It was a rematch from the 2015 sub-state championship as Hays and McPherson battled for a 4A-1 state tournament berth on Saturday night. Twelve months ago the game was in Hays and the McPherson Bullpups won on their way to an undefeated state championship. In 2016 both teams traveled three plus hours to Ulysses.
Hays scored the first five points of the game then went cold as McPherson used a 11-2 run over the next five minutes. The Indian’s Isaiah Nunnery buried a three at the end of the first quarter to get back within a single point 11-10.
Highlights
McPherson pushed their advantage as high as six in the second quarter following a 8-3 run to start the quarter. The Indians responded back with three consecutive threes to grab the lead back at 22-19 with 4:30 left before half. The two teams swapped the lead twice more with McPherson building a five point lead until Nunnery scored the final points of the half making the score 32-29 in favor of McPherson.
Hays took the lead twice in the third quarter following back to back three pointers from Nunnery to go up 39-36 and then a Laken Jacobs basket gave the Indians a 41-40 lead inside of two minutes left in the quarter. McPherson though reclaimed the lead at 42-41 heading to the fourth quarter.
Hays took the lead four more times in the fourth quarter. The final coming on a steal and lay up by Drew Young at 53-51 with 3:35 remaining. Hays would only score two more points the remainder of the way. McPherson took the final three plus minutes to out score Hays 14-2 and take the win 65-55.
Coach Rick Keltner
The game featured 17 lead changes. Hays shot 50% from the field and McPherson 60%. Hays was led by Isaiah Nunnery with 22 points. Drew Young scored 15. Nunnery finishes 9th all-time in scoring, 3rd in assists and 2nd in steals over the course of 91 games. McPherson was led by Ben Pyle with 25. Drew Pyle scored 12 and Jacob Loeker added 10.
Hays ends the year at 17-5. McPherson will defend their state title next week in Salina with a 21-1 record.
Big crowds turned out for Democrats across Kanas. Even small children were campaigning for Sanders
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Latest on the 2016 presidential caucuses in Kansas.
The Kansas Democratic Party says Bernie Sanders has won its presidential caucuses.
The party made the announcement Saturday night, but did not release any vote count or results. The Associated Press has not called the race in Kansas as it waits for those results.
Large crowd turns out to the Democratic Caucus at Salina South High School.
A pre-caucus rally Thursday for the Vermont senator in the liberal bastion of Lawrence drew several thousand people.
His backers overcame support for rival Hillary Clinton from former Gov. Kathleen Sebelius and other Democratic establishment figures in the state. The Kansas Democratic Party says that Bernie Sanders has won its presidential caucuses.
The party said the declaration is based on 90 percent of districts reporting results.
ELLIS COUNTY –Three people were injured in an accident just before 5 p.m. on Saturday in Ellis County.
The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2003 Volkswagen Beetle driven by Caleigh J. Befort, 17, Hays, was southbound on U.S. 183 two miles north of Interstate 70.
The vehicle rear-ended a southbound 2002 Suzuki mini-van driven by Caleb B. Snow, 20, Hays that was preparing to make a left turn in to a driveway.
The collision pushed the van into the northbound traffic and it collided with a 2010 Ford F-150 driven by Dennis L. Babcock, 68, Phillipsburg.
Snow, Befort and Babcock were transported to Hays Medical Center.
Eagle Med later transported Babcock to a hospital in Wichita.
Babcock and Befort were not wearing seat belts, according to the KHP.
—————- By James Bell Hays Post
Emergency responders from Ellis County and Hays were on scene a few miles north of Hays on Hwy 183 around 5 p.m. Saturday after a multiple vehicle accident blocked traffic and sent at least one person to the hospital.
Details are unavailable at this time, but EMS had transported one person from the scene by 5:30 p.m. and responders were working to remove vehicles and debris in order to reopen the highway for at least an hour after the accident.
During the initial cleanup traffic was blocked from the South almost to the Hays City limits.
The condition of the vehicle occupants and the cause of the accident is unknown at this time.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Wes Washpun scored 20 points and Jeremy Morgan sank the go-ahead 3-pointer in overtime Saturday to lift fourth-seeded Northern Iowa past top-seeded Wichita State 57-52 and into the championship game of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament.
Trailing by a point with two minutes left in overtime, Northern Iowa (21-12) got a free throw from Morgan to tie it at 52 before he hit the go-ahead 3-pointer on an assist from Wyatt Lohaus. The Panthers then forced a turnover and Washpun hit a jumper to extend the advantage to five with 18 seconds left.
Markis McDuffie missed a 3-pointer at the other end and Klint Carlson hauled in the defensive rebound to clinch it.
Northern Iowa trailed most of the game but stayed close and forced overtime with Wyatt Lohaus’ layup to tie it at 47 at the end of regulation.
Anton Grady led Wichita State (24-8) with 14 points and Ron Baker had 12.
The Panthers play the winner of second-seeded Evansville and sixth-seeded Indiana State.
LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Perry Ellis scored 22 points, including a hook shot over Iowa State’s Georges Niang to ice the game, and No. 1 Kansas stretched its nation-leading home winning streak to 42 games with an 85-78 victory over the 21st-ranked Cyclones on Saturday.
Devonte Graham and Wayne Selden, Jr. finished with 16 points apiece for Kansas (27-4, 15-3 Big 12), which has won 33 straight home finales.
Ellis, playing in his final game at Allen Fieldhouse, spearheaded an 11-0 run over the final 4:45 with a hustle play. He ended it with an emphatic dunk.
Kansas looked poise to break the game open with 13:21 left in the game, when Mason slipped his way through two defenders and finished at the rim. Iowa State responded with a 13-2 run to grab its largest — and last — lead at 63-59.
Niang led the Cyclones (21-10, 10-8) with 22 points and Jameel McKay added 19 points and nine rebounds.
HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State won in walk-off fashion for the second game in a row on Saturday when they defeated Central Oklahoma 4-3 in 13 innings. With the win the Tigers moved to 9-7 overall and 3-2 in the MIAA.
Central Oklahoma got on the board early with a run in the first inning. A leadoff walk eventually led to a run.
Fort Hays State responded in the third tying the game at 1-1. An error put Ty Redington on second base and he eventually scored on a two-out double from Austin Unrein. Another Broncho error in the fourth put Connor Ross on second with no outs. After a strikeout and a fielder’s choice, the Tigers faced two outs with a runner on first. Nick Hammeke gave the Tigers their first lead when he roped a double to right field scoring Alex King from first base. The Tigers took their 2-1 lead all the way to the ninth inning.
In the ninth however, the Bronchos were able to tie the game after two singles and a sacrifice fly from Landon Eason. In the bottom half of the ninth, the Tigers were able to get a two out walk from Casey Sedbrook but nothing more as the game headed for extra innings.
The Bronchos were able to take the lead in the top half of the 10th when T.J. Sparr singled, stole second, and moved the next two bases via a pair of wild pitches. The Tigers fought back in the bottom half of the inning to extend the game. Joe Mapes roped a single up the middle to lead off and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt from Ross. Two batters later, pinch runner Colton Helm was able to score on a single by Alex Weiss.
The next two and a half innings went scoreless and the Tigers once again saw themselves in a position to win the game. Weiss led off the 13th inning with a walk and moved into scoring position two batters later. With two outs Ty Redington hit a single up the middle scoring Weiss to win the game.
Logan Herd started the game on the mound for the Tigers, but did not factor in the decision. Herd threw 7.0 innings, giving up one run on just three hits with four walks and five strikeouts. Lyle Vogt picked up his second win for the Tigers by tossing the final 6.0 innings, giving up two runs on five hits with a walk and three strikeouts.
The Tigers look for a sweep on Sunday in the series finale at 12 p.m.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Kansas City man whose forced removal from a hospital in the 1980s led to a sheriff’s downfall is back in jail.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol says a trooper arrested 49-year-old Damone L. Cribbs this week after stopping him for speeding. Federal court documents say suspected marijuana and a gun were found in Cribbs’ vehicle.
The Kansas City Star reports Cribbs criminal history stretches back more than 30 years.
In 1986, Cribbs was being treated for asthma when Wyandotte County Sheriff John Quinn and several deputies ignored doctors’ protests and took him from the hospital so he could go to court. Doctors said Cribbs nearly died after being returned to the hospital.
Quinn later pleaded guilty to violating Cribbs’ civil rights and lost a re-election bid.
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Devaugntah Williams and Keenan Evans each scored 20 points as the Red Raiders defeated Kansas State 80-71 Saturday in the Big 12 Conference finale for both squads.
With the win, the Red Raiders (19-11 overall, 9-9 Big 12) ended their conference slate at .500 for the first time since the 2006-2007 season.
D.J. Johnson finished with 21 points to lead the Wildcats (16-15, 5-13).
Kansas State appeared to be on point early on, building a 12-2 advantage in the first four-and-a-half minutes. During that spurt, Dean Wade contributed four points.
But the Red Raiders clawed their way back, closing the deficit to 23-11 before going on a game-changing 25-5 run to close out the final nine-and-a-half minutes.
Zach Smith started the offensive surge with a tip-in followed by a fast-break dunk by Justin Gray to cut the deficit to 23-15 at the 8:29 mark.
Big lines of republican voters in Hutchinson on Saturday
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Latest on the 2016 presidential caucuses in Kansas. (all times Central Standard Time):
4:40 p.m.
Ted Cruz has won the Republican presidential caucuses in Kansas. The Texas senator went into Saturday’s voting looking to cement his status as the only realistic alternative to billionaire businessman Donald Trump in the race for the GOP nomination.
Forty delegates to the GOP national convention were at stake.
Both Cruz and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio battled to be seen as Trump’s main rival.
Cruz won even through Rubio had endorsements from Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback and U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts.
Cruz’s top endorsement came from tea party favorite and Congressman Tim Huelskamp in the 1st District of central and western Kansas. But many rank-and-file conservatives also backed him.
Trump had the support of Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach.
___
4:30 p.m.
Turnout was heavy at many sites for the Kansas Democratic caucuses Saturday.
Supporters of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders lined the streets outside Liberty Memorial Central Middle School in Lawrence, a crowd much larger than had turned out for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton there. Though Clinton is the choice of former Gov. Kathleen Sebelius and other state party establishment figures, Clinton faced a surge of new voters and energized progressives supporting Sanders.
In Wichita, Democrats lined up down the block outside the machinists’ union headquarters to get in to caucus. In the end, there were too many people to fit into the union hall so the caucus was held outside.
WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Data from the Kansas Department of Education indicates reverting to an old public education funding system that would be acceptable to the Kansas Supreme Court would hurt schools in suburban Kansas City.
The Kansas Supreme Court told lawmakers in February that restoring the state’s old funding formula would address the inequities between school districts. But the court left lawmakers room to explore other options.
The Wichita Eagle reports the old formula would help Wichita and other Sedgwick County school districts but several Johnson County districts stand to lose money. Lawmakers from the large Johnson County delegation are voicing opposition.
The old formula also would require the cash-strapped state to spend $35.6 million more for the 2016-2017 school year.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Pittsburg State set a new MIAA Tournament record with 16 three-pointers as the 16th-ranked Gorillas knocked off 12th-ranked Fort Hays State 90-74 in the semifinals Saturday afternoon at Municipal Auditorium. The Gorillas (26-4) also set a tournament record for 3-pointers in a half with 11 as they extend their school record win streak to 15 games. PSU knocked down 11 from beyond the arc in the first half as the two teams combine to set a tournament records for points in a half at 92 (51-41).
Pitt State hit 8-of-10 from beyond the arc in the first quarter, racing out to a 35-20 lead. They were up 18 in the second quarter before the Tigers (25-5) rallied within 10 at halftime. The Tigers closed the gap to six several times in the third quarter but a 13-0 Gorilla run over the late stages of the third quarter and first four minutes of the fourth pushed the lead to 19.
FHSU Postgame Press Conference
Game Highlights
Pitt State shot 54-percent for the game including 16-of-31 from beyond the arc. The Tigers knocked down 42-percent and were 8-of-21 from 3-point range.
Nikola Kacperska led six Tigers in double-figures with 14 points. Paige Lunsford and Jill Faxon both scored 13 while Taylor Chandler, Beth Bohuslavsky and Chelsea Mason all added 10.
Mikeala Burgess hit four 3-pointers and led the Gorillas with 21 points.
CDC image Laboratory-confirmed Zika virus disease cases reported to ArboNET by state or territory — United States, 2015–2016 (as of March 2, 2016) CLICK TO ENLARGE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Researchers say the Zika virus may be linked to a wider variety of “grave outcomes” for developing babies than previously reported and that threats can come at any stage of pregnancy.
Friday’s findings are preliminary results from the first study tracking pregnant women in Brazil from the time they were infected, and do not prove that Zika is responsible. Dr. Karin Nielsen of the University of California, Los Angeles says the study suggests Zika can act on multiple fronts.
The mosquito-borne virus is spreading in Latin America and the Caribbean. It normally causes only mild symptoms, if any, in adults. But it has been linked to babies in hard-hit Brazil being born with abnormally small heads.
Separate laboratory research strengthens that case by showing the virus targets fetal brain cells.
By Diane Gasper-O’Brien
FHSU University Relations and Marketing
It’s not uncommon for students to change their majors a time or two, or even more, over the course of their college careers.
The same holds true in the real world.
A change in professions led Justin Coffey to pursue a graduate degree through Fort Hays State University’s Virtual College, and now he is traveling the state giving presentations with a new title — Kansas Teacher of the Year.
Coffey, a 2011 FHSU graduate with a Master of Science in Education degree through its Transition to Teaching Program, is a high school math teacher in Dodge City. He and his team of regional teachers of the year are spending the spring semester speaking to teachers in Kansas school districts and colleges and universities.
They were on the FHSU campus this week, sharing their passion for teaching.
Coffey, Kansas Teacher of the Year for 2016, held the attention of both students and instructors at his table as they visited during a luncheon that preceded the KTOY team’s presentation.
“This gave some great insight into teaching,” said Nick Wolfe, an FHSU freshman from Hays. “I can’t wait to get involved in the teaching program.”
Coincidentally, Wolfe came to Fort Hays State as a physics major but decided to change his major to education after his work study position ended up being at a preschool.
“I love spending time with those little kids and watching them learn,” Wolfe said. “The thing that lights up my life is working with kids. I want to be an inspiration like so many teachers have been to me.”
Then, he’s on the right track of becoming a teacher, Coffey said.
“Going into college I thought, ‘There’s no way I want to be a teacher; they don’t get paid enough,’ ” Coffey said. “It took me many years to realize that it’s not all about the money. Helping student make good decisions and finding the right path means much more than making a couple of extra bucks.”
Coffey grew up in Omaha, Neb., and met his wife, Amanda, while attending the University of Wyoming. An education major, Amanda’s first teaching job ended up being in Dodge City, where she has taught elementary school since 2003.
Coffey, who was managing a retail store in Dodge City, said he wasn’t really happy with his job and would notice how invigorated his wife would be after school, even after a long day at work.
“She thought I should try teaching,” said Coffey, who checked into the Transition to Teaching Program at Fort Hays State.
The mission of the program, referred to as T2T, is “designed to fill secondary teaching vacancies in school districts through an alternate route to teacher licensure.” It allows an individual with a bachelor’s degree in a content area approved by the Kansas State Department of Education to obtain a teaching license through a two-year program.
The T2T program that began with four participants in 2003-04 is booming at Fort Hays State. It brought in 85 new students in the fall of 2014 and added 95 more last fall.
“It’s grown dramatically the last couple of years,” said Dr. Jim Barrett, chair of Advanced Education Programs at FHSU. “It helps a lot of people. It’s a great program.”
And now FHSU’s T2T program can boast of having a Kansas Teacher of the Year.
Coffey was able to immediately begin teaching at Dodge City High School while working on his degree through FHSU’s Virtual College, graduating in 2011.
He has never regretted that decision.
“Through my work experience in sales, I found that my favorite component was hiring and training new employees,” Coffey said. “I knew I wanted to help people and make an impact. As a teacher, you are able to build a special relationship with a lot of human beings. With my new-found passion, hopefully I can make an impact.”
This marks the second consecutive year that a Fort Hays State graduate has been named Kansas Teacher of the Year, a program in its 25th year and sponsored by the Kansas State Department of Education. Shannon Ralph, also from the Dodge City school district, was the 2015 KTOY winner.
Teachers are nominated from their local school districts, and two teachers are chosen to represent each of four regions across the state. The teacher of the year is picked from that group of eight regional finalists. This year’s nomination pool totaled 105 candidates.
Each regional winner receives $2,000, and as the KTOY winner, Coffey also received $4,000, free enrollment for life at several Kansas universities and the use of a car from one of the sponsors, Enterprise Rent-A-Car.
The KTOY team will give up to 30 presentations across the state this semester, and Coffey also makes trips around the state for professional development in Kansas school districts.
Faculty members from the Teacher Education Department and Advanced Education Programs Department, as well as several students, attended the KTOY presentation.
“It was nice to see so many staff there,” said Nona Mason, a kindergarten teacher at West Elementary School in Goodland. “It’s great to see that kind of support.”
“That’s part of what makes Fort Hays State’s program so great,” Coffey said, “that kind of support.”
