Month: December 2021

A powerful storm system moving toward the Ozarks will have several impacts for New Year’s Day.

The National Weather Service has issued a Flood Watch from Friday evening into Saturday morning for parts of southern Missouri, including Taney, Douglas, Ozark and Howell Counties.

Forecasters say rainfall amounts of one to three inches are expected through Saturday morning.

This rainfall, combined with saturated soils, may lead to localized flooding.

The rain is expected to increase in coverage and intensity during the overnight hours.

Heavy rainfall looks to develop over southern Missouri early Saturday morning, potentially leading to flash flooding in some locations.

Rain will transition to a light wintry mix from northwest to southeast as temps drop below freezing from Saturday morning into the afternoon.

A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect from 6 a.m. Saturday until 6 a.m. Sunday for areas along and north of Interstate 44.

The weather service says temps will quickly drop into the 20’s by late afternoon in the Springfield metro area, and flash freezing on area roadways is a concern.

Get updated road conditions from across the Ozarks and the state of Missouri here with the MoDOT Traveler Information Map.

Winter travel impacts are likely Saturday into early Sunday, especially for areas along and north of I-44.

A mixture of freezing rain, sleet and snow is expected.

Here’s what the National Weather Service says in its forecast discussion on the wintry weather:

The speed and depth of the cold air will also have a significant
impact on the precipitation type. Initially rain will change to
freezing rain as the cold air undercuts the warm air in place over
the area. With temperatures falling rapidly, a change over to
sleet and snow is expected. The cold air is expected to move far
enough and become deep enough relatively quickly allowing for the
freezing rain to change to sleet fairly quickly by the evening
for areas north of I-44.

The challenge in the forecast is the timing of the cold air, when
ice crystals, diminish, the strength of the elevated warm layer,
and when a dry slot moves into the region. Overall, the forecast
for the next 24 hours is complicated. Despite this, a Winter
Weather Advisory has been issued for areas north of I-44, for
Saturday morning through Sunday morning, where the best potential
for accumulating wintry precipitation to occur and produce travel
impacts. expectations are for from 1-2 inches of sleet/snow and a
10th to Quarter in of ice for locations north of Highway 54 and
for a dusting to an inch of sleet/snow and a glaze to a 10th of an
inch of ice for areas between I-44 and Highway 54.

Finally, dangerously cold air filters into the Ozarks late on New Year’s Night, with low temps of 5 to 15 degrees combined with wind gusts up to 25 miles per hour creating very cold conditions Saturday night into Sunday morning.

Sub freezing temps wil remain over the area through Sunday.

The Kickapoo Chiefs and the Bolivar Liberators are the champions of the 76th Annual Greenwood Blue and Gold Boys Basketball Tournament in Springfield.

The Chiefs, seeded second in the Blue Division, pulled away late to defeat the Springfield Catholic Fightin’ Irish 62-49 at JQH Arena to win their 13th championship in the Blue and Gold.

The Chiefs’ 13 titles are two better than Ozark, who has 11.

The top seeded Bolivar Liberators downed Ozark 67-50 to win the Gold Division championship. It’s Bolivar’s first title since 2015.

Blue Division Championship:

For awhile, it looked like the Fightin’ Irish from Springfield Catholic would challenge the Chiefs as Catholic led 12-11 after one quarter, with Kickapoo bouncing back to take a 25-20 lead at halftime.

The Chiefs took a 36-30 lead into the final quarter, but Catholic wouldn’t go way.

Liam O’Reilly hit a three pointer with 4:13 left in the contest to turn a nine point deficit into six, 45-39.

After a Kickapoo bucket, Catholic’s Ty Lyon hit a shot and was fouled, making a free throw to pull the Fightin’ Irish within five, 47-42, with 2:49 remaining.

O’Reilly then hit a layup off a steal with 2:39 on the clock, making it a one possession game, 47-44.

But Kickapoo went on an 11-1 run, highlighted by big shots from Andrew Robinson and Brayden shorter.

Trae Oetting scored 21 points to lead the Chiefs, who win their ninth game of the season.

Catholic suffers its first loss, falling to 12-1.

Catholic’s Zach Howell led his team with 16 points, and becomes the fifth leading scorer all time in Blue and Gold Tournament history.

Howell’s 249 points in the tournament place him behind only Zack Kleine from Mt. Vernon (288), Aminu Mohammed from Greenwood (276), Russell Matlock from Lebanon (273) and Howard Arndt from Republic (252).

Gold Division Championship:

The Liberators looked like a team on a mission after narrowly escaping with a 54-51 win over Springfield Central in the quarterfinals.

Bolivar jumped out to a 13-9 lead over Ozark after one quarter, and extended their advantage to 33-18 at the half and 52-39 after three quarters.

The Liberators, who remain unbeaten on the season at 11-0, maintained a double digit lead for much of the final period.

Junior Kyle Pock led Bolivar in scoring with 23 points, while Greydon Miller’s 13 points were tops for Ozark.

3rd Place Games:

The Nixa Eagles capture the third place trophy in the Blue Division with a 66-25 win over Hartville.

Nixa led 14-10 after one quarter before taking command at the half by a score of 34-19.

The Eagles led 52-23 after three quarters and used a running clock for much of the final eight minutes.

The game marks the end of a coaching era in the Blue and Gold Tournament as Nixa Coach Jay Osborne, who’s retiring at the end of this season, completed his 78th overall win in the event.

He goes down as the winningest coach in tournament history in terms of overall wins with 78 against 26 losses.

Colin Ruffin scored 15 points to lead Nixa, with Kael Combs adding 11.

Logan Simpson and Brody McNiel each scored six points to pace Hartville.

The host Greenwood Blue Jays get by Republic in the Gold Division third place game 65-62.

The Blue Jays held an eight point lead, 19-11 after one quarter before going up 38-28 at halftime.

But the Tigers came back in the third period, pullng within four of the lead, 47-43, going to the fourth quarter.

Republic cut the lead to one a couple of times in the final period, the first with 3:55 left in regulation when a three pointer by Ahlante Askew made it a 56-55 game.

Tommy Pinegar made six out of six free throw attempts in the final minute and a half to help secure the win.

The Tigers pulled within one of the lead with a three pointer at the 21 second mark, but Pinegar drained two free throws with 17 seconds on the clock to increase the margin to three.

Brenley Hagewood’s 20 points led Rebublic, with Askew putting in 19.

Nicholas Burri’s 17 points paced Greenwood, who finished third after winning back to back championships in 2019 and 2020.

Here are the final scores from Thursday’s championship night at the Blue and Gold Tournament:

Blue Division Third Place Game (JQH Arena):

Final: (1) Nixa 66, (6) Hartville 25

Gold Division Third Place Game (JQH Arena):

Final: (5) Greenwood 65, (6) Republic 62

Blue Division Championship Game (JQH Arena):

Final: (2) Springfield Kickapoo 62, (4) Catholic 49

Gold Division Championship Game (JQH Arena):

Final: (1) Bolivar 67, (2) Ozark 50

Blue Division Consolation Final (Hammons Student Center):

Final: West Plains 52, (5) Skyline 29

Gold Division Consolation Final (Hammons Student Center):

Final: Aurora 65, Stockton 52

Blue Division 5th Place Game (Hammons Student Center):

Final: (3) Willard 75, (8) Fair Grove 58

Gold Division 5th Place Game (Hammons Student Center):

Final: (3) Ava 54, (4) Strafford 47

The Speedy Collins Sportsmanship Award in the Blue Division was awarded to the Mountain Grove Panthers, while Spokane wins the award in the Gold Division.

The final round matchups are set in the 76th Annual Greenwood Blue and Gold Basketball Tournament in Springfield.

Semifinal games in the winner’s bracket took place Wednesday at JQH Arena, with consolation bracket games at Hammons Student Center.

In the Blue Division, the Fightin’ Irsh from Springfield Catholic are headed to the championship game, stunning top seeded Nixa 49-48 in a game that came down to the closing seconds.

Nixa’s Colin Ruffin missed a free throw line jump shot with two seconds left in regulation, and Catholic secured the rebound and the victory.

The loss denied a chance for Nixa Coach Jay Osborne to tie Russ Kaminsky for the most titles in Blue and Gold history with eight.

Osborne already holds the record for the most wins in the tournament with 77 against only 26 losses.

Catholic will be looking for its fourth tournament championship.

Catholic jumped out to an early lead against the Eagles, going up 9-6 after one quarter and 18-16 at halftime.

The Fightin’ Irish held a 33-30 lead after three quarters.

Senior Zach Howell put on a show for Catholic, draining three straight three pointers in the fourth quarter, putting his team ahead 44-34 with 4:15 remaining.

But Osborne’s Eagles mounted a comeback, pulling within five, 46-41, when Colin Ruffin hit a layup and was fouled with 2:58 on the clock.

Ruffin’s three pointer at the 2:44 mark made it a one possession game, 47-44.

Howell got to the free throw line with 1:22 remaining and calmly sank both shots, increasing Catholic’s lead to 49-44.

Nixa’s Kael Combs hit a layup that cut the lead back to three, 49-46, with just over a minute left.

With 49 seconds to go, Nixa came up with a steal and Ruffin, who was fouled going up for a layup, made one of two free throw attempts to cut the margin to two, 49-47.

Catholic then lost the ball out of bounds, but Ruffin was whisled for an offensive foul with 36 seconds to go.

Catholic’s Ty Lyon missed a pair of free throws with 35.9 seconds left in regulation, giving the ball back to the Eagles.

Combs drew a foul with 21.8 seconds on the clock and made one of two free throw attempts, cutting the lead to one point, 49-48.

Catholic turned over the ball again on the inbounds pass, giving the Eagles the ball with 21.8 seconds left and a chance to win the game prior to Ruffin’s missed shot.

Howell finished with 33 points, with five treys. Ruffin scored 23 to lead the Eagles.

Catholic will meet the Kickapoo Chiefs in the Blue Division championship game at 7:00 p.m. Thursday.

Kickapoo jumped ahead of the sixth seeded Hartville Eagles and never looked back, going ahead 35-17 at halftime and 47-28 after three quarters.

Brayden Shorter’s 14 points led the Chiefs in scoring, with Brody McNiel scoring nine points to pace the Eagles.

The Bolivar Liberators are back in the Blue and Gold finals for the first time since 2015.

The top seed in the Gold Division rolled to a 70-39 win over the fifth seeded Greenwood Blue Jays.

Greenwood led the contest 13-12 after one quarter, but the Liberators dominated in the second quarter to grab a 33-22 lead at halftime.

The Liberators continued to extend the margin in the second half, going up 52-30 after three periods and triggering the turbo clock in the final moments of the game.

Josh Bowes scored 15 points to lead Bolivar, and Tanner Jones’ 17 points led the Blue Jays in scoring.

The loss for Coach Darren Taylor’s Blue Jays ends a 10-game winning streak for Greenwood in the tournament.

The Ozark Tigers overcame an early 10-0 deficit to defeat the Republic Tigers 55-45 in the other Gold Division semifinal.

Republic led 10-3 after one quarter, but Ozark made a second quarter run to knot the contest 25-25 at halftime.

Ozark clung to a 35-33 advantage after three quarters before pulling away down the stretch.

Ethan Whatley scored 16 points to pace Ozark, while freshman Brenley Hagewood led Republic with 15 points.

Ozark is in its first Blue and Gold finals since 2018, when the Tigers lost to Catholic 74-64.

Here are the final scores from Wednesday’s semifinal round at the Greenwood Blue and Gold Tournament (seeds in parenthesis):

Blue Division Semifinals (JQH Arena):

Final: (4) Catholic 49, (1) Nixa 48

Final: (2) Springfield Kickapo 54, (6) Hartville 35

Gold Division Semifinals (JQH Arena):

Final: (1) Bolivar 70, (5) Greenwood 39

Final: (2) Ozark 55, (6) Republic 45

Blue Division Consolation Semifinals (Hammons Student Center):

Final: (5) Skyline 67, Ash Grove 56 (Lawson Beem scored 34 points to lead the Tigers)

Final: West Plains 63, Mountain Grove 57 (Kaden Bruce with a 27 point scoring performance for the Panthers)

Blue Division 5th Place Semifinals (Hammons Student Center):

Final: (8) Fair Grove 40, Marshfield 37 (Devin Carroll scored 25 for Fair Grove, while Zack Mings had 20 points to lead the Blue Jays)

Final: (3) Willard 62, (7) Branson 43

Gold Division Consolation Semifinals (Hammons Student Center):

Final: Aurora 54, Spokane 38 (Jaden McCoy had 28 points for Spokane)

FInal: Stockton 49, Crane 43 (Stockton’s Layne Colvin scored 21 points)

Gold Division 5th Place Semifinals (Hammons Student Center):

Final: (4) Strafford 59, Central 50 (Central’s Antonio Starks-Fewell scored 23 points)

Final: (3) Ava 50 (7) Rogersville 39

Here’s the schedule for Thursday’s championship night at the 76th Annual Greenwood Blue and Gold Tournament:

Blue Division Third Place Game (JQH Arena):

(1) Nixa vs. (6) Hartville 4:00 p.m.

Gold Division Third Place Game (JQH Arena):

(5) Greenwood vs. (6) Republic 5:30 p.m.

Blue Division Championship Game (JQH Arena):

(4) Catholic vs. (2) Springfield Kickapoo 7:00 p.m.

Gold Division Championship Game (JQH Arena):

(1) Bolivar vs. (2) Ozark 8:30 p.m.

Blue Division Consolation Final (Hammons Student Center):

(5) Skyline vs. West Plains 4:00 p.m.

Gold Division Consolation Final (Hammons Student Center):

Aurora vs. Stockton 5:30 p.m.

Blue Division 5th Place Game (Hammons Student Center):

(8) Fair Grove vs. (3) Willard 7:00 p.m.

Gold Division 5th Place Game (Hammons Student Center):

(4) Strafford vs. (3) Ava 8:30 p.m.

• 

Springfield Mayor Ken McClure and Greene County Presiding Commissioner Bob Dixon issued a joint statement after someone left anti-Semitic fliers on the doors of homes on Christmas Day.

The fliers link the Jewish population to COVID-19. The joint statement says:

“We strongly condemn the message and intent of the fliers found on numerous doors across central Springfield on Christmas Day, linking our Jewish neighbors to a supposed COVID-19 ‘Agenda.’

Ignorance and bigotry in all forms must be called out for what it is so that hatred does not infect our good community.

Springfield and Greene County is and should be a community where all are included and valued, and where love and neighborly care prevail.

We strongly encourage those behind the distribution and sentiment to consider the error of their way and reflect on finding the better path of inclusion and loving their neighbor as themselves.

We proudly join together in condemning in the strongest possible terms the message conveyed by these fliers.

There is absolutely no place for this type of behavior or attitude in Springfield or Greene County.

This is not who we are.

We respect and applaud our Jewish neighbors for the strong contributions they make to our community on a daily basis.

We apologize to them for these inappropriate actions and thank them for their strong heritage of faith and for being part of our community.”

The Springfield-Greene County Health Department says the first case of the omicron variant has been found in Greene County.

The health department says the variant has been present in Greene County since at least mid-December.

The variant was identified from a waste-water sample taken from December 17.

A strong storm system will be moving toward the Ozarks from Friday through New Year’s weekend, bringing the chance for everything from heavy rain and lightning to light freezing rain, sleet and snow, along with below zero wind chills.

The National Weather Service says there’s a potential for heavy rainfall ahead of the system on Friday.

There’s a marginal to slight risk for flooding on Friday, mainly along and south of a line from Anderson to Rolla, with the highest risk for flash flooding over south central Missouri.

As temps fall below freezing, rain may change over to freezing rain and sleet from late New Year’s Eve into New Year’s Day.

Light accumulations of snow, sleet and frezing rain will be possible mainly along and north of I-44 late Friday night into Saturday.

Accumulations are expected to be 1/10th of an inch or less.

Areas affected will most likely be along and west of a line from Osage Beach to Joplin, roughly north of the I-44 corridor.

Only limited impacts are expected at this time.

There is then the potential for snow on New Year’s Day.

The best chances for any accumulating snow will be along and north of Interstate 44, with accomulations up to one inch possible north of Highway 54.

Little to no snow accumulation is expected in the southern Ozarks toward Branson.

The quarterfinal round of basketball is underway at the 76th Annual Greenwood Blue and Gold Tournament in Springfield.

Winner’s bracket games in both the Blue and Gold divisions are being played at JQH Arena, with the consolation bracket games taking place at Hammons Student Center.

Blue Division:

The top seeded Nixa Eagles advanced to the semifinals in the Blue Division with an 85-43 victory over Fair Grove.

Nixa held a 17-9 lead after one quarter and doubled up on Fair Grove, 44-22, at halftime.

Jay Osborne’s Eagles continued to dominate in the second half.

Colin Ruffin and Jordyn Turner each scored 17 points to lead Nixa as Osborne, the all time winningest coach in Blue and Gold history, earns his 77th victory in the tournament.

Devin Carroll led Fair Grove in scoring with 18 points.

Springfield Catholic punched its ticket to the semifinals in the Blue Division with a 58-47 win over the Marshfield Blue Jays.

The Fightin’ Irish, seeded fourth in the Blue, got 23 points from Zach Howell and 21 points from Ty Lyon.

Catholic led 14-10 after one period and 29-18 at halftime, but started to pull away from Marshfield in the third quarter, going up to 18.

The second seeded Kickapoo Chiefs fought off an early push from the Branson Pirates to win 73-47, advancing to the Blue Division semis.

The Chiefs held a slim 16-14 lead over the Pirates, but opened things up in the second quarter to take a 41-23 lead at the half.

Kickapoo was able to maintain a double digit lead throughout the second half.

The Chiefs were led in scoring by Zaide Lowery, who finished wiht 25 points.

For Branson, Kyle Scharbrough scored 18 points and Ethan Jones added 17.

In one of the tightest games of the tournament so far, the defending state champion Hartville Eagles, seeded sixth in the Blue Division, defeated the Willard Tigers 47-41.

The game was close throughout, and Hartville didn’t begin to pull away until the closing minutes.

The two teams were tied 6-6 after one quarter, with Hartville owning a 22-17 halftime advantage.

The Eagles held a slim 32-30 lead after three quarters, but made some big shots and hit free throws down the stretch.

Senior Eric Wilson led Hartville with 17 points, while Haden Brown scored 17 to pace the Tigers, who will play second seeded Kickapoo in the semifinals at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Gold Division:

The top seeded Bolivar Liberators narrowly escaped with a win, defeating the Springfield Central Bulldogs 54-51 to start the Gold Division quarterfinals.

Bolivar held a 12-11 lead after one quarter, only to see Central take a 25-22 halftime lead.

The Bulldogs came out hot to start the third quarter, going on a 8-0 run that saw them take an 11 point lead, 33-22, midday through the frame.

When junior Kyle Pock hit a shot underneath the bucket, the Liberators capped a 13-3 run to pull within a point, 36-35.

Trailing 37-35 going into the fourth quarter, the Liberators continued to turn the momentum, tying the contest 37-37 with 7:41 left in regulation as Pock hit another shot, scoring his team’s last nine pionts.

Pock drained a top of the key three pointer with 5:51 left in regulation to give the Liberators a 42-39 lead.

Central immediately answered with a trey from Jamarius Lawrie to knot the score 42-42 with 5:34 remaining.

The Bulldogs hit another three pointer with just under four and a half minute left in the game to grab a 45-42 advantage.

It was the Liberators turn to go on a run. Josh Bowes hit a shot, was fouled and made a free throw with 2:51 left to give the Liberators a 48-45 lead.

After Bolivar extended the margin to seven, 52-45, the Bulldogs hit a three pointer to make it a four point game, 52-48, with 43.6 seconds left.

Antonio Starks-Fewell kept his team’s upset hopes alive by hitting a trey with 25 seconds remaning, cutting Bolivar’s lead to 53-51.

But a last second game-tying three point attempt hit off the rim as Bolivar advanced to the semifinals.

Pock’s 20 points led the Liberators in scoring, with Starks-Fewell scoring 14 to pace Central.

Here are the scores and schedule of Tuesday’s games at the Blue and Gold Tournament:

Blue Division Quarterfinal Round (JQH Arena):

Final: (1) Nixa 85 (8) Fair Grove 43

Final: (4) Catholic 58, Marshfield 47

Final: (2) Springfield Kickapoo 73, (7) Branson 47

Final: (6) Hartville 47, (3) Willard 41

Gold Division Quarterfinal Round (JQH Arena):

Final: (1) Bolivar 54, Springfield Central 51

Half: (4) Strafford 28 (5) Greenwood 28

(2) Ozark vs. (7) Rogersville 8:00 p.m.

(3) Ava vs. (6) Republic 9:30 p.m.

Blue Division Consolation Bracket (Hammons Student Center):

Final: Ash Grove 53, Mt. Vernon 50 (Ash Grove’s Sam Moreland scores 25 points and hits 6 three pointers)

Final: (5) Skyline 76, Clever 54 (Skyline’s Lawson Beem scored 23 points)

Final: Mountain Grove 70, Houston 25 (Mountain Grove’s Kaden Bruce scored 34 points)

Final: West Plains 64, Reeds Spring 28

Gold Division Consolation Bracket (Hammons Student Center):

Final: Aurora 75 (8) Willow Springs 61

Spokane vs. Camdenton 6:30 p.m.

Crane vs. Lebanon 8:00 p.m.

Buffalo vs. Stockton 9:30 p.m.

The tournament continues Wednesday with consolation bracket games starting at 9:30 a.m. at Hammons Student Center, and winner’s bracket semifinal contests beginning at 4:00 p.m. at JQH Arena.

Finals night games start at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday.