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Missouri baseball wins season opener at Florida International

MIAMI – Mizzou Baseball scored two runs in the top of the ninth inning on a pair of wild pitches to escape host Florida International with a 3-1, opening day win. Sophomore LHP and Preseason All-American T.J. Sikkema (DeWitt, Iowa) was outstanding in relief, throwing 5.0 innings while striking out a seven, his most in a relief outing since March 4 of last season vs. UIC. He allowed just one earned run on four hits in the win.

Junior OF Zach Hanna (Shawnee Mission, Kan.) hit his first Division I homer in the top of the sixth inning Friday, giving Mizzou a 1-0 lead while turning in a two-hit night. Florida International tied the game in the bottom of the sixth but Mizzou took advantage of a leadoff error in the ninth and the two wild pitches to escape with the season-opening win.

Reliever Nile Ball got the final out of the game after a 4-6-3 double play, induced by Sikkema, in the ninth to earn his first Division I save.

TURNING POINT
Junior 3B Brian Sharp (Liberty, Mo.) reached base on a leadoff error in the top of the ninth inning and that spelled doom for the home Panthers. After a Chris Cornelius (St. Louis, Mo.) walk, a successful sacrifice moved the runners up and both scored on wild pitches to give Mizzou a 3-1 lead heading to the bottom of the ninth inning. The first two Panther batters reached base against Sikkema, but a big 4-6-3 double play, Mizzou’s second of the night, squelched the threat before Nile Ball retired the final batter of the game.

— Mizzou Athletics —

Kansas State’s Snyder announces defensive staff changes

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State head coach Bill Snyder announced Friday that six-year defensive coordinator Tom Hayes has retired, linebackers coach Blake Seiler has been promoted to Defensive Coordinator and Brian Norwood has been hired as Co-Defensive Coordinator tutoring the Wildcat secondary.

Hayes’ retirement completes a career of more than 40 years in the coaching profession that has spanned nine different Division I schools and two NFL teams. He will remain on staff as a quality control coach through the end of his current contract, which expires at the end of April. Hayes has spent the last seven seasons on the K-State staff, including the final six as the defensive coordinator.

“I am appreciative of so many people at Kansas State and throughout my entire career,” Hayes said. “I am thankful for the opportunity Coach Snyder gave me to come to K-State in 2011 and take over the defense in 2012. I really appreciate the players over all these years – they are hard-working and dedicated. Our administration and support staff have been unbelievable, and our fanbase on game day has been just phenomenal.

“We will miss Manhattan – it is a great town full of great people – but Cindy and I are looking forward to the next chapter in our life.”

Hayes has helped the Wildcats earn a collective 61-30 record since 2011, advance to seven bowl games and pick up a Big 12 Championship in 2012.

“We greatly appreciate Tom and Cindy Hayes, who have been with us for seven seasons and together brought so very much to our program,” Snyder said. “They will both be missed.”

Seiler, a three-year letterwinner for the Wildcats (2004-06), coached the defensive ends from 2013-16 before being promoted to assistant defensive coordinator working with the linebackers this past season.

“We are very fortunate to have coaches like Blake Seiler, who is well prepared to step into the coordinator role,” Snyder said. “Blake is a bright young man, quick learner, hard worker and well-received and trusted by our players. He helped coordinate our defense this past year with emphasis on our run defense. Blake is highly respected by our staff and players for his values as well as his passionate teaching.”

A native of Goddard, Kansas, Seiler began his coaching career as a quality control coach (2009-10) and graduate assistant (2011-12) after spending two years as a structural engineer at Cessna Aircraft Company in Wichita.

“I am extremely grateful for this opportunity,” Seiler said. “I have been blessed to learn under several great coaches during my time here at K-State, with Coach Snyder and Coach Hayes certainly being the most influential. Our defensive staff is excited to prepare for spring practices and the upcoming season.”

Norwood has spent the last three seasons at Tulsa as associate head coach and co-defensive coordinator coaching the safeties. He is no stranger to the Big 12 having spent time at Texas Tech (2010) and Baylor (2008-14).

“I am so very pleased to have Brian Norwood join our staff as our secondary coach and co-defensive coordinator,” Snyder said. “He comes to us highly recommended by many coaches who I highly respect. Brian is truly a K-State type of person. He is a caring, loyal, genuine, disciplined, hard-working and responsible person with the highest value system – a great family man and a man of faith. We are honored to have he and his wonderful wife Tiffiney, along with his children, join our Wildcat family.”

Norwood has coached in 13 bowl games in his 28-year coaching career, which included seven-year stops at Penn State (2001-07) and Baylor.

“My family and I are extremely happy to be coming to Kansas State University, a program that I have always admired from afar,” Norwood said. “It is a consistently competitive and successful program, one that plays hard and with class. Playing against K-State at other institutions I have been a part of, you always know you are going into a fight against a program that does it the right way. I thank Coach Snyder and the staff for selecting me to be a member of the K-State family. I am excited to contribute to a program with such great leadership. I view coaching as a calling, and I thank God for this great opportunity.”

Hayes, who has been instrumental in the Wildcats’ resurgence on defense since 2011, completed his 29th year of coaching experience at the collegiate level in 2017 and participated in his 20th career bowl game when the Wildcats won the 2017 Cactus Bowl.

K-State finished the 2017 season ranked fourth in the Big 12 in scoring defense (25.2 points per game) and third in rushing defense (117.7 yards per game), the latter ranking 13th in the nation and 10th in school history. The Wildcats also tied for second in the league in turnover margin at plus-10 thanks to 23 takeaways, a mark that ranked fourth in the league.

The Wildcats had one of the better defenses in Big 12 history in 2016 as K-State led the league in scoring defense, total defense and rushing defense to become the first Big 12 program to rank first in all three categories since 2008 (Texas). K-State allowed only 115.0 rushing yards per game to rank ninth in school history and 11th in the nation, its highest national ranking in the category since 2003. Additionally, the Wildcats posted their highest national ranking in scoring defense since the 2002 season.

Seiler enters his 10th season on the K-State staff in 2018 and sixth as an assistant coach. After coaching the defensive ends from 2013-16, Seiler was promoted to assistant defensive coordinator in 2017 when he began tutoring the Wildcat linebackers.

It didn’t take long for Seiler put his mark on the second level of the defense as he produced a pair of All-Big 12 linebackers in Jayd Kirby and Trent Tanking in his first season coaching the position. They each ranked in the top 10 in the Big 12 in tackles with Kirby finishing eighth (99) and Tanking tying for 10th (97).

A former defensive lineman, Seiler made an impact from day one as an assistant coach, and one has to look no further than the work he did with defensive ends Jordan Willis (2016) and Ryan Mueller (2014), both of whom tied the single-season sack records during their respective All-American seasons.

Under the direction of Seiler for his entire four-year career, Willis picked up Second Team All-America honors from Sporting News and Pro Football Focus thanks to his 11.5 sacks and 17.5 tackles for loss in 2016. Willis also became the first Wildcat defensive lineman to earn Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year honors and was the league’s Defensive Lineman of the Year prior to being selected in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals.

Norwood’s time at Baylor included three seasons as the defensive coordinator (2008-10) in which he oversaw a unit that totaled nine All-Big 12 honorees and two All-Americans. During the Bears’ 2013 Big 12 Championship season, Norwood coached First Team All-American Ahmad Dixon, while both of Baylor’s 2011 starting safeties, Mike Hicks and Sam Holl, earned All-Big 12 honors. Holl finished second on the squad with 113 total tackles and Hicks was third with 105, and each had three interceptions. In 2010, Norwood coached First Team All-Big 12 honoree Byron Landor, who totaled 127 tackles.

Norwood will serve under a second Hall of Fame head coach in Snyder as he was an assistant under Joe Paterno at Penn State from 2001-07. During Norwood’s seven seasons in Happy Valley, the Nittany Lions led the Big Ten in pass efficiency defense twice (2004 and 2005) and finished third on two occasions (2003 and 2006). Penn State ranked among the nation’s top 25 in pass efficiency defense four times, including a No. 4 ranking in 2004.

Norwood’s other coaching stops include tutoring the defensive backs at Navy (1995-99), while his first full-time coaching job was coaching the outside linebackers at Richmond (1992-94) after serving two years as a graduate assistant at Arizona (1990-91).

Norwood was a four-year letterwinner at both cornerback and safety at Hawaii (1984-87) and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in communication in 1988. He and his wife, Tiffiney, have five children: Gabriel, Jordan, Levi, Brianna and Zaccariah. Gabriel was a member of George Mason’s 2006 men’s basketball Final Four team. Jordan played eight seasons in the NFL – including the 2015 campaign with the Super Bowl Champion Denver Broncos – while Levi was a four-year letterwinner at Baylor (2011-14).

— K-State Athletics —

Missouri Western women fall to Missouri Southern 61-52

ST. JOSEPH – The Missouri Western women’s basketball lost at home to Missouri Southern Thursday night 61-52. The Griffons fall to 11-14 this season and 4-12 in the MIAA, while Southern improves to 11-13 and 8-8 in league play.

After three quarters of back and forth basketball, MWSU’s offense went cold. The Griffons shot 14 percent from the field and went the final eight minutes without a field goal. The fourth quarter woes overshadowed a hot start to the game and end of the third quarter by Missouri Western.

The Griffons shot 70 percent from the field and put up 19 points in the first quarter. MWSU built momentum in the third quarter with a 12-6 run over the last 5:06. However, the first and third quarter efforts were not enough to prevent the fourth quarter struggles.

NOTABLES
– Missouri Western outscored Missouri Southern 16-3 off the bench

– The Griffons were whistled for 25 fouls, 10 more than the Lions

– MWSU forced 20 turnovers, the most since Southwest Baptist on Jan. 15

– Melia Richardson had a team-high 18 points for the Griffons and broke a three game drought of 10 or less points

– MWSU was 60 percent from the three-point line in the first quarter but made one three over the next three quarters

– MSSU’s Desirea Buerge (25 points) and Chelsey Henry (20) combined for 45 of the team’s 61 points

UP NEXT
Missouri Western plays its final home game on Saturday, Jan. 17 at 2 p.m. against Pittsburg State. The Griffons will honor their four seniors on Saturday as well.

— MWSU Athletics —

No. 6 Bearcats roll past Pitt State without Pitts

By David Boyce – Northwest Athletics

MARYVILLE, Mo. – If you want to build drama, you could point to five minutes into the second half and say Pittsburg State was on the verge of making a dramatic comeback that was going to shock first-place Northwest Missouri State Thursday evening at Bearcat Arena.

The Gorillas had reduced a 22-point deficit late in the first half to 12 with a couple of opportunities to cut it to 10.

Oh, and to add intrigue to the unfolding drama, Northwest senior point guard Justin Pitts, last year’s leading man as NCAA Division II player of the year, was on the bench in street clothes with foot issues.

Folks, this is what is called a false narrative.

Northwest was never in danger of losing. The Bearcats easily handled Pittsburg State’s mild run and won 78-64. The victory lifted Northwest to 22-2 overall and 14-2 in the MIAA. Six players scored in double figures.

“We approached it like it was a championship game, postseason game, loser go home,” said senior Chris-Ebou Ndow, who finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds. “Obviously, with Pitts out, we knew we had to come mentally prepared. Although we had quite a few turnovers (18), we came prepared defensively, and we executed offensively when we actually got the ball over half court.”

Everything was working in the first half for Northwest. The Bearcats scored the first seven points of the game and wasted little time building a 21-9 lead.

Like in many of their blowouts, the Bearcats were on fire from the outside. Sophomore Ryan Welty made all three of his three-point attempts and Ndow was three for six from behind the arc. In all, Northwest went eight for 13 on three-pointers.

“It is definitely a good feeling when you see shots going down,” said Welty, who finished with 13 points. “We got a big lead, which definitely helped us in this game. The second half we were pretty bad. It is always good to come out and hit shots and see the ball go through the hoop.”

The hot outside shooting by the Bearcats staked them to a commanding 35-13 lead. Northwest took a comfortable 43-26 lead into halftime.

The Gorillas started the second half with a lot of fire in them. They went to a full-court press and that bothered Northwest a little. On a few possessions, the Bearcats needed Pitts.

“There was really no excuse for some of them, but we know we will be better,” Ndow said.

The few turnovers Pittsburg State created helped the Gorillas close to 49-37 with 15:05 left in the game. Northwest junior Joey Witthus restored order by scoring the next seven points. His inside scoring outburst pushed Northwest’s lead to 56-37 lead with 10:32 left in the game.

The little threat was over.

“I have so much confidence in my team, especially this year defensively,” Ndow said. “I have never played on a team that is this locked in defensively. If we make dumb turnovers or it is not our night offensively, our defense can win us games.”

Northwest will now focus on Saturday’s final regular-season home game against Missouri Southern. The Bearcats have only lost three times in the last two seasons, and two of them were against Missouri Southern.

“My family being here is more motivation,” said Ndow, who is from Norway.

— Northwest Athletics —

MWSU softball gets swept by Minnesota Duluth in first home games

ST. JOSEPH – Despite 17 runs on 23 hits by the Missouri Western softball team (2-4) on Thursday, the Griffons were swept in its home opening series by Minnesota Duluth (4-0).

MWSU dropped game one 22-12 after jumping out to an early 7-0 lead. They fell in game two 14-5.

NOTABLES
– MWSU jumped out to a 7-0 lead in game one after two innings and led 10-6 after a six run third by UMD was answered with a three-run third for the Griffons

– Shelbie Atwell had a team-high four hits in the doubleheader, going 4-for-6 at the plate with a double and a run scored

– Shelby Uhl went 3-for-8 on the day with three doubles in game one

– Morgan Frost had a team-high four RBIs on the day, hitting her first home run as a Griffon and going 3-for-8 at the plate

– Rebekah Mueller went 3-for-7 and hit a home run in her third consecutive game in the first game

– All three Griffon pitchers appeared in game one with Kenzie Hilzer pitching all seven innings in game two

– Kaili Hinds took the loss in game one with Hilzer taking the loss in game two

UP NEXT
The Griffons host a quad crossover this weekend in place of the cancelled Arkansas-Monticello 9-State Classic. Missouri Western kicks off the event with a doubleheader against Minnesota State at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 17.

Frericks, No. 13 Mizzou women hold off Auburn 59-51

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Jordan Frericks scored 19 points and No. 13 Missouri built an early lead and held off Auburn on Thursday night 59-51 to win its fourth straight.

Sophie Cunningham added 12 points for Missouri (21-5, 9-4 Southeastern Conference), which won despite turning the ball over 24 times.

Missouri scored the last nine points of the first quarter to take a 19-7 lead and pushed it to 30-16 at halftime. Auburn shot 18 percent in the first half (7 of 38), going 2 of 13 from distance.

Auburn put together an 18-5 run in the third quarter and back-to-back baskets by Daisa Alexander cut the deficit to 38-34. Missouri made three free throws to end the quarter, and they slowly built the lead back into double figures in the fourth quarter, making 7 of 9 shots.

Janiah McKay had 18 points for Auburn (13-12, 4-9), which finished the game at 28 percent.

— Associated Press —

Northwest women come up short against Pittsburg State

By David Boyce – Northwest Athletics

MARYVILLE, Mo. – A three-pointer by freshman point guard Jaelyn Haggard gave a clear signal that Northwest Missouri State’s women’s basketball team put its last game behind them and was ready to battle Pittsburg State for four quarters.

“Tonight was such a big night,” said Haggard, referring to the Pink Out game to fight breast cancer. “We had a big crowd. It gave everybody the extra drive to come out and try to get a win.”

Northwest played well despite losing 73-62 Thursday night at Bearcat Arena. Senior Tanya Meyer, playing in her next-to-last game at home, turned in a splendid performance, scoring 31 and grabbing seven rebounds.

“I am going in every game trying to help our team be successful,” Meyer said. “Tonight was way more than us. Being the Pink Out game, competing for those survivors and knowing they have battled a much worse battle than we ever have gone through.”

Pittsburg State entered the contest in second place in the MIAA. The Gorillas showed plenty of signs in the first half that they are indeed the second-best team in conference. They recovered from a 19-15 deficit late in the first quarter and built a 24-19 lead.

“I think a lot of it was the added effort that we had compared to some previous games,” Northwest coach Buck Scheel said. “To hold that team to six offensive rebounds compared to what we have done before against teams was good.

“The tough thing was some of those offensive rebounds came at crucial times when we really needed a stop. With a team like that, second chance opportunities, they are going to make you pay. There is a reason why they have only lost five games and three in the league.”

Undaunted by the 9-0 run by Pittsburg State, the Bearcats fought back. A three-pointer by freshman guard Kylie Coleman pulled Northwest within two. The Gorillas scored the next seven points for a 31-22.

Northwest battled back once again. When Meyer drilled a three-pointer and followed with a layup, the Bearcats found themselves behind only 33-30. The Bearcats stayed close the rest of the second quarter and trailed 38-35 at halftime.

Meyer kept the Bearcats in striking distance. A three-pointer by her early in the third quarter narrowed the gap to 41-39. After the Gorillas responded with a three-pointer, Meyer answered with a two-point field goal.

“My teammates did a really good job of getting me the ball when I was open,” Meyer said. “Props to them. I know I don’t open my mouth a lot. I know if they see me open, they will give me the ball.”

Pittsburg State went into the fourth quarter with a 52-45 lead. Behind the scoring of Meyer, Northwest stayed close most of the fourth quarter, but was unable to come up with a run that would tie or give the Bearcats the lead.

— Northwest Athletics —

Man sentenced for abduction, rape of NE Kansas deputy

OLATHE, Kan. (AP) — A man has been sentenced to 41 years and three months in prison for kidnapping and raping a suburban Kansas City sheriff’s deputy with the help of another man.

Luth and Newman-Caddell

26-year-old William Luth, of Blue Springs, Missouri, was sentenced Thursday after the prosecutor read a statement from the deputy in which she described “two hours of hell.” The deputy wasn’t in uniform when she was abducted in October 2016 from the parking lot of a detention center in Olathe, Kansas, while headed to work. She was released in the Missouri suburb of Lee’s Summit.

Charges in the attack also are pending against Brady Newman-Caddell. Luth and Newman-Caddell also are charged with sexual assaulting a Missouri woman while her 2-year-old daughter was in the same bed.

Griffons lose at home to Missouri Southern 81-70

ST. JOSEPH – The Missouri Western men’s basketball fell at home to Missouri Southern Wednesday night 81-70. The Griffons drop to 5-18 this season and 3-13 in the MIAA. The Lions have won five straight games as they improve to 17-8 and are tied for second in the MIAA at 12-4.

Missouri Western found itself in a back and forth battle in the first half. MSSU hit a three-pointer with four seconds left in the half to take a seven point lead. The Lions pushed their lead to 14 points after a hot start to the second half. Lavon Hightower and Bryan Hudson combined for 13 points and powered the Griffons to a 15-5 rally to cut the lead to four points with 11 minutes to go in the game.

After Missouri Southern scored five unanswered points, Hightower took off for seven of Missouri Western’s 11 points over a four minute stretch. The run allowed the Griffons to make it a one possession game with 5:38 left in the game. However, the Lions pulled away late to win the game.

NOTABLES
– Lavon Hightower and Missouri Southern’s CJ Carr scored a game-high 24 points

– Bryan Hudson had 12 points, it is third consecutive game in double-digits

– Missouri Western was 51.6 percent from the field in the second half

– The Lions shot 20 free throws in the game, 10 more than the Griffons

– The two teams combined for 24 assists in the game

– MSSU’s Kinzer Lambert had a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds

UP NEXT
Missouri Western plays its final home game on Saturday at 4 p.m. against Pittsburg State. The Griffons will recognize their five seniors prior to tip-off.

— MWSU Athletics —

Brown scores 25 as K-State gets road win at Oklahoma State

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Kansas State had a spike in offensive performance but ultimately, it was the Wildcats’ defense that determined victory.

Bobby Brown scored 25 points and Xavier Sneed added 13 points and six rebounds to help lead Kansas State to a convincing 82-72 victory over Oklahoma State Wednesday night.

“I just wanted to take what they gave me, that was my approach,” said Brown, who had a career-high 38 points in the last meeting between the two teams, an 86-82 K-State win on Jan. 10. “When I was able to get all the way to the basket, I tried to do that. It just worked out, I just played my game.”

Dean Wade had 12 points, five rebounds and four assists while Kamau Stokes scored 11 for Kansas State (18-8, 7-6 Big 12). The Wildcats were 1/3 in their previous four contests.

K-State coach Bruce Weber was happy his team’s bench was able to outscore Oklahoma State’s by a 24-15 margin, despite being outrebounded 39-28 on the evening.

“Rebounding’s not our strength, but we always make up for it by always taking care of the basketball and making the right plays,” Weber said. “I thought we were in attack mode, we took care of the ball, we made a lot of good plays, the right plays, and we were good defensively. A good road win against a team that’s good.”

Kendall Smith contributed 16 points and a career-high seven rebounds for Oklahoma State (15-11, 5-8). It was Smith’s seventh straight outing with 10-plus points. Jeffrey Carroll added 13 points and nine rebounds.

“Really poor performance, different ways in each half,” said OSU coach Mike Boynton. “We didn’t run a very good offense, I think we settled for some contested jumpers over a hand, those just aren’t good shots for us. Then in the second half, we ran better offense, got better looks, and our defense kind of wilted and gave in at key moments, even when we had chances to just make a run. K-State deserved to win. They executed better at both ends of the court.”

Kansas State led just 18-16 when Smith put home a layup with 6:12 left in the opening half, but the Wildcats jumped out to a 12-0 run over the next four-plus minutes to take control of the contest. They outscored the Cowboys 19-4 over the remainder of the half to take a commanding 37-20 advantage into the second.

Oklahoma State shot just 23.5 percent from the floor in the first half (8 of 34), its lowest output of the season, both in terms of percentage and points scored. The 17-point halftime deficit was the largest of the year.

Although they Cowboys shot better in the second, K-State was able to keep the pressure on and never allowed Oklahoma State to get any closer than 13 until the final minute.

BIG PICTURE

Kansas State: The Wildcats have had a number of offensively-challenged performances over their past few outings, but they appeared to have a powerful attack in this one. After five straight games of producing fewer than 70 points and topping 38 percent shooting just once, Kansas State shot 55 percent (28 of 51), including 56 percent in the first half (15 of 27). That shooting percentage marked their highest in the last six games (since shooting 57 percent in a 90-83 win over Baylor on Jan. 22).

Oklahoma State: The frustrating every-other-outing pattern continues. The Cowboys keep following strong, full-40-minute performances in which they’ve secured key victories over difficult opponents with sub-par outings that result in losses to slightly lesser foes. They’ve pulled out triumphs against then-No. 4 Oklahoma (83-81 in overtime on Jan. 20), then-No. 7 Kansas (84-79 on Feb. 3) and then-No. 19 West Virginia (88-85 last Saturday), but have followed each with losses to TCU, Baylor and now K-State. After the West Virginia win, it seemed like OSU might finally break the streak, but once again, the Cowboys fell behind by a large margin late in the first half. The inevitable second half comeback attempt also followed, but it was too little, too late as OSU couldn’t get to closer than 14 until the final 3:18.

TIP INS

Kansas State is 0-6 combined against ranked Big 12 opponents, No. 7 Texas Tech, No. 13 Kansas and No. 20 West Virginia, and 7-0 against the rest of the league. . Oklahoma State had just two assists in the first half and seven overall for the game, tied for their lowest total of the season. . The Cowboys entered the day averaging 15.2 turnovers forced per game, but K-State committed just eight for the contest.

HE SAID IT

“Our bench was just huge,” Weber said. “That has definitely not been a strength for us. You got Kam (Stokes) coming off the bench for us and Levi (Stockard III, who had eight points and five rebounds in 23 minutes), that was by far his best game. Since early in the season, I don’t think our bench has outscored the opponent’s bench, so that was one of the keys to the game.”

UP NEXT

Kansas State: The Wildcats return home to take on Iowa State on Saturday, a team they defeated 91-75 back on Dec. 29.

Oklahoma State: The Cowboys go back out on the road for a matchup Saturday against TCU, whom they lost to 79-66 on Jan. 30

— Associated Press —

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