KEARNEY, Nebraska – The Northwest Missouri State University softball team came up short in a pair of one-run decisions at the University of Nebraska-Kearney on Saturday.

UNK won by scores of 7-6 and 4-3.

Game One
The Bearcats scored in the first inning on an RBI from Kaitlyn Weis allowing Olivia Daugherty to cross the plate, grabbing a 1-0 lead.

The Lopers answered in the bottom of the first with an RBI, tying the game 1-1. Nebraska-Kearney scored four runs in the bottom of the third, pushing the lead 5-1 over the Bearcats. The Lopers scored two more runs in the bottom of the fifth, advancing its lead to 7-1.

The Bearcats rallied in the top of the sixth scoring five runs. Kiana Baderdeen had an RBI allowing Daugherty to score. Sydne Brashear hit a three-run homer to left field. Next at bat, Karli Allen homered to left field.

The sixth inning rally wasn’t enough for the Bearcats as the Lopers went on to win, 7-6.

Game Two
The Bearcats were the first to score again in the top of the fourth inning. Kiana Baderdeen had an RBI single to right field, bringing in Jaedra Moses to score. Karli Allen hit a sacrifice fly to right field, allowing Kaitlyn Weis to score to grab a 2-0 lead.

Nebraska-Kearney scored three runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to take the lead 3-2 over the Bearcats.

Weis doubled to left center in the top of the fifth, allowing Ady Watts to score and tie the game at 3-3.

The Lopers scored one run in the bottom of the fifth to retake the lead and the contest, 4-3.
The Bearcats will be back in action Sunday in a doubleheader against Fort Hays State in Hays, Kansas beginning at 12 p.m.

NOTES: Kaitlyn Weis leads the squad with a batting average of .421 … she has also tallied eight home runs and 21 RBI … Olivia Daugherty is slugging .412 with four home runs and 21 RBI … Erin Keeney leads the squad in RBI with 30 Keeney has also registered six home runs and is batting .295.

— Northwest Athletics —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – After another incredible season of basketball across the country, Small College Basketball has selected nine of the finest men’s basketball players who compete in the affiliations of NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA Division I, NAIA Division II, USCAA and NCCAA, as finalists for the 2019 Bevo Francis Award.

Northwest Missouri State senior guard Joey Witthus (Chanhassen, Minnesota) is one of the nine finalists. Witthus, the MIAA player of the year and most outstanding player at the MIAA tournament, averaged a team-best 21.1 points per game and shot 50.9 percent from the field. Witthus buried an-MIAA high 114 three-pointers, and he shot 45.2 percent from beyond the three-point arc. Witthus led Northwest in free throws made (170) and he shot 86.3 percent from the free throw line. Witthus earned a spot in the Elite Eight All-Tournament team after helping lead Northwest to the 2019 NCAA Division II national championship. Witthus has earned All-America honors from the NABC, Basketball Times and D2CCA.

This marks the fourth season of the Bevo Francis Award, as the award was previously given to Dominez Burnett of Davenport (Mich.) in 2016, Justin Pitts of Northwest Missouri State in 2017 and Emanuel Terry of Lincoln Memorial last season.

“Congratulations to the finalists for the 2019 Bevo Francis Award,” said Small College Basketball Founder, John McCarthy. “This is an incredibly elite group of players, as they were selected from over 1,100 schools; as such, these nine players were selected from approximately 13,000 – 16,000 players throughout the country…..THAT’S elite!

“Not only did each player have an outstanding individual season, but they also led their respective team to a tremendous year. Every team represented by the finalists made their respective national tournament. I am very grateful to our National Awards Committee, as they have provided a tremendous amount of information and done background checks on every one of our finalists. Truly, it’s a tremendous honor to be named as finalist for the prestigious Bevo Francis Award, and I am very pleased for each of them, as they earned this distinction.”

Members of the Bevo Francis Award committee include the following coaches: Tobin Anderson – St. Thomas Aquinas (N.Y.), Gerald Holmes – Bloomfield (N.J.), Gary Stewart – Stevenson (Md.), Arlen Galloway – Wentworth (Mass.), Chris Briggs – Georgetown (Ky.), Bill Dreikosen – Rocky Mountain (Mont.), Klint Pleasant – Rochester (Mich.), Ryan Kane – Ripon (Wisc.), Mark Berokoff – Hillsdale Baptist (Okla.), Mike Donnelly – Florida Southern, Rhett Soliday – Vanguard (Calif.), Sam Hargraves – Alma (Mich.) and Ryan Looney – Point Loma Nazarene (Calif.).

The nine finalists for the 2019 Bevo Francis Award include:

Aston Francis, Wheaton
Jeff Garrett, LSU-Shreveport
Tim Guers, St. Anselm
Daulton Hommes, Point Loma Nazarene
Cameron Hunt, Southwestern
Jonathan Lawton, Florida Southern
Sam Vander Sluis, Cornerstone
Will Vorhees, Notre Dame College
Joey Witthus, NW MO State

The committee chose this elite group from over 1,100 colleges and universities and took into consideration individual statistics, previous awards, milestones and team success.

The 2019 Bevo Francis Award winner will be announced on April 8. The award will be presented to the award winner on May 11 at the SCB National Awards Show in conjunction with the SCB Alumni Association’s Celebration of the Game event at the Crowne Plaza in downtown Kansas City, Missouri.

Small College Basketball is very grateful to the University of Rio Grande and Sheward-Fulks Insurance for their sponsorship and support of the Bevo Francis award.

— Northwest Athletics —

MARYVILLE, Missouri – Max Spitzmiller was dealing on the mound for the Northwest Missouri State baseball team as he dialed up 7 1/3 innings of scoreless ball en route to a 9-2 victory for the Bearcats over the visiting Fort Hays State Tigers.

Northwest’s offense heated up, scoring two runs in the home half of the third inning. Sophomore infielder Peter Carlson singled to left field and was advanced to third base on the next at bat after junior infielder Calvin Rudolph reached on an error. Junior first baseman Connor Quick recorded his first RBI of the game, scoring Carlson and giving the Bearcats runners on first and second. A fielder’s choice advanced Rudolph to third base and he scored when sophomore infielder Matt Gastner slapped a single up the middle.

The Bearcats got on the board again in the fifth inning, scoring an additional seven runs to bring their lead to 9-0 over the Tigers. Successful small-ball advanced Northwest baserunners around the diamond, including doubles hit by senior catcher Alixon Herrera and senior infielder Logan Rycraft. Northwest scored seven runs on eight hits and left two on base.

The sophomore Spitzmiller got the start on the bump for Northwest. Spitzmiller tossed seven and 1/3 innings shutout innings for the Bearcats, giving up five hits and striking out four Fort Hays State batters.

Senior righty Jarrett Cronin relieved Spitzmiller of his duties on the mound, pitching the final one and 2/3 innings. Cronin gave up two runs (two earned) on one hit and struck out two. The Tigers tacked on two runs in the top of the ninth coming off of a two-run shot to left field by junior catcher Jared Maneth.

Northwest will be back in action Saturday, Feb. 6 for game two of the series. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the Bearcat Baseball Field.

NOTES: Northwest has won a season-best four games in a row … Northwest is 15-15 on the season and 11-8 in MIAA play … Rudolph extended his hitting streak ot 10 games … Quick (14) and Rudolph (11) extend their on-base streaks.

— Northwest Athletics —

Northwest Missouri State University’s Ben McCollum is the 2019 recipient of the John McLendon Collegiate Basketball Coach of the Year award as presented by CollegeInsider.com.

McCollum led the Bearcats to a perfect 38-0 record and the NCAA Division II national championship. Northwest became only the fifth program to complete an undefeated season and capture the NCAA Division II national title.

McCollum has guided the Bearcats to six straight MIAA regular season titles and four consecutive MIAA tournament crowns. In 10 seasons at Northwest, McCollum has an overall record of 241-75. In NCAA tournament play, McCollum has a mark of 19-5 with two national championships (2017, 2019).

The Storm Lake, Iowa, native is the first non-Division I head coach to receive the McLendon Award.

The John McLendon Award is presented annually to the top collegiate head coach and includes Division I, Division II, Division III, NAIA and NJCAA.

A trailblazer and one of the true pioneers of the game, McLendon became the first African American coach to win an integrated national championship. His team went on to win the NAIA Division I Men’s Tournament in 1957, 1958 and 1959, making him the first coach in history to win three consecutive NAIA championships.

In 1962 he became the first African American head coach in a major professional league (ABL) with the Cleveland Pipers. In 1966 he became the first African American head coach of predominantly-white university, when he took over the Cleveland State program. He led the team to their best record in school history.

In 1969, McLendon was hired by the Denver Rockets and became the first African American head coach in the American Basketball Association. After a brief stint with the Rockets, McLendon ended his 25-year professional coaching career with a winning percentage of .760 and a lifetime career average of 523 victories and 165 losses.

Past McLendon Award Recipients
2018 – Chris Beard (Texas Tech)
2017 – Chris Holtmann (Ohio State)
2016 – King Rice (Monmouth)
2015 – Jim Engles (New Jersey Institute of Technology)
2014 – Gregg Marshall (Wichita State)
2013 – John Thompson (Georgetown)
2012 – Horace Broadnax (Savannah State)

— Northwest Athletics —

Northwest Missouri State University head women’s basketball coach Austin Meyer has added a sixth signee for the 2019-2020 recruiting class.

Emma Atwood is a 5’10” guard from Leon, Iowa. As a senior at Central Decatur High School, Atwood averaged 21 points per game, 9.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists while shooting 60% from the field. She wrapped up her prep career with a record of 99-5 for head coach Curtis Boothe.

In her prep career, Atwood scored 1,434 points. She handed out 270 assists and grabbed 514 rebounds. She also tallied 206 steals and 36 blocks. She was a three-time all-state selection in basketball. Central Decatur reached the state tournament in Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines in each of the last four seasons. Atwood and the Cardinals reached the state semifinals in 2018 (Class 1A) and in 2019 (Class 2A).

Atwood competed in basketball, volleyball, track and softball for the Cardinals. She earned honorable mention all-state honors in volleyball.

She is an honor roll student and four-time academic letter winner. She earned the Presidential academic letter and is a member of the ACE program.

She is the daughter of Manuel and Nicki Atwood.

2019-20 Bearcat Women’s Basketball Signees
Kayla Chapman          5’9″     G         Treynor, Iowa (Treynor HS)
Emma Atwood            5’10”   G         Leon, Iowa (Central Decatur HS)
Jayna Green               6’1″     G/F      Omaha, Nebraska (Millard North HS)
Savannah Guenther   5’11”    G         Grayslake, Illinois (Grayslake North HS)
Chaise Pfanstiel         5’7″      G         Omaha, Nebraska (Millard West HS)
Paityn Rau                  6’2″     F          Waukee, Iowa (Waukee HS)