Sports – Page 311 – St. Joseph Post Archive

St. Louis loses series opener to Milwaukee in 10 innings

Posted on May 1, 2017May 1, 2017

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Travis Shaw and Jonathan Villar each hit a tape-measure home run, and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-5 in 10 innings on Monday night.

Shaw’s three-run shot off Seung Hwan Oh (0-2) traveled an estimated 451 feet and broke a 4-all tie with two outs in the top of the 10th. Villar’s two-run drive in the third soared 450 feet to right-center and gave the Brewers a 2-0 lead.

Jedd Gyorko hit two late homers for the Cardinals and finished with four hits. Aledmys Diaz and Matt Carpenter connected back-to-back in the fifth.

Oliver Drake (1-0) pitched a scoreless ninth and Neftali Feliz earned his seventh save.

Milwaukee starter Zach Davies allowed at least one runner in every inning. He gave up two runs and seven hits in five innings, stranding six.

Domingo Santana led off the fourth with a double and scored his fifth run in two games on Manny Pina’s single to make it 3-0.

Eric Thames doubled home Villar in the fifth to make it 4-0. Thames has reached safely in 23 of 24 games this season.

Diaz and Carpenter homered in the fifth to cut the Brewers’ lead to 4-2. It was the first set of back-to-back home runs for the Cardinals this season.

Gyorko led off the eighth and 10th with home runs to give him six this season — all solo shots.

Cardinals starter Michael Wacha gave up four runs and seven hits in six innings.

WONG’S WOES

Kolten Wong ran into a rally-killing out to end the sixth. Cardinals pinch-hitter Matt Adams singled and Wong went from first to third, but fell down after rounding third. He was retired in a long rundown that was scored 8-6-2-5-6.

Wong’s error in the 10th led to Shaw’s home run. Hernan Perez opened the inning with a liner off Wong’s glove and the second baseman threw wildly to first, allowing Perez to reach safely. The extra out allowed Shaw to bat with two outs.

NEW LOCKS, NEW LUCK?

Cardinals RHP Carlos Martinez has more of a traditional hair style. Martinez, the team’s opening day starter, hopes the new look changes his fortunes. He has sported gold and silver long hair, but is winless through his first five starts.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Brewers: OF Ryan Braun (right trapezius soreness) remains day to day. … LHP Tommy Milone was designated for assignment, and Milwaukee selected the contract of RHP Rob Scahill from Triple-A Colorado Springs.

Cardinals: INF Jhonny Peralta (upper respiratory illness) has worked in the batting cage, but still hasn’t taken live fielding.

UP NEXT

Brewers: RHP Wily Peralta (4-1, 5.19 ERA) looks for his third quality start Tuesday night. He is 4-11 with a 5.10 ERA in his career against St. Louis, including 0-8 with a 5.46 ERA over his last eight starts vs. the Cardinals.

Cardinals: Martinez (0-3, 4.71) is still seeking his first win since Sept. 30, 2016. He is 4-2 with a 1.95 ERA in 20 career appearances against Milwaukee.

— Associated Press —

Bearcat tennis to play Barry in NCAA Championship Tournament

Posted on May 1, 2017

MARYVILLE, Mo. – The Northwest Missouri State University men’s tennis team will face Barry University in the first round of the NCAA Championship Tournament on Tuesday, May 9. The match will start at 11 a.m. CST, at Sanlando Park in Altamonte Springs, Fla.

The Bearcats enter the round of 16 matchup as the ITA’s No. 19 ranked team in the nation with an 18-3 record. Northwest defeated Nebraska-Kearney in the Central Regional, 5-4, on Sunday, April 30. This is the fifth-straight appearance for the Bearcats in the NCAA Championships Tournament and the ninth all-time. Northwest has never faced Barry University.

The Barry Buccaneers are the ITA’s No. 2 ranked team in the country with a 23-1 overall record. Barry beat Valdosta State, 5-1, in the South Regional Championship.

— Northwest Athletics —

Royals drop ninth straight with 7-5 loss to Minnesota

Posted on April 30, 2017

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Miguel Sano wrapped up April with another nice day. The young slugger is off to a great start with the Minnesota Twins.

Sano homered and drove in five runs, helping the Twins beat slumping Kansas City 7-5 on Sunday for the Royals’ ninth straight loss.

It was Sano’s fourth consecutive multihit game. He has 11 hits in his last 16 at-bats. He drove in nine runs in the two-game, rain-abbreviated series.

“I’ve been hot before in the minor leagues, but big leagues this is first time,” he said.

He finished April with seven homers and 25 RBI. Torii Hunter was the last Twin with more than seven homers in April with nine in 2002.

“Miggy had a heckuva trip,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said. “He’s been a big force for us. He’s tough to pitch to. He seems to be handling all quadrants of the strike zone.”

Sano connected in the third after Jason Hammel (0-3) walked Byron Buxton and Max Kepler. He added run-producing singles in the fourth and sixth innings.

It’s the longest slide for Kansas City since a 12-game skid in April 2012.

“It’s tough to go through a stretch like this, especially when I know we’re better than what we’re playing,” center fielder Lorenzo Cain said. “What can you do? Keep playing, keep battling. Hopefully we can come out of this.”

The Twins finished April 12-11. They did not get their 12th victory last season until May 25 in their 36th game.

“It was good trip, when you win four out of five,” Molitor said.

Minnesota right-hander Phil Hughes (4-1) got the win despite allowing 10 hits and four runs in 5 2/3 innings.

“He’s been doing a good job as far as keeping major damage down,” Molitor said.

Brandon Kintzler yielded Whit Merrifield’s two-out homer in the ninth before finishing for his seventh save.

Cain went deep for the Royals, belting a solo shot in the fifth for his first homer since Aug. 16. Salvador Perez went 3 for 4 with two doubles, a RBI and two runs scored. The Royals’ 12 hits were a season high.

Kansas City jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second. Perez doubled in Eric Hosmer and scored on Brandon Moss’s two-out single.

But Sano’s seventh homer put Minnesota ahead to stay, and Kepler had a run-scoring fielder’s choice in the Twins’ two-run fourth.

Eddie Rosario’s fourth-inning single extended his hitting streak to a career-high 11 games. Jorge Polanco drove in Minnesota’s last run with an infield hit with two out in the ninth.

Hammel failed to get out of the fourth for his second straight start, allowing five runs and six hits with three walks. Hammel’s ERA climbed to 6.65.
“I’m making the same mistakes, basically walks,” Hammel said. “I’ve got to clean up the walks. I’m throwing too many pitches per at-bat. Full counts every at-bat. Seventy pitches through three innings; that’s just not acceptable, so I’ve got to clean up the mistakes. It’s ridiculous. It’s amateur stuff that I’m doing right now, just trying to do too much.”

Rain delayed the start of the game 63 minutes.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Twins: SS Ehire Adrianza (right oblique strain) went 1 for 3 with a walk with Triple-A Rochester. He is hitting .304 in six rehab games.

Royals: RHP Seth Maness, who signed a minor league contract in February after he had elbow surgery last August, was activated by Triple-A Omaha. Maness is 17-10 with a 3.19 ERA in 244 career relief appearances with St. Louis.

UP NEXT

Twins: RHP Ervin Santana will start Tuesday against Oakland after an off day Monday.

Royals: LHP Jason Vargas will face the White Sox on Monday after losing to them last week in Chicago.

— Associated Press —

Mustangs release 2017 promotional schedule

Posted on April 30, 2017April 30, 2017

St. Joseph, Mo. — The St. Joseph Mustangs released a list of promotional nights for the upcoming 2017 season.

The Promotional Calendar is highlighted by visits to Phil Welch Stadium from some well-known characters. Those characters include: Minions of Despicable Me on July 1st, Marshall from the popular Nickelodeon show PAW Patrol June 10th, and Spongebob Squarepants will be in attendance at the Mustangs Alumni Game on June 17th. Additionally, Wonder Woman will be featured on June 3rd, for Daddy/Daughter Date night.

The Mustangs Alumni Night will feature the return of a pregame Mini Mustangs Night, featuring local children that will play on the field prior to the Mustangs first pitch. The Mini Mustangs Night is a fundraiser for the local Dream Factory.

Mustangs games will also feature a number of game worn jersey auctions that will take place during games. Exclusive jerseys to be featured during the jersey auctions include; a pink jersey for local breast patients, green jersey in conjunction with NWMSU Night, purple jersey for Erin Hook FCA Camp Scholarship, and a patriotic jersey on July 4th.

Once again this season the Mustangs will play on July 3rd and July 4th. July 3rd will feature a special American Celebration and Military Hero Ceremony, as well as sky divers and photo opportunities with a bald eagle. On July 4th, local children may enter the Little Mister and Miss Mustang Competition. Both evenings will see a special Patriotic Mosaic Life Care Fireworks Spectacular to end both nights.

General Manager Ky Turner says these promotional nights offer Mustang fans a variety of fun and unique opportunities to take in a Mustangs game.

“We know that not everyone that comes to games likes baseball,” Turner said, “but we do know that everyone that comes likes to have fun. So we tried to put on a championship level baseball product on the field for baseball fans, but we also have great entertainment options for the entire family. We’re extremely excited for the promotions calendar that we have set forth for this year and we are excited to begin year nine at Phil Welch.”

The Mustangs are set to start their season Wednesday, May 31st against the Midwest A’s. For a look at the full Promotional Calendar click here.

— Mustangs Press Release —

Northwest tennis wins NCAA Tournament opener against Nebraska-Kearney

Posted on April 30, 2017

The Northwest Missouri State University men’s tennis team advanced to the NCAA Championship Tournament with a 5-4 victory over Nebraska-Kearney on Sunday.

– Due to weather, the match was played at the Montgomery County YMCA in Red Oak, Iowa.

– The win moves the No. 19 ranked Bearcats to 18-3 overall while No. 44 Nebraska-Kearney ends the season at 11-10.

– This marks the ninth time in Northwest history the team had advanced to the NCAA Championship Tournament and the fifth straight appearance for the Bearcats.

– Northwest got off to a strong start, winning at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles to take a 2-1 lead into singles play.

– UNK tied the match with a win at No. 3 singles but Northwest battled back with a victory at No. 2 from Sergi Fontcuberta and at No. 5 from Aymeric Autones.

– The three other singles matches all went three sets. No. 1 Romain Boissinot fell in a tough tiebreaker to make it 4-3 Northwest.

– The Lopers picked up another point at No. 5 singles to tie the match, 4-4.

– Fin Glowick had a crucial break in the third set of the No. 6 singles match and broke serve to claim match-winning set.

Scores
1. #46 Wakim,Georges (UNK) def. #34 Boissinot,Romain (NW) 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (5-5)
2. #35 Fontcuberta,Sergi (NW) def. Balado,Pepe (UNK) 6-4, 6-3
3. El Zanaty,Mohab (UNK) def. Tete,Mauro (NW) 6-4, 6-0
4. Arias,Alvaro (UNK) def. Altmann,Josef (NW) 6-3, 3-6, 7-5
5. Autones,Aymeric (NW) def. Richards,Joey (UNK) 6-0, 6-1
6. Glowick,Fin (NW) def. Nguyen,Justin (UNK) 6-4, 4-6, 7-5

Doubles competition
1. Garces,Lucas/El Zanaty,Mohab (UNK) def. Tete,Mauro/Sherif,Youssef (NW) 8-5
2. Boissinot,Romain/Fontcuberta,Sergi (NW) def. Nguyen,Justin/Wakim,Georges (UNK) 8-5
3. Altmann,Josef/Autones,Aymeric (NW) def. Richards,Joey/Balado,Pepe (UNK) 8-4

Match Notes
Nebraska-Kearney 11-10; National ranking #44; Regional ranking #6

Northwest Missouri 18-3; National ranking #19; Regional ranking #1

Order of finish: Doubles (1,3,2); Singles (3,2,5,1,4,6)

Up Next
– Northwest will now await seeding the the NCAA Championship Tournament at Sanlando Park in Altamonte Springs, Fla., starting on May 9.

— Northwest Athletics —

Missouri loses final game of series to Texas A&M

Posted on April 30, 2017

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Baseball dropped the final contest of a weekend series with Texas A&M, 7-2, Sunday afternoon at Taylor Stadium. Junior starter Bryce Montes De Oca (Lawrence, Kan.) pitched an absolute gem as he worked 6.2 innings and struck out nine while allowing only one run on two hits. His impressive start was the longest of his career and he set career-bests in strikeouts, hits allowed and runs allowed. Montes De Oca’s nine punch-outs were the most by a Mizzou pitcher in conference play this season.

Montes De Oca took the loss despite pitching brilliantly, falling to 3-4 on the year. A&M starter Stephen Kolek earned his third win of the year. Mizzou falls to 27-18 and 8-12 in SEC play while Texas A&M goes to 32-13 and 13-8 in SEC play. Junior INF Robbie Glendinning (Scarborough, Australia) hit his fifth homer of the year in the loss, a two-run shot in the ninth.

Montes De Oca worked efficiently early as he worked an 11-pitch, 1-2-3, first inning. In the top of the third, he pitched around a runner on second with only one out. He sat down A&M’s Walker Pennington on strikes and then induced a groundball to third to escape the threat. Montes De Oca allowed the first Aggie hit with one out in the fourth.

After A&M notched the game’s first run in its half of the fifth on an RBI groundout, Montes De Oca worked another scoreless inning in the sixth as he tallied his sixth and seventh strikeouts, surpassing his career-high. He recorded two more punch-outs in the seventh before being relieved by freshman lefty T.J. Sikkema (DeWitt, Iowa), who threw one pitch to get an out and get Mizzou through the seventh.

Mizzou’s offense found life in the bottom half of the seventh when senior OF Kirby McGuire (Round Rock, Texas) recorded Mizzou’s first hit. McGuire’s single was his fifth of the weekend, a team-high. Trey Harris (Powder Springs, Ga.) then reached on a hit by pitch but Mizzou did not scratch across a run, stranding McGuire and Harris. Following the inning the game went into a rain delay that lasted for 1:15.

Mizzou loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, but McGuire struck out swinging to strand three runners. A&M then broke the game open with six runs off three Mizzou pitchers in the top of the ninth inning. Glendinnng hit a two-out, two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth to cut the lead to 7-2.

Mizzou will be back in action Tuesday vs. Murray State at 6 p.m.

— Mizzou Athletics —

Cardinals fall at home to Cincinnati 5-4

Posted on April 30, 2017

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Adam Duvall is not about to reveal his secret.

The slumping Cincinnati outfielder hit three doubles and a single Sunday, helping the Reds to a 5-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.

Duvall began the day in a 4-for-35 skid. He spent several hours working in the indoor batting cage after Saturday’s game was postponed by rain — and discovered a flaw.

“Let’s just say I corrected it,” Duvall said. “I can’t talk about it, or give details.”

“But, I was seeing the ball great today,” he said.

Duvall tied a career high with four hits and raised his batting average 33 points to .247.

“He had a huge day,” Cincinnati manager Bryan Price said. “There is always that feeling, even in the times when he’s struggling, that the next day he’s going to come in and bust out and do some damage. He just doesn’t concede to the struggles.”

Joey Votto hit a tiebreaking single in the eighth inning for the Reds, who had lost eight of their previous nine games.

Votto’s bases-loaded single came off Trevor Rosenthal (0-1). Votto had been 0 for 5 with three strikeouts against the hard-throwing reliever.

“We’ve just got to continue to chug along and get better,” Votto said. “Games like this are how you set a tone.”

Wandy Peralta (1-0) picked up the win by tossing a scoreless seventh inning. Closer Raisel Iglesias threw two innings to record his fourth save in as many chances. It was his second two-inning save of the season.

Duvall, Eugenio Suarez and Scott Schebler drove in runs in the three-run seventh to tie the game.

Devin Mesoraco singled sandwiched around walks to Tucker Barnhart and Billy Hamilton to load the bases against Rosenthal in the eighth. Votto followed with a two-strike single up the middle.

“We never stopping fighting,” Duvall said. “It was a satisfying win.”

St. Louis starter Mike Leake gave up one run on eight hits over seven innings. He is 0-3 against his former team in six career starts.

“They’ve always been a pesky team,” Leake said. “Every time I face them, it seems like they’re a little more into it.”

RAIN GO AWAY

The Cardinals have had three games postponed due to the rain so far, their most ever in the month of April. Saturday’s contest with Cincinnati was called. No makeup date has been announced.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Reds: RHP Homer Bailey will throw a bullpen session on Tuesday. He began the season on the disabled list after undergoing surgery to remove bone chips in his elbow in February.

Cardinals: INF Jhonny Peralta remains on the 10-day disabled list with an adverse reaction to medication taken for a respiratory infection.

UP NEXT

Reds: LHP Amir Garrett (2-2, 5.09) will face Pittsburgh’s RHP Gerrit Cole (1-3, 3.60) on Monday in the first of a four-game series. Garrett did not allow a run in the first two starts covering 12 innings.

Cardinals: RHP Michael Wacha (2-1, 2.55) will take on Milwaukee RHP Zach Davies (2-2, 6.57) in the first of a four-game set on Monday in St. Louis. Wacha is 4-0 in his career against the Brewers.

— Associated Press —

Rain washes out Sunday’s finale for Northwest baseball at Emporia State

Posted on April 30, 2017April 30, 2017

EMPORIA, Kan. – Sunday’s Northwest Missouri State University baseball game against Emporia State has been cancelled due to weather. The game will not be made up.

The Bearcats will play at William Jewell on Tuesday, May 2, at 3:30 p.m. in Liberty, Mo. Northwest will then return home on Friday, May 5, for a three-game series to conclude the regular season with Fort Hays State. Saturday will be Senior Day for Northwest.

— Northwest Athletics —

Missouri Western softball goes 1-1 on day one of MIAA Tournament

Posted on April 28, 2017

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – The Fifth-seeded Missouri Western softball team went 1-1 on the opening day of the MIAA Softball Championships to advance to Friday’s round of games.

The Griffons avenged two losses at Missouri Southern earlier this season with a 4-2 win over the fourth-seeded Lions in their first round game. In round two, it was top-seeded Central Oklahoma’s turn for revenge as the Bonchos held MWSU to three hits in a 10-1 win over the Griffons.

Morgan Rathmann opened her final MIAA tournament with another broken record. The senior broke the MIAA career triples record by leading off the Missouri Southern game with the 32nd triple of her career. Rathmann went 4 for 4 in the game to tie the MWSU career hits record (263), but was held hitless in the Central Oklahoma game.

The Griffons had just one hit through the first six innings against UCO, a misplayed pop-fly to left that turned into a double for Sydney Washington in the second. They added two more hits and their only run of the game in the seventh.

Missouri Western will face seventh-seeded Southwest Baptist on Friday at 10 a.m. Southwest Baptist lost its opener, 1-0 in 14 innings to second-seeded Pittsburg State before eliminating third-seeded Central Missouri, Thursday night.

The three seed (UCM) and four seed (Missouri Southern) were eliminated from the tournament Thursday. Second-seeded Pittsburg State already has one loss.

Friday’s games can be heard on ESPN 1550 in St. Joseph or streamed live, here. All Missouri Western games Friday will also have live video streaming available at this link.

— MWSU Athletics —

Chiefs trade up to take QB Patrick Mahomes 10th overall in NFL Draft

Posted on April 27, 2017

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The Kansas City Chiefs brought just about every top quarterback in this year’s draft to their practice facility over the past few weeks, putting each through an aggressive six-hour interview process designed to test their mental acuity.

As coach Andy Reid put it, ”We tried to bury them.”

Patrick Mahomes kept his head above ground better than anyone else.

So when faced with the prospect of trading up to nab the Texas Tech gunslinger Thursday night, Reid and general manager John Dorsey wasted no time. They sent first- and third-round picks this year and their first-round pick next year to Buffalo, climbing from the 27th overall pick to the 10th to acquire the heir apparent to veteran quarterback Alex Smith.

It was only the third time in the common-draft era Kansas City selected a quarterback in the first round, and the first since Todd Blackledge failed to live up to expectations from the 1983 draft.

”He came in here and we drilled him,” Reid said of his new prot�g�. ”We threw the kitchen sink at him and expected him to spit it out. We did that with all those guys in here. It was fun.”

Fun? Try stressful.

North Carolina’s Mitch Trubisky went to Chicago second overall, but the Chiefs had their pick of the remaining prospects. The job Mahomes did in his interview, and the prolific numbers he put up for the Red Raiders, made him the choice for Kansas City.

Heisman Trophy winner Deshaun Watson of Clemson went two picks later to Houston.

”Once the trade went through on the TV, I got a call and they said they were going to pick me, and just pure excitement,” Mahomes said. ”It’s something I’ve always dreamed of and going to an organization like this is something I’ve always dreamed of as well.”

Mahomes is the second QB to be taken in the first round by a Reid-coach team following Donovan McNabb with Philadelphia in 1999. He also drew comparisons from his new coach to another player who flourished working under him in Green Bay: Brett Favre.

”They’re different players. Brett is a Hall-of-Fame player. This kid has a long way to go before that,” Reid said, ”but when you have an opportunity to talk to them and be around him and feel a certain energy, and then you see him practice, you’ll see a certain intensity you like.”

The big-armed son of former big league pitcher Pat Mahomes, the younger Mahomes will try to buck a trend of spread-style quarterbacks from Texas Tech that have failed to thrive in the NFL. Among them is Kliff Kingsbury, who spent the past four seasons tutoring Mahomes with the Red Raiders.

The Chiefs were in the market for a quarterback with Smith nearing the end of his career.

The former No. 1 overall pick of the 49ers, Smith arrived in Kansas City with Reid and general manager John Dorsey four years ago. And he’s played well enough to lead the Chiefs to three playoff appearances, an AFC West title this past season and earn a $68 million, four-year contract extension that could keep him with the Chiefs through the 2018 season.

That timetable is important: It gives Mahomes at least one season and possibly two to learn Reid’s offense from a trusted veteran. And if Mahomes proves to be a quick study, Smith can be released after next season with a relatively minimal impact on the salary cap.

”Right now, Patrick isn’t absolutely ready to play. He’s got some work to do,” Reid said. ”But he’s coming into a great room, he has an opportunity to learn from Alex, which will be a great for him. We have to have some patience with him, but he has tremendous upside.”

Much like other Texas Tech quarterbacks, Mahomes posted up eye-popping numbers in a pass-heavy offense geared to putting up points. He started 29 games over three seasons and became the third player in Football Bowl Subdivision history with multiple seasons of 5,000 yards total offense.

He threw for 5,052 yards with 41 touchdowns and 10 interceptions last season.

Mahomes is confident he’ll succeed here other Texas Tech quarterbacks – Kingsbury, Graham Harrell and B.J. Symons – have failed in that he was given the reins of the entire offense in college.

That kind of responsibility is rare, and Mahomes took full advantage of it.

”He’s intelligent, he has great skill, and I just think he’s going to be a great player when it’s all said and done,” Reid said. ”We just thought with what we do, Mahomes would fit in well.”

The Chiefs still have their second-round pick and another third-round choice on Friday, and will now turn their attention to defense. They could use a middle linebacker to eventually replace veteran Derrick Johnson and a cornerback to play opposite Marcus Peters.

— Associated Press —