Mount Vernon tests surprising Seymour tonight

Sports

Discussion

March 9, 2010

Anonymous The Joplin Globe Tue Mar 09, 2010, 11:37 PM CST

By Jim Henry

jhenry@joplinglobe.com

Averaging 21.7 points and 8.5 rebounds, Mount Vernon 6-foot-5 senior Zack Kleine is the focus of every defense he faces.

“He’s used to that,” Mountaineers head coach Skip Brock said. “He’s done a good job of getting other guys involved. I think that has really helped us late in the season.

“In the district championship game, we had three guys in double figures and two more scored eight points. That’s better balance than we’ve had, partly due to Zack. He’s made really good decisions when he was double-teamed.”

The Mountaineers (22-7), after winning district on their home floor, battle Seymour (20-8) at 7:45 tonight in a Class 3 sectional game at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar.

“Seymour was the 4 seed in its district,” Brock said. “They beat Strafford, a team that was ranked No. 2 in the state, by 14 points in the semifinals, then beat Fair Grove (52-46 in overtime) in the championship game. They are not a surprise necessarily. ... They’ve won 20 games, but I don’t think anybody was anticipating them being the team coming out of the district.

“They have some really good perimeter players. They are not extremely big but they do have some skilled players and are very athletic and quick on the perimeter. They have a 6-4 player who is a very good shooter and provides a matchup challenge. They just play extremely hard, go after every loose ball and every rebound. They play with a lot of intensity, and that’s a credit to Coach Joe Easter and the job he’s done.”

Joining Kleine in the Mountaineers’ starting unit is 6-4 senior Josh Engler, 6-3 senior Jackson Tettenhorst, 5-10 sophomore Kaden Jones and 5-10 freshman Shane Williams. Juniors Sam Cowherd (6-0) and Blake Grooms (6-1) are the top reserves.

Tettenhorst averages 11.8 points and 3.8 rebounds, and Engler contributes 9.4 points and 5.4 boards.

The Mountaineers nipped Seneca 55-53 in the district final, avenging a two-point loss to the Indians eight days earlier that decided the Big 8 Conference crown.

“To come out of our district, we had to play our best basketball of the season,” Brock said. “I thought Saturday night’s game against Seneca was the best game we played all season. Obviously it had to be. You don’t beat a team as good as Seneca unless you do that. We’re playing our best basketball right now, and hopefully we can continue that come Wednesday.”

Mount Vernon’s district title was its first since 2007.

“I’m happy for all the seniors,” Brock said. “I’m happy they were able to be a part of Mount Vernon basketball history by winning the championship.”

Text Only

Sports

Colgan's Cichon wins No. 500
The 500-win plateau is an achievement that does not come without some winning formula.

February 11, 2012 5 Photos
Prep Roundup: Joplin's Wood breaks school record
Joplin’s Madi Wood broke a school record, Michelle Barchak and Genny Richards posted the fastest qualifying times Friday during preliminaries of the Southwest Missouri Championships at the Natatorium.

February 11, 2012
Hester, Lions prep for Emporia State
Patrick Hester, one of Missouri Southern’s best free-throw shooters, stepped to the line Wednesday night with 13.5 seconds left in the second overtime, looking to push the Lions’ three-point lead to a two-possession game.

February 11, 2012
MSSU's Gibson sets career highs in consecutive games
In Missouri Southern’s first 20 games this season, guard Larrita Gipson scored in double figures once — 10 points on Jan. 21 at Truman State.

February 11, 2012
PSU women seek record-tying 22nd win
Among Pittsburg State’s four football national championships, three came during seasons that ended in the number 1 — 1961, 1991 and 2011.

February 11, 2012
Kickapoo girls race past Joplin
Annie Armstrong poured in 21 points to lead the Kickapoo girls to a 65-28 victory over Joplin on Thursday night in an Ozark Conference basketball game at Missouri Southern’s Young Gymnasium.

February 10, 2012 3 Photos
Hillsdale women stop OCC
Visiting Hillsdale Free Will Baptist handed Ozark Christian a 68-47 loss in women’s college basketball on Thursday night.

February 10, 2012
Quapaw completes 12-0 run through Lucky '7' Conference
Quapaw High School girls basketball coach Rod Graves expected the 2011-12 Wildcats to compile another successful season.
They haven’t been a disappointment.

February 10, 2012
Pitching holds key for softball Lions
Pitching is the main question Missouri Southern must answer as the Lions open their softball season today in Abilene, Texas.

February 10, 2012
NCAA denies UConn waiver request
The NCAA has turned down the University of Connecticut’s request for a waiver that would allow its men’s basketball team to play in the 2013 national championship tournament.

February 10, 2012
More Sports Headlines

Water company cites reconnections

Sports

Search Results

Discussion

Mount Vernon tests surprising Seymour tonight

Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr wants the city to distribute weather radios to all Joplin homes that don’t have one. That’s 11,000 radios. Do you think that’s a good use of $300,440?

Site Map

Contact Us