Thursday Morning Sports – Kearney Girls Basketball Advances to District Final, Husker Women Blow Out Illinois, Loper Women First in Central Region, Hastings College Ends Year in GPAC Quarterfinal, Husker Football Coaches Comments, KCHS Set for Sub-District Title Bid, Local Sports Schedule

KEARNEY HIGH GIRLS BASKETBALL CRUSHES PAPIO-SOUTH ON RUSHER’S CAREER NIGHT:

Tatum Rusher became the all-time leader in three pointers made in Kearney High School girls basketball history with another stellar offensive performance in the first half as the Bearcats erupted to a 38-16 lead at halftime and cruised to a 57-41 stomping of Papillion-LaVista South.

The win moves Kearney to 15-10 on the year and sets them on a collision course with top-seed Bellevue East on Friday night for the A-5 District Title. A win secures a spot in the Class A State Tournament next week.

Full game recap from the Bearcat victory can be found at KGFW.com. 

HUSKER WOMEN BLOW OUT TOP 25 ILLINOIS TO SNAP LOSING SKID:

Jaz Shelley led five Huskers in double figures with 26 points, while Isabelle Bourne added a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds, as Nebraska put together its most complete and consistent performance of the season with a 90-57 Big Ten road win at No. 25 Illinois on Wednesday night.

Nebraska improved to 15-13 overall and 7-10 in the Big Ten with its third win over an Associated Press 5op-25 team at game time on the season, while snapping a four-game winning streak. Illinois slipped to 20-8 overall and 10-7 in the conference.

Nebraska’s other top-25 wins include a 90-67 victory at then-No. 20 Maryland on Dec. 4, and an 85-79 3OT win over then-No. 20 Kansas on Dec. 21.

Shelley starred from start to finish, hitting 8-of-14 shots from the field, including 6-of-11 three-pointers, and all four of her free throw attempts while adding five rebounds and a game-high six assists.

Nebraska returns home to close the regular season against Northwestern on Sunday. Tip-off between the Huskers and Wildcats on Senior Day at Pinnacle Bank Arena is set for 1 p.m.

LOPER WOMEN’S HOOPS FIRST IN CENTRAL REGION:
The Nebraska Kearney women’s basketball team is ranked first in the Central Region in the second edition of the NCAA Region Rankings for the 2022-23 season.

These rankings determine the 64-team NCAA Division II Tournament field (eight teams, eight regions) in March.

The rankings will be released every Wednesday afternoon with the “Selection Show” being held on Sunday, March 5. Regional play is set for March 10-11 & 13 (Sweet 16). 

The national polls have no bearing on the regional rankings. UNK is currently seventh in the Women’s Basketball Coaches (WBCA) Top 25 and eighth in the D2 Sports Information Directors of America poll.

The Lopers (26-3; 19-2 in MIAA) hosts longtime rival Fort Hays State this Saturday to close out the regular season. UNK has already secured a share of the 2022-23 MIAA regular season title and can win it outright with a victory over the Tigers (19-10). However, Hays is 11-1 in Kearney since the 2009-10 season.

HASTINGS COLLEGE SEASON ENDS IN GPAC QUARTERFINAL:

The Hastings College men’s basketball team controlled the tempo in the first half but the Jimmies of Jamestown were able to pull away in the second half for the 76-61 victory on Wednesday night inside Newman Arena.

The Broncos battled tough with an early lead, but Jamestown eventually grew the lead to double-digits with the eventual 76-61 victory.

Hastings College finishes their season with a 15-14 record as this is the first winning season since 2018-19. Hastings also finished eighth in the conference when the preseason poll placed them dead last.

HUSKER FOOTBALL PRESSER COMMENTS – ASSISTANT COACHES:

CAMPBELL – TECHNOLOGY IN S&C HELPS, BUT HARD WORK DOES MORE:

Corey Campbell, the new Huskers Strength & Conditioning coach, spoke to the media for the first time Wednesday afternoon and said technological advancements in the weight room can help the Huskers but it will ultimately come up to effort…

The Big Red replaced Zach Duval with Campbell, who arrived from the Carolina Panthers after working with Head Coach Matt Rhule at Temple, Baylor, and Carolina.

CAMPBELL – WALK-ON MENTALITY MOTIVATES IN WEIGHT ROOM:

New Nebraska Strength and Conditioning Coach Corey Campbell addressed the media in his introductory press conference on Wednesday afternoon and spoke about his walk-on mentality at Georgia and its motivation…

Campbell was a member of the 2012-2014 Georgia teams, including the Bulldog squad that won the 2013 Capital One Bowl over Nebraska.

RAIOLA – SCOTT’S EXPERIENCE STANDS OUT:

Nebraska Offensive Line coach Donovan Raiola spoke to the media for the first time in winter conditioning and was asked about what stands out from Arizona State transfer Ben Scott…

Scott has started 28 contests for the Sun Devils since redshirting in 2019. He has two years of eligibility remaining for the Big Red. 

RAIOLA – KEEP IMPROVING:

Huskers Offensive Line Coach Donavon Raiola is the only major carry-over from the Scott Frost staff to the newly minted Matt Rhule era, and Raiola stated at his Wednesday presser that he only has one goal since being retained…

The coach continued by saying his lineman continued to improve as last season progressed despite the injuries and lack of consistency endured throughout the year. 

DVORACEK – STICKING WITH RHULE:

New Husker linebackers coach Rob Dvoracek was asked at his first press conference on Wednesday afternoon why he chose Nebraska when picking his next coaching assignment…

DVORACEK – WHITE’S DEFENSE IS “CHAOS”

Nebraska linebackers coach Rob Dvoracek addressed the media for the first time on Wednesday afternoon and gave his best description of new defensive coordinator Tony White’s defensive mentality…

White’s scheme operates in a 3-3-5, a unique style that forces offenses to combat for multiple looks and speed on the field. 

KEARNEY CATHOLIC BOYS REMATCH ADAMS CENTRAL FOR SUB-DISTRICT TITLE:

The Kearney Catholic Boys basketball team looks to secure a District Final bid with a chance to claim the C1-9 Sub-district championship tonight, rematching third seed Adams Central at Wood River High School. 

The #4 Stars had to work their way back into the bracket, having taken down #5 Gibbon on Monday followed by an upset over #1 Wood River Tuesday night. 

The Patriots shook off the regular season finale loss to Kearney Catholic with a dominant win over Minden Tuesday night to secure their spot in the title game. 

Tip-off from Wood River High School is set for 6:30 PM.

HUSKER T&F NAMES INTERIM St. CLAIR NEXT HEAD COACH:

Nebraska track and field interim head coach Justin St. Clair has officially been named the 17th head coach in program history.

Nebraska Vice Chancellor, Director of Athletics Trev Alberts announced on Wednesday that the “interim” tag has been removed from St. Clair’s title. The first-year head coach will lead the Huskers into the Big Ten Indoor Championships in Geneva, Ohio this weekend.

St. Clair was named interim head coach last August after Gary Pepin retired after 42 years as Nebraska’s head coach. St. Clair served as the Huskers’ associate head coach and throws coach for the 2022 season.

As interim head coach, St. Clair has guided the Husker men and women to strong indoor seasons, as the NU men are No. 8 in this week’s USTFCCCA National Rankings, while the NU women are No. 17. 

STORM’S FALLOON ANNOUNCES COMMITMENT TO ARIZONA STATE:

Tri-City Storm forward August Falloon recently announced a commitment to play collegiate hockey in the future at Arizona State University. Falloon is currently in his second season with the Storm.

August Falloon, 18, Forward, of St. Cloud, Minnesota, has skated in seventy-three career games with Tri-City. He has scored eleven goals and recorded six assists for seventeen total points. Falloon was selected 85th overall by the Storm in the 6th round of the 2020 USHL Phase I Draft.

Falloon notched two goals in the Storm’s most recent game, a 4-2 road win over the Sioux Falls Stampede.

BAUER – LOPER FOOTBALL MAY REKINDLE OLD RIVALRY:

UNK Athletic Director Marc Bauer addressed the recent opening in the 2024 Loper Football schedule due to Lincoln University’s departure from the MIAA, saying that an old Kearney rival could potentially be in place to pick up the contest…

The Lopers last faced Chadron State during the shortened 2020 COVID season where UNK won 45-35 over the Eagles at Ron & Carol Cope Stadium. UNK will still host Lincoln University in 2023 as a non-conference game. 

Local Results & Schedules:

THIS WEEK IN LOCAL SPORTS:

WEDNESDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • Girls Basketball: A-5 DISTRICT SEMIFINAL
    • #2 Kearney v. #3 Papillion-LaVista South @ Kearney High School
      • KHS 57-41
• HASTINGS COLLEGE:
  • Men’s Basketball: GPAC Tournament QuarterfinalHastings College @ Jamestown, ND
    • JAMESTOWN 76-61 HC

THURSDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • Swimming & Diving: State Championships @ Bob Devaney Sports Center
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • Swimming & Diving: State Championships @ Bob Devaney Sports Center
  • Boys Basketball: C1-9 SUBDISTRICT FINAL @ Wood River High School
    • #4 KCHS v. #3 Adams Central @ Wood River High School – 6:30 PM
• UNK:
  • Men’s Basketball: @ Missouri Western State @ St. Joseph, MO – 6:30 PM
• HASTINGS COLLEGE:
  • Softball: @ McPherson, KS – 1 PM
  • Softball: @ McPherson, KS – 3 PM
• KGFW Sports Schedule:
  • Sports Nightly (6 PM – 8 PM)

FRIDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • Swimming & Diving: State Championships @ Bob Devaney Sports Center
  • Girls Basketball: A-5 DISTRICT FINAL
    • #2 Kearney v. TBD
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • Swimming & Diving: State Championships @ Bob Devaney Sports Center
• UNK:
  • Softball: v. Sioux Falls @ Topeka, KS – 10 AM
  • Softball: v. Rockhurst @ Topeka, KS – 12 PM
  • M/W T&F: @ MIAA Championships @ Pittsburg, KS
  • Women’s Tennis: v. Barry, FL @ Ernest Grundy Tennis Center – 5:30 PM
• HASTINGS COLLEGE:
  • M/W Tennis: @ Metro @ Denver, CO – 2 PM
• KGFW Sports Schedule:
  • Nebraska Baseball @ South Alabama (6 PM – 10:30 PM)
  • OR DISTRICT FINAL: Kearney Girls Basketball @ TBD

SATURDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • Swimming & Diving: State Championships @ Bob Devaney Sports Center
  • Boys Basketball: A-2 DISTRICT SEMIFINAL
    • #2 Kearney High v. #3 Lincoln Pius X @ Kearney High School – 7 PM
      • KGFW Pregame at 6:45 PM
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • Swimming & Diving: State Championships @ Bob Devaney Sports Center
  • Boys Basketball: District Final
• UNK:
  • M/W T&F: @ MIAA Championships @ Pittsburg, KS
  • Women’s Tennis: v. Hawaii Pacific OR Indianapolis @ Ernest Grundy Tennis Center
  • Wrestling: @ NCAA Super Region VI @ Chadron State – 10 AM
  • Softball: v. Missouri-St. Louis @ Topeka, KS – 11:30 AM
  • Women’s Basketball: v. Fort Hays State – 2 PM
  • Men’s Basketball: v. Fort Hays State – 4 PM
• HASTINGS COLLEGE: 
  • Women’s Wrestling: @ KCAC Championships, York, NE – 9 AM
  • M/W Bowling: @ NAIA National Qualifier @ Belton, MO – 10 AM
  • M/W Tennis: @ CSU Pueblo, Pueblo, CO – 12 PM
  • Softball: @ Sterling – 1 PM
  • Softball: @ Sterling – 3 PM
  • Baseball: v. Peru State @ Tulsa, OK – 3 PM
• KGFW Sports Schedule:
  • Nebraska Men’s Basketball v. Minnesota (1:30 PM – 5:15 PM)
  • DISTRICTS: Kearney Boys Basketball v. Lincoln Pius X (6:45 PM – 8:45 PM)

SUNDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • N/a
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • N/a
• UNK:
  • M/W T&F: @ MIAA Championships @ Pittsburg, KS
  • Women’s Tennis: v. TBD @ Ernest Grundy Tennis Center
  • Softball: v. St. Cloud State @ Topeka, KS – 9:30 AM
  • Softball: v. Minnesota Crookston @ Topeka, KS – 11:30 AM
• HASTINGS COLLEGE:
  • M/W Bowling: @ NAIA National Qualifier @ Belton, MO – 10 AM
  • Softball: @ Friends, KS @ Wichita, KS – 12 PM
  • Baseball: v. Peru State @ Tulsa OK – 12 PM
  • Softball: @ Friends, KS @ Wichita, KS – 2 PM
  • Baseball: v. Peru State @ Tulsa, OK – 3 PM
• KGFW Sports Schedule:
  • Nebraska Women’s Basketball v. Northwestern (12:45 PM – 4 PM)