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Author: Dave Riggert

Royals drop series opener at Detroit 11-8

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DETROIT (AP) — Christin Stewart hit his first two big-league homers and drove in six runs Thursday night, leading the Detroit Tigers past the Kansas City Royals 11-8.

Stewart, a September call-up playing in his 11th game, became the first Tigers rookie to drive in six runs in a game since Ryan Raburn had seven against the Chicago White Sox on July 25, 2007.

Six Tigers had at least two hits and Detroit snapped a seven-game home losing streak. Kansas City has lost five in a row.

The Tigers led 9-5 after two innings as the teams combined for five home runs, six doubles, a triple and a double steal. By that point, both starting pitchers were gone. Detroit’s Matthew Boyd allowed five runs while getting four outs. Kansas City’s Jorge Lopez (2-5) gave up seven runs without getting an out in the second.

Zac Reininger (1-0), the second of seven Detroit pitchers, picked up his first major-league victory.

Jorge Bonifacio gave the Royals the lead with a three-run homer off Boyd in the first, but the Tigers came back with four in the bottom of the inning. Stewart hit a two-run homer to right and Nicholas Castellanos hit the next pitch to nearly same spot.

Grayson Greiner made it 4-3 with a sacrifice fly later in the inning, and the runs kept coming in the second. Brian Goodwin gave the Royals a 5-4 lead with a two-run homer in the top of the inning, but Stewart made it five RBI in two innings with a three-run home run in the Tigers’ second.

Glenn Sparkman replaced Lopez and gave up a triple to Castellanos and Victor Martinez’s RBI double before getting the first out of the second inning. Greiner picked up his second RBI with a two-out single, giving the Tigers a 9-5 lead.

Hunter Dozier hit a two-run homer off Reininger in the fourth, pulling the Royals within 9-7, but the next four relievers combined for 4 1/3 scoreless innings as Detroit maintained the lead into the ninth inning.

Stewart walked with the bases loaded in the seventh inning for his sixth RBI.

Adalberto Mondesi homered off Shane Greene in the ninth to make it 11-8.

V-MART KEEPS HIS RECORD

In the first inning, Victor Martinez lined a ball into the right-center field gap — the perfect place for a triple at spacious Comerica Park — but his lack of speed turned it into a double. With nine games left in his final season, Martinez has 3,937 plate appearances for the Tigers without hitting a triple, the most in franchise history. Aaron Robinson is second with 868.

UP NEXT

The teams continue their four-game series on Friday night, with Ian Kennedy (2-8, 4.73) starting against Detroit’s Francisco Liriano (5-10, 4.54).

— Associated Press —

Nebraska adds another game to 2018 football schedule

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Nebraska has finalized an agreement to play Bethune-Cookman University on Oct. 27 at Memorial Stadium to fill an opening on the 2018 football schedule. The contest will replace the Huskers’ Sept. 1 game against Akron which was cancelled due to severe storms in Lincoln.

Bethune-Cookman plays in the Football Championship Subdivision and owns a 1-2 record in 2018, following a loss at Florida Atlantic last Saturday. The Wildcats compete in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and posted a 6-2 record in league play in 2017. Coach Terry Sims in his fourth season guiding the BCU program.

“Our great fans and our football student-athletes deserve a full schedule, and we are glad to be able to provide an additional game on Oct. 27 against Bethune-Cookman,” Nebraska Athletic Director Bill Moos said. “We appreciate the patience of our fans through this process. While there may be some conflicts on what was originally a bye week, we know Memorial Stadium will be packed to watch the Huskers on a fall Saturday.

“I would like to thank Bethune-Cookman for their great cooperation as we put this agreement together. Athletic Director Lynn Thompson and Head Coach Terry Sims are excited to bring their team to Lincoln, and we look forward to their visit.”

Nebraska will pay Bethune-Cookman a guarantee of $800,000 for its trip to Lincoln. The game will be part of the Big Ten’s regular television package. Game time and television information will be available six to 12 days in advance of kickoff.

— NU Athletics —

Royals lose third straight one-run game as Pirates complete sweep

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PITTSBURGH (AP) — Chris Archer pitched seven strong innings, and the Pittsburgh Pirates completed a three-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals with a 2-1 win on Wednesday night.

In his most impressive start since being acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays on July 31, Archer (5-8) allowed one run on six hits with eight strikeouts and one walk. The right-hander made it out of the sixth inning for the first time in nine starts for the Pirates, who traded for him in hopes of making a playoff run.

The Pirates remain marooned in fourth place in the NL Central despite a five-game winning streak that’s moved them three games over .500.

Felipe Vazquez allowed one walk in the ninth but earned his 35th save one day after he let a 1-0 lead slip away — his fifth blown save of the season. The Pirates went on to win 2-1 in 11 innings on Tuesday night.

Adam Frazier broke a 1-1 tie with a homer to right-center with two outs in the fifth inning off rookie right-hander Heath Fillmyer (3-2). It was Frazier’s ninth homer of the season, and it came two days after he fouled a ball off his knee.

The injury held Frazier out of the starting lineup Tuesday, although he entered in the ninth and played the final three innings. He started Wednesday at second base.

Fillmyer allowed two runs on eight hits with five strikeouts in seven innings for Kansas City, which has lost four straight after winning five of six.

Colin Moran put the Pirates on the board first with a single to left that scored Corey Dickerson, who was 2 for 3 with two doubles, in the second inning. Adalberto Mondesi tied it with a homer to center, his 10th, in the third.

LINEUP CHANGE

Royals: OF Jorge Bonifacio was taken out of the starting lineup after going 0 for 4 with four strikeouts and one walk Tuesday. He entered as a pinch-hitter in the ninth and drew a walk.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Pirates: RHP Chad Kuhl underwent elbow surgery on Wednesday. No further details regarding the operation were provided. Kuhl was re-examined by Dr. David Altchek in New York on Tuesday. He last pitched on June 26.

UP NEXT

Royals: RHP Jorge Lopez (2-4, 3.93 ERA) is expected to start against the Detroit Tigers on Thursday. He left Kansas City’s game against the Minnesota Twins on Sept. 14 with a left rib contusion sustained in a collision with 3B Hunter Dozier.

Pirates: RHP Ivan Nova (9-9, 4.07) takes the mound against the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday. In his past two starts, Nova has allowed one run on seven hits over 12 innings with 13 strikeouts and two walks.

— Associated Press —

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes named AFC Player of the Week again

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It’s safe to say that quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ season is off to a strong start.

The second-year quarterback was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week on Wednesday morning, making it back-to-back weeks that Mahomes has won the award. The Texas Tech product is the first quarterback to open the season with consecutive Player of the Week awards since Tom Brady in 2011.

The 23-year-old Mahomes, who is embarking on his first season as Kansas City’s starting quarterback, completed 23-of-28 passes for 326 yards and six touchdowns in last Sunday’s victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. He’s the youngest player in NFL history to toss six or more touchdowns in a game and just the second to do so in franchise history, joining Pro Football Hall of Famer Len Dawson.

Mahomes leads the NFL in touchdown passes (10) and throws of at least 25 yards (10) while ranking second in passer rating (143.3) and yards per attempt (10.58). His 10 touchdown passes are the most in NFL history through the first two weeks of a season.

And, most importantly, Mahomes’ efforts have led Kansas City to a 2-0 record on the season.

The Chiefs will look to stay in the win column this Sunday as they take on the San Francisco 49ers in the home-opener at Noon inside Arrowhead Stadium.

— Chiefs.com —

St. Louis drops series finale at Atlanta 7-3

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ATLANTA (AP) — Freddie Freeman spent the previous four seasons playing for an Atlanta team that averaged 90 losses a year.

Now that the Braves are back challenging for a division title, the All-Star first baseman knows his club can’t afford any long losing streaks.

“It’s been four days, so I thought this was a big win for our team,” Freeman said. “I thought we played a quality baseball game today and hopefully we can carry that into this Philly series.”

Freeman hit a two-run homer and drove in three runs, Touki Toussaint pitched into the sixth inning and the NL East-leading Braves snapped a four-game skid with a 7-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday.

It was a critical win for Atlanta, which is 5 1/2 games ahead of the second-place Phillies and opens a four-game home series against them on Thursday. Philadelphia blanked the New York Mets 4-0 on Wednesday night.

The Braves need any combination of six victories or Philadelphia losses to clinch their first division title since 2013.

St. Louis, which had won three straight, began the day leading Colorado by 1 1/2 games for the second wild-card spot.

Closer A.J. Minter, working in a non-save situation in the ninth, walked two to load the bases, but he ended it by striking out Jose Martinez and getting Paul DeJong to pop up.

Freeman’s 23rd homer, an opposite-field shot to left-center, put the Braves up 2-0 in the fourth against Jack Flaherty. Freeman went 3 for 3 and is hitting .405 over his past 11 games.

“He’s getting the ball in the air, and it’s carrying, and that’s always a good thing,” manager Brian Snitker said. “That’s a welcomed sight if we can get him going.”

Toussaint (2-1) allowed five hits, two runs, three walks and struck out eight in 5 2/3 innings. A rookie making his fourth career start, Toussaint was chased after Yadier Molina’s RBI single cut the lead to 5-2 in the sixth.

“We survived the first couple of innings with essentially zero fastball command, then suddenly we had some decent command of it and were able to flip the script and challenge guys with some early contacts,” Braves catcher Tyler Flowers said. “If he gets ahead of guys, it’s a tough arsenal to defend.”

Flaherty (8-8) gave up five hits, a season-high five runs and two walks with six strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings. Facing the Braves for the first time, Flaherty began the game as the NL rookie leader in strikeouts, winning percentage and opponents’ batting average. He had gone 4-1 with 1.69 ERA in his previous eight starts.

Flowers doubled to begin the three-run fifth and scored on a wild pitch. Freeman chased Flaherty with an RBI single, and the lead swelled to four runs on a double steal by Ender Inciarte and Freeman. The Braves successfully challenged to get the call overturned that Freeman had been tagged out.

“I thought things went well early, then Freeman put a good swing on a ball and then in that one inning things kind of got away,” Flaherty said. “I put a couple of guys on base with walks and then Freeman put another good swing on the ball.”

Atlanta added a run to make it 6-2 in the seventh. Inciarte doubled and scored when second baseman Kolten Wong threw errantly to first on a potential double play grounder.

Jedd Gyorko’s sacrifice fly in the eighth cut the lead to 6-3. Flowers’ eighth homer in the bottom half of the inning made it 7-3.

At least for one game, Atlanta played well at home, where it had dropped 14 of 18 and has won just one of its past seven series.

Freeman, who became the first Braves first baseman with 20 homers and 10 stolen bases in a season since Dale Murphy in 1978, wants his teammates to enjoy the pennant race and not press.

“It’s fun. It really is,” Freeman said. “This is what you work for six, seven months. To be in this situation this year, it’s the greatest feeling there is.”

OUCH

Harrison Bader was hit in the back of the helmet by a pitch in the third, but he convinced St. Louis’ trainers that he wasn’t affected and jogged to first. Going deep against Toussaint for his 12th homer in the fifth, Bader said he felt no measure of revenge. Toussaint wasn’t trying to hit him.

“The two are completely independent of each other, honestly,” Bader said. “I was just trying to make a good swing.”

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP John Gant (7-6, 3.53 ERA) will start when St. Louis, following a day off, opens a three-game home series against San Francisco. He allowed six hits and six runs in his previous start, a 17-4 loss to the Dodgers.

Braves: RHP Kevin Gausman (10-10, 3.92 ERA) will make his ninth start since being acquired in a trade with Baltimore as Atlanta tries to pad its lead on the Phillies. He is 3-0 with a 2.45 ERA in four starts at SunTrust Park.

— Associated Press —

Griffon volleyball gets swept by Northwest Missouri State

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MARYVILLE, Mo. – The Missouri Western volleyball team lost in three sets at Northwest Missouri Tuesday night. The loss drops the Griffons to 8-6 overall and 1-2 in the MIAA. Northwest improved to 11-3 and 3-0 in league play.

NOTABLES

  • The sets were closer than the match score with 29 ties and 11 lead changes, including 17 ties and nine lead changes in the first set
  • Missouri Western led set one, 22-21, but Northwest ended on a 4-0 run to take an early 1-0 lead
  • The Griffons jumped out to an early 5-2 lead in the third and led 13-11 before a Northwest run flipped things on MWSU which quickly trailed 16-14
  • Missouri Western fought back to tie set three at 19 each, but never led again
  • MWSU held the MIAA’s top hitting percentage team to a .196 clip, the third lowest total of the season for the Bearcats
  • Liv Winker played the entire third set at setter, posting 10 assists, two kills and two blocks
  • It was just the second loss for MWSU in the last 12 meetings between the two teams
  • The loss was the Griffons’ first in Maryville since 2012
  • Missouri Western dropped the first set for just the third time this season, all resulted in losses

STATS AND LEADERS

  • Shellby Taylor led the team with nine kills and a .241 hitting percentage. Her 11.5 points were also a team high
  • Rachel Losch had a team-high six blocks
  • Audrey Keim led the team with 24 digs
  • The Griffons had 11 blocks
  • Missouri Western’s .121 hitting percentage was its second lowest this season

UP NEXT

  • At Southwest Baptist on Friday, Sept. 21 at 6 p.m.
  • Southwest Baptist is 4-12 and 0-3 in MIAA play after falling in four sets to previously winless Missouri Southern on Tuesday— MWSU Athletics —

Kansas City loses at Pittsburgh 2-1 in 11 innings

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PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pinch-hitter Ryan Lavarnway drove in the winning run with a single in the 11th inning, Jameson Taillon struck out a career-high 11 and the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Kansas City Royals 2-1 on Tuesday night.

It was just the second at-bat of the season for the 30-year-old Lavarnway, the Pirates’ fourth-string catcher. He hit .288 in 77 games in with Triple-A Indianapolis. Lavarnway has played 142 career games with five teams.

Starling Marte led off the 11th with an infield single off Burch Smith (1-6). Josh Bell walked and Burch struck out Francisco Cervelli before Adam Frazier was intentionally walked to load the bases, setting up Lavarnway’s walk-off hit to shallow center.

Pinch-hitter Hunter Dozier tied the game in the ninth with a double off Pirates closer Felipe Vazquez that scored Jorge Bonifacio. Left fielder Corey Dickerson threw to shortstop Jordy Mercer, who relayed home to throw out Salvador Perez and preserve the tie.

Vazquez had not blown a save since May 31, a string of 24 consecutive opportunities converted.

Taillon threw seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits and a walk. His previous career high in strikeouts was 10, set on July 12.

Kyle Crick (3-2) retired the side on 10 pitches in the 11th to earn the win.

Colin Moran had a pinch-hit home run with two outs in the seventh inning, his 10th homer this season.

It looked like the Royals might get to Taillon in the top of the seventh. With runners on second and third, Brian Goodwin hit a flyball to right fielder Pablo Reyes, who threw out Ryan O’Hearn at the plate.

Eric Skoglund allowed three hits and struck out two in six innings, his first start this season in which he did not allow a run.

The Pirates improved to 14-5 in interleague play, the second-best record in the majors behind the Boston Red Sox.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Pirates: Frazier did not start but said he was “fine” after fouling a ball off his right knee and leaving Monday’s game with discomfort. He grounded into a fielder’s choice in the ninth and remained in the game in left field. … C Elias Diaz (hamstring) made his first appearance since Aug. 31. He walked as a pinch-hitter in the ninth.

Royals: Perez was a late scratch with a recurrence of a nagging left thumb injury. He singled in the ninth. … RHP Jorge Lopez (bruised rib) has still not thrown a between-starts bullpen session. His next turn in the rotation is Thursday against Detroit. The team has not announced a probable pitcher.

UP NEXT

Royals: Heath Fillmyer (3-1, 4.76 ERA) is scheduled to start the series finale Wednesday. The rookie allowed 10 runs over his previous two starts.

Pirates: Chris Archer (4-8, 4.66 ERA) has lost three straight decisions and is 1-4 with a 5.19 ERA since returning from an abdominal injury in early July.

— Associated Press —

McCarthy takes fourth as MWSU men finish play at NSU Classic

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MUSKOGEE, Okla. – Missouri Western Men’s Golf finished the third round at the NSU Classic in the near-100 degree heat on Tuesday. Patrick McCarthy jumped from ninth place up to fourth place by shooting one of the best third rounds of anyone in the field, finishing the day with a 68. The Griffons finished tied for ninth in the team standings.

McCarthy was able to jump five spots in the final round on Tuesday. He matched his first round 68 with another score of 68 in the final round to end the NSU Classic at nine-under par. McCarthy was named to the NSU Men’s Golf Classic All-Tournament team for his top-five finish. His fourth-place finish gives McCarthy his best finish of the early season after getting sixth at the Mule Invitational in the team’s only other tournament.

McCarthy was not the only Griffon to shoot up the leaderboards in the final round. Tom Buffington shot a 69 in the third round, vaulting him up 18 spots to finish the tournament 26th. Buffington had the second-best score for the Griffons with an overall score of 214.

Missouri Western will have some time off before heading to Albuquerque, New Mexico for the Western New Mexico Fall Intercollegiate on October 1.

— MWSU Athletics —

Cardinals win 3rd straight, send Braves to 4th straight loss

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ATLANTA (AP) — Paul DeJong hit a two-run homer, Yadier Molina added a two-run single in a four-run eighth inning and the St. Louis Cardinals won their third straight game with an 8-1 victory over the NL East-leading Atlanta Braves on Tuesday night.

Austin Gomber pitched five effective innings for St. Louis, which holds a slim lead for the second NL wild card. The Cardinals top the National League with 36 victories since All-Star break, and their 43 road wins this season rank second.

Atlanta’s division lead dropped to 5 1/2 games over Philadelphia as the Braves lost their fourth in a row after a season-best six-game winning streak. They are 38-38 at SunTrust Park and have dropped 14 of 18 at home.

The Braves’ magic number remained at seven as they try to clinch a division title for the first time in five years. Philadelphia beat the New York Mets 5-2.

Anibal Sanchez (6-6) allowed four hits and two runs and struck out six in five innings. He faced the minimum through his first three innings and retired his first batter in the fourth before Jose Martinez singled and DeJong hit his 19th homer.

DeJong, who is hitting .500 with four homers and 10 RBI in five career games against Atlanta, added a run-scoring single in the eighth off Dan Winkler. DeJong’s homer was his 14th on the road.

Gomber (6-1) gave up six hits, one run and three walks while striking out five for his fifth victory in his last six decisions, but it wasn’t easy for the rookie.

After Ronald Acuna Jr. hit his 26th homer to begin the third, Gomber escaped a bases-loaded jam on Ender Inciarte’s lineout to end the inning. Gomber got Inciarte to fly out to strand a runner at third to end the fifth.

Molina’s single in the eighth off Sam Freeman scored three runs. He was credited with two RBI, and a third run scored because Acuna made an error in left field.

Tyler O’Neill, who entered as a pinch-runner in the eighth, had a run-scoring double and Marcell Ozuna followed with an RBI single to make it 8-1.

STRONG BULLPEN

John Brebbia and Jordan Hicks faced the minimum in the sixth and seventh, Dominic Leone pitched around a walk in the eighth and Mike Mayers faced five batters in the ninth. The Cardinals improved to 69-6 when leading after seven.

STILL STRUGGLING

After walking 39 in their last five games, the Braves didn’t issue a free pass until the eighth, when Jonny Venters, Winkler and Freeman each walked a batter. Of the 35 runs allowed on this homestand, 15 reached with a walk.

WELCOME SOUTH

St. Louis has won eight straight games in Atlanta dating to 2016, the best run since the Cardinals took 11 road games in a row from the Braves from 1967-68.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Jack Flaherty (8-7, 2.86 ERA) will make his first career appearance against Atlanta. The 22-year-old rookie pitched six innings, allowing four hits and one run, in losing his last start 3-0 to the Dodgers.

Braves: RHP Touki Toussaint (1-1, 4.67 ERA) gets his fourth career start as he faces St. Louis for the first time. The 22-year-old rookie is 1-1 with a 3.31 ERA as a starter.

— Associated Press —

Western’s Menke named MIAA Offensive Player of the Week

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The MIAA announced Tuesday that Missouri Western forward Cassidy Menke was voted MIAA Offensive Player of the Week. It is Menke’s first time receiving the award this season, as she earned the honor three times last season.

Menke earns the honor after leading the Griffons to a 2-0 weekend against Lindenwood and Northwest Missouri. Menke scored her first goal of the weekend against the Lions to put the game away at 3-1. She was getting good looks all night on Friday, totaling four shots on goal in the game.

In Sunday’s game against the Bearcats, Menke scored her third goal of the season in the 10th minute to put the Griffons up 1-0. The Griffons held that lead the entire game and defeated the Bearcats 4-0. She also set up the next Missouri Western goal as she assisted Claire Meyers’ goal in the 65th minute.

Menke is first on the team with three goals and seven total points. The program’s all-time leader in career goals has been a key part of the Griffon offense in the early season, with the fifth-most shots of anyone in the MIAA.

— MWSU Athletics —

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