Metro Sports Report

Young Eagles begin year at No. 14 in nation

If you'd like to figure out who's playing for the Kirkwood men's basketball team this season, make sure you pick up a roster when you get to Johnson Hall for a game.

There are a lot of new names and faces to memorize.

There are 12 new players on the 15-man roster this season. That makes only three returning players for Coach Bryan Petersen, and sophomore Ethan Meeker will be sidelined another month with a broken wrist after being a key player for Kirkwood last year.

Chris King and Carlo Marble are the only two veterans who will take  the court Friday night when the 14th-ranked Eagles open the season against Mesa Community College at the Indian Hills Classic in Ottumwa.

Petersen said the Eagles have looked just "OK" in preseason drills.

"The group has grown in some areas, but it's been a very up-and-down fall when it comes to consistency, but that's usual when it comes to freshmen," he remarked.

"We're a little behind. I think it was expected a little bit, having so many new guys."

Wounded Eagles fly into regional finals

Jill Williams is an excellent coach for the Kirkwood women's volleyball team.

She's also a master juggler.

Williams had to juggle her lineup Wednesday night with two key starters sidelined with injuries, but the 13th-ranked Eagles adjusted without a hiccup and whipped NIACC, 25-19, 25-15, 25-11, in the  regional semifinals at Johnson Hall.

Kirkwood (25-16) will face Northeast Community College in the regional finals Saturday at noon in Iowa Falls, with the winner advancing to the NJCAA Division II national tournament.

Ady Wintermote, a freshman who leads the Eagles in kills, sprained her left ankle in practice Tuesday and needed crutches to get around the  gym Wednesday. And Brianna Eberhardt, another freshman who leads the Eagles in digs, has been sidelined the past 10 days with a concussion suffered at a tournament.

On short notice, Williams moved a few people around and produced another winning combination.

KCC women begin year No. 1 in nation

Here's a dose of bad news for anyone who has to play the Kirkwood women's basketball team this season.

The Eagles, who went 37-0 last year and won the national title, could be even more talented this season.

"This group has a chance to be pretty good," Coach Kim Muhl said. "We're long, we're athletic.

"We have more depth than last year," he announced. "We just don't have the monster inside."

That "monster" last season was Simone Goods, the powerful center who was named the National Player of the Year and the Outstanding Player in the NJCAA national tournament.

Goods graduated after averaging 16.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game. Muhl will rotate several players in the post this  year, but knows it will be difficult to get the same production near the hoop.

Otherwise, Muhl likes what he sees as the Eagles prepare to open the season at the State Fair Tournament in Sedalia, Mo., this weekend. Kirkwood faces Iowa Western Friday and State Fair Saturday.

Eagles repeat as undefeated ICCAC champs

The Kirkwood Eagles captured the ICCAC volleyball title last year with a perfect 8-0 record, but two All-Americans and four other key players graduated and left the cupboard a little bare.

Panic time? Not on your life.

Kirkwood finished another perfect run through the conference this season with a hard-fought 22-25, 25-17, 25-20, 25-22 victory over 20th-ranked Northeast Community College Wednesday night at Johnson Hall to end the ICCAC campaign with another 8-0 mark.

"It's an awesome feeling," said Alexa Whipple, one of only three sophomores on this year's club. "We wanted to prove to ourselves that we could do it again.

"This year we had a fresh team," she said. "It's kind of cool, making a new team and stuff. It was a lot harder than last year, but it's still awesome."

The 13th-ranked Eagles (21-16) will host NIACC in the regional semifinals next Wednesday night.