By John Mesh
Matt Westfall, Danny Jennings and Mitchel Moles will be among the drivers competing in the Silver Crowns and 2025 Evans Building USAC Saltcity 100 Friday and Saturday at the Kansas State Fairgrounds in Hutchinson.
Westfall, from Pleasant Hill, Ohio, competes in sprint car, midget, silver crown, modified and late model driver. He is the driver of the RMMotorsports 33m sprint car.
Jennings, from Norman, Okla., is a six-time Hutchinson Grand Nationals winner.
Moles, 24, from Raisin City, Calif., was the 2022 National Midget Rookie of the Year 2024 Eastern Storm Champion.
He raced to victories with Reinbold-Underwood Motorsports in both USAC National Sprint and Silver Crown competition in 2024.
Pits opened Friday at 3 p.m., gates at 5 p.m., hot laps at 6:45 p.m. and racing starts at 7:30 p.m.
Classes competing are IMCA Stock Car, IMCA Modified, IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car, United Rebel Sprint Series and IMCA Northern SportMod.
On Saturday, pits open at noon, gates open at 5 p.m., hot laps are at 6:30 p.m. and racing starts at 7 p.m.
Class competing on Saturday are IMCA Modified, IMCA RaceSaver Sprint Car and United Rebel Sprint Series.
Friday tickets: https://www.myracepass.com/
Saturday tickets: https://www.myracepass.com/
Monarch players earn weekly recognition from JCL
Hutchinson Monarchs’ Carson Gonzales was named one of Jayhawk Collegiate League Pitchers of the Week.
Gonzalez posted an earned run average of 0.00, struck out five, walked two and held opponents to a .133 batting average.
Hutchinson catcher Jeter Worthley was recognized as one of the JCL’s Players of the Week. He posted a fielding percentage of 1.000.
Worthley batted .583 (seven hits in 12 at-bats) with an OPS (on-base and slugging percentage) of 1.450. Worthley also stole three bases.
Halstead’s SIK Pre-Season Player to Watch: Bailey Bernal
Bailey Bernal, a 5-foot-10 six-rotation outside hitter from Halstead High School (Class 3A) iwas highlighted as one of Sports in Kansas’ high school volleyball players to watch.
Bernal is entering her junior year after a record-setting 2024 season.
Bernal is coming off a dominant sophomore season in which she helped lead Halstead to an incredible 43-2 overall record and the first state title in school history.
She finished the year with 478 kills, hitting at a .326 percentage, and added 271 digs defensively.
Her performance earned her multiple postseason honors, including First Team All-State. She was named to the All-State Tournament Team.
On the basketball court, she was also part of a State Championship team this winter. In her freshman volleyball season, Bernal recorded 175 kills with a .212 hitting percentage and 194 digs as a two year starter heading into her junior season.
She credits much of her excitement and passion for the game to the team culture at Halstead and the friendships she’s built through volleyball.
“I am so excited for my junior season. Fall is my favorite time of the school year because of high school volleyball. I feel like it’s the best part of school, and I enjoy getting to do what I love with some of my best friends,” she said.
NBC World Series Aviation Night slated for Aug. 1
The National Baseball Congress World Series will hold Aviation Night Friday, Aug. 1.
That’s when the NBC World Series semifinal games are scheduled.
Aviation Day and Alumni Weekend presented by NIAR, Yingling, Kansas Aviation Museum, KFH and FOX TV.
Gates open at 5 p.m. Semifinal games start at 6 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. at Eck Stadium-Tyler Field.
Alumni recognition events also taking place. Fans can meet past NBC stars. Thee will be activities for aviation fans.
Summer leagues conclude for Reno County Sabres basketball teams
Summer leagues have come to a close for another year for the Reno County Sabres basketball teams.
The Reno County Sabres junior high school girls partnered with Haven schools to finish 8-0 in the Sterling summer league and take first place in the A division.
The Reno County Sabres junior varsity boys basketball squad also went undefeated at 10-0 and took first at the McPherson summer league.
The Sabres’ varsity boys posted an 8-2 record and finished in a three-way tie for first place.
The Reno County Sabres’ high school girls competed at the Sterling summer league.
Blue Dragons assistant softball coach Ray Aguirre honored
HutchinsonCC Sports Information
Hutchinson Community College assistant softball coach Ray Aguirre earned a national honor on Wednesday being named the Easton/National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) NJCAA Division I National Assistant Coach of the Year.
Aguirre has been with the Blue Dragon softball program for since 2017. He became a full-time assistant coach in 2021.
Over that span, the Blue Dragons have won 198 games, two Jayhawk Conference titles, a Region 6/Plains District championship and was part of Hutchinson’s first-ever appearance in the NJCAA Softball World Series.
Aguirre serves as the Blue Dragons’ pitching coach, first-base coach and Recruiting Coordinator. He is also in charge of field maintenance.
“Ray is a tireless worker and recruiter,” Blue Dragon head coach Jaime Rose said. “His compassion for the players is unmatched.”
As the Blue Dragon pitching coach, Hutchinson’s average staff earned run average has been 3.60 since 2021.
Aguirre’s 2022, 2023 and 2024 pitching staffs all rank in the Top 5 in program single-game history. The 2024 Region 6 champion’s team ERA is second all-time at 2.75. The 2023 team is fourth at 2.80 and the 2022 team is fifth at 2.89.
The 2025 pitching staff endured injuries throughout the season and under Aguirre’s tutelage, the Blue Dragons still posted a 3.59 team ERA en route to a conference title.
Pitcher Morgan Tomlinson, a two-time 20-win pitcher at Hutchinson, was a first-team All-KJCCC selection, Jessica Schmidt was a second team selection and Aubree Thomas as an honorable mention all-conference player.
Aguirre has coached two All-American pitchers in his tenure: Dakota Lake (2024/NFCA) and Riley Wertz (2022/NJCAA).
Blue Dragon athletes place 13th in final 2024-25 ANTYCAA Ron Case Cup Standings
Hutchinson CC Sports Information
The Hutchinson Community College Athletic Department had an exceptional 2024-25 season and that was reflected by a 13th-place performance in the final NATYCAA Ron Case Cup standings released on Wednesday.
The Ron Case Cup, which is presented by the Daktronics Scholarship Division, recognizes overall program excellence in two-year colleges.
Colleges are allowed to use their top five finishes per gender at their highest level of competition to earn points. The champions of each competition score 20 points, second place scores 19, third place 18, etc.
Led by the Blue Dragon national championship football team, Hutchinson’s athletic department amassed 97.5 total points in the Rose Case Cup standings.
Men’s cross country finished third and the women’s cross country team placed sixth at the NJCAA Championships.
Men’s golf was fourth, the outdoor men’s track and field team finished sixth and indoor track team was 16th.
The Blue Dragon women’s basketball team advanced to the second round of the 2025 NJCAA Division I National Tournament.
Hutchinson was the third-highest ranked team from the Jayhawk Conference in the final 2024-25 standings. Barton was fourth with 163 points.
Cowley was eighth with 129.5 points. Johnson County was 17th 80.5 points and Butler was 26th with 62.5 points.
2024-2025 RON CASE CUP FINAL RESULTS TOP 30
Kansas schools in bold
1. Iowa Western 179.5
2. College of DuPage 165
3. Iowa Central 164.5
4. Barton 163
5. New Mexico 153.5
6. Salt Lake 140.75
7. Odessa 133
8. Cowley 129.5
9. Pima 119.5
10. Indian Hills 112.5
11. Heartland 104
12. Wallace State 103.75
13. Hutchinson 97.5
14. South Plains 92
15. Tyler 88
16. Mesa 83.5
17. Johnson County 80.5
18. Mineral Area 78
19. Kirkwood 74
20. Daytona State 72.5
20. Des Moines Area 72.5
22. Northwest Mississippi 70
23. Rock Valley 65.5
24. Shelton State 64.5
25. Eastern Florida State 63.5
26. Butler 62.5
27. Central Arizona 62
28. Murray State 59.75
29. Jones County 57.5
30. Kellogg 57