Sports – Page 485 – St. Joseph Post Archive

Griffons lose heart breaker to Arkansas Tech 81-80 in first round of NCAA Tournament

Posted on March 12, 2016

PITTSBURG, Kan. – A season for the ages came to an end Friday night in the NCAA Central Regional for the Missouri Western Women’s basketball team. The Griffons were knocked off, 81-80, by Arkansas Tech in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Pittsburg, KS.

Chelsea Dewey tied the game for the 10th time with 1:16 left on a layup and gave the Griffons a 78-77 lead on a free throw after she was fouled during the layup. Arkansas Tech led 80-77 with 13 seconds left and Sarafina Handy had a three-point attempt blocked with six seconds to go. Arkansas Tech made it a four-point game after a Missouri Western foul on the blocked three-point attempt. Sefulu Faavae made a three-point attempt at the buzzer to make the final score, 81-80.

The third seeded Griffons were hurt by 23 turnovers that resulted in 23 Arkansas Tech points. Missouri Western ended the game even with Arkansas Tech on the glass, but the Golden Suns pulled down 18 offensive rebounds that led to 18 second-chance points. Both teams ended the game with 30 made field goals. Missouri Western shot 55.6 from the field, 61.5 percent from three-point range and 80 percent at the free throw line.

Dwanisha Tate led Missouri Western with a career-high 22 points, surpassing her previous high of 14 points in the second quarter. Handy finished her last game as a Griffon shooting 5-7 from beyond the arc and turning in 17 points. Faavae ended with a career-high 14 points and a team-high five rebounds. Chelsea Dewey finished with 11 points.

The loss dropped Missouri Western to 27-4 in a season that will remain in the MWSU record books. The Griffons set a program record with 26 regular season wins, an MIAA record with 20 conference wins, won the program’s first MIAA regular season championship since 2002 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005.

— MWSU Athletics —

Smith, Saladino shutout Central Missouri in MWSU softball sweep

Posted on March 12, 2016March 12, 2016

WARRENSBURG, Mo. – The Missouri Western softball team stretched its winning streak to seven games with its third straight doubleheader sweep to begin MIAA play on Friday at Central Missouri. The Griffons did not allow a run in two victories in Warrensburg to improve their record to 16-6 overall and 6-0 in MIAA play.

Game 1: MWSU 8, Central Missouri 0

Shelbie Atwell drove in seven runs, including her second grand slam of the year and Janie Smith picked up where she left off last week in an 8-0 Missouri Western win to open the doubleheader.

Atwell put Missouri Western up 2-0 in the fourth with a two-RBI single to the pitcher. She made it 3-0 in the sixth with an RBI-single to center. Katie Klosterman scored on a wild pitch in the seventh to put the Griffons up 3-0 then it was Atwell’s turn again. She cleared the bases with a grand slam to left in the seventh that put Missouri Western up 8-0.

Atwell finished 4-5 with seven RBIs and one run scored. Smith improved to 9-3 with her fourth shutout of the season. She went the distance, allowing five hits, striking out five and walking three.

Game 2: MWSU 2, Central Missouri 0

Paige Shifflett provided both Griffon runs, which were enough for Shyanne Saladino to pick up her fourth shutout of the season.

Shifflett picked up an RBI single to right in the fifth and a solo home run to center in the seventh, her second of the season. Shifflett finished 2-4 at the plate and Morgan Rathmann was also 2-4. Missouri Western had six total hits. Saladino limited Central Missouri to five hits while striking out six and walking three.

Missouri Western stays on the road this weekend with a doubleheader at Southwest Baptist on Saturday, beginning at 11 a.m.

— MWSU Athletics —

No. 1 KU hangs on to defeat 22nd-ranked Baylor in Big 12 semifinals

Posted on March 11, 2016March 12, 2016

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas coach Bill Self said the final couple minutes of Friday night’s Big 12 semifinal against Baylor didn’t take anything away from his team’s impressive second-half performance.

Even if it almost took away a win.

After overcoming a halftime deficit to build a comfortable lead, Self put in his backups to coax the game to its conclusion. But the No. 22 Bears rallied, forcing the Kansas starters back onto the floor, where they finally managed to finish off a 70-66 victory.

“I had one guy ask me yesterday, `Hey, when you get a lead in the last two minutes, why don’t you play your bench?” Self said. “And I did. And it didn’t work out so great.”

Al Freeman’s 3-pointer got Baylor within 68-64 with 20 seconds left, and that was when Self sent his top players back on the floor. Jonathan Motley’s putback then got the Bears within three with five seconds to go, but Devonte Graham calmly made the second of two free throws at the other end to put the game away.

Graham had 14 points and eight assists as the Jayhawks (29-4) beat the Bears (22-11) for the third time this season — and avenged their tournament loss from a year ago. Perry Ellis scored 20 points.

Kansas will play sixth-ranked Oklahoma or No. 9 West Virginia for the title Saturday night.

“Proud that our guys didn’t quit at the end,” Baylor coach Scott Drew said. “Kansas really executed well in the second half. I told coach Self, they guard so well.”

Freeman scored 14 points and Rico Gathers had 13 points and nine boards, but nobody in green got into much of a rhythm against the Jayhawks’ man-to-man defense. Taurean Prince was held to nine points, going 0 for 6 from beyond the arc, and Ish Wainwright managed four points on 2-for-9 shooting before fouling out.

The victory was the 13th straight for Kansas, which can match the number of tournament titles won by every other Big 12 school with its 10th. The Jayhawks also improved to 3-0 at the Sprint Center this season with their eighth consecutive win over the Bears.

Not that they didn’t have a chance: Baylor forged a 23-21 lead after a sloppy first half.

The teams combined for 17 turnovers, Kansas at one point throwing it away on four straight possessions. Baylor’s Lester Medford tossed a pass to nobody at one end of the floor, and then Ellis launched an air ball from beyond the arc as the teams went into a deep offensive funk.

For a while, it seemed as if nobody wanted to score.

There were only two real highlights: Graham had five assists for Kansas, including back-to-back alley-oop lobs to Ellis, and Jake Lindsey hit a buzzer-beating 3 to give the Bears the halftime edge.

Kansas began to take control as soon as it left the locker room.

Ellis went on a personal 8-0 run, and Wayne Selden Jr. woke up a sleepy crowd with a soaring dunk. A few minutes later, Graham tossed up a lob from just inside midcourt that Selden threw down for a 43-33 lead.

“We knew we were playing flat, kind of dead, not a lot of energy,” Graham said. “We knew we weren’t playing to our capability. … In the second half we tried to change it.”

Baylor began trying to get the ball to Gathers and Prince in the paint, but the Jayhawks did a good job of collapsing on defense. The Bears missed nine consecutive shots during a critical stretch midway through the second half, and that allowed the Jayhawks to establish a comfortable lead.

They wound up needing just about every point of it.

“We know the game is never over with us,” Freeman said. “We all have confidence in each other. Nobody has quit in them. We’re going to play every possession hard until it’s the last one in the game.”

QUOTABLE

Asked whether having to put the starters back in late in the game is a coach’s worst nightmare, Self replied: “No, the worst nightmare would be losing. This was just a bad dream.”

TIP-INS

Baylor: Motley finished with 11 points and seven rebounds. … The Bears were playing in their third straight semifinal. They still have never won the Big 12 Tournament.

Kansas: Carlton Bragg had 10 points and seven rebounds. He had a career-high 12 points in a quarterfinal win over Kansas State. … Frank Mason III had nine points and six rebounds.

UP NEXT

Baylor heads back to Waco, Texas.

Kansas plays for its first title since 2013.

— Associated Press —

Mound City girls, Stanberry boys advance to Class 1 state championship games

Posted on March 10, 2016

CLASS 1 BOYS SEMIFINALS
Stanberry 52
Glasgow 44

Walnut Grove 59 OT
Gideon 54

CLASS 1 GIRLS SEMIFINALS
Mound City 57
Glasgow 52

Naylor 37
Walnut Grove 32

CLASS 2 BOYS SEMIFINALS
Iberia 65 OT
Bloomfield 58

Hartville 63
Wellington-Napoleon 33

CLASS 2 GIRLS SEMIFINALS
Neelyville 63
New Franklin 45

Crane 56
Skyline 50

CLASS 3 BOYS SEMIFINALS
Barstow 63
Mountain Grove 49

Tolton Catholic 83
Whitfield 71

CLASS 3 GIRLS SEMIFINALS
Saxony Lutheran 54
Southern Boone 40

Strafford 49
St. Piux X 38

Griffon baseball uses late rally to stun Pittsburg State

Posted on March 10, 2016

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The Missouri Western baseball team beat Pittsburg State 7-6 on Thursday afternoon. The Griffons stunned Pitt State in the first game of the series with a seven-run inning in the bottom of the eighth to pull out the victory.

Missouri Western’s late rally came in the bottom of the eighth inning when Nick Gawley started the inning off with a single to third base. Jeremy Alvarado reached on a fielder’s choice and error by the first basemen. Brandon Downs continued the rally as he singled to center field, loading the bases for Alex Heuring. Heuring was able to reach on the second error of the inning to score Gawley from third.

The Griffons then drew consecutive walks to push the score to 6-3 in favor of the Gorillas. Senior David Glaude came to the plate with the bases loaded and delivered a double to left center to bring home three-runs and even the score at 6-6. Glaude was eventually moved to third and scored on a wild pitch, giving the Griffons a 7-6 lead.

Missouri Western allowed the Gorillas to gain an early lead giving up five runs in the first three innings. Weston Caindec was able to shut down the PSU offense. Caindec pitched 4.1 innings as he came in for relief in the third inning. He allowed just two hits and stuck out seven batters on the day. Preston Bailey came in to finish the game, picking up his second win of the year and striking out three batters.

The Griffons finished the day with seven different players scoring a run and seven different players getting a hit. Glaude, Gawley and Alvarado all contributed two-hits each in the game.

The Griffons and Gorillas will have a double-header on Friday afternoon starting at 2 p.m.

— MWSU Athletics —

Ellis leads No. 1 Kansas to 85-63 rout of K-State in Big 12 Quarterfinals

Posted on March 10, 2016

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Not long ago, Kansas coach Bill Self had an official who calls games all over the country pay his team the ultimate compliment while simultaneously offering a somber warning.

“He said, `When you’re on, you’re as good as anybody,” Self recalled after watching his team dismantle Kansas State in the Big 12 Tournament. “And when you’re off, you really fall off.”

The top-ranked Jayhawks were decidedly on in their 85-63 quarterfinal victory Thursday.

Perry Ellis scored 21 points and Frank Mason III added 16 as the regular-season champions built a 45-30 halftime lead, then quickly stretched the advantage past 20. Kansas coasted the rest of the way to a semifinal matchup Friday night with No. 22 Baylor, which handled No. 23 Texas earlier in the day.

“They played at a very, very high level,” Kansas State coach Bruce Weber said.

The eighth-seeded Wildcats (17-16) were led by Justin Edwards, who hit five 3s and had 23 points. But the senior guard didn’t get nearly as much help as he had in a first-round victory over Oklahoma State.

Wesley Iwundu and D.J. Johnson scored 10 apiece, but freshman forward Dean Wade — who had a career-high 20 against the Cowboys — was held to five points on 1-for-6 shooting. Fellow freshman Barry Brown was 1 of 8 from the field and managed only three points in 26 minutes.

“We came into the tournament and got a win right off the bat. Losing to the No. 1 team in the country, I don’t think that’s a bad loss in anyone’s book,” Edwards said.

Kansas State has never beaten Kansas in nine tries in the Big 12 Tournament.

The Jayhawks, potentially playing for the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, certainly looked the part before a heavily pro-Kansas crowd. They shot 57 percent from the field, had the edge in rebounding, assists and steals, and protected the ball so well Kansas State never made much of a run.

The few times the Wildcats mounted a charge, Ellis or Mason was there to answer it.

The biggest highlight may have come when Ellis soared for an alley-oop pass and slammed it down midway through the second half, sending the crowd in Sprint Center buzzing and giving Kansas a 55-37 lead.

Edwards kept trying to shoot Kansas State back in the game, but the rest of the Wildcats looked spent from their game against the Cowboys down the stretch. Kansas merely had to protect the basketball in the final minutes to wrap up its 12th consecutive victory.

“There’s no doubt it’s a factor, we played a hard-fought game last night,” Weber said. “It just seemed like we were a step behind everything. They got into transition, got some layups, starting feeling good, and then started to make shots. It made it tough on us, no doubt.

NIT HOPES

The Wildcats were 11-2 outside the league, the lone losses to North Carolina and Texas A&M, and Weber hopes that’s enough to earn a spot in the NIT. “We had overtime losses, close losses — we just have to wait and see,” he said. “I hope for the senior’s sake, it would be a nice reward for them.”

CHEICK CHECK

Kansas forward Cheick Diallo did not play after needing five stitches in his mouth following an incident in practice Wednesday. Diallo, a five-star recruit, has struggled to earn minutes behind the Jayhawks’ bevy of veteran forwards. He hasn’t scored more than two points in a game since January.

TIP-INS

Kansas State: Edwards also had 10 rebounds. … The Wildcats shot 38 percent, including 6 of 18 from beyond the arc. … The last time the teams met in the Big 12 Tournament was the 2013 finals.

Kansas: Carlton Bragg had a career-high 12 points. Devonte Graham had 11. Wayne Selden Jr. was held to five points on 1-for-6 shooting. … The Jayhawks improved to 19-1 in their opening game of the conference tournament. … Kansas swept the season series from Kansas State.

UP NEXT

Kansas State waits to hear if it is playing in the NIT.

Kansas plays the No. 22 Bears in Friday night’s semifinals.

— Associated Press —

KC uses seven-run seventh inning to defeat White Sox Thursday

Posted on March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Even hitting into a triple play did not slow down the World Series champion Kansas City Royals.

The White Sox turned Tony Cruz’s fifth-inning liner into three outs, and Drew Butera hit an inside-the-park home run that capped the Royals’ seven-run seventh inning Thursday in a 9-2 win over a Chicago White Sox split squad.

With men on first and second against Scott Carroll in the fifth, the runners went on the pitch and Cruz lined out to Jason Coats. The non-roster left fielder threw to shortstop Jimmy Rollins to double up Reymond Fuentes at second, and Rollins threw to first baseman Mike Olt before Dusty Coleman could get back to the base.

Matt Davidson and Brett Lawrie homered for Chicago.

Ian Kennedy gave up two hits in three innings, including Davidson’s homer. White Sox starter Carson Fulmer allowed one run and two hits in 2 1/3 innings.

Danny Duffy, another Royals starter, pitched three innings in relief of Kennedy and picked up the victory. Butera, Jorge Bonifacio and Orlando Calixte drove in two runs each during the Royals’ seven-run seventh, in which Chicago made two errors.

STARTERS

Royals: Kennedy has made at least 30 starts in each of the last six seasons, a reason the 31-year-old right-hander was given a $70 million, five-year contract by Kansas City. Kennedy was 9-15 with a 4.28 for San Diego last season.

On Saturday, he gave up one run and four hits in two innings with three strikeouts.

“A little bit longer than last time, where you can make adjustments as you go,” Kennedy said. “There was one pitch, I think it was a curveball to Olt. Something clicked mechanically, and it felt a lot better.”

White Sox: Fulmer allowed three runs and five hits over two innings in his previous outing. He threw 52 pitches Thursday.

“Going into this game, I kept the same approach, same pitch sequences for the most part, and made better quality pitches this outing,” said Fulmer, a first-round pick in the amateur draft out of Vanderbilt. “Very happy with this outing, and hopefully I’ll get more starts.”

GRAY AREA

The Sox played Oakland on Wednesday and Fulmer sought out fellow Commodores pitcher Sonny Gray.

“He’s helped me so much. I worked with him a lot at Vandy,” Fulmer said of Gray, who will face the White Sox in the April 4 opener. “I kind of modeled my pitching after him a little bit, we kind of have the same mechanics and attributes when we pitch. But he’s helped me so much with my mentality, about being able to lock in. I’m really glad to be around him.”

Royals: Chris Young is to pitch against Arizona in Surprise.

White Sox: Carlos Rodon is slated to face San Diego in Peoria.

— Associated Press —

Cardinals drop spring training game to Mets

Posted on March 10, 2016March 10, 2016

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) — Noah Syndergaard allowed one hit in three scoreless innings in his spring training debut, helping the New York Mets beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-2 Thursday.

Syndergaard, who finished fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting last year, retired his first eight batters. He struck out two and walked none.

“I felt great out there,” Syndergaard said. “It was nice getting out there, getting my feet wet. A little amped up. It’s been a long wait to get on the mound and be able to get out there and compete, but overall it was a pretty solid performance.”Ruben Tejada hit a two-run homer for the Mets after replacing Asdrubal Cabrera, who left in the first inning with a knee injury.

Matt Adams homered twice for the Cardinals, including a two-run drive. Stephen Piscotty had a hit, walked and stole a base.

Wilmer Flores added two hits for the Mets and Alejandro De Aza had two hits, including a double, and scored twice.

Cardinals starter Jaime Garcia allowed three hits in 3 2/3 shutout innings, struck out two and walked one.

STARTING TIME

Cardinals: Cardinals catcher Brayan Pena said Garcia’s pitches had a lot of movement Thursday.

“Using the sinker today, it was pretty good. Everybody knows that’s his bread and butter. It was fun to be behind home plate with him today. I think the changeup was our key factor today. It really gets the hitters off balance and then we went back there attacking with the two-seam and then finishing with a slider or a curveball.”

Mets: Sydergaard threw 29 of 38 pitches for strikes.

“The command — so many strikes,” Mets manager Terry Collins said. “That was what I think was really most impressive. He’s a sensational strike thrower and he throws that hard. … It was a good outing for him.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Mets: Cabrera was scheduled to have an MRI on his left knee Thursday night. He was injured when he tagged up from first base on a long fly ball by Yoenis Cespedes. The throw from Cardinals center fielder Tommy Pham was offline so Cabrera opted not to slide at the last second.

“I was thinking to slide, I saw the bad throw so I tried to stand up and I felt something in my knee,” Cabrera said. “It’s sore right now. I don’t think it’s serious.”

Cardinals: Catcher Yadier Molina (thumb) checked out fine a day after making his spring training debut with three innings and a nice sweeping tag, and could catch Carlos Martinez on Friday. Prospect Patrick Wisdom, who homered Wednesday, has a minor hamstring injury. GM John Mozeliak says Wisdom likely will be out a week.

STILL GOT IT

Cardinals manager Mike Matheny, a former catcher, made a nice play on a foul ball by Pena. Standing on the top step of the Cardinals dugout, Matheny caught the hard chopper with his right hand, looked at the ball and then flipped it to some Cardinals fans in the first row behind the dugout.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: Martinez makes his first spring training start on Friday against the Braves. It’s his first outing since getting shut down late last season with shoulder tightness. Set-up men Seung Hwan Oh and Seth Maness are also scheduled to pitch.

Mets: Steven Matz, who made his spring training debut Monday, is scheduled to start against Washington. Collins was unsure how many innings Matz would throw on short rest.

— Associated Press —

Central lets big lead slip away in Class 5 Sectional loss to Liberty

Posted on March 9, 2016

The St. Joseph Central girls’ basketball team had its season come to an end Wednesday night as they lost to Liberty 59-44 in the Class 5 Sectionals at Silverstein Eye Centers Arena in Independence.

The Indians finish with a 21-7 record, with three of their losses coming to Liberty. The Blue Jays improve to 25-3 and they’ll face Belton in the Class 5 Quarterfinals on Saturday.

Central jumped out to a big lead in the first half as they took a 28-12 lead with about four minutes to go before halftime, but the Indians didn’t score again in the half and Liberty ended the second quarter on a 13-0 run to pull within three points at the half.

The Blue Jays took the lead early in the third quarter and led 37-33, and Central never regained the lead.

Maggie Lawrence led CHS with 13 points.

K-State holds on to defeat Oklahoma State in Big 12 Tournament opener

Posted on March 9, 2016

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Kansas State looked like a team playing without any pressure in the Big 12 tournament Wednesday night.

Maybe because that’s the way the Wildcats have chosen to approach it.

They know that they’ll need to win four games in four days to make the NCAA Tournament, and they are unlikely to be favored the rest of the way. But they at least got the first one out of the way, holding on after building a big early lead to beat Oklahoma State 75-71 in the opening round.

“There should be no pressure on us,” Wildcats coach Bruce Weber said. “We just have to come and play and enjoy the opportunity. That’s what we’ve talked about.”

Freshman forward Dean Wade took advantage of his opportunity, scoring a career-best 20 points. Justin Edwards added 17 and Wesley Iwundu had 14 for the eighth-seeded Wildcats (17-15), who will play top-ranked Kansas — the tournament’s No. 1 seed — in Thursday’s quarterfinals.

“It is definitely going to be challenging, the No. 1 team in the country,” Edwards said. “Like coach said, we have to go back to the hotel, get rested and hopefully be energized for tomorrow.”

Jeffrey Carroll and Joe Burton scored 13 points apiece for No. 9 seed Oklahoma State, which lost its 20th game for the first time since the 1971-72 season. And that could create an uncomfortable few days for coach Travis Ford, who still has three years and $7.2 million remaining on his 10-year contract.

The pressure has been mounting on Ford all season, despite a rash of injuries — including season-enders to star guard Phil Forte and standout freshman Jawun Evans — that robbed him of his intended lineup.

“People have asked me about it, and they don’t understand the life I live,” Ford said. “They are not around me enough to know my mindset of how I work. I immerse myself into trying to figure out how to help this team every way possible, and you know, I haven’t really — you know, I put everything I could in trying to figure out how to beat K-State. And now I am thinking about what I could have done differently.”

Tyree Griffin scored 11 points and Leyton Hammonds had 10 for the Cowboys, who lost in the first round of the tournament for the first time to finish the season with seven consecutive defeats.

Meanwhile, the Wildcats wiped away the memory of a loss to TCU as the No. 8 seed a year ago.

Kansas State jumped on the Cowboys right from the start Wednesday night, using a 10-0 run and a 9-0 run minutes apart to build a double-digit lead. It eventually swelled to as many as 18 points when Iwundu knocked down a jumper and then hit a pair of foul shots in the closing minutes of the first half.

Kansas State still led 40-23 at the break.

The Cowboys, who began the game 4 for 15 from the field, scored on their first six possessions of the second half to chip into the lead. But once their offense got going, their defense collapsed, and the Wildcats were able to match them shot-for-shot for several minutes to keep them at bay.

It was still 67-59 with just over two minutes left when Kansas State forward Stephen Hurt knocked down a baseline jumper. Anthony Allen rattled the rim with a dunk at the other end, but Iwundu went coasting to the rim and was fouled, making the first of two free throws for some breathing room.

It came in handy when Hammonds hit a 3-pointer to make it 70-64 with 1:24 remaining.

The Wildcats struggled to put the game away from the foul line with Iwundu and Brian Rohleder each missing a pair. But after a basket by Tyree Griffin made it 73-68 with 21 seconds left, Barry Brown was able to convert the first of two free throws to help seal the win.

“Now it’s all about getting rest, getting good preparation,” Iwundu said, “and coming to fight the hardest tomorrow to make it a good game and hopefully come out with the win.”

—

TIP-INS

Oklahoma State: Jeff Newberry was held to six points on 3-for-9 shooting. … The Cowboys’ last victory was against Kansas State in overtime on Feb. 13. … Oklahoma State shot just 35 percent from the field.

Kansas State: Iwundu also had four assists and Wade had six rebounds. … The Wildcats came into the tournament having lost four of their last five. … D.J. Johnson had nine points before fouling out.

SUPPORT FOR FORD

“We’ve been through a lot of adversity,” Griffin said, “and he’s just trying to lift us up, like every single time. He’s never been negative to us. We’ve never been negative toward our teammates. We just try to go out there and finish each game and play strong every night.”

UP NEXT

Oklahoma State begins recuperating in the offseason.

Kansas State plays the Jayhawks in Thursday’s quarterfinals.

— Associated Press —