MANHATTAN, Kan. – As part of its commitment to the Best Fan Experience in the Big 12, K-State Athletics and Chick-fil-A Manhattan today announced that the popular food chain will have product available for fans to purchase beginning this season at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.

Chick-fil-A Manhattan owner, David Hamel, is looking forward to building the game day experience by providing Chick-fil-A sandwiches, chips, cookies, and drinks to fans on football game days. The Chick-fil-A stands will be located in the South End Zone Pavilion of Bill Snyder Family Stadium, as well as the View Level concourse.

“We continue to find new ways to improve upon the fan experience at all of our venues, and we are excited that we, along with our partners at Learfield Sports/K-State Sports Properties and Sodexo, were able to work out this agreement with David and his local Chick-fil-A franchise,” Athletics Director Gene Taylor said. “I know our fans will enjoy this addition to Bill Snyder Family Stadium, and we look forward to the season opener on September 1.”

Stay tuned throughout the next week for a full list of other gameday and stadium improvements for the 2018 football season.

K-State begins the 2018 season and seven-game home slate on Saturday, September 1, against South Dakota, a game that kicks off at 6:10 p.m., on ESPN 3 and serves as the 10th-annual K-State Family Reunion. The Wildcats then host Mississippi State on September 8, at 11 a.m., on ESPN before concluding non-conference play against UTSA on September 15, at 3 p.m., on FSN.

– k-statesports.com –

KENNY LANNOU
Sr. Associate A.D. for Communications and Public Relations | K-State Athletics

CHICAGO (AP) — In a matchup of teams on track to both lose 100 or more games, the White Sox avoided getting swept in a three-game series.

Jose Abreu hit a tying home run off Jason Adam in the eighth and pinch-hitter Daniel Palka had a three-run homer off Jason Hammel later in the inning, leading Chicago over the Kansas City Royals 6-4 Thursday.

Kansas City overcame a 2-0 deficit when pinch-hitter Whit Merrifield hit a three-run homer in the eighth off Xavier Cedeno (1-0), but Abreu homered with one out in the bottom half against Adam (0-3). Abreu’s 141st big league homer moved him ahead of Ron Kittle into sole possession of 10th on the White Sox career list.

Avisail Garcia doubled, Omar Narvaez was intentionally walked and Hammel relieved. Palka drove a hanging slider a half-dozen rows in the right-centerfield bleachers. He tied the White Sox record of three pinch homers in one season, set by Oscar Gamble in 1977.

“I wanted to hit a home run,” Palka said of his mindset.

Rosell Herrera hit a sacrifice fly in the ninth off Luis Avilan, who got his first save in seven major league seasons.

Chicago (38-70) won for the second time in eight games. Kansas City (34-74) had been seeking its first three-game sweep at the White Sox since June 13-15, 2014.

White Sox starter Reynaldo Lopez allowed two runs and five hits in seven-plus innings, leaving with a 2-0 lead after Alcides Escobar doubled leading off the eighth and Adalberto Mondesi reached on a bunt single.

Jace Fry struck out Alex Gordon, Mondesi stole second, and Juan Minaya struck out Salvador Perez. Merrifield greeted Cedeno with his first big league pinch-hit homer.

Lopez had been 0-4 with an 8.27 ERA in his prior four starts.

“I felt good. I felt in command of all my pitches. I was focused today,” Lopez said.

Royals rookie Brad Keller gave up two runs, five hits and three walks in 6 1/3 innings.

Narvaez, who has 17 hits in 10 RBIs in his last 12 games, had a run-scoring single in the fourth. Tim Anderson had an RBI double in the seventh off Tim Hill.

“Did a phenomenal job keeping us in the game,” Royals manager Ned Yost said.

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Just 30 days prior to the 2018 season opener, Kansas State football players reported to the Vanier Family Football Complex for the beginning of fall camp on Thursday.

K-State will conduct approximately 14 practices over the next 17 days before getting in its regular in-season routine when the fall semester begins on Monday, August 20.

Fans can get their first look at the 2018 Wildcats on Saturday, August 11, as K-State hosts its annual Fan Appreciation Day. For details on the event, which begins at 5 p.m., please click here.

The West Stadium Center ticket office will be open during Fan Appreciation Day for fans wishing to purchase season and single-game tickets. Fans in attendance will have the opportunity to purchase a special ticket package that includes a souvenir for the Fan Appreciation Day autograph session as a K-State mini-helmet will be included in the first 100 Wildcat 4 Packs purchased in person beginning at 4 p.m.

Wildcat 4 Packs, which include four reserved tickets, are still available for K-State’s seven home games, which are priced at $85 for UTSA, $99 for South Dakota, $125 for Texas Tech, $149 for Texas, Oklahoma State and Kansas; and $199 for Mississippi State.

Those who are unable to attend Fan Appreciation Day can order tickets online at www.kstatesports.com/tickets, by phone at 1-800-221-CATS or at the main ticket office inside Bramlage Coliseum.

Kansas State will hold its annual Media Day on Monday beginning with a press conference featuring head coach Bill Snyder at 4 p.m. Fan can watch the press conference live, for free, at www.k-statesports.com.

The Wildcats host South Dakota on Saturday, September 1, inside Bill Snyder Family Stadium. The game, which kicks off at 6:10 p.m., will be televised globally on ESPN3. K-State then hosts SEC foe Mississippi State on September 8, at 11 a.m., in a game televised on ESPN, while the Wildcats wrap up non-conference play on September 15, when they host UTSA at 3 p.m., on FSN.

K-State begins Big 12 play on the road for the 18^th time in the 23-year history of the Big 12 and the second time in the last three years at West Virginia when the Wildcats travel to Morgantown, West Virginia, on September 22. The Wildcats’ Big 12 home opener comes against Texas on September 29.

– k-statesports.com –

Kansas State University, the nation’s first operational land-grant institution and a Carnegie Foundation Tier One university, is recognized as one of the nation’s best colleges with world-class research and academic excellence located in America’s No. 1 College Town (Manhattan, KS).

————
RYAN LACKEY
Director of Football and Golf Communications | K-State Athletics

CHICAGO (AP) — Alex Gordon hit a two-run homer and drove in four, helping the Kansas City Royals pound the sloppy Chicago White Sox 10-5 on Wednesday night.

Gordon also walked and scored during Kansas City’s five-run fifth. Brett Phillips added two hits and Ryan O’Hearn singled in a run in his second major league game as the last-place Royals posted consecutive wins for the first time since they won three in a row from July 20-22, matching their season high.

Jakob Junis (6-11) pitched 5 2/3 innings of four-run ball in his first win since May 18. The 24-year-old right-hander was 0-8 with a 6.67 ERA in his previous 10 starts.

Chicago lost for the sixth time in seven games. Yoan Moncada broke out of a slump with his fifth career leadoff homer, two hits and two walks, but he also committed one of two costly errors for the White Sox.

With one out and runners on first and second in the fifth, lumbering Kansas City catcher Salvador Perez hit a hard grounder to third. Yolmer Sanchez threw to second looking to start a double play, but the ball went off the top of Moncada’s glove and into right field.

Whit Merrifield jogged home to make it 4-1 Royals. Lucas Duda, Rosell Herrera and Phillips followed with run-scoring hits, and a wild pitch brought home another run before Alcides Escobar lined to right for the final out of the inning.

Another error — this one on a bad throw by pitcher Dylan Covey (4-7) — helped set up Gordon’s two-out, two-run double in the third. Covey was charged with seven runs, four earned, and five hits in 4 1/3 innings, dropping to 1-5 with an 8.89 ERA in his last six starts.

Gordon’s drive to right off Tyler Danish made it 10-1 in the sixth. It was Gordon’s first homer since July 10 and No. 7 on the year.

Junis, who is from Rock Hills, Illinois, about two hours west of Chicago, allowed six hits, struck out five and walked three. He surrendered five homers in 5 2/3 innings in a 6-3 loss to Chicago on April 26 in his first career appearance against the White Sox.

Junis was pulled after Leury Garcia’s two-run single in the sixth. Garcia also had an RBI single in the eighth against Glenn Sparkman.

UP NEXT

Royals right-hander Brad Keller (4-4, 3.43 ERA) and White Sox right-hander Reynaldo Lopez (4-9, 4.57 ERA) pitch in the series finale Thursday afternoon. Keller, who turned 23 on Friday, has won each of his last two starts. Lopez is 0-4 with an 8.72 ERA in his last four games.

— Associated Press —

CHICAGO (AP) — Ryan O’Hearn got the ball from his first major league hit. Brett Phillips got his bats back.

For one night at least, everything was all right with the Kansas City Royals.

O’Hearn hit a two-run homer in his big league debut, helping Danny Duffy and the Royals beat the Chicago White Sox 4-2 on Tuesday.

“Today was the most fun I had at a baseball field, once I kind of settled down a little bit, ever,” O’Hearn said. “I’m ready to get back tomorrow.”

Phillips also hit a two-run shot for last-place Kansas City, which had dropped four of five. Duffy (7-9) pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings, rebounding nicely from a rocky start against Detroit.

It was Phillips’ first hit since he was acquired Friday in the trade that sent third baseman Mike Moustakas to Milwaukee. Phillips had to use Hunter Dozier’s bat for his Kansas City debut Sunday against the Yankees after his lumber got lost while he was flying to New York to join his new team.

He was reunited with his bats in time for the series opener against Chicago, and he looked quite comfortable on his fifth career homer in the seventh.

“It’s always a blessing to help the team win in any way you can,” Phillips said.

The White Sox lost for the fifth time in six games. They wasted prime scoring opportunities in the fourth and eighth, and another threat in the sixth was curtailed by a mental mistake by Tim Anderson — prompting manager Rick Renteria to replace the young shortstop.

Matt Davidson hit a two-run shot in the seventh for his eighth homer against the Royals this season. But Tim Hill got one out, Jason Hammel worked a rocky eighth and Wily Peralta finished for his sixth save.

Playing in front of his parents, brother and sister, O’Hearn bounced to first in his first at-bat in the second. He came up again with one out and a runner on first in the fifth, and drove a 1-0 pitch from James Shields (4-13) over the wall in right .

O’Hearn, an eighth-round pick in the 2014 draft who turned 25 on Thursday, was promoted from Triple-A Omaha before the game. He became the third player in franchise history to homer in his major league debut, joining Clint Hurdle in 1977 and Mark Quinn in 1999.

“It was fun to watch,” Duffy said.

Albany Minnesota defeated Charleston, Missouri 2-1 to win the 2018 Midwest Plains Babe Ruth 13-15 Year Old Regional Tournament in Junction City Tuesday evening.

Albany will advance to the Babe Ruth World Series in Washington State.

The Junction City Reds were awarded the Sportsmanship Trophy for the regional. They lost to Scott County, Iowa on Tuesday 8-1 to finish 0-3 in the tournament.

The Junction City Reds fell to Scott County, Iowa 8-1 in their final game of pool play in the 2018 Midwest Regional Babe Ruth tournament for 13-15 Year Old Youth.  The game was played at Eisenhower Middle School in Manhattan.

The Reds went 0-3 in the tournament and did not advance to the championship semifinals.

The two teams emerging from the semifinals will play in the 8 to 9 o’clock time frame Tuesday night at North Park in Junction City for the tournament championship.

Some of the games from the tournament had to be moved from Junction City to Manhattan Tuesday because the heavy rain Monday evening caused the tournament to fall behind schedule. Games Monday night were cancelled because of the rain and resulting wet field.

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Fans can get a sneak peek of the K-State Football team on Saturday, August 11, as the program hosts its annual Fan Appreciation Day at Bill Snyder Family Stadium.

Fans are asked to park on the west side of Bill Snyder Family Stadium and enter through Gate B for the free event, which begins at 5 p.m., while concessions will be available on the west side of the stadium.

Seating will be open on the west side in Sections 3-7, while fans can tour the recently renovated People’s State Bank East Side Club following a $1.5 million upgrade during the offseason. Fans can also learn about opportunities to purchase a limited number of season- and single-game ticket options in the club level.

Those in attendance will be able to watch the final hour of practice. At the conclusion of practice, Hall of Fame head coach Bill Snyder and select players will address the crowd prior to a one-hour autograph session on the field with players and coaches. Those participating are asked to limit the number of autographed items to one per person and encouraged to provide their own item to be signed.

The West Stadium Center ticket office will be open during the event for fans wishing to purchase single-game tickets. Fans in attendance will have the opportunity to purchase a special ticket package that includes a souvenir for the Fan Appreciation Day autograph session as a K-State mini-helmet will be included in the first 100 Wildcat 4 Packs purchased in person beginning at 4 p.m.

Wildcat 4 Packs, which include four reserved tickets, are still available for K-State’s seven home games, which are priced at $85 for UTSA, $99 for South Dakota, $125 for Texas Tech, $149 for Texas, Oklahoma State and Kansas; and $199 for Mississippi State.

Those who are unable to attend Fan Appreciation Day can still order tickets online at www.kstatesports.com/tickets, by phone at 1-800-221-CATS or at the main ticket office inside Bramlage Coliseum.

K-State begins the 2018 season and seven-game home slate on Saturday, September 1, against South Dakota, a game that kicks off at 6:10 p.m., on ESPN 3 and serves as the 10th-annual K-State Family Reunion. The Wildcats then host Mississippi State on September 8, at 11 a.m., on ESPN before concluding non-conference play against UTSA on September 15, at 3 p.m., on FSN.

– k-statesports.com –

RYAN LACKEY
Director of Football and Golf Communications | K-State Athletics

Rain cancelled the Monday games Junction City in the 2018 Babe Ruth Midwest Regional for 13-15 Year Old Players.

The head coach for the Junction City Reds, Denver Kell has announced that a tentative schedule has been put in place for Tuesday, depending on the field at two locations….Eisenhower Middle School in Manhattan at North Park in Junction City.

The plan is for pool play games to be split between the two locations. Albany, Minnesota will meet Larned, Kansas at noon while the Junction City Reds will play Scott County, Iowa at 2:30 p.m. There will be  a championship semifinal contest at 5 p.m.

In Junction City Charleston, Missouri will meet Alliance, Nebraska at noon while Pioneer, Colorado will play Bismarck, North Dakota at 2:30 p.m. at North Park. There will be a championship semifinal contest at 5 p.m.

The championship game for the tournament is scheduled at 10 a.m. Wednesday at North Park in Junction City.