Missouri Western is in the Division II football playoffs for the first time in school history. The Griffons finished the regular season 9-2, the only two losses coming on the road. They dropped a game early in the conference season by three points to eventual MIAA champion Northwest Missouri State. The other loss came in the regular season finale to last year’s conference champ Washburn. The 16-3 loss to Washburn might have been the deciding factor in why the Griffons are not hosting a first-round game. Instead, the 5th-seeded Griffons will travel to Wichita Falls, TX and play fourth-seeded Midwestern State.

The road does not get any easier for Missouri Western if they get past the first-round. Waiting in the wings will be defending national runner-up and MIAA foe Northwest Missouri State. The Bearcats are the top-seed in the Southwest Region.

Related web sites:
Northwest Missouri State Athletics
Missouri Western Athletics

Winning the close games became something the Chiefs were used to doing the past couple of weeks. Kansas City headed into its game with Miami Sunday riding a three-game winning streak, but neither game was by more than 14 points. Playing with fire finally caught up to the men in red as they dropped a 13-10 decision to the Dolphins.

Miami’s defense held the Chiefs scoreless over the first three quarters, while taking a 13-0 lead into the final quarter. Lawrence Tynes booted a 27-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to give the Chiefs their first score.

With the ball just around midfield, Miami thought they could catch Kansas City sleeping and run a reverse. Ronnie Brown received the initial handoff from quarterback Joey Harrington but fumbled the second exchange with the wide receiver. Chiefs defensive end Jared Allen picked up the fumble and ran 20 yards before he was taken down at the Dolphins 20 yard line.

Four plays later, Larry Johnson scored from two-yards out cutting the deficit to 13-10.

Kansas City forced the Dolphins to punt on the ensuing drive and took over with 3:10 left to play. Damon Huard connected with Eddie Kennison down the right sideline converting on 3rd-and-17. Huard was sacked on the next play and threw incomplete on second down. Donte Hall hauled in a four yard completion that set up a fourth-and-long attempt. Huard’s pass to Samie Parker fell incomplete and the Dolphins held on for the victory.

The Missouri Tigers used a tenacious defense to run away from Stetson with a 66-45 win. Mizzou, playing their third game in three days, looked a little sluggish in the first half and fell behind 27-25 at halftime. The Tigers defense forced 11 turnovers in the first stanza, but had trouble holding onto the ball matching the Hatters with 11 turnovers of their own. Kalen Grimes had 12 points to lead the way before the half.

After an intense halftime speech from head coach Mike Anderson, who threatened a Monday practice, the Tigers took better care of the basketball and distanced themselves from the Hatters. Grimes was held to just two points in the second half, but Matt Lawrence picked up the scoring load with 11 second-half points to finish with 13 including 3-for-7 from 3-point range.

Mizzou’s pressure defense was the story all night. Stetson – made up of all freshman and sophomores – wore down late in the game and shot 25-percent from the field in the second half. The Tigers, on the other hand, were finally able to get inside the paint and make some easy baskets. The deficit at halftime was exponentially flipped as Missouri outscored Stetson 41-18 in the second-half.

Grimes recorded his second consecutive double-double (14 points, 11 boards), the first two of his career. He was also named the John Thompson Foundation Classic MVP. Matt Lawrence and Stefhon Hannah were named to the All-Tournament team.

Missouri is off until Thursday when they host Lipscomb at 7 p.m.

Related web sites:
Mizzou Official Website