College – Page 401 – St. Joseph Post Archive

Spratt Stadium renovation project underway after ground breaking ceremony

Posted on May 6, 2015May 6, 2015

ST. JOSEPH – Ground has been broken for a nearly $7 million renovation project at Spratt Memorial Stadium.

More than 200 people gathered in the stadium concourse Wednesday morning as part of a groundbreaking ceremony to celebrate the renovation that is expected to be complete by the spring of 2016. Demolition began immediately following the ceremony with the removal of the asphalt track around the current field.

Speaking at the ceremony were Missouri Western State University President Dr. Robert A. Vartabedian; MWSU Director of Athletics Kurt McGuffin; Vice President for University Advancement and Executive Director of the Missouri Western State University Foundation Jerry Pickman; President of the Gold Coat Club Zack Workman; Head Soccer Coach Chad Edwards; Head Football Coach Jerry Partridge; student governor Lionel Attawia and Student Government Association President Ida Haefner.

The contract for the project was awarded to E.L. Crawford of St. Joseph. The project includes the demolition and replacement of the current concourse, concessions area, restrooms, Stadium Club and press box; repairs and improvements to the home grandstand seating area; removal of the old track and relocation of the field closer to the home stands; relocation of the visitors’ side grandstands to be closer to the field; and new field turf to replace the current playing surface. All the field improvments and new seating on the home grandstands is expected to be complete in time for the 2015 fall sports’ seasons. The other construction should be complete by the spring of 2016.

Spratt Memorial Stadium hosts Missouri Western’s football team and women’s soccer team. It opened in 1979, and is named in honor of avid Griffon supporter Elliot “Bub” Spratt.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Northwest men’s basketball adds William Jewell transfer D’Vante Mosby

Posted on May 6, 2015May 6, 2015

MARYVILLE, Mo. – Northwest Missouri State University head coach Ben McCollum has announced the addition of former William Jewell forward D’Vante Mosby to the Bearcat roster. Mosby, a 6-5 forward, will have two years of eligibility remaining with Northwest.

“D’Vante has a great basketball body and he has the chance to be a great rebounder in our league,” said McCollum. “He has the ability to score in a variety of ways. He is tough and physical in the post and he can finish around the basket with contact. In addition to being able to guard multiple positions, he can shoot the three and put it on the floor. D’Vante has done a great job in the classroom and he is a great person off the floor. We are extremely excited to have D’Vante join our program.”

Mosby was a standout for William Jewell in his two seasons with the Cardinals. As a sophomore he earned All-Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) second team honors, averaging 12.8 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. he had 11 double-doubles on the season. As a freshman, Mosby was the GLVC Freshman of the Year, averaging team bests with 12.4 points and 8.7 rebounds.

A former two-sport standout at Fort Osage High School, Mosby scored over 1,000 points and grabbed over 1,000 rebounds in his prep career. He was an all-state selection in both basketball and football. He was a three time All-Area selection and was named Suburban League all four seasons. As a senior, he earned second team All-Metro honors.

— NWMSU Sports Information —

Mizzou softball opens SEC Tournament with 9-0 win over Mississippi State

Posted on May 6, 2015May 6, 2015

BATON ROUGE, LA. – Three home runs provided the offense, and sophomore RHP Tori Finucane pitched perhaps her finest outing of the season as Mizzou (39-13) opened the post-season with a resounding 9-0 shutout win in six innings over Mississippi State (35-19) in the opening game of the 2015 SEC Tournament.

Finucane allowed just one hit in 6.0 innings to improve to 19-8 on the season, and she got plenty of help from her teammates as senior SS Corrin Genovese, senior 1B Kelsea Roth and sophomore C Kirsten Mack all homered to fuel a nine-hit Tiger attack.

Genovese opened scoring in the bottom of the second as she turned on a 2-1 pitch for a homer to left field, her fourth round-tripper of the season (15th career), which made it 1-0.

After a bases-loaded walk to sophomore LF Natalie Fleming made it 2-0 Tigers in the fourth, Roth dealt the death blow in the fifth, when she stung a towering fly ball that cleared the left field wall with the bases loaded for her 12th home run of the season (2nd grand slam in 2015). It was her 43rd-career round-tripper, moving her to within four of the Mizzou career home run record of 47 set by Jen Bruck (2005-08).

Mack put the game on ice with a three-run shot down the left field line in the bottom of the sixth that made it 9-0 and ended the game as the run-rule was invoked. The home run was Mack’s 14th of the season and pushed her into a tie for the team lead, along with freshman 3B Amanda Sanchez.

The only hit allowed by Finucane was a line drive off the glove of 3B Angela Randazzo in the fourth inning. Finucane threw only 79 pitches and struck out two Bulldogs while walking two for her third shutout of the season.

Sanchez had two hits Wednesday despite playing with a gimpy ankle that she injured in Mizzou’s win Sunday over #1 Florida. She was unable to make the start at third base for the first time this season, but started as the DP and went 2-for-4.

Mizzou advances to the SEC Tournament Quarterfinal round tomorrow and will face off against 3rd-ranked Auburn (46-9) at 10 a.m. central time. The game will be televised live on the SEC Network.

— MU Sports Information —

Griffons’ Knight sits 13th after round 2 of regional; Lim finishes 38th

Posted on May 5, 2015May 5, 2015

LEMONT, Ill. – Missouri Western junior Corey Knight completed his second round of the NCAA Division II Men’s Golf Midwest/Central Regional with a 76 and currently sits tied for 13th place. He is currently three-over for the tournament.

Knight has an accumulative score of 147 through his first two rounds after scoring a 71 on day one. Knight tallied 13 pars in his second round. The junior also recorded a hole-in-one during his second round. His hole-in-one came on the 14th tee box at 171 yards.

Travis Mays of Central Oklahoma and Zach James of Southeast Oklahoma St. are currently tied at the top of the leader board with a 142 through two rounds of golf. Central Missouri leads the team standings with a 586 overall score. SE Oklahoma sits alone in second while Central Oklahoma and Missouri-St. Louis are currently tied for third at 593.

The regional is being played on course No. 4 – “Dubsdread”, and will play host to 108 golfers and 20 teams, including eight individuals. The regional format consists of 54 holes played over three days.

The low five teams and low five individuals not on those teams will advance to the NCAA DII National Championship May 18-20 in Conover, N.C., at Rock Barn Golf & Spa.
The final round of the Central Regional will start at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday.

BARTLESVILLE, Okla. – Missouri Western freshman Celine Lim finished her final round of the Women’s Central Super Regional on Tuesday afternoon, tallying an 86.

Lim fired a total of 257 through the three day event, finishing tied for 38 out of 49 competitors. She finished her final round with seven pars and one birdies. Lim also managed six bogies and had three double bogies in her round.

In rounds one and two, Lim recorded scores of 86 and 85 respectively. She finished the regional with 21 pars and two birdies through the three rounds of golf.

Sierra Langlie of Augustana College (SD) took first place individually, scoring a 227 in her three rounds of golf. Central Oklahoma freshman Marla Souvannasing was second with a 229.

Augustana College (SD) won the team title as well, finishing with a score of 946. Arkansas Tech finished second and Central Oklahoma finished third for the tournament.

Each super-regional consists of both team and individual competition conducted along with nine teams and four individuals from non-qualifying teams at each site. All participants will compete throughout the 54 holes of competition. The top three teams along with the top three individuals not with a team from each super-regional will advance to the championships.

The 2015 NCAA Division II Women’s Golf Championships will be held May 13-16 at The Meadows Golf Course in Allendale, Michigan.

Lim finished her freshman campaign as the Griffons top golfer. She fired a low-round of 75 with one top-five finish, six top-10 finishes and six top-20 finishes. Her best finish came early this spring when she tied for fifth at the MWSU/Holiday Inn Express Classic at the St. Joseph Country Club.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Bearcat men defeat UNK in opening round of NCAA Central Regional

Posted on May 5, 2015May 5, 2015

The Northwest Missouri State University men’s tennis team beat Nebraska-Kearney in the opening round of the NCAA Central Region Tournament, 5-3.

The No. 19 ranked Bearcats move to 19-6 overall with the win while the No. 23 Lopers end the season at 20-5.

Northwest is now 15-17 all time in NCAA Tournament history.

Fin Glowick provided the Bearcats with a pair of points. He and Josef Altmann won at No. 3 doubles. Glowick then clinched the victory with a straight-set win at No. 6 singles.

The Bearcats trailed the Lopers, 2-1, following the doubles matches.

In singles, Romain Boissinot, Mauro Tete and Hicham Azzaoui all provided the Bearcats with wins.

Glowick closed out the match at No. 6. Altmann was tied at one set a piece at No. 5 singles when the match was called.

Singles competition
1. #33 Boissinot,Romain (NW) def. Richards,Joey (UNK) 6-3, 6-3
2. Tete,Mauro (NW) def. Wakim,Georges (UNK) 6-3, 7-5
3. El Zanaty,Mohab (UNK) def. Riveros,Alvaro (NW) 6-0, 6-3
4. Azzaoui,Hicham (NW) def. Garces,Lucas (UNK) 6-2, 7-6 (7-2)
5. Altmann,Josef (NW) vs. Reekie,Aaron (UNK) unfinished
6. Glowick,Fin (NW) def. Nicholson,Jack (UNK) 6-2, 6-1

Doubles competition
1. Garces,Lucas/Wakim,Georges (UNK) def. Boissinot,Romain/Riveros,Alvaro (NW) 8-3
2. Richards,Joey/El Zanaty,Mohab (UNK) def. Autones,Aymeric/Tete,Mauro (NW) 8-4
3. Altmann,Josef/Glowick,Fin (NW) def. Nguyen,Justin/Nicholson,Jack (UNK) 9-7

Northwest will face Concordia College (N.Y.) on Wednesday, May 13, in Surprise, Ariz. The Clippers won the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) title and are 20-4 overall. The top seed in the East region, Concordia was ranked No. 7 in the latest ITA poll. Match time will be released at a later date.

— Northwest Sports Information —

Kansas’ Schneider hires Buchanan, retains O’Connor

Posted on May 5, 2015May 5, 2015

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas women’s basketball head coach Brandon Schneider announced two members of his coaching staff on Tuesday afternoon, as Damitria Buchanan has been hired and Katie O’Connor has been retained as assistant coaches.

Buchanan joins the Jayhawks after spending the past two seasons at Texas Tech. While in Lubbock, Buchanan mentored the front court and assisted with scouting, recruiting and academics. Prior to her three-year stint with the Lady Raiders, Buchanan was a part of the coaching staff at Stephen F. Austin under Schneider. She helped guide the Ladyjacks to the Southland Conference Tournament Championship and a 23-win season in 2011-12.

“I believe Coach D is one of the top up-and-coming assistants in the country,” said Schneider. “She is a relentless recruiter and has a unique ability to build and cultivate relationships with players. She will be a terrific role model for our student-athletes.”

A two-time Academic All-Big 12 First Team selection and team captain at Texas A&M, Buchanan helped the Aggies to three Big 12 titles and four top-25 finishes, including three top-10 finishes in each of her final three seasons. She received her bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M in 2010 and remained in the College Station area to pursue a master’s degree while serving as a teacher and coach at A&M Consolidated Middle School.

Along with the hiring of Buchanan, Schneider also announced that O’Connor, who has spent nine seasons on the sidelines at Allen Fieldhouse, will return for her 10th year with Kansas women’s basketball.

“From afar, I’ve always admired the job Coach Katie does both in recruiting and coaching on the floor,” said Schneider. “I greatly respect the role she played in the development of front line players like Crystal Kemp, Carolyn Davis, and most recently, Chelsea Gardner. Her work ethic is second to none and I’m elated we could convince her to remain a Jayhawk.”

Over the last two seasons, O’Connor aided in the development of Gardner, who finished her career 12th all-time in Kansas women’s basketball history with 1,516 points. Under O’Connor’s guidance, Gardner was a two-time All-America Honorable Mention and All-Big 12 First Team selection and was selected in the Second Round of the 2015 WNBA Draft by the Indiana Fever. In all, O’Connor has coached two WNBA draft picks, three All-Americans and 17 all-conference selections.

“Coach D and Coach Katie will be outstanding assets in all phases of our program,” Schneider said.

Schneider still has one assistant coach vacancy to fill before the KU women’s basketball staff is complete.

— KU Sports Information —

MWSU’s Knight sits 9th at regional tournament; Lim finishes second round

Posted on May 4, 2015

LEMONT, Ill. – Missouri Western junior Corey Knight had a strong first round at the Men’s Midwest/Central Golf Regional, scoring a 71 at the Cog Hill Golf & Country Club. The course is currently a par 72 and is 6,869 yards.

Knight is the only Griffon golfer competing in the event. Knight currently sits tied for ninth at the end of the first round at 1-under. He tallied 11 pars after the first round and also added four birdies on Monday.

Central Missouri’s Travis Mays and Bellarmine’s DJ Vogt are tied at the top of the leaderboard, scoring a 67 after their first round of golf. SE Oklahoma St. leads all teams with a score of 288 overall. Central Missouri is second with a 291 and Southwestern Ok. St. is third at 292.

The 2015 NCAA Division II Men’s Golf Midwest/Central Regional is being played on course No. 4 – “Dubsdread”, and will play host to 108 golfers and 20 teams, including eight individuals. The regional format consists of 54 holes played over three days.

The low five teams and low five individuals not on those teams will advance to the NCAA DII National Championship May 18-20 in Conover, N.C., at Rock Barn Golf & Spa.

The second and third round will be played Tuesday and Wednesday, each starting at 7:30 a.m.

BARTLESVILLE, Okla. – Missouri Western freshman Celine Lim finished her second round of the NCAA Division II Women’s Super-Regional with a score of 85. Through her first two rounds of golf she has a total of 171, placing her tied for 37th overall.

Lim completed her second round with six pars on the day. She also recorded 11 bogies and one double bogey in her round of the golf at the Hillcrest Country Club. Lim’s 27-over and currently sits 37th of the 49 participants.

Marla Souvanasing of Central Oklahoma and Sierra Langlie of Augustana College (SD) lead the pack with a score of 151 overall. Augustana College (SD) currently has a team score of 630 to lead all teams. Central Oklahoma trails by seven strokes and Northeastern St. is in third with a score of 639.

The 2015 NCAA Division II Women’s Golf Championships will be held May 13-16 at The Meadows Golf Course in Allendale, Michigan.

The final round of golf will begin at 8:30 a.m. at Bartlesville, Okla. on the Hillcrest Country Club.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Missouri Western earns bid to NCAA Division II softball tournament

Posted on May 4, 2015

ST. JOSEPH – For the eighth time since 2005, the Missouri Western softball team will compete in the NCAA Division II Regional tournament. Missouri Western was selected as the seven seed Monday morning and will travel to Warrensburg, Missouri for regional play this weekend.

MWSU opens play Friday at 2 p.m. against host school Central Missouri. It will be the third matchup between the two teams this season. Central Missouri has won all three games, including an elimination game this past Friday in the MIAA tournament. The winner of Friday’s game will play the winner of the No. 3 Henderson State versus No. 6 Arkansas Tech game on Saturday at 1 p.m. The teams that lose their Friday games will play each other on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

Augustana is the top seed in the Central Region and will host No. 4 Central Oklahoma, No .5 Winona State and No. 8 East Central University this weekend. The winners of the two regional brackets will advance to the super regional to be played May 15-16 at a location to be determined.

Missouri Western enters regional play with a 36-19 record after a fourth place finish in the MIAA. The Griffons went 3-2 in the MIAA tournament with losses to Northwest Missouri State and Central Missouri. MWSU eliminated Fort Hays State, Emporia State and Northwest Missouri State and were one win away from advancing to the championship series for the second straight year.

The Griffons are very familiar with the other teams in the regional field. Overall, MWSU was 4-6 against teams that made the regional tournament. The Griffons went 2-0 against top-seeded Augustana with a split against third seeded Henderson State. MWSU defeated Winona State in the Apple Market Classic and was swept in MIAA doubleheaders against Central Oklahoma and Central Missouri. The Griffons also lost to Central Missouri in the MIAA tournament.

Missouri Western’s game with Central Missouri will be broadcast on ESPN 1550 AM and here on StJosephPost.com.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Big 12 and SEC announce 2016 and 2017 Women’s Hoops Challenge

Posted on May 4, 2015May 4, 2015

IRVING, Texas – The Big 12 and Southeastern conferences have announced an extension of their women’s basketball challenge that will expand to 10 games in 2016 and 2017. Kansas is scheduled to play at Alabama in 2016 and host Arkansas in 2017.

Every team from the Big 12 will participate while 10 teams from the SEC will take part in each season. The format features five home games on campus sites for each conference per year. Teams will not face the same opponent twice.

“We’re excited to be a part of the Big 12/SEC Challenge and the opportunity to play quality opponents during non-conference action,” said head coach Brandon Schneider. “We’re looking forward to great match ups and representing the Big 12.”

In 2016, games will be scheduled over the dates of Thursday-Sunday, December 1-4. Exact dates of matchups and television designation will be released when available.

“We are excited to see the Big 12/SEC Challenge expand to include all 10 of our institutions,” said Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby. “This gives each of our teams an opportunity for a quality non-conference opponent and provides marquee matchups between two of the nation’s top conferences.”

The inaugural challenge was held in 2014 in Little Rock, Arkansas, and featured a Top-5 matchup with No. 3 Texas squaring off against No. 4 Texas A&M. Oklahoma and Arkansas, who were both receiving votes in the Associated Press Poll, played in the second game. The conferences split the Challenge with the two games decided by a total of nine points.

The 2015 version will be contested in Oklahoma City on Sunday, December 20, 2015, with the opponents reversed. Texas will play Arkansas while Oklahoma entertains Texas A&M.

2016 SEC/Big 12 Women’s Basketball Challenge Matchups
Baylor at Tennessee
Mississippi State at Iowa State
Kansas at Alabama
Auburn at K-State
Oklahoma at Kentucky
Georgia at Oklahoma State
TCU at Florida
South Carolina at Texas
Texas Tech at Arkansas
Mississippi at West Virginia

2017 Big 12/SEC Women’s Basketball Challenge Matchups
Kentucky at Baylor
Iowa State at Vanderbilt
Arkansas at Kansas
K-State at Missouri
Florida at Oklahoma
Oklahoma State at Mississippi State
Alabama at TCU
Texas at Georgia
LSU at Texas Tech
West Virginia at Texas A&M

— KU Sports Information —

Spratt Stadium groundbreaking ceremony set for Wednesday

Posted on May 4, 2015May 4, 2015

ST. JOSEPH – The public is invited to join members of the Missouri Western State University community as they break ground on the Spratt Stadium renovation project in a ceremony to be held at the stadium.

The ceremony will be held Wednesday at 10 a.m. on the playing surface in the corner closest to the Baker Family Fitness Center on the home grandstand side of the field. In the event of inclement weather, the ceremony will be moved to the Spratt Stadium concourse.

Last week, the Missouri Western State University Board of Governors awarded the nearly $7 million renovation contract to E.L. Crawford Construction of St. Joseph. Construction is expected to begin after the ceremony Wednesday with all construction completed by the spring of 2016.

Plans call for the demolition of the current press box structure and track around the playing surface. The field will be moved closer to the home grandstand area with new turf. A new press box structure will be constructed, featuring a new concourse, concessions area, restrooms, club level, suite level and press box level. A video board is included in future plans but was not included in the current bid process.

The ceremony will be broadcast live on ESPN 1550 Am or here at StJosephPost.com. No RSVP is required for Wednesday’s ceremony.

— MWSU Sports Information —