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Category: Sports

Mizzou men’s basketball inks seven-foot center Axel Okongo

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COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Men’s Basketball signed 7-foot junior college center Axel Okongo to its 2019 recruiting class, head coach Cuonzo Martin announced Wednesday. Okongo attended Northwest College in Wyoming for two seasons, shooting 52 percent from the field as a sophomore. He joins Kobe Brown, Tray Jackson and Mario McKinney, Jr., as newcomers heading into Mizzou’s 2019-20 campaign.

Okongo hails from Saacy-sur-Marne, France, where he lived throughout his childhood before moving to Canada to continue his basketball career at Thetford Prep Academy in Quebec. At Thetford, he played for the same coaches who mentored current Toronto Raptor, Chris Boucher. Before finishing his collegiate career at Oregon, Boucher landed at Northwest College in Wyoming, paving the connection for Okongo to follow a similar path.

“Axel is a guy who will go to battle to make himself and those around him better every single day,” Martin said. “He’s a talented rim-protector who moves extremely well at his size, and can get out and run and finish in transition. His determination to get better and his willingness to put in time to continually improve will make him successful on and off the court.”

Okongo is lauded for his defensive prowess by his coaches at both the prep and junior college levels, posting five or six blocked shots in a game on multiple occasions and averaging more than three swats per outing. In 22 game appearances in 2018-19, he pulled down 49 rebounds in 231 minutes.

A well-documented hard worker, Okongo balanced time as a student-athlete with a job on the school’s custodial staff to pay his way at his Northwest College. Following his time in Wyoming, the 7-footer earned spots in several Junior College showcases around the country.

Okongo shined at the Evan Turner Showcase in Chicago before signing at Mizzou. The 7-footer is set to bolster the Tigers’ frontcourt alongside experienced veterans Jeremiah Tilmon, Jr., Reed Nikko and Mitchell Smith.

— Mizzou Athletics —

Royals sign first round pick Bobby Witt, Jr.

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The Kansas City Royals announced Wednesday that they have agreed to terms with shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., the club’s first-round pick (2nd overall) in the 2019 First-Year Player Draft. Per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Witt Jr., who will turn 19 years old on Friday, is the son of right-handed pitcher Bobby Witt, who played 16 seasons with seven different teams in the Majors from 1986-2001, and was the third overall pick by Texas in the 1985 Draft. The Witts are the ninth father-son duo selected in the first round and the first to be selected within the first three picks. They pass Tom Grieve (6th overall in 1968) and Ben Grieve (2nd overall in 1994) as the highest-drafted father-son duo.

— Royals Press Release —

Mustangs drop second straight at Jefferson City

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The St. Joseph Mustangs lost their second consecutive game Tuesday as they fell at Jefferson City 7-6.

St. Joe’s collegiate summer baseball team drops to 10-3 and 9-3 in the MINK League, while the Renegades improve to 5-5.

The Mustangs led 1-0 after two innings and 3-1 after five, but Jeff City scored four in the bottom of the sixth inning to take their first lead. Both teams scored one run in the seventh before St. Joseph rallied with the two in the top of the eighth to tie the game. The Renegades then scored one run in the bottom of the eighth inning that turned out to be the winning run.

Jared Wilson suffered the loss in relief for the Mustangs as he allowed one run and three hits in the eight inning. Alec Byous started and went five innings as he gave up five runs and seven hits.

Jackson Dierenfeldt had a double and two RBI, while Jack Wagner and Brady Holden drove in one run each.

The Mustangs return to Phil Welch Stadium for a four-game home stand. It begins Wednesday night against the Clarinda A’s at 7:00 p.m.

Griffons’ Wicks finishes off 2019 men’s basketball recruiting class

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ST. JOSEPH – Missouri Western head men’s basketball coach Sundance Wicks has announced the signings of four student-athletes for the 2019-20 season.

JaRon Thames, Logan Dolan, Nico Felici and Caleb Bennett will join Reese Glover and Alex John, who signed during the early signing period, as new Griffons next season.

“Let me start off by saying that I could not be more proud of our assistants, Will Martin and Ty Danielson, and the job they did developing meaningful relationships and recruiting outstanding young men in our 2019 class,” Wicks said. “This class as a whole is exactly what we envisioned in regards to filling our program’s micro and macro needs. We have impact players surrounded with tough-minded winners.”

Caleb Bennett
6-5 | St. Joseph, Mo. | Lehigh University
Bennett returns home to St. Joseph after two years at Division I Lehigh. Before a late-season injury cut his sophomore year short, Bennett averaged 4.7 points and 1.9 rebounds for the Mountain Hawks. As a freshman at Lehigh, Bennett averaged 5.5 points and 2.3 rebounds with 24 assists and 11 steals. He scored a career-high 23 points vs. Boston University as a freshman and averaged 5.5 points and 2.3 rebounds over his two seasons. Bennett was a three-time All-State selection at Lafayette High School. Following his senior season, Bennett was the No. 3 ranked player in Missouri by Prep Hoops.

Wicks on Bennett: “Impact Player. There aren’t too many things you can say about CB that haven’t already been spoken about him as a basketball player. He is an elite athlete with a tremendous feel for the game. CB makes difficult plays look extremely easy! Hidden behind his athleticism is his ability to shoot the ball. The city of St. Joseph gets to welcome back with open arms one of the most electrifying players in this country. However, what I am most excited about is his locker room leadership. Caleb is a veteran player that will be a fourth-year junior when he suits up for the Griffs. Since my first meeting with CB, I knew he had the right soul for this program. I love how Caleb approaches responsibility and leadership and he is going to have a huge impact on this community and our program. He is the perfect fit!”

Logan Dolan
6-5 | Broken Arrow, Okla. | Broken Arrow High School
Dolan was named Frontier Valley All-Conference and to the Skiatook All-Tournament Team. He averaged 17 points, five rebounds and three assists per game as a senior.

Wicks on Dolan: “Sniper; flat out torch! Logan is a long, rangy shooter with a great feel for the game. What I love most about his game is how well he moves without the basketball and can score with his feet. Logan is a tireless worker and a flat out gym rat. When Logan adds some weight to his long frame he will be one of the more elite shooters in our program. Logan wanted to be a Griff and we love guys who want to be Griffs!”

Nico Felici
6-2 | Bellevue, Neb. | Bellevue West High School
A four-year starter at Bellevue West, Felici averaged 14.1 points, 3.2 rebounds and two assists in his career. He became the fourth 1,000 point scorer in Bellevue history and was an 82 percent free throw shooter and a 40 percent three-point shooter. Felici was names second team All-Metro Conference and first team Bellevue Leader.

Wicks on Felici: “Tough Minded Winner; absolute winner. As we began to recruit Nico all we kept hearing about was his innate toughness and how he was always considered the most important player on his championship-level teams year in and year out. He is all of that and more. He is the type of player that will do anything in his power to help his team win and win consistently. He spends countless hours in the gym and gets better every time he steps on the court. Nico has a high basketball IQ and makes the right plays when they are needed. His leadership will be ever evolving in our program and I believe we got a steal with him!”

JaRon Thames
6-5 | St. Louis, Mo. | Trinity Catholic High School
Thames averaged 15 points, six rebounds and five assists at Trinity Catholic. He was named All-Conference and All-State. Thames helped Trinity Catholic to a 25-4 record last season, losing in the Class 3 quarterfinals to eventual state champion Vashon.

Wicks on Thames: “Swiss Army Knife. If you were going to put a basketball player in a body, you would make it in a Thames Frame! JaRon has such a unique combination of skill and length and that means he has the chance to make an immediate impact in our program. JT reminds me of Magic Johnson! He’s a 6-6 point forward with beautiful passing skills, an outstanding feel in the open court, three-level scoring ability and is deceptively athletic. Once this community gets to know JT they will see he has a great personality, a big heart and is going to be very impactful Griff on the court and in the community!”

— MWSU Athletics —

Soler, Cuthbert help rally Royals to 3-2 win over Tigers

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Jorge Soler had the tying RBI double in the eighth inning and Cheslor Cuthbert followed with the go-ahead run-scoring single to lead the Kansas City Royals to a 3-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday night.

Adalberto Mondesi started the rally with his third hit of the game, a double with one out off Daniel Stumpf, and scored on Soler’s ensuing hit off Victor Alcantara (2-1). Terrance Gore ran for Soler and stole third. He then scored on Cuthbert’s single between three fielders in right field to put the Royals ahead.

Scott Barlow (2-2) pitched a scoreless eighth inning to get the win, and Ian Kennedy got the last three outs for his fifth save.

The Tigers’ bullpen wasted a brilliant effort from Spencer Turnbull. He scattered four hits and two walks with five strikeouts over six innings. It was only the third time in 14 starts that Turnbull had not allowed a run.

Jakob Junis had a quality start for Kansas City, allowing two runs and five hits with five strikeouts in seven innings.

The Tigers got to Junis in the first on a 427-foot home run by Nicholas Castellanos to left-center. It was Castellanos’ 100th career homer, all with the Tigers.

Junis gave up a run in the first inning for the ninth time in 14 starts. His ERA in those first innings is 8.36, compared to 4.71 in the other innings.

Brandon Dixon hit a 447-foot homer in the fourth, into the fountains 20 feet beyond where Castellanos’ homer traveled, to put the Tigers up 2-0.

Following Turnbull’s departure, Ryan O’Hearn led off the seventh with his sixth home run of the season. He broke an 0-for-15 slump with his 439-foot blast to right.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals 3B Hunter Dozier was eligible to come off the 10-day injured list, but he is not close to being ready. He’s been on the IL since June 3, retroactive to May 31. Manager Ned Yost said, “We’re going to be working him back into it, making sure everything is functional and feeling good. We’ve got to make sure that he’s healthy, 100 percent. I don’t know if we’ll want to send him out on a rehab. When he’s ready to go we’ll make that decision.”

Tigers: SS Niko Goodrum was removed from the game following the top of the third after he fouled a pitch off his knee. He left with a right knee contusion. He finished the at-bat with a strikeout and was replaced by Gordon Beckham in the bottom of the third.

UP NEXT

The Tigers will send LHP Daniel Norris (2-5, 4.60 ERA) to the mound in the second game of the series. The Royals will counter with LHP Danny Duffy (3-3, 4.68 ERA). Duffy was hit on the right kneecap in his last start against Boston. The line drive bounced to third for the final out of the second inning. He came back out for the third but retired just one of six batters he faced in the inning before being pulled.

— Associated Press —

Cardinals cruise past Marlins 7-1

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MIAMI — Rookie Dakota Hudson allowed one run in a career-high seven innings, and the St. Louis Cardinals handed the Miami Marlins their sixth consecutive defeat Tuesday night, 7-1.

Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina returned after missing 11 games because of a strained right thumb and went 2 for 5 with a single and double.

Marcell Ozuna punctuated the victory with a ninth-inning homer, his 18th. He has a career average of .452 (14 for 31) against his former team.

Hudson (5-3) gave up four hits, struck out six and retired 10 in a row during one stretch for the Cardinals, who have won his past five starts.

The right-hander has the highest groundball rate in the majors, and 12 of his 21 outs came on grounders. He hasn’t given up a homer in 47 innings.

The Marlins totaled five hits, all singles. They rank last in the majors in runs and have been outscored 31-10 in the past six games.

Elieser Hernandez (0-1), recalled from Triple-A New Orleans to make his first start of the year, allowed three runs in 5 2/3 innings.

Kolten Wong had two of the Cardinals’ 13 hits and reached base four times, and teammate Harrison Bader drove in two runs with a triple and a bases-loaded walk. Dexter Fowler had an RBI single in the seventh and then scored from first on Jose Martinez’s pinch-hit two-run single.

St. Louis broke a 1-all tie in the sixth. One run scored on a throwing error by shortstop Miguel Rojas, and three consecutive walks forced in another run.

NEW ADDITION

The Cardinals signed their first-round draft choice, LHP Zack Thompson of Kentucky, and announced they had agreed to terms with seven other picks.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Marlins: RHP Riley Ferrell (right biceps tendinitis) joined Class A Jupiter on a rehab assignment.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Miles Mikolas (4-6, 4.54) is scheduled to start the series finale Wednesday when the Cardinals try for a sweep. He started twice against the Marlins last year and won both games.

Marlins: RHP Jordan Yamamoto, acquired in the Christian Yelich trade in January 2018, is expected to be recalled from Double-A Jacksonville to make his major league debut. He is 3-5 with a 3.58 ERA in 12 starts for Jacksonville.

— Associated Press —

Mustangs lose at Jefferson City 6-4

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The St. Joseph Mustangs suffered their second loss of the season Monday as they fell at Jefferson City 6-4.

St. Joe’s collegiate summer baseball team drops to 10-2 this season and 9-2 in the MINK League.

Jeff City scored single runs in second, third, fourth and fifth innings to take a 4-0 lead before the Mustangs rallied with three runs in the sixth. That was as close as St. Joseph would get as the Renegades extended their lead to 6-3 before the Mustangs scored one run in the ninth inning.

St. Joe committed six errors Monday and the three Mustangs pitchers combined to walk ten batters.

Cameron July suffered the loss as he allowed three runs and two hits in three innings of work. He struck out four and walked six.

Hampton Hudson, playing in his first game of the season for St. Joseph, went 2-for-3 with one run scored and one RBI. Karl Koerper added a double and one run batted in.

The Mustangs play in Jefferson City again Tuesday as the first pitch with the Renedages is set for 7:00 p.m. from Vivion Field.

Wacha pitches six shutout innings as Cardinals beat Miami 4-1

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MIAMI — Michael Wacha pitched six scoreless innings in his return to the St. Louis Cardinals’ rotation Monday, and they broke a three-game losing streak by beating Miami 4-1.

Wacha (4-2), who was briefly demoted to the bullpen, benefited from three double plays and a pickoff in his first start since May 22. The former All-Star allowed five hits, struck out four and lowered his ERA to 5.63.

Jordan Hicks worked around a leadoff single in the ninth and struck out two for his 13th save.

The Cardinals totaled only four hits but scored three unearned runs in the sixth, when catcher Jorge Alfaro made a wild throw on a sacrifice bunt. Sandy Alcantara (3-6), facing his former team for the first time, struggled through five-plus innings and allowed four runs, but only one was earned.

St. Louis bounced back after being swept by the Chicago Cubs in a three-game weekend series. The Marlins, saddled with the National League’s worst record, have scored nine runs while losing five games in a row.

The Cardinals scored the first run in the fourth on doubles by Marcell Ozuna and Yairo Munoz.

After their first two batters reached in the sixth, Kolten Wong laid down a bunt, and both runners scored when Alfaro threw the ball down the right field line. Harrison Bader followed with a sacrifice fly.

Marlins rookie Harold Ramirez had three hits to hike his average to .330.

TAKE A BREAK

Cardinals SS Paul DeJong was given the night off. It was the first game he has missed.

FIRST-HAND LOOK

Derek Jeter watched JJ Bleday have a big night at the Southeastern Conference tournament, which may be one reason the Marlins took the Vanderbilt outfielder with the fourth pick in the draft last week.

“I only saw one game, and he was 5 for 5,” said Jeter, the Marlins’ CEO. “I told him everything is downhill from this point forward.”

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Dakota Hudson (4-3, 3.94) is scheduled to start Tuesday. He has an ERA of 2.19 over his past four outings, and the Cardinals have won each game.

Marlins: RHP Elieser Hernandez (0-0, 9.00) will be recalled from Triple-A New Orleans to make his first start of the season as a replacement for LHP Caleb Smith (left hip inflammation). It’ll be the first time one of the Marlins’ five starters to begin the season has missed a turn.

— Associated Press —

Royals drop series finale to White Sox 5-2

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Once Reynaldo Lopez went one pitch at a time, things worked out fine.

Following three consecutive poor outings, Lopez pitched six effective innings against Kansas City on Sunday. And backed by a 471-foot homer from Eloy Jimenez, the Chicago White Sox defeated the Royals 5-2.

“The biggest difference was that I was able to clear my mind and be focused on the pitches I needed to execute,” Lopez said through a translator. “In the past, I was thinking about other pitches in the game, or my mechanics.”

“I was able to clear my and stay focused all through the game,” he said.

A day after Lucas Giolito shut down the Royals in a 2-0 victory, Lopez (4-6) allowed one run and four hits in six innings. He walked one and struck out eight.

Lopez had been struggling recently, giving up 19 earned runs in his last 13 1/3 innings over his previous three starts.

“All my pitches were good today,” he said. “I was able to command, execute and finish all my pitches the way I know I can do it.

“I know that this team needs me, and I need to perform at my best every time I’m out there. We’re fighting every day and we want to win every time we’re on the field. Today was a step forward to that purpose,” he said.

His manager appreciated the difference.

“He threw very, very well,” Chicago manager Rick Renteria said. “His curveball was working very well, and his slider was working well. He was using it for punchouts. He commanded his fastball a little better. All in all, much better in catching the strike zone and mixing in his secondary pitches.”

Yoan Moncada had four hits and an RBI for the White Sox, who lost the series opener but had back-to-back solid pitching performances to take the last two games.

The Royals are 0-6 in rubber games in 2019, continuing a streak that started early last season. Kansas City has lost 14 straight rubber games, dating to May 30, 2018, and is now 0-14-2 in its last 16 series.

They struck out 11 times, the 11th time in 16 games they’ve reached double-figures.

“We’re on a strikeout run here,” Kansas City manager Ned Yost said. “We’re striking out a bunch, but they’re not on strikes, generally. They’re on pitches down below the zone. Curveballs give us a bit of a problem here lately, and we keep swinging at them.”

Glenn Sparkman (1-2) gave up two earned runs and eight hits in 6 2/3 innings.

Jimenez led off the second with the longest home run at Kauffman Stadium since Brandon Moss hit a 474-foot drive for the Royals against the Twins July 1, 2017. The White Sox added an unearned run later in the inning on Charlie Tilson’s double.

“Nah,” Jimenez said through a smile when asked if that was the farthest home run he’d hit. “In a game, I hit one 490 in spring training. This was my first in the majors in a game that counted.”

Jorge Soler hit a 445-foot shot homer in the fourth, snapping Kansas City’s 13-inning scoreless drought.

The White Sox got a run in each of the last three innings, on Moncada’s single that scored Tilson in the seventh, an eighth-inning double by Tim Anderson and an unearned run in the ninth.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Royals 1B Lucas Duda continues on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Omaha. He’s 12 for 35 with one home run and three doubles in 10 games with the Storm Chasers. He’s been on the IL since April 26 with a lumbar strain.

ROSTER NEWS

White Sox RHP Dylan Covey was placed on the 10-day injured list with shoulder inflammation, retroactive to June 6. The White Sox recalled RHP Thyago Vieira from Triple-A Charlotte. Vieira is 1-0 with 2.08 ERA in three relief appearances with the White Sox this season. He was 3-1 with 17 saves and 24 strikeouts in 17 appearances in Charlotte.

UP NEXT

White Sox: Open a six-game, seven-day homestand Monday against the Washington Nationals. Renteria said the White Sox would make the decision on their starter Monday after talking to the players who may be affected by any roster moves. The Nationals swept a two-game series from Chicago on June 4-5, including winning on a walk-off home run by Trea Turner in the second game.

Royals: Will have Monday off before opening a three-game series against the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday. RHP Jakob Junis (4-6, 5.63 ERA) will start for the Royals against Spencer Turnbull (3-5, 3.01 ERA).

— Associated Press —

Cardinals get swept by Cubs

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CHICAGO — Kyle Hendricks tossed one-run ball over seven innings to continue his dominance over St. Louis, lifting the Chicago Cubs to a 5-1 win over the Cardinals on Sunday night.

Carlos Gonzalez hit his first homer with the Cubs and Kyle Schwarber went 2 for 3 with two RBI as Chicago completed a three-game sweep of its NL Central rivals and a 6-1 homestand.

All nine games between the Cardinals and Cubs this season have been won by the home team. The Cardinals swept the Cubs in St. Louis last weekend, and Chicago had another three-game sweep at Wrigley Field last month.

Hendricks (7-4) scattered eight hits to win his sixth straight decision. Steve Cishek worked a scoreless eighth, Carl Edwards got two outs in the ninth and Pedro Strop got the final out for his seventh save.

Hendricks is now 7-0 with a 2.31 ERA in his last 10 starts against St. Louis. The Cubs have won all 10 games.

Paul Goldschmidt had two hits and Kolten Wong added an RBI double for St. Louis.

Chicago took a 1-0 lead in the first on an RBI groundout by Anthony Rizzo. The Cardinals quickly tied the score in the second on an RBI double by Wong.

The Cubs regained the lead with two runs in the fifth. Jason Heyward led off with a single and was sacrificed to second by Hendricks. David Bote, batting ninth, followed with a single to center to score Heyward. Schwarber then doubled to right-center, scoring Bote all the way from first base.

Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright (5-6) exited the game at that point and Giovanny Gallegos came in and retired Kris Bryant and Rizzo to keep the score 3-1.

St. Louis tried to answer in the sixth as Paul Goldschmidt led off with a double and Marcell Ozuna followed with a broken-bat single to put runners on the corners. But Dexter Fowler hit a grounder to first base and Rizzo threw home to nail Goldschmidt. Hendricks then retired Wong and Harrison Bader to end the threat.

Chicago made it 4-1 in the seventh on an RBI single by Schwarber.

Gonzalez’s solo blast in the eighth capped the scoring.

ROSTER MOVE

Before the game, the Cardinals recalled RHP Daniel Ponce de Leon from Triple-A Memphis and optioned RHP Ryan Helsley to Memphis.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: C Yadier Molina (right thumb tendon strain) took batting practice Sunday and is expected to join the team in Miami on Monday. “He continues to progress in a positive direction,” manager Mike Shildt said. “He’ll take batting practice with us (Monday), then we’ll evaluate from there.”

Cubs: LHP Xavier Cedeno (left wrist inflammation) began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Iowa on Sunday and tossed a hitless inning with a walk and a strikeout.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Michael Wacha (3-2, 6.30 ERA) starts Monday night in the opener of a three-game series at Miami. RHP Sandy Alcantara (3-5, 3.80) pitches for the Marlins.

Cubs: RHP Yu Darvish (2-3, 4.88 ERA) takes the mound Monday night in the opener of a three-game series at Colorado. RHP German Marquez (6-3, 4.07) goes for the Rockies.

— Associated Press —

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