August 2012 – Page 2 – North Platte Post Archive

Thursday Sports Wrap – Roddick to Retire From Tennis

Posted on August 31, 2012

Gamecocks survive scare

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – The first ranked football team to take the field this season was almost the first upset victim.

Marcus Lattimore scored what proved to be the game-winning touchdown on a 1-yard run with 11:25 left in the fourth quarter as No. 9 South Carolina rallied to beat Vanderbilt 17-13 on opening night in Nashville.

Lattimore scored a TD earlier in the game and finished with 110 yards rushing, helping Gamecocks coach Steve Spurrier improve to 23-1 in season openers.

South Carolina quarterback Connor Shaw shrugged off a banged up throwing shoulder to lead the winning drive. The junior ran for 92 yards.

The Gamecocks have high expectations after going 11-2 last season and finishing second in the Southeastern Conference’s Eastern Division.

Issac’s aftermath leaves mixed results…BYU ruins Leach’s return to coaching

UNDATED (AP) – Thursday night’s scheduled college football game between Texas A&M and Louisiana Tech was postponed in the wake of Isaac’s dousing of Shreveport. But Saturday’s game involving Rutgers and Tulane will take place as scheduled in New Orleans, only days after the storm swept across the area with hurricane force winds.

The decision to play comes after inspections show the Superdome survived the storm with only superficial damage.

In other college football news:

— BYU ruined Mike Leach’s first game as Washington State coach. BYU held Washington State to four yards rushing in the first half and coasted to a 30-6 win over Leach’s Cougars at Provo. Leach was out of coaching briefly following nearly a 10-year run at Texas Tech. Riley Nelson tossed a pair of TD passes for BYU. He is 8-1 as a starting quarterback.

– New Big East Commissioner Mike Aresco says the conference wants to add a 14th member for football, and is planning to have a championship game after next season. Aresco declined to say which teams the Big East is pursuing. The Big East, which lost West Virginia to the Big 12, and will lose Syracuse and Pitt to the ACC next season, will span four time zones starting next season with the addition of programs such as Boise State.

– Notre Dame radio analyst Allen Pinkett has been pulled off the broadcast of Saturday’s season opener against Navy in Dublin, Ireland. It follows comments made on a Chicago radio station earlier this week that in order to win, the Irish need “a few bad citizens” on their team. Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick called Pinkett’s comments “nonsense.”

Red-hot Harper helps Nats expand lead…Angels sweep the Sox…Giatns lead by 4 and a-half games

UNDATED (AP) — Washington’s 19-year-old phenom rookie Bryce Harper hit a two-run homer — his third in two nights — and drove in three runs in leading the first-place Nationals over the defending World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals 8-1. It was Harper’s 15th homer. Jayson Werth also went deep for the Nats.

Edwin Jackson, the Nats’ No. 4 starter, held the Cardinals to one run on four hits in his eight innings. Michael Gonzalez finished up the four-hitter.

The win moved the Nats five and a-half games ahead of idle Atlanta in the NL East.

In the rest of the NL:

–Hunter Pence is killing his former team. Pence hit a go-ahead two-run single in the seventh inning and the San Francisco Giants rallied again for an 8-4 win over the Astros. On Wednesday, he hit a three-run homer in the Giants’ victory over Houston.

– The Giants now lead the Dodgers by four and a-half games in the NL West. That’s because Arizona blanked L.A. 2-0 for the Diamondbacks’ seventh straight win over the Dodgers. Ian Kennedy outpitched Clayton Kershaw for the win. Chris Young’s two-run homer was all the scoring.

– The Phillies avoid a three-game sweep by slipping past the visiting New York Mets 3-2. Kyle Kendrick allowed solo homers in the first two innings to Mike Baxter and Scott Hairston, but did not permit another run before leaving with two outs in the eighth. Jonathan Papelbon tossed a scoreless ninth for his 30th save. Philadelphia manager Charlie Manuel benched star shortstop Jimmy Rollins after a pair of baserunning blunders in the sixth inning.

– Jonathan Lucroy hit a grand slam and drove in seven runs for Milwaukee, but it wasn’t enough as the Cubs came back with three runs in the ninth inning to beat the Brewers 12-11. Alfonso Soriano’s RBI single capped the big, three-run ninth. In a seesaw game featuring a combined 15 extra-base hits, the Cubs led 3-0, trailed 9-3 and were still down 11-9 going into the ninth.

Over in the AL:

– Zack Greinke yielded five hits over seven strong innings, Albert Pujols hit an early two-run double and the Los Angeles Angels swept their season series with Boston for the first time with a 5-2 victory over the Red Sox. The Angels have won seven of nine to stay in the midst of the AL wild card race.

– Carlos Villanueva pitched six sharp innings and the Toronto Blue Jays beat slumping Tampa Bay 2-0 on Thursday night, snapping a five-game losing streak against the Rays. Tampa Bay lost for the fifth time in six games and dropped 1-1/2 games behind Baltimore for the second AL wild-card berth.

– The Baltimore Orioles completed a 5-1 homestand with a 5-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox. Taylor Teagarden and Adam Jones went deep for the Birds while Zach Britton was striking out a career-high 10 batters to earn his fourth win in five decisions this season. The O’s eighth win in 11 games moves them within three games of the idle Yankees in the AL East race. Baltimore opens a three-game series in New York on Friday night.

– The Athletics pounded four home runs in a 12-7 victory at Cleveland. The Athletics’ sixth straight win keeps them a full game ahead of Baltimore for the league’s first wild card. The Indians have lost five straight, 14 of 15 and are 1-6 since owner Paul Dolan said he had no immediate plans to fire second-year skipper Manny Acta.

– Seattle got past Minnesota 5-4.Trayvon Robinson had a pair of RBIs for the winners while Josh Willingham belted his 33rd home run in a losing cause. The M’s took three four in the series.

— Alex Gordon homered to lead the Kansas City Royals over the Detroit Tigers 2-1 for a three-game sweep.

Nats skipper says Strasburg shutdown imminent

WASHINGTON (AP) – Washington Nationals manager Davey Johnson says Stephen Strasburg has “probably” two or three starts remaining before the ace is shut down for the season. Johnson says he delivered the news to Strasburg on the plane ride home from Wednesday’s win over the Miami Marlins.

Johnson says he has a “pretty firm plan” to shut down Strasburg after about 160 innings or so.

Strasburg is 15-6 and has thrown 150 1-3 innings. His next start is supposed to be Sunday against St. Louis.

Venus loses in second round…Federer rolls

NEW YORK (AP) – Venus Williams is done at the U.S. Open. The two-time U.S. Open champion dropped five of her last six games and ended up losing to sixth-seed Angelique Kerber of Germany 6-2, 5-7, 7-5 in a second round match that lasted nearly three hours.

In the other women’s action, former top-ranked players Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic advanced to round three with straight-set victories. Ivanovic is seeded 12th. Jankovic is No. 30.

Serena Williams, another former No. 1, beat Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez in straight sets in the second round. The 14-time Grand Slam champion won 6-2, 6-4. Williams overcame six double-faults and 24 unforced errors.

On the men’s side, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is the highest-seeded player to be bounced from the first week of this year’s U.S. Open. The fifth-seeded Frenchman lost to 52nd-ranked Martin Klizan of Slovakia 6-4, 1-6, 6-1, 6-3 in second-round play.

Before Tsonga’s loss, top-five seeds on the men’s and women’s sides had played 14 matches – and won all 14 in straight sets.

This year’s Open has generated plenty of drama in one area: comebacks from two sets down. American Mardy Fish rallied to beat Nikolay Davydenko 4-6, 6-7, 6-2, 6-1, 6-2, the 10th time in this tournament a man had won after losing the first two sets – already an Open record.

Top-seeded Roger Federer used a second-round victory in the U.S. Open to work on his net game, winning 32 points from the front of the court in a 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 victory over Bjorn Phau of Germany. Federer finished with 15 aces in a 90-minute victory over his 83rd-ranked opponent.

Surprise announcement from Roddick

NEW YORK (AP) -Former world No. 1 Andy Roddick says the U.S. Open will be the last tournament of his career. The 2003 U.S. Open champion announced his plans to retire at a news conference on his 30th birthday.

The 20th-seeded Roddick is scheduled to play Bernard Tomic in the second round Friday night at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

The American’s surprising decision to walk away from the sport comes a day after four-time major champion Kim Clijsters played the last singles match of her career, a second-round loss to Laura Robson at Flushing Meadows.

Bengals starting QB goes down…Bills owner in hospital

UNDATED (AP) – Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton left on the Bengals’ first series Thursday night with a bruised right arm, but the injury was not deemed to be serious. Dalton was hit by Robert Mathis and others on the Bengals’ sixth offensive play. Bruce Gradkowski replaced Dalton.

In other NFL news:

– The Buffalo Bills have announced that owner Ralph Wilson has been taken to a hospital and is listed in good condition. Club spokesman Scott Berchtold was unable provide further information or where Wilson was hospitalized. The 93-year-old Hall of Fame owner usually spends his summers at his home in suburban Detroit.

– The NFL moved to try to shut down lawsuits filed by thousands of former players who say they suffered or fear suffering permanent brain injuries from football-related concussions. The NFL is calling the issue a “labor dispute” that should be resolved not by courts but by terms of the collective bargaining agreement.

AMERICAN LEAGUE
Oakland 12 Cleveland 7
Baltimore 5 Chi White Sox 3
Seattle 5 Minnesota 4
Toronto 2 Tampa Bay 0
Kansas City 2 Detroit 1
L.A. Angels 5 Boston 2

NATIONAL LEAGUE
Philadelphia 3 N-Y Mets 2
Chi Cubs 12 Milwaukee 11
Washington 8 St. Louis 1
San Francisco 8 Houston 4
Arizona 2 L.A. Dodgers 0

NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE PRESEASON
Jacksonville 24 Atlanta 14
Philadelphia 28 N-Y Jets 10
St. Louis 31 Baltimore 17
Detroit 38 Buffalo 32
Pittsburgh 17 Carolina 16
Indianapolis 20 Cincinnati 16
Green Bay 24 Kansas City 3
Houston 28 Minnesota 24
Tennessee 10 New Orleans 6
Chicago 28 Cleveland 20
Seattle 21 Oakland 3
San Francisco 35 San Diego 3
Denver 16 Arizona 13

TOP-25 COLLEGE FOOTBALL
( 9) South Carolina 17 Vanderbilt 13

California Based Web Op Challenging Nebraska Law

Posted on August 31, 2012

A California-based website operator has sued the state of Nebraska over its requirement that she get a Nebraska license in order to market Nebraska homes.

Leslie Young’s federal lawsuit says the Nebraska law violates her First Amendment rights. The lawsuit was filed Thursday in U.S District Court in Lincoln. She seeks an order that would stop the state from enforcing the law.

Her Elist.me website carries advertising for properties listed on ForSaleByOwner.com.

Young says she is merely publishing information about the listings and doesn’t get a commission if a home sells and doesn’t provide other services to homeowners.

Nebraska Real Estate Commission Director Greg Lemon declined to specifically comment about Young’s lawsuit.

New Car Wash Is The Talk Of The Town

Posted on August 31, 2012

NORTH PLATTE, Neb.-The buzz around North Platte that had cars lining up and people talking was the opening of the Super Suds Car Wash on Leota Street. Super Suds Car Wash was giving free car washes to all that came, when asked how many car washes were given away the owner Gary Jones answered with several hundred, as the line of vehicles grew ever longer.

Many had a test try of the new car wash that features three levels of wash:

Super Wash
Super Gold Wash
Super “Plattenum”

With a Club Membership you get a club pass where you put an FDRI Chip in your wind-shield allowing you to pull into the club membership lane, where the antenna reads the chip and opens the gate and starts the system, making a faster hassle free car wash experience.

After your car wash you a free to vacuum your vehicle and clean out trash complementary with your car wash at one of the many vacuum stations available at the car wash.

This is something North Platte has been lacking, Gary Jones owner of Modern Muffler mentioned he wanted to open a car wash for over 15 years but the opportunity was never better than now.

Construction of the car wash started June 1^st with one very attention getting billboard the construction is done and they are ready to clean your car!

DAWES COUNTY FIRES BURN NEARLY 69,000 ACRES (UPDATE)

Posted on August 31, 2012August 31, 2012

Via Eagle Communications owned Double Q Country Radio in Alliance –

Update: 9:53 -Firefighters battling a large blaze in northwest Nebraska will get some assistance from the federal government.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency approved a federal firefighting grant for the state on Thursday afternoon. Wildfires sparked by lightning have burned nearly 107 square miles in the area in Sioux, Dawes and Sheridan counties in the Panhandle.

One fire is raging just south of the city of Chadron. The fires have burned both grassland and forest areas, including some of the Nebraska National Forest.

The federal grant provides funding on a cost-share basis for certain costs incurred by firefighting agencies. FEMA does not provide actual firefighting equipment or personnel.

___

Three separate fires have forced the evacuation of hundreds of residents, campers, and visitors to Dawes, Sioux, and Sheridan counties.

Two fires, being treated as the Region 23 Complex, have nearly tripled in size Thursday, scorching 68,689 acres. The fires are listed at 10 percent contained Thursday night.

The West Ash fire, south of Chadron, is the larger of the two fires, and has burned 44,354 acres, while the Doutfit Fire, northwest of Crawford, has burned 24,335 acres.

Additional road closures were ordered Thursday night, including Highway 20 west of Fort Robinson. Sand Creek, and Cottonwood Roads were also closed, and sections of Table Road near Willow Creek were also closed.

Those fires have forced the evacuation of 102 residents, and 152 individuals, as well as Chadron State Park and the Pine Ridge Job Corp.

The third fire, in northwestern Sheridan County, was also burning fast Thursday, and prompted evacuations of the Metcalf Wildlife Management Area. The number of acres burned there was unavailable.

Lieutenant Governor Rich Sheehy, along with members of the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency, will tour all three fires Friday. Sheehy will attend a public meeting scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Friday night at the Crawford Community Center. The meeting will address current fire conditions, evacuations, road closures and progress made on the fires.

Fire officials have confirmed that some structures have been destroyed, but declined to give an exact number. They also said some of the structures were outbuildings, but again declined to say whether any homes were consumed by the blaze.

The fire forced Chadron State College and Chadron Public schools to call off classes both Thursday and Friday. Other schools postponed or cancelled sporting events.

Smoke from the fires was heavy throughout western Nebraska and eastern Wyoming, reducing visibilities to less than a quarter-mile at times. The smoke even forced sporting event cancellations as far south as Scottsbluff, and moved practices indoors for the afternoon.

One woman, 64-year-old Ronni Davis, died Wednesday night during fire evacuations. Dawes County Attorney Vance Haug said that a neighbor called 911 just after 10:15 p.m. after finding Davis was having difficulty breathing. Davis was transported to Chadron Community Hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Haug said preliminary investigation indicates that Davis likely died of natural causes resulting from a cardio-pulmonary event.

Highway 385 re-opened to two-lane traffic Thursday night, after being reduced to a single-lane with pilot car all day.

Evacuations have been issued for the area west of the West Ash Fire, including Table Road east to Highway 385, Country Club Road and Old Country Club Road east to Highway 385, and Deadhorse Road north to Highway 20.

Pre-evacuation orders have been issued to residents on the east of Highway 385. Pre-evacuation orders mean residents are requested to be ready to evacuate the area on short notice.

The Douthit Fire evacuations include The Hudson Ming Bison Kill research and visitors center, and areas between Sand Creek Road and Rim Rock Rock.

The Sheridan County fire forced the Sheridan County Sheriff’s Office to evacuate southern and western portions of Metcalf State Wildlife Management Area, including residents as far west as Beaver Wall Road.

Authorities reported the wildfire was progressing westward in the Metcalf State Wildlife Management Area, and the evacuation order will remain in effect until further notice.

All three fires were caused by lightning Tuesday afternoon.

U.S. Drought Monitor’s Show Nebraska Is Still Pretty Dry…

Posted on August 31, 2012

The U.S. Drought Monitor’s most recent map shows nearly all of Nebraska remains in extreme or exceptional drought.

The latest map, released Thursday, shows slightly more than 97 percent of the state in extreme drought, a slight decrease from last week’s 98.30 percent in extreme drought.

However, the map shows exceptional drought expanded slightly in Nebraska over the last week, from 22.53 percent of the state to 23.33 percent as of Tuesday morning.

Nebraska is missing out on the rain brought by Hurricane Isaac, which made landfall Monday on the Gulf Coast and is crawling north and east. The system brought heavy rains to drought-parched Arkansas on Thursday, and could move into Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Ohio as early as Friday, dumping as much as 12 inches of rain.

Kansas Woman Pleads No Contest Over Grand-Island Crash Case

Posted on August 31, 2012

A 34-year-old Kansas woman is scheduled to be sentenced in October for vehicular homicide in south-central Nebraska’s Hall County.

Kathy Teichmeier, of Almena, Kan., pleaded no contest on Tuesday. In return prosecutors dropped a charge of driving on a suspended license.

The charges stemmed from a June 25 collision between Teichmeier’s vehicle and two motorcycles on Interstate 80 near Grand Island.

Officials say Teichmeier was driving east when she tried to make a U-turn. The Hall County Sheriff’s Office says Teichmeier’s vehicle clipped the rear wheel of a motorcycle driven by C. Lloyd Hermanson. He avoided crashing. But the motorcycle driven by his wife, 58-year-old Nancy Hermanson, crashed into Teichmeier’s vehicle. She died at a hospital.

Teichmeier’s sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 11.

Woman Breaks 10-Bones Of Her 4-Month Old Baby

Posted on August 31, 2012August 31, 2012

A Lincoln woman has been sentenced to two to four years in prison for beating her infant son.

Twenty-two-year-old Nicole Westwood was found guilty of child abuse earlier this year for breaking as many as 10 bones of her then 4-month son.

She was sentenced on Thursday in Lancaster County District Court.

Westwood’s defense attorney requested probation or to let her serve the time in a county jail. The judge, siding with the prosecution, denied probation and sent her to prison.

The boy, who has recovered, and his older sister were placed in protective custody.

Omaha Woman Loses Control Of Bike In Fatal Accident

Posted on August 31, 2012

Police say a motorcyclist is dead after losing control of her bike and crashing it into a car in northwest Omaha.

Police say the crash happened Thursday morning on Military Avenue. Investigators say Stacy Hauser, of Omaha, was driving a motorcycle eastbound on the road when she had problems negotiating a curve and drove into oncoming traffic. An oncoming car swerved to try to avoid Hauser, but couldn’t.

Police say Hauser was thrown into the car’s windshield, then to the ground. She was taken to Creighton Medical Center, where she died, despite wearing a helmet and other safety equipment.

Hauser had turned 33 on Wednesday.

Police say the driver of the car was not at fault and no charges are expected.

Woman Dies Of Heart Attack During Evacuation

Posted on August 31, 2012

Authorities say a 64-year-old woman died of an apparent heart attack during a wildfire evacuation south of Chadron in northwest Nebraska.

The Dawes County attorney’s office says Ronni Davis died Wednesday night. Officials say a neighbor discovered Davis having difficulty breathing while checking on her during the evacuation. Emergency crews took her to a hospital, where she died.

The wildfire is one of two raging in Dawes County. The other is burning between Harrison and Crawford.

Authorities have evacuated about 150 residents. Chadron State College and the local school district canceled classes on Thursday and Friday.

Both fires were started by lightning from a Tuesday afternoon thunderstorm.

You Can Watch Nebraska-Lincoln Chancellor Talk Live On 9/11

Posted on August 31, 2012

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chancellor Harvey Perlman has scheduled his 13th State of the University speech.

This year’s version is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. on Sept. 11 at the Lied Center for Performing Arts.

The speech usually includes university priorities for the upcoming year and recounts what the chancellor sees as major accomplishments during the previous academic year.

The address will be streamed live on the Internet at www.unl.edu and televised on NebSat 105, Campus Channel 4, Lincoln Cable Channel 21 and broadcast on KRNU Radio.