May 6, 2006
Northwest Drops 4-0 Decision in MIAA Championship; Await Word on Regional Action
SHAWNEE, Kan. - Ranked fifth in the North Central Region, Northwest Missouri State softball won twice today before falling 4-0 in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) Postseason Tournament Championship at the Mid-America West Complex. Third-seed Northwest took down Truman State 2-0 before wiping out Missouri Western 10-1 in five innings and losing to Emporia State in the final.Avenging a 3-0 loss to Truman yesterday in the first round, Northwest notched a run in the first and second innings today. Junior Lindsay Stephenson tacked on to her school home run record with her 15th of the year, a solo drive in the first inning. Sophomore Crystal Gustin added her version of Stephenson's blast in the second.
Senior Katy John posted two of the Bearcats six hits in the game. Sophomore Kelly Morris moved to 11-5 on the hill with the complete-game six-hitter.
Against Missouri Western in the second game, the Bearcats pushed across seven in the first inning to take a 7-0 lead. Twelve batters came up in the inning as there were five hits and two Griffon errors. Northwest plated two more in the third before MWSU scored once in the fourth to avoid the shutout. Of the 10 Bearcat hits in the contest, one went for extra bases - a double by junior Sarah Johnson.
John, junior Linellis Santiago and freshman Megan Simpson each gathered two hits in the game. Freshman pitcher Cola Krueger was credited with the win improving her record to 14-3. She allowed five hits and struck out two.
The Hornets of Emporia State scored four times in the first three innings, including three in the third, to take the 4-0 victory. The best scoring chance for Northwest came in the third when the Bearcats put runners on second and third with one out. However, ESU hurler Melissa Stevens whiffed two of her 12 batters in the game to preserve the shutout.
Junior Talina Canon was hit with the loss going 2 1/3 innings as she gave up four runs (three earned) on six hits. John totaled two of the Bearcats' hits.
The Bearcats, who stand with a school-record 39-13 mark, await word from the NCAA offices on regional play. Official word will be released late Sunday on the regional tournament scheduled for May 11-14 at the region's No. 1 seed. The top eight regionals seeds advance - Northwest entered this weekend fifth in the latest poll.
NOTES: Northwest now is 10-11 all-time in the MIAA Tournament after going 4-2 this year ... ESU wins its third straight MIAA Postseason Tournament and earns the automatic bid to the NCAA Regional Tournament ... Katy John finished the day 4-for-10 with four runs scored ... Northwest was playing in the losers bracket since it lost yesterday in the double elimination event.
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