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A tornado watch is in effect from 6 p.m. July 1 until midnight July 2, according to the National Weather Service.
Strong to severe thunderstorms are possible this afternoon and evening, that may produce heavy rain and flooding, the weather service said.
by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC sports
Not only was Kansas City Kansas Community College’s fifth place finish in the NJCAA Division II golf tournament the best in history, the Blue Devils were the only team with all home-grown players.
While many of the qualifiers in the 18-team national were heavy with international standouts, KCKCC’s five players are all from the Greater Kansas City area – All-American Charlie Rinehart and Montana Fasching, both Piper graduates; Marc McClain, Bonner Springs; Alex Forristal, Olathe East; and Seve Sites of Shawnee Mission Northwest. All are sophomores except McClain.
Rinehart led the Blue Devils with a 3-under par 285 that included a 6-under 66 in the second round that matched the tournament’s best single round. Tying for 13th, Rinehart was named to the Second All-American team and the All-Tournament team while Forristal earned All-American honorable mention with a one-over 289 and a tie for 21st. McClain finished in a tie for 48th with a 297; Fasching shared 52nd at 298; and Sites 85th with a 308.
In addition to KCKCC’s highest finish in a national tournament, the Blue Devils had one of the highest finishes ever by a Jayhawk Conference team in a tournament perennially dominated by teams from the south where golf can be played year round. And this year was no exception.
South Mountain Community College of Phoenix, Ariz., repeated as national champion, winning its fourth national title since 2010. The Cougars finished the 72-hole tournament with a 30 under par 1122. Three other former national champion teams also finished ahead of KCKCC – Tyler, Texas, 1137; Mississippi Golf Coast, 1152; and Darton State College of Georgia, 1159.
KCKCC took over fifth place in the opening round and stayed in fifth the remaining three days. The Blue Devils opened with back-to-back rounds of one-under par 287 before finishing with rounds of 296 and 299.
“As the tournament went along the pin placements got tougher and we did not keep out of some of the hazards,” Shrader said. The final two rounds toughened for all the top five finishers as all had their highest scores in rounds three and four.
“I was real proud of the way we got started and stayed right there for all four rounds,” Shrader said. “With such a wet and late spring, it took us a while to catch up so finishing fifth against warm weather teams is really a good testimony to high school golf in the Kansas City area.”
KCKCC’s best previous finish came in 1995 when Robert Russell won the Division I national championship while leading the Blue Devils to sixth.
Alan Hoskins is the sports information director for KCKCC.
A Kansas City, Mo., man pleaded guilty Tuesday to a federal bank robbery charge and admitted threatening employees with a gun and dragging a woman by her hair, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.
Clifton B. Cloyd, 54, Kansas City, Mo., pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery and one count of brandishing a firearm during the robbery. On Oct. 29, 2014, he and another man robbed the Bank of America at 9500 Mission in Overland Park, Kan. In his plea, Cloyd admitted:
• He and his accomplice held five bank employees and one customer at gunpoint.
• Cloyd, who was carrying a handgun, grabbed one of the bank employees and pulled her by the hair and scarf to the teller station. He struck her in the face with a handgun.
• Cloyd struck a customer so hard her glasses flew off and she was knocked to the floor.
• Cloyd struck a male bank employee with such force that his head started bleeding.
Sentencing is set for Sept. 14. He faces a penalty of not less than 10 years and not more than 25 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on the bank robbery charge, and a penalty of not less than seven years and a fine up to $250,000 on the firearm charge.
Co-defendant Steve A. Watts, 55, from Missouri, is awaiting trial.
Grissom commended the Overland Park Police Department, the Prairie Village Police Department, the Leawood Police Department, the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Zabel for their work on the case.