Both the men’s and women’s tennis teams at Northwest Missouri State kept a watchful eye on Tuesday’s announcement of the NCAA Division II national tournament field, but for very different reasons.
The women’s team, holding an automatic berth, simply wanted to verify its opponent.
The men, however, were holding their collective breath to make sure they made the field.
Both are heading south to battle for their playoff lives.
The Bearcat women (13-4) already had salvaged their streak of 12 NCAA tournament appearances over the weekend by winning the MIAA Championships in Kansas City, and they had St. Joseph’s Jordan Lipira to thank for it.
Lipira, the No. 3 singles player, was the only Bearcat to reverse her fate from the previous meeting with Washburn, beating Whitley Zitsch 6-1, 6-2 in the tournament finals as the No. 2-seeded Bearcats defeated the top-seeded Lady Blues 5-3. Zitsch had defeated Lipira in straight sets during the regular conference season.
“(Lipira) has been steadily getting better this year,” coach Mark Rosewell said. “She’s worked herself into becoming a good player. Last year she was a No. 4 or No. 5, and now she’s a solid No. 2 or No. 3 for us.”
Lipira’s victory made the difference not only in the Bearcats’ conference title chase but also in the entire playoff picture, as Rosewell’s team was ranked 12th in the South Central Region — on the outside looking in — until earning the automatic berth with the tournament championship.
The former Central High School standout went 5-0 during the week and is on a seven-match winning streak. She earned MIAA Tennis Player of the Week honors for her performance.
The women now will have the sixth seed in the region and will play third-seeded Northeastern (Okla.) State (18-4) on May 8 in San Marcos, Texas.
The men’s team, meanwhile, found itself on the bubble after losing to Southwest Baptist in the semifinals of the conference tournament. Northwest was ranked fifth in the South Central Region prior to that loss and could fall only one more position before losing its chance at a national tournament spot.
But the final regional rankings put the Bearcats (12-7) at No. 6, pairing them against No. 3 St. Edward’s (13-8) on May 8 in regional action in Lawton, Okla.
Carter can, and she did
Although injury-riddled Northwest failed to make the MIAA softball tournament this season, it wasn’t because of a lack of production from senior Tiffany Carter.
The senior first baseman drove in two runs on Saturday in a season-ending 11-3 loss against Southwest Baptist, giving her 51 RBIs for the season.
That’s two more than the number she posted last year to set the school record.
This season Carter led the Bearcats (13-38, 4-16 MIAA) in batting average (.355), home runs (11), doubles (9) and even had the dubious distinction of being hit by a team-high 11 pitches.
Carter, a Lenexa, Kan., native who transferred two years ago from Johnson County Community College, started 53 of the team’s 54 games in 2008 at catcher, but she settled in during March as this season’s regular first baseman as coach Ryan Anderson juggled his lineup to make up for a nearly complete lack of bench.
“If we’d had half our kids that were out with injuries, she could have had 65 to 70 RBIs this season,” Anderson said. “But our Nos. 8, 9, 1 and 2 hitters weren’t on base a lot.”
’Cats couldn’t, due to injuries
The softball team’s woes were all because of a lack of horses in the Northwest stable this season.
“All our horses got shot early,” said Anderson, who has already had three players go under the knife, with the possibility of two more undergoing surgery.
Here is the litany of injuries and maladies that sidelined many of the Bearcats for a significant numbers of game, if not the entire season:
Torn anterior cruciate ligament
Torn labrum in shoulder
Torn labrum in hip
Dislocated kneecap
Line drive to the head
Cervical disc problem in neck
Crushed bone in ankle with three torn ligaments
Line drive to the chest
Tendinitis in arm
Kirsch honored
A home run clip of one per game has its advantages.
For Brandon Kirsch, it meant helping his Northwest baseball team to a 5-0 week and vaulting himself into the spotlight at the MIAA Hitter of the Week in baseball.
Kirsch, a junior from Papillion, Neb., batted .389 (7-for-18), drove in 14 runs and scored eight runs while hitting five dingers as the Bearcats try to overcome a slow season start that already has knocked them out of the running for an MIAA tournament berth.
Northwest can assure itself of a .500 conference record and a winning season overall with a sweep of Pittsburg State in a pair of doubleheaders that will close out the season Saturday and Sunday at Bearcat Field.
Open tryouts scheduled
The baseball coaching staff already is looking for a few good men for next season.
The Bearcats have scheduled open tryouts for all interested Northwest students May 19 and June 2 at Bearcat Field. Cost is $20, and participants must bring a doctor’s physical completed within the past year and a copy of their current health insurance card (front and back sides) in order to participate.
The evaluation will begin at noon both days at the third base dugout.