- Recent News

March 28th, 2007

Olathe, KS- When the NAIA and announced its annual listing of Daktronics Scholar-Athletes last week, it came as no surprise to find Graceland University men’s basketball player’s Tyler Dow and Chase Moore firmly engrained in that list. Not only talented players on the court for head coach Ted Quinn, both players have been exemplary student-athletes in the classroom.


Eligible to juniors and seniors with at least a 3.5 GPA (on a 4.0 scale), this is the second year in a row that Moore has been selected while Dow registers his first career selection to the impressive honor.

Moore, a native of Memphis, Missouri and a Scotland County High School product, was the Jacket’s second-leading scorer during the 2006-2007 season, averaging 11.1 points per game while also leading the team in three-point field-goals (36), three-point percentage (46%, 35-77), and free-throw percentage (86%, 48-56). A 5’10” guard for the Blue and Gold, Moore is studying Chemistry and Bilogy at Graceland while holding an impressive 3.86 GPA and is the son of Rob and Shari.

A business major, Dow also proved to be both an asset to the Yellowjackets on the court and in the classroom. A 6’8” post player, Dow is a junior out of Waukee, Iowa and a former Waukee High School standout. Dow played in 29 games during the 2006-2007 season, averaging 4 points and 2.1 rebounds per game while giving the Yellowjackets a solid front-court player off the bench. Posting an impressive 3.95 GPA, Dow is the son of Vern Dow and Deb Hansen.

“We are very proud of Chase and Tyler, said men’s basketball head coach Ted Quinn. Since their first day at Graceland University, they have been model student-athletes and continue to serve as great examples on campus. It takes a tremendous amount of discipline to maintain such high marks while competing at a high level on the court. These type of qualities will take them very far in life and I have no doubt they will be very successful leaders in their chosen professions” said Quinn.

St. Charles, Mo. –Graceland (3-17 HAAC, 7-23) finished the season on a good note with a 71-65 win over Lindenwood (10-10 HAAC, 16-14) tonight. Graceland has concluded the 2006-07 season.

For Lindenwood, Dustin Bevard had 15 points and 13 rebounds, Luke Blank scored 14 points while Earnie Norman had 12 points.

For Graceland, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 19 points, 11 rebounds, two steals and blocked two shots while Tyson Meierotto (Jr./West Point, Iowa/Fort Madison HS) had 17 points, eight rebounds and blocked two shots.

“We just felt very good with the whole flow of the game, “ said Head Coach Ted Quinn. “Lindenwood made some runs at us we were able to turn them back every time. We rebounded very well and really played a complete game. The boys have worked extremely hard all season long. Ending with a win is very satisfying and should provide incentive for next season.”

Lamoni, Iowa – Mid-America Nazarene (18-1 HAAC, 25-2) never looked back in a 90-66 win over Graceland (2-17 HAAC, 6-23) tonight. The Pioneers jumped to a 12 point lead after seven minutes and cruised from there. GU closes out season, February 17, on the road against Lindenwood. The game is scheduled to start at 4:00 p.m.

For Mid-America Nazarene, Jake Nellor had 19 points, Danny Hawkins scored 15 points and Akuien Wour had 15 points and 10 rebounds.

For Graceland, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 16 points and blocked two shots while Julio Del Villar (Fr./Lee’s Summit, Mo./Blue Springs South HS) had nine points and seven assists.

Lamoni, Iowa – Benedictine College pulled the game out at the end for a 77-68 win over Graceland (2-16 HAAC, 6-22) tonight. GU closes out the home season, February 12, taking on Mid-America Nazarene. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

Benedictine controlled the pace for most of the first half. In the second half, the Ravens pushed the lead to 15, 59-44 with 10:47 to go. Graceland came fighting back with an 11-2 run. Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) hit a jumper with 7:12 to go to make it 61-55. BC pushed it back to 10 but Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) hit a triple to make 70-66 with 1:49 to go. The Ravens then pulled away.

For Evangel, Ronnie Tyson scored 24 points and Dan Van Dyke had 14 points.

For Graceland, Andrew Williams had 16 points, Tyson Meierotto (Jr./West Point, Iowa/Fort Madison HS) had 13 points and eight rebounds, Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) had 12 points and Aundrae Williams scored 11 points.

Lamoni, Iowa – Evangel (10-5 HAAC, 14-10) used hot shooting to take a 92-79 win over Graceland (2-13 HAAC, 6-19) tonight. The Crusaders shot 59.3% from the floor and 52.9 from behind the arc. GU hits the road, February 8, taking on Avila. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

In the first half, Evangel jumped to a five point lead with 14 minutes to go and maintained at least a five point margin the remainder of the half. In the second half, Graceland cut the margin to eight, 43-35 with 17:35 to go. The Crusaders pushed it to 23, 88-65 with 3:48 to go. The Yellowjackets closed the game on a 14-4 run.

For Evangel, Jackson Capel had 37 points on 10-of-16 from the floor, 13-of-13 from the line and hit four triples while Jerod Floyd had 17 points and six assists.

For Graceland, Tyson Meierotto (Jr./West Point, Iowa/Fort Madison HS) had 28 points on 9-of-11 from the floor, three triples and 7-of-8 from the line, Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) had 11 points and eight rebounds and Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 11 points.

Baldwin City, Kan. – Graceland (2-12 HAAC, 6-18) snapped their seven game HAAC losing streak with a 67-57 win over Baker (6-8 HAAC, 14-10) tonight. GU returns home, February 3, taking on Evangel. The game is scheduled to start at 4:00 p.m.

For Baker, Nate Pedrow had 14 points, three steals and blocked four shots while Andy Hannon scored 10 points.

For Graceland, Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) had 13 points and nine rebounds, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 12 points and Julio Del Villar (Fr./Lee’s Summit, Mo./Blue Springs South HS) had 12 points and two steals. Tyson Meierotto (Jr./West Point, Iowa/Fort Madison HS) led the team with 11 rebounds.

“We put forth a great effort tonight, “ said Head Coach Ted Quinn. “Our defensive effort tonight was outstanding. We had 30 defensive boards to just nine for Baker. When you cut down on your opponents second shots, you really improve your chances of victory. Tyson came in to play for Andrew Williams, who was sick, and did a fine job as nine of his 11 rebounds were on the defensive end. We had timely execution down the stretch on offense.”

Lamoni, Iowa - Lindenwood (7-6 HAAC, 13-10) had to fight for its 82-66 win over Graceland (1-12 HAAC, 5-18) tonight. GU hits the road, February 3, taking on Baker. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

Graceland came out firing to start the game. A jumper by Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) made it 8-5 with 17:07 to go. The Yellowjackets were down three when Lindenwood went on a 22-9 run to lead by 16 with 3:30 to go. GU cut it to 12 at the half.

In the second half, the Lions led 72-53 with five minutes to go before the Jackets made a run. Julio Del Villar (Fr./Lee’s Summit, Mo./Blue Springs South HS) hit a free throw to make it 74-62 with 1:09 to go. LU hit six free throws to seal the win.

For Lindenwood, Earnie Norman had 20 points, Luke Blank scored 18 and Dustin Bevard had 15 points and eight rebounds.

For Graceland, Tyler Dow (Jr./Waukee, Iowa/Waukee HS) had 14 points, Tyson Meierotto (Jr./West Point, Iowa/Fort Madison HS) scored 13 points, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 12 points and Morefield had 12 points and three steals.

Ankeny, Iowa – Graceland (5-17) got back on the winning note with a 71-52 win over Faith Baptist (12-13) tonight. The win snaps a six game losing streak. GU returns home, January 29, taking on Lindenwood. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

For Faith Baptist, Keith Mitchell had 29 points and six steals while Matt Weatherly scored eight points.

For Graceland, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 21 points with three triples, Tyson Meierotto (Jr./West Point, Iowa/Fort Madison HS) scored 17 points with four three-pointers and Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had eight points.

Lamoni, Iowa – Central Methodist (6-7 HAAC, 11-10) hung on for a tough 65-59 win over Graceland (1-11 HAAC, 4-17) last night. GU hits the road, January 27, taking on Faith Baptist. The game is scheduled to start at 4:00 p.m.

Graceland came out running, jumping to an 11-6 lead after just five minutes. Central Methodist chipped away and took the lead on a triple by Matt Sherman with 4:49 to go. The Eagles would hold the lead the rest of the half.

In the second half, Central Methodist held a 47-38 lead with 13:39 to go. The Yellowjackets ended a 9-2 run with a jumper by Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) to make it 49-47 with 6:49 to go. CMU got a three-pointer and two free throws and maintained a five point lead the rest of the game.

For Central Methodist, Sherman finished with 22 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor and 6-of-8 from behind the arc.

For Graceland, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 13 points and three steals, Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) scored nine points and Julio Del Villar (Fr./Lee’s Summit, Mo./Blue Springs South HS) had eight points and eight assists.

Marshall, Mo. – Missouri Valley ended a long road trip for Graceland (1-10 HAAC, 4-16) with a 98-61 win yesterday. GU is back home, January 25, taking on Central Methodist. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

For Missouri Valley, Damon Collins scored 16 points, Jay Elam had 14 and Jeremy Massingale and Boman Mullings had 11 points each.

For Graceland, Tyson Meierotto (Jr./West Point, Iowa/Fort Madison HS) scored 13 points, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 11 points and Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) scored 10 points.

Atchison, Kan. – Benedictine College (7-1 HAAC, 12-4) pulled away in the second half for a 93-75 win over Graceland (1-7 HAAC, 4-13) tonight. The Yellowjackets, down 20 at halftime, pulled to within two points with 11 minutes to go. GU stays on the road, January 11, taking on Mid-America Nazarene. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

For Benedictine College, Ronnie Tyson had 19 points, Dave Goettelmann had 17 points and six assists and Chris Henton had 14 points and 13 rebounds.

For Graceland, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 17 points, Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) had 11 points and two steals while Tyler Dow (Jr./Waukee, Iowa/Waukee HS) scored 10 points.

“I’m proud of the fight we showed tonight, “ said Head Coach Ted Quinn. “We fought really hard to come back in the second half. We just ran out of gas.”

Lamoni, Iowa – William Jewell (5-1 HAAC, 10-6) took an 82-72 win over Graceland (1-6 HAAC, 4-12) tonight. GU hits the road, January 8, taking on Benedictine College. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

William Jewell jumped to a 16-4 lead after just five minutes of action. Down 13 with 2:25 to go in the first half, Graceland started a comeback. The Yellowjackets scored five straight points to close the gap to 38-30 with 58 seconds left. The Cardinals got a three-point play to end the half and then scored eight straight points in the first two minutes of the second half to seal the game.

For William Jewell, Evan Lange had 16 points, Drew Korshot and Larry Mandacina scored 12 points each and B.J. Surry had 11.

For Graceland, Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) scored 13 points, Matt Mullins (So./Burleson, Texas/Burleson HS) scored 11 points and Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) and Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 10 points each.

Lamoni, Iowa – Graceland (1-5 HAAC, 4-11) got the monkey off its back with a 73-62 win over Avila (1-5 HAAC, 6-9) tonight. It was the first conference win of the season for the Yellowjackets. GU stays at home, January 6 taking on William Jewell. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

The first half was a back-and-forth affair for most of the half. Meekaa’eel Jones hit a lay-up to make it 21-21 with 8:44 left. Graceland reeled off seven straight points in the span of 1:48 to lead 28-21 with 6:55 to go. That was the margin at halftime.

In the second half, the Yellowjackets seemed to have the game wrapped up with a 66-52 lead at the 6:54 mark. Avila refused to quit and scored eight unanswered points to make it 66-60 with 1:50 to go. GU went on a 7-2 run the rest of the way to seal the game.

For Avila, Cort’Ney Turner and Eric Arnold had 14 points each.

For Graceland, Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) scored 17 points, Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) had 11 points, 14 rebounds and blocked two shots and Matt Mullins (So./Burleson, Texas/Burleson HS) scored 10 points.

Dubuque, Iowa – Graceland (3-11) went 1-2 to finish in 4th place at the Clarke Holiday Tournament. The Yellowjackets beat Clarke 72-60, lost 90-81 to Mount Mercy and lost 83-77 to Cardinal Stritch. Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) was named to the All-Tournament team. He averaged 14.3 points and shot 45% from behind the arc (9-of-20). GU returns home, January 4 taking on Avila. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

Against Clarke, Tyson Meierotto (Jr./West Point, Iowa/Fort Madison HS) had 13 points, Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) scored 10 points and Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) had 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Against Mt. Mercy, Morefield had 17 points while Moore and Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) scored 15 points each.

Against Cardinal Stritch, Moore had 18 points with four triples, Aundrae Williams had 15 points and Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 13 points and eight rebounds.

Lamoni, Iowa – Two late game drives prevented a victory. Mt. Marty (4-8) came from behind to beat Graceland (2-9) 79-78 in overtime. GU is off until December 27 when they hit the road to play Clarke. The game is scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m.

The game seemed over with Graceland up 67-60 with 1:30 to play. The Lancers came back with seven straight points to send the game into overtime. In the OT, GU was up 75-69 with three minutes to go. Six straight points tied the game at 75-75 with 1:43 to go. Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) drained a three-pointer with 1:30 left to make it 78-75. Mt. Marty got a bucket and two free throws to lead by one with four seconds left. The Lancers missed two free throws and the Jackets three-pointer at the buzzer was off the mark.

For Mt. Marty, J.J. Heyden had 22 points and 10 rebounds, Pat Anderson had 17 points and hit four three-pointers and Travis Ptacek had 11 points and five steals.

For Graceland, Moore had 17 points, blocked two shots and hit four triples, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) scored 16 points with three blocked shots, Tyson Meierotto (Jr./West Point, Iowa/Fort Madison HS) had 15 points and Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) had 10 points, 11 rebounds and four steals.

Lamoni, Iowa – Christmas came early for Graceland. The Yellowjackets (2-8) stunned #12 Dordt (11-3) 76-68 tonight. GU remains home, Monday, December 18 to take on Mt. Marty. The game is scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m.

For the first eight minutes, this looked like a game that might be tight. Graceland had the lead 19-14 with 12:01 to go before they exploded. 14 unanswered points sent the Dordt fans into cationic shock, down, 33-14 with 6:53 to go. The Yellowjackets went into the locker room at half with a 40-27 lead.

In the second half, Graceland led 56-45 with 11 to go when the Defenders began to chip away. Scott Van Zaten hit a lay-up to make it 65-63, GU with 2:36 to go. Three buckets from Andrew and Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) and a free throw by Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) made it 72-66 with 31 seconds to go. Three free throws sealed the upset win.

For Dordt, Van Zanten and Eric Van Maanen had 12 points each while Brian Eekhoff had 10 points and 11 rebounds.

For Graceland, Moore had 18 points, shot 6-of-10 from the floor and hit three triples, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) scored 14 points while Julio Del Villar (Fr./Lee’s Summit, Mo./Blue Springs South HS) had 13 points and four steals.

“This is a huge win over a very good team,” said Head Coach Ted Quinn. “I’m a little surprised but very pleased with our fast start. We came ready to play and it truly showed. Chase made our offense go in the first half and I was pleased with just two turnovers from Julio. The second half was just a back and forth struggle. It was very difficult to score and I was pleased with the way we just kept fighting. Any win is good and this one will for certain give us more confidence heading into the conference season.”

Springfield, Mo. – #19 Evangel (3-2 HAAC, 6-4) used the three-pointer to take a 95-73 win over Graceland (0-5 HAAC, 1-8) tonight. The Crusaders hit 11 triples to just two for the Yellowjackets. GU returns home, Thursday, December 14 to take on Dordt. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

For Evangel, Shane Nicholson had 24 points and six assists, Jerod Floyd scored 17 points with four triples and Tim Dial had 12.

For Graceland, Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) scored 16 points, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 13 points while Tyson Meierotto (Jr./West Point, Iowa/Fort Madison HS) and Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) scored 11 points a piece.

Lamoni, Iowa – Baker (2-2 HAAC, 8-3) pulled away in the second half for an 81-66 win over Graceland (0-4 HAAC, 1-7) tonight. GU hits the road, December 9, taking on Evangel. The game is scheduled to start at 4:00 p.m.

Graceland came out on fire with a 12-3 run in the first five minutes. Baker chipped away and a triple by Greg Allen ended a 14-4 run to give the Wildcats a 17-16. Another jumper with 6:23 left gave BU the lead for the rest of the half.

In the second half, a triple by Julio Del Villar (Fr./Lee’s Summit, Mo./Blue Springs South HS) made it 55-49, Baker with 12:21 to go. The Wildcats responded with a 19-5 run over the next seven minutes to seal the game.

For Baker, Nate Pedrow scored 16 points while Dain Dillingham and Allen had 13 points a piece.

For Graceland, Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 16 points and blocked two shots, Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) had 12 points and Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) had 11 points, two steals and blocked two shots.

Maryville, Mo. – NCAA Division II #18 Northwest Missouri State used their experience for a 74-54 win over Graceland in an exhibition game tonight. GU is off until Nov. 30 when they travel to play Central Methodist. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

For Northwest Missouri State, Hunter Henry had 22 points and 13 rebounds while Dillon Higdon scored 12 points.

For Graceland, Tyler Dow (Jr./Waukee, Iowa/Waukee HS) had 13 points while Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) scored 10 points.

“I’m very proud of our effort,” said head coach Ted Quinn. “We shot the ball pretty good tonight at 50 percent. We held them to 36.2 percent from the floor. Unfortunately, they got a lot of second chance points and we turned the ball numerous times late. We continue to play hard and are getting better with each game.”

Lamoni, Iowa – Missouri Valley (2-0 HAAC, 1-5) came from behind for a 74-69 win over Graceland (0-2 HAAC, 1-5) this afternoon. GU hits the road to play NCAA Division II Northwest Missouri State in an exhibition game, Tuesday, Nov. 21.

The first half was all Graceland. Julio Del Villar (Fr./Lee’s Summit, Mo./Blue Springs South HS) hit a jumper at the 12:12 mark to make it 13-8. The Yellowjackets's lead remained at five or more the rest of the half.

Missouri Valley started the second half with a 9-5 run to pull within three, 40-37 with 16:58 to go. Graceland pushed the lead to eight, 51-43 with 11:53 to go. The Vikings went on a 15-6 run to take the lead 58-57 at the 7:52 mark. MVC lead by five with 1:53 to go. Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) drove the lane, hit the shot, was fouled and got the free throw to make it 71-69 with :39 to go. The Jackets missed three shots in the last 40 seconds while Missouri Valley got a free throw and a bucket to seal the game.

For Missouri Valley, Boman Mullings had 14 points, Craig Jones and Jeremy Massingale scored 13 each and Damon Collins had 12 points.

For Graceland, Williams had 16 points and two steals and Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) scored 10 points. Tyler Dow (Jr./Waukee, Iowa/Waukee HS) came off the bench to score 14 points.

“I’m very proud of our effort,” said head coach Ted Quinn. “We came out, ready to play against a higher echelon team in our conference. I feel we beat them in a lot of ways tonight. We lost a few key possessions down the stretch which told the story. The team is learning some valuable lessons that will help us in the future.”

Lamoni, Iowa – Culver-Stockton (1-0 HAAC, 3-2) pulled away in the second half for a 78-66 win over Graceland (0-1 HAAC, 1-4) tonight. GU remains home, Saturday, Nov. 18, taking on Missouri Valley. The game is scheduled to start at 4:00 p.m.

The lead was never more than four points either way throughout the entire first half. Tied at 21-21 with seven minutes to go, Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) hit two jumpers to make it 25-21 with 6:14 to go. Culver-Stockton went on a 13-5 run to lead by four late. Simon Morefield (Jr./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) hit two free throws with 57 seconds left to make it 34-32 at the half.

The Wildcats opened the second half on a 14-5 run to lead by 11 with 12:24 to go. Down nine, 59-50 with seven minutes to go, GU got triples from Julio Del Villar (Fr./Lee’s Summit, Mo./Blue Springs South HS), Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) and Tyson Meierotto (Jr./West Point, Iowa/Fort Madison HS). That made it 59-59 with 5:16 to go. The Jackets were down 64-62 with 3:10 to go when CSC went on a 14-4 run to pull away.

For Culver-Stockton, Brooks Allen had 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the floor and 5-of-5 from the line, Dane Brooks had 19 points, eight rebounds, five steals and blocked three shots while Coy Bainter scored 16 points.

For Graceland, Moore had 15 points and four steals, Cody Protsman (Fr./Alexandria, Mo./Clark County HS) scored nine points as did Meierotto.

Lamoni, Iowa – Home Sweet Home. Graceland (1-3) picked up its first win of the season, 74-68, over Doane (2-1) tonight. GU opens up the conference season at home, Nov. 16 against Culver-Stockton. The game is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

This was a battle throughout the entire game. Doane jumped to a 12-4 lead after six minutes of play. The Tigers still led 17-12 with 10:46 to go. Graceland scored 10 unanswered points to make it 24-17 with 5:46 left. Doane went on an 8-0 run and a three-pointer by Drew Denker made it 25-24, Tigers with 2:23 to go. 19 seconds later Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) nailed a triple to put GU up two and they never lost the lead the rest of the half.

In the second half, the Yellowjackets never lost the lead. Doane came as close as two points twice. Todd Kraus hit a three-pointer with 1:21 to go to make it 65-62. The Jackets hit 9-of-10 free throws the rest of the way to hold the Tigers off.

For Doane, Brent Cole had 29 points, nine rebounds and shot 9-of-14 from the floor and 9-of-12 from the line and Dane Cruz and Taylor Siebert scored 11 points each.

For Graceland, Simon Morefield (Jr./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) had 12 points and four steals, Cody Protsman (Fr./Alexandria, Mo./Clark County HS) had 11 points and seven rebounds, Julio Del Villar (Fr./Lee’s Summit, Mo./Blue Springs South HS) had 11 points, 11 assists, two steals and blocked two shots and Moore had 10 points.

“I’m proud of the overall effort we put forth,” said head coach Ted Quinn. “We’re a strong free throw shooting team and that helped us down the stretch. I think the guys are finally starting to believe in themselves.”

Oskaloosa, Iowa – William Penn (3-1) used a quick start in the second half for an 82-62 win over Graceland (0-3) tonight. GU opens up the home season tomorrow against Doane. The game is scheduled to start at 4:00 p.m.

For the first 11 minutes, this game was a battle. Tyler Dow (Jr./Waukee, Iowa/Waukee HS) hit a lay-up to tie the game at 9-9 with 11:04 to go. William Penn went on a 16-6 run to lead by 10, 25-15 with 6:37 to go. The Yellowjackets refused to quit as they scored six straight points to close the gap to four with 5:09 left. The Statesmen went on a 10-2 run to lead by 12, 35-23 with 2:41 to go. Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) hit a three-pointer and jumper and Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) dunked to make it 35-30 with 57 seconds left. WPU scored the last three points of the half for a 38-30 lead.

William Penn opened the second half with an 11-3 run to take command. The Jackets got as close as 10 points, 52-42 with 10:50 to go.

For William Penn, Jacob Spielbauer had 27 points with six triples while Kris Miller scored 12 points with three steals.

For the Yellowjackets, Moore had 11 points and two steals, Dow scored 11 points and DeJon Grant (So./Hayward, Calif./Hayward HS) had six assists.

Bellevue, Neb. – Midland Lutheran (1-2) used turnovers to take an 88-74 win over Graceland (0-2) tonight. GU remains on the road taking on William Penn, Friday, Nov. 10. The game is scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m.

Graceland shot a sizzling 60.9% (14-of-23) from the floor in the first half. The big story though was Midland Lutheran forced the Yellowjackets to turn the ball over 18 times. The Warriors took advantage of that by scoring 14 points to offset the hot shooting. MLC never lost the lead in the second half.

For Midland Lutheran, Luke Simmons had 22 points on 6-of-10 from the floor and 6-of-6 from the line, Zac Gradoville had 19 points and six assists while Chad Cruise had 18 points and hit three triples.

For the Yellowjackets, Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) scored 17 points, Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) had 14 points, 14 rebounds and blocked two shots while Aundrae Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS) came off the bench to score 13 points.

“It will be interesting to see how we play once we cut down on the turnovers, “ Said head coach Ted Quinn. “We came out and battled with them like I figured we would. Andrew had a really good game for us. Simon was a force on both ends of the floor.”

Bellevue, Neb. – #22 Bellevue (1-0) ruined the season opener for Graceland (0-1) with a 112-58 win tonight. GU will now face Midland Lutheran tomorrow in the consolation game. The game is scheduled to start at 3:00 p.m.

Graceland took it right to Bellevue from the start of the game. Just 1:04 into the contest, Chase Moore (Jr./Memphis, Mo./Scotland County HS) nailed a three-pointer to make it 3-2, Graceland. Over the next six minutes, the Yellowjackets got four points from Simon Morefield (So./Independence, Mo./Truman HS) and two each from Moore and Andrew Williams (Fr./Florissant, Mo./Hazelwood East HS). That made it 11-10, GU with 13 minutes to go. The Bruins went on a 22-2 run over the next seven minutes to go up 32-13 and effectively put the game out of reach.

For Bellevue, Hannibal Cofield had 19 points, Joe Webb scored 16 points and Bryce Johnson had 12 points.

For the Yellowjackets, Moore led the way with 16 points on 6-of-6 shooting from the line and hit two triples. Morefield had 13 points, shot 6-of-10 from the floor and led the team with five rebounds. Jonathan Carter (So./Colorado Springs, Colo./Coronado HS) finished with 11 points.

“We ran into a team that played where we want to be, “ Said head coach Ted Quinn. “We started the game really well and maintained that play for the first seven minutes. Then they started going on a slow run and we tried to respond. We were just not able to come back. The real test will be how we respond to this setback tomorrow. I have no doubt that we will be ready to battle Midland Lutheran.”