Monday Morning Sports – Loper Wrestling Brings Home Title, Malcolm a National Champion, Loper Wrestling Comments, UNK Basketball Ends Season in Hays, Husker Women Face Gonzaga in First Round, Storm Sweep Force, Local Sports Schedule

UNK WRESTLING BRINGS HOME NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP:

The number one-ranked Nebraska-Kearney wrestling team picked up its fourth national title in dominating fashion, scoring a program-record 127.0 points, having eight All-Americans and three national finalists. The 127 points is also the most for a national championship winning team in 12 years.

UNK’s point total bests the previous record of 108.50, set in 2007 and in again in 2008. The Lopers placed first that season as well as in 2012 and 2013. This is Dalton Jensen’s first national title as a head coach; he was a member of the 2012 team.

Coming first was super senior Matt Malcom (165 lbs.) with super seniors Josh Portillo (125 lbs.) and Sam Turner (149 lbs.) national runners up. Next, super senior Wesley Dawkins (133 lbs.) and redshirt sophomore Billy Higgins (184 lbs.) came in third with redshirt junior Austin Eldredge fourth (174 lbs.). Finally, former Kearney High Bearcats redshirt junior heavyweight Lee Herrington and redshirt sophomore Nick James (141 lbs.) each finished fifth.

MATT MALCOLM: NATIONAL CHAMPION AND TEAM CHAMPION:

The UNK Wrestling team returned to their storied history with a national championship on Saturday evening, capped off with a terrific feat won by super senior Matt Malcolm, the only 5-time All-American in Loper Wrestling history. 

Malcolm won his national title bout 1-0, and added that the individual accolade was miniscule compared to the team’s accomplishment… 

Malcolm claimed the national championship in his final wrestling match before heading off to become the next head coach at Bellevue East, ending his storied Loper career. 

UNK WRESTLING: NICK JAMES COMMENTS:

JAMES – AWESOME FEELING WITH LOCAL SUPPORT

Former Kearney High Bearcats and current UNK Wrestler Nick James returned home with a team national championship for the fourth time in school history. James adds he couldn’t be happier than to see all the support coming from his hometown… 

James finished 5th in the national tournament along with former Bearcat Lee Herrington also finishing 5th.

JAMES – FOREVER GRATEFUL FOR KEARNEY

Nick James has been a hometown Kearney kid for many years – dominating the mat as a Kearney High Bearcat before heading down the road to UNK to battle at the national tournament for a 5th place finish this season and aiding his team to a team title over the weekend.

James adds that he is indebted to Kearney for the local support… 

James still has three years of wrestling eligibility remaining as a Loper as UNK brought home their fourth national title on Saturday.

UNK WRESTLING: MARC BAUER COMMENTS:

BAUER – MORE TO COME FOR UNK ATHLETICS

UNK Athletic Director Marc Bauer was all smiles at the parade of champions for the UNK Wrestling team on Sunday as the Lopers brought home a national title over the weekend. The former national title winning head coach adds that this is just a microcosm of the success UNK Athletics is having as a whole… 

Bauer led the Lopers to national titles in 2012 and 2013, with this national championship being the first won by Head Coach Dalton Jensen after finishing runner-up last season.

NEBRASKA WOMEN SET IN WICHITA REGION, FACE GONZAGA IN NCAA FIRST ROUND:

The Nebraska women’s basketball team is back in the NCAA Tournament for the 15th time in program history.

The 24-8 Huskers carried a NET ranking of 23 into Sunday evening’s selection show but were handed an 8 seed by the selection committee. Nebraska will play No. 9 seed Gonzaga (26-6, 15-2 WCC) Friday in Louisville, Ky.

If the Huskers win Friday, they will advance to the second round Sunday against the winner of the game between the region’s No. 1 seed, Louisville, and 16th-seeded Albany.

The Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight rounds will be played in Wichita. Nebraska has advanced to the Sweet Sixteen twice (2010, 2013) but has yet to make an Elite Eight.

HUSKER BASEBALL FALLS IN NINTH TO OMAHA, REMATCH MAVERICKS IN HOME OPENER:

The Nebraska baseball team fell 4-3 at Omaha after surrendering a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth on Sunday afternoon at Tal Anderson Field in Omaha.

Nebraska scored three runs on three hits and had one error, while the Mavericks scored four runs on six hits and committed two errors.

Omaha’s Jack Lombardi hit a one-out double to left center, followed by Harrison Denk’s RBI single to right center to clinch the 4-3 win for the Mavericks.

The Big Red and Omaha take the diamond again tomorrow in Nebraska’s home opener. First pitch between the Huskers and Mavericks is set for 1:05 p.m. at Haymarket Park.

FERGUSON BRINGS HOME NATIONAL TITLE IN 800 METERS:

Fremont redshirt freshman Wes Ferguson used a strong last lap to turn in a 1:50.05 to win the 800-meter national championship Saturday night in Pittsburg, Kan.

In the meet, UNK tallied a program-record seven All-Americans, finished 19th in the team standings (12.5) and was one of five MIAA schools in the Top 20. Grand Valley State of Michigan came in first with 66 points.

Ferguson started strong but some of the competition started to move up halfway through. He then came back to lead the final lap most of the way, holding off Clement Paillon of American (Mass.) International (1:50.46) and Tanner Maier of Minnesota State (1:50.57)

The school-record holder in the event (1:49.47), Ferguson is UNK’s fifth D2 men’s national champ (indoors or outdoors). The others are Ivan Ivanov (’91/steeplechase), Lance Pfeiffer (’06 & ’07/shot put), Dane Tobey (’10/shot) and Allen Osborn (’12/60 hurdles).

Earlier on Saturday, Kearney sophomore Brayden Sorensen tied for seventh in the high jump (6-9.75) to pick up his third All-American honor.

UNK WOMEN’S BASKETBALL ENDS SEASON WITH LOSS AGAINST RIVAL GRIFFONS:

The Missouri Western State Griffons had two starters and two reserves score in double figures to down Nebraska-Kearney, 72-59, in NCAA Tournament second round game Saturday night in Hays, Kan.

The seventh-seeded Griffs (23-9) advance to the Central Regional final where they’ll face either top-seed Fort Hays State or fifth-seed St. Cloud State Monday night. Sixth-seeded UNK ends the season at 24-8 and sees a six-game win streak over MWSU come to an end as well.

The Lopers came out on fire, hitting 9 of their first 15 shots, to lead 20-6 about eight minutes in. However, the Lopers totaled 39 points the rest of the way as they had a seven-minute stretch encompassing the first and second quarters with one made field goal. 

Senior Haley Simental had a team-best 13 points for the Lopers, making those three triples, with forward Elisa Backes (Salina, Kan.) 12 points and five fouls drawn. Six other scored including South Dakota wing Klaire Kirsch (eight points and a game-high 13 rebounds).

This was the seventh and final year of college basketball for Simental with graduate transfer Grace O’Neill (Boulder, Colo.) UNK’s other graduation loss.

STORM SWEEP FORCE OVER WEEKEND WITH DOMINATING WINS:

The Tri-City Storm posted a two-game weekend sweep of the Fargo Force in a 6-1 win Saturday night at the Viaero Center. Ilya Nikolaev recorded the 36th hat trick in team history in the victory. Jeremy Wilmer, Mitchell Miller, and Graham Gamache also netted goals for Tri-City in Saturday’s game.

Tri-City will play its next three games on the road before returning home to the Viaero Center for back-to-back games against the Omaha Lancers on Friday, March 25th, and Saturday, March 26th.

NEBRASKA BOYS/GIRLS BASKETBALL STATE CHAMPIONS:

BOYS:

CLASS A – Millard North 

CLASS B – Omaha Roncalli 

CLASS C1 – Ashland-Greenwood

CLASS C2 – Humphrey/Lindsay-Holy Family

CLASS D1 – North Platte St. Patrick’s

CLASS D2 – Parkview Christian

GIRLS:

CLASS A – Fremont Tigers

CLASS B – Elkhorn North

CLASS C1 – North Bend Central

CLASS C2 – Hastings St. Cecilia

CLASS D1 – Humphrey/Lindsay-Holy Family

CLASS D2 – Falls City Sacred Heart

TOM BRADY RETURNS TO NFL WITH UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

Tom Brady’s retirement lasted 40 days.

Brady said Sunday he is returning to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for his 23rd season in the NFL. The seven-time Super Bowl champion announced his decision on Twitter and Instagram, saying he has “unfinished business.”

HUSKER SOFTBALL ENDS WEEKEND WITH SHUTOUT:

Olivia Ferrell tossed a shutout and Nebraska slugged two home runs as the Husker softball team picked up its fourth win of the weekend with a 6-0 victory over Long Beach State Sunday afternoon at the LBSU Softball Complex. 

Ferrell (9-3) was brilliant in the circle while tossing her third career shutout. She fanned 10 batters, matching her career-high. 

With the Huskers fourth win of the weekend, Nebraska moved to 15-7 while Long Beach State fell to 9-14. The Huskers will travel to Lawrence, Kan., next weekend for the Rock Chalk Challenge. NU will take on Tulsa on Friday, March 18 at 10 a.m. followed by a game against South Dakota at 12:30 p.m.

HUSKER FOOTBALL: PRACTICE COMMENTS

FROST – OFFENSIVE LINE LOOKING EXPLOSIVE

The Nebraska Football team has a week off of spring practices due to the scheduled spring break for students on campus, but Head Coach Scott Frost is still seeing vast improvement in his team. 

Frost spoke last week about how the offensive line has been looking more explosive than ever under new mentorship… 

SFOFFTHEBALL – 20 sec. “Keep improving”

Frost continued by saying he has also seen improvement in his quarterback’s footwork and passing concepts, and credits his new assistant coaches for the growth at each position. 

Local Results & Schedules:

THIS WEEK IN LOCAL SPORTS:

SATURDAY:

• UNK:
• • WOMENS BASKETBALL: NCAA TOURNAMENT (Second Round) – Hays, KS
    • Missouri Western St. v. UNK
      • MWSt 
  • UNK MENS TRACK: @ NCAA Indoor Championships, Pittsburg, KS
    • Men’s 800 Meters – Wes Ferguson, National Champion
  • WRESTLING: @ NCAA Div. 2 Championships
    • UNK = National Champions

MONDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • N/a
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • N/A
• UNK:
  • SOFTBALL: @ NW Missouri State – 2 PM, 4 PM
• HASTINGS COLLEGE:
  • BASEBALL: @ Russmatt Tournament (Auburndale, FL)
    • V. Northwestern College – 9 AM
    • V. Hannibal-Lagrange University – 4 PM

TUESDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • N/a
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • N/a
• UNK:
  • WOMENS TENNIS: @ Midwestern State, Wichita Falls TX – 10 AM
    • SOFTBALL: @ Missouri Western State – 12 PM, 2 PM
• HASTINGS COLLEGE:
  • SOFTBALL: @ Tucson Invite
    • V. Dakota State – 10 AM
    • V. Viterbo University – 12:15 PM
    • V. Valley State University – 2:30 PM
  • BASEBALL: @ Russmatt Tournament (Auburndale, FL)
    • V. Hannibal-Lagrange University – 2 PM
    • V. Webber International – 6 PM

WEDNESDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • N/a
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • N/a
• UNK:
  • N/a
• HASTINGS COLLEGE:
  • SOFTBALL: @ Tucson Invite
    • V. Valley State University – 10 AM
    • V. Benedictine University – 2:30 PM

THURSDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • BASEBALL: v. Lincoln Southeast – 1 PM
  • GIRLS SOCCER: @ Lincoln Pius X – 5:45 PM
  • BOYS SOCCER: v. Lincoln Pius X – 7 PM
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • BOYS SOCCER: v. York
  • GIRLS SOCCER: v. York
• UNK:
  • N/a
• HASTINGS COLLEGE:
  • SOFTBALL: @ Tucson Invite
    • V. Viterbo University – 10 AM (Doubleheader)

FRIDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • T&F: @ UNK Invite
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • T&F: @ UNK Invite
• UNK:
  • SOFTBALL: @ Fairfield Classic (St. Joseph, MO)
    • V. Concordia-St. Paul – 12 PM
    • V. Upper Iowa – 2 PM
• HASTINGS COLLEGE:
  • N/a

SATURDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • BOYS SOCCER: Bellevue East Invite
  • GIRLS SOCCER: Bellevue East Invite
  • BASEBALL: @ Fremont – 12 PM
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • N/a
• UNK:
  • WOMENS TENNIS: v. SW Minnesota St. – 9 AM
  • SOFTBALL: @ Fairfield Classic (St. Joseph, MO)
    • V. St. Cloud State – 12 PM
    • V. Winona State – 4 PM
• HASTINGS COLLEGE:
  • BASEBALL: @ Northwestern College – 1 PM (Doubleheader)