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AirHogs best T-Bones in slugfest

Two big innings sank the T-Bones Monday night as Kansas City fell 10-7 to Grand Prairie at CommunityAmerica Ballpark in Kansas City, Kan.

The AirHogs jumped all over Kansas City starter Kyle DeVore (3-3) in what would turn out to be a wild first inning, opening the frame with five consecutive singles before recording an out.

Already leading 2-0, Frazier Hall lined a double down the right field line with the bases-loaded that scored three more and gave Grand Prairie an early 5-0 lead.

Kansas City roared back in its half of the first. T.J. Mittelstaedt led off with a home run, his ninth of the season.

Danny Richar later singled, stole second base and came around to score on a Bryan Sabatella single, cutting the AirHogs’ lead to 5-2.

Vladimir Frias then put an exclamation point on the inning, launching a two-run home run that brought the T-Bones to within one.

The first inning in its entirety lasted 37 minutes, saw 73 pitches and nine runs scored between the two clubs.

DeVore settled down over the game’s next four innings but once again fell victim to the big inning in the sixth.

Hall continued his big night at the plate to lead off the inning, hitting a home run to center field. Eric Baker and Jimmy Mojica later singled, ending DeVore’s night.

Alex Nunez then laced an RBI single into center field off reliever Hamilton Bennett, scoring Baker. Brian Myrow later doubled, scoring Mojica and Nunez and extending the Grand Prairie advantage to 9-4.

Kansas City mounted a rally in the eighth, scoring three runs off RBI singles by Ray Sadler and Bryan Sabatella. It wouldn’t be enough, however, as Kansas City lost its third consecutive game.

DeVore struck out a season-high 10 batters, including a stretch where he struck out seven in a row, but allowed eight runs on 12 hits over his 5 2/3 innings in the loss. Ryan Searle (4-5) picked up the win for Grand Prairie. Dakota Watts tallied his 14th save of the season.

Kansas City continues its three game series with Grand Prairie Tuesday night at 7:05. Tickets are available by calling the Providence Medical Center Box Office at CommunityAmerica Ballpark at 913-328-5618.

Box score: http://www.pointstreak.com/baseball/boxscoretext.html?gameid=178015
– Story from T-Bones

Feilhaber voted MLS Player of Week

Sporting Kansas City midfielder Benny Feilhaber was announced as Major League Soccer’s Player of the Week on Monday, receiving the most votes from the North American Soccer Reporters for week 19 of the 2014 MLS season.

Feilhaber, 29, contributed to both goals in the team’s 2-1 victory at Columbus last Wednesday and scored in his second straight match as the reigning MLS Cup champions defeated the LA Galaxy on Saturday at Sporting Park.

“It is exciting, because the recipients of the award usually means their team won that week,” Feilhaber said. “Obviously it is more important that almost all of our players are back and healthy. We are in good form and it feels great to contribute to the team.”

Feilhaber gave Sporting KC a 1-0 lead at Crew Stadium when his corner kick was headed home by C.J. Sapong in the 42nd minute. The assist was his team-leading fifth of the season and 20th of his MLS career (including postseason). Three of his five assists in 2014 have come from set pieces, second most in MLS behind Brad Davis (4).

In the game’s final minute, Feilhaber’s first-time shot from outside the penalty area beat Crew goalkeeper Steve Clark and struck the underside of the crossbar to move the team back atop the Eastern Conference standings. The goal is Sporting Kansas City’s latest game-winning goal of the season and is one of five nominees up for MLS Goal of the Week.

The road win — the team’s fourth straight, a new single-season club record — marked the second time in Feilhaber’s four-year MLS career in which he recorded a goal and an assist in the same match.

On Saturday, Feilhaber followed the mid-week performance with his third goal of the season, second most among Sporting KC players, with a free kick from 20 yards out. The right-footed strike curled beyond the reach of LA Galaxy goalkeeper Jaime Penedo and into the upper corner for the 11th goal of his MLS career.

It marked the second straight season Feilhaber scored directly from a free kick, accounting for the team’s only two free kick finishes in the past two years and leaving him one behind Camilo for most by an MLS player since the start of 2012.

In 2014, Feilhaber has started the most MLS matches (19) of any Sporting KC player and has suffered the second most fouls in MLS (48). He is among the top five MLS midfielders in the following statistical categories: passes (1050, No. 5), passes in opponents half (654, No. 5), successful passes in opponents half (510, No. 5), passes into final third (196, No. 2), touches (1399, No. 5), duels (232, No. 4), duels won (127, No. 5) and recoveries (153, No. 4).

Today’s honor is Feilhaber’s first career MLS Player of the Week recognition, finishing ahead of Robbie Keane (LA) and Bernardo Anor (CLB), and second by a Sporting KC player this season (Graham Zusi, Week 4). The team has also won each of the last two MLS Player of the Month votes with Dom Dwyer (May) and Eric Kronberg (June) receiving the accolades.
– Story from Sporting KC

Bonner grad youngest Sunflower Hills Club champion

by Alan Hoskins

Youth was served in the 2014 Sunflower Hills Club Championship Saturday.

At age 17, Marc McClain became the youngest club champion in history with a one-over par 73. McClain is a May graduate of Bonner Springs High School.

The club championship came on the heels of McClain’s winning the Kansas Class 4A state championship, a title won by three strokes with a 3-under 69 at Firekeeper Golf Course in Marietta. McClain will continue his golf career this fall at Kansas City Kansas Community College as one of several top prospects recruited by coach Gary Shrader.

McClain’s 73 was two shots better than another youngster, Tristan Abts, 19, and a 2013 graduate of Bonner Springs, and veteran Jerry Reid, a former Wyandotte County senior champion.

“I didn’t think 73 would be good enough,” said McClain, a past entrant in the Wyandotte County Open playing in his first club championship. “I thought 70 or 72 would win it. I was disappointed I wasn’t under par because I had a lot of good holes.”

Two came on the first two holes as McClain came out blazing with back-to-back birdies, running in his longest putt of the day, a 50-footer on No. 1 and then two-putting No. 2 after reaching the 476-yard par 5 with a drive and 8-iron.

However, bogeys at Nos. 3, 6 and 8 dropped him to one over at the turn before rebounding with birdies at Nos. 10 and 12. After the day’s longest drive on No. 10, McClain’s lob wedge hit the flag and stopped within three feet on No. 10 and a pitching wedge to within 15 feet on 12 produced the birdies.

A double bogey on No. 14 and bogey on the difficult 15th ended McClain’s hopes of a sub-par round but he finished the final three holes one under, birdieing the par 5 17th by chipping to within three feet.

A natural righthander, McClain swings lefthanded, something he picked up at an early age.

“My dad is lefthanded and when I was about 2 I started swinging his clubs and my parents thought I swung pretty good so I’ve stayed with it,” said McClain. By age 6, he was playing competitively and at 15, he fired a 5-under par 65 in the annual Vinzant-Cosnotti tourney at Overland Park while finishing second to an 18-year-old in the 54-hole tournament.

The son of Marc and Amy McClain, his older sister, Cassie, followed him on his title trail.

2014 Sunflower Hills Club Championship
Championship flight – 1. Marc McClain, 73; 2. (tie) Tristan Abts, Jerry Reid, 75; 4. Bob Chatterton, 76.
A – 1 Mike McNellis, 80; 2. (tie) Dave Hunt, Todd Milberger, 81; 4. Bretty Ricky, 82.
B – 1. Rick Richardson, 78; 2. (tie) Roger DeLong, Steve Sirridge, 80; 4. Moe Ryan, Charlie Sirridge, 82.
C – 1. Greg Loethen, 82; 2. Mike Tobin, 86. 3. (tie) Phil Hoffman, Dave VanDerwell, 87.
D – 1. Bill Pratt, 92; 2. Ted McClellan, 95; 3. Dan Schmidt, 99; 4. Tim Allen, 100.
Closest to hole No. 4, Moe Ryan; Longest putt No. 9, Dan Schmidt; Longest Drive, No. 10, Marc McClain.