College – Page 411 – St. Joseph Post Archive

No. 23 Mizzou evens series at Tennessee with 8-3 win

Posted on April 10, 2015April 10, 2015

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Jack Klages (St. Louis, Mo.) and Jake Ring (Ingleside, Ill.) each picked up three-run hits in a six-run fifth inning as No. 23 Mizzou rallied to defeat Tennessee, 8-3, on Friday night (April 10) at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. The win evens the series with the Volunteers and moves Mizzou to 23-12 on the year and 9-5 in SEC play. Reining SEC Pitcher of the Week Tanner Houck (Collinsville, Ill.) earned his sixth win of the season as he is now 6-1 in nine starts this season. The win snaps a three-game winning streak for the Vols, who fall to 15-15 and 5-9 in SEC play.

After Tennessee took a 2-0 lead with a single run in both the first and second innings, Klages ripped a bases-loaded double off the wall in right center to give Mizzou a 3-2 lead. Ring then launched his second career homer after a Brett Peel (St. Charles, Mo.) single to give Mizzou a 6-2 lead. In all, the Tigers scored six runs on six hits in the frame. The Tigers added a run in the sixth and ninth innings and Breckin Williams (Oronogo, Mo.) earned his eighth save of the season.

Mizzou got multi-hit performances from Klages, Ryan Howard (St. Charles, Mo.) and Zach Lavy (Auxvasse, Mo.) and the Tigers as a team pounded five extra-base hits (four doubles and a homer). Two came from Klages as both his hits went for a double.

The Vols took an early lead after a Nick Senzel leadoff triple that Logan Pearson (Bentonville, Ark.) nearly caught but lost the handle of as he crashed into the wall in right field. Senzel then scored on a groundout to short by A.J. Simcox. A no-out double by Jared Pruett in the second plated Derek Lance and Tennessee appeared to be in business against Houck.

But he settled in and the offense gave him support in the top of the fifth inning, highlighted by a pair of three-run hits by both Klages and Ring. With the bases loaded, Klages lifted a 1-1 pitch off the wall in right center, just missing a grand slam, for a bases-clearing three-run double, giving Mizzou a 3-2 lead. Brett Peel (St. Charles, Mo.) then singled to keep the rally alive and Ring lifted his second collegiate homer over the wall in right center to stake the Tigers to a 6-2 lead.

Mizzou added another run in the sixth inning as Zach Lavy (Auxvasses, Mo.) drew a walk and scored on a pair of wild pitches by reliever Hunter Martin. Tennesse got a run back in the bottom of the sixth but Andrew Schwaab (St. Charles, Mo.) did a nice job of pitching out of a jam, as Mizzou took a 7-3 lead into the seventh.

Schwaab pitched out of a jam again in the seventh and got into more trouble in the eighth, putting two men on with one out. That gave way to Williams who shut down the Vols over the final 1.2 innings. Howard added insurance with an RBI single in the top of the ninth inning

The rubber game of the series will be Saturday at 11 a.m.

— MU Sports Information —

Northwest softball splits with MIAA-leading Pittsburg State

Posted on April 10, 2015April 10, 2015

The Northwest Missouri State softball team picked up a crucial split against league-leading Pittsburg State on Friday afternoon in Pittsburg, Kan.

The Gorillas rallied from a 7-3 deficit in game one to win in extra innings, 8-7, and then the Bearcats retaliated with an 11-1 trouncing in the night cap, scoring in five of the six innings played.

Northwest now has a 17-19 record overall and a 10-8 mark in the MIAA, while the Gorillas move to 28-12 and 15-3 this season.

In game one, Baylee Scarbrough crushed her first home run of the season, driving in two runs in the process. Stephanie Mark finished 2-for-4, including her tenth home run this year, while Rebecca Maher clubbed a double, knocking in a run and ultimately scoring one of her own.

In game two, Kendle Schieber threw a complete game one-hitter, allowing just two base runners. The junior struck out seven Gorillas and recorded 11 straight to close out the game.

Chantel Adams reached base in all four at bats, finishing with home run and two doubles while driving in five runs and scoring three more.

Abigail Gilson sent a solo shot over the fence in right, the first home run of her collegiate career, while Rebecca Maher scored two runs after reaching on a double and a single.

Northwest Missouri State will play their final road contests of the season on Saturday when they travel to Joplin, Mo. for a twin bill against Missouri Southern. First pitch is scheduled for noon.

— Northwest Sports Information —

Kansas guard Wayne Selden to return for his junior season

Posted on April 10, 2015

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas men’s basketball sophomore Wayne Selden, Jr., will return to KU for his junior season, the guard announced Friday.

“I’m using that last game and the season as my everyday motivation to get better,” Selden said. “I’m happy to come back to Kansas next season. This is a special place.”

A two-year starter from Roxbury, Massachusetts, the 6-5 Selden averaged 9.4 points per game last season and led KU with 46 three-pointers made. He was named to the 2015 Big 12 Championship All-Tournament Team where he scored 20 points on 7-of-9 shooting in KU’s 62-52 win against Baylor in the semifinals and a career-high 25 points versus Iowa State in the championship game, a 70-66 loss. In all, Selden had four 20-point efforts during his sophomore campaign and led KU in scoring seven times.

An All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection both his freshman and sophomore seasons, in 2014-15 Selden was second on the team with 95 assists and his 2.6 assists per game ranked 12th in the Big 12 Conference.

“Wayne is such a great kid and competitor and feels that there are so many things to accomplish, not only as an individual, but as a team,” KU head coach Bill Self said. “He is committed to this program and I know he’ll work his tail off to put himself into in a spot to be a high (NBA) draft pick, hopefully next year, and put our team into position to have another great year.”

For his career, Selden enters 2015-16 with 679 points (9.6 ppg), 88 three-point field goals and 254 three-pointers attempted. His 34.8 percent shooting from beyond the arc ranks 23rd on KU’s career three-point field goal percentage list. Selden is 12 threes from cracking KU’s career top-25 list for three-point field goals made.

“A lot of good things are coming up for KU and I want to be a part of that,” Selden said. “We’re going to represent the USA at the World (University) Games this summer. We’re moving into new dorms (McCarthy Hall) before school starts and we’re playing in Maui (Hawaii) next year.”

Kansas posted a 27-9 overall record in 2014-15 and won its 11th-straight, 15th Big 12 and NCAA-leading 58th overall conference regular-season championship with a 13-5 league record. The Jayhawks had the toughest schedule in the nation and their 10 victories against Associated Press nationally-ranked teams at tip were the most for KU in a season. Kansas faced 16 ranked teams at tip, which were four more than the previous high for a season set three times (1994-95, 2002-03 and 2011-12). Included were 2015 Final Four teams Kentucky and Michigan State.

— KU Sports Information —

Griffons’ Shifflett named a finalist for NFCA National Freshman of the Year award

Posted on April 9, 2015

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Missouri Western softball player Paige Shifflett has been selected as one of 25 finalists for the NFCA National Freshman of the Year award.

Shifflett’s impressive freshman season has her second on the team in batting average (.388). The designated player from Pleasant Hill, Missouri leads the team with a .460 on base percentage.

Starting all but one game this season, Shifflett is currently has a 16-game hitting streak and has totaled 47 hits this season. Her 38 RBIs are second on the team and her eight home runs are third.

With an impressive ability to change her approach, Shifflett is second on the team with 12 walks this year. As a freshman, Shifflett leads the team with a .458 batting average when runners are on base. She has a team-high, .500, batting average with runners in scoring position and is batting .727 average with a runner on third and less than two outs.

No Griffon has had more success advancing runners on the season. Shifflett has moved at least one runner over 48 times in 75 chances for a .640 success rate.

Shifflett is one of three MIAA freshman to make the top-25, joining Pittsburg State’s Emmie Robertson and Emporia State’s Caitlin VanVleck.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Mizzou earns first-ever Learfield Cup Top-25 ranking

Posted on April 9, 2015April 9, 2015

COLUMBIA, Mo. – The latest standings are out for the Division I Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup, and the University of Missouri is sitting in the top-25 for the first time in program history.

The current rankings show Mizzou sitting at 25th – the highest standing at any point in time for MU since the rankings began in 1993-94 – with 408.75 points.

Mizzou jumped up thanks to a slew of strong performances at NCAA Championship events recently by several programs, including wrestling (4th place at NCAAs), men’s swimming & diving (11th), women’s swimming & diving (14th), women’s indoor track & field (15th) and men’s indoor track & field (46th). In all, Mizzou has had seven sports score in the Learfield Cup so far this season, with six of them posting impressive top-25 national finishes. The other two sports to score for Mizzou came this past fall in the way of football (11th) and soccer (17th).

The lofty ranking puts Mizzou in position to challenge its previous best final ranking in the Directors’ Cup. The previous high-water mark for Mizzou was a 36th-place final showing for the 2008-09 season. The highest that Mizzou had ever stood in the rankings at any point in time was a 27th-place spot heading into the spring sport season in that same 2008-09 year.

“We’ve had a goal of being a top-25 comprehensive program for a long time,” said Director of Athletics Mike Alden. “This certainly doesn’t signal an arrival or a time to let up, but it is very rewarding to see this achievement and reflect on how proud we are of our student-athletes, coaches and staffs for their tireless efforts. We’re confident that there will be even greater accomplishments to come,” he said.

From 1993-94 through 1997-98, Mizzou’s average yearly finish in the Directors’ Cup was 98th. Since Alden took over in August of 1998, that average yearly rank has improved to 47th in the 16 years from 1997-98 through 2013-14.

The Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup is a national all-sport standing scoring system, assigning points to each institution for up to 20 sport programs, including 10 men’s and 10 women’s programs. The cup was developed as a joint effort between the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USA Today. For more information on the standings, please visit www.directorscup.org.

— MU Sports Information —

MWSU’s Gillaspy named a finalist for Schutt Sports/NFCA National Player of the Year

Posted on April 9, 2015

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Missouri Western senior Tiffany Gillaspy has been selected as one of 25 finalists for the Schutt Sports/NFCA Division II National Softball Player of the Year. Earlier this year, Gillaspy was placed on a top-50 watch list for the award and her exceptional senior season to this point has moved her one step closer to that recognition.

Already the national and MIAA Hitter of the Week once this season, Gillaspy leads her team in batting average (.401), slugging percentage (.759), hits (55), RBIs (40), doubles (11), home runs (12) and total bases (104). She came into this week as the MIAA leader in slugging percentage and tied for the lead in home runs. She is also in the top-10 in the country in home runs. The senior infielder currently ranks in the top-five in the following MWSU career standings: runs scored (4th-127), RBIs (4th-149), doubles (5th-139), home runs (3rd-35), total bases (4th-347) and batting average (5th-.366).

In 2014, Gillaspy was third team Daktronics All-American; First Team Daktronics All-Region; NFCA First Team All-Central Region and First Team All-MIAA. She was named MIAA Hitter of the Week twice, hitting safely in 23 of her last 25 games and 45 of the team’s 57 games.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Griffon softball falls to No. 24 in latest NFCA Top 25 poll

Posted on April 9, 2015April 9, 2015

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – For the third consecutive week, the Missouri Western softball team finds itself in the National Fastpitch Coaches’ Association Poll. After going 3-3 in six road games last week, the team dropped from No. 14 to No. 24 this week.

MWSU dropped a pair on Tuesday to Central Missouri after the voting was completed. It was the second sweep of a ranked team by UCM in a week after they took two from then No. 9 Emporia State over the weekend.

Emporia State remains the only other MIAA school ranked, now at No. 15. Looking around the rest of the top-25, MWSU has two victories this season over No. 12 Augustana and one win over No. 22 Winona State.

Missouri Western is currenty 28-14 overall and 12-6 in the MIAA.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Northwest’s Mark named a finalist for National Player of the Year

Posted on April 9, 2015

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Northwest Missouri State softball senior Stephanie Mark was listed as one of the 25 finalists for the Schutt Sports/NFCA Division II National Player of the Year, as announced by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association on Wednesday. The award is the first of its kind and will continue to be narrowed down until the recipient is announced on May 20.

On the year, Mark has smashed nine home runs, placing her 47th in the country. Her 35 RBI are good for 88th in Division II while her .752 slugging percentage places her in the top 66. In addition, the Ogden, Utah native has struck out once every 36 at bats, the 32nd best rate in the nation.

Mark has recorded two four-hit performances this season and two multi-homer games.

The Bearcats finish their road schedule this weekend when they head south for a pair of conference doubleheaders. They will first play Pittsburg State on Friday followed by a Saturday twin bill at Missouri Southern in Joplin, Mo.

— Northwest Sports Information —

Griffons split doubleheader at home against Truman State

Posted on April 7, 2015April 7, 2015

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The Missouri Western baseball team went 1-1 Tuesday at the Griffon Springs Sports Complex against Truman State. The Griffons lost game one 4-3, but rolled to a 14-1 win in the nightcap.

Game 1 – TSU 4, MWSU 3

MWSU allowed four runs to Truman State in the first inning and their comeback bid fell short only tallying three runs in the seven inning game.

Truman State jumped on the Griffons early with four runs in the first inning. Missouri Western used three pitchers in the inning to get out of the jam with three runs being charged to Mike Calimeno. MWSU walked two batters, hit a batter and committed an error to contribute to the four-run inning.

The Griffons clawed their way back in the fifth inning when Corbin Duffy started off the inning with a solo home run. Dylon Koch and Orencio Fisher followed that up with back-to-back singles and senior Trevor LaHonta hit a single into right centerfield to bring in the second run of the inning.

Missouri Western had guys on second and third with one out in the bottom of the seventh inning but couldn’t find a way to drive them in to even the score.

On the mound, Kyle Kelly pitched 5.1 innings; faced 17 batters only gave up two hits and walked one batter with no runs allowed.

Game 2 – MWSU 14, TSU 1

The Griffons produced 14 runs in the second game powered behind three four-run innings and allowed just one run on six hits.

Shortstop Cody Childs got the Griffons on the board with a grand slam in the bottom of the third inning. He drove in Ryan Degner, Trevor LaHonta, and Orencio Fisher in one swing of the bat.

MWSU continued hitting in the bottom of the fourth inning with Fisher tallying an RBI single through the left side and the second run scored when Ryan Degner reached on an error to allow Koch to score.

In the fifth inning, designated hitter Corbin Duffy hit a two-run home run for his second on the day. The Griffons also added four more runs in the bottom of the sixth.

Missouri Western will be back in action at home on Friday, April 10 starting at 6 p.m. against Nebraska-Kearney in a four game series.

— MWSU Sports Information —

No. 14 Missouri Western softball gets swept by Central Missouri

Posted on April 7, 2015April 7, 2015

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The 14th-ranked Missouri Western softball team lost their first home games of the season Tuesday as they were swept in a doubleheader at the Griffons Springs Sports Complex by Central Missouri, 12-1 and 8-6.

GAME 1: UCM 12, MWSU 1 (5 innings)

For the first time since Feb. 21, Griffon Softball was on the losing end of a run-rule game. The Griffons struggled to get anything going offensively and were in an early 7-0 hole after allowing six in the first and another in the second.

Janie Smith got the leadoff batter out then surrendered two straight outs and was charged with a fielding error on the fourth batter she faced, loading the bases with just one out. Smith then coaxed a pop up that froze the runners. The next six batters singled, driving in six unearned runs in the first inning.

MWSU managed just one run. It came in the fourth on an RBI-double from Katie Klosterman. No Griffon had more than one hit and the team totaled just six and committed two errors in the field. Smith took the loss (13-7), going three and a third innings, and allowing 10 runs on 10 hits, three of the runs were earned. Taylor Schaben went an inning and two –thirds in relief, surrendering two earned runs on five hits.

GAME 2: UCM 8, MWSU 6

After three in the first and one in the second, MWSU took an early 4-1 lead and looked to be in control until the Jennies took the lead in the sixth. UCM scored two in the fifth, three in the sixth and two in the seventh to take the game, 8-6.

MWSU had the tying run on second base in the bottom of the seventh but couldn’t advance the seventh or eighth runs of the game. Down 8-5 going into the final half inning, Paige Shifflett led off the inning with a single to center and Kailey Green followed with a walk. Klosterman struck out swinging to record the first out. Then Shelbie Atwell singled and things got crazy. Pinch running for Shifflett, Taylor Schaben made it to third on a throwing error by the center fielder. Schaben then advanced home when she was obstructed by the third baseman. Atwell made it to second and Green got to third in the melee. Megan Korgie made the second out when she struck out swinging in a pinch-hit at bat for Brooke Schaben. Rebekah Mueller ended it with a fly out to right.

Shifflett and Muller both homered in the game. Shifflett’s solo shot drove in the final two runs of the first inning and Mueller led off the second with a solo shot to center. Tiffany Gillaspy was 2-4 in game two with one RBI and a run scored. Shifflett was 2-4 with two RBIs and a run scored. Klosterman, Atwell and Mueller were all 2-4 as well. Shyanne Saladino had an up and down performance, picking up the loss in seven innings of work. Saladino gave up 11 hits and eight runs, four earned. She struck out three and walked one.

The losses dropped the team to 28-14 on the year and 12-6 in the MIAA. MWSU continues a challenging stretch this weekend with doubleheaders at Missouri Southern and Pittsburg State.

— MWSU Sports Information —