C of O Sweeps Friday Home Games

The College of the Ozarks Bobcats and Lady Bobcats took both games of a men’s and women’s basketball doubleheader with Kansas Christian College Friday night at Keeter Gymnasium.

The Full Release below from College of the Ozarks Sports Information:

The Lady Cats turned in a dominant performance over the Falcons with four scoring in double figures on their way to an 89-47 victory.  The Bobcats held on to win 74-69 behind Blaine Clines 24 point performance.

Lady Bobcats vs Kansas Christian College

The Lady Bobcats used double-double performances by Annie Noah and Katie Mayes and cruised to their fifth consecutive victory. 

The opening frame was anything but easy as the Falcons and Lady Cats traded baskets in the early going. Neither team could pull away until a Kayley Frank jumper put the Lady Cats up 16-10. Katie Mayes and Jada Henry followed with four more unanswered points and the Lady Cats led 20-10 after the opening period. 

The Falcons continued to hang close in the second stanza, but the Lady Cats were determined to build a lead and get some breathing room between them and their opponent. A 7-0 run sparked by Jordan Wersinger’s five points and a Cameran Martin two, gave C of O the gap they needed as they held a 30-14 advantage. KCC would not go away, however, and they continued to challenge. The Falcons battled back to within eight, 26-34, but the Lady Cats fought to hold them at bay.  As time expired at the intermission, the Lady Cats held a 36-26 lead.  

The second half was all Lady Cats as Kayley Frank, Michelle Gabani, and Annie Noah combined for a 10-2 run to open the third. The Falcons took a timeout, but the damage was done. The Lady Cat train just picked up steam and the Falcons had no answer for the Lady Cat offense.  The C of O defense did the job as well and the lead continued to grow.  A pair of Wersinger buckets and a Kyra Hardesty three finished the offense in the third quarter and gave the Lady Cats a 61-37 lead with 10 minutes remaining. 

The Lady Cats continued to roll in the fourth quarter and Jordan Wersinger opened the scoring.  A Stevi Jones three capped a 9-4 run to open the frame but the Lady Cats weren’t finished.  Cameran Martin and Jada Henry Added to the total and the Lady Cats were up 78-43 before the Falcons could find the bottom of the net again.  Katie Mayes connected on a traditional three-point play to conclude the scoring and the Lady Cats secured the win, 89-47. 

Kayley Frank tossed in 17 points to go with her five steals and Jordan Wersinger matched her point total with 17 of her own. Annie Noah recorded another double-double with her 16 points and 14 rebounds while Katie Mayes wrapped up a double-double of her own with 13 points and 10 boards in the win.  Every player scored for the Lady Cats and along with her points, Michelle Gabani dished out seven assists to help in the scoring column.

The Lady Cats play Saturday in a 3:00 contest in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa against Iowa Wesleyan University.

Bobcats vs Kansas Christian College

The Bobcats had their hands full from the opening tip with the very quick and athletic Falcon club. A Raquan Frazier bucket opened the scoring, but Josh Linehan quickly answered with a three.  The teams would trade jabs in the early going and midway through the opening half, the score was knotted up, 13-13. The defense for both teams stepped up, but Josh Linehan, Kyle Flavin, Andrew Mitchell and Garrett Simmerman teamed up to send the Cats on a 13-0 run to build a 26-13 lead. The Falcons finally broke through with a Javarius Washington basket at the 5:06 mark and they began to chip away at the Bobcat lead. An 8-4 Falcon run cut the lead to 30-21 and the Bobcat offense went cold. The Falcons scored eight unanswered points to close out the half and the Bobcats were clinging to a 30-29 advantage at the break.

The Falcons took their first lead since the opening minutes on a Jahreese Jordan basket to start the second half. Blaine Cline answered to regain the lead and the battle was on. The Bobcats continued to hold a slight edge, but the Falcons were determined to challenge. Blaine Cline came alive on offense and scored 10 of the Bobcats first 12 points. The Bobcat lead was expanded to nine with an Andrew Mitchell three with 14:03 left to play but the Falcons were not done. A 6-0 run by the visitors cut the lead to three before Cline answered again. The two teams traded baskets and the Bobcats were not able to pull away. An eight point Bobcat advantage was constant through the half until a pair of Josh Linehan free throws put the Bobcats up 10 with 3:50 remaining. It appeared the Bobcats had the game well in hand, but the Falcons had different ideas. Slowly the Falcons began to chip away at the lead and climb back into contention. Applying full court pressure, KCC forced a couple of Bobcat turnovers.  Another couple of empty possessions and the lead was cut to three, 69-66. With just 1:10 left to play, the pressure mounted on the Bobcats. The Falcons continued their aggressive comeback bid and the Bobcats needed to respond. With :40 left on the clock, Blaine Cline answered the call again and expanded the lead to five. Andrew Mitchell and Garrett Simmerman each connected on a free throw before Vince Smith hit three of his own to cut the lead to 73-69. Tanner Rogers drained a free throw and all the Bobcats needed was one stop with :18 seconds remaining. The Falcons had several attempts to score but could not find the bottom of the net and the Bobcats held onto win, 74-69.

Blaine Cline led all scorers with 24 points. Josh Linehan poured in 18 and Andrew Mitchell added 14 in the win. Garrett Simmerman chipped in nine, Matt Luebbert – four, Tanner Rogers – three, and Kyle Flavin tacked on two.

The Bobcats are off until Sunday, January 23 when they host Dallas Christian College in a 3:00 tip-off.