Jason Schlueter

The defensive unit kept the offense off the scoreboard for the first five series Friday night and then got two interceptions later in the contest to come away with a 44-31 win in the Missouri S&T spring football game at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.

The defense opened the game by stopping the offense on a fourth down play in their territory to pick up four points in the scoring system used in the game, then held the offense scoreless until the final drive of the first half when David Shields completed a 50-yard drive with a one-yard scoring run to cut the lead to 25-7.

Jason Schlueter, who had a solid showing in his effort to try to earn the starting quarterback spot next fall, threw two touchdown passes to Bryan Crider in the second half to bring the offense to within four. Crider, who caught 10 passes in the game for 100 yards, caught scoring passes of 25 and three yards.

The defense, however, regained the momentum when Robbie Woodard picked off passes on back-to-back possessions to halt those drives and give the defensive unit a 37-21 lead. After the offense was stopped on another fourth down try, Jerome Miller scored on a two-yard run and Joe Drahos connected on a 36-yard field goal to finish the scoring for the offense.

Schlueter was 18-of-21 in the game for 130 yards and the two scores. Steve Watson, who started the final seven games of the 2007 season for the Miners, completed eight of 15 passes for 87 yards, Jake Drallmeier led the offensive ground game with 60 yards on 12 carries.

GAME STATISTICS

Scoring summary
David Shields 1 yd. run, Joe Drahos kick
Bryan Crider 25 yd. pass from Jason Schlueter, Drahos kick
Crider 3 yd. pass from Schlueter, Drahos kick
Jerome Miller 2 yd. run, Drahos kick
Drahos 36 yd. field goal

Team statistics
First downs: 20 (7 rushing, 12 passing, 1 penalty)
Rushing: 40-128
Passing: 28-41-221-2
Total offense: 81 plays, 349 yards
Fumbles: 2, lost 1
Penalties: Offense 0-0, Defense 1-7

Individual statistics:
Rushing: Jake Drallmeier 12-60, Jerome Miller 8-40, Chad Shockley 5-22, David Shields 4-9, Steve Watson 5-4, Dustin Prater 1-2, Jason Schlueter 3-0, R.J. Shubatt 1-(-4), Team 1-(-5).
Passing: Jason Schlueter 18-21-130-0, Steve Watson 8-15-87-0, Dustin Prater 1-4-5-2, R.J. Shubatt 1-1-(-1)-0.
Receiving: Bryan Crider 10-100, David Shields 6-24, Chad Stanley 3-36, Mike Greaving 3-25, Chad Shockley 3-19, Jared Bahr 2-17, Jake Drallmeier 2-6, Mark Scabarozi 1-8.
Interceptions: Robbie Woodard 2.

Posted by John Kean at 09:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A busy weekend of sports at Missouri S&T gets underway Friday night when the Miner football team hosts its annual spring game at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.

The game, which will be played as an offense vs. defense format with a scoring system set up for its performance, will start at 7 p.m. Prior to the contest, the team will host a football skills competition on the field starting at 5:30 p.m. All kids ages 6-12 are invited to participate.

Miner head coach Kirby Cannon has been pleased with what he has seen from the team during the month of April, despite the fact that the rainy weather has hampered the workouts to a degree.

"Even though we've been held back in part to field conditions and the inconsistency of practice days as a result, we've been able to get some things done," Cannon said. "I feel that we've shown improvement on defense and offensively we've made progress with a multiple quarterback system. We hope that Friday's game will help us assess where our quarterback situation is right now."

The Miners have three quarterbacks vying for the starting role in Brad Guidry, the starter at the beginning of last year who had his season cut short due to an injury; Steve Watson, a sophomore-to-be who took over for Guidry and started the final seven games of the season; and Jason Schleuter, who missed the entire 2007 campaign with an injury.

Guidry is not expected to play Friday along with a handful of others who are either recovering from injuries, competing in spring sports or taking part in the university's cooperative education program this semester. Watson and Schleuter figure to see the bulk of the snaps, with returner R.J. Shubatt and newcomer Dustin Prater, a transfer from Missouri Southern.

The Miners have competition at running back as well with returners David Shields and Jerome Miller battling for the starting role, but Cannon feels pleased with the situation at wide receiver despite the loss of All-America performer Ashton Gronewold.

Three returning starters -- Mike Greaving, Chad Shockley and Bryan Crider -- are back and the Miners will get some reinforcement at the position in the fall with some talented newcomers joining that group.

Defensively, the Miners are replacing two starters at linebacker and also have competition at the safety position with three returners with starting experience -- Brian Jordan, Jon Landstra and Robbie Woodard -- seeking to earn the two spots.

Besides the spring football game this weekend, the Miner baseball team will be in action with a four-game weekend series against Quincy University, with doubleheaders starting at noon on Saturday and Sunday. The Lady Miner softball is also at home this weekend with twinbills on Saturday against Indianapolis and Sunday against Saint Joseph's as they try to lock up a spot in the GLVC Tournament.

In addition, the Miner Booster Club is hosting a trivia night and silent auction Saturday night beginning at 6:30 p.m. at the Lion's Club Den in Rolla.

Posted by John Kean at 02:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

KINGSVILLE, Texas -- Ashton Gronewold, who scored more touchdowns than any player in the history of the Miner football program, got one of the two touchdowns scored by the West team Friday night in the Valero Cactus Bowl held at Texas A&M University-Kingsville.

Gronewold caught a 10-yard scoring pass from Midwestern State's Daniel Polk early in the third quarter to cap a 91-yard scoring drive. The touchdown brought the West back to within 15 at 28-13 in the contest that the East team would win by a count of 42-13.

The All-America wide receiver from Carthage, Ill., who earned his post-season honors for his play as an all-purpose back, led the West squad with his 86 all-purpose yards in the contest. He caught two passes for 17 yards and also returned three kickoffs for 69 yards, including a 41-yard runback in the third quarter in the all-star game featuring players from NCAA Division II institutions.

Posted by John Kean at 10:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ashton Gronewold

Ashton Gronewold was named Thursday to a pair of All-America teams for his play during the 2007 season, making him the first player in the 115-year history of the university's football program to earn All-America honors in three different seasons.

Gronewold, who was selected earlier this week to participate in next month's Valero Cactus Bowl -- a Division II all-star game -- was named to the Associated Press Little All-America first team and to the Daktronics Division II second team after another record-breaking season at UMR. He earned both awards as an all-purpose back.

A regional finalist for the 2007 Harlon Hill Award, Gronewold currently ranks third in NCAA Division II in all-purpose yards as he finished with a school record 2,250 for the year, thanks in large part to his 87 receptions for 1,009 yards and his average of 28 yards per kickoff return as he had 953 yards in that category.

Gronewold was named as the Great Lakes Football Conference's receiver of the year for the second straight season, but was beaten out in the voting for the league's top offensive player by Central State running back Derrick Moss, the GLFC's rushing leader with 1,296 yards.

During the season, he broke the NCAA single-game record with 295 yards in kickoff returns and became the seventh player in Division II history to return two kickoffs for a touchdown in the same game when he brought two scores back for scores against Tiffin.

Gronewold is the holder of nearly every receiving, kickoff return and all-purpose yardage records in school history. He had totals of 278 catches, 3,708 yards and 53 touchdowns. His 58 career touchdowns also included five returns for scores. He also had totals of 1,828 kickoff return yards and 5,992 all-purpose yards which were both UMR records.

Prior to this season, Gronewold had earned post-season All-America honors from Football Gazette in each of the last two seasons and from D2Football.com and the Associated Press in 2006.

Posted by John Kean at 03:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ashton Gronewold

Ashton Gronewold's senior season -- and career, for that matter -- have landed him a spot on the roster for the Valero Cactus Bowl, an NCAA Division II all-star game scheduled to take place Jan. 11, 2008 in Kingsville, Texas.

A two-time All-America selection (the 2007 teams will be announced in the near future) and all-region pick from the past season for the Miner football team, Gronewold is one of xx wide receivers representing the West squad on the game that will be viewed by numerous scouts from the National Football League and other professional leagues.

A regional finalist for the 2007 Harlon Hill Award, Gronewold was selected as an all-purpose player after an outstanding senior year as both a wide receiver and kick returner.

Gronewold currently ranks third in NCAA Division II in all-purpose yards as he finished with a school record 2,250 for the year, thanks in large part to his 87 receptions for 1,009 yards and his average of 28 yards per kickoff return as he had 953 yards in that category.

Gronewold was named as the Great Lakes Football Conference's receiver of the year for the second straight season, but was beaten out in the voting for the league's top offensive player by Central State running back Derrick Moss, the GLFC's rushing leader with 1,296 yards.

During the season, he broke the NCAA single-game record with 295 yards in kickoff returns and became the seventh player in Division II history to return two kickoffs for a touchdown in the same game when he brought two scores back for scores against Tiffin.

Gronewold is the holder of nearly every receiving, kickoff return and all-purpose yardage records in school history. He had totals of 278 catches, 3,708 yards and 53 touchdowns. His 58 career touchdowns also included five returns for scores. He also had totals of 1,828 kickoff return yards and 5,992 all-purpose yards which were both UMR records.

The other wide receivers on the West team include Abilene Christian's Jerale Badon, North Dakota's Weston Dressler, Colorado School of Mines' Derek Dressler, Southwest Baptist's Nick Smart and Western New Mexico's Rod Windsor.

Gronewold is the only player from a Great Lakes Football Conference school on either roster for the game that will take place in Javelina Stadium on the campus of Texas A&M University-Kingsville.

Posted by John Kean at 04:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ashton Gronewold

Ashton Gronewold, who has earned All-America honors for his play on the football field for the last two seasons, is on his way to landing numerous post-season laurels again as he has been selected to the Daktronics All-Southwest region team for the 2007 season.

As a first-team selection, Gronewold will be among the players eligible for All-America honors when that team is announced in December.

A regional finalist for the Harlon Hill Award, Gronewold was selected as an all-purpose player after an outstanding senior year as both a wide receiver and kick returner.

Gronewold currently ranks third in NCAA Division II in all-purpose yards as he finished with a school record 2,250 for the year, thanks in large part to his 87 receptions for 1,009 yards and his average of 28 yards per kickoff return as he had 953 yards in that category.

Gronewold was named as the GLFC's receiver of the year for the second straight season, but was beaten out in the voting for the league's top offensive player by Central State running back Derrick Moss, the GLFC's rushing leader with 1,296 yards.

During the season, he broke the NCAA single-game record with 295 yards in kickoff returns and became the seventh player in Division II history to return two kickoffs for a touchdown in the same game when he brought two scores back for scores against Tiffin.

Gronewold is the holder of nearly every receiving, kickoff return and all-purpose yardage records in school history. He had totals of 278 catches, 3,708 yards and 53 touchdowns. His 58 career touchdowns also included five returns for scores. He also had totals of 1,828 kickoff return yards and 5,992 all-purpose yards which were both UMR records.

2007 Daktronics Division II SIDs All-Southwest Region Football Team

First Team Offense
OL: Tony Burson, Sr., Midwestern State
OL: Sam Collins, Jr., Abilene Christian
OL: Reid Kirby, Jr., Northwest Missouri State
OL: John Strand, Sr., Chadron (Neb.) State
OL: Nathan Young, Sr., Abilene Christian
TE: Kolo Kapanui, Sr., West Texas A&M
WR: Johnny Knox, Jr., Abilene Christian
WR: Nick Smart, Sr., Southwest Baptist
QB: Daniel Polk, Sr., Midwestern State
RB: Danny Woodhead, Sr., Chadron State
RB: Bernard Scott, Jr., Abilene Christian
RB: Xavier Omon, Sr., Northwest Missouri State
AP: Ashton Gronewold, Sr., Missouri-Rolla
K: Jared Keating, Jr., Mesa State

First Team Defense
DL: Brandon Swain, Jr., West Texas A&M
DL: Kurt Kissner, Sr., Mesa State
DL: Jason Hill, Sr., Fort Hays State
LB: Jared Brock, Jr., West Texas A&M
LB: Will Clewis, Sr., Central Oklahoma
LB: Jared Erspamer, Sr., Northwest Missouri State
LB: Cody Stutts, Sr., Abilene Christian
CB: Cary Williams, Sr., Washburn
CB: Rod Mosley, Sr., Texas A&M-Kingsville
S: Ranardrick Phillips, Sr., Tarleton State
S: Kendall Ricketts, Sr., Central Missouri
P: Wayne Durham, Sr., Adams State

Posted by John Kean at 11:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

OWENSBORO, Ky. -- For the third straight season, the University of Missouri-Rolla football team wrapped up its season on a winning note as it routed Kentucky Wesleyan Saturday by the score of 49-21.

The Miners overwhelmed the Panthers with a 518-yard offensive performance, including a season-best 321 yards on the ground. Four different Miner backs had at least 50 yards on the ground in the game, led by the 108 yards posted by tailback David Shields.

UMR got on the scoreboard first midway through the opening period when quarterback Steve Watson connected with Bryan Crider in the flat and the sophomore tight end took it to the end zone for a 39-yard scoring play to cap a 65-yard drive.

The Miners drove 65 yards for their second score as well, which came when Watson threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Ashton Gronewold with 1:31 to go in the opening period. The drive was set up by an interception by Jamel Sims, one of three interceptions made by the Miner defense Saturday.

After the Panthers got into the end zone on Chris Owen’s quarterback sneak early in the second period, the Miners answered right back as Gronewold took an option pitch 63 yards to the end zone to give UMR a 21-7 lead.

The touchdown, Gronewold’s 57th in his record-setting career as a Miner, was his first rushing touchdown in his four seasons at UMR. He scored his 58th touchdown just under five minutes later when he caught a 12-yard scoring pass from Watson.

UMR built its lead to 35-7 just over a minute before halftime when Shields ran 13 yards for a score after an interception by Kirk Stilwell. Shields scored again on UMR’s first possession of the second half on an eight-yard run to give UMR a 42-7 lead.

The Panthers scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, which were sandwiched around Nathan Binder’s 75-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. It marked the fourth time that the Miners returned a kickoff for a score during the 2007 season.

Besides the 108 yards posted by Shields on the ground, the Miners also got 81 yards from Chad Shockley, 64 from Gronewold and 53 from Mike Greaving, who played periodically at quarterback on Saturday.

Watson completed 14-of-22 passes for 170 yards and three touchdowns, with Gronewold catching 10 passes for 87 yards.

In his last game at UMR, Gronewold compiled 162 all-purpose yards to finish the year with a school record 2,250 yards and a career total of 5,992. He also broke his own record for catches in a season with 87 and finished over the 1,000-yard mark in receptions with 1,009.

Gronewold, who was named Friday as one of the Southwest region finalists for the Harlon Hill Award, ended up with receiving totals of 278 catches, 3,708 yards and 52 touchdowns. His 58 career touchdowns also included five returns for scores.

Linebacker Steve Edwards led the Miners with eight tackles while Garyion Turner posted seven stops on the afternoon. UMR also got an interception from linebacker Brandon Kessler among the four turnovers it forced on the day.

UMR finished the 2007 season with a record of 4-7.

Posted by John Kean at 09:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ashton Gronewold

Ashton Gronewold has reached first on a number of lists during his four-year career at the University of Missouri-Rolla, but the most recent is a first for the university's football program.

The senior wide receiver was named Friday as one of the six regional finalists for the Harlon Hill Award, the award given to the top player in NCAA Division II and the division's equivalent of the Heisman Trophy. Gronewold is the first player from the Miner program to named as one of the regional finalists since the award's inception in 1986.

A total of 24 players nationwide made the regional ballots and the top two players from each region selected in the voting by sports informaton directors at the 150 schools that play football in Division II will be placed on the national ballot. The winner will be announced Dec. 14 in Florence, Ala., as part of the festivities associated with the NCAA Division II Championship game that will take place the next day.

Gronewold, who is currently ranked second in the nation in all-purpose yards and third in receptions per game, was the only wide receiver named as a regional finalist from the Southwest region. He joins the 2006 winner, Chadron State running back Danny Woodhead, Northwest Missouri State running back Xavier Omon, Abilene Christian running back Bernard Scott and pair of quarterbacks, Keith Null of West Texas A&M and Daniel Polk of Midwestern State on the regional ballot.

In the 2007 season, Gronewold has a total of 2,088 all-purpose yards which is one of the 26 school records he holds at UMR. He has 77 catches for 922 yards and 11 touchdowns, while returning kickoffs for an avearge of 28.6 yards per return which ranks among the top 20 in the country.

Last week, he broke the NCAA single-game record with 295 yards in kickoff returns and became the seventh player in Division II history to return two kickoffs for a touchdown in the same game.

Gronewold enters Saturday's game at Kentucky Wesleyan as the holder of nearly every receiving, kickoff return and all-purpose yardage records in school history. He has totals of 268 catches for 3,621 yards and 50 touchdowns -- one of six players in Division II history with at least 50 touchdown receptions -- with a UMR record 1,819 kickoff return yards, 5,830 all-purpose yards and 55 touchdowns.

He currently ranks in a tie for eighth in Division II history for receptions, tied for fourth in touchdown catches and could reach the top 20 in receiving yards in Saturday's game.

In his 40-game career at UMR, Gronewold has 11 games with at least 200 all-purpose yards -- including a record 357 last week at Tiffin and 329 earlier this season against Arkansas-Monticello -- seven games with at least 10 catches and 18 games with 100 or more yards in receptions. He has scored a touchdown in 28 of his 40 career games.

The 357 all-purpose yards last week are the third-most by a player in Division II this year. He is currently averaging 208.8 all-purpose yards and 7.7 receptions per game. He has been named three times as the Great Lakes Football Conference's "Offensive Player of the Week" during the 2007 season.

Posted by John Kean at 10:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ashton Gronewold

Ashton Gronewold put his name in the NCAA record books again Saturday and in the process earned his third "Offensive Player of the Week" award from the Great Lakes Football Conference for the 2007 season.

The senior wide receiver established a new school record with 357 all-purpose yards in the Miners' 73-30 loss at Tiffin and also made the NCAA record books in two categories along the way. Gronewold accumulated a NCAA Division II record 295 yards in kickoff returns which included two runbacks for touchdowns.

The returns that covered 90 and 94 yards made him the seventh player in Division II history to return two kickoffs for scores in the same game and the first to do so since Southern Arkansas' Jordan Babineaux in a 2003 game against Delta State.

Gronewold also had five receptions for 64 yards in the game as he moved his 2007 total for all-purpose yards past the 2,000 mark. His career total now stands at 5,830 yards heading into UMR's season finale Saturday at Kentucky Wesleyan.

The 357 all-purpose yards are the third-most by a player in Division II this year. He is currently second in the nation in all-purpose yards (208.8 yards per game) and third in receptions (7.7 per game).

Posted by John Kean at 04:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

TIFFIN, Ohio -- UMR's Ashton Gronewold put his name in the record books again Saturday, but even his exploits weren't enough to take the Miners to a victory Saturday afternoon.

Gronewold became the first player in Miner history to return two kickoffs for a touchdown in a game and broke both the UMR single game and career records for all-purpose yards along the way, but the Miner defense struggled to slow down Tiffin's offensive attack as the Dragons posted a 73-30 win over UMR.

The Dragons recorded 645 yards of total offense in the game and even as the Miners held two leads early in the contest, ran away from UMR in the first half by building a 56-23 lead by the intermission.

Tiffin jumped on top on its opening possession when quarterback Donnie Johnson capped a 67-yard drive with an eight-yard run. However, Dragon kicker Andrew Breen missed the extra point, then UMR got the lead moments later when Gronewold returned the ensuing kickoff 90 yards for a score. Tim Valencia's extra point gave UMR a 7-6 lead.

The Dragons answered Gronewold's score with one of their own when Dyshaun Edwards brought the next kick back 87 yards for a touchdown. UMR got the lead back a little under three minutes later when Matt Loula returned a fumble 21 yards for a score to give UMR a 14-13 lead with 8:38 left in the opening quarter.

But from there, Tiffin took control of the contest, scoring 21 unanswered points before Gronewold got his second kickoff return for a score as he went 94 yards early in the second quarter to make the score 35-20.

The Dragons got a short field moments later after a 16-yard punt and scored on a two-yard pass from Matt Root to Tom Fritsch. UMR got a 36-yard field goal from Tim Valencia on its next series, but that would be the Miners' last points until Steve Watson threw a 29-yard scoring pass to Nathan Binder late in the third quarter.

The Miners finished the game with 207 yards of total offense, getting 147 through the air as Watson was 15-of-31 in the game. Gronewold caught five passes for 64 yards, but broke records for kickoff return yards (295) and all-purpose yards (357) for one game. The 357 all-purpose yards also allowed him to establish a new single-season mark as he moved his total for the year to 2,088; he is currently ranked sixth in NCAA Division II for all-purpose yards.

Jerome Miller led the Miners with 46 yards on the ground.

UMR will close the 2007 season Nov. 10 at Kentucky Wesleyan.

Posted by John Kean at 06:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Remember the old adage that games are won and lost on the line of scrimmage?

The Miners certainly took that to heart Saturday afternoon, as they took control of the contest over the final three quarters and scored 38 unanswered points to record a 48-10 win over Lincoln on Hall of Fame Day at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.

UMR pounded out 268 yards on the ground, the most in a game since it had 271 two seasons ago in a victory over Peru State. Miner running backs Jerome Miller and David Shields were the beneficiaries of the work done by the Miner offensive line that busted open holes all day, as Miller finished with 106 yards on 18 carries and Shields picked up 102 yards on 13 carries.

It marked the first time in 10 seasons that two Miners went over the 100-yard mark in the same game.

For the afternoon, the Miners had 460 yards of total offense and averaged six yards per play; the average was 8.4 per play until the final two possessions when UMR kept the ball on the ground to run the clock out.

On the other side, the Miner defense held Lincoln to just 168 yards on the afternoon, including just 58 in the final three quarters. The Miners also forced three Lincoln turnovers with a fumble and interceptions by Robbie Woodard and Phillip Tillman.

The Blue Tigers got on the scoreboard first, however, by taking advantage of the Miners' only turnover of the day. UMR had stopped Lincoln on fourth-and-goal at the one when Oliver Carter crashed the line and stopped Darius Baker for a loss, but Steve Watson fumbled the snap two plays later and the Blue Tigers recovered it on UMR's one-yard line. Baker scored on the next play to put Lincoln in front.

UMR came right back when Ashton Gronewold -- one of 15 Miner seniors playing in their final home game -- returned the ensuing kickoff back to the Lincoln 38. Watson finished a three-play drive by throwing a 24-yard scoring pass to Bryan Crider to tie the game at seven.

Lincoln's Kevin Brown fumbled away the kickoff at his own 26, but the Miners had to settle for a 29-yard field goal from Tim Valencia to take a 10-7 lead. The Blue Tigers answered back with a 35-yard field goal from Charles Christensen to even the contest again at 10.

The Miners took over matters from that point, starting the next time they got the football. UMR moved 64 yards for the go-ahead score when Chad Shockley caught a six-yard scoring pass from Watson, then Jamel Anderson blocked a 47-yard field goal attempt by Christensen to halt Lincoln's next drive.

UMR needed just 2:13 to cover 65 yards, with Shields running for 14 yards and catching a pass for 18 to set up a 16-yard touchdown pass from Watson to Gronewold with 9:21 left in the half. The scoring catch was Gronewold's 50th as a Miner, making him the sixth player in NCAA Division II history with 50 touchdown receptions.

Valencia closed out the first half scoring by booting a 26-yard field goal just before the half ended to give UMR a 27-10 halftime lead.

The Miners smothered the Blue Tiger offense in the second half, as Lincoln managed only 36 yards after the intermission. Meanwhile, the Miners continued to pound the Blue Tigers on the ground, extending the lead on a 22-yard scoring run by Miller and a seven-yard touchdown run by Shields.

Reserve quarterback Matt Sachtleben closed out the scoring by running seven yards on a bootleg for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter.

Watson completed 16-of-22 passes on the afternoon for 165 yards and three scores, with Gronewold catching a team-high five passes. UMR had three players with over 120 all-purpose yards, as Shields finished with 169, Gronewold with 139 and Miller with 121.

UMR had the ball for 37:35 in the game as it scored 40 or more points in back-to-back home games for the first time since 1923.

Linebacker Steve Edwards led the Miner defense with seven tackles.

The Miners will head to the road for their final two games of the 2007 season, beginning next Saturday at Tiffin.

Posted by John Kean at 08:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Miner football team gathered both of the Great Lakes Football Conference weekly awards after its 44-28 victory Saturday over Central State, as quarterback Steve Watson and linebacker Jamel Anderson were named as its "Player of the Week."

Watson, a freshman quarterback making his fourth collegiate start Saturday, completed 23-of-39 passes for 271 yards and five touchdowns in the victory. He ended the game with 287 yards of total offense as he added 16 yards on the ground and had scoring passes of 10, 25 and 16 yards to Ashton Gronewold (who caught 12 passes for 154 yards in the game), 18 yards to Antonio Williams and 25 yards to Mike Greaving.

The scoring pass to Williams started a 21-point run by the Miners that put them ahead for good in the second quarter.

Anderson had seven solo stops and 13 tackles overall on the defensive side, including 1.5 tackles for a loss in the game. He also had a pass deflection and blocked two extra point attempts by the Marauders.

The Miners will host Lincoln University Saturday in their annual Hall of Fame Game -- which will also be their home finale -- at 3 p.m. at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.

Posted by John Kean at 07:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Jerome Miller

Usually when the Miners have won over the last four seasons, Ashton Gronewold has had a big hand in leading UMR to that victory.

While Gronewold had another big afternoon Saturday, a pair of freshmen were part of the lead act as well to lead the Miners to a 44-28 victory over Central State on Homecoming at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.

Quarterback Steve Watson, who was vaulted into the starter's role four weeks ago, had one of his biggest days in his young collegiate career by completing 23-of-39 passes for 271 yards and five touchdowns. He was aided by the running of redshirt freshman Jerome Miller, who had the Miners' biggest rushing day in over two seasons with 137 yards on the ground and a touchdown.

The Miners finished the day with a season-high 181 yards on the ground and had a total of 452 yards in the victory.

UMR got the lead on its opening possession by taking advantage of a big kickoff return by Antonio Williams into CSU territory. The Miners finished the 49-yard drive when Watson hit Gronewold for a 10-yard scoring pass at the 11:55.

The Miners got the ball right back on the kickoff, as Tim Valencia's short kick into a brisk wind fell between a pair of Central State players and Kirk Stilwell got to the ball to give UMR possession at the Marauder 35. On third down, Watson scrambled for a first down inside the 15, but had the ball knocked loose and CSU's Jerome Grant recovered it at the seven.

Central State took the ball 93 yards on 12 plays and ended the drive with an 11-yard touchdown run from quarterback Chris Clark, but the extra point was blocked by Jamel Anderson to allow the Miners to keep the lead at 7-6.

UMR extended its lead to 10-6 when it took advantage of a Keith Homco interception and got a 22-yard field goal from Valencia. But the Marauders came right back with a 64-yard scoring drive that culminated in a 13-yard scoring run by Derrick Moss for their first -- and what turned out to be their last -- lead of the afternoon.

The Miners regained the lead by driving 61 yards on 10 plays, as Watson hit Antonio Williams down the middle of the field for a 18-yard scoring pass with 5:11 left in the half. Then after forcing a three-and-out by CSU, the Miners scored again just over three minutes later when Watson hit Mike Greaving down the sideline for a 25-yard touchdown pass to give them a 24-12 lead that they would take to the intermission.

Watson fired his fourth scoring pass of the day on UMR's first possession of the second half as he threw a 16-yard scoring pass to Gronewold to put the Miners up 31-12 with 8:27 left in the third quarter.

The Marauders, who had little success in throwing the ball throughout the day, did get a big pass play for a score early in the fourth period when Clark hit Jerred Hill for 59 yards; a successful two-point conversion run by Moss made it 31-20.

UMR responded to that scoring by driving right back down the field, getting a 21-yard completion to Chad Shockley to get into Marauder territory and finishing the drive with Gronewold's third scoring catch of the day of 24 yards.

Central State cut into the lead again on a two-yard scoring run by VIctor Tolbert and a two-point conversion play at the 8:09 mark to make the score 38-28, but the Miners answered that scoring with another touchdown drive.

Miller started the drive with a 26-yard run, then finished the drive by going six yards for a touchdown to complete the scoring for the afternoon. The defense forced the Marauders to give up the ball on downs after a fumbled punt to ice the victory.

Gronewold finished the day with a season-high 12 catches for 154 yards and the three touchdowns; his first scoring catch of the day was his 50th career touchdown as a Miner. He ended the day with 220 all-purpose yards, marking the fifth time this season that he has surpassed the 200-yard mark in all-purpose yards.

Defensively, the Miners got 13 tackles from linebacker Jamel Anderson, who also had a pass breakup and two blocked extra point attempts. Matt Loula had two quarterback sacks and four tackles for a loss on the day, while Jon Landstra also had an interception for the Miners.

UMR will close out its home schedule next Saturday when it hosts Lincoln at 3 p.m. at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.

Posted by John Kean at 09:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

BETHANY, Okla. -- The Miners nearly dug themselves out of a 21-point hole in the second half, but their rally came up 10 yards short and Southern Nazarene came away with a 35-21 win over the Miners Saturday night.

UMR, which trailed 21-0 at halftime, closed the gap to seven at 28-21 and was driving for a potential game-tying score in the final minutes. The Miners got as close as the eight-yard line and had a fourth down pass from the SNU 10-yard line fall incomplete with 1:03 to go. The Crimson Storm's Branden Smith extended the lead to the final score when he raced 84 yards for a touchdown two plays after UMR lost the ball on downs.

In the opening half, the Miners had 155 yards of total offense but turned the ball over twice deep in Southern Nazarene territory. The Crimson Storm turned one of those turnovers and a missed UMR into scoring drives that allowed them to build the early lead.

SNU quarterback Tyler Schneider threw scoring passes of five yards to Jeremy Rogers and 18 yards to Jared Elmore sandwiched around a one-yard scoring run by Smith in the first half.

The Miners worked their way back into the game by utilizing a short passing game and the running of David Shields. Shields ran 56 yards into SNU territory to set up a Steve Watson 10-yard touchdown pass to Ashton Gronewold to get UMR on the scoreboard with 11:54 left in the third quarter.

UMR got to within a touchdown 1:20 into the fourth quarter when Shields capped an 80-yard scoring drive with a 10-yard run. Shields finished the evening with a career-high 119 yards on 16 carries, making him the first Miner to top the 100-yard mark in a game this season.

The teams traded punts after the Miner score, but on UMR's punt, Southern Nazarene's Coryan Briggs returned it down the sideline 88 yards for a touchdown to give the Crimson Storm a 14-point lead again.

However, Gronewold returned the ensuing kickoff -- a short kick into a 25-mile per hour wind -- back to the SNU 29 and then ended the drive by catching a four-yard scoring pass from Watson with 7:04 to go to get UMR back to within a touchdown.

UMR got the ball back at its own 48 with 3:11 to go and Watson completed three passes for first downs, the last to Bryan Crider that put the ball at the Crimson Storm 12. But after the first three plays netted just two yards, the Miners had to go for it on fourth down and Watson thew an incomplete pass to halt the drive.

Watson, making his third start at quarterback, completed 37-of-60 passes for a career-best 325 yards and the two scores. Gronewold and Mike Greaving each had 11 catches in the game, with Gronewold ending up with 105 yards in catches and 215 all-purpose yards on the night.

UMR had 317 yards of offense in the second half and finished the game with a 472-427 advantage in total yards.

The Miners will return home for the next two weeks, starting with next Saturday's Homecoming game against Central State at 1 p.m. at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.

Posted by John Kean at 10:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Mike Greaving

RENSSELAER, Ind. -- The UMR football team was unable to overcome an early deficit Saturday and wound up losing a 35-17 decision to Saint Joseph's at Alumni Stadium.

The Pumas bit the Miners early, scoring touchdowns on each of their first three possessions to take a lead that UMR could not erase despite its best efforts in the second half.

UMR pinned the Pumas at their own five-yard line after a punt by Renny Dillinger, but Saint Joseph's marched down the field over the next six minutes to take the lead. Anthony Lindsey completed a third down pass for 21 yards to Austin Capi in the early stages of the drive to keep it going, then the Miners missed another chance to halt the Pumas when they couldn't recover Greg Ford's fumble after a 36-yard run to the UMR five.

Lindsey hit Cole Hewitt for a two-yard scoring pass to cap the drive.

The Miners came right back and got on the scoreboard when Tim Valencia connected on a 32-yard field goal. Steve Watson's 17-yard completion to Mike Greaving extended the possession, then Watson made a 14-yard run on another third down play to put the Miners in field goal range.

However, the Pumas scored on back-to-back possessions after the Valencia field goal to build a 21-3 lead that they would take to halftime. Lindsey threw scoring passes of 30 yards to Mack Ogletree and 10 yards to Victor Torres to give them the 18-point lead in the first 18 minutes of play.

Lindsey's fourth scoring pass of the day, a 10-yard pass to Dan Paulsen late in the third quarter, made it 28-3 for the Pumas before the Miners started drawing closer.

Two plays after the touchdown, Watson hit Greaving for a 61-yard touchdown pass to make the score 28-10. The UMR defense, which had settled down after the early Puma flurry, forced a punt on the next possession to get the Miners' next scoring drive started.

A 25-yard pass play to Bryan Crider moved UMR into Saint Joseph's' territory, then Watson hit Crider again on a fourth-and-one play to keep the drive moving. The Miners eventually got into the end zone on a 10-yard run by David Shields with 9:04 to play.

But after UMR had cut the lead to a two-possession game with plenty of time to go, the Pumas chewed up nearly seven minutes on the clock on a game-clinching drive, ending a 12-play, 71-yard drive with a seven-yard scoring run by Ford.

Watson completed 14 of his 26 pass attempts for 220 yards and the one touchdown, with Ashton Gronewold leading the way with six catches for 77 yards; Greaving had 89 yards on his three receptions. Shields ran for 79 yards for the Miners, who had 124 yards on the ground in finishing with 344 yards of total offense.

Lindsey ended the day completing 25-of-28 passes -- setting a Saint Joe's record for completion percentage -- for 301 yards.

Brian Jordan led the Miners with 11 tackles on the afternoon.

UMR will face Southern Nazarene next Saturday in a 6 p.m. game in Bethany, Okla.

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Ashton Gronewold

Ashton Gronewold's record-setting performance Saturday night has netted him his second "Offensive Player of the Week" award from the Great Lakes Football Conference for the 2007 season.

Gronewold broke his own school record by compiling 329 all-purpose yards in the Miners' 45-28 loss to Arkansas-Monticello Saturday at Allgood-Bailey Stadium. He caught 11 passes for 181 yards and three touchdowns -- all season highs -- while also accumulating 153 yards in returns on the night.

The 329 yards are the fourth-highest single-game mark in NCAA Division II thus far in 2007.

He caught an 11-yard scoring pass in the first half, then had scoring catches of 38 and 30 yards after the intermission; for the year, Gronewold has 38 catches for 483 yards and five touchdowns. He is currently third in the nation in all-purpose yards (215.2 yards per game) and fourth in receptions (7.6 per game).

UMR will open GLFC play Saturday at Saint Joseph's.

Posted by John Kean at 04:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ashton Gronewold put up the best all-purpose yardage numbers in a game in school history. Steve Watson had the third-highest passing yardage total ever for a Miner quarterback in his debut.

But the numbers put up by the duo -- the 329 all-purpose yards by Gronewold and the 363 passing yards by Watson -- weren't enough to push the Miners to a victory Saturday night as Arkansas-Monticello rolled up 322 yards on the ground and 31 first downs on its way to a 45-28 win at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.

The Boll Weevils, who were coming off the best offensive showing by a team in NCAA Division II this season of 812 yards against Harding last week, came out firing from the start. Scott Buisson connected with Clarence Denmark for a 53-yard pass play, setting up a 13-yard scoring run by John Williams to put UAM up just three minutes into the contest.

UAM extended its lead on another scoring run by Williams of two yards to cap off a 13-play drive with just over five minutes to play in the half, but the Miners nearly wiped out that lead before the intermission.

First, Watson hit a wide open tight end Bryan Crider in the flat and Crider took it 59 yards for a score to cut the lead to 14-6. The Miners then got a three-and-out on defense, which was followed by a high snap on the punt from which punter Anthony Stanford couldn't get away from the onrushing Miners.

Stanford was tackled at the five, then a play after Watson was sacked for a six-yard loss, he threw an 11-yard scoring pass to Gronewold to make it 14-12 after the two-point conversion try failed.

The Boll Weevils, however, busted the game open in the third quarter by scoring 17 unanswered points. A 42-yard field goal by Nate Green on UAM's initial possession of the second half started the scoring, then a poor pooch kick by Watson allowed the guests to set up shop at UMR's 46.

Eight plays later, Williams ran 11 yards for his third touchdown of the night to give UAM a 12-point advantage at 24-12. The Boll Weevils followed that with their longest scoring drive of the night, an 81-yard march that ended with a 13-yard scoring pass from Buisson to Ike Knighten.

UMR got a break moments later when Cornelius Blount mishandled a punt and the Miners' Kirk Stilwell fell on the loose ball at the UAM 38. Watson then hit Gronewold down the middle of the field on the next play for a touchdown, followed by a two-point conversion pass to Mike Greaving to cut the lead to 31-20.

The Miners were moving down the field again and reached the Boll Weevil 24 after a pass completion to Gronewold. But on a third-and-13 play, Watson had the ball knocked loose on a sack by Solomon Edwards and Jerome Perez took the recovered fumble 54 yards for a touchdown.

UMR got to within 10 again when Watson threw a 30-yard scoring pass to Gronewold with 2:41 to play, but the Boll Weevils' defense created the final margin when Lavar Wyatt picked off a Watson pass and took it 54 yards for a score in the final minute.

Watson completed 22 of his 48 pass attempts for the 363 yards and four scores. Gronewold caught 11 of the throws for 181 yards and three touchdowns, while also compiling 153 yards in returns. His 329 all-purpose yards in the game was higher than all but two performances in Division II heading into the weekend.

Crider also went over the 100-yard mark in receptions with 110 on his five catches.

The Miners finished the night, however, with no net yards rushing; David Shields had 19 yards to lead the Miners on the ground. UMR had 363 yards of total offense to UAM's 496.

UMR, now 1-4 on the season, will open its Great Lakes Football Conference schedule next Saturday against Saint Joseph's (1-4) in Rensselaer, Ind. The Pumas picked up their first win of the year Saturday with a 33-20 win at Kentucky State.

Posted by John Kean at 11:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Antonio Williams

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Late was the operative word Saturday -- and for the Miner football team, late ended up being the word that spelled doom.

UMR lost starting quarterback Brad Guidry to a broken leg when he took a late hit in the closing moments of the first half and Butler was able to mount a fourth quarter rally against a worn-down Miner defense to force overtime and win the game in the extra period 28-21 at Butler Bowl.

Guidry suffered the injury on a play when he threw a touchdown pass to Ashton Gronewold with 33 seconds to go in the half to give UMR a 21-7 lead it would take to the half. But without Guidry at the controls, the Miner offense bogged down after the intermission and left the defense to try to hold off the Bulldogs.

Butler had the ball for 35:42 in regulation time and mounted scoring drives of 69 and 52 yards to tie the game with under three minutes to play. The Bulldogs then scored on their second play in overtime and stopped UMR on downs on its possession to end the game.

The Miners opened the scoring with an impressive 11-play, 78-yard drive that was capped off by a three-yard scoring run by Antonio Williams midway through the first period. Guidry completed all seven of his pass attempts on the drive and his 21-yard strike to Chad Shockley put UMR on the Butler 10. Williams carried the ball on the next two plays and eventually scored from the three.

Butler came back to tie the game halfway through the second quarter. A 30-yard pass from T.J. Brown to Derek North moved the ball to the Miner one, then Scott Gray finally got into the end zone after being stopped short twice by the UMR defense to tie the game at seven.

The special teams unit got the lead back for the Miners six minutes later. Steve Edwards broke through and blocked Mike Morgan's punt, then Matt Loula scooped up the loose ball and went five yards for the go-ahead score.

Then the UMR defense jumped into the act, recovering Ricky Trujillo's fumble in Butler territory to give the Miner offense a chance to extend the lead before halftime. Five plays after moving the ball to the Bulldog 18, Guidry hit a diving Gronewold in the end zone to make it 21-7, but also suffered the game-ending injury when he was hit after releasing the pass.

UMR used reserve quarterback Matt Sachtleben and wide receiver Mike Greaving at quarterback throughout the second half, but the offensive unit managed to pick up only 65 yards of total offense after the break. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs were kept in check by the defense until a key moment in the fourth quarter.

Facing fourth-and-seven from the Miner 22, Brown took off and ran 14 yards for a first down to keep the drive going. On the next play, he connected with Tom Mulvihill to cut the lead in half.

UMR got a three-and-out on Butler's next possession, but picked up only one yard when it got the ball back and gave it back to the Bulldogs at their own 48 with 5:33 to go. A 22-yard run by Gray and an 18-yard pass from Brown to Kyle Bush put Butler at the Miner 10, then Gray carried three times and scored on the third run from a yard away. Jordan Quiroz's extra point tied the game at 21.

The Miners were able to get a first down when they got the ball back, but ended up losing it on downs and gave Butler a last chance to win it. The Bulldogs drove to the UMR 35, but Quiroz came up short on a 52-yard field goal effort to win the game.

However, the Bulldogs got the ball first in overtime and got in the end zone on their second play as Brown hit Dan Bohrer with a 19-yard scoring pass. UMR had a botched handoff that resulted in a five-yard loss on the initial play of its overtime possession, then three straight incompletions ended it.

Guidry was 16-of-23 for 131 yards while he was in the game, while the replacements were able to complete only two of their 11 attempts. Gronewold had seven catches on the afternoon for 56 yards while Shockley caught five passes for 55 yards. David Shields ran for 59 yards to lead the UMR rushing attack.

The Miners had only 249 yards of total offense to Butler's 332 in the game.

UMR, now 1-3 on the season, will host Arkansas-Monticello in a 6:30 p.m. game Saturday at Allgood-Bailey Stadium. It will be Family Weekend at UMR and the game will also be "Responsibility Matters Night" which will be sponsored by Mullally Distributing.

Posted by John Kean at 09:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Brad Guidry

University of Missouri-Rolla junior quarterback Brad Guidry has earned his second weekly award of the 2007 season, as he was named as the Great Lakes Football Conference's "Offensive Player of the Week" for his showing in UMR's 28-10 victory over Wisconsin-Stout Saturday.

Guidry started the game by completing his first 11 passes and finished the night 22-of-34 for 304 yards and two touchdowns. Guidry also ran for a score in the game as well.

He was five-of-five on the Miners' opening drive and completed it with a 28-yard scoring pass to Mike Greaving. Guidry scored the Miners' second touchdown on the ground, breaking a tackle from a blitzing linebacker and running around the end for the score. His third touchdown pass covered 15 yards to Ashton Gronewold; Guidry and Gronewold combined later in the game for a 62-yard completion to set up the Miners' final score that put the game away.

Earlier this season, Guidry was named as the top offensive player of the week for the NCAA Division II independents by D2Football.com. It is the fourth weekly award won by a Miner this season; Ashton Gronewold was the GLFC's offensive recipient after the opening week of the season and running back Antonio Williams was D2Football.com's top special teams player for the independents after the Miners' August 30 game at Missouri State.

A native of Rusk, Texas, Guidry transferred to UMR from Blinn Junior College.

Posted by John Kean at 04:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Antonio Williams

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The Miners’ venture into a game against NCAA Division I competition didn’t go anywhere near as well as they had hoped.

Missouri State scored on six of its nine first half possessions to build a huge lead and went on to beat UMR 62-17 Thursday night at Plaster Field in the first meeting between the old MIAA rivals since 1980.

The Bears set the tone early, bringing back the opening kickoff to the UMR 44 and scoring just 1:18 into play on a four-yard run by Gerald Davis.

UMR’s Jamel Anderson halted the Bears’ next possession with an interception, but after a three-and-out by the offense, MSU drove back down the field and went up 14-0 on Kingjack Washington’s six-yard scoring run.

Antonio Williams answered that score by bringing the ensuing kickoff back 94 yards for a touchdown, but the Miner defense continued to struggle to slow down MSU. The only other drives the Miners were able to halt over the balance of the first half came on an interception by Kalvin Bishop which was returned to the Bear seven and the final possession which ended when time ran out.

The Miners were unable to convert the Bishop interception or a later drive inside the Bear 10 into points, however, as both possessions ended with missed field goals.

MSU piled up 439 yards to the Miners’ 98 in the first 30 minutes of play to build the 41-7 lead.

After the Bears extended their lead midway through the second half on a long touchdown run by Davis, Williams got the Miner fans excited again by bringing the kickoff back out his own end zone back to the Bears’ 10. Tim Valencia got UMR back on the scoreboard again with a 22-yard field goal.

UMR got into the end zone again with 2:19 to play when Brad Guidry threw a four-yard scoring pass to Nathan Binder, extending a streak of consecutive games with a touchdown pass to 30.

Guidry threw for 104 yards on the night, while Williams led the Miners on the ground with 40 yards and had 250 all-purpose yards thanks to 210 yards in kickoff returns.

The Miners (0-2) return to action Sept. 8 at home against Wisconsin-Stout. Game time will be 6:30 p.m. on Fort Leonard Wood Appreciation Night at UMR.

Posted by John Kean at 10:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Brad Guidry

University of Missouri-Rolla junior quarterback Brad Guidry made his first start as a Miner Saturday night and was awarded for a performance in which he completed 32-of-47 passes for 345 yards and three touchdowns.

Guidry was named as the "Offensive Player of the Week" by D2Football.com for the Division II independents group for the opening week of the season. The 345 yards he compiled against Truman State Saturday were the third-most ever by a Miner quarterback in his first game with the team.

Guidry had scoring passes of six and four yards to Nathan Binder and a 17-yard scoring pass to David Shields which allowed the Miners to overcome a 21-point deficit to tie the game at 31; Truman State eventually pulled out a 38-31 victory. In addition he ran for 49 yards to finish with a total of 394 yards of total offense.

A native of Rusk, Texas, Guidry transferred to UMR from Blinn Junior College.

Posted by John Kean at 11:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ashton Gronewold

Ashton Gronewold made the UMR record book for the 20th time on Saturday -- and on Monday, he earned the Great Lakes Football Conference's first weekly award of the season.

Gronewold, the Miners' All-America wide receiver, was named as the GLFC's "Offensive Player of the Week" after a game in which he accumulated 289 all-purpose yards although UMR was on the short end of a 38-31 decision against Truman State Saturday night.

In the process, he broke the UMR career mark for all-purpose yards as he surpassed the 4,000-yard mark; his total stands at 4,031 after Saturday's play. He posted his first 100-yard rushing game of his career with 102 yards on five carries, while catching a game-high nine passes for 84 yards.

In addition, he also had 103 yards in kick returns in the game, including a kickoff runback into Truman State territory to set up a score, as he finished with his second-highest total of all-purpose yards in a game in his career. He had 294 yards against Saint Joseph's last season.

The GLFC awarded its defensive award to Tiffin's Parris Burt.

UMR will return to action Thursday when it plays Missouri State in Springfield, Mo., at 7 p.m.

Posted by John Kean at 04:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ashton Gronewold

After rallying from a 21-point deficit to draw even with Truman State in its season opener, the Miners couldn't hold off the Bulldogs on a fourth down play early in the fourth quarter and then saw its last-ditch effort come up five yards short and fell 38-31 Saturday night at Allgood-Bailey Stadium.

Truman built a 31-10 lead late in the first half, but the Miners rattled off 21 unanswered points to tie the game in the latter stages of the third quarter. But faced with a fourth-and-six at the UMR 36 early i the fourth quarter, Truman quarterback Matt Ticich connected with Tyler Fenton down the middle for the tiebreaking score that proved to be decisive.

The win spoiled big nights by the Miners' Ashton Gronewold and Brad Guidry, who was making his Miner debut at quarterback. Guidry completed 32-of-47 passes for 345 yards and three scores, while Gronewold posted his second-highest all-purpose yardage total of his career with 289 yards in the game, which included 102 yards rushing.

After the Bulldogs took the lead in the first two minutes of the game on Ticich's 17-yard touchdown pass to Ryan King -- following a game-opening 59-yard kickoff return by Phil Kenney -- the Miners answered right back. Gronewold broke the UMR career record for all-purpose the first time he touched the ball, then busted off a 57-yard run on an option play on the Miners' first play from scrimmage to move them deep into Truman territory.

UMR had to settle for a 23-yard field goal from Tim Valencia, then Truman extended its lead when Ticich ran in from 12 yards on the Bulldogs' next trip down the field.

The Miners got their initial touchdown of the season to cap a 10-play, 68-yard drive. Gronewold caught a pass on fourth down to keep the drive going, then Guidry hit Nathan Binder for a six-yard scoring pass three plays later to cut the lead to 14-10.

Truman rattled off 17 straight points to go up 31-10 with 17 seconds left in the half, but Gronewold ran the ensuing kickoff back to the Bulldogs' 44 to give the Miners a shot. Guidry completed a pass to a sliding Binder at the Truman four with two seconds to go, then hit him again in the end zone on the final play of the first half.

The Miners got the ball to open the second half, but after the initial drive ended in a three-and-out, the Miners caught a break when Albert Coker fumbled the ball on the punt return to give it back to UMR at Truman's 36.

Guidry threw an interception on the very next play by Garret Feig -- who had earlier halted a Miner scoring chance with a pick in the end zone -- but Jake Cunningham fumbled the ball right back to UMR on the play that followed.

The Miners cashed that chance in when Jerome Miller plowed in from four yards out to make it 31-23 after Valencia missed the extra point.

After the defense forced the Bulldogs to give up the ball on downs at the UMR 19, Guidry guided a scoring drive where he completed all five of his passes. The final completion of 17 yards to David Shields drew the Miners to within two, then Guidry hit Rolla High product Jake Drallmeier for the two-point conversion to tie the game at 31.

UMR then forced Truman into a fourth down situation outside of field goal range, but Ticich got his pass away before the pass rush arrived and hit Fenton for the go-ahead score 12 seconds into the fourth quarter.

The Miners' next two drives ended with punts, then they got one last shot with 1:39 to go from their own 18. UMR got into Truman territory on a completion to Antonio Williams, then reached the Bulldog 25 with nine seconds to play when Guidry hit Mike Greaving on a sideline route.

After an incompletion, Guidry completed a pass to Gronewold, who first tried to elude the Truman defenders guarding the goal line and then attempted a lateral, only to see the ball get recovered by TSU's Brandon Crawford as time expired.

UMR racked up 510 yards of total offense to Truman's 457 in the contest, getting 165 on the ground and 345 through the air. Guidry completed passes to eight different receivers, with Shields catching five balls and Binder and Williams getting four apiece.

The Bulldogs ran for 306 yards against the Miners with Ticich and Cunningham both finishing with over 100 yards.

The Miners will return to the field Thursday night in Springfield when they take on another old rival from their days in the MIAA, Missouri State. Game time will be at 7 p.m.

Posted by John Kean at 11:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Five members of the University of Missouri-Rolla football team have been named to a pre-season all-independent team for NCAA Division II by D2Football.com.

One of the five, senior wide receiver Ashton Gronewold, was a pre-season All-America selection as announced by the website that covers football at the Division II level. Gronewold, who holds or shares 19 school records at UMR, was named to the first team at both wide receiver and as a kick returner.

He had a school record 78 receptions for 1,120 yards and 15 touchdowns last season and scored two more touchdowns on returns. His 1,788 all-purpose yards also set a single-season record.

Also named to the first team was junior free safety Brian Jordan, who finished the 2006 season tied for the team lead with three interceptions to go along with his 61 tackles.

Three others were named to the second team -- wide receiver Mike Greaving, linebacker Justin Butler and placekicker Tim Valencia.

Greaving caught 50 passes for 789 yards and five touchdowns last season, while Butler is the Miners' leading returning tackler with 73 stops a year ago. Valencia connected on 42 of his 44 extra points attempts and also made eight of his 11 field goal tries.

The Miners open their 2007 season Saturday night against Truman State at Allgood-Bailey Stadium. Game time is at 6:30 p.m.

Posted by John Kean at 11:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ashton Gronewold

For the second time in a little over a week, Ashton Gronewold has been named to a pre-season All-America team.

Just days after being chosen to a pre-season team by Lindy's Football magazine, Street and Smith's has awarded a similar honor to the Miners' senior wide receiver for the upcoming year in its publication that is currently on the newsstands.

Gronewold, one of the top receivers in the nation over the last two seasons, was picked at that position on the Street and Smith's team after being chosen as an all-purpose player by Lindy's. Either position would be appilicable for him, as he compiled a school record 1,788 all-purpose yards during the 2006 campaign.

Last year's Great Lakes Football Conference "Offensive Player of the Year" broke 12 school records over the course of the 2006 campaign, including marks with 78 catches for 1,120 yards.

He also set the UMR career marks in receiving and scoring during the season and established new single-game records for receiving yards (229 vs. Morehead State) and all-purpose yards (294 vs. Saint Joseph's). In all, Gronewold scored 17 touchdowns for the season, 15 receiving, one on a kickoff return and another on a punt return.

Those efforts led to additional post-season honors for him, as he was selected to the Associated Press' Little All-America second team, Football Gazette's third team and D2Football.com's honorable mention squad for the second straight year.

Gronewold holds UMR career records for receptions (191), receiving yards (2,699), receiving touchdowns (39) and overall touchdowns scored (42) heading into the upcoming campaign.

The Miners will open the 2007 season at home August 25 against Truman State University after going 6-5 in 2006.

STREET & SMITH'S FOOTBALL 2007 PRE-SEASON ALL-AMERICA TEAM

-- Offense --
QB: Zach Miller, Sr., Nebraska-Omaha
RB: Joique Bell, So., Wayne State (Mich.)
RB: Danny Woodhead, Sr., Chadron State
RB: Xavier Omon, Sr., Northwest Missouri State
WR: Ashton Gronewold, Sr., Missouri-Rolla
WR: Weston Dressler, Sr., North Dakota
WR: Brahin Bilal, Sr., Bloomsburg
OL: Brandon Barnes, Sr., Grand Valley State
OL: Heath Benedict, Sr., Newberry
OL: Christian Morton, Sr., South Dakota
OL: Ben Hochstein, Sr., Nebraska-Omaha
OL: Tim McCutcheon, Sr., California (Pa.)
RS: Brandon Toles, Sr., Southern Connecticut State
PK: David Chudzinski, Sr., Wayne State (Mich.)

-- Defense --
DL: Andre Bernardi, Jr., North Greenville
DL: Travis Carpenter, Sr., Abilene Christian
DL: Ron Ellington, Sr., Catawba
DL: Jake Visser, Jr., Ferris State
LB: Anthony Adams, Sr., Grand Valley State
LB: Michael Eubanks, Sr., Delta State
LB: Jared Brock, Jr., West Texas A&M
LB: Lateef Ferguson, Sr., West Chester
DB: Brandon Carr, Sr., Grand Valley State
DB: Kendall Ricketts, Sr., Central Missouri
DB: Quincy Skinner, Sr., Arkansas Tech
DB: Josh Jones, Jr., Minnesota State-Moorhead
P: Wayne Durham, Jr., Adams State

Posted by John Kean at 02:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Ashton Gronewold

Ashton Gronewold has earned All-America in each of the last two seasons while playing for the Miner football team -- and the early 2007 honors are beginning to head his way.

Gronewold, a senior wide receiver in the upcoming year for the Miners, has been named to the pre-season All-America first team by Lindy's Football magazine in its 2007 preview magazine that is currently on the newsstands.

After a year in which he compiled a school record 1,788 all-purpose yards, Gronewold was named to the first team as an all-purpose player. Last year's Great Lakes Football Conference "Offensive Player of the Year" broke 12 school records over the course of the 2006 campaign, including marks with 78 catches for 1,120 yards.

He also broke the UMR career marks in receiving and scoring during the season and set new single-game records for receiving yards (229 vs. Morehead State) and all-purpose yards (294 vs. Saint Joseph's). In all, Gronewold scored 17 touchdowns for the season, 15 receiving, one on a kickoff return and another on a punt return.

Those efforts led to additional post-season honors for him, as he was selected to the Associated Press' Little All-America second team, Football Gazette's third team and D2Football.com's honorable mention squad for the second straight year.

Gronewold holds UMR career records for receptions (191), receiving yards (2,699), receiving touchdowns (39) and overall touchdowns scored (42) heading into the upcoming campaign.

The Miners will open the 2007 season at home August 25 against Truman State University after going 6-5 in 2006.

LINDY'S FOOTBALL 2007 PRE-SEASON ALL-AMERICA TEAM

-- Offense --
QB: Willie Copeland, Sr., Valdosta State
RB: Xavier Oman, Sr., Northwest Missouri State
RB: Danny Woodhead, Sr., Chadron State
WR: Weston Dressler, Sr., North Dakota
WR: Michael Washington, Jr., West Chester
TE: Mike Peterson, Sr., Northwest Missouri State
OL: Brandon Barnes, Sr., Grand Valley State
OL: Heath Benedict, Sr., Newberry
OL: Mackenzy Bernadeau, Sr., Bentley
OL: Ben Hochstein, Sr., Nebraska-Omaha
OL: Tim McCutcheon, Sr., California (Pa.)
AP: Ashton Gronewold, Sr., Missouri-Rolla
PK: David Chudzinski, Sr., Wayne State (Mich.)

-- Defense --
DL: Andre Bernardi, Jr., North Greenville
DL: Kevin Dixon, Jr., West Liberty State
DL: Ron Ellington, Sr., Catawba
DL: Alex Hall, Sr., St. Augustine's
LB: Anthony Adams, Sr., Grand Valley State
LB: Scott Hayden, Jr., Merrimack
LB: Cody Stutts, Sr., Abilene Christian
DB: Brandon Carr, Sr., Grand Valley State
DB: Sevohn Greer, Sr., Harding
DB: Divon Hughes, Jr., Henderson State
DB: Josh Jones, Jr., Minnesota State-Moorhead
P: Jason Davis, Sr., Western State

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