The Northwest Missouri State women’s basketball team lost at home to Sunday to McKendree 59-55. The Bearcats allowed 14 offensive rebounds and had 19 turnovers in the game.

Northwest was led in scoring by Kendey Eaton and Jaelyn Haggard with 15. Erika Schlosser led the team with 5 rebounds. The Bearcats shot 50 percent from the field but only 29 percent from behind the arc.

McKendree had a balanced attack with four people scoring in double figures, including Jordan Morton who had a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. They only shot 39.7 percent from the field but attempted 14 more field goals than Northwest.

Northwest will play again vs. Quincy at home on Wednesday, Dec. 19 at 6 p.m.

— Northwest Athletics —

Northwest Missouri State senior multi-event performer Kevin Schultz has been named the MIAA co-field athlete of the week for his performance this past weekend at the Mel Tjeerdsma Classic.

Schultz (Platte City, Missouri) captured the inaugural heptathlon title at the Mel Tjeerdsma Classic with 5,189 points.

In the heptathlon, Schultz captured first-place honors in the high jump (2.09m), pole vault (4.33m) and the 1,000-meter run (2:49.41).

— Northwest Athletics —

MARYVILLE, Missouri – The No. 2-ranked Northwest Missouri State Bearcat men’s basketball team rolled to an 87-53 MIAA win over the visiting Lindenwood Lions at Bearcat Arena.

Northwest (10-0 overall, 2-0 MIAA) shot 55.2 percent from the floor and a blistering 57.1 percent from the three-point arc in the victory. Lindenwood fell to 7-5 overall and 1-1 in MIAA play.

Ryan Hawkins posted his fifth double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds. Hawkins is the top rebounder in the MIAA this season at 11.0 rebounds per game.

Joey Witthus ignited the Bearcat offense as he went 7-of-9 from the field, including 4-of-5 from three-point range. Witthus scored a game-high 19 points.

The Bearcats turned a seven-point game at 31-24 to a 13-point bulge at the half with a 7-1 run in the final 1:46 of the first half.

Northwest began the second half with a 10-3 run that gave the Bearcats a 21-point lead at 49-28 with 15:42 remaining in the contest. Northwest’s lead did not dip below 21 points in the final 15 minutes of the game and grew to as many as 34 as the Bearcats claimed an 87-53 triumph.

Northwest’s next action will be at home on Dec. 18 vs. Texas A&M-International. Tip is set for 5 p.m. in Bearcat Arena.

NOTES: Northwest improved to 15-1 all-time vs. Lindenwood … the Bearcats have won 14 straight games in the month of December … Northwest won the rebounding battle for the 10th time this season, 33-26 … Northwest had six different players make a three-point basket … Northwest limited its mistakes to only seven turnovers, while forcing Lindenwood into 19 turnovers.

— Northwest Athletics —

MARYVILLE, Missouri – The Lindenwood Lions women’s basketball team jumped out to an 18-4 lead and never looked back in scoring a 72-57 victory over the Northwest Missouri State Bearcats on Saturday in Bearcat Arena.

Lindenwood’s Kallie Bildner posted 24 points and 16 rebounds as the Lions dominated the boards against the Bearcats. Lindenwood tallied 41 rebounds, while Northwest recorded 17 total rebounds.

The Lions led 24-8 at the end of the first period as the visitors shot 50 percent from the floor (9-of-18) as Northwest went 3-for-11 (27.3 percent).

The Bearcats had three players in double figures in Kaylani Maiava (13 pts.), Mallory McConkey (12 pts.) and Jaelyn Haggard (12 pts.). McConkey also grabbed a team-best eight rebounds. Erika Schlosser dished out a team-high three assists.

Northwest forced Lindenwood into 24 turnovers. The Bearcats tallied 12 steals, led by Schlosser with four and Haggard with three.

The Bearcats will take to the floor again next Sun., Dec. 16, against McKendree. Tip is set for 1 p.m. in Bearcat Arena.

— Northwest Athletics —

MARYVILLE, Missouri – The Northwest Missouri State men’s basketball team improved to 9-0 with an 85-78 MIAA-opening win over the Lincoln Blue Tigers in Bearcat Arena.

Redshirt freshman guard Trevor Hudgins tallied 22 points and handed out five assists, while sophomore forward Ryan Hawkins collected his fourth double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds.

Senior guard Joey Witthus poured in 15 second-half points after being held scoreless in the opening 20 minutes. Freshman guard Diego Bernard notched 13 points off the bench to help Northwest to a 26-6 advantage in bench scoring.

The Bearcats celebrated Christmas in the ‘Ville by starting the game having the crowd be silent until Northwest reached 10 points. Following a triple by Bernard with 12:24 left in the first half, the Bearcat crowd exploded to celebrate the Silent Night promotion.

Northwest took a 40-37 lead into the locker room.

Northwest started the second half on a 15-5 run to open up a 55-42 lead with Witthus scoring 11 of the 15 points. The Bearcats would lead by as many as 15 at 59-44 with 10:16 left in the game.

“We were able to push the lead out because we got some stops but then we shut it back off,” Northwest head coach Ben McCollum said. “We need to have a impose your will mentality and we didn’t have it a ton tonight. We were able to score enough. But give Lincoln some credit. They were fantastic tonight. They had a good game plan and ran sets. They worked the clock down and hit some tough shots.”

Lincoln refused to yield and cut the lead to five at 74-69 with 1:52 left. Witthus had a three-pointer blocked by Jonell Burton, but Bernard rebounded the miss and put it in with the shot clock winding down to put Northwest back up seven at 76-69.

Lincoln’s Terrance Smith hit three free throws with 35 seconds left to cut the lead back to four only to see Hudgins bury two at the free throw line. Lincoln cut it to four again on a layup by Burton with 17 seconds left. Hawkins sank a pair of free throws and Bernard drained one more to make it a seven-point win for the Bearcats, 85-78.

NOTES: Northwest has won eight straight MIAA openers … McCollum is 8-2 in MIAA openers … Northwest won the rebounding battle for the ninth straight game this season … Northwest shot 50.9 percent from the floor and went 23-of-29 at the foul line.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State women’s basketball team fell to Lincoln 69-66 in a nail-biter at Bearcat Arena Thursday. Northwest was trailing 57-46 going into the fourth quarter and was able to fight all the way back to have a chance to tie in the final seconds.

Northwest had four scorers in double figures for the first time since January 18, 2018, against Nebraska-Kearney. Jaelyn Haggard led with 14, followed by Kendey Eaton with 13, Kaylani Maiava had 12 and Mallory McConkey added 10. Maiava and McConkey added six rebounds each. Erika Schlosser led the team with five assists.

Lincoln had two players score more than 20 points. Zoi Thompson scored 24 and Zhanesa Dickerson chipped in 20. Dickerson added 14 rebounds to give her a double-double on the night.

Northwest will play again this Saturday Dec. 8 against Lindenwood at Bearcat Arena at 1:30 p.m.

— Northwest Athletics —

Northwest Missouri State senior defensive end Austen Eskew has been named the American Football Coaches Association’s First-team All-America squad.

Eskew becomes Northwest’s 22nd AFCA first-team all-America choice in the program’s history.

Eskew led the MIAA in sacks (10.5) and tackles-for-loss (18.0). He started all 13 games at defensive end. Eskew was part of a Bearcat defense that ranked No. 1 in the MIAA in total defense, sacks, TFLs, scoring defense, rushing defense, red zone defense and third-down conversion defense. Eskew has earned first-team all-MIAA and first-team D2CCA all-region honors this season.

— Northwest Athletics —

Northwest Missouri State can celebrate its first volleyball All-American in senior Maddy Bruder.

Bruder, a senior from Firth, Nebraska (Norris HS), is the first Bearcat in program history to earn American Volleyball Coaches Association First-Team All-America honors. Bruder led the MIAA in kills (4.26 per set) and ranked No. 17 in the nation in that category. Bruder blew away the competition in MIAA matches by averaging 4.30 kills per set with 275 kills in 64 sets. Bruder notched a team-best 17 double-doubles, including 12 in MIAA play.

Earlier this month, Bruder was named the MIAA player of the year.

BIG RAPIDS, Michigan – The Northwest Missouri State University football team put up a valiant effort against No. 2-ranked Ferris State Saturday and the game came down to a final play as the Bulldogs hung on for a 27-21 win in the second round of the NCAA Division II playoffs.

Northwest trailed 27-14 with 1:15 left in the fourth quarter when the Bearcats took over on downs. Northwest drove 88 yards on eight plays and scored on a two-yard touchdown pass from Braden Wright to Alec Tatum. Northwest put the ball on the two-yard line following a 51-yard pass play from Wright to LaTroy Harper. Tatum’s score cut the Ferris Stat lead to 27-21 with :14 left.

Northwest kicker Parker Sampson executed a perfect on side kick and the Bearcats’s Marqus Andrews recovered the ball to give the Bearcats possession. Northwest gained 20 yards and had 1st and 10 at the 34-yard line with :05 left in the game. However, Wright was sacked by Austin Simpson and FSU’s Austin Edwards recovered the fumble as the clock expired.

Ferris State jumped on the scoreboard early only three plays into the contest. Following a 71-yard passing play from Jevon Shaw to Sy Barnett set up the Bulldogs for a two-yard touchdown run by Marvin Campbell one minute into the game.

The Bulldogs added their second touchdown of the first quarter on an 8-yard run by third-string quarterback Evan Cummins. Cummins score capped a five-play, 96-yard drive after a Matt Thorman punt had backed up the Bulldogs to their own four.

Ferris State’s Jackson Dieterle tacked on field goals of 45 and 44 yards in the second quarter to build the Bulldog lead to 20-0 with 2:50 left until halftime.

Northwest put together a sustained drive and cracked the scoreboard on a 19-yard passing play from Braden Wright to Shawn Bane Jr. with :09 left in the half. Wright guided the Bearcats 75 yards in 12 plays and the drive consumed 2:36 off the clock. The touchdown pulled Northwest to within 20-7 at the break.

In the first half, Ferris State racked up 343 total yards on 36 plays. The Bulldogs rushed for 149 yards and threw for 194. Meanwhile, Northwest was limited to 132 total yards on 34 plays. Northwest rushed for 13 yards on 14 carries in the opening 30 minutes.

Jack Richards picked off a Travis Russell pass and returned it 32 yards for a touchdown with 12:03 left in the third quarter to pull Northwest to within 20-14 of the Bulldogs.

Northwest failed to capitalize on a missed 26-yard field goal by FSU’s Dieterle in the third quarter. Following a Northwest punt, Ferris state marched 74 yards in eight plays capped by a two-yard touchdown run by quarterback Travis Russell with 0:56 left in the third. The Russell score gave Ferris State a 27-14 lead.

LaTroy Harper tallied his first 100-yard receiving game eight catches for 115 yards. Wright passed for 269 yards on 28-of-43 passing. Ben Althoff tallied a game-high 16 tackles.

NOTES: Ferris State played without the services of Harlon Hill candidate quarterback Jayru Campbell, who suffered a shoulder injury in the Bulldogs’s win over Harding last week … Northwest had won the only previous meeting between the two schools in the 2016 NCAA Division II semifinals Maryville, in which Northwest was victorious, 35-20.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State women’s basketball team defeated Saint Mary’s 73-23 in the Fairfield Inn Thanksgiving Classic Saturday in St. Jospeh. Northwest got off to a fast start, never trailing in the game.

Erika Schlosser led all players in scoring with 17 points. Also in double figures was Kaylani Maiava with 13 and Mallory McConkey with 11. The Bearcats shot 13-23 from behind the arc. Schlosser went a perfect 6-6 from the field, including 5-5 from the three-point line. Jaelyn Haggard led the team with 7 assists. McConkey and Mia Stillman led the team in rebounds with 8. McConkey also led the team in steals with 4. The Bearcats had 12 steals and did not allow a single player from Saint Mary to break 5 points or allow them to score double digits in any quarter. The Bearcats shot 49.1% from the field and held Saint Mary to 17% shooting.

The 23 points scored by Saint Mary is the least amount of points Northwest has allowed since the Bearcats defeated Missouri Western 104-19 in 1975.

Northwest will play again Saturday, December 1 at 1 p.m. against Nebraska Christian College in Bearcat Arena.

— Northwest Athletics —