Sports – Page 368 – North Platte Post Archive

Creighton Prep Coach Resigns Before Title Game

Posted on November 16, 2014

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Creighton Prep High School’s head coach has resigned suddenly just before the team will play in the state championship game.

The Omaha school’s principal and acting president John Naatz said Sunday that Chris Nizzi had resigned his jobs as coach and counselor immediately.

Naatz said in a statement that Nizzi’s resignation was made for personal reasons that he declined to elaborate on.

Nizzi declined to discuss his resignation with WOWT television.

Creighton Prep is 11-1 and will play undefeated Omaha North (12-0) in Lincoln on Nov. 24 for the state title.

Creighton Prep said Andy Yost will serve as head football coach.

Huskers Top Maryland for Sixth Straight Win

Posted on November 16, 2014

LINCOLN – The 11th-ranked Nebraska volleyball team won its sixth straight match with a 3-1 (25-17, 25-14, 18-25, 25-18) victory over Maryland on Sunday afternoon at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

The Huskers improved to 18-7 overall and 12-4 in the Big Ten, finishing a stretch of four straight home matches unbeaten. Maryland dropped to 9-18 overall and 2-14 in the Big Ten in its first trip to Lincoln as a Big Ten opponent. While the Huskers extended their win streak to six, the Terrapins saw their losing streak reach six.

Kelsey Fien led the Huskers with a career-high 18 kills, her fourth straight match with double-digit kills. Kadie Rolfzen had 15 kills and 10 digs while hitting .355. Amber Rolfzen had six kills and five blocks, and Cecilia Hall had five kills and seven blocks. Meghan Haggerty added five kills and five blocks. Justine Wong-Orantes had a team-high 15 digs, while Sydney Townsend matched her career high with 11. Mary Pollmiller had 42 assists with seven digs, three kills and three blocks.

Emily Fraik had 13 kills to lead Maryland, while Ashleigh Crutcher had 12.

Nebraska outhit the Terrapins .277 to .187. The Huskers have now held six straight Big Ten foes under .200 hitting for the first time since 2011. The Huskers also outblocked the Terrapins 12-8 and outdug them 53-39. The Huskers had five aces with Townsend registering three and Ethridge two.

Nebraska took an 8-4 lead in the first set courtesy of an Amber Rolfzen kill, Townsend ace and a Haggerty kill. The Huskers then built a 15-7 lead by the media timeout with the second Amber Rolfzen/Hall block of the set and Fien’s fourth kill. An Ethridge ace made it 23-13, and the Huskers won 25-17 after Maryland fought off four set points. Fien had seven kills in the set to lead the Huskers to .387 hitting. Maryland hit .188.

With set two tied 6-6, Nebraska rattled off an 8-1 run to take control. NU scored three straight on a bad set by Maryland, kill by Pollmiller and Townsend’s second ace of the day to go up 9-6. After Maryland cut it to 9-7, the Huskers went ahead 14-7 with five more points. Fien and Kadie Rolfzen each had kills, and Haggerty combined for blocks with Pollmiller and Fien to give the Huskers a seven-point edge. The Huskers pulled away down the stretch to take a 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-14 victory. NU hit .273 in the frame while holding the Terrapins to .000.

The Huskers started slow out of the gate in set three, falling behind 4-1. NU pulled within 7-5 on kills by Haggerty and Fien, but the Terrapins went up 13-5 with a 6-0 run, which Fien ended with back-to-back kills to trim the deficit to 13-7. But Maryland continued to fend off the Huskers and extended the lead to 17-8 with three kills in a row from Fraik. Trailing 19-11, the Huskers got kills by Kadie Rolfzen and Pollmiller around Townsend’s third ace to get within 19-14. But the next three points went to Maryland, and the Terrapins came away with the 25-18 win. NU hit just .062 in the third set, while Maryland had a .423 attacking percentage.

A kill by Fien and two blocks by Amber Rolfzen and Hall helped put the Huskers up 5-1 early in the fourth. But Maryland cut it to 9-8 with a 6-1 run to force a Husker timeout. Out of the break, Fien and Hall recorded kills, and an ace by Ethridge to put the Huskers up 12-8. The Terrapins closed the gap to 13-12, however, before consecutive kills by Amber Rolfzen made it 15-12 Nebraska. Another Amber Rolfzen kill put NU up 17-13. After Maryland got within 17-15, a Terrapin service error and three consecutive kills from Kadie Rolfzen made it 21-15 Huskers. The Huskers closed out the 25-18 win by hitting .435 in the fourth set with just three attacking errors.

Nebraska will visit Indiana for a 6 p.m. (CT) match on Wednesday on BTN Plus.

Green Earns 100th Career Win as NU Routs Terps

Posted on November 16, 2014

Lincoln, Neb. – Senior James Green (157) picked up his 100th career victory as No. 7 Nebraska cruised to a 42-3 triumph over Big Ten newcomer Maryland at the NU Coliseum on Sunday afternoon.

Four Huskers won by fall against the Terrapins, including sophomore Tim Lambert (125), who earned his pin in 5:52 against Josh Polacek in the opening match of the dual. Lambert, the No. 14-ranked wrestler by InterMat, improves to 3-2 on the season.

No. 16 Austin Wilson (165) and No. 2 Robert Kokesh (174) earned pins in back-to-back bouts to give NU a 29-3 advantage after seven matches. Wilson pinned Maryland’s Tyler Manion in 2:46, while Kokesh pinned Josh Snook in 4:34. Heavyweight Collin Jensen earned a fall in 1:37 against Ryan Kail to close out the dual.

Green, a senior from Willingboro, N.J., won by major decision in the fifth match of the day as he defeated Lou Mascola by a 16-3 margin. Green earned four takedowns and added five near fall points before a riding time point in his victory. The three-time All-American is 6-0 this season, with all of his wins coming in bonus-point fashion.

Sophomores Justin Arthur (149) and Aaron Studebaker (184) also notched major decisions against the Terrapins. Arthur defeated Shane Arechiga, 17-5, while Studebaker took down Tony Gardner, 11-3. Arthur, a 2014 NCAA qualifier from Clarion, is 6-1 on the season. Studebaker improves to 9-3 during the 2014-15 campaign.

No. 15 Anthony Abidin continued his unbeaten streak to start the season as he won a 4-2 decision over Shyheim Brown at 141 pounds. At 197 pounds, Micah Barnes topped the Terrapins’ Rob Fitzgerald in the penultimate match of the dual by an 8-2 margin.

Sophomore Eric Montoya (133) suffered his first loss of the season, falling by a 4-2 decision to No. 11 Geoffrey Alexander in the second match of the dual. Montoya is 4-1 on the season.

The Huskers hit the road next weekend for a pair of matches. On Saturday, NU battles Duke in Durham, N.C., at noon (CT) before taking on NC State at 6 p.m. in Raleigh, N.C. The Huskers’ five remaining home duals will all be held at the Devaney Center.

No. 7 Nebraska 42, Maryland 3
Sunday, Nov. 16, 2014
NU Coliseum, Lincoln, Neb.
Attendance: 1,009

Results
125: #14 Tim Lambert (NEB) by pin over Josh Polacek (MD), 5:52 (NEB 6, MD 0)
133: #11 Geoffrey Alexander (MD) by dec. over Eric Montoya (NEB), 4-2 (NEB 6, MD 3)
141: #15 Anthony Abidin (NEB) by dec. over Shyheim Brown (MD), 4-2 (NEB 9, MD 3)
149: Justin Arthur (NEB) by major dec. over Shane Arechiga (MD), 17-5 (NEB 13, MD 3)
157: #2 James Green (NEB) by major dec. over Lou Mascola (MD), 16-3 (NEB 17, MD 3)
165: #16 Austin Wilson (NEB) by pin over Tyler Manion (MD), 2:46 (NEB 23, MD 3)
174: #2 Robert Kokesh (NEB) by pin over Josh Snook (MD), 4:34 (NEB 29, MD 3)
184: Aaron Studebaker (NEB) by major dec. over Tony Gardner (MD), 11-3 (NEB 33, MD 3)
197: Micah Barnes (NEB) by dec. over Rob Fitzgerald (MD), 8-2 (NEB 36, MD 3)
HWT: #18 Collin Jensen (NEB) by pin over Ryan Kail (MD), 1:37 (NEB 42, MD 3)

Rams Surprise Manning, Broncos 22-7

Posted on November 16, 2014

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Shaun Hill was effective in his first start since regaining the quarterback job and the St. Louis Rams defense made life miserable for Peyton Manning in a 22-7 victory over the AFC West-leading Denver Broncos on Sunday.

Rookie Tre Mason had 29 carries for 113 yards, the most allowed by the Broncos’ top-ranked run defense.

Kenny Britt had four catches for 128 yards with a 63-yard score and Greg Zuerlein was a career-best 5 for 5 on field goals for the Rams (4-6).

Manning was 34 for 54 for 389 yards with two interceptions, but was held to a 42-yard touchdown pass to Emmanuel Sanders, ending a streak of 15 consecutive games with at least two touchdown passes.

The Broncos (7-3) were held to 28 yards rushing and failed twice on fourth down deep in St. Louis territory.

Manning threw incomplete from the 37 in the first quarter and rookie Aaron Donald’s sack ended a drive in the fourth quarter on fourth-and-4 from the 28.

Chiefs Defense Preserves 24-20 Win over Seahawks

Posted on November 16, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs stopped the Seattle Seahawks on fourth down three times late in the fourth quarter Sunday, holding on for a tense 24-20 victory in a matchup of playoff contenders.

Jamaal Charles ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns, and Knile Davis also ran for a score, as the Chiefs (7-3) won their fifth straight game and moved into a tie for first in the AFC West.

Russell Wilson threw for 178 yards and two touchdowns, and Marshawn Lynch had 124 yards rushing for Seattle (6-4). But the Seahawks’ star running back, fresh off a four-touchdown game, was stuffed twice by the Kansas City defense with the outcome hanging in the balance.

The Seahawks’ last-chance drive ended when Wilson threw incomplete on fourth-and-18 at their 20-yard line with 1:13 left in the game.

Petteway’s 25 Leads No. 21 Huskers over N Ky 80-61

Posted on November 16, 2014

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Terran Petteway scored 25 points, making six 3-pointers, and 21st-ranked Nebraska opened with an 80-61 victory over Northern Kentucky on Sunday.

Shavon Shields had 11 of his 18 points in the second half and made all 10 of his free throws. David Rivers added 12 points.

Freshman Tayler Persons led the Norse with 13 points. Anthony Monaco, averaging 2.5 points in 51 career games, matched his career high with 12, all on 3-pointers.

The Atlantic Sun’s Northern Kentucky (0-2) lost its opener 62-31 at third-ranked Wisconsin on Friday and was outscored by a combined 50 points by the Big Ten opponents.

Nebraska, ranked for the first time since January 1995, returned all but one contributor from the team that went on a surge the second half of last season to finish fourth in the Big Ten and make the NCAA tournament.

Another Florida St Comeback: Noles No. 1 Again, Nebraska Falls to 21

Posted on November 16, 2014

Florida State is No. 1 again in The Associated Press college football poll in another comeback of sorts for a team with a season full of remarkable rallies.

The Seminoles (10-0) were preseason No. 1 before being replaced by Mississippi State in October. The Bulldogs (9-1) had a run of six weeks at No. 1 stopped by a 25-20 loss at Alabama on Saturday.

The Crimson Tide moved up four spots to No. 2. The Bulldogs dropped to fourth.

The Seminoles received 43 first-place votes from the media panel. Alabama got 16 and No. 3 Oregon got one.

Florida State is the only unbeaten team remaining from the Big Five conferences after Jameis Winston and the ‘Noles erased a halftime deficit for the fifth time this season in a 30-24 victory at Miami.

The Top 25 teams in The Associated Press college football poll, with first-place votes in parentheses, records through Nov. 15, total points based on 25 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 25th-place vote, and previous ranking:

	Record	Pts	Pv
1. Florida St. (43)	10-0	1,476	2
2. Alabama (16)	9-1	1,439	4
3. Oregon (1)	9-1	1,385	3
4. Mississippi St.	9-1	1,289	1
5. TCU	9-1	1,237	5
6. Baylor	8-1	1,232	6
7. Ohio St.	9-1	1,167	8
8. Mississippi	8-2	1,064	10
9. Georgia	8-2	948	16
10. Michigan St.	8-2	941	12
11. UCLA	8-2	876	14
12. Kansas St.	7-2	868	13
13. Arizona St.	8-2	720	7
14. Wisconsin	8-2	707	22
15. Arizona	8-2	695	17
16. Auburn	7-3	531	9
17. Georgia Tech	9-2	523	24
18. Marshall	10-0	383	21
19. Missouri	8-2	376	NR
20. Utah	7-3	349	25
21. Nebraska	8-2	291	11
22. Colorado St.	9-1	281	23
23. Oklahoma	7-3	206	NR
24. Southern Cal	7-3	195	NR
25. Duke	8-2	85	19

Others receiving votes: Notre Dame 74, Clemson 52, Boise St. 29, Louisville 29, LSU 26, Minnesota 10, West Virginia 8, Miami 3, Texas A&M 3, Arkansas 2.

Storm Prevail With 2-1 Shootout Win In Omaha

Posted on November 15, 2014

OMAHA, Neb. – The Tri-City Storm (8-4-3) got their eighth victory of the season in shootout fashion over the Omaha Lancers (4-7-3) on Saturdaynight, earning two points with a 2-1 victory at the Ralston Arena.

Chase Berger scored early in the first, and both Chris Wilkie and Cody Milan found the back of the net in the skills competition, while goaltender Alec Dillon made 28 saves to pick up the victory.

Berger helped the Storm get out to a fast start, scoring just 43 seconds into the game to give Tri-City a 1-0 lead. Chris Wilkie and Mattias Goransson picked up assists on Berger’s third tally of the season.

The Lancers evened the game in the middle period, converting on a power play with a goal by forward Shane Gersich.

Later in the second, Storm forward Joel Herbert took a major penalty for checking from behind, as well as a game ejection. But Tri-City killed off the ensuing power play for Omaha, and kept the score tied at 1-1 after two periods.

No scoring in the third period, forced overtime, and eventually a shootout. It was the fifth shootout for the Storm in the team’s first 15 games of the season.

Omaha outshot Tri-City 29-26 in the game and Lancers’ netminder Hayden Hawkey finished with 24 saves.

The Storm will return home to face Des Moines at the Viaero Event Center in Kearney on Friday night at 7:30 p.m.

Notes: The Storm scratched forwards Wade Allison and Nolan Aibel along with defenseman Gordi Myer…

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Period

Tri-City – Chase Berger (Chris Wilkie, Mattias Goransson) 0:43

2nd Period

Omaha – Shane Gersich (power play) (Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson, Niklas Folin) 3:08

3rd Period

Cedar Rapids – Jiri Fronk (power play) (Andrew Oglevie) 3:24
Cedar Rapids – Jiri Fronk (Erik Foley, Andrew Oglevie) 5:14

Overtime
(no scoring)

PENALTIES

1st Period

Omaha – Michael Wilson – (Hooking), 2 min, 2:30
Tri-City – Cody Milan – (Hooking), 2 min, 4:25
Tri-City – Matthew Freytag – (Hooking), 2 min, 8:16

Tri-City – Mason Appleton – (Tripping), 2 min, 13:19

Omaha – Michael Wilson – (Checking From Behind), 2 min, 15:52

2nd Period

Tri-City – Nick Master – (Tripping), 2 min, 2:52
Omaha – Nick Rivera – (Kneeing), 2 min, 4:11
Tri-City – Joel Herbert – (Checking From Behihnd), 5 min, 14:36
Tri-City – Joel Herbert – (Checking From Behind) (Game Misconduct), 10 min, 14:36

3rd Period

Omaha – Nick Rivera – (Elbowing), 2 min, 10:50

Overtime
(no penalties)

Power Play

Tri-City – 0/4

Omaha – 1/5

Shots

Tri-City: 10, 5, 7, 3 = Total: 25
Omaha: 9, 12, 7, 1 = Total: 29

Saves

Tri-City – Alec Dillon – 28/29
Omaha – Hayden Hawkey – 24/25

Lady Knights Basketball Falls to Colby Community College

Posted on November 15, 2014

North Platte Community College Lady Knights Basketball lost a heartbreaker to Colby Community College at the McDonald – Belton gymnasium Saturday night 58-54.

The Lady Knights jumped out to a 26-4 lead and led at halftime by 10, 34-24

During the second half the Colby Community College Lady Trojans started a different group of players and cut at the Lady Knights lead. They eventually tied the score at 51 with 4 minutes left in the game on a layup by Deandra Williams. Williams scored the next 4 points to put the Lady Trojans ahead for good 55-51.

Lady Knights head coach Richard Thurin said the key to the game was, “Fouls, fouls, fouls,” he said. ” We need to play defense without fouling.” The Lady Trojans took advantage by hitting 20 of 34 at the free throw line.

Coach Thurin also praised the play of Zulema Viescus, Sarah Mahr, and Aliyah Brown and the defensive play of Maddie Seamann.

Aliyah Brown led the Lady Knights in scoring with 11 points, followed by April Stull and Ester Micheva with 9 points. Sarah Mahr grabbed 8 rebounds to lead the Lady Knights.

The Lady Trojans were led in scoring by Williams with 26 points and 12 rebounds.

The Lady Knights will look to improve on their 2-4 record when they face Doane College Junior Varsity on Sunday, November 16 at the McDonald-Belton gymnasium. Tip-off is at 2:00 PM. The game may be viewed online at www.coachesaid.com.

Duchene leads Avalanche over Devils 3-2

Posted on November 15, 2014

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Matt Duchene’s tiebreaking goal in the third period powered the Colorado Avalanche to a 3-2 win over the New Jersey Devils on Saturday night.

Tied 2-2 with 2:53 left, Duchene tapped a loose puck past Cory Schneider for the game-winning goal.

John Mitchell and Erik Johnson also for scored Colorado. The Avalanche finished its swing through the New York City metropolitan region with a 2-1-0 mark. The Avalanche are 3-5-3 on the road this season, and 6-8-5 overall.

Semyon Varlamov stopped 23-of-25 shots in his third straight start.

Eric Gelinas and Martin Havlat scored for New Jersey, which saw its two game-winning streak end. They fell to 8-8-2.

Schneider made 27 saves in a losing effort. Schneider has started all 18 games for the Devils this season, and owns the franchise’s second longest streak of games started by a goaltender to open a season. Martin Brodeur’s 19 straight starts from Oct. 6-Nov. 2, 2001 is the franchise record.

Deadlocked 1-1 entering the third, both New Jersey and Colorado received goals from defensemen. Gelinas put the Devils ahead 2-1 with a quick shot off an offensive zone face off that cleanly beat the Vezina Trophy finalist. However, Johnson drew the Avalanche even at 2-2 with an unassisted off-wing shot that rolled through Schneider at 12:30.

The game remained tied until Duchene’s game-winner — his sixth of the year.

Havlat opened the scoring 2:04 into the game with a one-timer of a rebound that Varlamov couldn’t control. But the lead was short-lived as Mitchell tied the game six minutes and seven seconds after Havlat’s goal with a goalmouth tap-in.

That was all the scoring either team could muster in the first two periods as the game was tight-checking, and the goaltenders were strong when tested. Schneider gloved Marc-Andre Cliche’s odd-man rush drive 2:25 into the second, while Varlamov swallowed Gelinas’ slap shot with 8:54 remaining in the period.

Both Schneider and Varlamov were aided by their penalty kill units. New Jersey killed both of Colorado’s opportunities —including a four minute minor midway through the second when Gelinas was called for high-sticking Cliche —with the man advantage, and have killed 10 straight power plays. Colorado repaid the favor as they killed both of New Jersey’s power plays.

NOTES: New Jersey did not have Adam Henrique (lower body), Jon Merrill (arm), Bryce Salvador (lower body) and Ryane Clowe (head injury) in the lineup. … Damien Brunner dressed in place of Jordin Tootoo for the Devils. … Patrick Bordeleau (back), Brad Stuart (hamstring), Ryan Wilson (shoulder) and Jesse Winchester (head) were unavailable to play for Colorado. …The Avalanche scratched Dennis Everberg.