NEWTON, Iowa (AP) — Ryan Blaney survived a flurry of late cautions to win the NASCAR Xfinity race Saturday night at Iowa Speedway for his first victory of the season. Blaney erased the sting of a disappointing runner-up finish last week in Indianapolis by maintaining his lead through a second green-white-checkered finish on the 0.894-mile oval.

Blaney won after finishing second three times in his other six Xfinity starts this season. Regan Smith was second, followed by Brian Scott, Ty Dillon and Brendan Gaughan. Fifty-one-year-old Kenny Wallace, the career Xfinity starts leader with 547, finished 15th in the last race of his NASCAR career.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – There was already going to be plenty of competition for one of the starting cornerback jobs in Kansas City, even before the Chiefs learned Sean Smith would be suspended for the first three games of the regular season. Now, there are two jobs up for grab.

The battle began in earnest Saturday, when the Chiefs had their first full-squad workout of training camp on the campus of Missouri Western. Nearly a dozen players on the roster are capable of playing cornerback, and nearly half have a realistic shot at a starting job. That makes the competition one of the most intriguing of camp.

Sat., Aug. 1st 2015 at Principal Park in Des Moines

Class 1A

Newman Catholic 10, Pleasantville 0 (five innings) –

The Newman Catholic Knights won the Class 1A state championship game 10-0 over the Pleasantville Trojans behind Joey Verstegen’s no-hitter and a 10-run fifth inning Saturday at Principal Park. It was Newman Catholic’s fifth state title (1998, 2002, ’09, ’13 and ’15) and their first since 2013. Verstegen’s no-hitter was the fifth in an Iowa state title game and the first since J.D. Nielsen turned the trick in 2012 for Martensdale-St. Marys. Both teams came into the title game with the best team-ERAs in 2015 tournament play.

Class 2A

Clear Lake 11, Columbus Catholic 1 (five innings) –

Clear Lake defeated Columbus Catholic 11-1 in five innings to win the Class 2A state championship Saturday afternoon at Principal Park.Clear Lake ended at 30-11. The Lions won the 3A state title in 2013. Columbus closed the season at 32-6.

Class 3A

Waverly-Shell Rock 11, Harlan 1 (five innings) –

Number one-seeded Waverly-Shell Rock exploded for eight runs in the bottom of the fifth inning as they defeated the number three-seeded Harlan Cyclones 11-1 to claim the class 3A title on Saturday at Principal Park. Waverly-Shell Rock capped the third straight run-rule shortened game of our four state final games on Saturday. It was their first state baseball title in school history.

Class 4A

Southeast Polk 6, Iowa City West 2 –

Southeast Polk got an early lead after a four-run first inning and never looked back. The Rams defeated the Iowa City West Trojans, 6-2 to win back-to-back 4A state championships.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Ric Hanson.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (4.1MB)

Subscribe: RSS

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) – Chiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson and defensive tackle Mike DeVito, both coming back from season-ending injuries, were among the veterans reporting to training camp Friday. This is generally a loathsome period for veterans, with insufferable practices in heat often topping triple digits. But Johnson and DeVito wore broad grins on their faces as they ambled up the pathway to Scanlon Hall at Missouri Western State University.

Johnson’s season ended before halftime of last season’s opener when he ruptured his Achilles tendon with nobody near him. He remains 15 tackles away from breaking the franchise record. Eight plays later, DeVito went down with the same injury at nearly the same spot on the field. And without him on the line, the Chiefs struggled all season to defend the run.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Matt Carpenter homered for the third time in two games, Michael Wacha pitched seven crisp innings and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Colorado Rockies 7-0 on Friday night.

Friday’s Semi-finals
Class 3A
Waverly-Shell Rock 12, Boone 2
Harlan 6, Pella 5
Class 4A
SE Polk 14, Waukee 10
Iowa City/West 5, Cedar Rapids/Kennedy 2

Today’s Championship Games (8/1)
Class 1A
11:00-a.m. Mason City/Newman Catholic (38-4) vs. Pleasantville (35-3)
Class 2A
1:30-p.m. Waterloo/Columbus Catholic (32-5) vs. Clear Lake (29-11)
Class 3A
5:00-p.m. Waverly/Shell Rock (34-4) vs. Harlan (28-7)
Class 4A
7:30-p.m. SE Polk (32-13) vs. Iowa City/West (34-11)

NEWTON, Iowa (AP) — Kenny Wallace has made more starts in NASCAR’s second-tier circuit than anyone. Yet he’s arguably known more for his TV work than his driving. Wallace is set for one last weekend in the spotlight before retiring from NASCAR as a driver. Wallace will make his 547th and final NASCAR Xfinity start Saturday night at Iowa Speedway.

Iowa has become known as a showcase for NASCAR’s youngest drivers. But the attention will be focused on the 51-year-old Wallace, the brother of track designer and Hall of Famer Rusty Wallace.

Down 5-4 and with runners on second and third and two outs in the top of seventh inning, eighth grader Brett Sears looped the game-winning two RBI single down the left field line to propel the Cyclones to a 6-5 come from behind win over number two-seeded Pella in the Class 3A semifinals on Thursday afternoon.

Pella concluded their season 34-5. It was their second state tournament appearance in school history, and first since 1997. Number three-seeded Harlan will advance to the title game against Number one-seeded Waverly-Shell Rock (34-4). The championship game is set for Saturday, August 1 at 5 p.m. back at Principal Park.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Jim Field.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (5.5MB)

Subscribe: RSS