NEBRASKA BASEBALL WINS NORTHWESTERN SERIES ON SATURDAY SWEEP:
After picking up a series win against Northwestern on Easter weekend, Nebraska hosts an old Big 12 foe in Kansas. The Jayhawks got a series win this past weekend against Kansas State.
Kansas (31-10, 12-6 Big 12) will look to get revenge on Nebraska (19-21, 7-11 Big Ten) after the Huskers upset the Jayhawks in Lawrence earlier this month.
First pitch between the Huskers and Jayhawks is set for 6:02 p.m. on B1G+ and KGFW.
SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED FOR HUSKER GAMES:
The football schedule for this weekend’s Husker Games is here.
Now officially including a scrimmage, the Husker football portion of the day will also include several activities. Activities begin at 2 p.m. CDT Saturday, following an hour of 7-on-7 women’s flag football between Midland and UNL All-Stars.
The scrimmage will be played out over four quarters, with activities before and after each quarter. The addition of live football is something that coach Matt Rhule decided to add this past week.
Saturday’s Football and Volleyball events will be broadcast on KGFW.
FORMER HUSKER, BEATRICE NATIVE JURGENS SIGNS CONTRACT EXTENSION WITH EAGLES:
Eagles center Cam Jurgens has agreed to a four-year contract extension, it was announced Monday.
The deal, which runs through 2029, is worth $68 million and includes $39.4 million guaranteed, agent Ryan Tollner told ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The $17 million average annual value ranks second among centers, behind only the Chiefs’ Creed Humphrey.
Jurgens, 25, was entering the final year of his rookie contract.
The former second-round pick out of Nebraska stepped in and performed admirably this past season following the retirement of future Hall of Fame center Jason Kelce. Jurgens was part of an offensive line that paved the way for Saquon Barkley, who set a new NFL record for most rushing yards in a single season, including playoffs.
Jurgens finished 10th among interior linemen in pass block win rate (95%) en route to his first Pro Bowl bid.
KEARNEY BASEBALL SWEEPS SATURDAY TWINBILL, HOSTS MILLARD WEST TODAY:
Kearney Baseball fell to Millard West 9-8 yesterday, after the Wildcats scored five runs in the top of the sixth inning.
Despite entering the bottom of the seventh inning down 9-5, the Bearcats would rally in the bottom of the seventh inning, leaving the tying run at second base.
Kearney is now 11-8, snapping their two game win streak. They will return to HAC play on Wednesday against Lincoln Southeast.
GRAND ISLAND GETS BEST OF HASTINGS IN EXTRA INNINGS:
Grand Island needed extra innings to get a 4-3 win yesterday against Tri-City rival Hastings. Trenton Verplank had the go-ahead RBI single in the eighth for the Islanders, who moved to 11-5 on the season.
Grand Island is at Lincoln Pius on Wednesday, while Hastings (9-7) travels to Lincoln Standing Bear.
SEATTLE KRAKEN FIRE COACH DAN BYLSMA. BOTTERILL TO REPLACE FRANCIS AS GM, AP SOURCE SAYS:
SEATTLE (AP) — The Seattle Kraken fired coach Dan Bylsma on Monday, ending his tenure after one season that concluded far out of playoff contention.
And that’s not the only change coming after the Kraken failed to qualify for a second consecutive year.
Seattle is expected to move longtime general manager Ron Francis into another role and promote assistant Jason Botterill to replace him, according to a person with knowledge of the decision. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the change had not been announced.
The Kraken regressed after Bylsma took over for Dave Hakstol, who coached them for their first four seasons of existence and got them to the playoffs in 2023. They finished 35-41-6 for 76 points — 20 back of the second and final wild-card spot in the Western Conference — after 81 the previous season.
“We thank Dan for his commitment and the energy he brought to our organization over the past four years at the NHL and AHL levels,” Francis said.
LOKEDI BREAKS BOSTON MARATHON COURSE RECORD, JOHN KORIR TAKES MEN’S RACE:
BOSTON (AP) — A rider dressed as Paul Revere eased his horse up to the Boston Marathon finish line and proclaimed, “The runners are coming.”
And down Boylston Street they came.
In record time. With a historic family first. And even “The Star-Spangled Banner” got some air time as the race and the region commemorated the 250th anniversary of the first shots fired in the American Revolution.
Sharon Lokedi of Kenya broke the Boston Marathon course record by more than 2 1/2 minutes on Monday, outkicking two-time defending champion Hellen Obiri a year after losing to her in one of the closest finishes in race history.
Fellow Kenyan John Korir recovered from a starting line fall to join his brother as a race champion — the first relatives to win the world’s oldest and most prestigious annual marathon in a history that dates to 1897.
SPORTS WORLD MOURNS SOCCER-LOVING POPE FRANCIS WITH GAMES IN ITALY AND ARGENTINA POSTPONED:
ROME (AP) — Top-flight soccer matches in Italy and Argentina were postponed after the death of Pope Francis on Monday.
The Buenos Aires club that the Argentine pontiff supported throughout his life, San Lorenzo, was also mourning its most famous fan.
The wider soccer and sports world paid homage after Francis died at 88.
All sports events scheduled for Easter Monday in Italy were postponed, including four Serie A games: Torino vs. Udinese, Cagliari vs. Fiorentina, Genoa vs. Lazio and Parma vs. Juventus. The games will now be played on Wednesday.
Likewise, three top-flight games in Argentina were postponed from Monday to Tuesday: Tigre vs. Belgrano, Argentinos Juniors vs. Barracas Central and Independiente Rivadavia vs. Aldosivi. The games will be preceded by a minute of silence to mourn Francis, who was the Archbishop of Buenos Aires before being elected pope.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino said he was “deeply saddened” over the pope’s death.
“I was privileged enough to spend some time with him on a couple of occasions, and he always shared his enthusiasm for football and stressed the important role our sport plays in society,” Infantino said on Instagram. “All the prayers of the whole football world are with him.”
