ST. JOSEPH, Mo. - Griffon Baseball (5-8, 0-3 MIAA) has its first home conference series this season with Central Oklahoma (9-5, 0-0 MIAA) paying a visit.
The three-game series at the MWSU Spring Sports Complex starts Thursday at 3 p.m. with game two on Friday at 2 p.m; and game three on Saturday at 1 p.m. All three games will be broadcast on the Griffon Sports Network (Varsity Network App, GoGriffons.com/listen) and available to watch on the MIAA Network. Voice of the Griffons Tommy Rezac and MWSU student Tucker Holden will have the call.
Where We Left Off
Griffon Baseball fell 4-3 at No. 4 Pittsburg State in the series finale on Sunday afternoon at Al Ortolani Field in Pittsburg, Kansas, completing a sweep for the undefeated Gorillas.
MoWest got off to a good start, leading 2-0 after four innings. Luke Shannahan hit his third home run of the series with a solo bomb in the second inning. Shannahan then drove in a run in the third with a double.
Pitt State (12-0, 3-0 MIAA) tied the game at 2-2 in the fifth and took a 3-2 lead in the sixth. MoWest tied it at 3-3 in the eighth, thanks to a solo homer by David De Hoyos.
The Gorillas, however, walked it off in the ninth, as Landon Bruce led off with a solo bomb to right field.
Shannahan and De Hoyos each finished with two hits. De Hoyos scored two runs, while Shannahan had two RBIs. Jacob Ross (1-2) tossed the last three innings for MoWest and was charged with the loss. He struck out one with no walks. Cam Saleh made the start and went three scoreless innings, striking out three and walking one.
Season Outlook
Griffon Baseball was picked to finish 10th out of 13 teams in the MIAA this season, per the preseason coaches' poll. MoWest received 50 total points in the voting, slotted behind Northwest Missouri State in 9th and ahead of 11th place Northeastern State.
With just seven total players back from the 2025 team, coach Keeran and his staff signed 28 new players in the offseason – all transfers.
Griffon Baseball is coming off of a 14-33 record in 2025 with a 12-24 mark in MIAA play. MoWest narrowly missed out on a trip to the MIAA Baseball tournament – something the program hasn't qualified for since 2019. The Griffons also seek their first winning season since 2018, and their first NCAA tournament bid since 2017.
New Griffs in Town
Keeran and his staff signed 16 transfers from four-year institutions and 12 from the junior college level. MoWest's signing class ranked in the top three for NCAA Division II portal rankings, according to 64 analytics, while also being ranked inside the top 100 for all four-year schools.
Of the 28 new players, 15 are position players and 13 are pitchers. Twelve of the transfers come from NCAA Division I, 12 from two-year colleges, two from fellow NCAA Division II schools and one from the NAIA level.
Looking Ahead
March will feature a full slate of conference action for Griffon Baseball. MoWest, next week, has a road series at No. 6 Central Missouri, followed by a single non-conference home game against Truman State on March 10.
Conference play continues with home series against Fort Hays State, a single game vs. No. 18 Emporia State and a home series vs. Newman, while the Griffons also travel for a series at Northeastern State, with single games at Northwest and Emporia State.
April features several key matchups, as the Griffons host Washburn, a single game vs. Northwest, non-conference home and away games vs. Rockhurst, a single game vs. No. 18 Emporia State and a regular season finale series at home vs. Rogers State.
MoWest also travels in April for conference series at Missouri Southern and Arkansas–Fort Smith, along with a single game at Northwest.
Keeran's Coaching Corner
Michael Keeran joined MoWest in June 2025 after a successful two-year run as head coach at Northern Oklahoma College (NOC) in Tonkawa, Oklahoma, where he achieved an impressive record of 92-28 (.770) and a national ranking as high as No. 4. In 2025, he was honored as the Region 2 West Division Coach of the Year.
During his time at NOC, Keeran developed over 20 players who advanced to compete at the NCAA Division I level, including several NJCAA Division II All-Americans. His high-octane offense contributed to the Mavericks' ranking in the top 10 nationally in hits (641), RBIs (536) and runs scored (606) in 2025.
Before NOC, Keeran served for one season as recruiting coordinator at NCAA Division I Western Illinois. He was also head coach at Bismarck State College in North Dakota from 2020-22, where the Mystics won conference championships in both '21 and '22, along with a regional title in '22. Under Keeran's guidance, BSC posted an overall record of 69-18 (.793) and were consistently ranked in the Top 25, achieving a high of No. 2 in NJCAA Division 2.
Keeran's career record as a collegiate head coach stands at 166-54 (.755).
From 2018-22, Keeran was a head coach in various summer collegiate baseball leagues, boasting a record of 171-38 (.818). His teams were crowned regular-season champions each year and clinched postseason titles in four out of five seasons (2018, 2019, 2020, 2022). Keeran earned Coach of the Year accolades in the Pioneer Collegiate Baseball League from 2018-20 and was Expedition League Coach of the Year award in 2022.
In 2019, Keeran served as Recruiting Coordinator at NAIA Valley City State University (N.D.), leading the Vikings to a runner-up finish in the conference and their best postseason performance in school history.
In 2018, Keeran was an assistant coach at Grinnell College (IA), helping the Pioneers to a 24-14 record. From 2013-16, Keeran was an assistant at Clear Lake High School in Iowa, where the Lions claimed State Championships in 2013, '15 and '16, compiling an overall record of 129-27 (.827) in that time.
