We have a brand new updated website! Click here to check it out!

Former Mizzou guard Morgan Eye joins Tiger women’s basketball staff

MUCOLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou women’s basketball head coach Robin Pingeton announced on Thursday that former standout guard Morgan Eye will remain with the program as a graduate student manager. Eye, the 2013 Southeastern Conference Co-6th Woman of the Year, recently completed her eligibility and holds the program records for career, season and single-game 3-pointers.

“We are thrilled that Morgan will be joining our staff,” Pingeton said. “She has played a vital role in helping us build a strong foundation to elevate our women’s basketball program. She is a leader on and off the court, and we are blessed that she will continue to be around our program on a daily basis. Her second-to-none work ethic and passion for the game is matched by few.”

During her Mizzou career, Eye saw action in 127 games (84 starts), averaging 10.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.3 assists per contest. She scored in double figures more than 50 times and connected on a school-record 367 shots from beyond the arc, which is 141 more than any other player in program history. In May, she graduated with a degree in Marketing from the Trulaske College of Business. She will be pursuing a master’s degree in Educational, School and Counseling Psychology with an emphasis in Positive Coaching.

“Being a part of this program has been life-changing for me,” Eye said. “The relationships that I have built make me want to be the best that I can be every single day. I am blessed that Coach Pingeton has given me the opportunity to continue to be a part of building this program. I am beyond excited to be mentored by an amazing coaching staff who will be able to equip me with what I need to become an influential basketball coach in the future. My heart is with this group of girls on this team, this coaching staff and with Mizzou. I can’t wait to continue my journey here.”

As a senior in 2014-15, Eye led the SEC with 84 made 3-pointers. She finished her career just 38 triples shy of the NCAA career record. Following the season, she was invited to participate in the State Farm College Women’s 3-Point Championship.

Eye finished second nationally with an average of 3.48 treys per game and sixth in the NCAA with 106 triples as a junior. During her sophomore season, she set a program record with 112 shots from long range and led the country with an average of 3.5 per game.

The Montrose, Missouri, native tied a WNIT record with nine 3-pointers in a second round victory at Kansas State on March 22. She set a single-game program record with 11 triples for a career-best 33 points vs. Auburn on Jan. 6, 2013.

Eye began her duties with the Mizzou coaching staff on Monday. She is also the recipient of an NCAA Women’s Enhancement Program postgraduate scholarship for careers in athletics. As part of the program, she is attending the NCAA Career in Sports Forum taking place June 4-7 at the NCAA national office in Indianapolis, Indiana. The educational event brings together 200 student-athletes to assist in charting sports careers.

— Associated Press —

Missouri baseball coach Tim Jamieson agrees to contract extension

MUCOLUMBIA, Mo. – The University of Missouri and Head Baseball Coach Tim Jamieson have reached an agreement, as announced Wednesday by Director of Athletics Mack Rhoades. Jamieson’s base salary will remain the same, but the program will receive a budget increase to further aid the program’s growth.

“We are pleased Tim will continue to lead our program,” Rhoades said. “This year’s team made encouraging progress and we look forward to moving the program forward with the current roster of talented, young student-athletes in addition to the highly-regarded young men joining our program next year.  We are committed to investing in our program and student-athletes in order to increase our competitiveness in the premier baseball conference in the country.  Coach Jamieson led our program to high levels of success in the past and we anticipate the same in the future. Tim manages his program with great integrity and represents Mizzou in a first-class manner.”

“First, I want to express my gratitude to Mack and the rest of our administration for having confidence in my staff and I as we continue to improve our program alongside the best in the nation in the SEC,” Jamieson said. “We are coming off of a year that is more reflective of the success we saw throughout our tenure in the Big 12 and we will continue to get better as we take on the challenges of competing in the SEC. The commitment Mack and the administration have made to our program is reflected in the increase in our budget and I am beyond grateful to them for helping give us the resources we need to be even more successful in the SEC.”

Jamieson’s Tigers are coming off of a third-place finish in the SEC East Division after going 15-15 in SEC play with a starting lineup that featured as many as six underclassmen, including four true freshmen. Nearly half of the team’s offensive production came from underclassmen in 2015. Mizzou exceeded the expectations of nearly every national pundit in 2015, earning its most conference wins since 2009 while winning six of 10 SEC weekend series and ranking as high as No. 14 nationally. The Tigers also boasted five wins over top-10 teams while playing the nation’s fourth-most difficult schedule according to D1Baseball.com. Three players – junior Breckin Williams and freshmen Tanner Houck and Trey Harris – earned All-SEC honors in 2015 as well.

Jamieson, the 2007 Big 12 Coach of the Year, has helped take Mizzou baseball to new heights in his 21 seasons, winning 30 or more games in 15 of those seasons. He took Mizzou to nine NCAA Regionals, including seven consecutive seasons from 2003-09. He is the dean of Mizzou’s coaches, boasting the longest tenure of any of Mizzou’s varsity coaches and has won 672 games in his career at Mizzou (32 wins per season average).

Not only have Jamieson’s teams achieved tremendous success, but he has a knack for developing talent and recruiting top-notch athletes to Mizzou. Six former players under Jamieson made the 40-man, opening day rosters in Major League Baseball this season, including three who have been named All-Stars in their careers – Max Scherzer (Washington Nationals), Ian Kinsler (Detroit Tigers) and Aaron Crow (Miami Marlins). Scherzer, Crow and current Minnesota Twins starter Kyle Gibson have all been drafted in the first round of the MLB First Year Player Draft as well.

In 2014, Jamieson’s squad boasted a 981 academic progress rate (APR), the top APR in the SEC and followed that up by ranking fifth in the SEC in this year’s APR rankings. Since 2006, 100 percent of Mizzou baseball players who have exhausted their eligibly have graduated under Jamieson’s direction. In addition, drafted juniors such as current assistant Hunter Mense and current graduate assistant Trevor Coleman have come back to earn their degrees from Mizzou following their professional careers while working alongside Jamieson as coaches.

— MU Sports Information —

KC drops series opener against Indians 2-1

riggertRoyalsKANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Michael Brantley drove in the go-ahead run with two outs in the eighth inning, backing a strong performance by Carlos Carrasco and sending the Cleveland Indians to a 2-1 victory over the slumping Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night.

Carrasco (7-4) allowed five hits over seven innings to win his third straight start. The big right-hander struck out eight while dominating Kansas City for the second time in a month.

Cody Allen handled a perfect ninth for his 12th save as the Indians won for the 11th time in 14 games. AL Central rival Kansas City lost for the sixth time in its last seven.

Wade Davis (2-1) was summoned in the eighth to keep the game tied, but he walked Michael Bourn to lead off the inning.

Jose Ramirez appeared to ground into a double play moments later, but first base umpire Bob Davidson ruled the speedy Ramirez had beaten the relay throw.

Royals manager Ned Yost challenged the call, and fans were so certain Ramirez was out that they cheered when replays was shown on the big screen. But after a review of nearly 3 minutes, the call stood — Ramirez was safe at first base with just one out in the inning.

Jason Kipnis followed by grounding into a fielder’s choice — second baseman Omar Infante bobbled the ball to scuttle another potential double play — and Carlos Santana worked a full-count walk, all before Brantley ripped his go-ahead single to center field.

It was the first run Davis had yielded this season.

Most of the game amounted to a showdown between Carrasco and Jeremy Guthrie.

Carrasco was hardly a surprise. He’d allowed three runs over 14 innings in winning his last two starts, and was facing a Royals offense that has now scored seven runs in its last six losses.

Guthrie was the more surprising half of the pitcher’s duel.

The veteran had given up a career-high 11 runs, including four homers, while retiring three last Monday at Yankee Stadium. Thirteen of the 16 batters he faced reached base.

Bouncing back against the Indians, Guthrie allowed a pair of hits in 5 2/3 innings: Moss’s home run on a full-count pitch in the fourth and a double by Santana in the sixth.

At that point, Yost turned the game over to his bullpen. Franklin Morales and Kelvin Herrera got the game to Davis, whose long scoreless streak finally came to an end.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Indians: C Yan Gomes was back behind the plate. He caught 21 innings in a pair of games over the weekend. Gomes recently return from an injured ligament in his knee.

Royals: C Sal Perez left in the eighth for precautionary reasons after taking a foul ball off his mask. … LHP Danny Duffy (biceps tendinitis) and RHP Kris Medlen (Tommy John surgery) will each throw two innings in a simulated game Thursday.

UP NEXT

Indians: RHP Corey Kluber tries to win his fourth straight after starting 0-5. The reigning Cy Young winner has gone seven-plus innings in four consecutive starts.

Royals: LHP Jason Vargas makes his second start since missing 16 games with a left flexor strain. He allowed two runs in four innings against the Yankees last time out.

— Associated Press —

Jayhawks sign Memphis prep guard Lagerald Vick

riggertKULAWRENCE, Kan. – Shooting guard Lagerald Vick has signed a Grant-in-Aid agreement to play men’s basketball at Kansas for the 2015-16 season, KU head coach Bill Self announced Tuesday. Originally part of the 2016 recruiting class, Vick has reclassified to the 2015 class.

A 6-5, 175-pound Memphis native, Vick averaged 27.0 points, 11.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 3.0 steals for Douglass High School in 2014-15. A three-point sharpshooter, Vick led his division in scoring and made threes as a senior and ranked second in both categories the year prior. As a junior, Vick averaged 24.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 3.0 steals at Douglass for head coach Ted Anderson.

“The whole thought with Lagerald was that he would reclassify and become a 2015,” Self said. “We knew he’s talented enough that if he stayed a 2016, we’d wait on him. He completed all of his academic requirements. We were cautious not to say too much, too soon. He’s officially signed and a member of the 2015 recruiting class.

Vick was one of three finalists for the Class AA Mr. Basketball Award for the state of Tennessee his junior and senior seasons and was named Class AA all-state, by The Tennessean, in 2013-14 and 2014-15. A three-year starter for Red Devils, Vick earned all-district recognition three times and all-metro honors twice while in high school. Vick plays AAU basketball for Team Thad and coach Norton Hurd.

“Lagerald is a terrific athlete that is going to become a terrific basketball player,” Self said. “He’s got great size for a guard and has tremendous quickness and explosiveness for his size. We think he can be a guy that can get his own shot but also force a lot of help by driving the ball and could be an elite defender in time.”

Since reclassifying, Vick is ranked No. 33 by Rivals.com. He was No. 137 prior to reclassifying and chose Kansas over Kentucky and Kansas State. He joins KU power forward signees Carlton Bragg, from Cleveland, and Cheick Diallo, from Centereach, New York in KU’s 2015 signing class.

“Lagerald’s mother, La La, has done a tremendous job of raising her family,” Self added. “Although we’ve only known Lagerald and his mother for a couple of months, we really connected on their visit to Lawrence. I not only think we’ll have a great time coaching Lagerald, but I think we’ll also have a lot of fun with mom being part of our family.”

— KU Sports Information —

Mizzou softball adds South Alabama transfer to 2016 roster

riggertMizzouCOLUMBIA, Mo. – Two-time All-Sun Belt honoree Chloe Rathburn is transferring from the South Alabama softball program and will attend and play softball at the University of Missouri, as announced Tuesday by Mizzou Head Softball Coach Ehren Earleywine.

Rathburn, a 5-foot-8 catcher/infielder from Mission Viejo, Calif. (Capistrano Valley High School), was a first-team All-Sun Belt selection at designated player in 2015 after she led South Alabama with a .371 batting average, and a school-record 53 runs batted in.  The Jaguars went 40-13 in 2015 and won the Sun Belt Tournament championship before being eliminated in the NCAA Tournament Regionals by Auburn.

Rathburn started all 53 games for South Alabama in 2015, including 27 at DP, to go with 26 starts at catcher.  The right-handed batter added 15 doubles and four home runs to her ledger last season, while she had a solid 27-to-17 walks-to-strikeouts ratio and a .461 on-base percentage.

— MU Sports Information —

MIAA announces football television schedule for 2015

riggertMIAAKansas City, Mo. – The MIAA announced Monday the MIAA Television Network schedule for the 2015 football season.

The MIAA TV Network will travel to a different MIAA campus for ten consecutive weeks beginning with two Thursday night broadcasts on September 3 and September 10.  The remainder of the games will be televised at 2:30 p.m. each Saturday.

As done in previous seasons, the MIAA TV Network has left the last Saturday (Nov 14) open as a “flex” game in order to be able to select a game with significant impact in determining a conference champion and/or selection for postseason opportunities.

All eleven games will all be carried on KSMO-TV (Ch. 62) in Kansas City, Cox Communications KS 22, KGCS-TV in Joplin, and other outlets across the MIAA footprint.  A complete listing of where the MIAA TV Game of the Week can be seen will be announced in the near future.

2015 MIAA Television Network Football Schedule        
Thursday       Sept. 3        Fort Hays State at Central Oklahoma             7:00 p.m.
Thursday       Sept. 10      Central Missouri at Emporia State                  7:00 p.m.
Saturday        Sept. 19      Missouri Western at Northeastern State         2:30 p.m.
Saturday        Sept. 26      Central Oklahoma at Northwest Missouri       2:30 p.m.
Saturday        Oct. 3          Emporia State at Lindenwood                        2:30 p.m.
Saturday        Oct. 10        Central Missouri at Washburn                        2:30 p.m.
Saturday        Oct. 17        Northwest Missouri at Pittsburg State            2:30 p.m.
Saturday        Oct. 24        Lindenwood at Missouri Southern                  2:30 p.m.
Saturday        Oct. 31        Nebraska Kearney at Fort Hays State           2:30 p.m.
Saturday        Nov. 7         Pittsburg State at Central Missouri                 2:30 p.m.
Saturday        Nov. 15       Flex game                                                       2:30 p.m.

— MIAA Press Release —

Big 12 finalizes early & special date TV games for football

Big12riggertBig 12 Conference television selections and designations for the first three weeks of the 2015 football season and special dates have been finalized.

Every home Big 12 football game is available for telecast, in accordance with the Conference’s 13-year joint agreement with FOX and ESPN. Each league member is allotted one member institution retained football game (MIRFG) for telecast on an institutional platform.

Per Big 12 contractual agreements, four annual special date games also highlight the schedule and each will be televised in a national window. West Virginia travels to TCU on Thursday, October 29 followed a week later by Baylor at K-State on November 5. The annual Thanksgiving matchup will feature Texas Tech at Texas on November 26 with a Friday tilt the next day when TCU hosts Baylor on November 27.

Select home football games and non-conference road televised games will be released when available.

All remaining Big 12 package television selections will be announced on a 12-day or six-day basis throughout the season.

Saturday, September 5
South Dakota State at Kansas     FSN     11:00 a.m.
South Dakota at K-State*     K-StateHD.tv     6:00 p.m.
Georgia Southern at West Virginia     FSN     6:30 p.m.
Northern Iowa at Iowa State*     Cyclones.tv     7:00 p.m.
Sam Houston State at Texas Tech*     FSN     TBA
Akron at Oklahoma*     FSN PPV     TBA

Saturday, September 12
Liberty at West Virginia*     ROOT Sports     2:00 p.m.
Iowa at Iowa State     FOX     3:30 p.m.
Memphis at Kansas*     Jayhawk TV     6:00 p.m.
Central Arkansas at Oklahoma State*     FSN     6:30 p.m.
Lamar at Baylor     FSN     6:30 p.m.
Rice at Texas*     LHN     7:00 p.m.
UTEP at Texas Tech     FSN     TBA
Stephen F. Austin at TCU     TBA     TBA

Saturday, September 19
Tulsa at Oklahoma     FOX Sports 1     11:00 a.m.
Louisiana Tech at K-State     FSN     2:00 p.m.
UTSA at Oklahoma State     FOX Sports 1     2:30 p.m.
California at Texas     FOX     6:30 p.m.
SMU at TCU*     FSN     7:00 p.m.

Saturday, September 26
Rice at Baylor*     FSN     2:00 p.m.

Thursday, October 29
West Virginia at TCU     FOX Sports 1     6:30 p.m.

Thursday, November 5
Baylor at K-State     FOX Sports 1     6:30 p.m.

Thursday, November 26
Texas Tech at Texas     FOX Sports 1     6:30 p.m.

Friday, November 27
Baylor at TCU     ESPN     6:30 p.m.

— Big 12 Press Release —

Former Ole Miss center Dwight Coleby transferring to Kansas

riggertKULAWRENCE, Kan. – Center Dwight Coleby will be transferring to Kansas after two seasons at Ole Miss. The 6-9, 240-pound Nassau, Bahamas, native has signed a grant-in-aid agreement to attend KU, will sit out the 2015-16 season and have two years eligibility, Kansas head coach Bill Self announced Monday.

Coleby will report to KU in July, after he competes for the Bahamas in the FIBA Caribbean Basketball Confederation (CBC) Championships, June 15-21, in Tortola, British Virgin Islands.

“We’ve been keeping an eye on transfers the entire spring due to the fact we lose so many big guys next year,” Self said of 2015-16 KU senior forwards Perry Ellis, Jamari Traylor and Hunter Mickelson. “It would be nice to have a big guy in your program that knew the system, and we can rely on to be a foundation. When Dwight became available, we researched it and watched tape. He’s a exactly what I think we need. He’s a big guy that can play either bigs position. He’s active. He reminds me of a lot of a bigger Jamari or Thomas Robinson-type body. He’s got a great motor. I feel like he can play on the block. He can play facing. He can do a lot of different things. He’s raw offensively, but he’s a premiere athlete and should be a solid rebounder and defender right off the bat.”

Coleby played in all 34 games for Ole Miss in 2014-15, including three starts, where he averaged 5.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 16.5 minutes for the Rebels who finished 21-13 overall, tied for third in the SEC with an 11-7 record and lost to Xavier in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Coleby was second on the Ole Miss team with 29 blocked shots and his 4.8 rebounds per game were third-best on the squad. He shot 53.2 percent from the field, which was second-best on the team. His 79.7 percent accuracy from the free throw line was a 27.1 percent improvement from his freshman year. Coleby posted six games in double-figure scoring and had his first career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds at then-No. 19 Arkansas on Jan. 17.

“Dwight was obviously a contributor and role player for an NCAA Tournament team,” Self said. “He didn’t play a ton last year, but Ole Miss had good players. He’s hasn’t been playing ball forever, but there is definitely a foundation there, physically. Also, foundation from an intellect standpoint that is going to allow him to become a much better player fast. Without question, we think his best ball is well down the road. I see him being a Darnell Jackson. I see him being a bigger Jamari, a guy that can have a big impact on our program and hopefully mature and develop into a starter for us.”

As a freshman in 2013-14, Coleby started four of 28 games for Ole Miss and averaged 2.4 points, 1.9 rebounds and 10.4 minutes per game.

Coleby went to Ole Miss after attending Piney Woods High School in Piney Woods, Mississippi. While there he averaged 20 points, 15 rebounds and five blocked shots in 2012-13. Prior to Piney Woods, Coleby attended St. George’s High School in Freeport, Bahamas.

— KU Sports Information —

Missouri State wins 19th straight, advances to NCAA Super Regional

riggertMissouriStateSPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — Jordan Knutson pitched into the eighth inning, helping Missouri State hold off Iowa 3-2 on Sunday night to advance to the Super Regionals for the first time since reaching the 2003 College World Series.

The Bears (48-10) extended the nation’s longest winning streak to 19 games. Bryan Young got the final five outs, retiring Joel Booker on a flyout to end it with the tying run at second base.

Knutson (6-1) gave up two runs and three total hits in seven innings against Iowa (41-18).

Missouri State, the No. 8 national seed, will play Arkansas in the Super Regionals but might be on the road. The Bears play their home games at Hammons Field, the ballpark of the Double-A Springfield Cardinals, who are home next weekend.

Iowa starter Connor Grant (1-2) got just one out before being relieved by closer Nick Hibbing in the first.

— Associated Press —

Missouri State opens NCAA Tournament with 14-1 win over Canisius

riggertMissouriStateSPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Missouri State pounded out a season-high 17 hits and rode 8.0 strong innings from Jon Harris to a 14-1 victory over Canisius in its opening game of the NCAA Springfield Regional Saturday afternoon. The Bears (46-10) erased an early deficit thanks to a five-RBI performance from Tate Matheny, as 6,756 spectators–their largest home crowd in 11 years–saw MSU stretch its win streak to 17 straight games.

The victory for Missouri State pulled the Bears to within one game of the program record for wins in a season (1986), as well as within one victory of the club’s longest win streak (April 16-May 14, 1989). It also set up a winner’s bracket matchup with Iowa (40-16) Saturday evening at 8:05 p.m.

Matheny powered the MSU offense with a 3-for-4 performance that included a pair of doubles and two walks, as well as a sixth-inning grand slam as part of an eight-run rally that matched the Bears’ most-productive inning of the season. MSU, which drew six walks and four bases from hit batsmen in addition to matching its 2015 season-high of 17 hits, turned a one-run game into a 12-1 lead by scoring 10 times in the fifth and sixth innings.

Justin Paulsen, who also homered in the sixth, finished 3-for-5 with a pair of RBIs, while Matt Fultz drove in three runs and scored another with a double and two sacrifice flies.

Harris (8-1) was equally as effective on the hill for the Bears, holding the Golden Griffins (34-29) to just three hits in his eight innings. The junior recovered from a leadoff home run by Connor Panas on the game’s second pitch to limit Canisius to a pair of singles over the remainder of his effort, striking out eight along the way.

The Bears mounted threats of their own in each of the first two innings, only to see Griffins starter Devon Stewart work his way out of trouble with the help of key strikeouts in both instances. After giving up a two-out double to Matheny before a hit batsman and a walk loaded the bases, Stewart got Spencer Johnson to chase a two-strike offering to escape the home half of the first unharmed.

MSU loaded the bases again in the second thanks to the first of Blake Graham’s two singles that sparked the one-out rally. Back-to-back hit batsmen brought up Joey Hawkins, but Stewart fanned the MSU shortstop for the second out. Matheny then coaxed a walk to force home the tying run before a ground ball to short helped Stewart avoid a big inning.

Justin Paulsen’s liner to right started opened another scoring opportunity for the Bears in the third, as base hits by Jake Burger and Graham loaded the bases yet again before Matt Fultz’s sacrifice fly to center put MSU on top, 2-1.

The Bears would add to their lead with a two-run fifth highlighted by Fultz’s two-out double that narrowly eluded a diving Cyrus Senior in right-center. Dylan Becker followed with a second run-scoring hit to bring home Fultz for a 4-1 MSU advantage.

Matheny ignited the sixth-inning onslaught with his second double of the day, then scored on a base hit to left by Eric Cheray, who was thrown out attempting to stretch it into a double. Paulsen blasted a 2-1 pitch from Brandon Bielecki over the right-field wall for his eighth round-tripper of the season, before a pair of walks and a double by Jake Burger loaded the bags again. Fultz delivered another sac fly and Becker lined a single to left to score Burger to push the lead to seven runs.

Next, Hawkins coaxed a walk to set up just the third postseason grand slam in MSU history, as Matheny belted an 0-1 offering onto the left-field berm to make it a 12-1 game. The junior joined Alex Manary (May 25, 1995 vs. Long Beach State) and Tony Piazza (June 8, 2003 at Ohio State) on the short list of Bears’ to club grand slams in NCAA Championship play. He also became the first MSU player to record multiple hits in one inning since 2010.

MSU tacked on a pair of unearned runs in the eighth after a throwing error started the inning. Hawkins singled and Matheny drew a walk before Aaron Meyer’s ground ball scored a run and Paulsen plated his second baserunner with a single to center.

Harris cruised through the home stretch, retiring 11 straight Griffins at one point and allowing just three baserunners–all via walks–after the third inning. Senior Zach Merciez locked up the Bears’ 15th NCAA Division I Championship victory with a perfect ninth in his MSU single-season-record 30th appearance of the season.

Stewart (7-7) was tagged with the loss for Canisius after allowing the first four runs on seven MSU hits over his 4 2/3 innings. Mike Krisch was the lone Griffin to reach base multiple times, going 1-for-2 with a walk.

— MSU Sports Information —

Copyright Eagle Radio | FCC Public Files | EEO Public File