LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Tim Miles has received a 21-percent raise that makes him the first Nebraska basketball coach to be paid $2 million a year.
The school released Miles’ new salary on Wednesday, a day after he received a one-year contract extension through the 2019-20 season. Miles was paid $1.65 million in 2014-15.
Miles’ pay bump comes after the Cornhuskers slipped to 13-18 last season and lost their final nine games. They had finished fourth in the Big Ten in 2013-14 and went to the NCAA tournament.
Senior associate athletic director and chief financial officer John Jentz wrote in an email to The Associated Press that though Miles received a significant raise, “be aware there are other financial terms that may be adjusted in the final contract to round out the full scope.”
Rachel Theriot will lead Nebraska against NC State in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. (Photo Courtesy Nate Olsen/NU Media Relations)
Lincoln – Nebraska will welcome a North Carolina school to Pinnacle Bank Arena for the second straight season, when the Huskers take on North Carolina State on Thursday, Dec. 3, in the 2015 Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
The Huskers, who defeated No. 9 Duke, 60-54 in Lincoln on Dec. 3, 2014 in the annual challenge, will play host to the Wolfpack exactly one year after beating the Blue Devils in the series between two of the nation’s best women’s basketball conferences.
“We’re excited about adding another quality opponent to our home schedule this season,” Nebraska Coach Connie Yori said. “We know that NC State is a great basketball school with outstanding tradition. I think it is a matchup that our fans and our players will be excited about.”
It will mark the third consecutive season that Nebraska has faced a North Carolina school as part of the challenge, after losing at North Carolina, 75-62, on Dec. 4, 2013.
Nebraska’s clash with NC State gives the Huskers marquee non-conference home contests in back-to-back games, joining a Sunday, Dec. 6 battle with Creighton.
The young Huskers will expect to have their hands full with a Wolfpack team that returns four starters from last year’s squad that finished 18-15 overall and 7-9 in the ACC. NC State advanced to the third round of the Postseason WNIT, ending its season with an 80-79 loss at Temple on March 26. It was one of 11 losses by single digits for the Wolfpack last season, including a pair of one-point losses and an overtime setback late in the season.
NC State returns its top two scorers, Miah Spencer (14.0 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 3.2 apg) and Dominique Wilson (13.8 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.2 apg) from last year’s team, along with fellow starters Carlee Schumacher (7.9 ppg, 4.7 rpg) and Jennifer Mathurin (7.3 ppg, 5.4 rpg). Spencer and Wilson, both 5-8 guards, will be juniors this season along with the 6-1 Mathurin. Schumacher, a 6-1 forward, will be one of three seniors on NC State’s roster.
Two years ago, the Wolfpack joined the Huskers in the four-team NCAA first- and second-round games at UCLA. The 2014 Big Ten Tournament champion Huskers ran to a win over Fresno State, while NC State suffered a setback to eventual Sweet 16 qualifier BYU. NC State finished with a 25-8 overall record in Wes Moore’s first season as head coach of the Wolfpack.
Nebraska Coach Connie Yori and the Huskers had a more direct meeting with Moore in the 2013 NCAA Tournament. Moore, who spent 15 seasons as the head coach at Chattanooga, led his Mocs into a first-round NCAA Tournament game against Nebraska at College Station, Texas. The Huskers handed the SoCon regular-season and tournament champion Mocs a 73-59 loss at Reed Arena on March 23, 2013, before knocking off the hosts from Texas A&M to advance to the 2013 NCAA Sweet 16. Moore’s final Chattanooga team finished with a 29-4 overall record.
Point guard Rachel Theriot, who missed Nebraska’s final 11 games of 2014-15 with an ankle injury, is expected to be NU’s lone returning starter in 2015-16. The 2014 All-American and Big Ten Tournament MVP averaged 16.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists through Nebraska’s first 21 games last season. The Huskers were 17-4 with Theriot in the lineup before finishing with a 21-11 record and a first-round NCAA Tournament loss to ACC member Syracuse.
Theriot is expected to be joined by two-time Nebraska Gatorade Player-of-the-Year Jess Shepard. The 6-4 forward from Fremont is also returning from injury, but was the No. 1 post player and No. 3 overall recruit in the nation according to ESPN last year. She suffered an ACL tear on Dec. 29.
Sophomore Natalie Romeo, who averaged 9.0 points and 2.5 rebounds as a part-time starter last year, also will return for the Huskers. Romeo averaged 15.4 points per game over the final eight games as a true freshman, including a career-high 26 points and a school-record seven three-pointers in a win over Illinois in the Big Ten Tournament on March 5.
The Big Ten/ACC Challenge matchup between Nebraska and NC State at Pinnacle Bank Arena will mark the first-ever meeting between the two schools on a home court. Nebraska a 2-1 series advantage over the Wolfpack, with all three meetings coming on neutral courts. The last time Nebraska face NC State, the Huskers rolled to a 94-74 win on Dec. 28, 2006 in the opening round of the State Farm Classic in Gainesville, Fla. NC State and legendary coach Kay Yow had defeated Nebraska, 55-45, two years earlier at the Paradise Jam in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, on Nov. 26, 2004.
The first meeting between the two schools dates all the way back to March 19, 1976, at the National Women’s Invitational Tournament in Amarillo, Texas, when the Huskers beat the Wolfpack, 72-69.
2015 Big Ten ACC Challenge Games
Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015 Illinois at Miami
Georgia Tech at Indiana
Iowa at Virginia
Syracuse at Maryland
Northwestern at North Carolina
Ohio State at Notre Dame
Wisconsin at Wake Forest
Thursday, Dec. 3, 2015 Pittsburgh at Michigan
Louisville at Michigan State
Minnesota at Duke North Carolina State at Nebraska
Virginia Tech at Penn State
Boston College at Purdue
Rutgers at Florida State
NORTH PLATTE, NE – The second annual Lake to Lake Relay will be held Saturday, May 30. The race is hosted by Great Plains Health Care Foundation in partnership with Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD). The relay is a sanctioned event of the Platte River Fitness Series, an initiative that promotes fitness as part of a healthy lifestyle. People of all fitness levels are encouraged to participate.
Participants will begin the 23-mile event at Oregon Trail Golf Course near Sutherland Reservoir, with registration from 6:30 to 7:45 a.m. and relay start times beginning between 7:45 and 8:15 a.m. Participants will run or walk along the NPPD canal and finish at Lake Maloney Golf Course, south of North Platte.
Teams are made up of four, three or two persons who will take turns running or walking eight race legs. There are seven designated exchange points where each team will trade their team members, relay style. The remaining team members will drive to the next exchange point to drop off and pick up their team member for the next leg.
The length of each of the eight legs varies; the shortest is 2.3 miles and the longest is 3.7 miles. The event will end at the Lake Maloney Golf Course, where a post-race celebration will take place with food and live music provided by Rascal.
The entry fee is $30 per person, and each runner will receive a race t-shirt and food at the Lake Maloney Golf Course.
All proceeds stay local to support the Great Plains Health Care Foundation. Sponsors for the Lake to Lake relay include Great Western Bank, Wells Fargo, Nebraska Public Power District and First National Bank.
Please contact the Foundation office at 308.696.7411 for more information. Registration forms and race day information is available online at gphealth.org/laketolake or platteriverfitness.com.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska mother has been killed and four other family members have been injured in a car crash in Rock Port, Missouri.
Police say the five were driving south on Interstate 29 on Tuesday afternoon when their vehicle ran off the pavement into the median and rolled several times. According to authorities, the woman was ejected from the passenger side.
30-year-old Cristyna Pace, of Columbus, Nebraska, was pronounced dead at the scene. Police say 34-year-old Jason Pace was flown to Mosaic Life Care in St. Joseph, Missouri.
Two children suffered serious injuries and a third child had minor injuries. The children were taken to Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha.
Today: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 9am. Partly sunny, with a high near 77. Breezy, with a south southeast wind 5 to 10 mph increasing to 15 to 20 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 28 mph. Tonight: A 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 55. South southeast wind 8 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 22 mph. Thursday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 78. South southeast wind 6 to 10 mph. Thursday Night: Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly before 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 56. South southeast wind 5 to 9 mph becoming west after midnight. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Friday: Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly after 1pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 70. North wind 6 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. Friday Night: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 46. Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 65.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Students at schools in Nebraska and Iowa are joining others around the nation in planting milkweed plants to help attract monarch butterflies.
About 30 students and 10 adults last week planted milkweed, a plant that provides the only food for newly emerged butterfly larvae, behind St. Margaret Mary School in Omaha, Nebraska.
Another group of students and volunteers also recently dug and planted milkweed at St. Albert School in Council Bluffs, Iowa.
The two schools were among 10 Catholic schools in the Midwest that received grants to start butterfly-friendly gardens from the National Catholic Education Association.
NEW YORK (AP) — Mark Teixeira homered and drove in four runs, Adam Warren pitched two-hit ball into the seventh inning and the New York Yankees beat the Kansas City Royals 5-1 Tuesday night to send the AL champions to their first three-game skid this season.
Warren (3-3) was perfect until Mike Moustakas beat out a hit to second baseman Stephen Drew on the outfield grass in right-center with one out in the fourth. The only other hit he allowed was Paulo Orlando’s first major league homer in the sixth.
Lifted after 6 1-3 innings, Warren struck out five without walking a batter in the best of his 12 big league starts.
Teixeira was the only Yankees’ starter without a hit during their 14-1 rout of Kansas City on Monday, which stopped a six-game losing streak. He more than made up as New York won consecutive games for the first time since May 10-11.
CINCINNATI (AP) — The stream of players reached Skip Schumaker as he crossed second base on his game-ending double. Pitcher Johnny Cueto splashed water from a bottle over the scrum, christening the celebration.
The Reds acted like they had won something important. They had finally won, and that alone was reason enough for a party.
Schumaker’s pinch-hit double ended the Reds’ nine-game losing streak — their longest in 17 years — with a 2-1 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night.
“We need to smile around here,” Schumaker said. “Winning never gets old.”
The Reds pulled out of their longest slump since they dropped 11 straight under manager Jack McKeon in 1998. They ended the second-longest losing streak in the majors this season, trailing Colorado’s 11-game slide from April 28 to May 13.
“I hope that lifts the weight off of our shoulders and we can get back to having fun,” manager Bryan Price said.
Brooks Brown (0-2) walked Marlon Byrd opening the ninth. Kristopher Negron sacrificed, and Schumaker hit an opposite-field liner that landed just inside the left-field foul line. It was only his second RBI in 19 pinch-hit appearances.
“I just tried to hit the ball,” Schumaker said. “I’m not good enough to try to direct it.”
As soon as he crossed second base, his teammates were there to slap his back, rub his head and sprinkle him with water.
“The good thing was we didn’t get used to losing,” starter Michael Lorenzen said. “Now we have to get used to winning.”
Aroldis Chapman (3-3), who had given up runs in each of his last two appearances, escaped a two-on threat in the ninth by striking out Nolan Arenado.
Colorado switched starters before the game, deciding to give left-hander Jorge De La Rosa a couple of extra days to let a cut on his pitching hand heal. Left-hander Chris Rusin, who made 20 starts for the Cubs from 2012-13, was called up from Triple-A Albuquerque to fill in.
Rusin gave up Billy Hamilton’s RBI single and four hits overall during seven innings.
Lorenzen gave up two hits in seven innings, including Nick Hundley’s fifth homer, in his return to the rotation. The right-hander started three games and was moved to the bullpen for two appearances before making another start on Tuesday.
Colorado’s DJ LeMahieu singled off Chapman in the ninth, extending his hitting streak to nine games. Cincinnati’s Todd Frazier went 0 for 3, ending his seven-game streak.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs kicked off the third phase of the offseason workout program Tuesday with the first set of voluntary organized team activities, with nine players missing.
The biggest name absent from the practice field didn’t come as a surprise.
All-Pro outside linebacker Justin Houston, who has yet to sign a non-exclusive franchise tender, was not present as he seeks a long-term contract. The 26-year-old Houston also did not report April 20 for the start of the offseason workout program, following the same path he took in 2014 while entering the final year of his contract.
That missed time a year ago didn’t hurt Houston, who went on to a third straight Pro Bowl selection after establishing a franchise-record and league-high 22 sacks.
Authorities say the vehicle that two missing North Platte teens were in when it plunged into the South Platte River has been located.
According to Lincoln County Sheriff Jerome Kramer, divers were placed in a platform at around 6:00 p.m., on Tuesday, and lowered into the river where sonar equipment had located what was believed to be a vehicle.
Kramer said the divers were able to lower down directly on top of the object and confirm that it was the vehicle that was being driven by Lexi Wiezorek.
According to Kramer, divers reported that the vehicle was completely buried and “silted in,” but a small portion of the roof and the windshield were exposed.
Kramer said a small opening in an area of the windshield allowed the diver to reach inside the vehicle, and he reported that the inside of the vehicle was completely full of silt as well.
“There is no way to retrieve the vehicle from the water until we’re able to dig it out with heavy equipment when the water level recedes,” Sheriff Kramer said.
Chief Deputy Roland Kramer said because the vehicle is 98 percent covered in sand inside and out, any attempt to pull the vehicle out would be unsuccessful because of the weight.
Chief Deputy Kramer said the National Weather Service told them earlier in the week that they projected the river would recede by June 15, however, recent rains have likely extended that date.
Authorities say the exact location of the vehicle has been marked using GPS, and will also be marked by surveyors to ensure they can easily relocate it when the river levels recede.
Officials are asking the public to stay away from the search area, and say any violators will be arrested and charged with trespassing.
The crane used in today’s operation was provided by Simon Contractors and the platform, which weighed around 3,600 pounds, was constructed by TK’s Welding.
