-0 in game one headed to the bottom of the sixth, but a two-run home run from Lonnie Groves tied the game. Game two took a comeback as well. The Griffons scored four in the second, but two UCO runs in the third and two more in the fourth set up Wilson’s game winning hit in the fifth.

NOTABLES
– Missouri Western has won eight of its last nine games after its seven-game win streak was snapped with the game one loss

– Wilson went 3-for-6 in the doubleheader with the one important RBI

– Morgan Frost went 3-for-8 in the doubleheader with a double and an RBI

– Shelby Uhl was also 3-for-8 on the day with two driven in

– The teams each had seven runs, with Missouri Western totaling 16 hits and UCO totaling 14

– There were only five strikeouts combined in the two games. Hinds struck out two in game two. The Griffons struck out twice in game one and just once in game two

UP NEXT
Six straight road games beginning with a doubleheader on March 27 at Northwest Missouri State lie ahead for Missouri Western. After Friday, the Griffons are tied for second in the MIAA standings with the Bearcats. The Griffons are scheduled to end next week with trips to Central Missouri and Southwest Baptist.

— MWSU Athletics —

ST. JOSEPH – The Missouri Western softball team extended its win streak to seven games as they swept a doubleheader against Northeastern State Thursday night. The Griffons won both games in walk-off fashion in 10 innings, 3-2 and 7-6.

MWSU improves to 14-17 this season and 5-1 in the MIAA. The Griffons’ sweep leaves them in a three-way tie atop the conference leaderboard with Washburn and Northwest Missouri.

Shelbie Atwell ended game one with a two-out RBI-single to left in the 10th inning of game one. Her game one winning hit almost wasn’t as it went in and out of the glove of a diving Sierra Crick in left field. Markee Brown dashed home for the winner in game one. In game two, Atwell bounced a ball to the first baseman who threw home where Tamara Hicks slid under the slide of the catcher for a 7-6 win.

Kenzie Hilzer set the stage for the heroics in game one, pitching all 10 innings, and allowing just two Northeastern State runs on 10 hits. She struck out four and walked one to move to 8-7 on the season. Kaili Hinds (4-6) went all 10 innings in game two, striking out eight. Northeastern State touched Hinds for six runs in the second inning, but the freshman retired 11 straight between the end of the NSU second and the top of the sixth.

Missouri Western trailed 2-0 after the 4 in game one, but tied it up in the bottom of the fifth on RBI singles from Atwell and Morgan Frost. The comeback in game two was much slower as Missouri Western scored one in the second, two in the third and one in the fourth before a two-out, two-run home run by Gabi Carter tied the game at six in the bottom of the sixth.

DOUBLEHEADER NOTABLES
– The Griffons’ win streak hit seven games and moved the team into a three-way tie for first place in the MIAA standings with Washburn and Northwest Missouri

– Hilzer and Hinds combined to allow eight runs on 20 hits over 20 innings with 12 strikeouts and just four walks

– The doubleheader went more than six hours

– Lonnie Groves went 5-for-10 at the plate with a double and an RBI

– Morgan Frost was also 5-for-10 with a run scored, a double and an RBI

– Hicks went 4-for-10 with two runs scored and two doubles

– Atwell went 2-for-8 with a run scored and a team-high three RBIs

UP NEXT
Central Oklahoma (18-13, 7-3) comes to St. Joseph for a Friday morning doubleheader. The games are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m., Friday.

— MWSU Athletics —

ST. JOSEPH – Griffon baseball (14-11) dropped a doubleheader to Pittsburg State (18-9) to snap their nine-game winning streak. The Gorillas won game one 11-3 and game two 6-3.

Missouri Western started game one with a quick lead when Casey Danley scored on a Will Jibas single to left field. After PSU strung together runs in the next three innings, MWSU held them scoreless over the final five innings.

Three straight walks in the bottom of the third inning by Pittsburg State allowed the Griffons to take an early 3-2 lead in game two. Casey Danley’s sac fly brought in Michael Miller and Fahd Shakeel’s double drove in Maurice Bruce. However, the Gorillas would answer with runs in the next three innings to pull away.

NOTABLES
– MWSU recorded four doubles in the two games

– Four different Griffons had multiple hits in the doubleheader

– Nolan Meyer was 3-for-8 at the plate with four total bases and a run scored

– Maurice Bruce scored two runs on the day

– Kellan Richards and Jacob Miller each had four strikeouts

– Pittsburg State pitchers combined for 23 strikeouts

UP NEXT
The series finale will be tomorrow, March 23 at 1 p.m. at the Spring Sports Complex.

— MWSU Athletics —

ST. JOSEPH – Missouri Western head football coach Matt Williamson has announced the promotion of Justin Richter to defensive coordinator and the addition of Gary Salgado as co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach.

Richter will be defensive coordinator in 2018 after serving one season as defensive backs coach at Missouri Western in 2017. Richter’s secondary led the MIAA in 2017 with 14 interceptions and ranked fifth in the MIAA, holding opponents to 212 passing yards per game. Safety Jonathan Owens was named second team All-MIAA and cornerback Brandin Dandridge was named third team All-MIAA.

Serving as co-defensive coordinator in 2018 will be Gary Salgado who comes to Missouri Western from Angelo State where he served as defensive line coach and director of football operations for five seasons. At Angelo State, Salgado guided multiple All-Lone Star Conference players, including ASU’s all-time sacks leader, Clayton Callicut.

Richter’s promotion and Salgado’s hiring come after 2017 defensive coordinator Mike Walton accepted the defensive coordinator position at his alma mater, Eastern New Mexico, in February.

Griffon Football begins spring practice on Friday.

— MWSU Athletics —

ST. JOSEPH – Griffon Softball (12-17) hit a season-high five-game win streak with a non-conference, doubleheader sweep of Rockhurst (10-17) on Wednesday.

Missouri Western won game one, 4-0 behind stellar pitching from Kenzie Hilzer and battled for a 7-5 sweep clincher in game two.

Hilzer faced just two over the minimum in game one, throwing a two-hit shutout. A tie game after one inning, the Griffons scored one run in the second and another in the third before Rockhurst tied game two on a two-out, two-run home run. Missouri Western scored four in the bottom half of the fourth to re-gain the lead and earn Barbara Billingsley her second win of the season.

NOTABLES
– Hilzer struck out four and walked one in the game one victory that evened her season record at 7-7

– Kaili Hinds earned her first save of the season, holding Rockhurst off the scoreboard on no hits and four strikeouts in the final three innings of game two

– Shelbie Atwell went 3-for-7 at the plate with four RBIs, hitting a home run in game two

– Morgan Frost also went 3-for-7 with two runs scored

– Rebekah Mueller drove in three in the doubleheader on two hits

– Tamara Hicks stole three bases in three attempts

– The Griffons were a perfect 6-for-6 on stolen base attempts, getting two more from Shelby Uhl and one from Lauren Houston

– Missouri Western pitchers held Rockhurst to eight hits over 14 innings and a .167 batting average. They struck out nine and walked four

UP NEXT
Missouri Western gets a brief break before getting back into MIAA play with a home doubleheader against Northeastern State (16-11, 4-0) on Thursday at 4 p.m.

— MWSU Athletics —

ST. JOSEPH – Griffon men’s golfer Patrick McCarthy has been named MIAA Golfer of the Week.

McCarthy earned his second conference honor when he tied for second place at the Warrior Invitational in Las Vegas. The sophomore tied a career-low with a 67 and was 5-under-par in the final round to finish the tournament at 1-under-par 143. His performance helped the Griffons place third as a team.

McCarthy’s first MIAA Golfer of the Week selection this season was on Sept. 27, 2016. He has four top-five finishes and one tournament championship on the season.

— MWSU Athletics —

ST. JOSEPH – Due to the forecast, Griffon Baseball’s three-game home series against Pittsburg State has been moved up one day.

The series will now begin Thursday, March 22 with a 1 p.m. first pitch. Game two will be March 23 at 1 p.m. with the finale on March 24 at 1 p.m.

Missouri Western (14-9, 7-3) extended its win streak to nine games Tuesday night with an 11-inning win over Emporia State. Pittsburg State (16-9, 8-5) has lost four of its last five following a 7-6 loss at Northeastern State, Tuesday.

— MWSU Athletics —

ST. JOSEPH – Nolan Meyer delivered the Missouri Western baseball team its ninth-straight win with a walk-off bunt single in the 11th inning against Emporia State on Tuesday. The Griffons defeated the Hornets 7-6 as they improve to 14-9 and 7-3 in the MIAA.

Meyer’s game winner seemed improbable after the Griffons failed to get down successful bunt attempts for three-straight innings prior to his hit. The game winning hit was set up by Dusty Stroup’s leadoff single in the 11th. Casey Danley tried to bunt Stroup over but popped up to the first baseman. Will Jibas got Stroup to third on a hit and run single and set up Meyer’s bunt toward first base that won the game 7-6 on Meyer’s head-first dive into the bag.

After tying the game at six in the bottom of the ninth, Missouri Western had runners at second and third with nobody out, but couldn’t get the winning run across the plate. Meyer led off the 10th by being hit by a pitch before Levi Schreiner reached on an error giving MWSU two on with no outs. Ryan Smith struck out in a pinch hit at bat before two infield pop ups ended the threat.

After blowing a save opportunity by giving up four runs in the top of the ninth, Nate Hunter settled in to hold the Hornets scoreless over the final 2 1/3 on three hits with two strikeouts. Hunter picked up the win (6-2), his fifth in relief during the team’s nine-game win streak.

Emporia State led 2-0 after one inning. Meyer scored the tying run in the fourth on an RBI-single by Ryan Fisher. Emporia State scored four in the top of the ninth to take a 6-4 lead but an RBI triple by Brooks Day and an RBI-single from Casey Danley sent the game into extra innings.

NOTABLES
– Missouri Western moved to 3-0 in extra-inning games this season

– It’s the second straight year the program had a nine-game win streak after last year’s Griffons rattled off nine-straight MIAA wins between April 9th and 23rd

– Meyer had a team high three hits, going 3-for-5 with a run scored and an RBI

– Fisher drove in two as the starting designated hitter on a 2-for-2 day with a walk

– Stroup also drove in a pair and went 2-for-5

– Day also went 2-for-5 at the plate with one RBI

– Levi Abrahmson and Kellan Richards combined to retire 12-straight Hornets between the fifth and the eighth innings

– Hunter went 3 1/3 allowing four earned runs on seven hits

– Preston Bailey pitched the first three innings, allowing two earned runs on three hits. He struck out one and walked three

– After starting conference play 0-3, the Griffons left Tuesday’s win in third place in the MIAA standings

UP NEXT
The Griffons put their streak on the line in a three-game, home MIAA series against Pittsburg State (16-9, 8-5). The series is currently scheduled to begin on Friday at 4:00 p.m.

— MWSU Athletics —