It's the all-important Week 11 of the NCAA Division II football season, and Missouri Western coach Jerry Partridge's feelings are much like those of the late comedian Minnie Pearl.

He's just glad to be here.

"When the season started, I thought that if we could get to Week 11 with a chance to beat UNO and make the playoffs, I'd be happy," Partridge aid Monday. "And here we are."

Partridge's job now is to guard against any letdown by his No. 21-ranked Griffons (8-2, 6-2 MIAA) against an up-and-down Nebraska-Omaha team (6-3, 5-3) that needed overtime on Saturday to defeat Pittsburg State 31-28 and avoid a three-game losing streak.

But it doesn't figure to be easy. Mavericks senior quarterback Eric Wunderlich throws the ball well. He averages 259.2 passing yards per game - third best in the conference - and has the luxury of a couple of big, sure-handed tight ends.

But as scary as any of those players is a little-known running back who wasn't even expected to play when the year began.

Levi Terrell, a freshman from Fox High School in Arnold, Mo., had his redshirt pulled midseason and in the past six games has rushed for 1,098 yards. Oddly, that's even more than league leader LaRon Council of Northwest Missouri State, who tops the list with 1,072 yards.

Terrell's six games and 206 carries apparently are not enough to qualify him for the list at this point in the season.

Terrell got dinged up in the late stages Saturday against Pitt.

"He did not play in overtime," Partridge noted. "It would not hurt my feelings if he'd just rest up for next year."

The big switch

One lineup switch seems to have made a big difference for the Western women's soccer team, proving correct the hunch of fourth-year coach Jeff Hansen.

With his team struggling at 2-5, Hansen decided to move freshman defender Erin Widrig from the outside to the middle, switching places with sophomore Molly Slattery.

Prior to that switch, the Griffons had given up 15 goals in those seven games. After the switch, Western has allowed just eight goals in an 11-game stretch, going 6-4-1 and losing a couple of those battles 1-0 on late penalty kicks.

"Erin's fast," Hansen said. "We thought we could put her in the middle and she could run people down. That was the original thought, and it's also led to other things. It's made all the difference in the world."

Now, the Griffons are in a position to hit the .500 mark if they can earn a win or a tie today at Truman State in a game that has been postponed multiple times because of poor field conditions.

Regardless of the field conditions, that game will be played somewhere, Hansen said, even if it has to be moved to turf on a neutral site.

The Griffons are riding a three-game winning streak, including a 3-0 victory at Emporia State on Thursday on a field that was nearly unplayable, and a 1-0 victory at Southwest Baptist on Saturday that gave Western a sweep of their season series.

Insistent on

consistency

With just four matches remaining in the season, Western's volleyball team is still seeking some consistency.

The Griffons last week went 1-2, playing well and hitting .269 against No. 24 Pittsburg State, then hitting just .129 in defeating conference also-ran Southwest Baptist.

"Honestly, I thought we played pretty darned good," coach Cory Frederick said of the Griffons' 3-1 loss on Thursday to Pittsburg. "Unfortunately, we forgot to find that team again on Friday."

It was missing Saturday as well, as the Griffons (9-20, 2-14 MIAA) were swept in three games by Missouri Southern.

Now the Griffons' chances of climbing out of the conference cellar have dwindled. They are one game behind Fort Hays State with four games remaining for both teams, and the Tigers have already swept the season series against the Griffons.

Awaiting a

response

Even after Sunday's exhibition loss to Division I Missouri State, women's basketball coach Lynn Plett didn't know what to expect this season from his Griffons.

He hoped that question would be answered Monday night, after the Griffons concluded their first practice since the 117-49 thrashing in Springfield, Mo. A good practice, he said, might tell a lot about the character of his young team, which still has no seniors but boasts a junior class that has impressed him with the way it is maturing.

"In the first two weeks of practice, I was very encouraged," Plett said.

It all unraveled in Springfield, however, where the Griffons seemed to get swept up in the large crowd and large-school surroundings.

"We had more assists for Missouri State than for ourselves, but they call those turnovers," Plett said.

Now, to the point

When the Western men's basketball team plays its exhibition game at Division I Creighton in Omaha, Neb., on Wednesday night, coach Tom Smith will be looking hard at the point guard position.

"We need to replace Leonard Parker, no doubt about it," Smith said of the departed senior.

Candidates include Mike DeWalt, a junior from Carbondale, Ill., who has not played basketball the past two seasons.

"He has to eventually stand up and mature," Smith said. "Can he handle the pressure? We're going to see."