It may be awkward the next time basketball coach Dave Slifer returns to St. Joseph. After leading the Missouri Western University to 205 wins in nine seasons, he’s leaving the Griffons to take a job with Central Missouri State, which is also in the MIAA conference. Slifer, didn’t want to leave but said CMSU offered to much money to say no, “I saw this as a way to make it more financially stable. I think that they probably paid me more than anybody else in the conference is making. It was a deal that I felt like I just had to take it.” In his time at Missouri Western, Slifer led the Griffons to eight-straight seasons of 20 wins or more and led them to the NCAA Division-II women’s tournament in each of those seasons. He is a three-time MIAA Coach of the Year and coached Missouri Western to two MIAA championships. Assistant Josh Keister has been named interim head coach.
Royals Top Padres, Cardinals Fall To O’s
The Royals batted around in the first inning, scoring five runs in a 9-4 win over the Padres. Mike Sweeney hit his fifth homer of the season—it was a two-run shot. Jeremy Affeldt pitched five innings allowing two runs off four hits to get the win…. The Cardinals pounded out 13 hits, but managed just two runs in a 10-2 loss to the Orioles at Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Chris Carpenter was touched for seven runs off eight hits in five innings of work. Five of those runs came in the first inning.
SEC Launches Probe Into Jones Financial Group Dealings
The Securities Exchange Commission is investigating the parent company of the Edward D. Jones stock brokerage company, looking into allegations the company did not tell customers that some mutual fund companies were paying promotional fees to agents who pushed their funds. The filing says the federal prosecutor in Eastern Missouri, the National Association of Securities Dealers, and other agencies also are investigating the deals. Edward D. Jones and its parent company, Jones Financial Group, are based in Des Peres. The SEC says the company got about $90-Million last year in so-called revenue sharing agreements with mutual funds.
Top Economist Confident Missouri’s Economy Headed In Right Direction
The nation’s economic picture is improving and Missouri’s is improving along with it. Lynn Reaser, the Bank of America’s Chief Economist, has told a House committee that this state has made some major improvements in the last year, especially in he area of employment. Reaser says it’s a slow improvement, and we’re still seeingproblems in some areas of the job sector: manufacturing, government, transportation, and public utilities. On the whole, though, Missouri’s economy is looking better and can be expected to continue to improve. Reaser says Missouri’s economy is tied to that of the national economy. And, while the downtown in the economy on the national level hurt Missouri, this state will now benefit from he upturn being seen with the national economic picture.
Missouri Corn Growers Like Presidential Campaign Talk About Alternative Fuels
Debate over the nation’s energy policies is music to the ears of an industry in the state that supports alternative fuel production. Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry has debuted his plan to combat rising fuel prices in the U.S. Missouri Corn Growers Association Chief Executive Officer Gary Marshall is glad to hear the debate. Marshall says while high gas prices cut into consumers’ pocketbooks, they do actually help the corn-based ethanol industry in this state. Marshall says demand for alternative fuels is expected to continue growing. He hopes whomever winds up in the White House will make it a priority in the coming years.
