Metro Sports Report

Mustangs trim Viterbo in opener

LA CROSSE, Wis. - Davion Watson scored 21 points Thursday night as the  Mount Mercy men's basketball team trimmed Viterbo, 74-73, in the NAIA  season opener in La Crosse.

The Mustangs built a 14-point lead at 61-47 with 11:11 remaining on a  3-pointer by Streeter McIlravey, but Viterbo rallied and pulled within  74-73 on a 3-pointer with 47 seconds left.

Mount Mercy committed a turnover on its next possession, giving  Viterbo a shot for the victory, but the hosts missed a 3-pointer with  one second left to play.

Dennis McKinney scored 12 points for the Mustangs and Keishun Thomas  had 10. Bailey Basala grabbed seven rebounds and RoyShawn Webb had  four assists.

Eagles, Mustangs ready for new season

Tim Sandquist inherited a deep and talented team when he became the  new men's basketball coach at Kirkwood Community College this summer.

Now he's made the 2019 national champions even deeper.

D.J. Purnell, who averaged 8.5 points and 4.9 rebounds last season,  has transferred to Kirkwood from Midland College in Texas. And Owen  Coburn, a 6-foot-10 center who originally committed to South Dakota  State, has enrolled with the Eagles instead.

Purnell and Coburn signed with Kirkwood after Sandquist became the  head coach. They join a half-dozen returning players who helped  Kirkwood win the NJCAA Division II national title last March year,  giving Sandquist lots of options as the Eagles prepare for their  season opener Friday night against Illinois Central at the SCC Classic  in West Burlington.

Kirkwood begins the 2019-20 campaign as the top-ranked team in the  country, and Sandquist welcomes the assignment of trying to repeat as  national champs.

No. 19 Eagles spike Hawkeye CC

The 19th-ranked Kirkwood women's volleyball team finished the regular  season with a resounding 25-12, 25-15, 25-19 victory over Hawkeye  Community College Wednesday night at Johnson Hall.

Coach Jill Williams and the Eagles drew the No. 4 seed for the Region  XI-A tournament this weekend and will face No. 5 seed DMACC in the  semifinals Saturday at 3 p.m. in Fort Dodge.

Anna Gorsich led Kirkwood with 12 kills and Aubrin Dittmer had eight.  Madi Wagaman dished out 24 assists. Maranda Wheelock, Olivia Richards  and Maggie Peters had three service aces.

Wheelock finished with 15 digs and Richards had 14. Taylor Carey  blocked four shots.

Grand View sweeps Mount Mercy

GRAND VIEW - The 16th-ranked Grand View men's soccer team scored four  unanswered goals Wednesday and topped Mount Mercy, 4-2, in a Heart of  America Conference match in Des Moines.

Mount Mercy took a 1-0 lead in the 25th minute on an unassisted goal  by Duarte Leite, but Grand View responded with four straight markers  for a 4-1 advantage.

Nolan Armstrong tallied for the Mustangs in the 84th minute for the  final score.

The outcome left Mount Mercy at 7-8-2 overall and 4-6-1 in the  conference. Grand View got two goals from Daniel Kozma and raised its  records to 12-4 overall and 9-2 in the league.