Sports – Page 583 – North Platte Post Archive

Former Storm Goaltender Adam Wilcox Named B1G Player of the Year

Posted on March 18, 2014

Former Tri-City Storm goaltender and current sophomore at the University of Minnesota Adam Wilcox was named the first ever Big Ten Player of the Year on Monday afternoon.

From the Big Ten release:

The Big Ten Conference announced the hockey All-Conference teams and individual award winners on Monday as selected by the conference’s coaches and a media panel. Minnesota’s Adam Wilcox was named Big Ten Player and Goaltender of the Year. Fellow Gopher Mike Reilly earned Defensive Player of the Year honors, awarded to a defenseman or forward, while Minnesota head coach Don Lucia was tabbed Coach of the Year. Michigan’s JT Compher collected Freshman of the Year laurels.

Wilcox led the conference in every goaltending category en route to Big Ten Player and Goaltender of the Year honors. The sophomore allowed just 30 goals in 18 conference games, for a goals-against average of 1.64. No other Big Ten goaltender posted a goals against average of less than 2.00. Wilcox recorded 479 saves and a .941 save percentage en route to a 13-2-3 conference record.

While with Tri-City during the 2011-12 season, Wilcox played in 34 games and had an overall record of 16-17-1. The goaltender finished with a goals against average of 2.77 and a save percentage of .916. Wilcox’s play down the stretch helped Tri-City secure a playoff berth, finishing in sixth place in the USHL’s Western Conference with 53 points.

The Storm are back in action this weekend when they host the Green Bay Gamblers for a weekend series.Friday night’s game gets underway at 7:30 p.m., while Saturday’s action starts at 7:05.

Big Ten Wrestling Set to Compete in NCAA Championships

Posted on March 18, 2014

ROSEMONT, Ill. – Wrestlers from all 12 Big Ten schools will head to the Chesapeake Energy Center in Oklahoma City, Okla., this weekend to compete in the 2014 NCAA Wrestling Championships. The championships begin Thursday morning and conclude with championship bouts on Saturday evening. The Big Ten leads the nation with 82 competing wrestlers, including 59 seeded grapplers and five No. 1 seeds across the 10 weight classes.

The ESPN family of networks will provide coverage for the entire event. All six sessions will be streamed on ESPN3.com, which will provide live mat-by-mat coverage of the championships. Both of Thursday’s and Friday’s sessions and Saturday’s first session will be broadcast live on ESPNU, while Saturday’s second session, featuring the championship bouts, will be shown on ESPN.

Seventy-four Big Ten wrestlers earned spots in the NCAA Championships field by virtue of their Big Ten Championships finish, while eight others received at-large bids to nationals. The conference sends at least seven wrestlers in each weight class, including 10 grapplers in the 184- and 285-pound brackets.

Five Big Ten wrestlers hold the top seeds in their weight classes, with Illinois’ Jesse Delgado (125 pounds), Minnesota’s Tony Nelson (285), Nebraska’s James Green (157), Ohio State’s Nick Heflin (197) and Penn State’s David Taylor (165) entering the championships at No. 1. Nelson, Ohio State’s Logan Stieber (141) and Penn State’s Ed Ruth (184) look for their third consecutive national titles, while Delgado and Iowa’s Derek St. John (157) won NCAA crowns a season ago. Taylor aims for his second national title, taking home the crown in 2012.

Five Big Ten schools have claimed NCAA Championships, led by Iowa with 23. Penn State enters this year’s event as the three-time defending champion. Minnesota boasts three championships, while Indiana and Michigan State have each earned one. A Big Ten school has taken home the team title in each of the past seven years.

The three-day, six-session event will begin with preliminary matches at Noon ET on Thursday and will continue into the evening session beginning at 7 p.m. The third session will begin Friday at 11 a.m. with quarterfinal action and wrestlebacks highlighting the schedule. The championships’ fourth session begins at 8 p.m. and will feature semifinal action. Saturday morning brings the conclusion of the consolation bracket as third-, fifth- and seventh-place winners will be decided beginning at 11 a.m. The sixth and final session is scheduled for Saturday evening at 8 p.m., where NCAA weight class champions will be crowned.

Hickson Leads Nuggets to 110-100 Win over Clippers

Posted on March 18, 2014

DENVER (AP) — Reserve J.J. Hickson had 21 points and Ty Lawson scored eight of his 19 in a late fourth-quarter run, helping the Denver Nuggets end the Los Angeles Clippers’ 11-game winning streak with a 110-100 victory Monday night.

The Clippers’ streak was tied for second-longest in franchise history. Their longest, 17 in a row last season, also was snapped by Denver at Pepsi Center.

Kenneth Faried added 18 points and 16 rebounds in a duel in the paint against Blake Griffin, who finished with 26 points and 12 boards.

Down 98-96 with 4:21 remaining, Lawson hit a 3-point to give the Nuggets a lead they wouldn’t relinquish. It was part of a 14-2 run to close out the game. The Clippers didn’t score again after DeAndre Jordan’s dunk at 3:31.

Commissioners to Discuss Big Game Regulations During March Meeting

Posted on March 18, 2014March 18, 2014

LINCOLN – The Nebraska Game and Parks Commissioners will consider big game recommendations when they meet March 21 in Norfolk. The meeting will be at 8 a.m. at Divots Conference Center, 4200 W. Norfolk Ave.

One recommendation would remove 18,420 antlerless deer bonus tags from 12 units. Another would remove 950 buck/either-sex deer permits in the Elkhorn, Platte, Pine Ridge and Sandhills units. Others would raise the River Antlerless deer permit quota from 5,500 to 7,000 and shorten the Late Antlerless Deer Season by nine days to Jan. 1-15.

Commissioners also will consider:

— designating an undeveloped portion of Sherman Reservoir State Recreation Area as an addition to Sherman Reservoir Wildlife Management Area;

— creating fees and a cash fund for the new Nebraska Game and Parks Outdoor Education Center in Lincoln, which will open this spring;

— approving a permanent easement crossing the Cowboy Trail in Holt County so the county may replace a bridge over the Elkhorn River;

— a recommendation to approve the release of captive-reared Salt Creek tiger beetles on Little Salt Creek and Little Salt Creek West wildlife management areas. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service requests the endangered beetle be reintroduced into suitable saline wetland habitat.

NPCC Knights Softball Drop Two against Western Nebraska

Posted on March 18, 2014

North Platte – The North Platte Community College softball team (2-11) dropped a pair of games Monday afternoon to the Western Nebraska Community College (25-7) in North Platte. The Knights were defeated in five innings 6-17 and in six innings 9-1 in the second game of the double header.

In the first game of the day Shannon Lieber took the loss on the mound, giving up four earned runs on 10 hits, one walk and one hit by pitch. Katharine Savolt came on in relief and gave up two earned runs on four hits, two walks and one strikeout.

Siarra Velasquez led the Knights at the plate as she went 2-2 with a walk and three stolen bases. Brooke Wakefield went 2-3 with three RBIs and one stolen base while Britlee Anderson went 2-3 with one RBI. Soliel Atenza went 1-2 with a sacrifice and Lieber went 1-3 with two RBIs.

In the second game of the day, Rylee Murphy was the losing pitcher as she gave up four hits, four earned runs and three walks to go along with one strikeout. Wakefield led the Knights at the plate going 2-3. Sydney Standage went 1-2 and Velasquez went 1-3. Anderson went 0-2 but had one sacrifice and one RBI.

“First innings are huge and we had a ugly first inning in today’s first game,” said head coach Janelle Higgins. “We battled back but the damage had already been done. Western Nebraska is a disciplined team both offensively and defensively and capitalized on our errors. We are growing day by day, we take a few strides forward each day and that’s what counts.”

The Knights then return to the road for two double-headers against Iowa Western Community College on March 22 and Southeast Community College on March 23 before returning home to face Williston State College on March 24 and 25.

Celebrate Nebraska’s Wildlife at Wild Experience Room

Posted on March 18, 2014

LINCOLN – Join Audubon Nebraska in celebrating Nebraska’s wildlife and natural resources at the 5th Annual Wild Experience Room on March 22 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at the Kearney Holiday Inn Convention Center.

The event will feature educational stations to engage children and families in nature activities. Visitors will be able to investigate and touch live animals, explore Nebraska’s birds and create their own unique bird species, examine furs of Nebraska mammals, test their knowledge with Nebraska Wildlife Jeopardy, learn about reptiles and more. Live raptors from Nebraska Raptor Recovery will visit the event from 11 a.m.-noon.

Additionally, those visitors can ride a trolley from the Wild Experience Room to visit sandhill cranes in the wild. The cost of the trolley ride is $3 per person and reservations are required. Call Chris Thody at 402-797-2301.

The free Wild Experience Room is sponsored by Audubon Nebraska and the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, with help from several groups.

Five Big Ten Women’s Basketball Teams Selected to NCAA Championship Field

Posted on March 17, 2014

Rosemont, Ill. – Five Big Ten teams were seeded sixth or higher in their respective regionals when the NCAA announced the 2014 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship field on Monday night. Iowa, Michigan State, Nebraska, Penn State and Purdue earned bids to the field, marking the 15th time in the last 21 years the conference has sent five or more teams to the NCAA Tournament.

Big Ten co-Champion Penn State will make its conference-leading 25th NCAA Championship appearance after earning the No. 3 seed in the Stanford Regional. The Lady Lions will take on No. 14 Wichita State at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, with the winner facing either Dayton or Florida on Tuesday. Penn State makes its fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance and carries the second-most wins in NCAA Tournament play among conference teams with 30. Penn State will host first- and second-round games at Bryce Jordan Center.

Nebraska is the No. 4 seed in the Lincoln Regional and will open NCAA Championship play at 4 p.m. on Saturday against No. 13 Fresno State in Los Angeles. The winner will advance to face the NC State-BYU winner on Monday. The Huskers, who won the Big Ten Tournament championship, are making their 12th appearance in the tournament and have advanced to the NCAA Championship in each of their three years as members of the Big Ten. Nebraska and Pinnacle Bank Arena will serve as regional hosts next weekend.

Purdue is the No. 4 seed in the Notre Dame Regional and opens tournament play against No. 13 Akron at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, with the winner facing either Oklahoma State or Florida Gulf Coast on Monday. The Boilermakers will make their fourth straight trip to the NCAA Championship and their 24th overall, the second most among Big Ten teams. Purdue, which boasts a Big Ten-leading 45 wins in the NCAA Tournament, and Mackey Arena will serve as hosts during the first and second rounds.

Michigan State is the No. 5 seed in the Stanford Regional and faces No. 12 Hampton at 12:30 p.m. on Sunday in Chapel Hill, N.C. An opening-round win would pit the Spartans against the North Carolina-UT Martin winner in the second round on Tuesday. Michigan State returns to the NCAA Championship field for the sixth straight season and makes its 14th trip overall. The Spartans earned a share of the Big Ten Championship this season, their fourth conference title in program history.

Iowa is the No. 6 seed in the Louisville Regional and will open NCAA Championship play against No. 11 Marist on Sunday at 8 p.m., with the winner taking on either Louisville or Idaho on Tuesday. The Hawkeyes are making their seventh consecutive appearance in the NCAA Championship, the longest active streak in the Big Ten. Boasting 23 NCAA tournament berths in program history, the Hawkeyes will host first- and second-round contests at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

The 2014 NCAA Women’s Final Four will be contested in Nashville, Tenn., April 6 and 8.

Nebraska Women to Play Fresno St. in NCAA Opener

Posted on March 17, 2014

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska has earned a No. 4 seed for the NCAA women’s basketball tournament and will open against Fresno State on Saturday in Los Angeles.

About 500 fans gathered with players and coaches at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Monday night to find out their destination. The Cornhuskers must beat No. 13 Fresno State and then the winner between No. 5 North Carolina State and No. 12 BYU to make it back to their home arena for the Lincoln Regional.

The Big Ten tournament champion Huskers (25-6) are in the NCAAs for the third straight year and fifth time since 2007. They lost to Duke in last year’s Sweet 16.

Mountain West Conference tournament champion Fresno State (22-10) is in the NCAA tournament for the seventh straight year.

Bookies Like Some NCAA Seeds Better Than Others

Posted on March 17, 2014

LAS VEGAS (AP) — There will be 1,000 people lined up early Thursday morning to get a seat at the LVH sports book for the start of the NCAA tournament, and most of them don’t care that Michigan State was relegated to a No. 4 seed.

Oddsmakers in this gambling city are treating the Spartans like a No. 1 seed anyway. Their numbers show a team that will likely be favored against everyone except possibly Florida, despite what the NCAA selection committee says.

Michigan State got more respect at the LVH than it did in the NCAA selection room, with oddsmakers making the Spartans a 9-2 pick to win it all. That is second only to Florida at 4-1.

Lawsuit Seeks to End NCAA’s ‘Unlawful Cartel’

Posted on March 17, 2014

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — A new federal lawsuit claims the National Collegiate Athletic Association should allow college football and basketball players to get some of the money they make for their schools.

The suit filed Monday in Newark comes on the eve of the NCAA men’s Division I basketball tournament, its most prominent showcase.

The lawsuit calls the NCAA an “unlawful cartel” that makes billions of dollars from exploiting football and men’s basketball players by limiting their compensation to scholarships.

Through a spokeswoman, the NCAA declined to comment.

Among the plaintiffs are Rutgers basketball player Jonathan Moore and Clemson defensive back Martin Jenkins. The lawsuit also names as defendants the Southeastern Conference, Atlantic Coast Conference, Pac-12, Big Ten and Big 12.

The suit seeks monetary damages and a declaration that the NCAA’s practices violate antitrust laws.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

The National Collegiate Athletic Association and its five dominant conferences are an “unlawful cartel” that has illegally restricted the earning power of football and men’s basketball players while making billions off their labor, according to a federal lawsuit filed Monday that seeks to paint big-time college athletics as being in blatant violation of antitrust laws.

The suit comes on the eve of the NCAA men’s Division I basketball tournament, college sports’ most prominent showcase. In addition to the NCAA, the lawsuit targets the Southeastern Conference, Atlantic Coast Conference, Pac-12, Big Ten and Big 12, and seeks monetary damages as well as a declaration that the defendants’ practices violate federal antitrust laws.

“As a result of these illegal restrictions, market forces have been shoved aside and substantial damages have been inflicted upon a host of college athletes whose services have yielded riches only for others,” according to the court filing. “This class action is necessary to end the NCAA’s unlawful cartel, which is inconsistent with the most fundamental principles of antitrust law.”

The suit seeks triple damages for the four plaintiffs — Rutgers basketball player Jonathan Moore, Clemson football player Martin Jenkins, Texas-El Paso football player Kevin Perry and California football player William Tyndall — based on the economic harm they say they suffered. The court filing estimated that, for instance, Clemson’s athletic department “generated more than $70 million in revenue, the vast majority of which came from football” in 2012 when Jenkins was playing.

It also seeks an injunction to stop the NCAA from prohibiting any of its member institutions from negotiating to give or providing compensation to football and basketball players and rejected the argument that the current rules ensure competitive balance.

“Defendants’ price-fixing agreement and group boycott is a naked restraint of trade without any pro-competitive purpose or effect,” the suit said.

An NCAA spokeswoman didn’t immediately comment on the lawsuit.

Other athletes have challenged the NCAA’s rules governing compensation for student-athletes. Former UCLA basketball player Ed O’Bannon has led a long-running legal battle against the NCAA over, among other things, the unauthorized use of college athletes’ likenesses in video games. Video-game maker Electronic Arts and the Collegiate Licensing Company reached a settlement with the plaintiffs last fall, but the case against the NCAA is scheduled to go to trial barring a settlement.

This month, former West Virginia football player Shawne Alston filed a suit against the NCAA and the five major conferences making similar claims to those contained in Monday’s filing.

And Northwestern University football players are trying to form what would be the first college athletes’ union in U.S. history. Attorneys have said the regimented structure of football at the school essentially makes it a business, and the relationship between the school and the players is that of an employer to employees.

Monday’s filing cited past legal actions in which it says the NCAA has been found to have committed antitrust violations, including lawsuits involving the limiting of football television broadcasts in the 1980s and the capping of part-time coaches’ salaries in the 1990s. It also referred to a lawsuit that charged the NCAA with engaging in anticompetitive behavior against the competing National Invitation Tournament, which resulted in the NCAA’s paying a settlement to the plaintiff schools.