Friday July 1st Local Sports

THIS WEEKEND:

== FRIDAY
AM-1300 KGLO — Minnesota Twins vs. Baltimore — pre-game 6:30, first pitch 7:10

== SATURDAY
AM-1300 KGLO — Minnesota Twins vs. Baltimore — pre-game 12:30, first pitch 1:10

AM-1490/96.7-FM KRIB, kribam.com — Class 2A baseball district quarterfinal at Garner — Clear Lake vs. Central Springs — pre-game 4:45, first pitch 5:00

 

== SUNDAY
AM-1300 KGLO — Minnesota Twins vs. Baltimore — Inside Twins 12:00, pre-game 12:30, first pitch 1:10

 

 

ROSEMONT, ILLINOIS (AP) — The Big Ten Thursday evening voted unanimously to add Southern California and UCLA as conference members beginning in 2024. The expansion to 16 teams will happen after the Pac-12’s current media rights contracts with Fox and ESPN expire and make the Big Ten the first conference to stretch from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The announcement came almost a year after Oklahoma and Texas formally accepted invitations to join the Southeastern Conference in July 2025. University of Iowa president Barbara Wilson says the additions of UCLA and USC will enhance the conference’s existing comprehensive excellence in academics, research and athletics, and she’s looking forward to welcoming her new colleagues to Iowa City and the UI campus. The addition marks the first expansion since Maryland and Rutgers joined the conference in 2014.

 

CLEVELAND (AP) — Andrés Giménez hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning and the Cleveland Guardians beat the Minnesota Twins 5-3 for their second straight walk-off win against their AL Central rivals. Giménez went deep to center on a 3-2 pitch from Tyler Thornburg as Minnesota’s bullpen imploded again. José Ramírez drew a leadoff walk. Josh Naylor’s groundout moved Ramírez to second and Owen Miller flied out. Giménez followed with his game-winner to send Cleveland’s players pouring out of the dugout in celebration for the second consecutive day. The Twins failed to hold a 6-3 lead in the 10th inning on Wednesday night, when the Guardians scored four times and won the game on Naylor’s two-run homer. Cleveland took the five-game series and moved within one game of first place in the division.

 

 

== High school summer sports regular season play for most area teams wrapped up last night or will tonight, with tournament play beginning this weekend in baseball and softball:

MANLY — The Central Springs softball team wrapped up a perfect Top of Iowa Conference East Division season as the #1/2A Panthers topped #13/2A Osage 12-0 in four innings last night in Manly. Kaylea Fessler and Ashlyn Hoeft homered while Azaria McDonough had three runs batted in to lead Central Springs. Fessler fired a four-hit shutout, striking out three. Central Springs is now 28-1 and finished with a 16-0 conference record. They receive a first-round bye in Region 5 play and will face the winner of tonight’s Emmetsburg and South Central Calhoun first-round game in Manly on Wednesday. Osage also gets a first-round bye and will face either Eagle Grove or Manson-Northwest Webster in the quarterfinal round on Wednesday.

 

MASON CITY — Newman scored all four of their runs in the fifth in a 4-2 win over North Butler. Liz Kruckenberg had a two-RBI double while Macy Kellar struck out 12 to pick up the win. Newman finishes the regular season with a 22-9 record and finished 10-6 in the conference. Newman has a first-round bye in 1A Region 4 tournament play and will face either St. Ansgar or West Hancock in the quarterfinal round on Wednesday.

 

HAMPTON — Clear Lake had only won three games this season heading into this week. The Lions have now won four straight after a 12-6 win at Hampton-Dumont-CAL in North Central Conference play last night. Clear Lake is 7-13 overall and 5-8 in the conference and will host Algona to wrap up the regular season tonight.

 

— other softball
Ames 10-12, Mason City 5-8
Spencer 12, Algona 2

 

— 1A Region 4 softball first-round games Friday
West Hancock at St. Ansgar
Northwood-Kensett at AGWSR
Rockford at North Butler
Nashua-Plainfield at Riceville
Colo-Nesco at Baxter

 

GARNER — The Newman baseball team wrapped up a perfect Top of Iowa Conference East Division season with a 17-0, four-inning win at Garner-Hayfield-Ventura last night. Max Burt picked up the win, striking out five and allowing three hits, and helped his cause with a solo homer. Doug Taylor also homered in the contest. Newman is 28-3 overall and finished 16-0 in the conference. They will host #7/2A Dike-New Hartford tonight to wrap up the regular season.

 

ALGONA — Back on Wednesday night, it appeared Bishop Garrigan had won the Top of Iowa Conference West Division crown with a win over Forest City. In the 7th inning of that game, Forest City questioned whether Garrigan pitcher Drew Fogarty had exceeded the pitch count. After a lengthy discussion, play resumed since neither team could agree on how many pitches he had thrown. On Thursday, Garrigan athletic director and co-head baseball coach Rob Meister decided to forfeit the game after a review of a video of the game showed that Fogarty had gone over the pitch limit of 110 pitches. The change in result gives Forest City the TIC West title.

 

 

— Class 2A District 3 baseball quarterfinals Saturday at Garner
5:00 — Clear Lake vs. Central Springs (KRIB)
7:00 — Clarion-Goldfield-Dows vs. Garner-Hayfield-Ventura

 

— Class 1A District 2 baseball quarterfinals Saturday
Newman receives quarterfinal bye
5:00 at Britt — Lake Mills vs. North Iowa
7:00 at Britt — West Fork vs. West Hancock
7:00 at Fort Dodge — St. Edmond vs. West Bend-Mallard

 

 

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns is under contract for six more years, after agreeing to an extension early this morning to remain with the Minnesota Timberwolves. It’s a huge commitment from the Timberwolves, and one they made as quickly as they possibly could: Starting in 2024-25, Towns will make $224 million over four years, and that follows the $70 million he’s slotted to make over the next two seasons. The deal was formally agreed to early Friday. By NBA rule, Towns and the Timberwolves had to wait until July 1 — and it was just after midnight in the East — to strike their deal.

 

 

SILVIS, Ill. (AP) — J.T. Poston shot a 9-under 62 on Thursday to take a two-stroke lead in the PGA Tour’s John Deere Classic. Coming off a second-place tie last week in Connecticut after also opening with a 62, Poston eagled the par-5 second and had seven birdies in a bogey-free round at TPC Deere Run. He won the 2019 Wyndham Championship for his lone PGA Tour title. Canadian Michael Gligic was second at 64, playing in the final group of the day off the first tee. Vaughn Taylor and Christopher Gotterup followed at 65.