Thursday Sports, April 6th, 2023
MITCHELL KERNELS
— Mitchell Track & Field has added an indoor meet on Thursday at Dakota Wesleyan starting at 11 am.
— Mitchell Kernels softball is now scheduled to start its inaugural season on Tuesday, April 11th when they host Aberdeen Central. Mitchell softball has had its first three games of the season PPD. There have only been three Class AA softball games played this season, the first in which softball is a sanctioned sport in South Dakota.
— Mitchell spring baseball is scheduled to open the season on Monday, April 10th vs. Pierre at Drake Field, pending field conditions. Mitchell was scheduled to start its season last week, but had four games in Rapid City PPD due to weather.
— Mitchell boys tennis has a triangular schedule for Tuesday, April 11th in Brookings where they will take on the Bobcats and Aberdeen Roncalli.
— Mitchell girls golf will open the season on April 13th at the Harrisburg Invitational. The state girls golf championship will be at Hillsview Golf Course in Pierre on June 5-6.
— The annual South Dakota All-Star high school basketball games are Friday, April 7 at the Sanford Pentagon. The games will feature the top seniors in girls and boys basketball as selected by the South Dakota Basketball Coaches Association. The girls play at 6:30 p.m., while the boys play at 8 p.m. Tickets will be available at the Sanford Pentagon Box Office. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students. Dylan Soulek of Mitchell will be on the boys Blue team led by Lower Brule head coach Brian LaRoche. Also on the Blue team is Reed Rus of Mt. Vernon/Plankinton and Damon Wilkinson of DeSmet. Madison head coach Jeff Larson will lead the Red team, which is comprised of White River’s Joe Sayler and future DWU teammates Ethan Cheeseman of Hanson and Kaden Year of SF Jefferson.
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
— South Dakota State’s Myah Selland and Haleigh Timmer were named to the five-player Summit League Women’s Basketball Academic All-League Team on Wednesday. Selland holds a 3.98 undergraduate GPA. She already holds a degree in exercise science and is pursuing a second degree in community and public health. Selland is a three-time Academic All-American. The 2023 Summit League Player of the Year led the Jackrabbits in scoring (16 PPG), rebounding (6 RPG) and steals (1.5) in her senior season. Timmer, a sophomore, carries a 4.0 GPA in mathematics. She was SDSU’s second-leading scorer this year with 12 points per contest to go with 3.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists, on average. Timmer earned a spot on the Summit League Second Team and was named the MVP of the Summit League Tournament. This is her first Academic All-League honor. To be eligible for the Academic All-League team, a student-athlete must have a cumulative GPA of at least 3.30 (on a 4.0 scale), completed at least one full academic year at the current institution and participated in 50 percent of his team’s competitions.
— SDSU baseball had its game at Minnesota on Wednesday cancelled and it won’t be made up. Up next for Jackrabbit baseball is a three-game series at Western Illinois that starts on Friday at 3 pm.
— SDSU softball has moved its weekend series vs. Omaha to Augustana in Sioux Falls. The three-game series starts with a doubleheader on Friday starting at 11 am.
— SDSU football season ticket holders and Jackrabbit Club members will have the first opportunity to purchase tickets for the Jackrabbits’ Sept. 16 game versus Drake at Target Field in Minneapolis, with an exclusive presale beginning at 10 a.m. on Thursday, April 13. Presales for SDSU community members, including faculty/staff, alumni and students will begin at 10 a.m. on Friday, April 14. All presales end at 10 p.m. on Sunday, April 16. Prices for non-premium tickets range from $16-$109, depending on location, plus applicable fees. Tickets for SDSU students in the south end zone are $20 each. Kickoff for the game is set for 2:30 p.m.
DAKOTA WESLEYAN
— Dakota Wesleyan’s Wyatt Bauldauf has been named the GPAC Track and Field Athlete of the Week. Baldauf broke the school record in the steeplechase, which is now his fifth school record he has broken this season. He currently has the top time in the 3000m steeplechase in the GPAC and fourth best in the NAIA. He finished third last week at the Bobcat Classic in San Marcos, Texas, which was full of NCAA Division I competition, with a time of 9 minutes, 23.84 seconds.
— DWU baseball won its first GPAC game of the season on Monday with a 4-3 win at Dordt. Tiger baseball is scheduled for a pair of doubleheaders this week at Briar Cliff with two games on Thursday at 1 pm and two more games in Sioux City on Saturday, also at 1 pm.
— DWU softball is scheduled to be at Morningside for a doubleheader on Saturday at 1 pm.
SOUTH DAKOTA
— USD softball will be in Sioux Falls to weekend to face North Dakota State. Due to recent snowfall in Fargo, the three-game series has been moved to Augustana. The first game of the series is Friday at 4 pm.
— South Dakota junior Jacy Pulse of Salem has been named the Summit League Track and Field Peak Performer of the Week. Pulse clocked a personal best of 58.25 seconds in the 400-meter hurdles at the Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays this past week. That time ranks second in USD program history, currently leads the Summit League and ranks 30th in the nation. She also posted a personal best for 200 meters, finishing in 23.98 seconds at the Bobcat Invitational. That time moved her to seventh in USD program history. Pulse was a member of the Coyotes’ winning 4×100-meter relay at the Bobcat Invitational, which finished in 45.05 second, for one tenth of a second off their school record from a week ago. Pulse earned the weekly award for the first time this season and second time of her career.
MINNESOTA TWINS
— The Marlins defeated the Twins for the second straight day 5-2 behind seven innings from Jesus Luzardo. Luzardo limited the Twins to just one run while striking out 10. Jorge Soler hit a solo HR in the first inning to put Miami up 1-0 and then broke the game open with a three run HR in the 8th to put the Marlins up 5-1. Pablo Lopez pitched well for Minnesota in his second start of the season. Lopez, facing his former team, allowed one run and three hits with 8 strikeouts in seven innings. The Twins have today off before playing their season opener vs. the Astros on Friday.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
— Connecticut’s victory over San Diego State in the men’s national championship game ended up being the lowest-viewed final on record. The Huskies’ 76-59 win averaged 14.6 million viewers on CBS. The previous low was 15.9 in 2018, when Villanova beat Michigan on TBS. UConn’s 2004 victory over Georgia Tech, which averaged 17 million, was the lowest on CBS until Monday night. CBS and TBS began alternating Final Fours in 2016. Still, Monday’s game was the most-watched program on television that evening and the most-watched basketball game — college or pro — since Kansas’ victory over North Carolina in last year’s national championship game.
— Bill Self said he’s doing well after a health scare kept him from coaching Kansas in the Big 12 and NCAA tournaments last month. He reiterated Wednesday that he has no plans to step away from the Jayhawks any time soon. Self spoke to reporters for the first time since March 8, when he went to an emergency room after a final shootaround for the conference tournament. He was complaining of chest tightness and concerns about his balance. The 60-year-old Self had two stents placed to help treat blocked arteries at the University of Kansas Health System.
NFL
— Baltimore Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said QB Lamar Jackson’s situation isn’t causing the Ravens to look at quarterbacks differently in the upcoming draft, although he did say the team could conceivably take one in the first round. As of now, the Ravens have the 22nd pick in the first round. The Ravens put the franchise tag on Jackson last month, so if he were to reach an agreement with another team and Baltimore decided not to match it, the Ravens could receive two first-round picks in return. Jackson also announced recently that he’d requested a trade.