Sports – Page 961 – St. Joseph Post Archive

Koerper brothers lead St. Joseph to doubleheader sweep over Ozark

Posted on June 28, 2013June 28, 2013

The St. Joseph Mustangs snapped a two-game losing streak Friday night against Ozark as St. Joe’s summer college baseball swept a doubleheader against the Generals, 10-3 and 8-7.

In game one, St. Joseph jumped out to a 1-0 lead after the first inning, but they opened things up in the third with four more runs.

The Mustangs added three in the fifth inning and two runs in the sixth.

Joe and Kris Koerper each homered and drove in three runs in the game. The first time the two brothers homered in the same game this season.

Eric Swain, Connor Foreman and Payton Scarbrough each had one RBI each, while Brandon Huske scored three runs.

St. Joe starter Aaron Baker threw a complete game to earn the win as he improves to 4-1. Baker allowed three runs on just four hits. He struck out three and didn’t walk a batter.

In game two, the Mustangs raced out to a 3-0 lead after the first inning, but Ozark scored seven unearned runs with four in the third inning adn three more in the fourth.

St. Joseph did battle back though and eventually won the game in dramatic fashion.

The Mustangs pulled within one run in the seventh and final inning, and Kris Koerper came through with a two-out RBI double to score Emilio Villanueva and tie the game.

Then Joe Koerper hit a sharp ground ball to second that Justin Lois couldn’t handle and Brandon Huske scored the winning run.

Kris Koerper hit another home run in the nightcap and had three RBI, while Swain had two hits and Kyle Richards hit a home run and drove in two runs.

Staten Jones struggled on the mound as he went just 3.1 innings and he allowed six runs on six hits. Trey Gonsalez earned the win in relief as he went 1.1 innings and didn’t allowed a run.

The Mustangs are now 15-10 this season and 11-10 in the MINK League. They’re at home again Saturday as they host the Sedalia Bombers at 7:00 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on 680 KFEQ and here on StJosephPost.com.

Royals use four HRs to back Shields, pound Minnesota

Posted on June 28, 2013June 28, 2013

Eric Hosmer hit two of Kansas City’s season-high four home runs, James Shields pitched six strong innings to win for first time in 11 starts and the Kansas City Royals beat the Minnesota Twins 9-3 on Friday night.

Billy Butler and Mike Moustakas also homered for the Royals.

Clete Thomas homered for the Twins, who got another rough start from P.J. Walters (2-4). Walters allowed six runs in three innings one start after giving up six in the first at Cleveland last Saturday.

The Royals entered the game with the fewest home runs in the majors (43) — two behind Miami — and had given Shields (3-6) some of the worst run support in the league. But the veteran right-hander had a three-run lead by the time he took the mound for the first time Friday, thanks to Butler’s three-run homer. Shields never allowed Minnesota to get close the rest of the way.

Down 4-0 in the third, Walters allowed a two-run homer to Moustakas and drew a chorus of boos from the home crowd. Anthony Swarzak took over for Walters in the fourth and gave up a solo shot to Hosmer in the fifth. Hosmer got Swarzak again in the seventh, this time with Alcides Escobar on base, for the second multihomer game of his career.

The offensive outburst was a welcome change for Shields, who had been stuck on 89 wins for his previous 10 starts despite putting up quality numbers. He entered Friday night’s game with the eighth-best ERA in the A.L. (2.92), third in innings (111) and eighth in strikeouts (99). But his run support of 3.00 per nine innings pitched was second-lowest in the league.

The Twins broke through against Shields in the fourth when Justin Morneau hit an RBI doubled. Morneau came around to score three batters later on a double by Brian Dozier. Thomas led off the fifth with a solo shot to right.

Shields worked 6 1/3 innings before being pulled for Tim Collins.

— Associated Press —

Mustangs lose big to Ozark Thursday, 15-2

Posted on June 28, 2013

After a three-day layoff the St. Joseph Mustangs returned home to Phil Welch Stadium and suffered their worst loss of the season as they lost to Ozark, 15-2.

St. Joe’s summer college baseball team falls to 13-10 this season and 9-10 in the MINK League.

The Generals scored a run in the first inning and broke the game open with four runs in each of the third and fifth innings.

Ozark pounded out 19 hits as Mustangs’ starter Jonathan McCann was knocked out of the game in the third inning. He gave up five runs and six hits, while striking out two and walking two others.

Jared Hawkins and Patrick Brady didn’t fair much better on the mound. Hawkins allowed six runs on five hits in 2.1 innings, while Brady went 4.0 innings and gave up four runs and eight hits.

St. Joseph scored in the fourth inning on an error by Ozark shortstop Jacob Garrison and the Mustangs added one run in the ninth inning on a solo home run by Brandon Huske.

St. Joe is back at home against Ozark Friday for a doubleheader that begins at 6:00 p.m. inside Phil Welch Stadium. Game one will be broadcast live on ESPN 1550 AM and here on StJosephPost.com.

Kansas’ McLemore selected 7th overall by Sacramento

Posted on June 27, 2013

For the second-straight season, a Kansas men’s basketball player was taken in the top-10 as NBA Commissioner David Stern announced Ben McLemore was selected seventh overall by the Sacramento Kings in the 2013 NBA Draft Thursday night at the Barclays Center.

McLemore, who was joined by head coach Bill Self in the “Green Room,” became the 29th first-round draft pick in Kansas men’s basketball history and marks the fourth-straight season a Jayhawk has been selected in the first round. The seventh overall pick marks the second-straight season that a Jayhawk has gone in the top-10 overall, both of which coming from Sacramento. The Kings selected Thomas Robinson fifth overall in the 2012 NBA Draft.

“He means a lot to me as far a maturity and helping me grow as a person on and off the court,” McLemore said to ESPN analyst Shane Battier regarding Self. “We have a good bond with each other and the staff. I enjoyed playing for Coach Self.

KU is among the top-five for producing the most NBA Draft picks in the nation with 18 drafted over the last decade. Since the inception of the Big 12 in 1996-97, KU has had 24 players drafted to the NBA, which is the most of any league member. KU has sent 28 players to the NBA during the past 20 years, passing North Carolina for third-most among all NCAA Division I schools and only trails Kentucky (31) and Duke (29). Playing for the Kings, McLemore will join Cole Aldrich as former Jayhawks on the roster.

The second guard selected in the 2013 draft class, McLemore was a Consensus All-America Second Team selection and an All-Big 12 First Team honoree. He led Kansas in scoring in 2012-13 with 15.9 points per game, good for third in the Big 12. The 6-foot-5 St. Louis, Mo., native led the Big 12 with an 87.0 free throw percentage and also ranked among the league leaders in field-goal percentage (49.5, 8th), three-point field goal percentage (42.0, 2nd), three-point field goals made (2.0, 6th) and rebounds (5.2, 20th).

Additionally, McLemore’s 15.9 points per game this season broke the KU freshman record of 14.6 ppg posted by Jayhawk legend Danny Manning in 1985. McLemore’s 589 points and his 87.0 free throw percentage also broke KU freshman marks, previously held by Manning and Greg Gurley, respectively.

McLemore had 11 games of 20 points or more in 2012-13, including three 30-point contests. His 36 points against West Virginia (3/2) broke the KU freshman single-game scoring record and his three 30-point efforts also set a KU freshman single-season mark.

During the 2012-13 season, McLemore was a three-time Big 12 Rookie of the Week and was named the league’s Player of the Week on Jan. 14. He became only the second Jayhawk in the 17-year history of the Big 12 to have earned Big 12 Player and Rookie of the Week in the same season. Mario Chalmers also accomplished the feat during the 2005-06 season.

— KU Sports Information —

Kansas City drops series opener at Minnesota

Posted on June 27, 2013

Samuel Deduno had that ever-important command, of his fastball and his emotions.

The key to keeping calm?

”Oh, just breathe,” Deduno said with a smile after he pitched seven sharp innings to send the Minnesota Twins to a 3-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday.

One of Justin Morneau’s two doubles drove in Minnesota’s first run in the fourth, and Deduno took over from there.

”Some guys really look like they think they’re going to hit it, and then all of a sudden it just kind of moves late on them,” said Morneau, who handled more than his share of groundouts at first base during Deduno’s outing. ”He did a really nice job tonight. That was what we needed.”

Deduno (4-2) gave up only five hits and, more importantly, one walk. He struck out three and let only eight fair balls leave the infield. Jared Burton pitched a scoreless eighth and Glen Perkins notched his 20th save in 22 tries with a scoreless ninth inning despite allowing a walk and a double.

The Twins even managed to beat Jeremy Guthrie (7-6). The right-hander topped them twice earlier this season and brought a 6-2 record over nine previous career matchups into the game. Guthrie gave up an RBI single to Oswaldo Arcia right after Morneau’s big hit, but the other run he allowed was unearned.

Salvador Perez’s soaring home run, to the second deck in left field, was the only evidence of success by the Royals against the improving Deduno, who last year couldn’t find the plate despite showing some potential with his lively right arm.

”Everything moves. Just tough,” Royals designated hitter Billy Butler said. ”He’s got a good slider. Hard curve. He’s just real efficient.”

After shining for the Dominican Republic during the World Baseball Classic in March, Deduno has finally found the control of his fastball that escaped him before. His career walks-per-nine-innings ratio was 5.2 entering this game, buoyed by the 53 he issued last season in 79 innings.

In seven starts this year since being called up from Triple-A Rochester, Deduno has completed six innings with three runs or fewer allowed four times.

”He’s got a really nice natural cutter that just bores in on our lefties,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. ”We just haven’t done anything against him.”

Following consecutive singles to start the seventh, Deduno had runners at the corners with one out. But he struck out David Lough, celebrating the whiff with a slight hop off the mound at the end of his follow through. Then he got Elliot Johnson to ground out.

”That was a huge sequence of pitches,” Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said, adding: ”He’s more in control on the mound. His windup, he’s not falling all over the place.”

Said Deduno: ”Tonight, everything was working.”

For a couple of below-average teams, this was a crisply played game befitting of the clear-and-dry picturesque summer evening. The fielding error by Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas in the seventh that loaded the bags prior to Pedro Florimon’s sacrifice fly, which came against reliever Will Smith, was about the only blemish.

Lough, the right fielder, did his best to keep Guthrie in it by tracking down Morneau’s two-out double in the corner and start a textbook 9-4-2 relay to keep Josh Willingham from scoring in the sixth.

Guthrie lost his third straight start, but he could hardly be faulted for this one. He retired the first nine batters he faced and allowed six hits over 6 2-3 innings while striking out four and walking two.

The Royals, who have won five of six against the Twins in Kansas City this season, fell to 14-10 in June. That was their April record, too, but that ugly 8-20 mark in May is what has kept them from seriously challenging first-place Detroit in the AL Central.

The Twins improved to 11-4 in their last 15 home games.

— Associated Press —

KU’s Withey taken by Trailblazers in Second Round of NBA Draft

Posted on June 27, 2013June 27, 2013

Jeff Withey became the second Jayhawk selected in the 2013 NBA Draft when the Portland Trailblazers selected the former Kansas big man with the ninth pick of the second round – 39th overall – inside the Barclays Center Thursday evening.

After former teammate Ben McLemore’s named was called as the seventh overall draftee, he and Withey became the 73rd and 74th players to be drafted in Kansas men’s basketball history. The duo marks the 23rd time – and fourth-consecutive year – that multiple Jayhawks were drafted.

“He can shoot,” head coach Bill Self said of Withey on ESPN Radio. “He can make a pick-and-pop 17-foot shot, and I wouldn’t say he has the greatest face-up game, but he can make a face-up jumper. Then he has another skillset – that regardless of who he’s guarding – he’ll be hard to score over. He’s unbelievable at creating that separation so he gets a free jump to try to block or alter a shot. He’s as I’ve ever seen at that. Those are two skills that a lot of people wish they had.”

Withey and McLemore pushed KU to 19 picks over the last decade, putting KU among the top-five schools for producing the most NBA Draft selections. Since the inception of the Big 12 in 1996-97, KU has seen 25 players drafted to the NBA, which is the most of any league member. KU has sent 29 players to the NBA during the past 20 years, which sent KU past North Carolina for third-most among all NCAA Division I schools and only trails Kentucky Duke (31) and Kentucky (30).

The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Co-Defensive Player of the Year, Withey broke his own Kansas and Big 12 single-season record blocked shots record with 146 blocks in 2012-13. Last season Withey blocked 140 shots to set the school and league mark. The 2012 and 2013 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, Withey is also the KU and Big 12 career blocked shots leader ending his career with 312 all-time blocks.

More than merely a defensive threat, Withey led Kansas in rebounding at 8.5 boards per game to complement his 13.7 scoring average. The 7-foot San Diego native was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 2013 Big 12 Championship.

A three-time Big 12 Player of the Week this season, Withey led the Big 12 with 3.95 blocked shots per game, which ranked second nationally. That mark also set the KU and conference per game average season record. Withey was named to the Consensus All-America Second Team along with McLemore.

— KU Sports Information —

Gordon’s walk-off lifts Royals past Atlanta in 10 innings

Posted on June 26, 2013

Alex Gordon drove in David Lough in the 10th inning Wednesday night, giving the Kansas City Royals a 4-3 victory over the Atlanta Braves and a split of their two-game series.

Lough had entered the game the previous inning as a pinch hitter, but was still at-bat because Elliot Johnson was picked off first base to end the ninth. Lough singled off Braves reliever Alex Wood (0-2) to start the 10th and then reached second when Miguel Tejada laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt.

That set the stage for Gordon, who hit a solo home run earlier in the game. He dropped a base hit into shallow left field, allowing Lough to score easily as the Royals spilled from their dugout.

Aaron Crow (4-3) worked the 10th inning for the Royals, who had lost five of their last six. It was the sixth time in the last eight games that Kansas City played a one-run contest.

The Royals were actually in control through six innings.

Gordon ended a 159 at-bat homerless drought with his first-inning shot, the first leadoff homer of the season for the Royals. It was Gordon’s first home run since May 9 at Baltimore.

Billy Butler added a two-out double to right, and then the big DH chugged home when Salvador Perez got just enough of the bat on a pitch from Mike Minor to hit a single to left field.

The Royals tacked on another run in the third when Gordon singled to lead off the inning. Alcides Escobar put runners on the corners with nobody out before Eric Hosmer lined into a double play, but Butler managed to bring Gordon home with a timely single to make it 3-0.

That was all the offense until Luis Mendoza started to unravel in the seventh inning.

The Royals starter kept the Braves off balance with a mixture of fastballs and sliders, and had given up just three hits to that point. But he’d put runners on the corners with two outs when he was lifted for left-hander Bruce Chen, who promptly served up an RBI single to pinch-hitter Reed Johnson.

Chen walked Jason Heyward to load the bases and was replaced by right-hander Luke Hochevar, who gave up a tying two-run single to Justin Upton. Heyward was thrown out at third on the play to end the inning.

Minor allowed three runs on nine hits over six innings, while Mendoza gave up two runs on five hits over 6 2/3 innings. Neither of them factored into the decision.

Instead, it came down to a duel between bullpens.

Alex Avilan and Jordan Walden breezed through the Royals lineup, the only blip coming when Mike Moustakas singled off Walden with two outs in the ninth inning. Johnson came in to pinch run and strayed too far from first base, allowing Walden to pick him off and end the inning.

Hochevar wound up going 1 1/3 innings for the Royals, who brought in star closer Greg Holland to pitch the ninth inning. He struck out the side on just 11 pitches.

— Associated Press —

Four-run fourth inning dooms St. Louis in loss to Astros

Posted on June 26, 2013June 26, 2013

Erik Bedard pitched six effective innings and the Houston Astros used a four-run fourth inning to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 4-3 on Wednesday night.

Bedard (3-3) allowed seven hits and walked one, but limited St. Louis to three runs. Three relievers then combined to pitch two hitless innings before Jose Veras worked the ninth for his 16th save.

Veras yielded a one-out single to Jon Jay and then walked Matt Adams, but pinch hitter Daniel Descalso struck out and Matt Carpenter flied out to end the game.

Allen Craig homered for the second straight night and Yadier Molina had a two-run shot for the Cardinals, who lost for the fourth time in five games. They dropped into a tie with surging Pittsburgh for the lead in the NL Central.

Lance Lynn (10-2) allowed five hits and four runs, walked four and struck out four over 7 2-3 innings for his first loss in four career starts in Houston.

Molina and Craig helped the Cardinals get off to a nice start. Molina followed Carpenter’s leadoff single with a drive to the Crawford Boxes in left field for his sixth homer. Craig had a leadoff drive in the fourth that bounced off the lights atop the wall in left field, extending the lead to 3-0.

But Houston responded in the bottom half. Jose Altuve and Jason Castro got it started with back-to-back singles for the Astros’ first hits of the game. Lynn then walked Chris Carter on four pitches to load the bases before sending a run home when he also walked Carlos Pena on four pitches.

Castro came home when J.D. Martinez grounded into a fielder’s choice, and Brett Wallace then hit a tying RBI single. After another fielder’s choice, Brandon Barnes singled in Wallace to give Houston the lead for good.

The Astros threatened again in the fifth, putting two runners on with two out, but Lynn retired Martinez to end the inning. That was the first of eight straight batters retired by Lynn

Josh Fields retired the first two St. Louis batters in the seventh before left-hander Wesley Wright came in and struck out Carpenter.

Jose Cisnero faced the heart of the Cardinals’ order in the eighth. He got Molina on a groundout before walking Carlos Beltran. He then struck out Craig and Matt Holliday to finish the inning.

— Associated Press —

Kansas completes men’s basketball coaching staff

Posted on June 26, 2013

Kansas men’s basketball coach Bill Self named Fred Quartlebaum director of student-athlete development Wednesday. Additionally, Self has promoted Brennan Bechard to director of basketball operations, while Jeff Forbes continues his tenure with the KU program as the video coordinator.

“I feel fortunate that we have guys in place, with Brennan and Jeff, who have been here for a while and have had a chance to do things to enhance our program,” Self said. “Now we add a person like Fred Quartlebaum who has been around big-time college athletics having worked at Notre Dame, Iowa State, North Carolina and St. John’s as a full-time assistant. Fred played a huge role in the recruitment of the Carolina team that went on to win a national championship. He brings a ton of energy and organization and we feel Fred will be a perfect fit here at Kansas.”

Quartlebaum has a long resume of basketball coaching experience, which encompasses more than 20 years. He comes to KU after working as associate director of PACT (Personalized Achievement Contract), a leadership and mentoring program at Mercy College in New York. Additionally, in 2010, he started his own company, 212 Hoops, which combines his experience developing collegiate athletes to youth basketball. Prior to his position at Mercy College, Quartlebaum spent six seasons as an assistant coach at St. John’s under current KU assistant coach Norm Roberts.

A Dobbs Ferry, N.Y., native, Quartlebaum played collegiately at Fordham where he was a four-year letterwinner for the Rams from 1985-89. Following a stint in the high school ranks, he then was an assistant coach at Navy (1992-96), Towson (1996-97), Holy Cross (1997-98) and Fairfield (1998-99) before joining Matt Doherty at Notre Dame in 1999-2000. He accompanied Doherty to North Carolina (2000-03) where he played a part in recruiting five McDonald’s All-Americans that eventually would win an NCAA title in 2005. After UNC, he was an assistant for one season under head coach Wayne Morgan at Iowa State (2003-04) before joining Roberts’ staff at St. John’s.

“I am extremely excited about this opportunity,” Quartlebaum said. “What a thrill to come back and work with coach Roberts and the basketball program at Kansas. Coach Self is one of the top coaches in college basketball and to have the opportunity learn under his direction is such a privilege for me. I’m thrilled to be a part of Kansas basketball.”

A member of the 2008 Kansas NCAA National Championship team, Bechard joined the KU basketball staff as a graduate student manager in August 2009. In summer 2011, he was named assistant director of basketball operations. In his role, Bechard works with the day-to-day operations with the KU program in the office, travel and scouting. Bechard replaces Doc Sadler who moved on from KU to be a full-time assistant coach at Iowa State in May 2013.

Forbes joined the Kansas men’s basketball staff in a full-time capacity in August 2010 as video coordinator. In his role, Forbes works closely with the scouting video of opponents, the filming of practices and games, much of the content for BillSelf.com and KU’s men’s basketball twitter account – @KUhoops. Forbes is the creator and producer of the popular “Pay Heed” videos which were nominated for an Emmy Award in May 2013.

— KU Sports Information —

Royals’ prospects Almonte & Ventura named to All-Star Futures Game

Posted on June 26, 2013

Kansas City Royals prospects Miguel Almonte and Yordano Ventura were named to the World roster for the 15th annual SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game today. The game will feature the top Minor League prospects competing in a nine-inning contest in a U.S. vs. the World format at 1 p.m. CT on Sunday, July 14 at Citi Field in New York. The contest will be televised live on ESPN2 and MLB.com and also be available on the radio at MLB Network Radio (XM channel 89).

Almonte, 20, was the 2012 Dominican Royals Pitcher of the Year and a Dominican Summer League All-Star last year. He has made 14 starts for Lexington (Class A) this year and is 3-5 with a 3.42 ERA, recording 77 strikeouts in 73.2 innings. The 6-foot-2 right-handed pitcher fanned a season-high 12 last night against Hickory, but did not factor into the decision. He was signed by the Royals as a non-drafted free agent on November 10, 2010.

Ventura, 22, will be making his second-straight appearance at the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game, also starting for the World team in last year’s game at Kauffman Stadium. The 5-foot-11 right-handed pitcher is 5-3 this year between Double-A Northwest Arkansas and Triple-A Omaha, posting a 3.14 ERA in 15 starts. He has recorded 92 strikeouts in 77.1 minor-league innings this year while holding opponents to a .209 batting average. He was named the Royals’ No. 4 Prospect by Baseball America entering 2013 and the Texas League Pitcher of the Week on May 13 after tossing 11.0 scoreless innings during the previous week. Ventura has won his last two starts with Omaha and will get the ball again tomorrow for the Storm Chasers in their game against the Iowa Cubs.

Major League Baseball, in conjunction with the MLB Scouting Bureau, MLB.com, Baseball America and the 30 Major League Clubs, selected the 25-man rosters for both the U.S. and World teams.

— Royals Media Relations —