In this weeks update:

Presented by MDC Discover Nature Families.

When: Saturday, February 20th

Time: 8:30 - 11:30 am

Join MDC Discover Nature Families to learn the basic fundamentals of woodworking and then build your own bluebird nesting box and bird feeder. This program is open to children and their mentor.

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The father-daughter duo of Leon Neal and Tasha (Neal) Moore were honored on February 6 in ceremonies at the Ashcroft Center on the Evangel University campus with the joint retirement of their respective basketball jerseys.  Neal, was the first ever school all-American selection during his playing days and is the current women’s basketball coach at the school, while daughter Tasha was a four-time NAIA all-American honoree in her four years with the Lady Crusaders while playing for her father.  Since both wore the #44 jersey during their playing days, that number in effect is now eliminated from the school’s basketball rolls.

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The Springfield-Greene County Park Board will hold a news conference at 10 a.m., Tuesday, Feb. 9, in the Bill Foster North room of the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce, 202 S. John Q. Hammons Parkway, to announce a number of major sporting events, tournaments and the addition of a new Community Olympic Development Program to the Springfield-Greene County area in 2010.

A lineup of local activities celebrating the 2010 Winter Olympics and sports collaborations between local universities will also be announced.

For more information, contact: Bob Nelson, Public Information Administrator, (417) 874-2176.

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Missouri State has announced that head coach Rob Brewer has added 10 commitments from players to join the program for the 2010 season.

For more National Signing Day Commitments please visit here

2010 Women’s Soccer Commitments:

Maggie Dickson, St. Charles, Mo. (Incarnate Word Academy)
Dickson has led the Red Knights to the State Championship the past two seasons.  Last season, she scored three goals and added two assists for the 18-5 squad.  During her sophomore campaign, Dickson recorded two goals and four assists as Incarnate Word went 20-1-2.  In 2007, she scored 19 goals and 16 assists for the junior varsity squad. She has also played on the club team St. Louis Scott Gallagher.  Her siblings, Rick and Brooke, have both attended Missouri State.

Adrianne Kalogerou, Glen Carbon, Ill. (Edwardsville High)
Kalogerou enters her senior season at Edwardsville High having started every match in her first three seasons as a Lady Tiger. She was team captain her sophomore and junior seasons while leading her team to the regional championship and regional qualifier in those seasons, respectively. She earned second-team all-conference as a junior and was named team MVP. Her sophomore campaign led to an all-conference third team selection.  As a freshman, Kalogerou helped her team to a second-place finish in conference and an appearance in the super sectionals.

Kathleen Kujawa, Webster Groves, Mo. (Cor Jesu Academy)
Kujawa led her team to the district championship her junior season at Cor Jesu.  Her team advanced to the state quarterfinals, finishing fifth in state in 2009.  That team also won the Visitation Spring Tournament.  She also reached the district finals her freshman year with the Chargers.  Kujawa was a four-year member of the club team St. Louis Scott Gallagher, where she helped the team win the 2009 State Cup Championship and reach the finals in 2008.  Her sister, Kelsey, is currently a student at Missouri State.

Tiffany Laughlin, Florissant, Mo. (Pattonville High)
Laughlin has been a three-year starter for head coach Tom Iffrig.  During her tenure with the team, the Pirates have gone undefeated in conference play and were district champions her freshman and junior seasons.  During her junior season, Laughlin scored 11 goals and tallied 18 assists while earning first-team all-state, second-team all-metro and first-team all-conference honors for a Pirates team that finished third in state.  Her sophomore campaign netted her an all-conference second team honor after she scored six goals and 23 assists, the most in the Suburban North Conference.  Laughlin was named Rookie of the Year after her eight goals, 22-assist output as a freshman.  She was also named all-conference first team; all-metro third team and all-state honorable mention accolades her freshman season.  Laughlin was a place kicker for the football team her senior season.  Her sister, Jenna, was a member of Rob Brewer’s Bears squad from 2005-2008.

Michelle Mayne-Nicholls, Rogers, Ark. (Rogers High)
Mayne-Nicholls has been a three-year starter at Rogers entering her senior season.  Last year, she was the team captain, goal scorer of the year and an all-conference honoree after tallying 18 goals and 10 assists to lead her team to fourth in state.  Her sophomore campaign produced five goals and eight assists for a team that finished second in conference and third in state.  She scored four goals and added six assists during her freshman season to help the Lady Mounties go 7-0 in conference.  Mayne-Nicholls was also a four-year participant for the Rogers cross-country team.  Her father, Alfredo, played soccer at Jacksonville University.

Jessica Roberts, Mountain Grove, Mo. (Mountain Grove High)
Roberts comes to Missouri State after spending last fall at the Illinois Institute of Technology.  She scored three goals and added four assists for head coach Lee Hitchen.  She started 10 matches and played in 17 at IIT.  Roberts’ prep career included one season at Springfield’s Kickapoo High before transferring to Mountain Grove. During her freshman campaign at Kickapoo, she led her squad to the conference and district title and a state sectional appearance.  Roberts also played for Springfield Soccer Club.  She was a three-year member of the track and field team once at Mountain Grove.

Shelby Stewart, Springfield, Mo. (Parkview High)
Stewart has been a starting forward for head coach Clint Nurnberg for the past two seasons.  She was named to the all-district first team and all-conference second team both seasons.  During her junior campaign, Stewart registered 25 goals and 11 assists to earn first-team all-region and second-team all-Ozarks accolades along with being named to the West Plains all-tournament team.  Stewart has played at forward for the Vikings’ basketball team and was a member of the track and field squad as well.  Both of Stewart’s parents, Howard and Christy, and one brother, Aaron, have attended Missouri State.

Ashley Washburn, Overland Park, Kan. (St. Thomas Aquinas)
Washburn has been a member of Craig Ewing’s squad the past three seasons, leading the team to the conference title all three years.  She registered 21 goals and 13 assists, garnering all metro, all state and all-conference first team honors.  Her team finished second in state last year while she served as a team captain.  During her sophomore season, Washburn tallied nine goals and eight assists to lead her team to the third-place finish in state.  She earned first-team all-state honors and was named to the all-metro and all-conference second teams. Washburn was a teammate of current Bears goalkeeper Jessica Teahan when the squad won the state title in 2007.  Washburn added four goals and five assists that year.  She has also won the Kansas State Cup Championship every season from 2005 to 2009 as a member of the Blue Valley Stars Mallorca club team.  Washburn was also a four-year standout for the cross-country team as she finished in the top three at state all four seasons.

Lauren Wendt, Troy, Ill. (Triad High)
Wendt has been a starter all three seasons for head coach Mike Villa at Triad High.  Her team has won the Mississippi Valley Conference title each of her years.  She was named to the all-conference first team as a junior.  Wendt helped the Knights win the Bi-State Shootout both her junior and sophomore seasons.

Brooke Williams, Kansas City, Mo. (Liberty High)
Williams has been a three-year starter at forward for head coach Tom Rottjakob at Liberty High.  She has led the team to three-consecutive conference and district titles.  Last season as a junior, Williams was named to the all-conference, all-district, All-Western Missouri Class 3 and all-state first team while serving as team captain.  She scored 32 goals for the Blue Jays lifting the team to the state quarterfinals.  As a sophomore, she scored 25 goals to lead the team to the state sectional finals.  She earned all-conference and all-district first team, All-Western Missouri Class 2 second team and all-state third team accolades that year.  During Williams’ freshman year, she tallied 15 goals in helping her team to the state quarterfinals.  She was named to the all-district second team for her performance.  She also led her club teams to the Kansas State Cup finals each of the last three years.

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A year after winning the Missouri Valley Conference regular season championship, the Missouri State baseball team enters the 2010 season picked to finish second in the conference according to a vote of the league’s coaches, the conference announced Tuesday morning. Additionally, juniors Aaron Conway (center field) and Aaron Meade (starting pitcher) and sophomore Kevin Medrano (second base) earned spots on the preseason all-conference team.

The Bears earned 52 points, trailing only preseason favorite Wichita State in the poll, which received seven first-place votes and 57 points. Creighton garnered the remaining first-place vote and 50 points for third. Illinois State (38), Southern Illinois (33), Indiana State (29), Evansville (16) and Bradley (13) round out the poll.

Conway batted leadoff and played center field in all 54 of Missouri State’s games last season, hitting .291 with four home runs and 29 RBIs. A native of Edwardsville, Ill., Conway stole 18 bases in 20 tries while ranking second in school history with eight triples and seventh with 40 walks in 2009.

Meade was a first-team all-MVC choice last season and is a Ping! Baseball preseason All-American in 2010. As a sophomore, the Kansas City native went 9-2 with a 3.39 ERA and 89 strikeouts in a team-high 90.1 innings. He started 14 games for the Bears and picked up a save in his only relief appearance.

Medrano was the 2009 MVC Freshman of the Year after hitting .329 with three home runs and 40 RBIs. The Lee’s Summit, Mo., native fielded .980 while playing second base, ranked fourth in MSU history among freshmen with 76 base hits, and finished fourth in the MVC with 53 runs scored on the way to a Freshman All-America nod from Collegiate Baseball.

The Bears open the season Feb. 19 at sixth-ranked Georgia Tech.

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Former standouts for the basketball Panthers and Lady Panthers will reunite for a common cause once again when the Fifth Annual Drury Alumni Basketball Game will be played on Friday, February 12 at Weiser Gym.

Tipoff will be at 7 p.m. for the contest which this year will donate proceeds to the American Heart Association, a charity chose in honor of the passing of former DU basketball great Jerry Alexander, who passed away last October from a heart ailment.

The Alumni Game, an annual part of Drury's Homecoming Weekend festivities, features several former DU standouts. Among the players committed and confirmed this season are former standouts Matt Miller, Tyler Rogers, Brent Creach, Tyler Creach, Charlie Penn, Jasen Fronbarger, Adam White, Chris Ijames, Brad Moulder, Ke'Lan Mitchell, Brandon Morris, Tony Pollard, Filip Garrett, Kim Lenahan Mayer and Sara Stratton Kaderly, with more to come.

In an addition to donations being accepted at the game, individual or corporations desiring to make a contribution (or players wishing to confirm their desire to play) can contact Marc Mayer at (417) 860-6717 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . 

A website for on-line donations also has been established in honor of Alexander and the AHA. To donate on-line, please click the link below.

Online Donations Click Here

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The SBU Bearcat men's indoor track and field team was ranked 25th in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) NCAA Division II national team rankings. The ranking was the first time in their history the Bearcats appeared in the debut poll of the season. Defending NCAA Division II Champions Saint Augustine’s are the national team ranking leaders in the men’s category.  

SBU has competed in three indoor meets this season: December at the Southern Illinois Fast Start and the last two weeks at the Iowa State Open and last weekend at the Missouri Southern Fazoli's/Baymont Inn Invitational. They continue the indoor campaign this weekend at the Central Missouri Mule Relays, with the SBU women competing Friday and the men on Saturday.

The MIAA is well represented in the first rankings with six teams in the poll. Central Missouri comes in third, Emporia State checking at seventh, Pittsburg State in 10th, Missouri Southern at 17th, Northwest Missouri at 22nd and SBU in 25th. Future MIAA member Lincoln is also sixth.

This week’s release represents marks accumulated by teams in the 2010 indoor season through last weekend as reported to the Track & Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS). This week’s release also represents the first time Division II national team rankings have been compiled using mathematical formulae that indexes a team’s potential of placing well at the NCAA Indoor Championships and is similar in nature to the method that has been employed by Division I for the past two years. Saint Augustine was first with 253.07 points while SBU closes the poll with 31.97 points.

The next release of updated rankings for NCAA’s Division II will continue on Tuesday, February 9, with updates occurring the following five Tuesdays leading to the NCAA Division II Indoor Championships, March 12-13.

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Evangel University’s softball season opener will be pushed back as their first scheduled event for 2010 has been cancelled. The Lady Crusaders were to open Saturday (2/6) with games against Lincoln University and Northwest Missouri State at Meador Park in the Drury University Spring Classic. Winter weather and wet grounds forced the cancellation.

Evangel is now scheduled to open on Friday, Feb. 12 against Calumet College of St. Joseph at Meador Park as part of the Evangel University Early Bird Tournament.

For additional information, contact:

Kevin Kennedy, Evangel University Athletics, (417) 865-2815, ext. 7260

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COACH GEORGE WILSON EARNED HIS 900^TH CAREER VICTORY

Women’s Basketball Coach George Wilson earned his 900th career victory Friday night as the Lady Bobcats defeated Haskell Indian Nations 81-51 at Keeter Gym.

Wilson coached high school boys’ basketball for 31 years where he accumulated a 559-284 record.  In his 13 years at C of O, Wilson has amassed a record of 341-73.  He guided the Lady Bobcats to four straight NAIA final four appearances and to three national championship games.