Sports – Page 259 – North Platte Post Archive

NPCC Knights Softball Sweeps Southeast in Doubleheader

Posted on March 14, 2015

The North Platte Community College Knights softball team extended their winning streak to seven by defeating the Southeast Community College Lady Storm in a double header winning both games by identical scores of 12 – 10.

The games were National Junior College Athletic Association Region IX Division II contests.

In the first game the Knights opened up the scoring in the first inning when Audrie Conner singled and later scored on Sara Villalobos’ single to centerfield. The Lady Storm answered back with two runs in their half of the first on runs by Alexis Graewe and Callie Pinkham. The Knights came right back in the second and scored three runs. Sara Runia started out the inning by singling to left field. Shelby Clark walked. Brittney Odum singled to left field and brought in Runia. Conner batted in Clark and Odum with a single.

The Knights added to their lead in the third inning by scoring another three runs to make the score 7 – 2. Shannon Lieber reached on an error by Lady Storm second baseman Pinkham. Jessica Jarvis was hit by the pitch. Runia then singled to right advancing the runners. Lieber scored on a ground ball by Clark. Caroline Motis doubled to drive in Jarvis and Runia.

The Lady Storm battled back by scoring two runs in both the third and the fourth inning, which included a two-run home run by Megan Hartman.

The Knights got back one of the runs in the top of the fifth when Odum hit a line drive home run over the center field fence making the score 8 – 6 in favor of the Knights.

The Lady Storm weren’t done. Hartman hit her second home run of the game to lead off the bottom of the fifth to make the score 8 – 7.

The Knights broke the game open in the top of the sixth when Mehana Chang singled and then scored when Villalobos reached on an error by shortstop Graewe. Christina Rodie came in to run for Villalobos and scored along with Jarvis on Runia’s fifth home run of the season to make the score 12 – 7.

The Lady Storm scored three more runs in the sixth inning to cut the lead to 12 -10. The Lady Storm tried to rally in the seventh when the first two batters walked. They were unable to capitalize on the walks and went scoreless in the seventh.

Runia pitched the complete game for the win. She allowed 10 runs on four hits and 10 walks and struck out 3 batters.

Conner and Runia each had three hits for the Knights in game one to lead the Knights offensive attack.

In game two, the game went back and forth until the Knights exploded with seven runs in their half of the fourth to take an 11 – 5 lead. Their onslaught was powered by a two-run home run by Odum scoring Motis and a three-run home run by Clark which scored Lieber and Tara Crouch. In the fifth inning Odum walked and scored on an error by Lady Storm first baseman Nicole Zelinski to make the score 12 – 5.

The Lady Storm in their half of the fifth mounted a comeback by scoring five runs to cut the Knight lead to two.

The Lady Storm, in their seventh had the tying run on second base with one out. Knights pitcher struck out Pinkham and Breanna Johnson to strand the runners and end the game. Lieber struck out nine batters in the game and allowed only two walks.

The Knights were led offensively by Lieber, who had three hits in the game.

On the day the Knights had four home runs, including two by Odum who has six on the season. The Knights have hit a total of 20 home runs in their 22 games.

The Knights improve to 10 – 12 on the season and 4 – 0 in Region IX Division II play. The Lady Storm drop to 7 – 13 on the season and 0 – 2 in Region IX play.

The Knights continue their road trip on Sunday when they travel to Council Bluffs, Iowa to face Iowa Western Community College. Game times are at noon and 2:00 p.m. CDT.

Huskers Clinch Series Against FGCU with 8-2 Win

Posted on March 14, 2015

Lincoln – With over 6,000 fans in the seats at Hawks Field for the second straight day, the Nebraska baseball team (11-6, 0-0 Big Ten) clinched a series win over the Florida Gulf Coast University Eagles (8-11-1, 0-0 Atlantic Sun) with an 8-2 victory on Saturday afternoon. The Huskers will go for the sweep tomorrow at 12:05 p.m.

With a series attendance of 12,285 through two games, the mark already ranks fourth among non-conference series crowds at Hawks Field. NU’s series with Alabama in 2006 ranks first with a three-day attendance of 14,885. The Huskers need 2,601 fans tomorrow to break the mark.

Senior Kyle Kubat went 7.0 innings in the win and improved to 3-0 on the year. It was Kubat’s third start this season of at least 7.0 innings this season, and the lefty was efficient in his work as he needed only 10 pitches in an inning four times during the game to retire the Eagles.

Offensively, sophomore Ben Miller led the way with a 3-for-4 performance, while Tanner Lubach was 2-for-4 with a home run, three RBIs and two runs scored. Ryan Boldt also notched a multi-hit game, going 2-for-3, after recording three hits in the series opener.

For the fifth straight game the Huskers scored in the first inning, taking a 3-0 lead on Lubach’s three-run home run, his second of the season. Jake Schleppenbach started the frame with an infield single and after a sacrifice bunt by Luis Alvarado, Boldt worked a four-pitch walk. Lubach then put the Huskers on the board when he launched a 2-2 offering from FGCU starter Devin Smeltzer off the left-field foul pole.

With Kubat in control on the mound, NU’s offense pushed across another run in the third to take a 4-0 lead. Boldt led off the inning with a single, but Smeltzer cleared the bases with a 6-4-3 double play. Blake Headley and Miller started a two-out rally with a pair of singles, and then Headley scored when Smeltzer uncorked a wild pitch with Scott Schreiber at the plate. It proved even more costly three pitches later when Schreiber popped out to end the inning.

The Huskers plated three more runs in the fifth on three hits, increasing NU’s lead to 7-0 for Kubat. Miller notched his third hit of the game with an RBI single and Schreiber also recorded an RBI with a sacrifice fly.

After being shutout for the first five innings, the Eagles got on the board in the top of the sixth. FGCU loaded the bases with no out on three straight singles and were poised for a big innings, but Kubat was able to limit the damage to just two runs. NU’s offense got one of the runs back in the bottom of the frame when Boldt delivered a two-out RBI single that scored Wes Edrington from second base, who led off the inning with a single.

Kubat tossed a 1-2-3 seventh inning, while Jeff Chesnut pitched a perfect eighth inning and freshman Nate Fisher finished off the game with a shutout ninth inning of relief.

A reminder that tomorrow’s finale has been rescheduled to 12:05 p.m., it was originally set to start at 1:05 p.m.

Nebraska CB Charles Jackson Out for Spring with Knee Injury

Posted on March 14, 2015

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska defensive back Charles Jackson will undergo minor arthroscopic surgery on his knee and will miss the rest of spring practice.

Coach Mike Riley also announced Saturday that cornerback Daniel Davie probably would miss a week of practice with an ankle injury.

Jackson and Davie were injured on consecutive plays during coverage drills on Wednesday. Riley said Jackson will be ready for summer conditioning.

Jackson was in line for work as a nickelback last fall but missed the entire season because of a torn anterior cruciate ligament. Davie is a returning starter.

Huskers Complete First Full Week of Spring Drills

Posted on March 14, 2015

Nebraska completed its fifth practice of the spring on Saturday with a two-hour workout under sunny skies and spring-like temperatures in Lincoln. The Huskers worked in full pads on Saturday, and for the first time this spring the entire roster practiced simultaneously.

Nebraska had practiced in two groups for the first four workouts of the spring, but worked as one unit on Saturday, beginning the practice with special teams work. Head Coach Mike Riley said the Huskers will follow a similar practice schedule on Monday when Nebraska returns to the practice field, and evaluate the practice format for the remainder of the spring.

With the completion of Saturday’s practice, the Huskers are a third of the way through spring practice. Riley said the learning curve in the first year of a job is different than being entrenched at Oregon State for a dozen years, but he applauded the work of this team.

“After the first third of spring practice, it hits you right between the eyes what being at a place for a long time means,” Riley said. “We could roll the balls out on the first day and here it was kind of starting from scratch. But the work and attention to detail of these guys is very good, and I think we have some outstanding character leadership on this team.”

Riley also complimented the transition being made by four true freshmen defenders who joined the Husker program at semester. Avery Anderson, Eric Lee and Aaron Williams are working in the secondary, while Dedrick Young has impressed at linebacker.

“Those are mature young men,” Riley said. “The biggest compliment I can give them is that at students in college and as football players they kind of blend in.”

Riley updated the injury status of defensive backs Daniel Davie and Charles Jackson. Davie (ankle) is expected to return to practice later in spring ball, while Jackson (knee) will undergo minor surgery, but should be at full strength for summer conditioning and the season.

Nebraska returns to the practice field on Monday for the first of three practices next week. The Huskers will also work out on Wednesday and Friday before departing for Spring Break.

AP Source: Chiefs give Ron Parker 5-Year, $30M Deal

Posted on March 14, 2015

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs are bringing back versatile defensive back Ron Parker on a five-year, $30 million contract, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the Chiefs have not announced the deal.

Parker’s hometown newspaper, The Beaufort Gazette of South Carolina, was first to report Saturday that the free agent was returning to Kansa City.

Justin Turner, who represents Parker, fielded no shortage of offers for the fourth-year pro after a breakout year with the Chiefs. Parker split time at cornerback and safety, starting 15 of the 16 games he played last season. He finished with 94 tackles and an interception.

NPCC Knights Softball Sweeps Central

Posted on March 13, 2015

The North Platte Community College Knights Softball team opened up their three day, six game road trip by sweeping the Central Community College Lady Raiders on Friday 11 – 5 and 5 – 2 increasing their winning streak to five games.

The games were National Junior College Athletic Association Region IX Division II games.

In the first game, the Knights opened up the scoring on a run by Audrie Conner. Conner reached on an error by Lady Raider third baseman Kady Lockmon. Mahena Chang singled to score Conner to make the score 1 – 0. The Lady Raiders answered back with a run in their half of the first. They took the lead in the bottom of the second to take the lead 3 – 1. The Knights scored five runs in the third inning to take the lead 6 – 3. Brittney Odum opened up the inning by singling to left field. Conner reached on an error by the Lady Raider second baseman which advanced Odum to second. Odum scored on a single by Chang. The Knights pulled off a double steal with Chang stealing second and Conner stealing home. Sara Villalobos walked and advanced to second on a single by Jessica Jarvis, which also put Chang on third. Sara Runia doubled, scoring Chang and Villalobos and advancing Jarvis to third. Jarvis scored when Caroline Motis reached on the second error by Lockmon.

Shelbi Dittmer of Central hit a solo home run and Alicia Bigelow scored a run in the bottom of the third to make the score 6 – 5 in favor of the Knights. The Knights increased their lead to 9 – 5 in the top of the fourth with runs by Shannon Lieber, Chang and Villalobos.

In the top of the sixth, the Knights Runia sealed the win with a two-run home run scoring Christina Rodie. Runia had five runs batted in, in game one to help her own cause. Runia pitched a complete game allowing five runs, three of them earned, on five hits. She also struck out four Lady Raiders to get the win in game one.

In the second game, the Lady Raiders scored in the bottom of the first when Jacy Bretschneider singled, advanced to second and then scored on a single by Shelbi Dittmer.

The Knights Jarvis started off the top of the second reaching base on an error by Bretschneider and scored on a single by Tara Crouch. Shelby Clark singled to keep the rally going, advancing Crouch to second. Odum singled to score Crouch. Odum scored on a fielder’s choice by Conner to put the Knights ahead 3 – 1.

Alissa Edwards of Central walked and scored on a single by Aney Pasold to cut the Knights lead to 3 – 2.

The Knights added some insurance runs in the top of the fifth when Chang was hit by a pitch, Villalobos singled and Runia doubled to knock in both Chang and Villalobos to make the score 5 – 2.

Runia drove in seven runs on the day.

Shannon Lieber was in the circle and pitched a complete game for the win. Lieber allowed two runs on eight hits and struck out five Lady Raiders.

Villalobos had four hits on the day to lead the Knights.

The Knights improve to 8 – 12 on the season and 2 – 0 in Region IX Division II play. Central is now 2 – 4 on the season and 0 – 2 in Region IX play.

The Knights travel to Beatrice on Saturday March 14 to play Southeast Community College in a doubleheader. Those games are also Region IX Division II games. Game times are at 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. CDT.

The Knights will conclude their road trip on Sunday when they travel to Council Bluffs, Iowa to face Iowa Western Community College. Game times are at noon and 2:00 p.m. CDT

Nuggets Rally for 114-103 Win over Short-Handed Warriors

Posted on March 13, 2015

DENVER (AP) — Kenneth Faried had 24 points and 17 rebounds, Randy Foye hit three crucial 3-pointers down the stretch and the Denver Nuggets rallied to beat short-handed Golden State 114-103 on Friday night as the Warriors rested several of their top players, including Stephen Curry.

The Nuggets pulled off an impressive double this week — beating Atlanta, the Eastern Conference leader, on Wednesday and now the Warriors, who are on top in the Western Conference. Denver also improved to 5-2 since interim coach Melvin Hunt took over for Brian Shaw.

Golden State coach Steve Kerr gave Curry, Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala and Andrew Bogut the night off since the team plays Saturday at home. In addition, center Marreese Speights served a one-game suspension for pleading no contest to reckless driving.

MacTavish Scores Twice, Powers Stars Over Storm

Posted on March 13, 2015

KEARNEY, Neb. – Sean MacTavish scored his first two career USHL goals and added an assist as the Lincoln Stars (16-29-5) held off the Tri-City Storm (31-14-6) by a score of 4-3 in the teams’ final meeting of the season on Friday night at the Viaero Event Center.

Storm forward Nick Master scored twice in the defeat, while defenseman Bobby Nardella added a goal and an assist and Chris Wilkie picked up helpers on all three Tri-City goals.

Just as they did at the Ice Box on Tuesday night, Lincoln took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission, getting a goal from Dominick Sacco at 11:10 of the opening frame. Assists on the tally went to MacTavish and Biagio Lerario.

The Stars widened their advantage early on in the middle frame when Ethan Price made it 2-0 with a goal at 1:40 of the period from Lerario.

But less than two minutes later, Nardella put one top shelf and cut Lincoln’s lead in half with his seventh goal of the season. Wilkie had the first assist on the strike, while Jake Wahlin recorded his fifth point in the past two games with the second assist.

MacTavish responded with his first USHL goal to make it 3-1 at 4:45 of the second.

Then Master got on the board with his first of the evening by putting home a rebound on the power play to cut the score to 3-2. Nardella had the initial shot and the first assist for Tri-City, while Wilkie picked up the second helper on the play.

The eventual game-winner was scored at 9:27 of the second by MacTavish from both Lerario and Sacco.

After Lincoln’s fourth goal, Storm Head Coach Jim Hulton replaced starting goaltender Jared Rutledge with Alec Dillon. Rutledge allowed four goals on 18 shots, while Dillon remained in the game for the rest of the way and made 11 stops.

Tri-City made it a one-goal game for the third time when Master scored his 21st of the season off a perfect feed from Wilkie on a rush into the Lincoln end. Tory Dello was credited with the second assist, his 14th of the season.

The Storm had chances to tie it in the final minutes, and pulled Dillon for the final 1:33 of the contest, but couldn’t get an equalizer past Lincoln netminder Cam Hackett.

Hackett finished the game with 41 saves and picked up his 12th victory of the season.

The Storm finished the season with a record of 6-1-1 against Lincoln.

After the loss, Tri-City remains one point behind the Sioux City Musketeers for the top spot in both the conference and the USHL.

The Storm will finish the home weekend with a battle against the Omaha Lancers Saturday night at the Viaero Event Center. Puck drop scheduled for7:05 p.m.

Notes: The Storm scratched forwards Kyle Eastman and Mason Appleton, along with defenseman Jason Krych…

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Period
Lincoln – Dominick Sacco (Sean MacTavish, Biagio Lerario) 11:10

2nd Period

Lincoln – Ethan Price (Biagio Lerario) 1:40
Tri-City – Bobby Nardella (Chris Wilkie, Jake Wahlin) 3:28
Lincoln – Sean MacTavish (Grant Jozefek) 4:45
Tri-City – Nick Master (power play) (Bobby Nardella, Chris Wilkie) 6:04
Lincoln – Sean MacTavish (Biagio Lerario, Dominick Sacco) 9:27
Tri-City – Nick Master (Chris Wilkie, Tory Dello) 16:41

3rd Period
(no scoring)

PENALTIES

1st Period
Lincoln – Luke Jaycox – (Tripping), 2 min, 3:26
Tri-City – Vince Pedrie – (Holding), 2 min, 17:18

2nd Period
Lincoln – Bench Minor – (Too Many Men), 2 min, 5:40

3rd Period
Lincoln – Ludvig Hoff – (Hooking), 2 min, 0:23
Tri-City – Chris Wilkie – (Diving), 2 min, 0:23
Lincoln – Cam Lee – (Slashing), 2 min, 1:44
Tri-City – Dan Labosky – (Boarding), 2 min, 1:44
Lincoln – Ryan Jones – (Hooking), 2 min, 5:58
Lincoln – Ludvig Hoff – (Tripping), 2 min, 10:41

Power Play

Lincoln – 0/1

Tri-City – 1/4

Shots

Lincoln: 12, 10, 7 = Total: 29
Tri-City: 16, 12, 16 = Total: 44

Saves
Lincoln – Cam Hackett – 41/44
Tri-City – Jared Rutledge – 14/18, Alec Dillon – 11/11

Huskers Win 6-3 in Front of 6,062 at Hawks Field

Posted on March 13, 2015

Lincoln – Behind a pair of three-run innings and 7.0 innings of work from starter Chance Sinclair the Nebraska baseball team (10-6, 0-0 Big Ten) took the series opener from the Florida Gulf Coast University Eagles (8-10-1, 0-0 Atlantic Sun) by a score of 6-3 on Friday in front of 6,062 fans at Hawks Field.

Riding a three-start losing streak, Sinclair picked up his second win of the season and the 11^th of his career in the win. The preseason All-American gave up three runs on eight hits and a walk, but got stronger as the game went on. After giving up the tying run in the fifth, Sinclair sat down the final eight Eagles he faced.

Colton Howell and Josh Roeder each tossed a perfect inning of relief, with Howell striking out the side in the eighth, while Roeder earned his fourth save of the season with a 1-2-3 ninth. Sinclair, Howell and Roeder combined to retired the FCGU’s final 14 batters of the game.

Four Husker hitters produced a multi-hit game, including three-hits each from Jake Schleppenbach and Ryan Boldt. Blake Headley notched his fifth extra base hit of the week and added three RBIs to bring his season total to 19.

FGCU starter Mike Murray, who was the Atlantic Sun pitcher of the year last season and a 2015 preseason All-American by three publications, fell to 1-3 on the year after giving up six runs on 12 hits over 5.1 innings of work. Murray had gone at least 7.0 innings in each of his three starts entering Friday.

The Huskers made Murray work right away, as NU sent nine batters to the plate in the bottom of the first. The Huskers plated three runs in the frame on five hits. Headley plated the first run on a sacrifice fly, Tanner Lubach drove in another run with a single and Christian Cox picked up his second RBI of the season with a bases-loaded walk.

The Eagles tied the game with a run in the second and a pair in the fifth, while the Husker bats went quite with just three hits total from the second through the fifth innings.

After Sinclair put the Eagles away in order in the top of the sixth, NU’s offense got the lead back for its senior starter with three runs in the bottom of the frame on four hits, including three doubles. Schleppenbach got the rally going with a one-out double, his second of the game, and then the Huskers had runners on the corners following an infield single from Boldt. Already with four triples on the week, Headley picked up another extra-base hit with a two-RBI double and then scored when Miller followed with a double that knocked Murray out of the game.

The Huskers and Eagles continue their three-game series tomorrow at 2:05 p.m. Sunday’s finale has been moved from 1:05 p.m. to 12:05 p.m. due to FGCU’s travel.

Broncos Replace Rahim Moore with Darian Stewart

Posted on March 13, 2015

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — A day after losing starting free safety Rahim Moore to the Houston Texans, the Denver Broncos agreed to a two-year deal with Darian Stewart.

The sixth-year pro had a solid season in Baltimore last year, when he secured the Ravens’ playoff win over Pittsburgh with a late interception in the end zone.

He played in all 16 games and started a career-best 14 times for the Ravens last season, recording 53 tackles, an interception, four pass breakups and a forced fumble.

Stewart played in St. Louis from 2010-13 after going undrafted out of South Carolina.