From Staff and Media Reports
January
Clemson University pounded the University of Alabama 44-16 Jan. 7 at Levi’s Stadium in the College Football Playoff (CFP) National Championship game, giving Clemson its second CFP title in three seasons.
The Kansas City Chiefs’ season ended with a 38-31 overtime loss to New England Jan. 20 in the AFC title game at Arrowhead Stadium.
February
New England defeated the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 – the lowest scoring Super Bowl to date – Feb. 3 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium to win Super Bowl LIII, giving the Patriots their sixth NFL championship. The Patriots are tied with Pittsburgh for most league championships during the Super Bowl era. Green Bay has the most overall league championships with 13 – nine of them before the Super Bowl era.
In men’s soccer news, Sporting Kansas City opened CONCACAF Champions League play with a 3-0 win over Liga MX club Deportivo Toluca Futbol Club S.A. de C.V. Feb. 21 at Children’s Mercy Park. Sporting then defeated Toluca Feb. 28 at the Estadio Nemesio Diez to win the two-stage, round-of-16 series 5-0 on aggregate goals.
March
Sporting lost the first leg of its CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal series with C.A. Independiente de La Chorrera 2-1 March 6 at the Estadio Augustin Sanchez. It then won its MLS regular-season and home opener to the Philadelphia Union 2-0 March 10 and the second leg of its series with Independiente 3-0 March 14, both at Children’s Mercy Park.
The Big 12 Conference postseason men’s basketball tournament took place March 13-16 at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri. Iowa State University won the tournament, capping the championship run with a 78-66 win over the University of Kansas (KU).
The Kansas State University men’s basketball season ended with a 70-64 loss to UC Irvine March 22 at the SAP Center.
The KU men’s basketball season ended with an 89-75 loss to Auburn University March 23 in the NCAA Division I national tournament at Vinit Smart Home Arena.
Georgetown (Kentucky) College cruised past Carroll College 68-48 March 26 in Kansas City, Missouri’s Municipal Auditorium to win the NAIA Division I men’s national basketball tournament.
The Kansas City Royals opened the season by defeating the Chicago White Sox 5-3 March 28 at Kauffman Stadium.
On March 29 and 31, the Sprint Center hosted games in the NCAA Division I national men’s basketball tournament. Auburn advanced to the Final Four with a 77-71 overtime win over the University of Kentucky.
April
Having won its series with Independiente on aggregate goals, Sporting advanced to face C.F. Monterrey in the CONCACAF Champions League semifinals. Monterrey won the first leg 5-0 April 4 at the Estadio BBVA Bancomer.
Baylor University edged the University of Notre Dame 82-81 April 7 at Amalie Arena for its third NCAA Division I national women’s basketball title and first since 2012.
The University of Virginia defeated Texas Tech University 85-77 April 8 at U.S. Bank Stadium for the NCAA Division I men’s basketball title.
Monterrey defeated Sporting 5-2 April 11 at Children’s Mercy Park to win the CONCACAF Champions League semifinal series on aggregate goals.
In golf, American Tiger Woods won the Masters Tournament, which concluded April 14 in Augusta, Georgia. The field included Spaniard Jon Rahm, who finished in a three-way tie for ninth.
In indoor soccer news, the Kansas City Comets’ 2018-19 season ended when they were swept 2-0 by the Milwaukee Wave in the South Division final of the Ron Newman Cup playoffs. The Comets lost the first game 5-2 April 18 at Silverstein Eye Centers Arena and the second game 10-3 April 20 at UM-Milwaukee Panther Arena.
Monterrey defeated UNAL 1-0 April 23 at the Estadio Universitario in the first leg of an all-Mexican CONCACAF Champions League final.
May
Monterrey and UNAL played to a 1-1 result May 1 at the Estadio BBVA Bancomer in the second leg of the CONCACAF Champions League final. Monterrey won the title on aggregate goals.
NASCAR staged races May 10-11 at Kansas Speedway. On May 10, Ross Chastain won a Gander Outdoors Truck Series race, leading a field that included Kansas City, Kansas, native Jennifer Jo Cobb. Brad Keselowski won the Digital Ally 400 a Monster Energy Cup Series race, May 11 in overtime.
In pro baseball news, the Kansas City T-Bones opened their regular season with an 3-0 win May 18 over the visiting Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks.
In Mexican soccer news, UNAL won the Clausura 2019 Liga MX title on aggregate goals. UNAL defeated Club Leon 1-0 May 23 at the Estadio Universitario in the first game of the two-stage final. The second leg, held on May 26 at the Estadio Leon, ended 0-0.
June
Anthony Ruiz Jr. stunned the boxing world when he defeated Anthony Joshua with a seventh-round technical knockout June 1 at Madison Square Garden to win the WBA superheavyweight, and IBF, IBO and WBO heavyweight titles.
In hockey news, the NHL Stanley Cup finally came to Missouri when the St. Louis Blues won their first Stanley Cup by defeating the Boston Bruins in the finals. St. Louis capped the best-of-seven series June 12 with a 4-1 Game 7 road win.
Sporting’s run toward another U.S. Open Cup title ended with a 4-1 fourth-round loss to Minnesota United FC June 12 at Allianz Field.
In pro basketball news, an NBA title finally came to Canada when the Toronto Raptors defeated the Golden State Warriors 4-2 in the NBA Finals. The Raptors capped the best-of-seven series with a 114-110 June 13 Game 6 road win.
July
In soccer news, the United States won its fourth Women’s World Cup by defeating the Netherlands 2-0 July 7 at Groupama Stadium (a.k.a., the Parc Olympique Lyonnais).
For the first time in its history, the Tour de France general classification title went to a Latin American – Egan Bernal of Colombia. The top 10 general classification finishers in the annual cycling race included two other Colombians and two Spaniards. The 21-stage race concluded July 28 in Paris.
August
The Chiefs opened the preseason with a 38-17 win over the Cincinnati Bengals Aug. 10 at Arrowhead.
In men’s soccer, Atlanta United defeated Minnesota United FC 2-1 Aug. 27 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium to win the U.S. Open Cup.
The Chiefs finished the preseason 1-3, capping their preseason schedule by falling to Green Bay 27-20 Aug. 29 at Lambeau Field.
September
The T-Bones closed their American Association of Independent Professional Baseball regular season Sept. 2 with a 9-5 home loss to the Sioux City Explorers. They then fell to Sioux City 3-1 in a best-of-five playoff series, losing the final game 5-2 Sept. 8 at home.
The Chiefs opened the NFL regular season Sept. 8 with 40-26 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field. On Sept. 22, the Chiefs held off the Baltimore Ravens 33-28 at Arrowhead in their regular-season home opener.
On Sept. 23, Royals manager Ned Yost announced he would retire at season’s end. On Sept. 29, the 65-year-old managed his last ballgame – a 5-4 comeback win over Minnesota at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals finished 59-103 – their third straight losing season and their second straight 100-loss season. They placed fourth in the American League Central Division.
October
Sporting Kansas City’s season ended Oct. 6 with a 6-0 drubbing by FC Dallas at Toyota Stadium. Finishing 11th out of 12 teams in the MLS Western Conference, Sporting failed to make the MLS Cup playoffs for the first time since 2010, when the franchise was named the Kansas City Wizards.
On Oct. 14, multiple news sources reported the T-Bones had been thrown out of their home ballpark in Kansas City, Kansas, by the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas, for being $700,000-plus in arrearage to utility service providers and the Unified Government. On Oct. 17, it was reported the Unified Government had approved Max Fun Entertainment LLC’s request to enter a five-year contract with the Unified Government to rent the facility, pending Max Fun’s purchase of the T-Bones from John Ehlert and his family.
There were three races the weekend of Oct. 18-20 at Kansas Speedway. Christian Eckes won the Kansas ARCA 150 Oct. 18; Brandon Jones won the Kansas Lottery 300, a 300-mile NASCAR XFINITY Series race, Oct. 19; and Chase Elliott won the Hollywood Casino 400, a Monster Energy Cup Series playoff race, Oct. 20.
Mexican-born track star Enriqueta Basilio died Oct. 26. Basilio gained notoriety for lighting the Olympic cauldron at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, making her the first female to perform the honor.
In baseball news, the Washington Nationals won their first World Series title, capping the best-of-seven series with a 6-2 Game 7 comeback win over the Houston Astros Oct. 30 at Minute Maid Park. It was the first World Series in which the visiting ballclub won every game.
The day after the end of the historic World Series, the Royals named their successor to Yost as team manager – ex-St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny.
November
Seattle Sounders FC defeated Toronto FC 3-1 Nov. 10 at CenturyLink Field for the MLS Cup title.
Vera Clemente died Nov. 15 in Puerto Rico. The wife of the late Hall of Fame outfielder Roberto Clemente, she oversaw the head of the non-profit foundation named after husband and represented Major League Baseball as a goodwill ambassador.
NASCAR driver Kyle Busch won the Monster Energy Cup championship by winning the Ford EcoBoost 400 Nov. 17 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
In indoor soccer news, the Kansas City Comets opened their 2019-20 season with a 6-5 Nov. 22 road loss to the Turlock Cal Express.
On Nov. 25 and 26, the Sprint Center hosted championship round games of the Hall of Fame Classic. Butler University defeated Stanford University 68-67 for the title. The University of Oklahoma defeated the University of Missouri 77-66 for third place.
December
Park University of Parkville, Missouri, reached the NAIA national women’s volleyball quarterfinals. The Pirates’ season ended with a loss to Westmont College Dec. 6 in Sioux City, Iowa.
In boxing news, the Joshua-Ruiz rematch took place Dec. 7 in Saudi Arabia. Joshua reclaimed the WBA superheavyweight, and IBF, IBO and WBO heavyweight titles.
The Chiefs won the AFC West title and qualified for the AFC playoffs, slated to begin in January 2020, with their 23-16 win over New England Dec. 8 at Gillette Stadium.
Central Methodist University, a school based in Fayette, Missouri, won the NAIA national title in men’s soccer by defeating Hastings (Nebraska) College 3-1 Dec. 7 in Irvine, California. It was the second straight national title for the Eagles, whose roster included one Brazilian and seven players from predominantly Spanish-speaking countries.
On Dec. 10, Sporting announced the signing of Mexican soccer star Alan Pulido. Pulido, along with manager and Sporting director Peter Vermes, fielded questions from the media about the signing during a Dec. 11 conference call.
In men’s basketball news, KU trounced the University of Missouri-Kansas City 98-57 Dec. 14 at the Sprint Center.
K-State lost to St. Louis University 66-3 Dec. 21 in men’s basketball in the Wildcat Classic at the Sprint Center.
At press time, the Chiefs were preparing to finish their regular season this Sunday (Dec. 27) against the Los Angeles Chargers at Arrowhead.
