(AP) — An animal control official in Scottsbluff has reported seeing a mountain lion in the area.
Scottsbluff Animal Control Officer Jim Bornschlegl says he spotted the creature Friday morning just west of Scottsbluff in a cornfield.
Bornschlegl says the animal, which he estimated at about 90 pounds, is no threat to the community.
Bornschlegl also observed the mountain lion was not acting strange or aggressive, and was moving quickly toward the North Platte River.
BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — A Colorado man who hid in the tank of a portable toilet at a yoga festival to spy on women has been sentenced to three years in prison and 10 years of probation.
Luke Chrisco’s sentence was handed down Friday in Boulder. The 31-year-old pleaded guilty in July to attempted unlawful sexual contact and two burglary counts.
Police arrested Chrisco in 2011 after a woman at a yoga festival in Boulder noticed something moving in the tank of the portable toilet, then saw a feces-stained man emerge and run away. Police say he also was suspected of hiding in other bathrooms around Boulder to watch women use the toilet.
KUSA-TV reports (https://goo.gl/3BMSFA ) that prosecutors dropped other burglary charges and a misdemeanor count of criminal invasion as part of a plea agreement.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Omaha’s mayor says a tentative retirement agreement for Omaha’s former fire chief is off.
Mayor Jean Stothert’s office said Friday it was unable to come to an agreement with Mike McDonnell within a deadline specified in a memorandum of understanding.
Stothert said in a statement that McDonnell demanded language be added to the document that was inappropriate for inclusion.
McDonnell resigned from his longtime post Monday under a deal with Stothert that would have blocked significant cuts to the fire department over the next year.
McDonnell remains on paid administrative leave and Battalion Chief Bernard Kanger is interim chief.
A message left at the fire department was not immediately returned Friday.
Norfolk– The North Platte Bulldogs began the 2013 season with a 63-14 loss to the Norfolk Panthers in Norfolk Friday night.
The Panthers (1-0) wasted no time jumping out to an early lead with a 52-yard touchdown pass from Taylor Reedy to Blake Bauer on the seventh play of the game. Norfolk scored six touchdowns in the first quarter, including a pick six to take a commanding 42-0 lead. North Platte (0-1) scored its first touchdown late in the second quarter with a 10-yard pass from Shane Mauch to Alec Wesslund. The pass was intended for Drew Callaghan but was knocked down by the Norfolk defensive backs. Wesslund made a great play by sliding in on his knees to make the catch in the end zone. The play was set up by a 29-yard pass from Mauch to Callaghan. The Panthers led 56-6 at the half after the PAT by the Bulldogs failed due to a low snap.
The 35-point rule came in to effect to start the second half, meaning the clock ran continuously except for during timeouts, between quarters and after scores. With the time running down quickly the Panthers only had one possession in the third quarter and used it to add to their lead to make the score 63-6 after the third quarter. The Bulldogs responded by scoring seven seconds in to the fourth quarter with a 13-yard pass from Mauch to Callaghan. Mauch then connected with Dustin Horton to convert on the two-point conversion to make the final tally 63-14. The drive by North Platte was their best of the night as they marched 80 yards down the field in 12 plays.
The Bulldogs next game is Friday, September 6 against Lincoln Pius X. The game will be played at Bauer Field in Memorial Stadium at North Platte High School. It’s Parents Night for the Bulldogs and the game can be heard on ESPN Radio 1410 AM and online at northplattepost.com with Robert Lovell and Scott Carlson on the call.
DENVER (AP) — Todd Helton homered twice and matched a career high with six RBIs to power the Colorado Rockies past the Cincinnati Reds 9-6 on Friday night.
Jorge De La Rosa pitched six effective innings for his 15th win. Helton’s 28th career multihomer game and first since 2011 left him one hit shy of 2,500.
The first of his two three-run homers came in the fourth off Bronson Arroyo (13-10) roughed up for six runs and nine hits over 3 1-3 innings in his shortest outing of the season. He issued a one-out walk in the first, ending a 30-inning string without one, and had his four-game winning streak snapped.
Helton homered again in the seventh off reliever Logan Ondrusek, his 11th of the season.
MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Brock Jensen backed into the endzone for the go-ahead touchdown with 28 seconds left, and North Dakota State upset defending Big 12 champion Kansas State 24-21 Friday night.
The senior quarterback led the Bison on an 18-play, 80-yard march that ate up 8½ minutes, helping them convert four third downs along the way, and left the Wildcats with virtually no time left to set up a tying field-goal try.
Jensen threw for 165 yards and two touchdowns for Bison, the two-time defending FCS national champions who have beaten Colorado State, Minnesota and Kansas in the last three years.
Jake Waters threw for 280 yards and two touchdowns for the Wildcats, who built a 21-7 lead by the third quarter before everything fell apart. Waters was picked off twice, including a desperation heave after the Bison had taken the lead to wrap up the biggest win in North Dakota State history.
TORONTO (AP) — Mark Buehrle pitched seven shutout innings to win his sixth straight decision and the Toronto Blue Jays beat Kansas City 3-2 on Friday night, ending the Royals’ winning streak at five games.
Adam Lind drove in two runs for the Blue Jays, who have won 10 of 14 meetings with Kansas City dating to 2011.
The Royals, who came in six games behind Oakland for the second AL wild-card berth, lost for the first time since Aug. 24 against Washington, the final defeat in a seven-game skid.
Buehrle (11-7) allowed four hits, walked one and struck out five to match his longest winning streak since 2005, when he won a career-best nine consecutive decisions. The left-hander is 6-0 with a 1.93 ERA in his past eight outings. He’s gone 8-2 with a 2.72 ERA in 14 home starts this season.
The North Platte Community College Lady Knights (5-1) traveled to Colby, Kan. this weekend to play in the Colby Classic. In their opening game of the Classic the Lady Knights fell to the Highland Community College Lady Scotties (25-19, 23-25, 26-28, 22-25) in four sets.
In the opening set the Lady Knights stormed out to a 25-19 victory. The Lady Scotties responded by winning a hard fought second set 23-25. The third set was another hard fought battle as the Lady Scotties again pulled it out 26-28. The Lady Scotties closed out the Lady Knights in the fourth set 22-25.
Samantha Kennedy led the Lady Knights with 18 kills and three blocks. Sabrina Hallahan was also in double figure kills with 12 kills. Joli Hopping had 23 assists and two ace serves to lead the Lady Knights. Laura Beckman had 20 assists. Shannon Liewer led the way with 28 digs.
“We started out good,” said head coach Sally Thalken “but when Highland (Community College) amped things up we got flat. We didn’t communicate and began to question ourselves. We gave up too many leads and just didn’t respond when the door was open for us. It will be another tough day tomorrow as Colby (Community College) is playing well and Trinidad State (Junior College) is a good team too.”
The Lady Knights return to the court at 10 a.m. tomorrow to face the host Colby Community College. The tournament is concluded for the Lady Knights as they take on Trinidad State Community College at 12 p.m.
DENVER (AP) — Colorado Rockies reliever Rafael Betancourt has decided to have Tommy John surgery to repair a torn ligament in his pitching elbow.
Rockies manager Walt Weiss said Friday that the 38-year-old Betancourt wants to pitch again, so this is probably the best course of action.
Betancourt was injured a week ago while attempting to close out a game against Philadelphia. An MRI confirmed he had torn his ulnar collateral ligament, and he was placed on the 15-day disabled list.
Initially, Betancourt considered undergoing platelet-rich plasma therapy, followed by a rehab program. But he changed his mind, deciding he should get the damaged ligament repaired to give him the best chance to resume his career. He is likely to be sidelined for at least a year.
St. Louis, Mo. – The No. 10 Nebraska volleyball team opened the 2013 season with a 3-0 (25-11, 25-21, 25-4) sweep of Louisiana-Monroe at the Marcia E. Hamilton Classic, hosted by Saint Louis University on Friday.
Amber Rolfzen led the Huskers with eight kills, while Cecilia Hall and Kelsey Robinson both chipped in seven kills. Justine Wong-Orantes guided NU defensively with 15 digs. Robinson also tallied 11 digs and five aces for the match. Mary Pollmiller and Kelly Hunter paced the Husker offense at setter, as each had 14 assists. Nebraska hit .222 for the match, while Louisiana-Monroe was held to a -.132 hitting clip.
The Huskers opened the first set with a 6-1 lead on a block, followed by a kill by Meghan Haggerty. Nebraska then took a 13-5 lead as the Warhawks committed a hitting error and were forced to call a timeout. Hall came through for the Huskers in the first set, using a kill to make it 19-7, NU. The Huskers would hold on to take the first set 25-11 over the ULM.
Amber Rolfzen led NU in the first set with four kills, while Hall had three of her own. The Huskers hit .333 as a team, while Wong-Orantes led the team defensively with six digs. Nebraska held Louisiana-Monroe to a -.143 hitting percentage.
Hall came out strong in the second set, with a huge shot to give NU an early lead. The Warhawks then came alive in the second set, taking an 11-8 lead before Nebraska called a timeout. The Huskers came back to take a 21-18 lead on an ace by Hunter. Hunter and Broekhuis then connected up to give NU a 23-20 advantage. Nebraska went on to win the second set 25-21.
Hall and Broekhuis each had three kills in the second set. Both teams struggled offensively as the Huskers hit .000 and ULM hit -.029. NU out-dug the Warhawks 18-12 for the set.
Nebraska opened the third set on an 8-0 run, aided by three aces from Robinson. Amber Rolfzen and Haggerty teamed up for a double-block to give NU an 11-2 lead that catapulted Nebraska on 10-0 run to close out the third set at 25-4.
Kelsey Robinson had five kills in the third set, while Amber Rolfzen tallied four. The Huskers hit .407 for the set, holding ULM to a -.250 clip. Nebraska out-dug the Warhawks 20-11.
The Huskers return to action tomorrow as they face Auburn at 10 a.m., and will take on Saint Louis at 7 p.m. to close out the Marcia E. Hamilton Classic.
