Month: May 2017

Sporting KC scheduled to play Seattle tonight in KCK

An enticing Western Conference clash is on tap Wednesday as Sporting Kansas City (5-2-4, 19 points) plays host to reigning MLS Cup champion Seattle Sounders FC (2-4-4, 10 points) at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, Kansas.

Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. with FOX Sports Kansas City Plus and FOX Sports Midwest Plus television coverage beginning at 7 p.m. The match will also stream live on FOX Sports GO.

Local radio broadcasts of Wednesday’s contest will air on Sports Radio 810 WHB (English) and La Grande 1340 AM (Spanish), while the Sporting KC Uphoria mobile app will provide live updates.

Tickets for Wednesday’s Retro Night showdown – which serves as a rematch of the 2016 Western Conference Knockout Round – are on sale at SeatGeek.com.

Supporters are encouraged to arrive early to Children’s Mercy Park on Wednesday, as former striker Mo Johnston will be inducted into the Sporting Legends hall of honor during an on-field pregame ceremony. A new retro training top will be available for purchase at all SportingStyle locations inside the stadium, and the annual Sporting KC Media Game will take place at halftime.

The first 7,000 fans inside Children’s Mercy Park will receive a free amenity kit courtesy of the Darol Rodrock Foundation, which will set up a donation bin at the Sporting Plaza where supporters are encouraged to drop off unwrapped items such as toiletries, school supplies, gift cards and cash donations.

Sporting Kansas City and Seattle will meet for the first time since the 2016 postseason, when the Sounders escaped with a 1-0 victory at CenturyLink Field thanks to a contentious goal from Nelson Valdez in the 88th minute. Seattle parlayed the dramatic win into an impressive playoff run that culminated in MLS Cup glory, punctuated by a penalty shootout triumph over Toronto FC after a 0-0 draw in the final.

The 2017 campaign has seen both clubs gravitate in separate directions. Sporting Kansas City is tied atop the Western Conference table and boasts the best defensive record in MLS, owning six shutouts and a 0.64 goals against average.

Meanwhile, Seattle’s title defense is off to a stuttering start: head coach Brian Schmetzer’s men have won just two of their first 10 games and sit ninth in the West. Coincidentally, the Sounders occupied that very position after losing to Sporting KC 3-0 last July before staging a furious rally over the latter half of 2016.

Forward Latif Blessing struck twice in Sporting Kansas City’s 2-2 draw at Orlando City SC on Saturday, becoming the club’s youngest player to score a brace in a competitive match at 20 years and 134 days. He was a sub for Dom Dwyer, who served a one-game suspension for caution accumulation and is available to play Wednesday. Dwyer leads the side with five goals, including four in his last three appearances at Children’s Mercy Park.

Spurred by a dogged midfield and an organized backline anchored by captain Matt Besler and fellow central defender Ike Opara, Sporting Kansas City will put a 14-game home unbeaten streak on the line against Seattle – an all-time club record and the longest active regular season home run in MLS. Since last June, manager Peter Vermes’ side is 11-0-3 with eight shutouts in Children’s Mercy Park.

Seattle will look to bounce back from a 4-1 setback suffered Saturday in Chicago. U.S. international Clint Dempsey struck his team-leading fourth goal of the campaign to restore parity before halftime, but three second-half goals from the Fire condemned the Sounders to a second straight defeat and extended their winless run to three matches.

Despite a mediocre start to its title defense, Seattle wields a wealth of attacking talent. Dempsey is joined by compatriot Jordan Morris (two goals) and playmaking talisman Nicolas Lodeiro (three goals, four assists), who was the catalyst to the Sounders’ late-season surge with eight goals and eight assists in 17 MLS appearances last season as a mid-summer acquisition. Veteran Osvaldo Alonso adds bite to the midfield as one of the league’s most accurate passers and best duel winners.

Sporting Kansas City has enjoyed regular season success against Seattle since the start of 2015, claiming three wins, two draws and four clean sheets from the last five meetings. Between 2009 and 2014, the Sounders won seven of nine meetings – including five that involved game-winners in second-half stoppage time. Sporting KC goalkeeper Tim Melia boasts an excellent record in the fixture, going 3-0-1 in the regular season with shutouts in every match.

Forward Soony Saad was added to the Sporting KC injury report this week after spraining his ankle in training. The forward is questionable for Wednesday, while striker Diego Rubio will remain sidelined as he continues to rehab from an ACL injury suffered last October. Sporting KC will also be without homegrown defender Erik Palmer-Brown, who has joined the U.S. U-20 Men’s National Team for the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Korea Republic.

The Sounders will have multiple absences to account for when they visit Children’s Mercy Park. Left back Joevin Jones is tied for third in MLS with five assists but will serve a one-game suspension after picking up two yellow cards in Saturday’s loss to Chicago. Defender Roman Torres is out with a strained hamstring and Alonso is questionable with tightness in his quad.

– Story from Sporting KC

Severe weather possible this afternoon in region

National Weather Service graphic

Keep your access to weather radio and television, or the internet weather, on this afternoon, as severe weather is possible in the region. Wyandotte County has a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, and will be under a wind advisory today.

Thunderstorms this morning are possible, but will not be severe, the National Weather Service said.

The severe threat will be between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. in the region, according to the weather service. There will be the chance for severe storms this afternoon north of an Atchison, Kansas, to Moberly, Missouri, line.

The risk is higher to the north of Wyandotte County. Wyandotte County is in the “marginal risk” category, according to the weather service. All modes of severe weather will be possible, including large hail, damaging winds, and the chance for a few tornadoes.

Conditions will also be windy today, with winds generally out of the south between 25 to 35 mph and gusts up to 45 mph, the weather service said. Wyandotte County is under a wind advisory in effect from 11 a.m. until 7 p.m. today.

Isolated severe storms will be possible again tomorrow evening and again Friday evening.

Today’s forecast for Wyandotte County includes a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly between noon and 4 p.m., the weather service said. The high will be near 79, with a south wind of 11 to 16 mph increasing to 24 to 29 mph in the afternoon. Winds may gust as high as 46 mph.

Tonight, expect mostly clear skies with a low of 59, according to the weather servie. A southwest wind of 15 to 20 mph, gusting up to 31 mph, will decrease to 6 to 11 mph after midnight.

Thursday, the high will be near 79 with mostly sunny skies, the weather service said. A west northwest wind of 6 mph will become east southeast in the afternoon.

Thursday night, there is an 80 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 1 a.m., the weather service said. The low will be around 59, with an east northeast wind of 7 to 10 mph. Between a half and three-quarters of an inch of rain is possible.

Friday, there is a 70 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a high near 75, the weather service said. An east southeast wind will be around 9 mph. Between a half and three-quarters of an inch of rain is possible.

Friday night, there is an 80 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms with a low of 61, according to the weather service. Between 1 and 2 inches of rain are possible.

Saturday, there is a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a high near 71, the weather service said.

Saturday night, there is a 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms, with a low of 52, according to the weather service.

Sunday, it will be mostly sunny with a high near 70, the weather service said.

For more weather information, visit www.weather.gov.

Opinion column: Income tax appears likely source for funding shortage

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Opinion column

by Murrel Bland

The way Kathy Damron sees it, the most likely solution to the financial woes afflicting the state of Kansas would be an increase in the income tax. That was her prediction as she met last Friday, May 12, with the Legislative Committee of the Kansas City, Kansas, Area Chamber of Commerce. She is the lobbyist for the chamber.

The Kansas Legislature began the second week of its “veto session” Monday, May 15, in Topeka. In the past several years, these veto sessions have been the periods when much of the significant legislation has been passed. That was not the intention when such sessions were instituted; most of the legislative action was supposed to occur during the regular session from January through April.

Legislators are faced with an estimated $900 million revenue shortfall for fiscal years 2018 and 2019. In addition, legislators must fund K-12 education adequately to satisfy a Kansas Supreme Court ruling.

Damron said that income tax is where the money is. However, the legislators summarily rejected Gov. Sam Brownback’s proposal for a one-tier income tax earlier this year. The feeling was, particularly among Democrats and moderate Republican legislators, that the one-income tax rate was unfair for moderate and low-income people. What may well pass could be a three-tier income tax rate that is less costly for moderate and low-income taxpayers.

Damron also predicted that the “LLC exemption” that allows small businesses to escape paying state income tax will be repealed. This law was implemented in 2012 as part of Gov. Brownback’s business stimulus program. Critics argue it has done little to boost employment.

Other suggestions for raising tax revenue have been a surcharge on utility bills and increasing the tax on cigarettes.

There also have been proposals to increase the gas tax to help fund road work. In the past few years, the state has taken $2 billion originally intended for highway construction and put it elsewhere to balance the state budget. Lobbyists representing highway construction companies have warned that short-changing the Kansas Department of Transportation could do serious harm to roads that should be maintained adequately. However, according to Damron, there appears to be little support for any increase in the gas tax.

When the Supreme Court ruled in the Gannon school case earlier this year, it said the state was not adequately funding schools. However, the court did not specify a dollar amount. One of the plans that the legislature is considering would give schools $150 million a year for five years; a distribution formula also would have to be devised.

Doris Givens, the president of the Kansas City Kansas Community College who serves on the Chamber’s Legislative Committee, said she is concerned about a Legislature that cuts the school’s funding, but expects it to train an adequate workforce. She also said she was very worried about the law that would allow the concealed carry of weapons on college campuses and state hospitals. This could cost the college here millions. State Sen. David Haley, D-Fourth Dist., who attended the chamber meeting, said that all of the Wyandotte County delegation, except for State Sen. Steve Fitzgerald, R-Fifth Dist., favors legislation that would exempt this gun law on college campuses and state hospitals.

Murrel Bland is the former editor of The Wyandotte West and The Piper Press. He is the executive director of Business West.