College – Page 560 – St. Joseph Post Archive

No. 2 Bearcats roll past Missouri Southern to remain unbeaten

Posted on October 26, 2013

Thanksgiving came about a month early for the Northwest Missouri State defensive line.

Excuse the cliché, but the Northwest front line must have been licking their chops Saturday afternoon when Missouri Southern entered Bearcat Stadium running a triple option offense. Although the Lions broke off a couple of nice runs, they were stuffed by the Bearcats much of the game. It was another impressive performance as Northwest won, 43-7, in front of 8,257 fans on a gorgeous Homecoming afternoon in Maryville.

“I am so proud of these kids. This isn’t an easy offense to prepare for,” said Northwest defensive coordinator Rich Wright. “They deserve 100 percent of the credit. They are the ones who busted their tails all week watching the film and the ones who had to execute responsibility football, which is what it takes to be successful against the option.

“They played physical. They flew around to the football and did an awesome job today.”

Northwest, ranked No. 2 in NCAA Division II in the AFCA Coaches Poll, improved to 8-0 overall and 7-0 in the MIAA.

Offensively, senior running back Billy Creason was the star. He was selected MVP of the Homecoming game and received the Don Black Award. Creason finished with 94 total yards and scored a touchdown on the ground and one receiving.

But as a unit, Northwest defense played the lead role in the victory.

The Bearcats went five straight quarters without giving up a point until the Lions scored a meaningless touchdown with 4 minutes left in the game.

“We are always looking for the challenge,” said linebacker Eric Reimer. “They put up a ton of yardage running every week. Our goal was to stop them and be physical upfront. Our D-line did an awesome job of creating chaos.”

Despite the one-sided score, Northwest needed to play well in the third quarter to come away with an easy win.

Leading 17-0 at halftime, the Bearcats took their game to another level in the third quarter. Northwest allowed no yards passing in the first half and that continued in the third quarter. The Lions only picked up 41 yards on the ground in the third quarter.

“It is awesome to go against a team that wants to be physical and run it up on you,” said defensive lineman Matt Longacre. “We stopped it fairly well today. They still got yards on us, but we feel very confident going into the next few games that we can stop the run.”

Meanwhile, the Bearcats really got on track on offense. They scored two rushing touchdowns in the third quarter and built a commanding 29-0 lead.

“We always harp on the first drive of the second half is the most important of the game,” said wide receiver Bryce Young, who scored on an 8-yard run that capped a 5-play, 53-yard drive that took just 1 minute, 20 seconds at the start of the third quarter.

“As an offense, we drove down and scored and did a really good job of putting them away and put some doubt in their minds.”

Northwest tacked on two more touchdowns early in the fourth quarter. It was their sixth blowout in their last seven games.

The game was fairly close in the first half. In fact, the Lions had a chance to close to within three-points early in the second quarter.

Once again, the defense showed its toughness when it stopped Southern from punching in a touchdown on 4th and goal from the 1.

It made sense for the Lions to go for it. They were trailing 10-0 and figured they needed a touchdown to keep pace with Northwest.

After all, Southern watched the Bearcats take their first possession at the 39 and needed only 2:08 to go 61 yards and score on a 3-yard run by Robert Burton. The extra point gave Northwest a 7-0 lead less than 4 minutes into the game and the Bearcats kicked off.

“It was big because at the time, the game was relatively tight,” Wright said. “If they get a score, they are right back in the game. One thing we talk about is never conceding anything.”

The Lions, though, had one final chance after they failed to score on the goal line. They stopped Northwest and then got the ball at the Bearcats 47.

But the Northwest defense was too much for the Lions to generate consistent offense.

Southern, though, was also playing pretty good defense, stopping the Bearcats.

So it was time for Northwest special teams to step up. Creason was credited with a blocked punt and that gave Northwest great field position.

It only took one play for Creason to rush for a 5-yard touchdown that gave Northwest a 17-0 lead with 9:27 left in the second quarter.

— Northwest Sports Information —

No. 5 Mizzou blows 17-point 4th quarter lead, loses in 2 OTs to South Carolina

Posted on October 26, 2013October 26, 2013

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Connor Shaw came off the bench in the second half to lead a 17-point rally, throwing for 201 yards and three touchdowns, and Elliott Fry kicked the go-ahead field goal in the second overtime to help No. 20 South Carolina stun No. 5 Missouri 27-24 on Saturday night.

After Fry put the Gamecocks ahead from 40 yards out, Missouri’s Andrew Baggett missed a 24-yard attempt off the left goal post.

Missouri (7-1, 3-1) could have all but locked up the SEC East with a victory, instead South Carolina (6-2, 4-2 SEC) moves to within one game of the Tigers for the division lead, with home games against Mississippi State and Florida remaining.

A sprain left knee kept Shaw from starting, but he entered the game in the third quarter and helped the Gamecocks score the final 17 points of regulation. He also threw a 15-yard touchdown pass on fourth down in the Gamecocks’ first overtime to match the Tigers’ Marcus Murphy’s 1-yard scamper.

Shaw engineered fourth-quarter scoring drives of 65, 69 and 63 yards, and the Gamecocks knotted the score at 17 on a two-yard reception by Nick Jones with 42 seconds remaining. Ellington scored his first touchdown on a 6-yard catch with 12:13 remaining, and Elliott Fry added a 20-yard field goal with 5:03 left.

Mike Davis caught three screen passes on South Carolina’s final scoring drive in regulation, partly making up for two fumbles in the first half. The Gamecocks turned the ball over three consecutive times in the second quarter, helping Missouri take a 14-0 halftime lead.

Davis, who led the conference with 125.6 rushing yards per game entering the night, committed his first miscue at the Missouri 29-yard line with 12:30 remaining in the half, and his second halted a 71-yard drive at the Tigers’ 2-yard line with 5:46 left. He finished the night with 51 rushing yards and 99 receiving yards while backup Shon Carson added 27 on the ground and 14 through the air.

Davis’ second fumble set the stage for a 96-yard touchdown pass from Mauk to L’Damian Washington on Missouri’s ensuing drive. Two yards deep in his own end zone, Mauk found Washington streaking toward the middle of the field for an easy first down, and then the receiver eluded two tackles at his 45-yard line before being untouched the rest of the way. The pass was Missouri’s longest since a 98-yarder from Pete Woods to Joe Stewart at Nebraska in 1976.

Mauk struggled out of the gate, throwing a pass dropped by defender Sharrod Golightly and then an interception to Kaiwan Lewis, a far cry from the 41-yard pass and 20-yard touchdown toss he threw in his opening attempts last week in a 36-17 win against Florida. But Mauk then completed three of his next four to set up Missouri’s first touchdown, an 11-yard scamper by Murphy with 1:23 left in the first quarter.

The Tigers added a 27-yard field goal by Baggett with 6:46 left in the third quarter before he missed a 46-yarder in the fourth quarter wide left.

— Associated Press —

K-State uses big 4th quarter to pull away from West Virginia

Posted on October 26, 2013

Kansas State scored four unanswered touchdowns in the second half to defeat West Virginia, 35-12, and gain its first Big 12 win of the season Saturday.

Jake Waters was 10-of-13 for 198 yards and three touchdowns for Kansas State (3-4, 1-3). Daniel Sams was 8-for-8 for 93 yards and a touchdown. Tyler Lockett had eight catches for 111 yards and three scores.

Kansas State had a chance for a big break early in the third quarter when Clint Trickett fumbled and it was recovered by Blake Slaughter at the West Virginia 18-yard line. But on the second play, Sams lost the ball after gaining a first down and it was recovered in the end zone by the Mountaineers’ Karl Joseph.

On the next play Trickett hit Kevin White on a slant pass just over the line of scrimmage and White meandered 43 yards through the K-State defense. That resulted in a 50-yard field goal by Josh Lambert and a 12-7 lead for West Virginia (3-5, 1-4).

But Kansas State responded with a 14-play, 78-yard drive, that used up 8:24 with the Wildcats going into the 20-mph wind. The drive was capped by a 9-yard pass from Sams to Lockett in the back of the end zone on third-and-goal.

Another 78-yard drive, this one taking seven plays and 3:40, gave Kansas State a 21-12 lead with 11:11 left in the fourth quarter. Waters hit Tramaine Thompson on a 30-yard touchdown pass on a play that looked exactly like his first touchdown of the day to Lockett.

Waters’ hit Lockett with a 24-yard touchdown with 7:31 left to put the game out of reach. John Hubert ran in a 4-yard touchdown with 21 seconds left for the final score.

Kansas State was the first team to find any kind of flow on offense in the first half, but even that took a substitute. Waters replaced Sams at quarterback as the Wildcats faced third-and-15 from the West Virginia 35. Waters, who had started the game for Kansas State, threw a 35-yard touchdown to Lockett, hitting Lockett in stride just shy of the goal line.

After the teams traded punts, West Virginia answered early in the second quarter. Trickett ran off left tackle for a 6-yard touchdown. Travis Britz blocked the extra point, helping Kansas State retain the 7-6 lead.

West Virginia took the lead on a 21-yard field goal by Lambert. The Mountaineers reached the Kansas State 6-yard line on a 50-yard completion from Trickett to Ronald Carswell. But the Wildcats defense stiffened, forcing the field goal.

— Associated Press —

Western volleyball falls in four sets to No. 11 Washburn

Posted on October 26, 2013October 27, 2013

Missouri Western fell to No. 11 Washburn in four sets, 3-1 (25-20, 22-25, 26-24, 25-20) Saturday night at MWSU Fieldhouse.

After Washburn took the first set 25-20, the Griffons jumped ahead to gain control of the second set.

Led by Erica Rottinghaus, the Griffons built a strong lead. Ahead 15-12, Rottinghaus added a kill to extend their lead. She recorded five kills in the set as the Griffons remained in a close battle with the Ichabods.

Rottinghaus put together another kill to break a 20-20 tie, and the junior put in a final kill to mark the score 24-20. An attack error by the Ichabods sent the match into the break tied 1-1.

The third set was the closest of the night. The Griffons went ahead 8-4 and steadily remained in the lead by four points before Washburn brought the set closer. A 4-1 run was ended with an Erin Backhuus kill to mark the score 12-10. Kelsey Olion added a kill to give the Griffons their biggest lead of the match, a 16-10 lead. But Washburn came back.

Down by seven, the Ichabods went on a 7-1 run to make it 18-17. The match was tied at 20, 22 and 24 but Washburn scored the final two points to take the important third set. That gave Washburn a 2-1 lead heading into the fourth set.

Washburn led throughout the final set to clinch the victory 3-1.

Rottinghaus led the Griffons with 17 kills. Sarah Faubel led the Griffons with 21 digs. Jordon Chohon had 40 assists for a team high.

Washburn was led by Marissa Cox who had 18 kills. The Griffons return to action Tuesday night for a 7 p.m. start against Northwest Missouri State.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Northwest volleyball loses in five to Emporia State

Posted on October 26, 2013October 26, 2013

The Northwest Missouri State volleyball team dropped a tough fought five set match to the Emporia State Hornets, 3-2, in an MIAA contest at Bearcat Arena on Saturday night. The loss moves the Bearcats to 9-14 overall and 3-7 in MIAA play. Emporia State improved to 15-7 and 6-4 in conference play. Both teams wore pink jerseys in support of breast cancer awareness as part of the Dig Pink campaign.

Late in the first set, Northwest opened up a 19-14 lead. Emporia would battle back, tying the set up at 23-23. The teams would tie the score up five moretimes before Emporia capitalized on a pair of attacking errors to win, 30-28. In the second set, Northwest again found itself in a close fight. This time, with the set tied 20-20, the Bearcats would rally, scoring five of the next six points to even the match going into the break, 1-1.

Despite trailing for most of the third set, Northwest stayed close but wereunable to put together a late rally, falling 25-21. After playing to a 19-19 tie in the fourth set, Northwest got timely kills from Abby Graves, Gabby Kuhl, Jackie Becker and Shelby Duren to even the match at two sets a piece, winning the set, 25-22.

Down 12-9 in the deciding fifth set, Northwest went on a 4-1 rally to tie it up, 13-13. But the Hornets got a kill from Katie Deutschmann and an attack error was called on Shelby Duren, giving Emporia State the 15-13 set victory and a 3-2 match win.

Brooke Bartosh hit a solid .250 and recorded a game-high 15 kills. Graves and Duren each added 14 kills. Mackie Keller had 10 kills, hit .562, had two service aces and recorded four blocks defensively. Miranda Foster had a game-high 14 digs. Bailey Vance added 12 digs and Duren had 10. Jackie Becker was credited with five blocks and Bartosh added four blocks.

Up next, Northwest will head to Missouri Western on Tuesday for a 7 p.m. MIAA contest in St. Joseph, Mo.

— Northwest Sports Information —

Kansas gets routed by No. 6 Baylor, 59-14

Posted on October 26, 2013

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Bryce Petty threw for 430 yards and three touchdowns in fewer than three quarters, Lache Seastrunk ran for 109 yards and a score and sixth-ranked Baylor routed Kansas 59-14 on Saturday night for its school-record 11th straight win.

The Bears (7-0, 4-0 Big 12) piled up 500 yards of offense in taking a 38-0 lead by halftime, and then relaxed as coach Art Briles pulled many of his starters in the third quarter.

The nation’s highest-scoring offense still finished with 743 yards, and eight of its nine scoring drives took fewer than 2 minutes. Four different Baylor players had touchdown runs – Petty among them – while Tevin Reese hauled in two of his three TD tosses.

Jake Heaps was held to just 85 yards passing and a touchdown for Kansas (2-5, 0-4), which has now lost 25 consecutive Big 12 games.

— Associated Press —

No. 25 Nebraska gets upset at Minnesota

Posted on October 26, 2013

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — When Philip Nelson picked Minnesota, he envisioned program-lifting wins like this.

With recovering coach Jerry Kill providing extra motivation, the Gophers pushed around Nebraska all afternoon to beat the Cornhuskers for the first time since 1960.

Nelson rushed for two touchdowns and passed for another, guiding Minnesota to a 34-23 upset Saturday of 25th-ranked Nebraska.

”We just have this confidence we can compete with anyone,” said Nelson, who made all of his seven completions count, for 152 yards. He carried the ball eight times for 55 yards, including a spin across the goal line from the 1 with 48 seconds left to seal the victory.

The Gophers (6-2, 2-2 Big Ten) became bowl-game eligible and stopped a 16-game losing streak to the Huskers during which they were outscored by an average of 40-9.

”You dream about being able to switch this thing around. That’s just the path that our recruiting class took, because we kind of took a blind leap of faith in this program,” Nelson said, adding: ”The way coach Kill runs his programs, we knew that we were going to have success and it was just a matter of time before we really started rolling.”

Taylor Martinez returned from a toe injury on his left foot that kept him out of the last three games for the Huskers (5-2, 2-1), but he had only 16 yards rushing on eight attempts and 139 yards on 16-for-30 passing, plus one touchdown and one interception. They missed right guard Spencer Long, who’s out for the season with a knee injury.

”Taylor was the least of our problems,” Nebraska coach Bo Pelini said. He added: ”I don’t know whether we think we’re better than we are or what it is, but at the end of the day, we didn’t have the type of approach you have to have on the road to go win a football game.”

David Cobb rushed for 138 yards on 31 attempts and Chris Hawthorne made two field goals for the Gophers, who outgained the Huskers 271-189 on the ground.

Ameer Abdullah had 165 yards on 19 carries and Pat Smith kicked three field goals, about the only bright spots for Nebraska.

”If we win out we can still play for the Big Ten championship,” Martinez said. ”We’ve just got to go out there and just keep on winning and not get down on ourselves.”

The Huskers found a rhythm at the end of the third quarter, fueled by a 35-yard, twisting-and-spinning run by Martinez to set up a short touchdown pass to Sam Cotton that cut Minnesota’s lead to 27-20. The thousands of red-clad Nebraska fans, who filled at least one-third of the 50,000 seats, snapped to life in celebration.

The Huskers took the ball with 5:50 left at their 9, trailing by four, but cornerback Martez Shabazz blitzed on third down and sacked Martinez to force a punt. The Gophers then sealed it on offense.

Kill watched from above in the box with his assistants, still on leave from his regular responsibilities while he’s managing his epilepsy. This was the third straight game he wasn’t in charge, with defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys taking over on the sideline, but he gave the players a pep talk before and after the game and at halftime.

The Gophers credited Kill’s surprise appearance and impromptu halftime pep talk last week for spurring them to a victory at Northwestern, and they played with plenty of fire in this one, sensing the opening for their first victory over one of the conference’s traditional powerhouse programs since winning at Michigan in 2005.

”The way that he can inspire us without even being down there, it’s unbelievable,” cornerback Shane Vereen said.

Nelson relieved Mitch Leidner on the fourth series, continuing the quarterback rotation for Minnesota, and delivered one of the best performances of his two seasons here. He helped the Gophers improve to 12-0 when leading at halftime since Kill took over in 2011.

On fourth-and-10 from the 33 in the second quarter, Nelson flicked a perfect pass over the top of the defense to an outstretched Derrick Engel. He tumbled into the end zone for a 14-10 advantage, the first lead by the Gophers over the Huskers in this series since 1969.

Yes, 1969.

The Gophers had gone 11 straight matchups with the Huskers, including each of the last two years as Big Ten foes, without holding a lead, let alone getting a win. But the Gophers, who play at Indiana next week, don’t plan on settling for six victories.

”You don’t get sigh. You don’t celebrate. You get bowl-eligible in October, you set your goals a hell of a lot higher,” Claeys said.

— Associated Press —

MWSU soccer drops road match at Southwest Baptist, 3-1

Posted on October 26, 2013October 26, 2013

The Missouri Western soccer team fell on the road against Southwest Baptist by a score of 3-1. Drew Mantlo got her first goal of her career as the Griffons fall to 2-13-2 overall and 0-9-1 in MIAA play.

The Bearcats got on the board early in the game when Ashley Creason blasted a free kick past MWSU goalie Sarah Lyle in the 7th minute. The score remained that way until after half time when Creason scored another free kick from 16 yards giving SBU the 2-0 lead at the 48:38 mark of the game.

SBU took a 3-0 lead in the 79th minute when Karla Jamison took a pass from Brittany Marino and put it past Lyle. MWSU responded in the 79 minute when Mantlo took a pass from Andrews ending the game at 3-1.

The Griffons had five shots with three on goal as Mantlo finished with three shots. Lyle made three saves in the contest.

SBU had 16 shots with six on goal. Creason had six shots with three on goal while Kate Jamison took three shots. The Bearcats improve to 10-5-1 overall and 6-4 in MIAA play.

The Griffons play their final game of the season on Friday, November 1 when they take on the Missouri Southern Lions at 7:00 pm in Joplin, Mo.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Missouri cruises past Oklahoma City in exhibition at Hearnes

Posted on October 26, 2013October 26, 2013

The Missouri Men’s Basketball Team got the 2013-14 season rolling with a convincing 73-48 exhibition win over Oklahoma City Friday night (Oct. 25) at Center.

Mizzou Athletics honored the 1993-94 undefeated Big Eight Conference Championship team during the game, which took place at the historic Hearnes Center. Legendary Missouri coach Norm Stewart and nearly every member of his championship team attended the game.

Admission was free and fans were encouraged to arrive early for pregame festivities that included autographs and a ceremonial jersey presentation to the 1993-94 players and coaches. Coach Frank Haith’s squad wore uniforms from the championship season and Stewart addressed Mizzou nation at halftime.

“On behalf of Missouri basketball, the 1993-94 team, players, coaches and staff, we want to thank you for coming out,” Stewart said. “I know that you came out to see the basketball game and I know that you came to see the great team of 1993-94. We’ve got great fans. We always have and I think we always will.”

Redshirt junior Jabari Brown, who started nearly every game for the Tigers during the second half of the 2012-13 season, returned to the starting lineup alongside senior Earnest Ross. Ross, a native of Cary, N.C., made 10 starts last year for the Tigers and was a crucial player off the bench. Jonathan Williams, III, a freshman from Memphis, Tenn., and transfers Jordan Clarkson and Keanau Post made their first starts in a Tiger uniform.

Brown gave the Tigers an early lead after hitting his first shot beyond the arc and the Tigers never looked back. Mizzou held a commanding lead over Oklahoma City throughout the entirety of the game and played in various combinations constructed by Haith and his staff.

The Tigers led Oklahoma City by 19 (43-24) at half and shot an impressive 53.8 percent from the floor during the first half.

Mizzou got off to a bit of a lethargic start in the second half as Oklahoma City cut the lead to 10 (51-41). The Tigers soon got back on track and went on a 14-0 run in six minutes as the trio of Clarkson, Brown and Ross showed flashes of greatness with well-timed and well-executed plays throughout the remainder of the game.

As a team, Mizzou shot 52 percent from the floor and 31 percent from beyond the arc as well as recording 46 rebounds. Brown led the team in scoring with 15 points and five assists. Ross was just behind Brown and recorded a double-double by scoring 13 points and 12 rebounds. Williams had an impressive freshman debut, scoring 10 points. Leading the scoring for Oklahoma City was senior Kaleb Smith who tallied 15 points.

The Tigers return to action, next Friday, Nov. 1, when they take on Central Missouri in their second and final exhibition game of the season. The game begins at 7:30 p.m. at Mizzou Arena.

— MU Sports Information —

Northwest volleyball gets swept by Washburn

Posted on October 26, 2013October 26, 2013

The Northwest Missouri State volleyball team fell to Washburn University on Friday evening at Bearcat Arena in an MIAA contest, 3-0. The win moves Washburn to 21-4 overall and 8-1 in MIAA play. Northwest falls to 9-13 and are now 3-6 in conference play.

The Ichabods hit .433 and .448 in the first two sets, respectively, to jump out to an early 2-0 lead. In the third set, Northwest held a lead early but with the match tied, 7-7, Washburn went on a 13-4 run to pull away.

Bridget Hanafin had 16 assists for the Bearcats and Kirsten Hudgens added 12. Shelby Duren had three services aces to go along with seven digs and eight kills. Bailey Vance had a team-high 15 digs defensively. Abby Graves recorded nine kills while Mackie Keller matched Duren with eight kills.

Northwest will host Emporia State at 6 p.m. tomorrow, Oct. 26, in Bearcat Arena. Admission to the game is free as fans are encouraged to make their way from Bearcat Stadium for the homecoming football game over to Bearcat Arena. The game time was originally set for 7 p.m. but has been moved up one hour to 6 p.m.

— Northwest Sports Information —