The time and place for Thursday’s Junction City High School baseball match up with Topeka West has been changed.

Matt Westerhaus, JCHS Athletic Director announced Tuesday that the game has been moved to Wednesday and it will be played at Tointon Family Family Stadium on the campus of Kansas State University.

The move is due to current field conditions at Rathert Stadium and potential rain over the next few days.

Start time will remain at 4 p.m. on Wednesday and ticket prices will remain the same at $5 for adults and $3 for students K-12. JCHS students are free with JCHS student ID.

The Blue Jay tennis team traveled to Topeka for the league tournament.  

Kyle Hand led the team to a sixth place team finish by finishing sixth in singles.  Angeleau Scott and the doubles team of Neil Glaser and Dave Graham, each picked up two victories in pool play as they finished 12^th in the singles and doubles brackets, respectively.  The Blue Jays next travel to Derby this Saturday for regionals.

MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State’s Tyler Moore and Tyler Wolfe both earned their second career Big 12 weekly awards on Monday as Moore was named the conference’s Co-Player of the Week and Wolfe the Newcomer of the Week for the period ending May 3. It is Moore’s first Player of the Week honor after he was tabbed as the top newcomer on March 9 while for Wolfe, it is his second newcomer accolade in the last four weeks.

 

The pair of junior college transfers powered a K-State offense that paced the Big 12 in team batting average (.298), runs (43) and walks (39) last week. Moore was the conference leader in several key offensive categories, including batting average (.529, 9-for-17), on-base percentage (.591) and slugging percentage (1.176). The catcher, who also hit two home runs among his five total extra-base hits, was 3-for-5 in caught-stealing attempts as well. Wolfe was the conference’s top RBI producer, tallying seven in five games, while also finishing tied for first in walks with six and third in OBP with a .560 clip.

 

Moore started four of the five games he played in last week, recording a hit in each start and notching a pair of multi-hit efforts. Last week’s Big 12 hits leader helped improve his season batting average to .323, which is now 10th-best in the conference, while moving into the top-10 for slugging (7th, .520).

 

Wolfe, who also threw a scoreless inning of relief on April 29 at Minnesota, used his five games last week to extend his personal-best on-base streak to 12 contests. The Des Moines Area Community College transfer has a walk in each of his last four games, helping him rank tied for seventh in the Big 12 in walks this year with 28.

 

K-State, which has nabbed five total honors in the last four weeks, featured a top newcomer for the second straight week as Sam Chadick was named Co-Newcomer of the Week on April 27. Meanwhile, Max Brown (Player) and Wolfe (Co-Newcomer) grabbed a pair of honors for the week of April 6-12.

 

The six Big 12 player of the week awards this season are the most in a single season in program history, surpassing the previous mark of five set three times (Last: 2014). K-State is tied for third among Big 12 schools in total weekly honors this season, trailing Oklahoma State (8) and Texas Tech (7).

 

K-State will wrap up its non-conference schedule with the second of two meetings against Wichita State this season on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. The game at Eck Stadium can be watched on Cox Kansas (Cox channel 22/2022) or heard on  www.k-statesports.com.

 

The Wildcats will follow up Tuesday’s road contest with their final home series of the year when they take on Big 12 foe, Oklahoma, at Tointon Family Stadium from May 8-10.

Chris Kutz, Assistant Director, Athletics Communications

 

The New Orleans Saints have released former Kansas State and Junction City Blue Jay football standout Ty Zimmerman.

Zimmerman was a safety who was injured in the team’s first preseason exhibition game last year, and then spent 2014 on injured reserve. Zimmerman was a third-team Associated Press All American at Kansas State, and first-team All Big 12 selection by the AP and the league coaches. He was a member of the Wildcat’s 2012 Big 12 championship football team, and during his senior year of high school year helped lead the Junction City Blue Jays to the Class 6A state championship.

The Associated Press is reporting Zimmerman is one of three players released by the Saints. The others were safety Marcus Ball and linebacker Kyle Knox.

The Saints also announced the signing of 13 undrafted free agents.

 

MANHATTAN, Kan. — With the inaugural season of K-State women’s soccer debuting in the fall of 2016, K-State Athletics announced today ground has been broken on new practice and competition fields.

An official groundbreaking ceremony for the new fields will take place on Saturday, May 9 at 10 a.m. Dignitaries to be in attendance include: K-State university first lady Noel Schulz, K-State athletics director John Currie and K-State women’s soccer head coach Mike Dibbini.

The new home for soccer will be located just south of Tointon Family Stadium as two grass fields consisting of a Bermuda surface, new irrigation and drainage system are being constructed on the current site of the former football practice fields. The first phase of the project, which began on Monday, April 27, is being managed by Mid-America Sports Construction and Wildcat Construction and is anticipated to be completed by July.

“While exploring all options for our soccer program, we wanted to find the location that will best serve our student-athletes and also provide the best experience for our fans,” Currie said. “This latest project will not only provide our soccer program with a new home but will also serve the practice needs of our football student-athletes while providing the long-term flexibility for further improvements and expansion in additional phases.”

Both soccer and football will utilize the space, as a practice field on the east side of the site will accommodate both sports. The soccer competition field is being built along College Avenue on the west side of the site, and will provide versatility for future fan experience amenities including lighting, bleacher seating, a press facility, decorative fencing and a scoreboard. Fans will be able to utilize the existing restroom and concessions facilities at Tointon Family Stadium for games in the fall of 2016. The cost of the initial phase of the project is estimated at $2.1 million and will be totally funded by department-generated revenue.

“The first phase of our new soccer complex will be treasured by our student-athletes, our fans and supporters,” said head coach Mike Dibbini about the new stadium. “This is an integral step to providing a World-Class Student-Athlete Experience and help deliver the Best Fan Experience in the Big 12. We are thrilled for the launching of our program and to be a part of the K-State family.”

The Bermuda playing surfaces on both fields will provide the best overall experience for the student-athletes in both programs and also provide the long-term flexibility for expansion.

K-State may play an occasional soccer match at Memorial Stadium on the Kansas State University campus, but the construction of a soccer-only facility along College Avenue avoids interference with the significant day-to-day use of Memorial Stadium by Recreation Services, ROTC, the K-State Marching Band and various student and community groups.

The new facility for soccer and football, in addition to the current Vanier Football Complex project at Bill Snyder Family Stadium, brings the department’s total facility enhancements total to $192 million following the opening of the West Stadium Center, Basketball Training Facility, Intercollegiate Rowing Facility and Mike Goss Tennis Stadium.

MANHATTAN, Kan. — With the inaugural season of K-State women’s soccer debuting in the fall of 2016, K-State Athletics announced today ground has been broken on new practice and competition fields.

An official groundbreaking ceremony for the new fields will take place on Saturday, May 9 at 10 a.m. Dignitaries to be in attendance include: K-State university first lady Noel Schulz, K-State athletics director John Currie and K-State women’s soccer head coach Mike Dibbini.

The new home for soccer will be located just south of Tointon Family Stadium as two grass fields consisting of a Bermuda surface, new irrigation and drainage system are being constructed on the current site of the former football practice fields. The first phase of the project, which began on Monday, April 27, is being managed by Mid-America Sports Construction and Wildcat Construction and is anticipated to be completed by July.

“While exploring all options for our soccer program, we wanted to find the location that will best serve our student-athletes and also provide the best experience for our fans,” Currie said. “This latest project will not only provide our soccer program with a new home but will also serve the practice needs of our football student-athletes while providing the long-term flexibility for further improvements and expansion in additional phases.”

Both soccer and football will utilize the space, as a practice field on the east side of the site will accommodate both sports. The soccer competition field is being built along College Avenue on the west side of the site, and will provide versatility for future fan experience amenities including lighting, bleacher seating, a press facility, decorative fencing and a scoreboard. Fans will be able to utilize the existing restroom and concessions facilities at Tointon Family Stadium for games in the fall of 2016. The cost of the initial phase of the project is estimated at $2.1 million and will be totally funded by department-generated revenue.

“The first phase of our new soccer complex will be treasured by our student-athletes, our fans and supporters,” said head coach Mike Dibbini about the new stadium. “This is an integral step to providing a World-Class Student-Athlete Experience and help deliver the Best Fan Experience in the Big 12. We are thrilled for the launching of our program and to be a part of the K-State family.”

The Bermuda playing surfaces on both fields will provide the best overall experience for the student-athletes in both programs and also provide the long-term flexibility for expansion.

K-State may play an occasional soccer match at Memorial Stadium on the Kansas State University campus, but the construction of a soccer-only facility along College Avenue avoids interference with the significant day-to-day use of Memorial Stadium by Recreation Services, ROTC, the K-State Marching Band and various student and community groups.

The new facility for soccer and football, in addition to the current Vanier Football Complex project at Bill Snyder Family Stadium, brings the department’s total facility enhancements total to $192 million following the opening of the West Stadium Center, Basketball Training Facility, Intercollegiate Rowing Facility and Mike Goss Tennis Stadium.

Three former Kansas State football players — B.J. Finney, Ryan Mueller, and Jake Waters–signed free agent deals with NFL teams following the 2015 NFL Draft. Finney signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Mueller with the San Diego Chargers and Waters with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

In addition to the three signed players, wide receiver Tyler Lockett was selected in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft by the Seattle Seahawks, while Randall Evans was picked in the sixth round by the Philadelphia Eagles.

Finney, who started a school record 52-straight games, is one of three players in school history

to earn all-conference designations all four years.

A two-year starting defensive end, Mueller was signed by the Chargers as both a linebacker and fullback.

Waters started all 26 games at quarterback over the past two seasons. He broke school career records for completion percentage ( 64.1 ), passing efficiency ( 155.6)  and total offensive yards per game ( 260.2 ). He also set the K-State single-season record for  passing yardage ( 3,501 ) and total offensive yards ( 3,985 ) in 2014.

MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State’s six-run sixth inning blew open an early back-and-forth affair as the Wildcats clinched a series victory with a 12-6 win against Arkansas State on Sunday at Tointon Family Stadium.

 

Tallying double-digit hits for the fourth straight game, K-State (23-24) recorded six hits in the crooked sixth to help it total 15 on the day. Max Brown and Tyler Moore each had three hits, leading five Wildcats with multi-hit efforts. Brown went 3-for-5, which matched his career-high in hits, while also driving in two runs. Moore connected for his team-leading fourth home run of the season in the sixth as he went 3-for-5 with three runs scored.

 

Carter Yagi, who tied Max Brown and Clayton Dalrymple for the team lead in RBIs with two, registered his first multi-hit game since April 12 by going 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Alex Bee (2-for-3, 2 walks) and Jake Wodtke (2-for-4, RBI) rounded out the group of five multi-hit Wildcats.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Miguel Cabrera hit a two-run homer, Anibal Sanchez carried a perfect game into the sixth inning and the Detroit Tigers held on to beat the Kansas City Royals 6-4 Sunday to salvage a split of their four-game series.

Alex Avila also drove in three runs for the Tigers, who dropped the first two games of the series before squeaking out a 2-1 victory behind David Price’s masterpiece Saturday night.

Sanchez (2-3) was just as good as his rotation mate. The right-hander did not allow a runner until Paulo Orlando dribbled a single up the middle leading off the sixth inning, and Sanchez wound up allowing three runs on four hits over 7 1-3 innings.

Kansas City nearly bailed out Jeremy Guthrie (1-2) by scoring two runs in the seventh and two more in the eighth. But Tom Gorzelanny struck out Eric Hosmer to leave a runner aboard, and Joakim Soria shut down his former team in the ninth for his 10th save.

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State defensive back Randall Evans was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the sixth round – pick No. 196 overall – in the 2015 NFL Draft on Saturday. Evans joins Tyler Lockett (third round, Seattle Seahawks) in K-State’s 2015 draft class.

 

Evans is the 11^th Wildcat to be selected by Philadelphia, including the second in the last four years (Bryce Brown, seventh round, 2012). He is also the first Wildcat defensive back taken in the draft since Joshua Moore in 2010 (Chicago Bears).

 

A former walk-on who turned into a 31-game starter, Evans was a First Team All-Big 12 performer as a senior in 2014 after finishing with 64 tackles, including 4.5 for loss. He paced the squad with four interceptions and 14 passes defended, marks that ranked fourth and sixth in the Big 12, respectively. All four of his interceptions came in Big 12 play to tie for second in the league.

 

During his four-year career, Evans came away with 210 tackles, seven interceptions and 35 passes defended. For his efforts in the classroom, he was named a First Team Academic All-Big 12 performer in 2014.

 

Kansas State, which extended its Big 12-leading NFL Draft streak to 22 straight years, kicks off the 2015 season against South Dakota at Bill Snyder Family Stadium on Saturday, September 5. The Wildcats return 44 letterwinners, including 16 starters, from last year’s team that went 9-4 and earned a bowl berth for a fifth-straight season. The other six home games feature five opponents that advanced to bowl games in 2014, including a pair of top-10 teams in TCU (No. 3/3) and Baylor (No. 7/8).

A limited number of single-game tickets for the 2015 season go on sale online only at www.k-statesports.com/tickets on June 22, while fans can purchase by calling the ticket office at 1-800-221-CATS beginning June 24.

 

– k-statesports.com –

 

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – David Price took a shutout into the ninth inning before finishing with a five-hitter as the Detroit Tigers beat the Kansas City Royals 2-1 Saturday night.

Price (3-1) limited the Royals to four singles until Lorenzo Cain homered with two-out in the ninth spoiled his bid for his second career shutout. Price struck out three and walked none. His only shutout was April 24, 2012, against the Los Angeles Angels.

The Tigers took the lead in the third on Christian Colon’s throwing error and Ian Kinsler had an RBI single in the fifth.

Royals right-hander Edinson Volquez (2-3) returned to the rotation after serving a five-game suspension and gave up the two runs and five hits, while walking three and striking out four in six innings.