The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Ric Hanson.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (4.6MB)

Subscribe: RSS

NEWTON, Iowa (AP) — Christopher Bell has been one of NASCAR’s rising young stars for the past few years. Over the past few weeks, Bell and the Joe Gibbs Racing No. 20 car have been so hot that he is close to joining some pretty select company.

Bell, a 23-year-old Oklahoma native and an Xfinity Series rookie, heads into tonight’s (Saturday night’s) race at Iowa Speedway seeking to become the first series regular with a three-race winning streak since Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 1999. Kyle Busch did it four times between 2008 and 2016 but he was also running full-time in the Cup Series — something Bell might be doing sooner rather than later if he keeps winning like he has.

“It would definitely be something special,” Bell said of the chance to win three straight. “To be able to get two in a row at Kentucky and Loudon, which are race tracks that are extremely different, is something that I’m proud of for our team … and we’ve got a good shot at it. We’ve been really fast here at Iowa.”

In less than three years, Bell has grown from largely an unknown driver to one in serious pursuit of both a second straight NASCAR championship — he won a Trucks title last year driving for Busch — and a shot at a ride at the sport’s highest level.
Bell got something of a late start to NASCAR, at least compared to some of his fellow drivers who were in a stock car before they even graduated high school.

Bell ran a pair of K&N races and seven Trucks events in 2015, winning for the first time on the dirt at Eldora. Bell showed enough promise to land a full-time truck ride with Kyle Busch Motorsports in 2016, winning just once but finishing in the top 10 in 19 of 23 events. Last season was the first of consecutive breakout seasons for Bell. He won five times and finished in the top five 15 times, and he clinched the championship by finishing second at Homestead.

Bell moved up yet again in 2018, landing a 23-race Xfinity deal with JGR after running just eight times in the series — including a win at Kansas in 2017.

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Paul DeJong had three hits and three RBIs, Yadier Molina also had three hits and drove in a run, and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Chicago Cubs 5-2 before a season-high crowd of 47,169 at Busch Stadium. DeJong’s RBI triple, just the sixth for the Cardinals this season, tied the game at 1 in the third and Jose Martinez followed with an RBI single to give St. Louis the lead.

SEATTLE (AP) — The Seattle Mariners have bolstered their bullpen by acquiring right-handed reliever Sam Tuivailala from the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for minor-league pitcher Seth Elledge. Tuivailala is 3-3 with a 3.69 ERA in 31 appearances for St. Louis this season, his second full season in the big leagues. Tuivailala will join a bullpen that’s been worked extensively in numerous close ball games.

NEW YORK (AP) — The game between the Kansas City Royals and New York Yankees has been postponed because of rain. The game never started and was called a half-hour after it was supposed to begin. The game will be made up as part of a split doubleheader Saturday.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers have acquired third baseman Mike Moustakas from the Kansas City Royals, making their second deal in as many days as the club makes a push for its first playoff appearance since 2011. The Brewers sent outfielder Brett Phillips and pitcher Jorge Lopez to the Royals, who are in last place in the AL Central.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) — Eric Bieniemy has taken over as the Chiefs’ offensive coordinator after Matt Nagy left to become the head coach in Chicago. The former running back is the first coach whom Reid has elevated to that job who wasn’t a quarterback. But Bieniemy has proven an astute observer of the game during his time in Kansas City, giving Reid confidence he’s up to the task.

NEWTON, Iowa (AP) — Christopher Bell has been one of NASCAR’s rising young stars for the past few years. He has been red hot late. The Joe Gibbs Racing driver and the No. 20 have won two straight races in the Xfinity Series. The 23-year-old Xfinity rookie from Oklahoma heads into Saturday night’s race at Iowa Speedway seeking to become the first series regular with a three-race winning streak since Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 1999.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (5.8MB)

Subscribe: RSS

Class 3A Semifinals – Friday, July 27

11:00—#2 Harlan (32-3) vs. #6 Waverly-Shell Rock (34-7)

1:30—#1 Assumption, Davenport (32-10) vs. #4 Bishop Heelan, Sioux City (32-10)

Class 4A Semifinals – Friday, July 27

5:00—#2 Urbandale (34-6) vs. #6 Epworth, Western Dubuque (34-9)

7:30—#4 Valley, West Des Moines (28-15) vs. #8 Cedar Rapids, Washington (26-17)

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) — Sammy Watkins made quite the impression on the first day of Kansas City Chiefs training camp. The veteran wide receiver is one of the newest options for first-year starting quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago Cubs have placed third baseman Kris Bryant on the 10-day disabled list because of an inflamed left shoulder. This is is Bryant’s second stint on the DL. The injury caused him to miss 16 games and affects the follow-through on his swing. He is batting .276 with 11 home runs and 44 RBIs. To fill the roster spot, the Cubs recalled infielder David Bote from Triple-A Iowa.

NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees slugger Aaron Judge sustained a fractured right wrist when he was hit by a fastball and is expected to miss three weeks, overshadowing New York’s 7-2 victory against the Kansas City Royals. The Yankees said Judge had a chip fracture and that no surgery has been recommended.

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Alex Morgan’s hat trick led the U.S. women’s national team to a 4-2 victory over Japan in its opening match of the four-team Tournament of Nations. Megan Rapinoe also had a goal and an assist for the Americans, who are using the round-robin event as a tune-up for World Cup qualifying next month. Australia beat Japan 3-1 in the other opening match Thursday.

Class 1A Semifinals – Thursday, July 26

Newman Catholic, Mason City 6, Martensdale-St. Marys 0

Lisbon 4, North Linn, Troy Mills 2

Class 1A Championship — Saturday, July 28th

11:00am—#1 Newman Catholic, Mason City (39-1) vs. Lisbon (36-0)

Class 2A Semifinals – Thursday, July 26

Centerville 13, Wilton 0 (5 innings)

Regina, Iowa City 4, Van Meter 3

Class 2A Final – Saturday, July 28

1:30—#1 Regina, Iowa City (29-7) vs. #6 Centerville (26-7)

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (5.6MB)

Subscribe: RSS

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Mike Moustakas had two hits, including a run-scoring double, in what might have been his final home game for the Kansas City Royals, an 8-4 loss to the Detroit Tigers. A key member of the Royals’ 2015 World Series championship team, Moustakas became a free agent after last season, then signed with Kansas City in March. With the Royals last in the AL Central at 31-70, he could be dealt before Tuesday’s deadline for trades without waivers.

CINCINNATI (AP) — Eugenio Suarez homered for the third straight game, Tucker Barnhart added a two-run shot and the Cincinnati Reds powered to a 7-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. Adam Duvall also homered for the Reds. Sal Romano (6-8) allowed two runs and seven hits in six innings to give the Reds consecutive series wins over St. Louis for the first time since 2011.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Newly released records show that a grand jury investigating alleged recruiting abuses in college basketball ordered the University of Kansas this year to turn over communications involving its men’s team coaches and at least one prospective recruit. It also demanded copies of agreements between the university and Adidas and communications between the coaches and Adidas representatives. The university released redacted copies of two subpoenas and said they don’t suggest wrongdoing by Kansas.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Last week, the high school baseball team in Marshalltown, Iowa, was busy celebrating an unlikely berth in the state tournament. Less than 24 hours later, the Bobcats, their families, neighbors and friends were ducking for cover as an EF-3 tornado ravaged their town. It’s been an extraordinarily hectic time ever since for the Bobcats, who finally got back to baseball again Wednesday night in a state quarterfinal against powerhouse Urbandale

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — The U.S. women’s national team opens the four-team, round-robin Tournament of Nations against Japan on Thursday night in in Kansas City, Kansas. They will also face strong teams in Australia and Brazil. But their attention is somewhat split between winning the tournament and fine-tuning their roster for World Cup qualifying, which takes place in October.