By David Boyce – Northwest Athletics

MARYVILLE, Mo. – Regardless of the close score, the numerous injuries, a couple of miscues on offense or the pressure of having the second longest winning streak in Division II history, there is never a sense of panic from the 2017 Bearcats.

Locked in another grind-it-out game, Northwest Missouri State kept fighting on offense until it put together an impressive 11-play, 80-yard drive for a put-away touchdown early in the fourth quarter.

The 3-yard touchdown run by freshman Jordan Thompson gave Northwest an 11-point lead and paved the way for a 17-10 victory Saturday in front of 7,021 fans at Bearcat Stadium for Military Appreciation Day.

“This was awesome just to honor all the guys who have served and those serving now,” said Northwest junior linebacker Ben Althoff. “It is a big deal to us. We have a lot of teammates on this team who have family or friends who are serving. We wanted to honor them today.”

Northwest, ranked No. 1 in the AFCA top 25, improved to 6-0. The Bearcats increased their winning streak to 36 straight.

“I am proud of our guys,” Northwest coach Rich Wright said. “I was telling our guys we live under the microscope. There are no style points for winning football games.

“That was gutty effort today. We were missing a lot of pieces. The way those kids hung in there for four quarters and battled, I was proud of them. We lost a couple of more receivers today. We are finding ways to win. As long as we do that, once we get back healthy, we will have a chance.”

Once again, defense ruled the day for the Bearcats, who got two sacks from senior Caleb Mather and one sack each from Althoff, junior Austen Eskew and senior Bobby Gruenloh.

“We knew they have a great passing attack,” Althoff said. “You saw that at the end. They have some dangerous guys on the perimeter. We tried to limit that as much as we could and prevent the quarterback from running around.”

Given many opportunities, the Bearcats responded on offense when they led only 7-3. The 80-yard drive started with a 13-yard pass to senior Jordan Grove.

“We were struggling to get drives going the whole game,” said Grove, who caught six passes for 104 yards. “To finally get in a rhythm helped us the rest of the game.”

Sophomore running back Brody McMahon followed Grove’s reception with a six-yard run. A couple of more runs produced a first down.

The next chuck-of-yards play was a 31-yard pass from Martin to freshman Alec Tatum that put the ball at Central Oklahoma 15. Four plays later, Thompson ran it in from three yards to make it 14-3 with 11:36 left.

“It was big,” said Martin, who completed 22 of 43 passes for 292 yards and no interceptions. “We knew we could do it. We finally put it together. We were moving the ball in the fourth quarter pretty well. That was great to see compared to last week when we shut it down in the second half.”

After a defensive stop, Northwest put together another solid drive that resulted in a 29-yard field goal by junior Brett Garner that extended Northwest’s lead to 17-3 with 4 minutes, 18 seconds left.

“Our offensive line played great,” Martin said. “That (Central Oklahoma) is a good football team. I was happy we could get away with a win.”

Northwest needed the cushion. The Bronchos, who battled hard all game, went on a 10-play, 69-yard drive and scored a touchdown with 1:34 left.

“It is just a great experience to be on this team,” Mather said. “We always want to play our best on defense no matter who we are playing. We always want to get to the quarterback and get pressure on him.”

Northwest went into halftime ahead 7-3, but it could have been more if it wasn’t for several dropped passes of 10 or more yards throughout the first half.

The Bearcats trailed in the first half for the first time all season. Central Oklahoma took a 3-0 lead with 6:41 left in the first quarter on a 42-yard field goal by freshman Alex Quevedo.

Meanwhile, Northwest managed one first down on its first three possessions, and that came on a 20-yard run by freshman Jordan Thompson on the third drive.

The defense kept giving Northwest opportunities. On the fourth drive, Martin hit Grove on a 43-yard pass play, but that drive stalled and the Bearcats had to punt.

Finally, on their fifth drive of the game, the Bearcats held on to passes and marched down the field. The key play was a 21-yard pass completion to junior Kennedy Sykes. Martin hung in the pocket and took a punishing hit just before throwing the football.

Martin followed that completion with an 11-yard pass to Haden Bryant and a 26-yard pass to Sykes that put the ball at the 6. Two plays later, sophomore Brody McMahon punched it in from three yards out. The extra point gave Northwest a 7-3 lead with 10:46 left in the second quarter.

The defense made sure the Bearcats went into halftime ahead. When Mather was asked why the defensive has been consistently good this season, he gave an easy to understand his response.

“We play hard,” he said.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State University soccer team fell to Fort Hays State, 2-1, on a rainy Friday afternoon at Bearcat Pitch in Maryville, Mo.

Northwest falls to 4-6 on the year and 1-3 in MIAA play. Fort Hays State improves to 6-3-2 on the season and 3-1 in conference action.

Freshman Bri Wawiorka scored her second goal of the year in the 47th minute. Classmate Madie Krueger played a ball to Wawiorka at the top of the box. After a cut back, Wawiorka finished to the high backside post to give Northwest a 1-0 lead.

Key Northwest Statistics
– Northwest outshot the Tigers, 25-11, on the afternoon. Each team earned six corner kicks in the match.

– Fort Hays was whistled for 13 fouls to the Bearcats seven.

– The Tigers scored in the 55th and 81st minutes to earn the win.

– Taylor Wolfe had a match-high five shots with four coming on goal.

– Kruger had four shots with two on goal to go along with her assist.

– Emily Madden and Izzy Romano each recorded three shots.

– Ashley Malloy made five saves in goal for the Bearcats.

Up Next
– Northwest will host Nebraska-Kearney on Sunday, Oct. 8, in the team’s annual Pink Game. The match will begin at 12:30 p.m.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State University volleyball team fell to Nebraska-Kearney, 3-1, at the Health and Sports Center on Friday in Kearney, Neb.

The Bearcats fall to 9-9 on the year and 3-3 in MIAA play. The No. 9 ranked Lopers improve to 17-2 and 5-1 in conference action.

After dropping the first two sets, Northwest battled back in the third, taking the set, 27-25.

Key Northwest Statistics
– The Bearcats hit .120 for the match and held the Lopers to a .176 attack percentage.

– Maddy Bruder had 13 kills with 15 digs and a block.

– Freshman Morgan Lewis had 11 kills and four blocks.

– Olivia Nowakowski had 34 digs and a pair of assists.

– Sarah Dannettell added 32 assists to go along with five kills.

Key Northwest Sequence
– Down 23-21 in the third set, Northwest forced an attacking error by UNK and got a block from Lewis and Gaby da Silva to tie the set, 23-23. The Lopers got match point at 24-23 after a kill from Kendall Schroer. But a Lewis kill tied the match again at 24-24. Again the Lopers got match point at 25-24 on a kill from Schroer, forcing a Northwest timeout. Out of the break, Darcy Sundrman and Sofia Schleppenbach got back-to-back kills to give the Bearcats set point, 26-25. Sunderman served up an ace on the next point and Northwest took the third set, 27-25.

Up Next
– Northwest travels to Hays, Kan., to take on Fort Hays State at 2 p.m. on Saturday afternoon at Gross Memorial Coliseum.

— Northwest Athletics —

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The Missouri Sports Hall of Fame has selected the 1998 and 1999 Northwest Missouri State University football teams for induction as members of the 2017 class. The announcement was made by President & Executive Director Jerald Andrews on Wednesday afternoon. The official induction ceremony will take place on Sunday, November 12 at the Stoney Creek Hotel & Conference Center, 18011 Bass Pro Drive in Independence. Festivities begin with a noon reception and 1 p.m. dinner, followed by the program. Tickets can be purchased by calling 417-889-3100.

The 1998 Bearcats went 15-0, capturing the NCAA title with a 24-6 victory over Carson Newman in Florence, Ala. Fifth year head coach Mel Tjeerdsma and his team captured their third-straight MIAA title and hosted three NCAA playoff games. Northwest avenged its only loss of the 1997 season, defeating Northern Colorado, 42-17, in Maryville in the NCAA quarterfinal round. Quarterback Chris Greisen earned his second-straight AFCA First Team All-America honor, throwing for a then program record 4,076 yards with 38 touchdown passes. Tjeerdsma was named the MIAA and AFCA Coach of the Year.

Northwest matched up again with Carson Newman in the 1999 title game, defeating Eagles, 58-52, in a four-overtime classic. The Bearcats went 14-1 on the year and 9-0 in MIAA play, capturing a fourth-straight conference title. Wide receiver Tony Miles was named a first team All-America performer by the AFCA and the Associated Press, catching 69 passes for 1,058 yards and eight touchdowns. For the fourth-straight year, Northwest matched up against Northern Colorado in the playoffs. The Bearcats won, 41-35, in Greeley, Colo., to earn the right to host the NCAA semifinal game the next week against Indiana (Pa.).

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State University soccer team fell to Missouri Southern, 1-0, on Sunday at Bearcat Pitch in Maryville, Mo.

The Bearcats fall to 4-5 overall and 1-2 in MIAA play. Missouri Southern improves to 1-6-2 overall and 1-2 in conference action.

Northwest outshot the Lions, 24-9, including a 13-2 advantage in the second half.

Key Northwest Statistics
– The Bearcats were whistled for eight fouls while Missouri Southern had 16 fouls.

– Northwest had 10 corner kicks to the Lions’ six.

– Missouri Southern scored in the sixth minute on a scramble in the box.

– Emily Madden had a match-high five shots with three coming on goal.

– Bri Wawiorka and Kayla Ellis each had four shots. Izzy Romano and Madie Krueger each had three shots with one on goal.

Up Next
– Northwest remains at home for two more matches next weekend starting on Friday, Oct. 6 against Fort Hays State at 3 p.m. at Bearcat Pitch.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State University football team scored a touchdown with seven seconds left in the 2017 Fall Classic at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo., to defeat Central Missouri, 24-20, on Saturday.

– The Mules scored a touchdown with 34 seconds left in the fourth quarter to take a brief 20-17 lead.

– Northwest marched down the field and scored with seven seconds left on a seven yard catch from Jordan Bishop to give the Bearcats a 24-20 lead.

– With the win, Northwest improves to 5-0 on the year while Central Missouri falls to 3-2.

– The Bearcats have now won at Arrowhead Stadium 11 times in 14 games.

– Northwest, ranked No. 1 in the latest AFCA rankings, has now 35 consecutive games.

Key Northwest Statistics
– The Bearcats had 330 total yards (111 rush, 219 pass) while the Mules racked up 381 yards of total offense (72 rush, 309 pass).

– Northwest forced two interceptions and recovered a UCM fumble that led to a field goal.

– The Bearcat defense held UCM to just 5-of-18 on third down conversions and recorded six sacks that added up to 30 yards lost.

– Each team had 16 first downs on the day. Northwest had 10 through the air, five on the ground and one by penalty.

– Quarterback Zach Martin completed 17-of-39 passes for 219 yards and a two touchdowns. He completed passes to six different receivers.

– Shawn Bane Jr. recorded seven catches for 139 yards. He has two 100+ yard games this year and 11 in his career.

– Jordan Grove caught three passes for 19 yards and a score. He also carried the ball seven times for 13 yards. He has now caught 14 career touchdown passes.

– Jordan Bishop had four catches for 40 yards and had the game winning catch in the fourth quarter.

– Brody McMahon was the Bearcats’ leading rusher, carrying the ball 10 times for 65 yards.

– Ben Althoff had a career-high 12 tackles with a pass breakup.

– Jacob Gassman and Jack Richards each had interceptions. Gassman returned his pick 30 yards for the first score of the game.

– Anthony Lane had a career-high eight tackles to go along with a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a pass breakup.

– Samuel Roberts, Austen Eskew, Lane and Bobby Gruenloh each recorded sacks.

– Matt Thorman was called upon to punt 10 times. He landed five of those punts inside the 20 and had a long of 47.

Northwest Scoring Drives
– In the first quarter, UCM got the ball on their own seven after a Thorman punt. The Mules had a big play called back on a facemask penalty that would have put the ball near mid field. After a short rush and a QB sack by Roberts, Gassman wrestled a pass away from a UCM receiver and returned it 30 yards for a pick-six score, making it 6-0 Northwest.

– The Bearcats’ offense got on the board early in the second quarter, driving 73 yards on eight plays. Northwest faced just one third down on the drive and Martin converted that attempt on a five yard pass to Grove that took the ball to the UCM 10 yard line. On the ensuing play, Grove caught a Martin pass for a 10 yard touchdown. After the PAT, the Bearcats held a 14-0 lead with 12:42 left in the second quarter.

– Lane came on a corner blitz and stripped the ball from UCM’s quarterback Brook Bolles and recovered the ball on the Mules’ 13 yard line. Five plays later, Brett Garner converted a 34 yard field goal to give Northwest a 17-13 lead with 9:07 left in the fourth quarter.

– After Central Missouri took its lone lead of the game in the fourth, Northwest drove 68 yards on four plays to score the decisive touchdown. After Grove returned the kickoff 15 yards to the 32, Martin connected on back-to-back passes with Bane on strikes of 14 and 47 yards, respectively. The 47 yard catch set the Bearcats up on the seven yard line. One play later, Martin found Jordan Bishop just past the goal line for the winning score. Garner added the extra point to make it a four-point lead. After the Bearcat kickoff, UCM was unable to connect on a pair of passes as time expired.

Up Next
– Northwest will host Central Oklahoma on Saturday, Oct. 7, at Bearcat Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State University volleyball team defeated Missouri Southern, 3-1, on Saturday at Bearcat Arena in Maryville, Mo.

– The win moves Northwest to 9-8 on the year and 3-2 in MIAA play. Missouri Southern falls to 9-9 and 2-3 in conference action.

– Maddy Bruder had a match-high 21 kills to go along iwth 17 digs. She hit .250 for the match and added four blocks and a service ace.

Key Northwest Statistics
– The Bearcats took the first two sets by scores of 25-14 and 25-17. The Lions won the third set, 25-18, but Northwest took the fourth, 25-18.

– Maddy Ahrens had 22 assists with seven digs and a pair of service aces.

– Sarah Dannettell had 20 assists with five kills, two digs and two blocks.

– Olivia Nowakowski added a match-high 24 digs with six assists and three service aces.

– Sofia Schleppenbach had 14 kills and a pair of blocks. She hit .382 for the match with just one attacking error.

– Alexis Williams had four blocks to go along with four kills and a dig.

– Megan Stilmock added 16 digs defensively with a pair of assists.

Key Northwest Sequence
– Northwest cruised through the first set, hitting 389 to open the match. In the second, Missouri Southern came out with five straight points to put the Bearcats in an early hole. Northwest would then go on a 9-0 run and would not trail for the remainder of the set. After a kill from ruder, Nowakowski added a pair of service aces, sandwiched around a block from Bruder and Schleppenbach. Northwest then got kills from Schleppenbach, Bruder, Gaby da Silva, Dannettell and Schleppenbach to take a 9-5 lead.

Up Next
– Northwest will begin a four-match road trip beginning on Friday, Oct. 6, against Nebraska-Kearney at 6 p.m.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State University soccer team defeated Southwest Baptist, 6-0, on Friday afternoon at Bearcat Pitch in Maryville, Mo.

– Northwest moves to 4-4 overall and 1-1 in MIAA play. Southwest Baptist falls to 2-6-1 on the year and 0-2 in conference action.

– Bri Wawiorka recorded her first collegiate point, goal and multi-assist game in the victory.

– Mollie Holtman had her first career multi-goal game, netting two in the win.

– Ashley Malloy made five saves and combined for the shutout with Rileigh Spahn who made her Northwest debut on Friday.

Key Northwest Statistics
– Just 30 seconds into the match, Wawiorka found Madie Krueger for Northwest’s first goal. Krueger got the ball on the right side of the box and blasted a shot to the far post above the SBU keeper.

– In the 15th minute, Wawiorka found herself alone in the box after the SBU keeper made a diving stop. The freshman burried the rebound into the back of the net for her first goal of the year.

– Izzy Romano found her first goal of the year in the 18th minute off a pass from Wawiorka. Romano took the pass to the left to the box and went around her defender to finish to high to the near post.

– In the 34th minute, Mollie Holtman got on the board with her third goal of the year. Peri Rainey found Holtman wide open on the right side of the field and Holtman beat the keeper for a 4-0 Northwest lead.

– Brianna Hersom took a ball down the left side of the field in the 84th minute and found Mollie Holtman for her second goal of the day. Holtman controlled the pass and put it away to make it 5-0 Northwest.

– Northwest set up for a free kick in the 87th minute and Elizabeth Finn was pushed to the ground in the box, setting up a penalty kick. Hannah Goetz calmly slotted the ball to the left side of the net for her first career goal.

– Northwest outshot Southwest Baptist, 22-17.

– Northwest and SBU each had four corner kicks.

– Romano had a team-high four shots.

– Danielle Wolfe and Mollie Holtman each had three shots in the match.

– Spahn made one save in goal after entering in the 81st minute.

Up Next
– Northwest will host Missouri Southern on Sunday, Oct. 1, at 12:30 p.m. at Bearcat Pitch.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State University volleyball team hit .425 for the match in a 3-0 sweep over Southwest Baptist on Friday at Bearcat Arena in Maryville, Mo.

– Northwest improves to 8-8 on the year and 2-2 in MIAA play. Southwest Baptist falls to 2-15 and 1-3 in conference action.

– Mady Bruder had a match-high 13 kills to go along with eight digs and two blocks. She hit .385 for the match.

Key Northwest Statistics
– Northwest recorded a sideout mark of 78 percent and committed just six attacking errors. Northwest also racked up nine service aces on the night.

– Southwest Baptist was held to a -.101 attack percentage, committing 24 errors.

– Sarah Dannettell had 23 assists with three digs and a block.

– Sofia Schleppenbach came up with a block and nine kills, hitting .500 for the match.

– Maddy Ahrens had four service aces to go along with 11 assists and five digs.

– Olivia Nowakowski recorded a match-high 12 digs and had a pair of service aces.

– Darcy Sunderman had three service aces, seven digs and six kills.

Key Northwest Sequences
– Northwest set the tone early in the first half. Up 4-3, Northwest went on an 8-0 run to take control of the match. After an attacking error, Ahrens took the the service line to deliver Northwest seven straight points, including a pair of service aces. Later in the set, Northwest held a 15-8 lead and would go on to take the next nine points from Southwest Baptist to force set point.

– Northwest closed out the match in convincing fashion. Up 17-11, Northwest would score eight straight points to close out the set. With Gaby da Silva serving, Northwest forced five SBU attacking errors in the sequence.

Up Next
– Northwest will host Missouri Southern on Saturday, Sept. 30, at 2 p.m.

— Northwest Athletics —