MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium is looking to put its best face forward when it hosts a regular-season NFL matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Los Angeles Chargers. Officials are hoping for redemption after last season’s game had to be moved to the L.A. Coliseum, a black eye for the arena and the league. Poor field conditions forced the last-minute change. The hybrid turf has since been swapped out for natural grass, and fewer events have been scheduled for the stadium.

WACO, Texas (AP) — The No. 13 Baylor Bears almost certainly won’t have to wait until next year for another shot at No. 8 Oklahoma. Give it about three weeks. It seems inevitable that they will meet again in the Big 12 championship game on Dec. 7 in Arlington, Texas. They are both 9-1 overall and 6-1 in Big 12 play. Every other team has at least three league losses. Baylor and Oklahoma both need to win just one of their last two games to get in the Big 12 title game.

National Headlines

UNDATED (AP) — Georgia edged past Alabama to No. 4 in The Associated Press college football poll after the Bulldogs had a quality road victory and the Crimson Tide lost star quarterback Tua Tagovailoa for the season. LSU remained No. 1 in the AP Top 25 presented by Regions Bank, receiving 54 first-places votes. Ohio State and Clemson stayed second and third. Minnesota and Baylor both lost for the first time and dropped in the rankings to 11th and 13th. Oklahoma moved up two spots to No. 8.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — New England is 9-1 after Julian Edelman hit fellow wide receiver Phillip Dorsett for a go-ahead, 15-yard touchdown early in the third quarter of the Patriots’ 17-10 comeback over the Eagles in Philadelphia. New England fell behind 10-0 early in the second quarter before Nick Folk hit three field goals to get the Patriots within 10-9 at halftime. The Pats didn’t cross midfield until Tom Brady connected with Benjamin Watson for 22 yards to the Eagles 31 near the midpoint of the second quarter.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Jimmy Garoppolo’s fourth TD pass of the day was a go-ahead, 25-yard scoring toss to Jeff Wilson with 31 seconds left in the San Francisco 49ers’ 36-26 victory against the Arizona Cardinals. Garoppolo had 425 yards passing but also threw two interceptions deep in Arizona territory that nearly doomed San Francisco. The 9-1 Niners trailed 16-0 before pulling off their largest comeback win since 2011 against the Eagles.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Vikings erased a 20-0 halftime deficit by scoring touchdowns on each of their four possessions of the second half to beat the Denver Broncos, 27-23. Kirk Cousins went 29 for 35 for 319 yards and three scores for the 8-3 Vikings, who went ahead on Kyle Rudolph’s 32-yard scoring grab with 6:10 remaining. Denver got to the Minnesota 4 with 10 seconds left before Brandon Allen’s next three throws fell incomplete.

BALTIMORE (AP) — Lamar Jackson threw four touchdown passes and ran for 86 yards as part of the Baltimore Ravens’ sixth straight win, 41-7 over the Houston Texans. Jackson threw for three touchdowns in the third quarter and followed with his most impressive play of the day: a 39-yard run in which he broke six tackles while weaving through the Houston secondary. Gus Edwards scored on a 63-yard run with 4:10 left to cap the scoring for the 8-2 Ravens. The Texans dropped to 6-4.

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (AP) — Kyle Busch has emerged from the Joe Gibbs Racing juggernaut as NASCAR’s latest champion, winning his second title after teammates Denny Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. were slowed by pit-road gaffes. Busch won the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway to snap a 21-race losing streak and beat Hamlin, Truex and rival Kevin Harvick for the Cup. Busch joined seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson as the only active drivers with multiple titles.

Sunday Scores

NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Final Dallas 35 Detroit 27
Final Indianapolis 33 Jacksonville 13
Final Minnesota 27 Denver 23
Final Baltimore 41 Houston 7
Final N-Y Jets 34 Washington 17
Final Atlanta 29 Carolina 3
Final Buffalo 37 Miami 20
Final New Orleans 34 Tampa Bay 17
Final San Francisco 36 Arizona 26
Final New England 17 Philadelphia 10
Final Oakland 17 Cincinnati 10
Final L.A. Rams 17 Chicago 7
Mon Kansas City Chiefs vs Los Angeles Chargers 7:20 C.S.T.

TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (19)Arizona 83 New Mexico St. 53
Final UConn 62 (15)Florida 59
Final (12)Seton Hall 83 Saint Louis 66
Final (4)Louisville 87 NC Central 58
Final (14)Oregon 67 Texas-Arlington 47
Final (18)Saint Mary’s (Cal) 79 Cal Poly 48

NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Philadelphia 114 Cleveland 95
Final Sacramento 100 Boston 99
Final Denver 131 Memphis 114
Final Orlando 125 Washington 121
Final New Orleans 108 Golden State 100
Final L.A. Lakers 122 Atlanta 101

Georgia edged past Alabama to No. 4 in The Associated Press college football poll after the Bulldogs had a quality road victory and the Crimson Tide lost star quarterback Tua Tagovailoa for the season.

LSU remained No. 1 in the AP Top 25 presented by Regions Bank, receiving 54 first-places votes. No. 2 Ohio State (five first-place votes) and No. 3 Clemson (three first-place votes) maintained their spots. Georgia moved up one place after winning 21-14 at Auburn.

The Crimson Tide beat Mississippi State 38-7 on Saturday, but Tagovailoa dislocated his right hip while being tackled late in the second quarter and is done for the year. Alabama fell a spot to fifth.

Minnesota and Baylor both lost for the first time and dropped in the rankings. The 11th-ranked Gophers slipped four spots after losing at Iowa. No. 13 Baylor dropped one after blowing a 28-3 lead at home to Oklahoma.

Iowa jumped four to No. 19 and Oklahoma moved up two spots to No. 8.

POLL POINTS

There is more separation at the top of college football this season than last. At this point in 2018, the AP Top 25 had:

— Four unbeaten teams.

— Eight one-loss teams.

— Three two-loss teams.

— Eight three-loss teams.

— Two four-loss teams.

The latest poll has:

— Three unbeaten teams.

— 13 one-loss teams.

— Four two-loss teams.

— Five three-loss teams.

TOP-FIVE TIDE

Alabama extended its record for consecutive weeks in the top five of the AP poll to 67, dating back to Nov. 8, 2015. The second-longest streak of top-five appearances is Miami, which had 55 from Oct. 8, 2000-Oct. 26, 2003.

Breakdown of the streak:

— No. 1 — 49.

— No. 2 — 12.

— No. 3 — 2.

— No. 4 — 2.

— No. 5 — 2.

IN

— No. 23 Appalachian State moved into the rankings for the second time this season.

— No. 24 Texas A&M returned to the Top 25. The Aggies started the season in No. 12, but losses to Clemson, Auburn and Alabama dropped them out. A&M has won four straight.

— No. 25 Virginia Tech is ranked for the first time this season. It has been quite a bounce-back for the Hokies, who suffered their worst home loss in decades against Duke in September but have won five of six since.

OUT

— Navy was bounced after being routed at Notre Dame.

— Texas fell out of the rankings again after a last-second loss to Iowa State.

— Indiana lasted one week in the rankings after a 25-year absence. The Hoosiers lost at Penn State.

CONFERENCE CALL

Big Ten — 6 (Nos. 2, 9, 11, 12, 14, 19).

SEC — 6 (Nos. 1, 4, 5, 10, 16, 24).

American — 3 (Nos. 17, 18, 21).

Big 12 — 3 (Nos. 8, 13, 22).

ACC — 2 (Nos. 3, 25).

Pac 12 — 2 (Nos. 6, 7).

Mountain West — 1 (No. 20).

Sun Belt — 1 (No. 23).

Independent — 1 (No. 15).

RANKED vs. RANKED

No. 9 Penn State at No. 2 Ohio State. The Buckeyes have been rolling, but they still have their heaviest lifting to do.

No. 24 Texas A&M at No. 4 Georgia. The Aggies are positioned to complicate things in the SEC, with the Bulldogs this week and LSU next.

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium is looking to put its best face forward Monday night when it hosts a regular-season matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Los Angeles Chargers, after last season’s NFL game had to be moved to the L.A. Coliseum in a major black eye for the arena and the league.

Poor field conditions forced the last-minute change of venue, which prompted headlines like “Colossal Shame” from the Mexican sports newspaper Record and others, and since then league and stadium officials have taken steps to ensure the marquee event comes off without a hitch in one of the NFL’s most important overseas markets.

The hybrid turf that never quite took in Azteca has been swapped out for natural grass. Women’s soccer league matches were moved to a different venue, and fewer events in general have been scheduled for the 84,000-seat Azteca. Last year, concerts in the days leading up to the scheduled game between the Chiefs and the Los Angeles Rams contributed to the ragged field conditions.

This year, the most recent soccer game in Azteca took place Nov. 2, giving groundskeepers time to ensure the field is tip-top.

“The field is in very good condition,” said Arturo Olivé, director of the NFL’s office in Mexico. “It looks spectacular, and we are very happy with the great work that has been carried out.”

Starting in January, Olivé said, the league has been sending monitors to Mexico to avoid a repeat of 2018’s debacle, and he has been making weekly visits to the stadium to file progress reports.

“The NFL people did not come to judge what was being done, but rather as part of a working team contributing solutions,” Olivé said.

Last November’s fiasco was also a major headache for Televisa, the largest broadcaster in Latin America, which owns the stadium.

Officials hired World Sports Solutions International, which prepared fields for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, to restore Azteca’s hybrid surface to natural grass.

Renato Luis Laurentti, who is responsible for the upgrades, said this week that the field was fertilized and irrigated with orange juice, vitamins, carbohydrates and proteins. Images published by the company on social media showed the grass apparently in perfect shape.

Monday will mark the fourth regular-season NFL game played at Azteca, which underwent a renovation in 2016 partly with the league in mind. Capacity was reduced from over 100,000 previously, and locker rooms designed to accommodate NFL teams were added.

The 49ers and Cardinals faced off here in 2005, followed by the Raiders and Texans in 2016 and the Patriots and Raiders in 2017. Before that it hosted several preseason games as well, including a Chiefs victory over the Cowboys in 1996.

It will be the Chargers’ first visit to Mexico, where according to the league’s local office the team has a strong following — mostly in the northern city of Tijuana just across the border from San Diego, which the Chargers long called home before moving to Los Angeles after the 2016 season.

The push to keep playing games in Mexico is no accident. While soccer, known as “fútbol” in Spanish, remains king, the NFL estimates there are some 25 million fans of football in the country. Many people get together in homes, bars and movie theaters to watch live broadcasts, and it’s common to see fans wearing jerseys of their favorite teams. The Steelers, Cowboys, Patriots, Raiders and 49ers are among the most popular.

“I came a few years ago for the Raiders game and you could feel the excitement, and I believe that it keeps growing,” said Anthony Muñoz, a Hall of Fame former offensive lineman for the Cincinnati Bengals.

“A lot of people think of Mexico and think that they just love the other ‘football,’ but it’s not like that,” said Muñoz, who has Mexican heritage. “The fans here are really knowledgeable and understand the game. There’s a big fan base here.”

The NFL has promoted the sport for years in Mexican schools and estimates that about 3.3 million children play on more than 6,000 junior teams in 27 of the country’s 32 states.

Football historian Alejandro Morales, founder of Mexico’s football Hall of Fame, said the game arrived in the country in 1896 via Mexicans who studied at U.S. universities and brought their appreciation back home. Mexico’s first football game took place that year in the city of Jalapa between local students and a team made up of U.S. Marines who were passing through the port city of Veracruz.

Mexico has two college football leagues with nearly 40 teams between them. Last weekend’s championship between Burros Blancos and Aguilas Blancas — “white donkeys” and “white eagles,” respectively — overflowed the 36,000-capacity stadium at the capital’s Sports City complex and was broadcast on national television.

“A stadium with 35,000 people to watch a student sport event is something incredible,” said quarterback Rodrigo García of the victorious Burros Blancos. “That tells you something about the passion for this sport in Mexico.”

High School Football Playoffs – Sub-State

** All games start at 7pm unless noted

Class 6A
Blue Valley (8-3) vs Olathe North (9-2)
Topeka High (10-1) @ Derby (11-0)

Class 5A
Mill Valley (8-3) @ St. Thomas Aquinas (10-0)
Maize (10-1) @ Wichita Northwest (11-0)

Class 4A
Bishop Miege (9-2) Paola (11-0)
Andover Central (10-1) @ McPherson (11-0)

Class 3A
Topeka Hayden (10-1) @ Perry-Lecompton (8-3)
Cheney (9-2) @ Andale (11-0)

Class 2A
Riley County (9 -2) @ Nemaha Central (9-2)
Hoisington (11-0) @ Norton (8-3) 6pm

Class 1A
Jackson Heights (9-2) @ Centralia (10-1)
Plainville (10-1) @ Smith Center (11-0)

8-Man DI
Canton-Galva (11-0) @ Madison (11-0) @
Wichita County (10-1) @ St. Francis (11-0)

8-Man DII
Axtell (10-1) @ Hanover (10-1)
Central Christian (10-1) @ Osborne (11-0)

 

MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State resumes its four-game home stand on Monday night, as the Wildcats host Oral Roberts. Game time is 6:30 p.m.

Monday’s game can be seen live on Big 12 Now on ESPN+, as Brian Smoller (play-by-play), Missy Heidrick (analyst) and Anna Christianson (sideline) will have the call.

Following an 84-40 win over UIC, K-State owns a nine-game winning streak in Bramlage Coliseum against non-conference opponents.

Sophomore Christianna Carr led K-State with 20 points including a 4-of-9 effort from beyond the arc. Junior Rachel Ranke carded 14 points including a 4-of-8 effort from three. This was the second time that Carr and Ranke have each buried four of more 3-pointers in the same game.

Redshirt freshman Ayoka Lee turned in her first career double-double with 13 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks. The center from Byron, Minn., is the sixth player in program history to register a double-double and have five or more blocks in the same game.

Defensively, K-State has held its first two opponents to a combined field goal percentage of 26.8 percent which ranks ninth in the nation in the early portion of the season. A season ago, the Wildcats held five teams to under 30.0 percent from the field.

 

Starting 5

Five names, numbers or storylines about K-State women’s basketball

1. Lockdown Defense

Kansas State has held its first two opponents to 49 points or less for the second straight season. The last time the Wildcats started a season allowing 49 points or less in three straight games was the 1972-73 season.

2. 50×50

K-State has recorded consecutive games of 50 or more rebounds for the first time in the Jeff Mittie era and the first time since February 26 and March 1, 2000.

3. Three-Ball for All

K-State buried 11 three-point field goals against UIC on November 11. The 11 connections were the most since the Wildcats made 14 at Oklahoma on February 10, 2019.

4. Engine in Carr

Sophomore Christianna Carr leads K-State in scoring this season at 17.5 points per game. She tallied her fifth career game with 20 or more points with 20 against UIC.

5. Ranke on the Glass

Rachel Ranke tallied 14 points and six rebounds against UIC. This was her 17th career game with five or more rebounds. She has five career games with five or more rebounds and four or more connections from beyond the arc. K-State is 4-1 in those games.

Last Time Out

(rv/rv) Kansas State 84, UIC 40 (Nov. 11, 2019; Manhattan)

K-State registered its largest margin of victory since a 48-point win over Chicago State on Dec. 18, 2017.

Defensively, the Wildcats stymied the UIC attack with 11 blocks and nine steals. The 11 blocks are the sixth-highest single game total in program history.

K-State had four players in double figures, led by Christianna Carr and Rachel Ranke with 20 and 14 points, respectively. Each player connected on four 3-point field goals.

—k-statesports.com—

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Redshirt-sophomore Kailey Lane’s goal in the 70th minute proved to be the difference as the No. 3-seeded Jayhawks outlasted the Iowa Hawkeyes, 1-0, Saturday night in the first round of the NCAA Championship.

Kansas advanced to the second round for the third time in four seasons and will meet the Xavier Muskateers on Friday in Columbia, S.C.

The win improved Kansas to 16-4-3 on the year and gave the Jayhawks their most wins in a season since 2004. Iowa’s season came to a close with a 15-5-1 record.

It was a physical match from start to finish, one that featured 31 fouls and five yellow cards between the two teams. The physicality at both ends of the field made it tough for either side to gain an advantage on the scoreboard, going scoreless for nearly 70 minutes of action.

KU finally broke through when freshman Ellie Prybylski played a pass downfield to a sprinting Katie McClure, who got in behind the Iowa defense and needed only one touch to play a low, darting cross into the heart of the Hawkeye box. There, Lane managed to beat the Iowa defenders to the pass, where she redirected it into the Iowa goal for the match’s first score. It marked Lane’s fifth goal of the season and ended up being the Jayhawks’ only shot on frame for the game.

The Jayhawk defense, which was stellar all night, buckled down from there. Iowa put together several dangerous attacks over the final 25 minutes of regulation, but the KU backline stayed firm. KU goalkeeper Sarah Peters tallied two of the biggest saves of the game in the final 90 seconds when she stopped two Iowa equalizer bids. The sophomore out of Lee’s Summit Missouri finished the contest with five saves and her 10th shutout of the season.

Kansas closed out the 1-0 victory and advanced to the NCAA Tournament’s second round for the sixth time in program history and third time in the last four years.

UP NEXT

The Jayhawks will take on the BIG EAST regular-season and conference champions Xavier Musketeers (17-3-2) in the NCAA Tournament Second Round on Friday in Columbia, South Carolina. Kickoff from Eugene E. Stone III Stadium is still to be determined.

—kuathletics.com—

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) — What was planned to be the last series of the day for Tua Tagovailoa ended in the final play of his season — and maybe his Alabama career.

The Crimson Tide’s star quarterback will miss the rest of the season after dislocating his right hip in the first half of No. 4 Alabama’s 38-7 victory over Mississippi State on Saturday.

Tagovailoa, the potential top pick in April’s NFL draft, was injured while being dragged down by two Bulldogs late in the first half, with the Tide up four touchdowns. He was flown by helicopter to the St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Birmingham, Alabama. Hours later the school announced he has sustained a dislocated right hip.

“He is undergoing further testing to determine the best course of treatment,” Alabama team orthopedic surgeon Lyle Cain said in a statement. “He is expected to make a full recovery but will miss the remainder of the season.”

Tagovailoa had been nursing an ankle injury and Alabama was considering holding him out of this game. The junior needed surgery four weeks ago for a high ankle sprain on his right leg that caused him to miss a game and a half.

Alabama coach Nick Saban said the plan was to remove Tagovailoa from the game before the series when the quarterback was injury. Alabama was leading 35-7, but it was decided to let Tagovailoa play one more possession to get some work in the two-minute drill.

“We can second guess ourselves all we want,” Saban said. “We told Mac (Jones) to warm up and we were going to go 2-minute before the half. Tua wanted to play in the game and so I don’t really make a lot of decisions worrying if a guy is going to get hurt.”

Tagovailoa was 14 of 18 for 256 yards and two touchdown passes against Mississippi State, giving him 31 TD passes on the season. He was replaced by Jones, who went 7 for 11 for 94 yards.

“Thank you all for the prayers and well wishes,” Tagovailoa posted on Twitter. “God always has a plan.”

Jones led the Crimson Tide to an easy victory when he started against Arkansas last month. Alabama faces Western Carolina next week before finishing the season at No. 13 Auburn.

Tailback Najee Harris warned reporters that he wasn’t in the mood to answer questions, saying: “I’m just hurt about our quarterback, what happened to our quarterback.”

“He means a lot to our team, Harris said. “It’s our guy. I came here at the same time he did. Been friends with him since my freshman season. For him to go down like that really hurts.”

The Crimson Tide (9-1, 6-1 Southeastern Conference) were coming off a 46-41 loss to LSU that nudged it out of College Football Playoff position to fifth in the latest selection committee rankings. Now Alabama is facing the possibility of trying to impress the committee without Tagovailoa, the Heisman Trophy runner-up from last season.

Tagovailoa played well against LSU, passing for more than 400 yards, but he was gimpy at times, favoring his right ankle. Saban said Tagovailoa was a game-time decision against Mississippi State. He started and the Tide jumped out to a 14-0 lead on a touchdown run and a touchdown catch by Najee Harris, who finished with four TDs.

Mississippi State (4-6, 2-5) cut the lead to 14-7 on a 1-yard scoring run by Kylin Hill. But that was as close it got. Harris finished with 88 yards rushing and 51 yards receiving. Jerry Jeudy had seven catches for 114 yards receiving for Alabama.

TAKEAWAY

Alabama: Tide defensive tackle Raekwon Davis was also taken off the field with an apparent leg injury.

Mississippi State: The Bulldogs’ struggles on offensive continued against Alabama. Mississippi State had just 270 yards of offense and had only 82 yards passing against the Crimson Tide. In the past two meetings with Alabama, the Bulldogs have mustered seven points.

“We knew against a team of Alabama’s caliber that we needed things to go our way,” Mississippi State coach Joe Moorhead said. “But spotting them a 14-0 lead three minutes into the game didn’t help. We didn’t execute enough and we didn’t coach well enough to win today.”

Tommy Stevens was 12 of 21 passing for Mississippi State and had just 82 yards passing. Stevens did rush for 96 yards on 10 carries.

The Bulldogs must win out to be bowl eligible.

UP NEXT

Alabama: The Crimson Tide needs to beat Auburn and have LSU lose twice in its final two games to win the SEC West and reach the conference title game.

Mississippi State: The Bulldogs continue their season-ending homestand and host Abilene Christian for homecoming.

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The winningest senior class in the program’s NCAA Division II history went out with a bang on Saturday as Fort Hays State posted a record-setting 91-7 win at Northeastern State to close out the season at Doc Wadley Stadium. FHSU broke both its single-game and season scoring records, finishing at 8-3 overall.

The 91 points shatters the single-game mark of 66 set earlier this season in a win at Lincoln. The Tigers finish the year with 455 points in just 11 games, going past the mark of 446 set by the 1995 team in 12 games. The Tigers also finish the year averaging 41.4 points per game, and that breaks the 1995 team’s scoring average record of 37.2 per game.

**Note: FHSU had a team in 1913 score 125 points against the Salina All-Stars, which was not a college, so this is a new record against a collegiate opponent.**

It didn’t look like a complete runaway early as FHSU scored just 13 points in the first quarter, but a landslide of points befell NSU in the second quarter, 42 to be exact, and FHSU led 55-7 at halftime. Two consecutive Voshon Waiters rushing touchdowns in the third quarter pushed the Tigers past the single-game scoring record to a 69-7 lead. Te’Corey Tutson added another rushing touchdown late in the third to push the advantage to 76-7.

Senior Kyler Kinnamon picked up his first touchdown in the fourth quarter on a 5-yard pass from Trey McJunkin. Adrian Soto also scored his first collegiate touchdown in the fourth, a 65-yard sprint to the endzone untouched. The senior La Crosse, Kansas duo of Andrew Jay and Sheldon Schmidt connected on a 2-point conversion play that pushed the final tally for the Tigers to 91.

The Tigers had a very senior-themed touchdown scoring compilation in the first half. Harley Hazlett started the scoring on a 19-yard pass from Chance Fuller. Charles Tigner and D.J. Hickman each followed with touchdown plunges from a yard out. Matt Wendelberger joined the scoring act next on a 9-yard pass from Fuller. Tigner added another one-yard touchdown run before Layne Bieberle snagged a 1-yard touchdown pass from Fuller. A defensive touchdown by Sterling Swopes on a 48-yard fumble recovery interrupted the senior scoring streak, but Tigner followed again with a 2-yard pass from Fuller.

With the four passing touchdowns by halftime, Fuller found himself on top of the single-season passing touchdowns list with 35 this season. That topped the school record of 34 thrown by Shawn Behr in 1995. He finished the year with 3,344 passing yards, the fourth most in a single-season in FHSU and his 258 completions for the season are second most.

When the dust settled, Fort Hays State finished with 734 yards of total offense. It was still a little shy of the school record 761 yards produced by the 1970 team against Southern Colorado.

The Tiger defense nearly had a shutout with just one defensive breakdown on a 73-yard touchdown pass by the RiverHawks in the second quarter. The Tigers were rock solid outside of that mistake, allowing just 123 total yards for the game. It was the fewest yards allowed to an opponent since a 15-0 win over Adams State on September 15, 2001. Tanner Hoekman led the Tigers with seven tackles to finish with 294 in his career, tying Layton Hickel for sixth on the career tackles list in the NCAA era.

Bieberle finished second on the all-time receiving yards list at FHSU with 2,625 by adding 68 to his overall total on Saturday. Bieberle was the seventh Tiger to pass the 2,000-yard receiving mark earlier this season and Hazlett joined that fraternity on Saturday as the eighth, now with 2,038 after a 58-yard receiving effort. Hazlett holds the all-time receptions record at FHSU with 184 and Bieberle joins old record holder Eric Busenbark in a tie for second with 168.

Dante Brown finished the year with 109 kicking points (19 field goals and 52 PATs). The 2018 Don Hansen Division II Special Teams Player of the Year put up 232 points over two seasons. He is the only kicker in program history to break the 100 mark, and did it two consecutive years.

Fort Hays State reached eight wins in a season for the fifth straight year and the senior class went out with a record of 36-11. The Tigers also produced their seventh consecutive winning season, which dates back to 2013.

(BY STEVE CARPENTER)
(HUTCHINSON CC SPORTS INFORMATION)

GREAT BEND, Kan. – The Hutchinson Community College men’s basketball team trailed at halftime for the first time this season on Saturday at the Cougar Booster Club Classic at the Barton Gym.

The No. 7-ranked Blue Dragons responded by shooting 57.1 percent in the second half to rally past Iowa Western for a 91-70 victory.

The Blue Dragons improve to 7-0 and will play Hesston College at 7 p.m. on Tuesday at the Sports Arena. Iowa Western, who is coached by former Blue Dragon assistant coach Michael Johnette, falls to 4-3.

The Blue Dragons led for most of the first half and had a nine-point lead at one point. With Hutchinson leading 35-30 with 2:38 to play in the first half, Iowa Western closed the half on a 10-3 run and took a 40-38 lead on a Josiah Strong 3-pointer with 35 seconds in the first half.

With Iowa Western still leading 46-43 early in the second half, the Dragons scored eight points in a span of 1 minute, 46 seconds. Josh Baker hit a 3-pointer with 16:28 to go, and then Tyler Brown hit a 3-pointer to give Hutchinson a 51-46 lead with 15:53 to play in the second half.

The Blue Dragons shot 57.1 percent in the second half (20 of 35), holding Iowa Western to 35.3 percent (12 of 34) and outscored the Reivers 53-30 in the final 20 minutes.

Six Blue Dragons scored in double figures led by 16-point efforts by both Josh Baker and Majok Kuath. Baker hit 4 of 6 3-pointers and added six rebounds. Kuath was 6 of 10 from the field to finish with 16 points.

Sanquan Singleton had a double-double with 11 points and a career-high 13 assists. Brown finished with 15 points. D.J. Mitchell and Matt Mayers had 10 points each.

The Blue Dragons were 34 of 67 from the field (50.7 percent), hitting 8 of 19 3-pointers and 15 of 23 from the free-throw line. Hutchinson out-rebounded Iowa Western 48-33.

Iowa Western was 26 of 63 (41.3 percent), going 8 of 25 from 3-point range and 10 of 17 from the line. Strong and Seneca Louis had 15 points each.

(BY STEVE CARPENTER)
(HUTCHINSON CC SPORTS INFORMATION)

GREAT BEND, Kan. – The Hutchinson Community College Women’s Basketball team hit a season high for 3-pointers for the second-straight game and the No. 7-ranked Blue Dragons rolled to a victory over Jefferson College to close out the Cougar Booster Club Classic at the Barton Gym.

Hutchinson hit 14 3-pointers, including four in a 24-point run to open the game as the Blue Dragons rolled by Jefferson College 90-55 on Saturday afternoon.

Six different Blue Dragons hit 3-pointers as Hutchinson hit a season-high 14 treys in 32 attempts. The 14 3-pointers tie for the second most in Blue Dragon single-game history, matching a 2017 game against Colby and 2018 game against the Washburn University Junior Varsity.

Sophomore Makayla Vannett and freshman Tor’e Alford started the 3-point barrage with two each as the Blue Dragons got off to a 24-0 start in the first 5 minutes of the game. Hutch hit 9 of its first 11 shots to start the game. Four different Hutch players scored in the run and Ogle’s steal and layup with 5:07 to play in the period closed the 24-point run.

The Blue Dragons closed the first quarter hitting 12 of 17 shots, including 7 of 10 from distance; in building a 32-11 lead after one quarter.

Ogle led the Blue Dragons with 20 points on 8 of 11 shooting with a 3-pointer. She added seven assists, three rebounds and two steals. Now with 127 career steals, Ogle is tied with Renee Shoger for 16th place on the Hutchinson career steals list.

Freshman Kyra Paniora broke out of a shooting slump with four 3-pointers – the first four of her collegiate career – to finish with 14 points, five rebounds and four assists.

Sophomore center Brooklyn Betham recorded her first Blue Dragon double-double with 11 points and 14 rebounds.

Alford and Vannett both hit three 3-pointers. Alford finished with 11 points and Vannett nine. Presley Barton and Nafatoumata Haidara had eight each.

Hutchinson shot 49.3 percent, hitting 36 of 73 total shots. The Dragons were only 4 of 7 from the free-throw line. Hutch out-rebounded Jefferson 41-34.

The Blue Dragons limited Jefferson to 31.3 percent shooting (20 of 64). The Vikings were just 1 of 15 from 3-point range and 14 of 24 from the free-throw line.

Tyra Brown had 17 points and Katarina Patkova had 11 for the Vikings.

This was Hutchinson’s first win over Jefferson College in three all-time meetings. The Blue Dragons also start a season 6-0 for the ninth time in the John Ontjes era.