The 14th-ranked Northwest Missouri State men’s basketball team came up just short in Friday’s season opener against Upper Iowa, falling 76-72.

The game was played in front of 371 fans inside MWSU Fieldhouse in St. Joseph, Mo as a part of the 24th annual Hillyard Tip-off Classic.

With the win, Upper Iowa moves to 1-3 this season. The Peacocks opened the season two weeks early when they played in an exempt tournament in Anaheim, Calif.

Sophomore Justin Pitts led all scorers with 22 points. The guard also dished out seven assists and made three steals.

Northwest forced 18 Upper Iowa turnovers, while committing just eight turnovers itself.

D’Vante Mosby opened his Bearcat career with an impressive outing, nailing six-of-eight shots from the field, totaling 18 points. The junior also led the Bearcats with eight rebounds. Mosby threw down a two-handed dunk late in the second half to give the Bearcats a momentary one point lead, 58-57.

Conner Crooker contributed 12 points and three rebounds. Seven of the senior’s points came in the second half when he made five-of-six free throws.

After Upper Iowa hit a pair of free throws, Northwest trailed 33-24 with 3:47 left before halftime. Zach Schneider knocked down his first trey of the game two possessions later, closing the gap to 33-27. The Peacocks missed a pair of free throws, allowing Chris-Ebou Ndow to hit a three-pointer of his own on a pass from Justin Pitts. Pitts made a driving layup 40 seconds later to make it a one point game. Following a sixth straight miss from Upper Iowa, Xavier Kurth was fouled. The sophomore knocked down one-of-two free throws, ending a Bearcat 9-0 run and tying the score at 33 going into the break.

Following an eight-point run from the Peacocks, Northwest went on another big run to tie the score at 47. After a foul, Conner Crooker stepped to the stripe and dropped in the first free throw. The second shot rimmed out, but D’Vante Mosby grabbed the offensive board and laid it back in. Another Peacock foul allowed Pitts to drill two free throws, narrowing the deficit to 47-45. Anthony Woods hit a layup two possessions later to finish the Bearcat rally.

Northwest Missouri State will continue play in the Hillyard Tip-off Classic when they take on Wayne State in St. Joseph, Mo. Saturday afternoon at 5:30.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State women’s basketball team opened the 2015-16 season with a loss to Augustana, 89-52.

The game was played in the Stewart Center on the campus of Sioux Falls in Sioux Falls, S.D.

Senior Tember Schechinger led Northwest with 12 points and seven rebounds after knocking down five-of-11 shots from the field.

Jasmin Howe and Shelby Mustain each matched Schechinger’s seven rebounds. Mustain scored eight points, including six in the first half, while Howe added four points, one assist and one steal.

The Bearcats hit 19-of-51 shots in the game (37.3 percent), while the Vikings hit 47.1 percent of their shots (33-of-70).

Northwest scored on four straight possessions late in the third quarter to claw closer to the Vikings. Tember Schechinger connected on two straight layups, the first coming on a pass from Arbrie Benson. After Schechinger knocked down one-of-two free throws on the next Bearcat possession, Taryne Shull made a driving layup to close the gap to 64-38.

The Bearcats will wrap up the opening weekend when they play host Sioux Falls Saturday at 6 p.m.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State volleyball team dropped a tough five-set match against Fort Hays State Saturday afternoon in Hays, Kan.

The loss drops the Bearcats to 15-10 this season and 8-7 against conference opponents, while the Tigers improve to 19-12 overall and 8-8 in the MIAA.

Freshman Maddy Bruder led Northwest with 14 kills and added 13 digs and two block assists on defense, while Sofia Schleppenbach picked up seven block assists to go along with 11 kills, hitting .308 for the match.

Down a set and after a Fort Hays block, Northwest trailed 20-18 late in the second set. A Tiger service error returned serve to the Bearcats. Two straight blocks from Sofia Schleppenbach and Jackie Becker put the Bearcats in front 21-20. Schleppenbach then added a kill on a pass from Darcy Sunderman before Maddy Bruder extended the lead on a pass from Jordan Trimble. On the following point, Trimble found Becker to give Northwest set point. Bruder finished things off with a kill two points later, giving the Bearcats the second set, 25-20.

Northwest Missouri State will play three matches in five days to close out the regular season. First up, Northwest will make the short drive to St. Joseph, Mo. to face off against Missouri Western on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 7 p.m.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State University volleyball team fell to Nebraska-Kearney on Friday evening, 3-0, at the Health and Sports Center in Kearney, Neb.

Northwest falls to 15-9 overall and 8-5 in MIAA play. The Lopers, who entered the match ranked No. 12 by the AVCA improve to 24-5 overall and 11-3 in conference action.

The Bearcats held leads in both the first and third sets before falling to UNK late.

Northwest recorded nine total blocks to the Lopers’ five on the evening.

Senior Libero Aarika Wittenburg had a match-high 16 digs with an assist.  Middle hitters Jackie Becker and Alexis Williams each had four blocks assists. Becker also added seven kills.  Miranda Foster had nine kills, six digs and three blocks.

The Bearcats will head to Hays, Kan., for a 2 p.m. match against Fort Hays State on Saturday at Gross Memorial Coliseum.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State women’s basketball team defeated Graceland in an exhibition contest Wednesday night inside Bearcat Arena, 78-66.

Tanya Meyer led the Bearcats with 15 points, making six of her ten attempts from the field. The sophomore added six rebounds, three steals, and one block.

Junior transfer Jasmin Howe contributed 13 points, also corralling six boards. Howe led Northwest with 32 minutes played.

Jaylah Jackson tallied 13 points and three assists in her first appearance inside Bearcat Arena.

The Bearcats turned the ball over just 10 times, compared to 18 for the Yellowjackets and Northwest held Graceland to a 38.2 field goal percentage.

Northwest Missouri State will open the regular season next weekend when they travel to Sioux Falls, S.D. for two games. First, Northwest will go head-to-head with Augustana on Friday, Nov. 13 before playing Sioux Falls on Saturday, Nov. 14. Both games will begin at 6 p.m. and are being played at the Stewart Center on the University of Sioux Falls campus.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State soccer team scored two goals in the final five minutes to defeat Lindenwood in Sunday’s Senior Day match, 4-3.

The eight Bearcat soccer seniors, Jill Kieffer, Anna Holden, Crystal McElhose, Sara Worsfold, Nicole Mitchell, Taylor Trotter, Katelynn Lindsey and Elizabeth Lee, were honored at halftime.

All four Northwest goals were scored by seniors.

Holden scored two goals in the match, giving her 13 all-time as a Bearcat. The forward added an assist while attempting three total shots. Holden opened the scoring in the sixth minute when she scored to the right post from the center of the box after a through ball from McElhose.

Worsfold put the Bearcats ahead 2-0 in the seventh minute when she scored from the center of the box. The goal was set up by an Ashley Cole pass to the corner that found Holden, who subsequently sent a cross into the box.

McElhose scored the game-tying goal in the 86th minute on a penalty kick. The midfielder sent the ball to the right side of the net, past the diving keeper. She added one assist and three shots, two on frame.

Lee made four saves in the match and earned the win in goal, her second win career win as a goalie. The Omaha, Neb. native made a crucial save at the end of the first half.

Northwest attempted 17 shots in the match, compared to just 11 for the Lady Lions.

The Bearcats end their season 4-10-3 and 3-7-1 in the MIAA.

— Northwest Athletics —

The Northwest Missouri State University volleyball team fell to 10th-ranked Washburn University 3-1 (17-25, 25-21, 19-25, 23-15) on Friday evening in Bearcat Arena.

The Bearcats fall to 14-8 overall and 7-5 in MIAA play. The Ichabods improve to 24-2 overall and 11-2 in conference action.

Maddy Bruder had a team-high 13 kills with nine digs, four blocks and two blocks.

Northwest had 13 total blocks, the second highest mark of the season.

Sarah Dannettell had a match-high 45 assists with five blocks, while Jackie Becker had a match-high sevn block assists with eight kills.

Northwest hosts Emporia State in the season’s final home match starting at 3 p.m. in Bearcat Arena.

— Northwest Athletics —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Northwest Missouri State University men’s basketball team was ranked No. 14 in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) NCAA Division II preseason poll. The Bearcats received 141 points and were the highest ranked MIAA program in the season-opening poll. Missouri Southern, Nebraska-Kearney and Central Missouri all received votes.

The Bearcats were picked first in the MIAA preseason coaches poll after going 25-7 with an outright MIAA regular season title in 2014-15. Northwest also advanced to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen for the second consecutive season. First team All-MIAA performer Justin Pitts was also named the MIAA Freshman of the Year. Senior guard Conner Crooker earned second team All-MIAA honors while Zach Schneider was an All-MIAA honorable mention performer. Head coach Ben McCollum was named the MIAA’s Co-Coach of the Year with Kevin Muff of Pittsburg State.

Northwest opens the 2015-16 season on Friday, Nov. 13, against Upper Iowa in St. Joseph, Mo., at 5:30 p.m. The first home action for the Bearcats will be on Tuesday, Nov. 24, at 7:30 p.m. against Central Methodist. Northwest will face Augustana, the NABC’s top ranked team, on Thursday, Nov. 19, at 7 p.m. in Sioux Falls, S.D.

— Northwest Athletics —