Sports – Page 484 – Hays Post Archive

Chiefs cornerback suspended for DUI arrest

Posted on July 24, 2015

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Chiefs cornerback Sean Smith has been suspended the first three games of the regular season by the NFL after pleading guilty to a drunken driving charge earlier this year.

Smith, who was given two years’ probation, is entering a contract year after one of the best seasons of his career. He will miss games against Houston, Denver and Green Bay before returning for the Chiefs’ game against Cincinnati in Week 4.

The 28-year-old Smith started all 16 games for Kansas City last season.

Under the NFL substance abuse policy, first-time offenders receive two-game suspensions. But there can be additional discipline depending on the circumstances, and Smith was pulled over by police last year after his car struck and broke a light pole.

Lackey goes 7, Rosenthal holds on as Cardinals beat Royals

Posted on July 24, 2015

ST. LOUIS (AP) – John Lackey threw seven strong innings after a shaky beginning, Trevor Rosenthal escaped his own jam in the ninth and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Kansas City Royal 4-3 on Thursday night.

Randal Grichuk and Matt Carpenter hit two-run homers as the Cardinals won in the makeup of a rainout last month.

As in the originally scheduled game, St. Louis and Kansas City led their league in wins and Lackey (9-5) and Chris Young (8-6) were the scheduled starters.

Rosenthal, pitching for the third straight day, took over to begin the ninth with a 4-2 lead. Alex Rios led off with a single and Omar Infante followed with a triple.

The Royals went on to put runners on second and third with no outs, but Rosenthal held on for his 30th save in 32 chances. Mike Moustakas grounded out to end it.

FHSU’s Lehman among conference honorees for 2015 NCAA Woman of the Year Award

Posted on July 23, 2015July 24, 2015

FHSU Athletics

Fort Hays State’s Kate Lehman has been named one of the 147 conference honorees for the 2015 NCAA Woman of the Year Award. She was one of a record 480 women nominated for the award by schools at all NCAA levels.

Lehman earns this honor after being named the women’s recipient of the MIAA Ken B. Jones Award (Conference Student-Athlete of the Year). She was the first student-athlete in FHSU history to earn the Ken B. Jones Award.

The Woman of the Year selection committee will next select the top 10 honorees in each NCAA division (I, II, and III). These top 30 honorees will be announced in early September. The selection committee will then choose and announce the nine finalists (three from each division) at the end of September. The NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics will cast votes among the nine finalists to determine the 2015 Woman of the Year. Lehman is among a pool of 39 Division II candidates that will be narrowed down to 10 in September.

The top 30 will be honored and the 2015 NCAA Woman of the Year will be named at the annual ceremony in Indianapolis on Oct. 18. Now in its 25^th year, the NCAA Woman of the Year Award recognizes graduating female student-athletes for excellence in academics, athletics, community service and leadership.

Lehman adds yet another accomplishment for the 2014-15 season, a year that saw her earn All-America First Team honors from four organizations and the National Player of the Year from BennettRank.com. She was both the MIAA Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. She earned the conference’s top defensive honor and All-MIAA First Team honors for three consecutive years and was named to the All-Defensive Team all four years.

Lehman also excelled in the classroom throughout her time at Fort Hays State, graduating with a 3.85 GPA as an Elementary Education major. She was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America First Team in 2015.

Lehman reached a distinction no other NCAA Division II women’s basketball player in history had ever accomplished in 2015. She was the first ever at the level to have at least 1,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, and 500 blocked shots in a career. She went on to finished with 1,917 points, 1,109 rebounds, and 515 blocks in her career, only the second player in Division II history to reach 500 career blocks.

All of Lehman’s accolades throughout the 2014-15 season caught the attention of the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tenn. Her jersey will hang in the Hall of Fame’s “Ring of Honor” for a full year in recognition of those accomplishments.

To view the list of conference honorees from all NCAA divisions…click here.

Hays Monarchs Sr. American Legion to open ‘AA’ state tourney play Wednesday

Posted on July 23, 2015

The Hays Monarchs Sr. American Legion will open play at the ‘AA’ state tournament in Colby against Marysville on Wednesday (7/29). The Monarchs advance out of Zone 6 and will play the first game of the day at 1 p.m.

2015 American Legion ‘AA’ State Tournament bracket

The Monarchs, who have won nine of their last 10 games and is 23-7 on year, advanced to the Zone 6 tournament title game against Colby. The game was not played since both teams had already secured a spot in the state tournament.

Hill City publisher, former Lark will throw out first pitch at NBC Series

Posted on July 23, 2015July 23, 2015

North Central-Flint Hills Area Agency on Aging

Bob Boyd, 80, Hill City, has been selected by Area Agencies on Aging in Kansas to be honored as Keeping Seniors in the Game! first pitcher on Thursday, Aug. 6, at the 7 p.m. feature game of the National Baseball Congress World Series.

The 81st NBC World Series happens at Wichita’s Lawrence-Dumont Stadium Games begin Friday and go until Saturday, Aug. 8.

Boyd is one of 16 Kansans over age 80 throughout the state selected for the honor. The Keeping Seniors In the Game! initiative recognizes the vitality and contributions of older Kansans and raises awareness of Area Agencies on Aging — a national network of groups that provide unbiased answers and real help to seniors and family caregivers with the goal of helping seniors stay happy and independent in their home communities.

Boyd and his wife, Diane have been married for 45 years. They have four daughters — Valerie, Susie, Robyn and Kristen — and 15 grandchildren.

Boyd played baseball at Kansas State for three years (1955 to 1957), then played professional ball for the St. Petersburg Florida Twins for one year. Bob’s last Twins game was one for the books. He hit two doubles, a triple and scored three runs. After returning to Hill City in 1961, he played baseball with the Hays Larks and was on the team until he was 40. While playing for the Larks, he hit two home runs at Lawrence-Dumont stadium in the state tournament.

For 54 years, Boyd has been the publisher of the Hill City Times weekly newspaper.

The Northwest Kansas Area Agency on Aging, based in Hays, nominated Boyd for the Keeping Seniors in the Game! honor. This group serves seniors and caregivers in Graham County and in 17 other counties in Kansas.

“We are very happy to work with the National Baseball Congress Foundation to recognize the amazing contributions that Bob Boyd and other older Kansans make to our country, our hometowns and our communities,” said Julie Govert Walter, Executive Director of the North Central-Flint Hills Area Agency on Aging who leads the Keeping Seniors In The Game!SM initiative.

Moustakas’ 3-run homer leads Royals past Pirates

Posted on July 23, 2015

Mike Moustakas celebrates after hitting a 3-run HR vs. Pirates 7/22/15. (Jason Hanna)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Edinson Volquez pitched effectively into the eighth inning against his old team and Mike Moustakas hit a three-run homer to lead the Kansas City Royals over the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-1 on Wednesday night.

Volquez (9-5), who won 13 games last season for the Pirates, picked up his first victory since June 26. He allowed one run on eight hits, while walking one and striking out eight.

Moustakas homered with two out in the eighth with Alex Rios and Jarrod Dyson aboard. Moustakas drove the 3-0 offering from right-hander Charlie Morton into the Royals’ bullpen.

Dyson’s bunt single scored Omar Infante with the first run of the inning.

Morton (6-4) allowed five runs on seven hits, two of them home runs, walked one, hit two batters and struck out four.

Royals’ Vargas to DL with torn elbow ligament

Posted on July 22, 2015

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The Royals have placed left-hander Jason Vargas on the disabled list with a torn ligament in his elbow, an injury that typically requires season-ending Tommy John surgery.

Vargas left his start against Pittsburgh on Tuesday night after throwing just 26 pitches. He had an MRI on Wednesday that revealed the extent of the injury.

The Royals filled his spot in the rotation by recalling Yordano Ventura. The hard-throwing right-hander had been sent to Triple-A Omaha just a day earlier to work on his inconsistency and rebuild some confidence after a string of poor starts.

Vargas, who is 5-2 with a 3.98 ERA, was instrumental in the Royals’ run to the World Series a year ago. He went 1-0 with a 3.52 ERA in three postseason starts.

Dyson’s 2-run single lifts Royals past Pirates

Posted on July 22, 2015July 22, 2015

Jarrod Dyson hit a two-run single in 8th inning 7/21 vs. Pittsburgh. (Jason Hanna).

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Jarrod Dyson hit a two-run single in the eighth inning to lead the Kansas City Royals to a 3-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night.

Dyson scored later in the inning on Alcides Escobar’s single to put the Royals up 3-0, and they won for the 11th time in 14 games.

Wade Davis (6-1) struck out Andrew McCutchen swinging to end the eighth with two Pirates on base to pick up the victory.

Greg Holland survived a shaky ninth, allowing a run on four hits and a walk, but struck out Gregory Polanco with the bases loaded for his 21st save in 24 opportunities.

Pirates starter Gerrit Cole (13-4), who leads the majors in victories, was charged with all three runs and five hits in 7 1/3 innings.

Ventura optioned to Triple-A Omaha
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The Kansas City Royals have optioned right-hander Yordano Ventura to Triple-A Omaha after a string of ineffective outings for the opening-day starter.

The 24-year-old Ventura, who can run his fastball into triple digits, is 4-7 with a 5.19 ERA in 14 starts this year. He spent nearly a month on the disabled list with inflammation of his ulnar nerve.

Left-hander Jason Vargas came off the disabled list and got the start Tuesday night against Pittsburgh. Vargas had been sidelined by a left flexor strain.

Ventura gave up six runs and 10 hits in four-plus innings in Monday night’s 10-7 loss to the Pirates. He is 1-3 with a 9.00 ERA in his last four starts.

After going 14-10 with a 3.20 ERA as a rookie and throwing seven scoreless innings to beat San Francisco in Game 6 of the World Series, the Royals signed Ventura to a $23 million, five-year contract at the end of spring training.

Monarchs Sr. American Legion secures trip to state with zone win

Posted on July 22, 2015July 22, 2015

GOODLAND — The Hays Monarchs Sr. American Legion scored five runs in the fifth inning to break open a one-run game and beat the Goodland Outlaws 7-1 at the Zone 6 tournament in Goodland Tuesday night. The win secures a trip to next week’s AA State American Legion tournament and advances them to the zone finals against Colby at 6pm Wednesday.

The Monarchs take advantage of two walks and three errors in the big inning. Jared Vitztum had the only hit of the inning, driving in two.

Liam Stults struck out 11 over six innings without allowing an earned run and picks up the win as the Monarchs improve to 23-7.

Larks win season finale

Posted on July 22, 2015

Corky Welch had three hits and Derek Birginske hit a three-run home run leading the Hays Larks to a 17-1 rout of the Puerto Rico Collegiate Baseball Club Tuesday night at Larks Park. It’s the second straigtht win for the Larks who finish their season 23-21.

Frank Leo Postgame

Corky Welch

The Larks scored eight in the fourth inning to break a 1-1 tie. Derek Dickerson had one of the Larks two hits in the big inning, driving in two with a double.

Birginske finished with four RBIs. His blast closed out the scoring in the seventh.

In his first start of the season, DJ Carr allowed on unearned run on five hits with nine strikeouts over six innings and picks up the win.

Larks end losing skid with win over Puerto Rico Collegiate

Posted on July 21, 2015

Evan Gruener and Derek Dickerson both homered as the Hays Larks snap their four-game losing streak with a 7-3 win over the Puerto Rico Collegiate Baseball Club Monday night at Larks Park.

Gruener’s solo homer in the third inning broke a 2-2 tie giving the Larks the lead for good. Dickerson ended an 0-25 in the prior eight games, hit a two-run blast in the fifth for the final margin.

Blake Korthauer (2-0) allowed one earned run on seven hits with seven strikeouts and no walks over five innings and picks the win.

The Larks close out the season Tuesday night against the Puerto Rico team. Free admission courtesy of Phaze 2, Pioneer Wireline, Commercial Builders, Big D Rental and Whiskey Creek.

Monarchs Sr. American Legion 1-1 at zone tournament

Posted on July 21, 2015

The Hays Monarchs Sr. American Legion baseball team goes 1-1 at the Goodland Zone Tournament Monday, beating Goodland 8-0 before losing to Colby 5-3. They will return to action Tuesday night at 9pm CST against the winner of the Goodland/Norton game.

The Monarchs raced out early in their opener against the Outlaws, scoring three in the first inning and five in the second. Braiden Werth had two hits and drove in three helping the Monarchs to their eighth straight win. Cameron Schmidt pitched the five inning shutout, striking out seven and walking none.

Colby turned the tables on the Monarchs in the semifinals, scoring two in the second and three in the third to go up 5-1. The Monarchs added single runs in the fourth and fifth.

The Monarchs commit four errors in the game with all of the Colby runs unearned.

Werth had two hits and drove in two. Ryan Ruder struck out six and walked just one allowing six hits and takes the loss.

Travis Ishikawa drives in 4 as Pirates outslug Royals

Posted on July 21, 2015

Chris Medlen makes his Royals debut after coming off the disabled list earlier in the day. (Chris Vleisides)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Travis Ishikawa had three extra-base hits and drove in four runs as the Pittsburgh Pirates outslugged the Kansas City Royals 10-7 Monday night.

Ishikawa, who was 1 for 13 with one RBI in nine games since the Pirates claimed him on waivers July 5, hit a two-run double in a four-run second. He homered in the fifth with Jung Ho Kang aboard.

A.J. Burnett (8-3) won despite giving up a season-high five earned runs and 11 hits – including two homers – in his initial start since his first career trip to the All-Star Game. The 38-year-old right-hander pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the second.

The Royals cut the deficit to 8-7 in the seventh and chased Burnett. Mike Moustakas homered leading off the inning. Eric Hosmer had an RBI triple for his third hit and scored on Kendrys Morales’ groundout.