Highway Patrol Arrests November 13-14

Roslyn K. Schafer, 33, Branson, driving while intoxicated, failed to drive on right half of roadway

Mickey T. Truong, 31, Arlington, Texas, felony possession of a controlled substance- methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia

Carol A. Gil, 58, Humansville, felony possession of a controlled substance- psilocybin mushrooms, possession of drug paraphenalia, speeding, operating motor vehicle while using electronic device

Carson D. Jesperson, 19, Pierce City, driving while intoxicated, speeding

Nathaniel D. Dickey, 28, Galena, Kansas, driving while intoxicated, failed to drive on right half of roadway

James W. Russell, 44, Neosho, driving while intoxicated, failed to drive on right half of roadway

Ryan C. Rush, 42, Ozark, driving while intoxicated, failed to stop at stop line

Yelena V. Filipenko, 47, Springfield, driving while intoxicated, Greene County warrant for failure to appear on failure to register motor vehicle

Kayla D. Franco, 36, Cassville, Barry County warrant for failure to appear on failure to register

Jesse J. Caldwell, 30, Nixa, driving while intoxicated 

MOmentum Bike Park reaches 100,000 visitors

(From the City of Joplin)

Joplin’s biggest outdoor attraction has reached a major milestone less than one year after its opening.

Over the weekend of Nov. 7-8, the award-winning MOmentum Bike Park officially surpassed 100,000 visits. Visitor data is tracked and provided by the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce through its subscription to Placer.ai, a location intelligence tool which can determine the number of unique visits to a specific area. 

“When MOmentum was conceptualized and through all its planning stages, we knew that it would quickly become a popular destination,” said Paul Bloomberg, director of Parks and Recreation for the City of Joplin. “We have a strong outdoor recreational community in the Joplin area and a growing community of cyclists. To see us hit the 100,000 visit number in less than a year is confirmation that this was an amenity Joplin needed.”

MOmentum held its soft opening with a ribbon cutting on Nov. 24, 2025. Its official grand launch party was held May 2, 2026, and it served as the host of a Velosolutions UCI Pump Track World Championships Qualifier event this summer.

In addition to an incredible number of visits, the park has also received numerous accolades in its first year. In May, MOmentum was named a winner of the Missouri Municipal League’s 2026 Innovation Awards – an award given to a few select communities across the state for projects which enhance quality of life in creative ways.

MOmentum also received honors in March when SWT design, which developed the park’s design and engineering, received the Award of Excellence for a Built Project from the local Kansas City Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects. 

MOmentum features more than 132,000 square feet of bike park across its 95-acre site, and has ten miles of purpose-built mountain bike trails, a BMX pump track, a children’s bicycle playground, and bridges and skills courses for riders to learn new skills before heading out on the more challenging sections.

Access to MOmentum from cyclists across the City will also soon become easier. Joplin recently announced that it has been awarded a $500,000 Land and Water Conservation Fund Grant to help build a 2/3-mile trail that will take pedestrians and bicyclists from Landreth Park to the bike park. Eventually, the City plans to develop a continuous trail network including connections from MOmentum to Landreth and Ewert parks, and eventual connections to Campbell Parkway, Parr Hill Park, and crossing Range Line Road using sidewalks to connect with Prospect Village. The City is also looking at additional enhancements to the park, including concessions and parking improvements.

Holiday Tree Trail to light up Joplin's Mercy Park

(From the City of Joplin)

One of Joplin’s most popular holiday events will come alive again soon as the Holiday Tree Trail at Mercy Park prepares to open for the winter season.

The annual Holiday Tree Trail is a free, self-guided walk featuring dozens of Christmas trees decorated by area businesses and organizations, showcasing their services or mission. The decorated trees create a winter wonderland for families visiting the park, located at 3002 St. Johns Boulevard in Joplin.

Led by Joplin’s Parks and Recreation Department, the event will run from Dec. 3-31. The Tree Trail’s opening ceremony will be held from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 3, and will feature a performance from Karen’s Dance Studio, face painting, free cookies and hot chocolate from Casey’s Stores, the Salvation Army and Rotary Club, and an appearance by Santa Claus. After the opening ceremony, the Trail will be open each day from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m.

The City is seeking tree sponsors, and will accept registrations through Thursday, Nov. 19 at midnight. Businesses and organizations will receive a dedicated space for their tree as well as electricity and are asked to provide their own tree, lights, and decorations. Tree sponsors are also welcome to set up an information booth next to their tree during the kickoff event on December 3. The cost to reserve a space is $25. Visitors to the Tree Trail will have an opportunity to vote on their favorite tree throughout the month, and winners will receive prizes from event sponsor Texas Roadhouse.

Tree sponsors should know the following information:Nov. 19: Registration deadline (registration will close early if all spaces get reserved)

Nov. 23 – Dec. 2: Decorating days
Dec. 3: Opening ceremony
Dec. 31: Voting for Tree Decorating Contest ends at 11:59 p.m.
Jan. 4: Winners announced
Jan. 1-7: Clean Up Days (decorations remaining on Jan. 8 will be discarded)

More information on sponsoring a tree is available at https://www.rec.us/sections/67f50d6c-c6fa-462b-900a-ffcf33f37e10. For additional details, contact Parks and Recreation at 417-625-4750.

Jasper County Marriage Licenses

Colton Alan Jones, 33, Carl Junction, and Shelbi Dean Miller, 27, Baxter Springs, Kansas

Preston Levi Burton, 20, Springfield, and Adison Nicole Ehrhart, 19, Springfield

Carter Mark Allen, 22, Pittsburg, Kansas, and Josie Jane McFall, 23, Pittsburg, Kansas

Chance Aaron Douglas, 22, Joplin, and Kaitlin Marie Gruver, 22, Joplin

David Joseph Fox, 57, Oronogo, and Melissa Lynn Russell, 52, Oronogo

Eliza Karrith Alpine, 28, Joplin, and Marissa Noel Gordon, 23, Joplin

Jake Everett Thorn, 19, Reeds, and Phoebe Raye Sitton, 19, Reeds

Tyler Dale Buckle, 28, Carl Junction, and Rylee Mercedez Morgan, 24, Carl Junction

Ryan Louis Danielson, 21, Joplin, and Leana Marie Starr High, 20, Joplin

Matthew Keith McKinney, 33, Edmond, Oklahoma, and Madalyn Hope Richardson, 27, Miami, Oklahoma

Matthew Joseph Hardee, Jr., 22, Galena, Kansas, and Lexis Ruth Capman, 20, Joplin 

Newsmakers program focuses on holiday scams

(From KGCS)

The season of giving can also be the season of taking if consumers are not careful how and where they shop. The Better Business Bureau created ‘The Naughty List’ of the top 12 scams that target consumers especially during the holidays and it is the focus of the next Newsmakers program.

BBB Regional Director Pamela Hernandez discusses the increase in package delivery text message scams which shot up ten percent from 2024 to 2025. She explains how AI is impacting emergency scams. Hernandez also talks about misleading social media ads, gift card draining, fake charities, holiday romance scams and more. 

Newsmakers is airing nightly at 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. the week of November 15 on KGCS-TV and will air at 5:30 a.m. Saturday, November 21 on KOAM-TV. It is also posted on the station’s YouTube channel: KGCS – Missouri Southern State University.

KGCS-TV programming can be seen on channel 21 and is also available on regional cable television systems such as Sparklight, Mediacom and Suddenlink Communications. The station operates as a service of the Department of Communication at Missouri Southern State University.

MSSU football falls 28-20 to Washburn in season finale

(From Missouri Southern Athletics)

TOPEKA, Kan. - Missouri Southern football closed its 2026 season Saturday afternoon with a 28-20 loss to Washburn at Yager Stadium.

The Lions (4-7, 3-6 MIAA) battled throughout the contest, outgaining the Ichabods (8-2-1, 7-2 MIAA) on the ground and finding success with their rushing attack, but two interceptions proved costly as Washburn capitalized on turnovers to secure the eight-point victory.

Missouri Southern finished with 254 yards of total offense, including 153 rushing yards, averaging 4.1 yards per carry. Washburn totaled 326 yards of offense, including 209 through the air.

MSSU forced three fumbles and scored 14 points off turnovers.

Missouri Southern's first-quarter answer came after WU went ahead 7-0, with a 10-play, 72-yard drive that ended on Asher Huffman's 20-yard field goal at 3:11 to make it 7-3.

Earlier, Southern opened the game with one first-possession completion from Tillman Martin to Isaiah Green but punted after gaining nine yards, while the Ichabods followed with a 66-yard touchdown drive despite a tackle for loss by Nyjahl Vaughn and Jayce Hitt.

MSSU's response drive was built on the ground, with Allen Mitchell breaking runs of 14 and 26 yards, Jackson Marrs converting a third-and-2, and Martin hitting Jace Whatley for 15 yards to reach the 10. After Narkel LeFlore moved the ball as close as the 2, WU stopped the next rush for a loss and the Lions settled for Huffman's field goal. Gavin Massey later dropped Logan Madden for a 2-yard loss near midfield, and the first quarter ended with Missouri Southern trailing 7-3.

Southern recovered two Ichabods fumbles and scored on both red-zone trips in the second quarter, but an 82-yard interception return, and a late WU touchdown left MSSU trailing 21-13.

Earlier, Pierre Fertil forced a fumble on WU's opening play of the quarter and Brody Eggleston recovered at the MSSU 43, but Missouri Southern's ensuing drive to the WU 22 ended with the interception return for a touchdown that made it 14-3 after the extra point.

Southern capitalized on special teams when Mitchell Cory's 36-yard punt was muffed and Josh Pachecorecovered at the WU 4, setting up Marrs' 1-yard touchdown run at 3:50 before
Huffman's PAT made it 14-10.

After the Ichabods answered with a 75-yard drive and a 21-yard touchdown pass, David Bethune returned the kickoff to the MSSU 39, and Martin completed passes of 15 yards to Isaiah Padello and 20 yards to Whatley to reach the WU 15. Martin later hit LeFlore for eight yards to the WU 7, and Huffman converted a 24-yard field goal just before halftime, sending the Lions into the break trailing 21-13.

The Lions turned a muffed punt into the third quarter's only points, as LeFlore recovered Cory's 53-yard punt at the WU 15 before Allen Mitchell scored on a 15-yard run and Huffman's kick made it 21-20 with 1:54 left.

Earlier, Missouri Southern forced an opening punt after Peyton McKee and Hitt combined on a tackle for loss and Stanley Mageo broke up a third-down pass. The Lion offense then put together an 11-play, 41-yard drive that included LeFlore's steady rushing and Allen Mitchell's fourth-and-1 conversion at the WU 19, but the possession ended with an interception at the 2.

MSSU also stopped an Ichabods fourth-down try at the MSSU 30 after Massey dropped a runner for a loss on third down, and the third quarter ended with WU still ahead 21-20.

MSSU's final answer was defensive, holding the Ichabods scoreless after Washburn recovered a fumbled kickoff at the Southern 26 with 2:37 left. Earlier, Keylan Mitchell's4-yard sack and McKee's quarterback hurry helped force a WU punt on the opening series of the quarter.

Missouri Southern's offense picked up one first down on Martin's 6-yard completion to Marrs, but a false start helped stall the drive before Cory's 44-yard punt.

The Ichabods then put together an 18-play, 86-yard drive, and after Keylan Mitchell and Briar McIntirestopped consecutive runs from the 1, Keller Hurla scored from 1 yard out and the extra point made it 28-20.

The Lions returned the ensuing kickoff 24 yards before the fumble that set up the final stand, and after WU reached the 4, a false start and two kneel-downs left the Lions with a 28-20 loss.

Allen Mitchell led the Southern offense with 92 rushing yards on 19 carries, averaging 4.8 yards per attempt while adding a touchdown. Marrs contributed 27 yards and a score on nine carries, while LeFlore added 34 yards on the ground.

Martin completed 10 of 21 passes for 101 yards. Green led the receiving corps with four catches for 31 yards, while Whatley added two receptions for 35 yards.

The biggest difference came in the turnover battle. Washburn intercepted Martin twice, including an 82-yard interception return for a touchdown by Cortlin Dalton in the second quarter.

Defensively, Hitt led the Lions with seven tackles. Keylan Mitchell recorded a sack and three tackles.

Fertil added a forced fumble with three tackles. Southern held Washburn to 117 rushing yards but surrendered 209 passing yards.

Huffman finished 2-for-2 on field-goal attempts, connecting from 20 and 24 yards, and converted both extra-point attempts.

Missouri Southern finished the 2026 campaign with a 4-7 overall record and a 3-6 mark in MIAA play, closing the season with three consecutive conference victories before Saturday's setback.

McDonald County Dissolution of Marriage Petitions

Amber E. Skaggs vs. Jackson B. Shahan

Cynthia D. Haddock vs. Steven W. Duncan