August 2008 Archives

TIFFIN, Ohio -- Missouri S&T's men's soccer team bounced back from a season-opening loss to post a shutout victory Sunday, as the Miners got two first half goals and let their defense do the rest in a 2-0 win over Tiffin.

The Miners got goals from Andy Held and Jonathan Goecker in the first half of play and then held the Dragons at bay from there, as redshirt freshman goalkeeper Pat McNamee posted his first career shutout.

Held put the Miners in front 15 minutes into the game off an assist from Brandon Moore, then Goecker scored off Ryan Muich's assist with nearly seven minutes to play in the half to add to the S&T lead.

The Miners outshot Tiffin 13-12 in the game, with McNamee being credited with five saves. S&T held a huge edge in corner kicks as it had 11 to Tiffin's three.

S&T (1-1) will host Northwood in its home opener Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.

TIFFIN, Ohio -- After opening its season with a victory two days earlier, the Missouri S&T women's soccer team dropped the final game of its road trip Sunday when Tiffin handed it a 3-1 loss.

The Dragons broke on top 10 minutes into play on a goal by Shelly Rogers. Rogers also assisted on the other two Tiffin goals that came in the second half, the first of which was scored by Kirsten White in the 63rd minute and the other seven minutes later.

Melia Miller converted a penalty kick for the Lady Miners with six minutes to play to break up the shutout.

Tiffin outshot the Lady Miners 15-9 in the game. Stacey Luquette started the game in goal for S&T and was credited with five saves.

Missouri S&T (1-1) will open its home schedule Wednesday when it faces Southwest Baptist at 5 p.m.

The Lady Miner volleyball team earned a split for the second straight day at the Middle of Everywhere Classic at the Bullman Multi-Purpose Building, knocking off Missouri Western 3-1 to open the day before dropping a 3-0 decision to third-ranked Truman State in the final session of the two-day event.

S&T beat the Griffons 25-22 in the opening set, then after falling 25-20 in the second, won the final two sets by scores of 25-21 and 25-23 to move over the .500 mark for the first time since the program started last season.

Truman State, which won all four of its games in the event, beat S&T 25-15, 25-21 and 25-22.

The Lady Miners (2-2) led the entire first set against the Griffons, wrapping it up on a kill by freshman Erin Bekebrede. After Western took the second set, S&T took an immediate 7-2 lead in the third set.

Western rallied and grabbed its first lead at 16-15, but S&T made a rally of its own by scoring the final seven points to win the set. The rally began on a block by Samantha Klump, then she had another block in the run to keep it alive. Danielle Kracl’s kill ended the third game in victory for S&T.

Western led briefly in the early stages of set four, but the Lady Miners took the lead for good at 24-23 on a kill by Klump. S&T wrapped up the win on a successful block by Katie Herington.

Bekebrede had 14 kills for S&T in the win while Klump had 12 as well as three solo blocks. Kracl finished with 31 assists and Bridget Williams had 24 digs.

In the later match, Truman never trailed in the opening set and was able to hold off the Lady Miners in the final two sets. S&T was as close as 23-21 in set two after a kill by Julie Meyer, and was up 20-19 in the third before the Bulldogs scored six of the final eight points of the game.

Bekebrede, who was named to the all-classic team for her efforts along with Williams, and Meyer had five kills apiece for S&T, while Kracl had 12 assists and Williams 12 digs for the Lady Miners.

S&T will host nationally-ranked Central Missouri Wednesday at 6 p.m.

MIDDLE OF EVERYWHERE ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM

Players of the Classic:
Danielle Alexander, MH, Grand Valley State
Pamela Cartegena, OH, Pittsburg State

All-Classic Team:
Danielle Alexander, MH, Grand Valley State
Erin Bekebrede, OH, Missouri S&T
Whitney Boehler, DS-L, Truman State
Pamela Cartegena, OH, Pittsburg State
Allie Chevren, MH, Truman State
Jessica Hansen, DS-L, North Alabama
Linda Igbinigie, MH, Pittsburg State
Whitney Sanders, MH-RS, North Alabama
Bridget Williams, DS-L, Missouri S&T
Sammie Williams, RS, Pittsburg State

ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The Missouri S&T cross country teams opened their respective seasons Saturday by competing in the Big River Classic at Forest Park, with the men finishing in fifth place and the women in eighth.

Grant Brown paced the Miners in the six-kilometer race by finishing in 16th place in a time of 19:48. Freshman Jason Barry came in 20th place overall in 19:52, while Daniel Forbes finished 27th in 20:10.

Allen Ernst and Kurt Schauwecker rounded out the top five for the Miners, with Ernst running a time of 20:22 to finish 32nd and Schauwecker a time of 20:30 as he came in 34th.

S&T’s women were led by freshman Colleen Conrad, who came in 28th place with a time of 15:46 over four kilometers. Teresa Conley was second among the Lady Miners in 45th place in 16:55, one spot ahead of Cassie Osborne who crossed the finish line a second behind her.

Paige Kruse was 57th in the race in 17:33 and Rebecca McNally completed S&T’s top five with a mark of 17:34.

Marquette won both team titles in Saturday’s event.

The Miners and Lady Miners return to action next Saturday when they host the 30th annual Miner Invitational at the Missouri S&T Golf Course.

Complete men's results
Complete women's results

Samantha Klump

Missouri S&T bounced back from a season-opening loss to gain a split on the first day of the Middle of Everywhere Classic, knocking off St. Cloud State in a thrilling nightcap to the action with a 3-2 victory.

North Alabama beat S&T earlier in the day 3-0, winning by scores of 25-21, 25-19 and 25-22.

The Lady Miners won two of the first three sets over the Huskies, sandwiching wins of 25-16 and 25-23 around a 25-17 loss in set two. St. Cloud State forced a decisive fifth set by winning 25-16, but S&T scored the final three points in the last set to come away with the 15-12 win.

S&T built a 9-4 lead early in the fifth set, but the Huskies drew even at 10 and again at 12. With a chance to take the lead, SCSU's Kristen Scott had her kill attempt blocked by Samantha Kiump. Klump then came up with her 13th kill of the game to move the Lady Miners to game point; an attack error by the Huskies on the next point ended the game.

Freshman Julie Meyer had a team-high 15 kills for S&T, while Klump had 13 and Lauren Summerville six. Danielle Kracl had 22 assists and Tory Smiley added 15, while Bridget WIlliams was one of three players in double figures in digs with a game-high 24. Kracl also had four service aces for S&T.

In the first game of the day, the Lady Miners had a lead in the early stages of game one and for much of game three, but the Lions were able to grab the lead in each set. UNA took the lead for good in the final game at 19-18 and held off S&T's late rally attempt.

Leandra Pelae led the Lady Miners with five kills in the UNA game, while Smiley had eight assists and Williams came up with 11 digs. North Alabama recorded a .223 attack percentage as Whitney Sanders finished with a game-high 16 kills.

The Lady Miners (1-1) will face Missouri Western Saturday at noon and third-ranked Truman State in the final session of the Middle of Everywhere Classic at 6 p.m. The Bulldogs pulled out a five-set win over Missouri-St. Louis before routing sixth-ranked Grand Valley State in their second game of the day.

Action begins at 10 a.m. Saturday with two games on the slate.

Brooke Ryan

ASHLAND, Ohio -- For the first time in five years, the Missouri S&T women's soccer team opened its season with a victory as two second half goals broke a tie score in a
3-1 victory over Ashland.

Melia Miller and freshman Melissa Young scored second half goals for the Lady Miners, who won a season opening contest for the first time since beating Winona State to start the 2003 campaign.

Miller's goal came 6:34 into the second half as she took a pass from Young and put a shot past Eagle goalkeeper Krista White. Young followed with an insurance goal at the 64:54 mark when she converted fellow freshman Leah Williams' cross.

Ashland got the first goal of the contest when Alicia VanZanten made a run down the middle of the field and got a shot by S&T goalkeeper Catherine Swift. However, the Lady Miners tied the game just 33 seconds later when Brooke Ryan scored on an assist from Miller.

The Eagles outshot S&T 7-4 in the opening half, but the game remained tied at the intermission. The Lady Miners controlled play in the final 45 minutes by outshooting Ashland 6-3 and getting three corner kicks.

Swift was credited with four saves and Kelsey Kurilla two for S&T (1-0), who will face Tiffin Sunday at noon (Eastern time) in Tiffin, Ohio.

Nick Landon

ASHLAND, Ohio -- One goal the Missouri S&T had for the 2008 season was to be a better offensive team, and in Friday's season opening contest against Ashland, the Miners put three goals on the board.

However, Ashland countered with four, including the game-winner on a penalty kick with just over 25 minutes remaining, to come away with a 4-3 win over the Miners.

S&T fell behind 2-0 in the first 20 minutes of the contest, as Adam Spannbauer scored twice from close in. But the Miners' Nick Landon answered with two goals of his own before the first half ended to draw S&T even by the intermission.

Landon's first goal was an unassisted tally at the 38:45 mark, then he tied the game nearly four minutes later when he converted a cross from Afif Najjar.

The Eagles regained the lead 8:49 into the second half when Spannbauer completed his hat trick by scoring on a volley past goalkeeper Pat McNamee, who took over at the start of the second half from Tom Lawton.

S&T tied the score again at the 62:08 mark when Mario Calderon redirected a ball from Brandon Moore past goalkeeper Ryan Cruise to knot the score at three. But moments later, the Miners were whistled for a foul in the penalty area and Tom Mangotic made the penalty kick for what turned out to be the decisive goal.

The Miners outshot the Eagles 12-8 in the game.

S&T (0-1) will face Tiffin Sunday in Tiffin, Ohio at 2:30 p.m. (Eastern time).

FAYETTE, Mo. -- Severe thunderstorms that rolled in less than 30 minutes prior to kickoff led to the postponement of the Missouri S&T football season opener Thursday night against Truman State University.

The storms, which brought a good deal of rain and lightning, caused a delay of one hour, 45 minutes before officials from both teams decided to call the game. Another line of storms was heading in the direction of the stadium at Central Methodist University -- where the game was moved to after construction delays at Truman caused the change of venue for the contest -- which would have extended the delay.

A decision on the game is expected to be made Friday afternoon.

Nick Landon

The Miner soccer team showed throughout the 2007 season that it was one of the stingiest teams in the Great Lakes Valley Conference in terms of giving up goals. However, it had a tough time scoring itself during the course of a transition year and it led to a record that fell just below the .500 mark.

With the 2008 campaign right around the corner – beginning Friday when Missouri S&T opens at Ashland – the Miners are hopeful that they can find the scoring touch while continuing to keep the opponents off the scoreboard.

The Miners allowed only 19 goals in the 18 games they played last season and more than two goals only one time, which came against eventual GLVC champion Northern Kentucky.

“Last year, we showed that we could compete with every team in the league,” said Miner coach Joe Ahearn. “Our goal for this season is to show that we can finish off games. We need to get better at getting better.”

S&T does have to replace its record-setting goalkeeper in Mike McNamee, but Tom Lawton (Madison, Wis./West) did see nearly 500 minutes of playing time in 2007 and posted a 1.11 goals against average. He will be competing with returner Matt Wilson (Sherwood, Ark.), redshirt freshman Pat McNamee (St. Louis, Mo./St. Louis University High) and incoming freshman Donny Gesell (St; Charles, Mo./St. Charles West) for the starting role.

On the back line, the Miners return senior Keith Beers (Sioux Falls, S.D./Roosevelt), juniors Brian Tucker (O’Fallon, Mo./St. Dominic) and Tony Lambropolous (Evanston, Ill.), and sophomores Dan Stokes (Kirkwood, Mo./Vianney) and Kenny Gravlin (Florissant, Mo./St. Louis University High).

S&T is also looking for key contributions from several freshmen this season. Newcomers J.J. Bilyeu (St. Louis, Mo./CBC), Zack Hay (Springfield, Mo./Kickapoo), Jonathan Goecker (Blue Springs, Mo.), Trent Doerner (Spring, Texas/Klein Oak) and Ryan Muich (O’Fallon, Ill.) have made impressions during the pre-season and will push for playing time.

The Miners have a good deal of experience at the midfield spots, led by seniors Brandon Moore (Rolla, Mo.) Nick Mentesana (Sandy Hook, Conn.), Steven White (Pueblo, Colo.) and Larry McNamara (Detroit, Mich./Detroit Jesuit), juniors Nick Landon (Ballwin, Mo./Marquette) and Mario Calderon (Mexico City, Mexico) and sophomore Sam Shaffer (St. Louis, Mo./Oakville).

Joe Jordan (St. Louis, Mo./Priory) and Kyle Sneed (Humble, Texas) also figure to see playing time along with newcomer Jorge Quiroz (Caracas, Venezuela).

Up front, the Miners have their leading scorer from the last two seasons back in Andy Held (Alton, Ill.). The senior forward scored five times last season after posting 11 goals as a sophomore and will look to return to his status as one of the top goal scorers in the GLVC.

In addition, the Miners return Garrett Stevens (Richland, Wash.), Dan Salzman (Kansas City, Mo./Rockhurst) and Afif Najjar (St. Charles, Mo./Francis Howell Central), as well as veteran Corey Bailey (Olathe, Kan./North). Sophomores Patrick McVey (Kirkwood, Mo.) and Jeremy McBride (St. Louis, Mo./Oakville) also figure to see playing time as well.

“Over last 12 months, this program has made significant strides,” Ahearn said. “The work our veterans put in during off-season has really raised the standards and our newcomers have shown they’re ready to take on the task.”

Marci Byrd

During Jon Kiester’s tenure as the head women’s soccer coach at Missouri S&T, the Lady Miners have made gradual improvement each season. Last year, the Lady Miners posted their highest win total in four seasons and now have their sights set on landing a spot in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament.

S&T may have one of its deepest and most talented rosters in recent seasons taking the field this fall and hopes to make a move up in the league standings. The first step in that direction begins Friday when the Lady Miners open their schedule at Ashland University in Ohio.

“Our talent level is definitely the best that it has been in a long time,” said Kiester, who is entering his fourth season at the helm of the S&T program. “We have competition everywhere on the field and while this is a young group, these players have played a lot of soccer. I believe that we will play with a lot more composure as a result.”

Kelsey Kurilla (Edwardsville, Ill.) and Catherine Swift (Eureka, Mo.) shared the goalkeeping duties and combined for a 1.82 goals against average during the 2007 season. The duo returns and will compete with redshirt freshman Stacey Luquette (St. Amant, La.) for those duties.

In front of them, the Lady Miners have returners Kim Morris (St. Louis, Mo./Incarnate Word), Joanna Kovarik (Gladstone, Mo./North Kansas City) and Jenna Jeffryes (Anchorage, Alaska/Dimond) to anchor the defensive back line. Freshmen Sabrina Drennan (St. Louis, Mo./Incarnate Word) and Paige Smothers (Marion, Ill.) will also compete for playing time on the back line along with newcomer Valerie Crews (Washington, Mo./Borgia).

Several veteran players will man the midfield positions, led by senior Marci Byrd (Yukon, Okla.) – the team’s top returning scorer with four goals and 11 points -- juniors Brooke Ryan (Olathe, Kan./East) and Rachel Moore (Rolla, Mo.) and sophomore Melia Miller (Richardson, Texas/J.J. Pearce). Returner Rachel Shen (St. Louis, Mo./Clayton) and newcomer Hillary Griffith (South Bend, Ind./John Adams) will also compete for spots in the lineup.

Along the front line, S&T has several returners in senior Sarah Shell (Barnhart, Mo./Windsor) and sophomores Morgan Lockowitz (Trenton, Ill./Wesclin) and Rachel Wille (Edwardsville, Ill.).

S&T is also hoping for scoring punch from freshmen forward Leah Williams (Lawrence, Kan./Free State) and midfielders Shelly Ekholm (Houston, Texas/Cy Springs), Heather Ferstl (Elgin, Ill./Burlington Central) and Melissa Young (Jefferson City, Mo./Helias).

“Our returning players had a tremendous off-season in terms of their fitness and have high expectations,” Kiester said. “The freshmen prepared themselves well. It is a group that soaks things in and really wants to learn. We’re a young team, but we’re optimistic about what we can accomplish.”

Optimism is abound for the Missouri S&T cross country teams as they gets closer to the start of the 2008 season.

The Miners and Lady Miner harriers open their season this weekend by taking part in the Big River Classic at Washington University in St. Louis, then host the first of two home meets a week later with the 30th annual Miner Invitational.

It’s the second home meet of the year – the Great Lakes Valley Conference Championships – that the teams have their eyes on as they will have a chance to compete for a conference title on their home turf.

“We’re really excited about the opportunity to host the conference meet this season,” said head coach Sterling Martin. “We’re in a league with a lot of quality programs, but we hope that over the course of the year we can put ourselves in a position to compete for the championship.”

The Miners’ top returning runner is senior Chris Murray (Wilmington, Mass.), who placed 12th at the GLVC Championships last season. Kurt Schauwecker (Columbia, Mo./Hickman) finished 17th at the conference meet and also figures to be a key contributor in the season to come and Brendan Smith (Chelsea, Mich.) was 21st in his freshman season with the Miners.

The Miners, who were ranked sixth in the region in the inaugural rankings of the season, also have a number of other veteran runners in seniors Thomas Green (Camdenton, Mo.) and Chris Thielker (Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood West), as well as sophomores Grant Brown (Lee’s Summit, Mo./Lone Jack), Brandon Etzold (Jackson, Mo./Saxony Lutheran) and Daniel Forbes (Potosi, Mo.).

Etzold is coming off an impressive freshman year in track for the Miners, where he was the outdoor 800-meter champion and named as the GLVC’s “Freshman of the Year.”

Among the freshmen, the Miners have several impressive newcomers who could work their way into the mix, including Jason Barry (Osage Beach, Mo.) and Eric Fairbairn (Edmond, Okla./Deer Creek), who had second place finishes in their respective state meet last fall; Joe Skelton (Potosi, Mo.), who placed third at the Missouri Class 3 state meet a year ago; George Thomas (Marshfield, Mo.), the Missouri Class 3 ninth place finisher.

“I’m pleased with where we are right now,” Martin said. “We were very lucky to get this freshman class to add to the group we brought in last season. The future really looks bright for us, but our focus is on this year. We need to learn how to win and have to start that process now.”

On the women’s side, the Lady Miners will field a seven-member squad this fall that will include four sophomores and three freshmen.

Three of the sophomores return from last season, with the top returning finisher from the conference meet being Rebecca McNally (Jefferson City, Mo./Blair Oaks). Samantha Schussele (Overland Park, Kan./Shawnee Mission North) and Teresa Conley (Hazelwood, Mo./Hazelwood West) are also back in the fold, while Katie Bruce (Overland Park, Kan./Blue Valley West), one of the top sprinters for the track and field team over the last two seasons, will compete this fall in cross country.

This year’s freshman class includes Colleen Conrad (Akron, Ohio/St. Vincent-St. Mary), who was ninth in the Ohio Division II state meet last year; Paige Kruse (Cuba, Mo.), who helped lead her team to a district title in 2007; and Kassie Osborne (Evansville, Ind./Central) who was a top runner in her region last season.

“I really like this team,” Martin said. “They’re really young, but have a great attitude and work really hard and well together. We compete in one of the strongest conferences in the nation, but I feel we’re going to be a lot more competitive with this group.”

Lauren Summerville

The Lady Miners open their second season of competition this week with high hopes of making a big jump in the win column.

Missouri S&T, which fielded a team with 14 freshmen on its roster during its first year on the floor in 2007, won only three times over the course of that first year. However, head coach Jason Holt is optimistic that the extensive playing experience the team gained over that season will begin to pay dividends when the team opens play Friday.

“With a lot of hard work, strong teamwork and chemistry, the sky’s the limit for this team,” Holt said. “We want to compete in every match, learn to work together and make sure the hard work we’ve done pays off on the court.”

Fans will get their first opportunity to see S&T on the floor Monday when it hosts its annual intrasquad scrimmage game (7 p.m. at the Bullman Multi-Purpose Building), then come five home games to open the 2008 schedule which begins with the Middle of Everywhere Classic Friday and Saturday.

S&T will face North Alabama in its season opener at 2 p.m. Friday and then takes on St. Cloud State at 6 p.m. Saturday’s slate for S&T has it facing a pair of teams from the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, as it plays Missouri Western at noon and third-ranked Truman State at 6 p.m. to wrap up the weekend.

As far as the personnel goes, Holt feels his team has plenty of depth that will create competition for playing time throughout the year.

“I believe this team is a very deep team in each and every position,” he said. “We have recruited an outstanding group of players over the last two years and believe that is the first step towards bringing us in the right direction.”

S&T has six of its seven starters back from last year, losing only setter Ashlyn Balensiefer. Three players will seek to earn the starting role there, as sophomore Tory Smiley (Springfield, Mo./Glendale) and redshirt freshman Lisa Bradley (Littleton, Colo./Columbine) will compete with incoming freshman Danielle Kracl (Omaha, Neb./Burke).

The Lady Miners will also have a competitive situation at the libero spot, with returning starter Bridget Williams (Topeka, Kan./Hayden) batting returner Annie Smith (Florissant, Mo./Incarnate Word) and Jennifer Kegler (St. Louis, Mo./Cor Jesu Academy) for the starting spot. Williams ranked among the leaders in the Great Lakes Valley Conference in digs with 4.4 a game as a freshman, while Smith was among the team leaders in that category.

At the hitter positions, the Lady Miners have an experienced group of players that have been bolstered by the addition of some talented freshman who figure to challenge for playing time.

The middle hitters are paced by the team’s lone upperclassman, junior Lynsey Jorgenson (St. Louis, Mo./Lindbergh), while sophomores Katie Herington (Kalona, Iowa), Samantha Klump (Ash Grove, Mo.) and Hope Mooberry (Morton, Ill.) also figure to see plenty of action.

At the right side hitter spots, S&T returns its second– and third-best hitters from a year ago in Lauren Summerville (Fenton, Mo./Rockwood Summit) and Maddie Owak (Tinley Park, Ill./Chicago Christian), while redshirt freshman Kaci Herron (Jonesboro, Ark.) will see time there as well as at middle hitter.

S&T’s deepest position is at outside hitter with six players vying for playing time. Three members of the team’s freshman class — Erin Bekebrede (St. Charles, Mo.), Chelsea Winkelmann (Hermann, Mo.) and Julie Meyer (Washington, Mo./St. Francis Borgia) — figure to challenge the three returners for significant playing time.

Leandra Pelae (Dunlap, Ill.), who finished 10th in the GLVC in kills during her inaugural collegiate season with 3.8 per game, heads the contingent at that position and will be joined by returning letterwinner Jessica Laughary (Wheaton, Mo.) and redshirt freshman Kit Spears (Valley Center, Kan.).

ABOUT THE MIDDLE OF EVERYWHERE CLASSIC:
Tournament web site

The Lady Miners’ season-opening opponent, North Alabama, finished 2007 with a 20-16 record and missed the NCAA Division II Tournament. The Lions, the 2006 national runner-up, has won 138 games against 38 losses over the last five seasons, which included a NCAA Division II title in 2003.

St. Cloud State was 10-21 in its final season in the North Central Conference, the Huskies have joined the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference for the upcoming year. One senior and three juniors dot the roster which includes six first-year players.

Missouri Western finished 10-22 a year ago under first-year head coach Tiffany Mastin. The Griffons may have the youngest team in this year’s event with no seniors and 11 freshmen on the roster.

Truman State enters the season ranked third in the AVCA pre-season poll and was picked to win the MIAA title over No. 2-ranked Washburn in the coaches poll. The Bulldogs have six returning starters for the upcoming year including All-America performers Allie Cherven and Melissa Keck.

The 2008 Middle of Everywhere Classic will begin at 10 a.m. each day with five sets of matches taking place on two courts in the Bullman Multi-Purpose Building. Besides Truman State, the field also includes pre-season No. 6 Grand Valley State and No. 17 Pittsburg State.

Truman State and Grand Valley State will face off Friday at 4 p.m., while Pittsburg State will take on GVSU Saturday at 4 p.m.

The balance of the field includes Missouri-St. Louis and Southern Indiana from the Great Lakes Valley Conference and Southwestern Oklahoma State.

Due to delays in the installation of a new synthetic turf at Truman State University, Missouri S&T and Truman State will play its Aug. 28 season opener at Central Methodist University in Fayette, Mo.

The game will start at 7 p.m., at Davis Field on the Central Methodist campus. The game could not be played at Truman's Stokes Stadium as construction delays will not allow the completion of the project in time for the scheduled date of the contest.

Tickets for the game will be $5 and will be available at the gate beginning one hour prior to game time.

This will be the second straight season in which the Miners and Bulldogs will open their season against one another. Truman State edged S&T 38-31 in last year's opener at Allgood-Bailey Stadium. It will also mark a homecoming for S&T offensive coordinator Josh Richards, who was the starting quarterback at Central Methodist when he played collegiately for the Eagles.

DIRECTIONS TO DAVIS FIELD AT CENTRAL METHODIST

From Rolla, take U.S. 63 north to Columbia, then take Interstate 70 West to Missouri Route 240 (Exit 121). Take that road for a little over nine miles until reaching the Central Methodist campus.

The football field is located off of Mulberry St. on the east side of campus. From Route 240, turn right onto East Spring St., then turn left onto Mulberry. The field will be located on the right side of the street just past the main campus.

Tyrone Smith

BEIJING, China -- Former Missouri S&T All-America performer Tyrone Smith narrowly missed earning a berth in the finals of the long jump competition Saturday as he finished in 15th place overall in the qualifying rounds of the event at the XXIX Olympic Games.

Smith had a top mark of 7.91 meters (25-11 1/2) in the qualifying rounds, which fell just three centimeters shy of a spot in the finals that will take place Monday. The top 12 finishers Saturday earned berths to the finals and the 12th place mark of 7.94 meters (26-0 3/4) was recorded by Roman Nototny from the Czech Republic.

Smith opened the competition with a jump of 6.95 meters (22-9 3/4), then improved to 7.63 meters (25-0 1/2) in the second round. His best mark came in the final round of jumps.

The best performance in the qualifying round came from Greece's Louis Tsatoumas of 8.27 meters (27-1 3/4), while Cuba's Ibrahim Camejo was second at 8.23 meters (27-0).

Smith's effort, however, was better than that of all three representatives from the United States. Trevell Quinley had a top mark of 7.87 meters (25-10), Brian Johnson finished at 7.79 meters (25-6 3/4) and Miguel Pate had a best jump of 7.34 meters (24-1).

While at Missouri S&T, Smith earned three All-America awards in the long jump, including national runner-up finishes in the 2006 NCAA Division II Outdoor and 2007 Indoor Championships. He won the Great Lakes Valley Conference championships in both the indoor and outdoor long jump in 2006 and again at the 2007 indoor meet where Smith also repeated as the league's indoor triple jump champion.

Smith's performance at the 2006 GLVC indoor meet earned him the league's "Athlete of the Year" award for the meet after he won the long jump, triple jump and took third in the 55-meter dash.

He is the current school record holder at Missouri S&T in both the indoor and outdoor long jump as well as the outdoor 4x100-meter relay.

Smith was born in Bermuda and moved to the United States at age six, spending most of his youth growing up in North Chicago, Ill.

Long jump results from Beijing

The Missouri S&T football team -- which opens its season in a little over two weeks -- has received a little national notice before the 2009 campaign has begun.

The Miners received votes in the American Football Coaches Association's pre-season poll released Tuesday, the first time the Miners have been found in such a place since the early stages of the 2005 season. S&T received four votes in the NCAA Division II poll, more than any Division II team it will face during the year.

Missouri S&T opens its 2008 season with back-to-back road games, beginning August 28 at Truman State. The Miners will then play at Arkansas-Monticello nine days later before opening their five-game home schedule Sept. 13 against Evangel at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.

Defending NCAA Division II champion Valdosta State heads the poll, followed by Grand Valley State and Northwest Missouri State, which has played in the last three national championship games.

AFCA Division II Coaches Pre-Season Poll (August 12, 2008)
1. Valdosta State
2. Grand Valley State
3. Northwest Missouri State
4. North Alabama
5. California (Pa.)
6. Carson-Newman
7. Nebraska-Omaha
8. Abilene Christian
9. Chadron State
10. West Texas A&M
11. Central Washington
12. Delta State
13. Shepherd
14. Tuskegee
15. Ashland
16. West Chester
17. Pittsburg State
18. Texas A&M-Commerce
19. Catawba
20. Newberry
21. Indiana (Pa.)
22. Minnesota-Duluth
23. Mesa State
24. Southern Connecticut State
25. (tie) Bloomsburg
25. (tie) Virginia Union

Others receiving votes: Saginaw Valley State, Winona State, Albany State, Washburn, Tarleton State, Shaw, Southeastern Oklahoma State, Missouri Western, Bentley, Slippery Rock, Central Missouri, Tusculum, Western Oregon, Northwood, LIU-C.W. Post, West Liberty State, Edinboro, Midwestern State, Henderson State, Hillsdale, Harding, Nebraska-Kearney, Missouri S&T, Tiffin, Colorado School of Mines, Fort Valley State, Kentucky State, St. Cloud State.

Complete AFCA story

Mike Greaving

After posting winning records in back-to-back seasons, the Miners slipped below the .500 mark in an injury-marred 2007 campaign. But despite finishing the year with a 4-7 record, the players’ experience and a strong second half provide head coach Kirby Cannon and his staff with optimism for this fall.

The injury factor gave a number of younger players an opportunity to show what they do in game situations – and their performance helped lead the Miners to victories in three of their final four contests. That was followed by a solid showing by the defensive unit in the spring game, giving the Miners hope that they can put a solid team on the field on both sides of the line of scrimmage.

“We showed more balance on offense as the season progressed last year,” Cannon said. “We had a running back go for at least 100 yards in four of our last five games, which is something we haven’t done in several years. That balance is going to make us a more productive team over the long haul.

“And if the spring game was any indication, I think we showed that we will have a better chance of slowing teams down – which we had difficulty doing last year. I believe that we have a faster team on defense and have a great deal of experience at the linebacker and secondary positions.”

With the Great Lakes Football Conference's defending champion, Tiffin, now out of the league, the Miners were selected to take the league title in a vote by the league coaches. S&T got four of the five first place votes to outdistance Saint Joseph's and Central State in the poll.

The Miners will have to be ready to go right out of the gate, with road games at Truman State and Arkansas-Monticello at the top of the schedule before their first home game Sept. 13 against Evangel. The Miners also have two contests against NCAA Division I (Football Championship Series) opponents when they take on Butler and South Dakota in their first-ever indoor contest Oct. 11 and will also take on regional foes Lincoln and Southwest Baptist to close the season.

Offense

Missouri S&T returns eight starters on the offensive unit from the 2007 season, but one of the losses is significant – Ashton Gronewold, who was a regional finalist for the Harlon Hill Award after concluding a record-setting career with 2,250 all-purpose yards and over 1,000 yards in receptions for the third straight season.

But the Miners feel that they are in a good position to move forward as all of the other skill position spots will be filled by a returning starter.

Mike Greaving was the Miners’ second-leading receiver last season with 37 catches and returns at one of the wideout spots, while Chad Shockley figures to become a bigger part of the offensive equation this year on the opposite side. At tight end, Bryan Crider had a breakout season with 29 catches. The fourth receiver spot will be filled by returner Ryan Vessell or one of a number of newcomers to the program, including transfers David Kavish (South Dakota State), Zach Howard and Jordan Beard (both from Howard Payne).

The Miners also expect to have good depth at running back with the return of leading rushers David Shields and Jerome Miller. Shields ran for 550 yards and five touchdowns a season ago, while Miller became an emerging force in the running game with a pair of 100-yard outings during the Miners’ late run.

They will run behind an offensive line that has four returning starters in guards Dan Hickman, John Krumme and Justin Hansen and tackle Colin Douthit, but several others competing for starting roles have playing experience in the Miner program. Hickman will likely move to center this fall and compete with Matt Kuelker for the starting spot, while Krumme – a starter for S&T during the last two seasons – will contend with redshirt freshman Collin Bahr for that spot.

Adam Helton, who has also made starts for the Miners during his tenure, will enter the pre-season as the projected starter at right tackle with Douthit taking the left tackle spot. Returner Brandon Jordan, who was the starter at right tackle before an injury ended his season, will also compete for a starting position along with redshirt freshman Travis Abbott.

Perhaps the most intriguing position battle on offense will be at quarterback, where after a year in which the Miners did not have a player who had taken a snap for them heading into their season opener, they have three players battling for that starting spot.

Brad Guidry opened the year as the starter and completed 63 percent of his passes for 884 yards and seven scores before suffering a broken leg that ended his season in the fourth week of the year. Steve Watson, a true freshman in 2007, moved into the starting spot after the injury to Guidry and put up impressive numbers – 1,661 yards, 19 touchdown passes on 57 percent passing – to earn the Great Lakes Football Conference’s “Freshman of the Year” award despite appearing in only seven contests.

The third competitor in the quarterback derby is Jason Schleuter, who missed the entire 2007 campaign with an injury. Schleuter made his presence in the position battle known with an outstanding showing in the spring game where he completed 18 of 21 passes for 130 yards.

“The injuries we suffered last fall allowed a lot of players to gain valuable experience and we think that will pay off this fall,” Cannon said. “Obviously, we have an interesting situation at quarterback with Brad, Steve and Jason, but we believe that it will be a healthy competition and that we can have success with any of them taking the snaps.”

Defense

The Miner defensive unit had its moments last season, but was still plagued with some inconsistent play throughout the year. But with a change in its defensive plan, the S&T defense is expecting to build on the results of the spring game when it had an impressive outing to win that contest.

One of the changes is that the Miners are expected to use more three-man fronts to utilize the speed of their linebackers to help slow down the opposing running games; S&T allowed 226.1 yards per game on the ground last season and struggled with units that had mobile quarterbacks.

“We believe that we’ll be a much improved team on defense this year,” Cannon said. “I felt that our players really responded well to some of the changes we made and saw the results of that in the spring game. We just have to take what we gained from that and continue to improve as we head into the season and beyond.”

The Miners have experienced players back at both defensive end positions with senior Matt Loula and junior Loren Severs leading the way. Loula led the Miners with 10.5 tackles behind the line of scrimmage and with five sacks in 2007, while Severs was in on 25 stops during the year. The projected starter at defensive tackle is Justin Philpy, a sophomore who played in all 11 games and recorded 23 tackles.

S&T also has plenty of experienced depth on the defensive line with tackle Adam Strein and ends Eric Poythress and Oliver Carter figuring into the mix.

The Miners’ only returning starter at linebacker is Justin Butler, a three-year starter who made 76 tackles a year ago. He will be joined by a number of players who saw plenty of action as well, headed by R.J. Miller and Steve Edwards, who had 49 tackles last year. In addition, the Miners are also expecting contributions from returners Ashley Jordan, Kellen Weaver and Abe Van Dyke as well.

S&T has three returning starters from a year ago in the secondary, with a fourth player that was a key contributor two seasons ago back in the mix as well. Keith Homco returns as the starter at one of the cornerback spots and will be joined by veterans Corey Taylor and Kirk Stilwell, two of the Miners’ top special teams players from last season, and Phillip Tillman, a three-year squadmember.

At safety, the Miners return starters Robbie Woodard – their top returning tackler from a year ago with 82 stops – and Brian Jordan, with Brian Gronewold also back with the team after sitting out the 2007 campaign. Jon Landstra, who also contributed on defense last year, returns and will be joined by redshirt freshmen Brandyn Mueller and Ted Grimes.

Special Teams

S&T will have a new punter and placekicker from a year ago, but does get its punter back from 2006 with the return of Brian Mueller. Mueller was out for the entire year last fall but averaged 37.6 yards a punt as a freshman two seasons ago. The placekicking duties will be handled by either returner Joe Drahos or incoming freshman Will Morrison, who brings impressive credentials to the Miner program after playing last season at Rolla High School and earning all-state honors.

The Miners will have some new personnel handing the return duties as well, as Ashton Gronewold took care of the bulk of the matters last season. S&T had a great deal of success in the return game in 2007 as it brought back a school record four kickoffs for touchdowns.