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Northwest softball suffers 5-3 loss to Winona State

ST. JOSEPH, Missouri – Olivia Daugherty blasted a three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh, but it wasn’t enough as Winona State hung on for a 5-3 triumph over the Northwest Missouri State softball team on Friday at the Hy-Vee Classic.

Winona State scored a pair of runs in the opening inning and led 2-0 before the Bearcats came to bat. The Bearcats limited the damage to only two runs as they got out of the jam by getting a ground out with the bases loaded.

Winona State scored two more in the top of the fifth and one in the seventh, holding the Bearcats scoreless until the bottom of the seventh inning.

Karli Allen was hit by a pitch to start the seventh and she moved to third when Jacee Winn singled to shortstop. Daugherty followed with her three-run homer to left field to cut the lead to 5-3. Kaitlyn Weis singled with two outs for her second hit of the game bringing the typing run to the plate in the form of Erin Keeney. But Keeney struck out swinging to end the contest.

Up next for the Bearcats is a doubleheader against Missouri S&T in Rolla, Missouri, on Wednesday beginning at noon.

— Northwest Athletics —

Northwest softball splits two games Thursday at Hy-Vee Classic

ST. JOSEPH, Missouri – The Northwest Missouri State University softball team snapped a six-game losing streak by splitting a pair of games at the Hy-Vee Classic.

Northwest tallied a 10-5 win over Northern State, before falling to No. 17-ranked Augustana in extra innings, 5-4.

Game One | Northwest vs. Northern State
Northern State had a 4-0 advantage as the Bearcats came to bat in the third.

The Bearcats answered in the bottom of the third scoring four runs. Olivia Daugherty started things strong with an RBI bringing in Sheridan Thompson to score. Erin Keeney also had an RBI bringing in Daugherty. Next up, Kiana Baderdeen doubled to center field allowing Keeney to score. Sydne Brashear reached base on an error by the first baseman, which allowed Baderdeen to score tying the game at 4-4.

Northwest scored three more in the bottom of the fourth starting with two RBI from Kaitlyn Weis as she drove in Daugherty and Thompson. Moses scored on an error from the second baseman advancing the lead to 7-4.

The Bearcats scored two more in the bottom of the fifth on an RBI from Daugherty that plated Kenzi Sutton. Weis hit a sacrifice fly to score Thompson to push the lead to 9-4.

Northern State scored one in the top of the sixth but it wasn’t enough as the Bearcats scored another run in the bottom of the sixth on a home run from Baderdeen to get the win, 10-5.

Game Two | Northwest vs. No. 17 Augustana
Northwest score first with an RBI from Brashear bringing in Moses to give the Bearcats a 1-0 lead over the Vikings.

Augustana answered in the top of the third with an RBI to tie the score, 1-1.

The Bearcats scored two in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI from Weis and an error from the right fielder allowing Moses and Daugherty to score advancing the score to 3-1.

Augustana knotted the contest at 3-3 with a pair of runs in the sixth. Neither squad could score in the seventh and the matchup went to extra innings.

Augustana hit a two-run homer in the top of the eighth to take the lead, 5-3.

The Bearcats scored one in the bottom of the eighth with an RBI from Thompson allowing Brashear to score, but it wasn’t enough and the Bearcats fell, 5-4.

Up next for the Bearcats is day two of the Hy-Vee Classic Friday against Winona State at 2 p.m.

NOTES: Weis leads the Bearcats with a batting average of .408, four home runs, and 18 RBI … Moses is batting .396 on the season.

— Northwest Athletics —

Griffon softball sweeps Northwest Missouri State

ST. JOSEPH – The Missouri Western softball team (15-12, 4-4) earned its first true doubleheader sweep of the season taking its series from Northwest Missouri State (3-11, 0-6) Wednesday night.

Missouri Western jumped out to a 9-0 lead in game one then fought off a Bearcat rally to win 11-8. In game two, the Griffs scratched across five runs in a bit of a pitcher’s duel to win 5-1. With the two wins, MWSU head coach Jen Bagley Trotter moved one win away from tying Rhesa Sumrell as the winningest coach in MIAA history.

GAME 1
Missouri Western 11, Northwest 8

  • A five-run first and a four-run second gave the Griffs a 9-0 lead after two innings
  • Northwest chipped away at the lead in the third and fourth before a big, 6-run sixth inning pulled the Bearcats within one
  • MWSU added two insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth
  • The Griffons had five doubles in the game
  • Emma Hoffart had four RBIs in the game and went 2-for-4 at the plate with a double and a home run
  • Brea Blanton also homered and went 2-for-4
  • Morgan Frost was 2-for-3 with three runs scored and two doubles
  • Gabi Carter went 2-for-4 and Sydni Hawkins was 2-for-3 with a double
  • Kaili Hinds improved to 7-3 on the season, going 6 1/3 total with five strikeouts

GAME 2
Missouri Western 5, Northwest 1

  • Kenzie Hilzer pitched one of her best games of the season, holding the Bearcats to one earned run on five hits. She struck out five and walked just one to move to 3-5 on the season.
  • The Griffons spread their offense around a little more, scratching out a run in the second, two in the third and two in the sixth on Northwest starter Rachel Smith
  • Smith struck out six Griffon batters in 5 2/3
  • Frost stayed hot, going 3-for-4 with two RBIs and another double. She had two RBIs on a single in the sixth that put Northwest away
  • Hawkins added two more hits and was 2-for-2 at the plate

UP NEXT

  • The Griffons host the Hy-Vee Classic beginning Thursday, March 21
  • The schedule for the classic has been adjusted once again with the loss of Minot State from the field and the threat of rain over the weekend
  • Still, the Griffons will open the Classic against Northern State at 2 p.m. on Thursday.

— MWSU Athletics —

Bearcats defeat Southern to win Central Region title, advance to NCAA DII Elite Eight

MARYVILLE, Missouri – The No. 1-ranked Northwest Missouri State University men’s basketball team secured the program’s fourth trip to the Elite Eight with an 82-70 victory over Missouri Southern State University in the NCAA Central Region final Tuesday in Bearcat Arena.

Sophomore Ryan Hawkins tallied a game-high 28 points as Northwest improved to 35-0 on the season.

Hawkins carried the offense early by scoring the first 13 points of the game for the Bearcats. While Hawkins was firing on all cylinders, Missouri Southern was doing the same and built an 18-11 advantage with 11:36 to play in the first half.

“I thought the putback bucket by Hawkins was a big one for us,” Northwest head coach Ben McCollum said. “That kind of ignited us and got us going after Southern came out and had a lead.”

Hawkins rebound and score off a three-point miss from redshirt freshman Trevor Hudgins ignited an 8-0 run that gave Northwest a 19-18 lead with 9:05 left before halftime.

The Bearcats other Ryan then started to heat up. Junior Ryan Welty buried three straight three-pointers on Northwest’s next three possessions. Following Welty’s third triple, Northwest held a 28-22 lead with 3:13 to play before intermission. Northwest would take a 33-24 lead into the locker room.

A pair of Hudgins free throws to open the second half put the margin into double figures where it would stay until a layup from MSSU’s Kinzer Lambert trimmed the lead to nine at 65-56 with 2:36 to play. But Northwest was able to make 13-of-14 free throws in the final 1:19 to clinch the region title.

Northwest will travel to Evansville, Indiana, and take part in the NCAA Elite Eight March 27-30. Northwest will be the No. 1 seed and will take on Mercyhurst on Wed., March 27, at 2:30 p.m. in The Ford Center.

  1. Northwest Mo. St.
  2. West Tex. A&M
  3. Queens (NC)
  4. Nova Southeastern
  5. St. Anselm
  6. Point Loma
  7. Southern Ind.
  8. Mercyhurst

The schedule for Wednesday’s quarterfinals will be:

  • 12 p.m.: (4) Nova Southeastern vs. (5) St. Anselm
  • 2:30 p.m.: (1) Northwest Mo. St. vs. (8) Mercyhurst
  • 6 p.m.: (2) West Tex. A&M vs. (7) Southern Ind.
  • 8:30 p.m.: (3) Queens (NC) vs. (6) Point Loma

NCAA Central Region All-Tournament Team 
Kevin Buckingham (Southeastern)
Noah Starkey (Southern Nazarene)
Cam Martin (Missouri Southern)
Kinzer Lambert (Missouri Southern)
Ryan Hawkins (Northwest Mo. St.)
Joey Witthus (Northwest Mo. St.)

NOTES: Northwest earned trip to the Elite Eight in 2002, 2004 and 2017 … Northwest captured the NCAA Division II national championship in 2017 … Northwest improved to 17-0 at home and the Bearcats have won 66 of their last 68 home games … Northwest’s 35 wins equal the school record of wins in a season (previously set in 2016-17) … Joey Witthus has made 108 three-pointers this season equaling the school record set by Zach Schneider in 2016-17) … Trevor Hudgins set the Northwest single-season assist record and has accumulated 190 on the season … Witthus has scored 731 points this season and needs 23 more points to equal the school record for points in a season set by Justin Pitts (754 pts.) set in 2016-17.

— MWSU Athletics —

Northwest’s Witthus earns Central Region First Team honors

Northwest Missouri State University senior Joey Witthus has earned NCAA Division II Central Region First-Team honors from the Conference Commissioners Association.

Redshirt freshman Trevor Hudgins also earned second-team all-region status.

The award is voted upon by College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) from the region. The Central Region consists of 42 men’s basketball teams from the Northern Sun (16 teams), Mid-America (14 teams) and Great American (12 teams) conferences.

Witthus is averaging a team-best 21.7 points per game and shooting 51.2 percent from the field. Witthus has buried an-MIAA high 107 three-pointers (one away from the Northwest single-season record of 108 set by Zach Schneider in 2016-17), and he is shooting 45.7 percent from beyond the three-point arc. Witthus leads Northwest in free throws made (150) and his shooting 84.7 percent from the free throw line. The senior from Chanhassen, Minnesota scored a career-high 39 points in Northwest’s 91-62 NCAA first-round win over Minnesota State. Witthus has been named the MIAA Player of the Year and the Most Outstanding Player at the 2019 MIAA Tournament.

Hudgins, the MIAA freshman of the year, is scoring 18.6 points per game and handing out 5.4 assists per game. Hudgins is shooting 53.9 percent from the field, including 48.1 percent from three-point range. Hudgins is making 82.8 percent of his free throws and tied the all-time MIAA record for consecutive free throws made at 36. Hudgins has scored 20 or more points 17 times this season. He has set the Northwest and MIAA freshman scoring record with 631 points.

NCAA Division II Central Region FIRST TEAM
Joey Witthus, Northwest Missouri State
Gage Davis, St. Cloud State
Kevin Buckingham, Southeastern Oklahoma State
Ryan Bruggeman, Southwest Minnesota State
Cam Martin, Missouri Southern State

NCAA Division II Central Region SECOND TEAM
Harrison Cleary, Minnesota Crookston
Trevor Hudgins, Northwest Missouri State
Trevon Evans, Sioux Falls
Jhonathan Dunn, Southern Nazarene
Javion Blake, Washburn

— Northwest Athletics —

Bearcats hold off Southern Nazarene, advance to Regional title against Southern

MARYVILLE, Missouri – The No. 1-ranked Northwest Missouri State men’s basketball moved on to the NCAA Division II Central Region final with a 70-59 triumph over the Southern Nazarene University Crimson Storm in front of a sold out Bearcat Arena.

Senior Joey Witthus led all scorers with 29 points as he made 10-of-16 shots from the field, including a trio of three-pointers.

Redshirt freshman Trevor Hudgins buried a lengthy shot-clock beating three with 1:04 remaining to put away the Crimson Storm. Hudgins tallied 16 points and seven rebounds in the victory.

The Bearcats gained momentum quickly against the Crimson Storm as they got out to a 14-5 advantage in the first six minutes of the game. From then it was a back and forth battle as SNU tried to make gains on the lead, but Northwest handled the push back.

Northwest held a 23-13 lead with 7:38 left in the first half when Southern Nazarene made a run. SNU pulled to within a single point at 24-23 with 4:03 remaining until halftime. Northwest responded with a 7-0 spurt to open it back up to an eight-point margin.

As the contest neared halftime, Witthus buried a triple that gave Northwest a 36-25 lead. But SNU’s Jhonathan Dunn sank a three-pointer to beat the buzzer to make it a 36-28 advantage at the break. It wasn’t soon after that Joey Witthus hit a three-pointer to put the Bearcats back up four and helped carry the momentum to halftime allowing Northwest to go up 36-28.

SNU hung around in the second half and cut the Bearcat lead to 58-53 with 3:51 to play. Hudgins then kept the Crimson Storm at bay by burying two free throws and pair of three-pointers to clinch the win – including the shot-clock beating bomb with just over a minute to play.

Northwest (34-0 overall) will take on MIAA foe Missouri Southern on Tuesday at 7 p.m. with the winner advancing to the NCAA Elite Eight in Evansville on March 27-30.

NOTES: Earlier this season, Northwest and Missouri Southern met in Bearcat Arena with the Bearcats scoring an 82-62 win on Feb. 2. … Hudgins set his career-high in rebounds with seven (he had six in the first half) … Northwest is 15-0 at home this season … over the past three seasons, Northwest is 96-5 overall … Northwest is 25-20 all-time in NCAA play.

— Northwest Athletics —

Northwest baseball salvages final game of series at Pitt State

PITTSBURG, Kansas – The Northwest Missouri State baseball team completed the three-game series at Pittsburg State Sunday, knocking off the Gorillas by scoring eight unanswered runs and winning the game 9-1.

Stellar pitching by junior Joe Funkhouser, freshman Gibson Brown and freshman Max Ross contributed heavily to the victory for the Bearcats (10-12, 6-6 MIAA).
Funkhouser pitched five innings, allowing one run on six hits and striking out four. Brown pitched two and 2/3 innings, allowing just two hits and striking out four. Ross finished off the game on the mound for the Bearcats by not allowing a run in his one and 1/3 inning outing while striking out four Pittsburg State batters.

After a quiet first inning, both teams got on the board in the second inning scoring one run apiece.

Northwest notched five runs in the top of the fourth, initiated by sophomore Matt Gastner drawing a leadoff walk. Successful small ball play advanced Bearcat baserunners around the diamond, scoring five runs and only leaving one stranded.

The Bearcats added three more in the top of the sixth to increase their lead to 9-1 over the Gorillas. Northwest had four base hits in the inning.

Northwest improves to 10-12 on the season, while Pittsburg State falls to 12-10 on the year.

Northwest will be back in action Tuesday, March 22nd against Missouri Southern in Maryville (weather/field conditions permitting). Earlier in the season, the Lions defeated the Bearcats, 12-5.

— Northwest Athletics —

Bearcats open NCAA Tournament with dominate win over Minnesota State

MARYVILLE, Missouri – The Northwest Missouri State University men’s basketball team cruised past Minnesota State 91-62, as they avenged last year’s first round upset and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division II basketball tournament.

The Bearcats fell victim to NCAA Division II March Madness last year against the Mavericks when MSU upset the No. 1 seeded Bearcats, 60-50.

This story played differently as Northwest got on a roll early with a 12-point lead in the first five minutes of the game. That stretch set the tone early as the Bearcats continued their hot shooting tendencies up until halftime when they carried a 54-35 advantage

Joey Witthus lead the Bearcats in scoring as he finished with a career-high 39 points. It’s the sixth time this season that Witthus scored 30 or more points in a game.

Northwest was granted their largest lead of the night with two minutes left to go in the game as they went up by 31 points. This surge of offensive power was helped by a sold-out crowd at Bearcat Arena.

Other key players from the game were Trevor Hudgins who neared a double-double with 16 points nine assists. Diego Bernard also scored double digits as he tallied 20 points in the victory.

The Bearcats will face-off against Southern Nazarene in the second round of the NCAA Tournament Sunday at 7:30 p.m.

— Northwest Athletics —

Northwest baseball loses in 10 innings at Pittsburg State

PITTSBURG, Kansas – The Pittsburg State University Gorillas scored a 3-2 extra-inning win over the Northwest Missouri State University Bearcat baseball team in game two of a three-game set.

After a quiet three innings to open the ball game, the Bearcats (9-12, 5-6 MIAA) struck first by scoring two runs in the top of the fourth.

Junior first baseman Conner Quick led off the fourth by doubling to centerfield. Senior catcher Alixon Herrera recorded his first RBI of the game, knocking a double to center to score Quick. A third double of the inning was laced by senior outfielder Derek Hussey, scoring Herrera. Senior infielder Logan Rycraft grounded out to end the inning, stranding Hussey at second.

Junior pitcher Quintin Van Ackeren got the start on the bump for the Bearcats, throwing six and 2/3 scoreless innings while allowing three hits and striking out six.

The Gorilla offense notched their first runs of the game in the bottom of the eighth, scoring two and tying up the game heading into the ninth inning. Junior infielder Ty Herrenbruck smacked a two-run home run for Pittsburg State to knot it up.

Both the Bearcats and the Gorillas went three-up, three-down in the ninth, forcing the game into extra innings.

After holding Northwest scoreless in the top of the 10th, Pittsburg State added the game winner in the bottom half of the 10th.

Freshman Gibson Brown and senior Trevor Dudar also made appearances on the mound for the Bearcats. Dudar received the loss, bringing his record to 1-1 on the season.

The Bearcats will be back in action for game-three of the series on Sunday at 1 p.m. in Pittsburg, Kansas.

— Northwest Athletics —

Northwest baseball gets shutout in series opener at Pitt State

PITTSBURG, Kansas – The Pittsburg State University Gorillas shut out the Northwest Missouri State University baseball team in game one of a three-game set Friday, 10-0.

The Gorillas put up a three-spot in the first off Bearcat starter Max Spitzmiller. The Gorillas tallied four hits, including a pair of run scoring doubles, in the three-run first.

The Gorillas added three more in the fourth in four more hits to increase the lead to 6-0. Northwest had a scoring opportunity in the fifth when Michael Gastner doubled and Calvin Rudolph followed with a walk. However, Derek Hussey grounded into a fielder’s choice, third to second, and Logan Rycraft grounded out to the pitcher to end the scoring threat.

Pitt State put two runners on with two outs in the fifth to chase Spitzmiller and Jarret Cronin induced a liner to left for the third out to escape any more damage.

Peter Carlson singled to lead off the sixth and Alixon Herrera singled with two out. But a Connor Quick ground out to second ended the inning with the Bearcats trailing, 6-0.

Pitt State added two runs in the second and two more in the eighth to close out 10-0 contest.

Pittsburg State improves to 11-9 overall and 6-4 in the MIAA, while Northwest drops to 9-11 overall and 5-5 in league action.

NOTES: Peter Carlson and Matt Gastner each tallied two hits in the game … Max Spitzmiller went 4 2/3 innings and gave up 10 hits and six runs while striking out three.

— Northwest Athletics —

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