Month: January 2022

Sporting KC selects two defenders in draft

Sporting Kansas City selected two college seniors on Tuesday in the MLS SuperDraft.

Sporting KC picked up Grand Canyon University defender Esai Easley in the first round at No. 22 overall and University of Maryland defender Brett St. Martin in the second round at No. 50 overall.

Sporting passed on its third-round pick at No. 78 overall.

Easley and St. Martin are set to join Sporting Kansas City for the club’s 2022 preseason presented by Children’s Mercy, which will feature a month of training in Arizona from Jan. 17 to Feb. 19.

In other news from Sporting KC, forward Alan Pulido will miss the 2022 season after knee surgery. He is scheduled for surgery on his left knee on Monday, Jan. 17, which will sideline him for about nine to 12 months. Pulido, 30, has scored 15 goals and eight assists in two seasons for Sporting since joining MLS in December 2019 from Chivas de Guadalajara in the LIGA MX.

Born and raised in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, Easley started 47 of 53 appearances during a four-year college career at Grand Canyon in Phoenix, adding two goals and four assists. Capable of playing as a center back or a right back, he led the Antelopes to three NCAA Tournament appearances and two titles in the Western Athletic Conference — the 2018 conference tournament championship and the 2021 regular season title.

Easley, 21, captained Grand Canyon as a senior and earned multiple accolades as one of the country’s best college defenders, including United Soccer Coaches All-Far West Region first team, All-WAC first team and WAC Defensive Player of the Year honors. While at Grand Canyon, he played for former MLS coach Schellas Hyndman and former MLS player Leonard Griffin.

Easley made an immediate impact as a freshman, posting a 6-0-1 record in seven starts with just three goals conceded and helping the Antelopes win the WAC Tournament and reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time ever at the Division I level.

He became a regular starter as a sophomore and propelled Grand Canyon back to the NCAA Tournament as a junior in the spring of 2021, with the Antelopes finishing the abbreviated season with an 8-2 record. Easley’s senior campaign was highlighted by a WAC regular season title as Grand Canyon went 15-4-1 and racked up six shutouts with the native Hawaiian anchoring the backline.

As a youth, Easley competed with academies at Seattle Sounders FC and De Anza Force in California before representing the Portland Timbers U-23s in 2021, where he was named to the USL League Two Western Conference Team of the Year.

St. Martin, 22, enjoyed a successful four-year career at Maryland, where he was crowned a 2018 national champion and helped the Terrapins to four NCAA Tournament appearances.

The versatile defender finished his Maryland career as a two-time All-Big Ten selection and two-time team captain as a junior and senior. St. Martin took control of the Terps’ right center back position during a breakout second season in 2019 before anchoring the Terps backline in his final two seasons. The Baltimore area native also contributed as a right back on Maryland’s national title team.

As a freshman, St. Martin started seven of 12 matches and scored once as Maryland claimed their fourth national championship in program history. He then hit career-highs in 2019 with starts in 20 of 21 games, tallying a goal and an assist. The defender was an All-Big Ten second team honoree during a shortened junior campaign in which he played every minute for the Terrapins.

St. Martin ended his Maryland tenure with his second season as the team’s captain last fall. He started in all 17 matches, notched an assist and helped the Terrapins to eight shutouts, garnering All-Big Ten first team honors.

Prior to arriving at Maryland, St. Martin played club soccer for Baltimore Celtic, where he was a 2016 State Cup champion, a United Soccer Coaches All-Regional Team selection in 2017 and a U-19 national champion in 2018. He was also tabbed to the Best XI at the 2018 U.S. Youth Soccer National Championships.

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Blood shortage may put patients at risk, Red Cross says

The American Red Cross is warning that a national blood crisis may put patients at risk.

It is the worst blood shortage in more than a decade, according to Red Cross officials.

Dangerously low blood supply levels are posing a risk to patient care and forcing doctors to make difficult decisions about who receives blood transfusions and who will need to wait until more products become available, according to the Red Cross spokesman.

Blood and platelet donations are critically needed to help prevent further delays in vital medical treatments, and donors of all blood types, especially type O, are urged to make an appointment to give blood in the weeks ahead.

In recent weeks, the Red Cross has had less than a one-day supply of critical blood types and has had to limit blood product distributions to hospitals, according to the spokesman. As many as one-fourth of hospitals’ blood needs are not being met, the spokesman stated.

Challenges that are causing the reduction in blood donations include the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as winter weather, the spokesman stated.

The Red Cross and NFL are partnering in January to urge individuals to give blood or platelets. Those who come to give blood, platelets or plasma in January will be entered into a chance to win a getaway to Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles. Those who come to donate also will be entered to win a home theater package and $500 gift e-card. For more information, see RedCrossBlood.org/SuperBowl.

Upcoming Red Cross mobile blood drives in Wyandotte County include:

• Wednesday, Jan. 12, from 10 a.m. to 3:30 pm., Cabelas, 10300 Cabela Drive, Kansas City, Kansas.

• Thursday, Jan. 13, from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m., Memorial Hall, 600 N. 7th, Kansas City, Kansas.

To make an appointment to give blood or platelets, use the Red Cross blood donor app, visit RedCrossBlood.org online or call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).

Rep. Davids votes to double help for Kansas families to afford energy costs this winter

Funds are helping lower costs of heating, utilities and energy repairs for hardworking families, seniors

U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids

U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, D-3rd Dist., announced that Kansas has received a record $72.1 million to help families afford energy costs this winter—more than double the state’s typical annual investment.

Rep. Davids is the only member of the Kansas delegation to vote for the American Rescue Plan, which delivered this increase in energy cost assistance to Kansans across the state.

Rep. Davids helped secure this funding through the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) in the American Rescue Plan and annual appropriations.

As the global economy continues to deal with the impacts of the pandemic and high energy costs, Kansas families and seniors can use these funds to lower the costs of staying warm this winter, cover utilities, and pay for energy repairs, according to the announcement.

As heating costs are predicted to rise as much as 30% this winter, Davids pushed the Department of Health and Human Services last month to evaluate and improve the LIHEAP program, which primarily serves folks with disabilities, seniors, and families with children across Kansas.

“We started 2022 with a severe winter storm in the Kansas City area, proving just how important it is to help folks afford energy costs and stay warm, safe and healthy this winter,” Rep. Davids said. “I’m proud to have voted for the largest investment ever in lowering home heating costs for Kansas families and seniors in need, so we can ensure everyone in our community can weather the winter.”

Local families and seniors who are struggling to cover home heating costs may call the LIHEAP public inquiry phone number at 1-800-432-0043 or visit the Kansas Department for Children and Families website at http://www.dcf.ks.gov/services/ees/Pages/EnergyAssistance.aspx for more information on eligibility.

Kansas residents who participate (or have family members who participate) in certain benefit programs, such as SNAP, SSI, and TANF, automatically meet the eligibility requirement for LIHEAP assistance. Applications for assistance are open until March 31, 2022.