The North Platte First Nationals juniors fell short of the championship game in the A-7 district tournament. They lost to Kearney 6-2 last night at Bill Wood Field, ending their season. The game was tied at 1-1 in the fourth when Kearney rallied for three runs to take the lead for good. The visitors would tack on two more runs in the fifth to extend the lead, and the First Nationals could only muster a single run in response the rest of the way. Kearney’s victory sets them up for a championship showdown with Hastings this afternoon at Bill Wood Field. The game gets underway at 3 PM. If Hastings wins, they’re the champs, but if Kearney wins, the two teams play again immediately following the conclusion of the first game to determine a champion. The First Nationals juniors season ends with a record of 23-26.

Jonathan Sanchez’s Rockies debut went as smoothly as could have been expected – which is to say, not at all. Sanchez was torched for five runs in four innings as the Rockies fell to the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-3 in Arizona last night. The big blow off the Rockies’ newest pitching acquisition was a two-out three-run triple by D-Backs hurler Ian Kennedy in the fourth inning. Sanchez, who came to the Rockies in a trade with Kansas City for fellow disappointment Jeremy Guthrie last week, allowed six hits and walked four batters. The Rockies’ big highlight came in the fifth inning when Josh Rutledge hit his first career home run, a solo blast off Kennedy. The Rockies and Diamondbacks play game two of their three-game series tonight at Chase Field. ESPN Radio 1410 has all the action, with pregame coverage at 8:05 and first pitch at 8:40.

Lincoln – Nebraska second baseman Pat Kelly was recently named a second-team freshman All-American by Perfect Game, the fourth freshman All-America honor that Kelly has received for his success during the 2012 season. The Red Wing, Minn., native was previously named a freshman All-American by Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. Kelly is the first Husker freshmen to be named to four All-America teams following their first season at Nebraska. Previously, Matt Hopper collected the most awards following a freshman season with three in 2000, when he was honored by Collegiate Baseball, Baseball America and Baseball Weekly.

Overall, the Huskers have picked up six national honors following the 2012 season, as freshman pitcher Kyle Kubat was also named a freshmen All-American by Collegiate Baseball and designated hitter Michael Prichard was a named a third-team All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.

Kelly made a quick transition to college pitching and was one of the Huskers’ top offensive threats with a .313 average, eight home runs and 37 RBI’s in 41 starts. He was twice named Big Ten Freshman of the Week and was a third-team All-Big Ten selection.

Kelly was third on the team with a .521 slugging percentage and his eight home runs were the most homers by a freshman at Nebraska who played at Haymarket Park. They were also the most homers by a Husker freshman since 2000, when Hopper hit 21 at Buck Beltzer Stadium. Kelly hit throughout the Husker lineup and produced 16 extra-base hits, including six doubles and two triples in addition to his eight home runs.

Kelly came up with clutch hits all season for NU, as he hit .367 with runners on base and .364 with runners in scoring position. He had 11 multi-hit games on the year, including a pair of four-hit games. He drove in at least two runs 11 times, including a career-high five RBI’s against Penn State at the Big Ten Tournament in a 12-3 win over the Nittany Lions.

This summer Kelly is playing for the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters in the Northwoods League and leads the team with a .333 batter average and 29 RBI. He was recently named to the Northwoods League All-Star Game along with fellow Husker and Eau Claire Express third baseman Josh Scheffert.

–Jeremy Foote, Nebraska Sports Information

Nebraska baseball players Pat Kelly and Josh Scheffert will both represent the South Division in the Northwoods League All-Star Game on Tuesday, July 24 at Warner Park in Madison, Wis, with first pitch scheduled for 7:35 p.m. (CT). Nebraska is one of eight programs that will be represented by two players in the game, joining Long Beach State, Kansas, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Florida, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Florida Gulf Coast.

Tabbed as a Freshman All-American by multiple publications following the 2012 season, Kelly has been one of the top hitters for the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters. The Red Wing, Minn., native ranks in the top 20 in the league in batting average (.333), while producing 64 hits, including nine doubles, two triples and two home runs.

Scheffert has led the Eau Claire Express in hits entering the all-star game with 58 on the year, including 10 doubles, two triples and four home runs. The Lincoln native has 16-multi hit games in his third year with the Express.

— Jeremy Foote, Nebraska Sports Information

Big Ten Council of Presidents and Chancellors Statement on Penn State

 

We must begin first and foremost, by again expressing our great sorrow for all of those whose lives have been so grievously harmed by the series of failures at Penn State University, particularly the lives of the young victims and their families.

 

Since November 2011, when the underlying indictments were first announced, the Big Ten Conference Council of Presidents and Chancellors (COPC) committed to a prudent, thoughtful and patient review of the various investigative and adjudicatory processes associated with allegations at Penn State University involving Jerry Sandusky, Joe Paterno, Tim Curley, Gary Schultz and Graham Spanier.  In December 2011, Big Ten legal counsel, along with NCAA counsel, engaged in the independent investigation undertaken by Louis Freeh and his law firm, Freeh, Sporkin, & Sullivan, LLP.  At that time, the COPC reserved the right to impose sanctions, corrective or other disciplinary measures in this matter in the event that adverse findings were made in the areas of institutional control, ethical conduct and/or other Conference related matters.  The COPC also directed the Conference, at that time, to initiate an immediate review of the fundamental issues and systems affecting intercollegiate athletics, including those related to institutional control.

 

Today, we have read the NCAA release on Penn State University.  We note in the release, and have independently confirmed, that Penn State has accepted the factual findings in the July 12, 2012 Report of the Special Investigative Counsel prepared by Louis Freeh and his firm (the Freeh Report).  Based on the findings, as accepted by Penn State, we fully support the actions taken by the NCAA.  Further, following a thorough review of the Freeh Report, the COPC has voted to impose the following additional sanctions on Penn State, effective immediately:

 

1.       Censure:  The accepted findings support the conclusion that our colleagues at Penn State, individuals that we have known and with whom we have worked for many years, have egregiously failed on many levels—morally, ethically and potentially criminally.  They have failed their great university, their faculty and staff, their students and alumni, their community and state—and they have failed their fellow member institutions in the Big Ten Conference.  For these failures, committed at the highest level of the institution, we hereby condemn this conduct and officially censure Penn State.

 

2.       Probation:  The Big Ten Conference will be a party to the Athletic Integrity Agreement referenced in the NCAA release, and will work closely with the NCAA and Penn State to ensure complete compliance with its provisions over the 5 year term of the Agreement.

 

3.       Ineligibility:  As referenced in the NCAA release, Penn State’s football team will be ineligible for postseason bowl games.  It will also be ineligible for Big Ten Conference Championship Games for four years, a period of time that runs concurrently with the NCAA postseason bowl ban imposed this morning.

 

4.       Fine:  Because Penn State will be ineligible for bowl games for the next four years, it will therefore be ineligible to receive its share of Big Ten Conference bowl revenues over those same four years.  That money, estimated to be approximately $13 million, will be donated to established charitable organizations in Big Ten communities dedicated to the protection of children.

 

Penn State University is a great institution and has been a valued member of the Big Ten Conference for more than 20 years.  Since early November 2011, it has been working very hard to right a terrible wrong.   There is more to be done.  The intent of the sanctions imposed today is not to destroy a great university, but rather to seek justice and constructively assist a member institution with its efforts to reform.  From this day forward, as Penn State continues to make amends, the Big Ten conference and its member institutions will continue to engage with them in every aspect of conference membership.

 

As a result of the Conference review of issues and systems affecting intercollegiate athletics initiated in December 2011, we recognize that what occurred at Penn State University is a consequence of the concentration of power that can result from a successful athletic program and the failure of institutional leadership to maintain institutional control.  We further recognize our own responsibility to insure, within the context of our own institutions, sufficient control and responsibility over our athletic programs.  Our review has led to a document entitledStandards and Procedures for Safeguarding Institutional Control of Intercollegiate Athletics that is not yet final, but on schedule to be adopted by the COPC and implemented in the 2012/13 academic year under the auspices and oversight of the COPC.