The Northwest Missouri State University Bearcats (7-3-2, 4-1 MIAA) defeated the Fort Hays State Tigers (3-5, 0-2 MIAA) 2-1 Saturday afternoon at Bearcat Pitch.

The first half was a battle for both teams as a combined 9 fouls were called.  The Bearcats struck first in the 11th minute when Tammie Eiberger found Emilee Davison and fed her the ball.  Davison snuck the ball past the Tigers’ goalie Kelsey Grey to give the Bearcats a 1-0 lead.  That would be the only goal of the half as Northwest went into halftime up 1-0.

The Bearcats outshot the Tigers 12-10 in the first half.  Northwest goalkeeper Kelsey Adams recorded 7 saves in the half.

The second half started out very similar to the first, with both teams clamping down on defense.  Northwest would up their lead to 2-0 in the 81st minute when Amanda Spade found the net for the first time this season off of an assist from Kelly Obley.

The Tigers would get on the board in the 83rd minute when Joanne Glynn snuck the ball past Adams to make the score 2-1.  This would be the Tigers’ only goal of the afternoon.

For the match, the Bearcats outshot the Tigers 22-19 with the Tigers having a 3-2 corner kick advantage.  The teams combined 20 fouls called in the match was a season high for Northwest.

The goal by Davison in the first half was her third goal of the season.  Eiberger pick-up her team leading seventh assist in the win with Obley picking-up her first.

Bearcats’ goal Kelsey Adams collected 12 saves in the victory upping her season total to 74.

Up Next:  The Bearcats return to action next Thursday, Oct. 20 when they travel to Warrensburg, Mo. to face the twelfth-ranked Central Missouri Jennies.  The Jennies currently lead the MIAA with a perfect 5-0 record and overall are 12-1-0.

— NWMSU Sports Information —

The Bearcat volleyball team dropped a decision to 7th-ranked Central Missouri on Wednesday night inside Bearcat Arena.  Northwest Missouri State fell in straight sets, 26-24, 25-14 and 26-24 against the Jennies.

The loss drops Northwest to 8-11 overall and 2-4 in the MIAA.

Laira Akin had a great game for Northwest accounting for 33 of the Bearcats’ 37 assists in the match.  Akin added 10 digs recording her tenth double-double of the season.

Abby Graves had a team-high 12 kills and earned her fifth double-double of the season contributing 10 digs.  Tori Beckman chipped in 16 digs for Northwest in the loss.

Amy Majors contributed 10 kills and 2 blocks for the Bearcats.

Northwest would hold match-point in the third set but the Jennies rallied back to take the set 26-24.

With the win the No. 7 Central Missouri remains a perfect 7-0 in MIAA play and extend their winning streak to 12-games.  The Jennies were led by senior Allie Huffman who contributed 10 kills in the win.  Setter Julia Bates contributed 34 assists for the Jennies.

Northwest will enjoy the weekend off before returning to action next Wednesday, Oct. 19 when they head to Pittsburg State.  Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.  The Bearcats will then return home for MIAA play Friday and Saturday night at Bearcat Arena when they host Southwest Baptist followed by Missouri Southern in their homecoming game.  Admissions to Saturday’s game will be free.

— NWMSU Sports Information —

Northwest Missouri State University men’s and women’s basketball teams annual “Basketball Bash” to tip off the 2011-12 basketball season is slated for 8 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 13, in Bearcat Arena.

Admission is free with the doors opening at 7:45 p.m.  The event will begin with food and fun for Bearcat fans of all ages. Free pizza and drinks will be provided for the first 200 people.

The program begins at 8 p.m. and will feature performances by the Bearcat Cheerleaders and Steppers, interactive contests for fans to compete with players and a look at the 2011-2012 squads on the floor.

The evening will also include promotional giveaways with the grand prize being an iPad.

The Northwest men are coached by Ben McCollum who enters his third season at the helm of the Bearcats. The men return eight players, including 2010-11 standout DeShaun Cooper. Cooper was a second-team All-MIAA choice and finished seventh in the league in scoring with 17.7 points per game.

The Bearcat men won six of their final nine games to finish the 2010-11 season 10-16 overall and 8-14 in MIAA play.  It was the 35th consecutive season that the program won 10 games or more.

The Northwest women are led by Gene Steinmeyer who enters his 13th season as head coach for the Bearcats. Steinmeyer was named Region Six Coach of the Year in 2010-11 and was also named the 2010-11 MIAA Coach of the Year.  The women return nine players including 2010-11 starters Abby Henry and Shelly Martin.  The Bearcats’ newcomers to watch include freshmen Annie Mathews and Maggie Marnin, and junior transfer Victoria Naylor.

The Northwest women are coming off an NCAA Division II Final Four appearance.  Northwest set a program record last season with 29 wins and its first-ever regional title.  The Bearcats also became the first squad in school history to win an outright MIAA regular season championship and won their third conference tournament.

— NWMSU Sports Information —

In a back and forth battle the Northwest Missouri State volleyball Bearcats picked up a thrilling, 3-2 win over Truman State in MIAA play Friday night at Bearcat Arena.

Northwest (8-10, 2-3 MIAA) battled all night as momentum continued to shift to both sides before the Bearcats pulled out the five set victory. With the win over Truman the Bearcats have now won four of their last five heading into an important home match against nationally ranked Central Missouri in their annual “Dig Pink” match.

Despite the score the Bearcats looked impressive in the first set before the Bulldogs took sets two and three. Northwest closed out the match winning, 25-21, 20-25, 21-25, 25-23, 15-13.

The Bearcats raced out to a quick, 6-3 lead in the fifth set after they fought to come back in set four and force the deciding set. Truman would take the lead on a kill in the middle forcing a Northwest timeout, but the Bearcats would not respond until a second timeout and TSU held a, 10-7 lead.

However, the second Northwest timeout and a Whitney Mason kill would again swing the momentum back to the Bearcats. Northwest would go on their own run taking a, 13-12 lead after a second attack from Alex Hanna found the middle of the TSU side of the floor.

A pair of unforced Bulldog errors would give Northwest game point as Brooke Bartosh closed out the win with a kill down the left sideline. Bartosh finished with 13 kills for the Bearcats and was extremely efficient hitting .312 on the night.

Senior Laira Akin recorded a season high 56 assists and 12 digs to close out her ninth double-double of the season and third consecutive.

Abby Graves continued to knock down kills with a team high 17 and earned her fourth double-double of the season adding a season high 16 digs.

Amy Majors led an impressive offensive attack by the Bearcats, hitting .419 and adding a season high 16 kills.

— NWMSU Sports Information —

Northwest Missouri State University soccer team battled 18 mph winds Thursday night as they were routed by the Truman State Bulldogs 2-0 in a defensive battle at Bearcat Pitch.

The Bearcats fall to 5-3-2, 2-0 MIAA after beating Emporia State 2-1 Tuesday.  With the win, the Truman State Bulldogs improve to 6-4-2, 3-0 MIAA and remain in control of the MIAA.

Northwest was outshot in the first half 13-0 with sophomore goalkeeper Kelsey Adams recording seven saves.

With the wind being to their advantage the Bulldogs struck first in the 7th minute when Trisha Shoemaker found the net off of an assist from Olivia Hayes.  This would be the only goal of the half.

The Bearcats’ defiant defense would prevail in the second half with them allowing only three shots by the Bulldogs; however, Northwest was unable to find the net for just the third time this season and was blanked for the second time this season by the Bulldogs.

Truman State would put the game out-of-reach in the 86th minute when Kelsey Twellman found the net for the Bulldogs.

Truman State had three corner kicks in the contest while the Bearcats had eleven.  Kelsey Adams recorded eight saves in the loss for Northwest.  Jayne Grisham recorded one save for the Bulldogs.

Up Next: The Bearcats continue MIAA play this Saturday when they travel to Topeka, Kan. to face the Washburn Lady Blues (1-7-2, 1-0-1 MIAA).  Overall Northwest is 2-12-3 when facing Washburn and is 0-6-2 when facing the Lady Blues in Topeka.  The Lady Blues were tabbed to place fifth in the 2011 preseason coaches’ poll, one spot ahead of the Bearcats.  Kick-off from Yager Stadium in Topeka is set for 6 p.m.

— NWMSU Sports Information —

Northwest Missouri State’s top wide receiver, top 1,500-meter runner and two of its Elite men’s basketball players join two championship teams in comprising the 2011 “M” Club Hall of Fame Class.

Jamaica Rector ’04 (football), Jim Ryan ’84 (cross country/track and field), Scott Fleming ’03 (basketball) and Kelvin Parker ’07 (basketball) along with the 1975 softball team and the 1997 women’s tennis team have been selected for enshrinement during a ceremony to be held Oct. 21.

A limited number of tickets remain for the “M” Club Hall of Fame ceremony. Tickets are $20 per person and reservations can be made through Oct. 14 by calling Michele Steinmeyer in the athletic department at 660.562.1977. Dinner will start at 6:30 p.m. and the program will begin at 7:15 p.m.

With the 2011 class, the “M” Club Hall of Fame includes 104 individuals and 40 teams. The first year of individual inductions was 1980 and teams were inducted beginning in 1989.

A brief description of each inductee follows:

Jamaica Rector – Rector was a two-time national player of the year finalist and four-year All-American wide receiver for the Bearcats from 2001-04. He ranks fourth in Division II history in both catches (289) and receiving yards (4,497) and ranks 25th all-time with 38 touchdown receptions.

Since graduating from Northwest, Rector has played professional football for the Dallas Cowboys, Arizona Cardinals of the NFL and Edmonton Eskimos of the CFL.

Jim Ryan – Ryan’s career-best finishes in both the 1,500-meter run (3:46.77) and 3,000-meter steeplechase (8:42.84) have stood as Northwest records for 28 years and counting. Ryan is a three-time All-American and six-time MIAA champion who competed for the Bearcats from 1980-84. On the cross country course, he continues to boast the second-best 10-kilometer time (31:03) and seventh-best 8-kilometer mark (24:42) in program history.

Scott Fleming – Northwest men’s basketball’s all-time leader in steals (305) and made free throws (628), Fleming led the Bearcats to a 98-26 record from 2000-03. He was his team’s leading scorer in three consecutive seasons including 2002 when he led the Bearcats to their first-ever Elite Eight appearance and a 29-3 finish. Fleming is a three-time All-MIAA honoree. His 1,727 points and 435 assists rank third and fourth in program history, respectively.

Kelvin Parker – Parker guided Northwest men’s basketball to the Elite Eight in both 2002 and 2004. He was named the MIAA’s Most Valuable Player, its Defensive Player of the Year and was one of 16 finalists for the Bob Cousy Award in 2004 when he averaged 18 points and five assists per game.

Parker has played in more games than any player in MIAA history (128). He is Northwest’s all-time leader in assists (492), ranks second in steals (209) and is the program’s best free-throw shooter at 84 percent. Parker’s 1,692 career points make him the fourth-leading scorer in Bearcat history.

1975 Softball Team – In the infancy of Northwest softball, this team boasted a 22-7 record, beat Missouri to win the MAIAW state tournament and advanced to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb. First-year head coach Debbie Jones turned in a lineup card that produced nearly nine runs per game and featured the “W” pitching staff of (Arlene) Weldon, (Cindy) Williams and (Sheryl) Wurster.

1997 Women’s Tennis Team – A 24-match win streak, five MIAA individual champions and the program’s first national quarterfinal appearance highlight this Mark Rosewell-coached squad. The Bearcats finished 28-2, beat three Division I programs and captured the program’s sixth MIAA title. The squad was led by Iva Kutlova and 2006 Hall of Fame inductee Yasmine Osborne who combined for a 51-5 singles record and partnered to go 28-4 at the top doubles position.

This marks the third Rosewell-coached tennis team to be enshrined into the Hall of Fame joining both the 1987 men’s and women’s tennis squads.

— NWMSU Sports Information —