From the SBU Athletic Media Relations Department

Bolivar, Mo. – The Southwest Baptist University Bearcats began their 2011 season with an opening day victory over Bacone College, 28-19. After being down 19-7 at halftime, the Bearcats responded with 21 straight points to come away with the victory.

After trailing 13-0 early, the Bearcats had a huge interception by Raymond Segura who took the ball back 28 yards for a touchdown to cut the deficit to 13-7. The Warriors would add two field goals to lead 19-7 at halftime. The Bearcats came out in the second half, looking to turn things around.

Early in the third quarter, running back Justin Duhaney had a five yard touchdown run, pulling the Bearcats within five points. Later in the third quarter, quarterback Justin French connected with Derwyn Lauderdale with a 10 yard pass for a touchdown to give the Bearcats a 21-19 lead. The Bearcats would add a 36-yard rushing touchdown from Thaddeus Everson in the fourth quarter to seal a 28-19 victory.

The Bearcats were lead in passing by Justin French who was 18-30 for 148 yards with one touchdown. Justin Duhaney lead the Bearcats in rushing with seven attempts for 41 yards and a touchdown, while Derwyn Lauderdale lead the Bearcat receivers with three grabs for 47 yards and a touchdown.

The defense was excellent in the second half, shutting out the Warriors. Zach Moore lead the Bearcats with 10 tackles, while Anthony Wiggins had a blocked extra point, and the Bearcats compiled three sacks.

"I am very proud of our teams resilience and fight tonight," head coach Keith Allen commented after the victory. "We were down by two scores going into the half and we came back out and scored 21 unanswered points to secure the victory."

The Bearcats will be back in action next Saturday, September 10th when they host Arkansas Tech at 6:00 p.m.

---

SBU is a four-year evangelical Christian university that was established in 1878.  The main campus is located about 30 minutes north of Springfield, Missouri, in Bolivar, a town of approximately 10,000 people. DHS alum Glen Johnson is a defensive lineman for the Bearcats.

For more information on SBU Bearcat Athletics, visit sbubearcats.com.

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

PARK HILLS -- The Dexter Bearcats had a big task ahead of them Friday night as they traveled north to battle the Park Hills Central Rebels. The ‘Cats came out on top after a hard-fought, albeit sloppy, contest, 37-27.

The game was a tale of two halves. The ‘Cats offense was scoring almost at will, and the defense was dominant, in the first half. Midway through the third quarter, however, the ‘Cats seemed to just lose their steam. They couldn’t move the ball on offense; they gave up 20 unanswered points on defense - it was almost like the big 30-7 lead going into halftime woke up the ‘sleeping giant’ of Park Hills.

Offensively, the ‘Cats running attack wasn’t as potent as it was against Ste. Gen., but it didn’t have to be: the Bearcats had some success moving the ball through the air this time around.

“We really executed well on offense in the first half. We have a hard time coming out sometimes, I felt like we were a little flat on that first drive, but after that we settled in,” head coach Aaron Pixley said. “We have to come out with more energy than what we did tonight. Our offense executed well, I thought the passing game worked well. Cody [Stevens] made some big plays scrambling in the second half - I think we had a third and twenty-something, and he would up scrambling for a first down there.”


Senior quarterback Cody Stevens was 12-30 for 132 yards, four touchdowns, and one INT. Stevens’ favorite target in the contest was Tyler Miller - seven receptions for 78 yards and three TD’s - but Pixley was pleased with the performance of the entire receiving corps.

“Cody and Tyler have a good relationship with each other, and they made some plays together,” Pixley noted. “Chase Young had a huge catch on the bomb there that was called back, and we hit some short passes to Cody Neldon for some good games. Jake Lee got in the mix tonight, threw some to him. We don’t really care who catches the ball, we just want people to execute. I’m proud of them for making some plays.”

“For the most part, we ran the ball pretty good. We got into some situations where we had to throw, and we had some backs get dinged up a little bit, so we did what we had to do.”

On the ground, Josh Overall was good for 96 yards on 13 carries. Stevens contributed 65 yards on 10 carries and a touchdown. Wideout Cody Neldon also earned 34 yards on the ground this week.

Runningback/Linebacker Nick Summers didn’t dress in the second half due to a shoulder injury, but both Pixley and team physician Bobby ‘Doc’ Jibben noted that it was a precautionary measure.

---

---

Jake Lee (No. 88) and Garrett Wray (No. 5) hold onto a tackle while a host of teammates swarm in.

---

The ‘Cats were plagued by penalties during the third quarter - every time they would break a good play, a flag would get thrown.

“You start off, offense was making some good positive plays. It seems like in the span of six plays there, we had three ten or fifteen yard penalties, and we were backwards - that just spoils good, positive plays,” Pixley noted. “It’s tough to work from first and twenty.”


The Rebels came as advertised - they were big, they were physical, and they tried to dictate the tempo of the game on the ground. Senior linebacker Alex Cliff was flying around the field, recording 13 tackles in the contest.


 “[Park Hills] did a good job of running the ball on us in the second half and keeping the ball away from us,” Pixley said. “We knew they wanted to eat up the clock - we had a nice lead coming out into the second half, and we had some good plays in the second half, but we were inconsistent and had too many penalties. We just shot ourselves in the foot too many times.”

“We were sort of working against ourselves instead of working against Park Hills. I’m proud of our kids - we played hard. We were sloppy at times on a very hot and muggy night, but we gutted it out and got the W against a good team.”

Looking ahead to next week, the ‘Cats will return to Charles Bland Stadium to play host to the Sikeston Bulldogs. Pixley noted the outstanding speed of the squad, and said his team would have to tackle well to be able to get another victory.

“They're possibly the best team on our schedule. Very, very fast, I’m sure they’re physical, and they attack on defense,” Pixley said. “We’re going to have to play extremely well. We can’t play with a lot of penalties like we did tonight. We need to be better at taking care of the football and not turning it over. We’ve gotta tackle - we were at the point of contact several on defense tonight, we just didn’t do a very good job of tackling. We’ve got to shore that up and get better next week. “


Kickoff for Friday (Sept. 9) night’s game is set for 7:00 p.m.

---

For a full breakdown of the game's stats, click here

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

The Lady Bearcats continue to impress on the volleyball court. When the Jackson Lady Indians came to town Thursday night, the ‘Cats played strong and picked up wins on both the JV and Varsity levels, moving their records to 3-0.

The JV ‘Cats defeated Jackson in straight sets - 25-9, 25-16 - to continue an unbeaten streak (for the freshman) that runs over two years strong.

The Varsity squad was forced into a three set match for the first time this season, but still came out with a victory - 25-20, 25-27, 25-20 - after some intense competition .

“I knew Jackson was going to be tough, and my girls went out and played as a team,  ” head coach Lauren Hutchcraft said. “They stayed fired up, dug deep, and played hard.  They didn't get frustrated or mentally down when they made mistakes on the court.  After losing the second set by two, they could have easily given up.  However, they didn't and I couldn't be more proud of them.”

  Hannah Noe had an outstanding game setting up her hitters - she totaled 23 assists, 5 digs, 5 kills, 2 aces, and was 9 / 10 from the service line.

“Hannah Noe always gives solid performances, and she didn't disappoint me tonight by any means!  She is an all-around great volleyball player,” Hutchcraft said.  “She can serve, hit, block, and set.  She can do it all, and well!  She is truly a great team player.  I felt Jessica Lindsey and McKenzie Mitchell had good performances tonight, as well.”

The Lady ‘Cats, currently ranked No. 12 in Class 3, will go on the road to face Cape Central in their next matchup on Tuesday (Sept. 6).

“I am expecting the unexpected - I'm going to be prepared for anything and everything,” Hutchcraft noted.  “They lost to Bloomfield (currently ranked No. 4 in Class 2) in three sets this season, so it must've been a very good game for both teams. We’ll have to play our best!”


The matchup between Dexter and Cape Central is set to get underway with JV action at 6:00 p.m., and Varsity action immediately following.

---

Photo above
Coach Lauren Hutchcraft gets her girls fired up during a break from Thursday night’s action against Jackson.

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

The Dexter Bearcats will face a tough test on the road Friday night in the Park Hills Central Rebels.


The ‘Cats ended the Rebels’ season during the 2010 Class 3 playoffs in a 28-20 game played at Park Hills. Looking at the final score, it was a game that either team could have won.

“We’ve gotta go to their house. They’re going to be extremely fired up and ready to play,” head coach Aaron Pixley said. “The last time we played them was there in a very good playoff game; a game they think the should have won.”

The Rebels opened their 2011 campaign with a 28-13 win against St. Vincent; the Rebels’ backfield duo - Cody Harrison and Daniel Marler - rushed for over 100 yards each, as PHC racked up 353 total yards on the offensive.


After opening the season against Ste. Genevive - a team that runs a spread offense and attempted 25 passes in 43 plays 0 the Bearcats will have to make some extreme defensive adjustments for the Rebels.

Park Hills runs an offense reminiscient of Gosnell, Ar. (a DHS opponent from days long gone) featuring multiple double-tight sets, and almost always have three backs in the backfield. This, coupled with a massive offensive line - the Rebels guards each weigh in at over 300 lbs. - and two big, physical running backs, could be problematic for any team’s defense, but Coach Pixley feels his squad is up to the task.

“It’s a different football team to prepare for, that’s for sure. It’s not like we had three weeks to prepare for Park Hills like we did with Ste. Gen,” Pixley noted, “but practice has been better each day.”


 “Park Hills is scary because there’s a lot of trash to run through. If you’re in the wrong position and the running back is in the right position, hits a lane, then he can pop it out there, and if theres no one there, he’s gone.”

“They’ll spread you out a little bit, but they really like going double-tight with three backs. Two of their running backs are over 215 lbs.,” Pixley added. “Their line is big, their tight ends are huge. They’re going to try to make a point of getting physical, downhill, and really running hard and grinding it out. They’re going to want to run the clock out, so we’ll have to swarm and be physical on defense, but I think we’ve adjusted well to it.”

“They’re a very good football team, very big powerful team, and we’re going to have to play to win,” Pixley added. “They’re going to be gunning for us, and our kids have to be ready for it. We’re going to up there and get off that bus ready to play hard for four quarters, because they’re going to bring it all night long.”

Kickoff for the contest is set for 7:00 p.m.

---


For updates on the game’s scores and highlights, check out our Facebook or Twitter page.


By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. - The Dexter Lady ‘Cat tennis team split the match with the Poplar Bluff Lady Mules Thursday (Sept. 1) afternoon.


The JV squad defeated the Mules 8-3 and moved to 2-0 on the season. The doubles duo of Alison Jarrell and Paige Patterson, along with Mollie Whitehead and Taylor Owens, had the best JV doubles matches, winning 6-0 and 6-1, respectively. In JV singles, Owens and Whitehead both blanked their opponents 6-0.

On the Varsity side, Jamie Manuel and Hailee Hubbard dominated in their doubles match, winning 8-1. Baylee Cooper and Erica Morgan won a very close 9-7 doubles match.

Senior Shanna Gant battled back from an early deficit to win her singles match in a tiebreak.

“Varsity lost 4-5, [but we] played well....Bluff is tough,” coach Leanne Dooley said.   “Shanna Gant came from behind, 1-4, to win 9-7, and the others played hard also.”

The Lady ‘Cats next match is scheduled for Tuesday (Sept. 6), when the Kennett Lady Indians come to town.


The match is set to get underway at 4:00 p.m.

---

Photo above Senior Shanna Gant fires back a shot during the Lady ‘Cats’ match against Poplar Bluff on Thursday afternoon. Gant, and partner Jessica Snider, fell to Caroline Penney and Victoria Bottorff in doubles action.