The sounds of construction continue to fill the air at Northwestern Oklahoma State University as workers are busily working to complete major renovations at the school’s football and baseball stadiums.

Two projects that are a part of Northwestern’s Vision for Victory campaign for athletics – the construction of a new football complex at Ranger Field and major renovations to baseball’s Myers Stadium – are in the final stages, but Northwestern officials are hoping donors will help them complete an important project for the baseball program.

“Everything is coming along as planned and the improvements are absolutely breathtaking,” Dr. Janet Cunningham, university president, said. “You can feel the excitement surrounding the projects. Our students, alumni and fans are expressing great pride in the progress we are making.”

Cunningham said Northwestern will hold a public open house at the construction site on Thursday, Aug. 6 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tours of the projects will be available and the Rowdy Rangers will serve free hot dogs for the first 300 people.

At Ranger Field, exterior work on the new complex is nearly complete and crews are working hard to complete interior work. Completion of the locker rooms is the first priority with the first home football game just six weeks away. Installing the new scoreboard also is near the top of the list.

 “Our players will fall in love with the facility,” Bob Battisti, director of athletics, said. “They worked through last year with a temporary home. Now, they will have an outstanding place that they can call their own.”

The 2009 season begins Sept. 5 with a home game against Colorado State University – Pueblo.

Work at Myers Stadium has focused on building the new permanent seating area with its brick backstop and iron railing. When completed, the new stadium will become a much-improved, fan-friendly venue.          

Northwestern is hoping donors will help them continue construction at Myers Stadium a little longer. The university is approximately $50,000 short of its goal to begin construction of a new home locker room and dugout. The old facility is leaky and mold is a constant problem.

 “It is imperative that we tear down the old facility and build a new one,” Cunningham said. “We are hoping that our alumni and friends will support our student-athletes and provide us with the funds necessary to move forward. If we can start construction soon, then we can complete all of the baseball improvements before the start of the next season.”

Cunningham said any persons interested in contributing to the Vision for Victory campaign should contact Battisti at (580) 327-8632, Skeeter Bird, chief executive officer of the Northwestern Foundation and Alumni Association, at (580) 327-8593 or Steve Valencia, associate vice president for university relations, at (580) 327-8478.

Northwestern Oklahoma State University catcher, Dan Coury, has signed a professional baseball contract with the Gulf Coast League Braves, an affiliation of Major League Baseball’s Atlanta Braves.

After finishing his junior season for Northwestern, Coury went on to play for the New Bedford Bay Socks of the New England Collegiate Baseball League in New Bedford, Mass. Just weeks later, he found himself signing with the Rookie League Gulf Coast Braves of Kissimmee, Fla. as a catcher.

“It is nice to see Dan’s hard work payoff and watch him obtain his goals,” remarked Northwestern head coach Ryan Bay. “He came to Northwestern with two goals; to graduate and play professional baseball. He shows what talent and hard work will bring.”

Coury plans on finishing his health and sports science degree at Northwestern Oklahoma State University.

The junior catcher from Fall River, Mass., led Northwestern in home runs with 18 and was second on the team with a .428 batting average. He tied for the team lead with 63 RBI and had 15 doubles and a triple. Coury led the team in slugging .855 and was named to the Sooner Athletic Conference second-team all-conference squad as a catcher.

Northwestern Oklahoma State University’s baseball facility officially has a new name that will serve as a legacy to one of Alva’s legendary families.

The regents of the Regional University System of Oklahoma approved Northwestern’s request to name its baseball facility Myers Stadium at its meeting on June 19 in Edmond.

The stadium will be named in honor of the late W.D. Jr. and Lillie Myers. Myers’ daughter Mary Margaret Miller and her husband, Todd, have been the lead benefactors in the major renovations that are currently ongoing at the baseball facility. The Millers have contributed $300,000 toward the project as part of Northwestern Vision for Victory campaign for athletics.

“We are honored that we can add to the legacy of the Myers family for their contributions to Alva and Northwestern,” said Dr. Janet Cunningham, university president. “We believe that naming our facility Myers Stadium is a fitting tribute to the family and expresses our deep appreciation to Todd and Mary Margaret Miller for the their support and investment in our student-athletes.”

More than $300,000 in improvements are taking place at Myers Stadium, including construction of a new grandstand. Plans under development also call for a new home team locker room and upgrades to dugouts.

Other upgrades include a new sprinkler system on a newly laser-leveled field.

“We couldn’t be more pleased with the new facilities here at Northwestern,” said Mary Margaret Miller. “Todd and I are both extremely proud to put my parents’ name on this beautiful baseball stadium. This is a very exciting time for Northwestern sports and it is an honor to be a part of it.”

Mary Margaret graduated from Northwestern in 1986 and today serves as chairman of the board of Hopeton State Bank and as a director of the Central National Bank of Alva. Todd attended Northwestern in the early 1990s and is a part of the ownership group of KALV-AM in Alva and one of the most recognized voices in northwest Oklahoma.

The two have shared a love for Northwestern athletics as fans, with Todd taking his involvement a step further as the radio voice of the Rangers on KALV since 1990. While their interest encompasses all sports, their passion is baseball.

Mary Margaret’s grandfather, W.D. Myers, became involved in Alva’s financial community in 1919 when he purchased a large interest in what was to become Central National Bank of Alva. He became president of the bank and led it until his death in 1951.

His son, W.D. Myers, Jr., continued the family legacy in the banking business by purchasing a majority interest in the Hopeton State Bank. Following the death of his father in 1951, he became president of Central National Bank of Alva.

Lillie Myers also was involved in the banking business, serving as a director on the boards of Hopeton State Bank and the Central National Bank of Alva.

Lillie Myers passed away in 1979, followed by W.D. in 1987.

Construction at Myers Stadium is expected to be completed in the next 6 to 8 months with the facility operational before the 2010 season.

Four members of the Northwestern Oklahoma State baseball team were honored today by the Sooner Athletic Conference as the 2009 All-Conference teams were announced.

Northwestern’s Chris Williams was named to the first-team, while Anthony Cros and Dan Coury were second-team members. Cros was additionally named to the Gold Glove Team.

Williams was selected to the all-conference first-team as the designated hitter. He batted .423 for the Rangers along with 19 doubles and was second on the team in home runs with 17. The junior from Vadalia, La. racked up 79 runs batted in, and is ranked third for most runs batted in during a season. Williams is ranked in several other NWOSU single season records, including at bats (6th with 189) home runs (tied for 5th), hits (5th with 80), doubles (8th with 19), and home runs (tied for 7^th with 17). Williams was twice named the Sooner Athletic Conference Player of the Week, during the first and second week of the award.

Cros, a senior outfielder from Montpellier, France, topped the Ranger hitters in average, batting .441. He played in all 53 games and tied the school record for doubles with 22. Cros also had 15 home runs, a triple and tied for second in RBI’s with 63. He had the best on-base percentage at .572 and set a new record for most walks in a season with 42. In addition to second-team all-conference honors, he was voted as the right fielder on the Gold Glove team. Cros had only one error in 87 chances, while recording nine assists.

Coury, a junior catcher from Fall River, Mass., led Northwestern in home runs with 18 and was second on the team with a .428 batting average. He tied Cros with 63 RBI and had 15 doubles and a triple. Coury led the team in slugging .855. He is also ranked in the top ten in several single season categories.

Northwestern rounded out the season with a 26-27 record under the first-year leadership of Ryan Bay.

ALVA, Okla.

Northwestern out-slugged USAO in the opener, 9-4, but three USAO runs in the top of the eighth inning proved to be the deciding factor.

Starter Chase Phelps gave up a solo home run followed by a single in the first inning and held the Drovers hitless until he was lifted for Cameron Taylor with an out in the seventh inning. Phelps allowed just two hits in 27 batters faced and struck out a season-high eight batters. Taylor pitched an inning and two-thirds, striking out four Drovers and allowing two hits. He dropped to 2-4 on the season as he was pinned with the loss.

USAO’s home run in the first inning started them out to a 1-0 lead, but the Rangers tied the game in the second inning, as Chad Anglin singled in Chris Williams, who hit his 19^th double of the season.

The Drovers scored an unearned run in the top of the seventh to take a 2-1 lead.

Northwestern countered when it mattered, in the bottom of the seventh. Brandon Alvarez reached base on a bunt single with one out and advanced to second on a stolen base. Anthony Cros came through in the clutch, with a two out single that dropped into shallow center field, scoring Alvarez for the tying run.

USAO struck for three runs in the top of the eighth to seal the game, as they held the Rangers silent in the bottom of the eighth after a Dan Coury leadoff single.

Coury led the Rangers offensively with a 3-for-4 outing, along with his 15^th double of the year. Cros sewed up two hits in four trips to the plate and had one RBI.

Game two’s first and second inning started out much the same, as USAO scored a run in the first inning and NWOSU tied it up in the second with Chris Williams 17^th home run of the season.

USAO held the Rangers scoreless over the last five innings, as they added two runs in the fifth and a run in the top of the seventh to clinch the win.

Jeremy Lawson (5-7) pitched five innings and held the Drovers to five hits and just one earned run. Matt Stratton finished the final two innings, fanning one batter.

Williams had two of the Rangers six hits, while Clint Dodds added a double.

The Rangers (26-27, 10-19) play their final game of the season against USAO in Chickasha during a single nine-inning game on Saturday, May 2. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m.

Northwestern Oklahoma State’s final regular season conference series with the University of Science and Arts has been changed. Instead of Northwestern traveling to Chickasha on Thursday, USAO will be coming to Alva.

High rainfall has forced the doubleheader of the series to be played at 2 p.m. on Thursday, April 30 at Ranger Field in Alva. Game three of the series will be a nine-inning affair beginning at 2 p.m. at Bill Smith Ballpark in Chickasha on Saturday, May 2.

BETHANY, Okla.

In game one, Southern Nazarene used a 10-hit, 10-run fifth inning to break a 5-5 tie and take the eventual run-rule victory.

Anthony Cros and Kellan Scott had multi-hit games for the Rangers. Cros posted a perfect 3-for-3 performance at the plate with two doubles, a home run and an RBI, while Scott had two singles in three at bats.

On the mound, Jeremy Lawson (5-6) was pinned with the loss, striking out four batters in 4.1 innings.

Game two was a similar score, with SNU taking a 16-5 run-rule win in five innings. The Crimson Storm used two big innings, scoring seven runs in the second inning and adding five runs in the bottom of the fourth.

James McMurphy received his first loss of the season to drop to 6-1 on the mound. He pitched an inning and two-thirds, before giving way to Jarad Moore. Moore threw for two innings and was relieved by Matt Mahieu, who faced two batters and got the final out for the Rangers.

At the plate, four hitters accounted for all eight Ranger hits. Cros repeated his game one performance, going 3-for-3 and added three runs batted in. He had a double and hit his 15^th home run of the season. Brandon Alvarez knocked in two hits and scored two runs while going 2-for-2 with a home run, while Dan Coury had two singles in the game. Tom Huddleston was the only other Ranger with a hit, as he hit his team-high sixth triple of the season.

Northwestern, now at 26-25 overall and at 10-17 in the Sooner Athletic Conference, enters its final week of the regular season with a single game with USAO at Chickasha on Thursday, April 30. The two teams will return to Alva for a 2 p.m. doubleheader at Ranger Field on Saturday, May 2.