Articles

Maybe they shouldn’t have bothered to show up at all.

The Harris-Stowe State College women’s basketball team arrived at Columbia College at 7:05 p.m. to play No. 11 Columbia College in the first round of the American Midwest Conference tournament.

JEFFERSON CITY — The signature of an eager governor is all that remains before Southwest Missouri State University realizes its goal of becoming Missouri State University.

Over the objections of an impassioned, bipartisan group of lawmakers, the House voted 120-35 to pass the Senate bill that bestows the name on the Springfield school. The House sponsor, Rep. B. J. Marsh, R-Springfield, was surprised at the overwhelming victory, saying he expected only about 90 votes in favor.

When cabin fever begins to terrorize even the most cheerful Midwesterner, tapas are the perfect excuse to socialize. This Spanish tradition is a great way to enjoy the last stretch of winter without too much planning or stress.

In recent years, tapas have exploded onto the American food scene. These small snacks, eaten between meals with wine, date back to a 13th-century Spanish king, Alfonso the Wise.

It’s not done quite yet.

Some Missouri women’s basketball fans may have been wishing for this season to come to an end after a disappointing 9-16 record.

More than half of Division I schools were caught napping in class, and it showed when report cards came out.

Now, punishments might be right around the corner.

The conservation agents’ camouflage Tuesday was flawless.

Unknown to most of the anglers at Maramec Spring Park, six undercover agents were keeping an eye on the proceedings on the opening day of trout season in Missouri.

Tonya Mirts has decided to trade in her coach’s whistle for the full-time title of mom.

Mirts resigned as the Hickman girls’ basketball coach Thursday after 11 seasons of coaching, deciding to focus her extra time on her children.

Kira Montuori loves gymnastics. She has passion, intensity and hope for its future.

As an assistant coach in her fifth season at Missouri, she uses her many strengths to help the athletes she is close to and the sport she wants to see succeed.

Bonuses for eight faculty members with MU’s entrepreneurial veterinary laboratory slid slightly from last year; however, all but one amounted to more than $100,000.

MU announced Tuesday that the researchers involved with the Research Animal Diagnostic Laboratory, known as RADIL, received bonuses totaling $1.088 million as incentives. That is about $9,500 less than was paid in fiscal year 2003, about $1.09 million, to the six researchers then with the laboratory.

Almost a year later than they had hoped, the Tigers will play in Kansas City.

Missouri will begin its 2005 season at Arrowhead Stadium, the site of last season’s Big 12 Championship. Missouri had hoped to reach that game but failed to do so following a 5-6 season.

JEFFERSON CITY — The effort to fix the formula used to distribute state funding for local schools has missed its first deadline.

Sen. Charlie Shields, R-St. Joseph, had set a controversial four-week deadline for the joint Senate-House committee assigned to the task, but a vote is not expected until the formula can be compiled into bill form, which will not happen until next week.

John and Marianne Beverstein say hard work really does pay off. The Beversteins, co-owners of Heavenly Ham at 212 E. Green Meadows Road, have found their niche in this college town, and people are taking note of their business’ success.

John, Marianne and their staff were chosen as the 2004 Restaurateur of the Year for the Columbia/mid-Missouri chapter of the Missouri Restaurant Association. They were honored Jan. 16 at the 2004 Restaurateur of the Year awards and inauguration dinner.

JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri lawmakers are reacting to what they see as a lack of protection for Missourians in the wake of the ChoicePoint Inc. scandal, which affected more than 1,500 people in Missouri and 500,000 across the country.

“The environment for consumers in Missouri has moved from ‘buyer beware’ to ‘buyer be scared,’ ” said Sen. Pat Dougherty, D-St. Louis.

Three months of hard work are coming to an end for Smithton Drama Players. “Miss Nelson is Missing,” the spring musical, premieres Thursday and continues on Friday, and Saturday at Smithton Middle School.

Pressure has mounted a little higher than normal for this year’s musical, though, as Joan Cushing, who adapted the script, lyrics and music, will make a special appearance at the performance.

ST. LOUIS — Monsanto Co. said Tuesday its fledgling holding company will buy seed-marketer NC+ Hybrids Inc. for $40 million in cash, continuing the agribusiness’ shopping spree for regional seed companies as its dominance in herbicides erodes.

St. Louis-based Monsanto said NC+ Hybrids, based in Lincoln, Neb., is the latest acquisition by its American Seeds Inc. unit, formed last year to support regional seed businesses with capital, genetics and technology investments.

The sentencing of a 20-year-old man who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and first-degree robbery in connection with the 2001 killing of Kent Heitholt was pushed back Monday to June 13.

Dressed in a black-and-white jumpsuit from the Boone County Jail, Charles Timothy Erickson sighed heavily as he waited for a brief hearing with Circuit Judge Gene Hamilton.

For the first time, Boone Hospital Center has been named as one of the nation’s top 100 hospitals by Modern Healthcare magazine.

Mike Shirk, president of Boone Hospital Center, shared the news Monday night at the hospital’s Board of Trustees meeting.

WASHINGTON — Shackled with leg irons and a belly chain, Carman L. Deck was sentenced to death by a Hillsboro jury in 2003. Two years later, the U.S. Supreme Court is considering whether Deck’s shackling violated his right to a fair trial.

JEFFERSON CITY — Gov. Matt Blunt’s plan to expand the Highways and Transportation Commission won easy initial approval in the Senate on Tuesday.

The bill would expand the commission from six to eight members. The two new members would represent air and mass transit, and river and freight transportation.