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Naile’s injury devastating for KBO-leading Tigers (8/27/24)A shockwave rippled through the Kia Tigers’ clubhouse and their loyal fanbase back home in Charleston, Missouri, as news broke of ace pitcher James Naile’s season-ending injury. The right-hander, a hometown hero who’s been a cornerstone of the Tigers’ dominance this season, was struck in the face by a line drive during Saturday’s game against the NC Dinos. Naile left the field under his own power and underwent successful surgery on Sunday...
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Battlehawks to host six home games in 2025 (8/20/24)Looking the maximize the golden goose of the gate, the St. Louis Battlehawks will host six home games during the 2025 United Football League season. Typically UFL teams split the 10-game schedule with five games at home and five on the road. The rare sixth home game will come with the San Antonio Brahmas making two trips to St. Louis rather than both teams hosing a game against each other. The UFL announced the move on Tuesday, Aug. 20, through a statement by UFL CEO/President Russ Brandon...
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Rays promote Misner to majors (8/1/24)Former Poplar Bluff Mules standout Kameron Misner is headed to the major leagues. Misner was called up by the Tampa Bay Rays Thursday from Triple-A Durham. The news was confirmed by Misner’s father, Terry, and Poplar Bluff High School athletic director Kent Keith...
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Stallions cement spring dynasty with UFL championship (6/18/24)As young as the modern era of spring football is, the Birmingham Stallions have established it as theirs to rule by securing the inaugural UFL championship with a 16-0 win over the San Antonio Brahmas on Sunday, June 16, in St. Louis. The championship game marks the end of the first year of a league formed by the merger of the USFL and XFL. The Stallions won the past two USFL titles and have cemented their dynasty with a third straight trophy...
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Southeast alums Lucchesi, Dodd fighting through midseason NL East minors stints (6/11/24)It’s time for a quick update on the Southeast Missouri State alumni in the Major Leagues, with a pair of pitchers still fighting for roster spots in the National League East. The seventh and eighth players respectively to enter the MLB out of SEMO, Joey Lucchesi and Dylan Dodd are both in active battles to get back to the majors in a tight NL East...
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Aj McCarron battles injury and emotion in XFL Conference title loss (6/10/24)St. Louis Battlehawks quarterback AJ McCarron sat by himself during his postgame press conference, the last to face the media after falling to the San Antonio Brahmas 25-15 in the XFL Conference championship on Sunday, June 9, in St. Louis. While answering a question asked about his reinjured ankle at the end of the first half, he took a quick glance at his two sons, who arrived shortly after he did...
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Battlehawks’ season ends in UFL playoffs (6/10/24)It was deja vu at the “Battledome.” A rematch between the St. Louis Battlehawks and the San Antonio Brahmas felt like a redo for the team who lost the week before. “It was super weird,” receiver Hakeem Butler said. “Although we won, it felt like it was only halftime. That’s how I approached the week. There was still another part of the game.”...
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Injury aside, AJ McCarron has an opportunity to leave lasting legacy in St. Louis (6/7/24)It’s been nine years since St. Louis Battlehawks quarterback AJ McCarron has played in a playoff game. The 33-year-old will have the opportunity to play for a spot in the UFL Championship Game when the Battlehawks host the San Antonio Brahmas in the XFL Conference Championship Game on Sunday, June 9, in St. Louis...
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Battlehawks well represented in inaugural All-UFL team (6/7/24)In the days leading up to the playoffs this weekend, the United Football League released its first All-UFL list on Wednesday, June 5. Four St. Louis Battlehawks players (RB Jacob Saylors, WR Hakeem Butler, OT Jaryd Jones-Smith, and C Mike Panasiuk) made the offensive list while linebacker Willie Harvey was the team’s lone defensive representative...
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Special teams key to Battlehawks' success (6/7/24)Throughout the UFL season, St. Louis Battlehawks head coach Anthony Becht has emphasized the importance of having an elite special teams unit. “We preach it every day,” said Becht earlier in the season. “We want to be the best special teams unit in the league. I feel like we have an elite special teams unit.”...
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Kameron Kelly ‘a ball hawk’ for the Battlehawks (6/7/24)The St. Louis Battlehawks enter the XFL Conference Championship Game against the San Antonio Brahmas on Sunday, June 9, as the host with a flawless record at the Dome at America’s Center. Of all the many gladiators who thrived in the bi-weekly spectacle that is the “Battledome”, few have recently brought the 32,000+ fans to their feet like an interception by defensive back like Kameron Kelly...
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COLUMN: Catalin Clark is women's basketball's protagonist whether she likes it or not (6/5/24)As I write this column, it's only fair that I say on the front end that I don't follow the WNBA, mainly because basketball isn't my favorite sport. However, as a stark observer of the national zeitgeist, I have noticed in the two years in which women's basketball has become a popular sport, with television ratings topping the men in the NCAA Tournament and the summer in which the WNBA is enjoying unprecedented media coverage, Indiana Fever rookie Catalin Clark of Iowa represents the constant throughline.. ...
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Battlehawks narrowly edge Brahmas in AJ McCarron’s return, secure home-field advantage in playoffs (6/2/24)The Battlehawks’ first game of the UFL season ended in a loss after a long field goal from the Michigan Panthers. Anthony Becht wasn’t willing for it to happen again in the final game of the regular season. With a new block package in place for scenarios like this, the head coach of St. Louis watched as his special teams unit blocked San Antonio kicker Ryan Santoso’s last-second field goal to secure a 13-12 win on Saturday, June 1, at the Dome at America’s Center...
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Battlehawks loss sets up high stakes home finale (5/27/24)Battlehawks A pair of Week 9 upsets have set the stage for a high stakes regular season finale. The St. Louis Battlehawks fell on road contest to the Arlington Renegades, 36-22, and the San Antonio Brahmas dropped the previously undefeated Birmingham Stallions 18-9 on Saturday, May 25...
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St. Louis City falls to Seattle 2-1 (5/27/24)ST. LOUIS — Jordan Morris scored a goal for the second consecutive game and Stefan Frei had four saves to help the Seattle Sounders beat St. Louis City 2-1 Saturday night. Cristian Roldan, on the right side, played an entry that was redirected by St. Louis defender Kyle Hiebert into the net for an own goal that gave the Sounders a 1-0 lead in the 66th minute...
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Becht ‘building a resume’ with Battlehawks success (5/25/24)The St. Louis Battlehawks (6-2) are one step closer to fulfilling the UFL prophecy of playing in the championship game that they’re hosting on June 16. They are set to play the San Antonio Brahmas (6-2) — who just so happens to be their Week 10 matchup — in the XFL Conference Championship Game...
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COLUMN: Steady defense has Battlehawks in playoffs (5/22/24)Even though the St. Louis Battlehawks have proven to be the superior team in all but two games this season, the games have remained close and still required heroic moments from their defense. “We all believe in each other,” said Battlehawks free safety Qwynnterrio Cole, who led the team with eight tackles and an interception. “We’re all we got. We’re all we need.”...
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Battlehawks clinch playoffs in QB Manny Wilkins’ first start since 2018 (5/19/24)The last time Manny Wilkins stepped on the football field as the starting quarterback, he led the Arizona State Sun Devils past the Fresno State Bulldogs in the 2018 Las Vegas Bowl. Six years later, Wilkins was called upon to lead a team under center, and he delivered the St. Louis Battlehawks a place in the UFL Playoffs with a 26-21 win over the DC Defenders on Sunday, May 19, at the Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis...
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COLUMN: Kicker's controversial commencement should not lead to new precedent (5/17/24)"Controversy: disagreement, typically when prolonged, public, and heated." We never usually think disagreeable speech would lead to controversy, but it fits the definition. Harrison Butker, kicker of the two-time Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, recently delivered the 2024 commencement address at Benedictine College, a small Catholic school in Atchison, Kansas...
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St. Louis fighters, fans shine on UFC Fight Night (5/12/24)Joaquin Buckley called his shot, got his fight and it resulted in not just a win in front of the hometown crowd, but also a record-setting gate for UFC Fight Night on Saturday, May 11, in St. Louis. 15,960 fans entered the Enterprise Center and its $2,470,197 gate represents the highest domestic UFC Fight Night of all time...
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Missouri natives headline UFC's return to St. Louis (5/10/24)For the first time since 2018, the UFC has brought its worldwide traveling combat circus to St. Louis. St. Louis natives Joaquin Buckley and Sean Woodson highlight a main card that ends with heavyweight Derrick Lewis taking on Rodrigo Nascimento in the main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday, May 11, at the Enterprise Center...
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Kapp makes impact on Battlehawks special teams (5/7/24)As the St. Louis Battlehawks continue winning in dominating fashion on offense and defense, there is a third phase of their success that is underrated. Special teams is a unit that nobody on the team aims to be a part of, outside of, of course, the kicker, punter and long snapper...
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Battlehawks rough up Houston, continue winning streak (5/6/24)St. Louis Battlehawks offensive coordinator Bruce Gradkowski warned against taking the one-win Houston Roughnecks lightly leading up to their Week 6 matchup because of how close many of the games in the UFL have been this season. The Battlehawks heeded his warning, as the defense strangled the Roughnecks offensive attack and their areal attack flourished in a 22-8 victory on Saturday, May 4, in St. Louis...
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From NFL quarterback to UFL coach, all part of the journey for Battlehawks' Bruce Gradkowski (5/3/24)Back in 2006, Anthony Becht caught only one touchdown pass as the tight end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The lone touchdown pass was thrown to him by rookie quarterback Bruce Gradkowski in a 20-17 home win over Washington on Nov. 19, 2006. 18 years later, Becht is in his second year as the head coach of the St. Louis Battlehawks, and Gradkowski is now his offensive coordinator...
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Battlehawks dominate Defenders, remain on top XFL Conference (4/30/24)The St. Louis Battlehawks followed up one one-sided win in Week 4 with an even more lopsided lambasting over the DC Defenders, 45-12, on Sunday, April 28, at Audi Field in Washington. “If you’re a head coach watching all of that for four quarters, you sit back and take it in,” Battlehawks head coach Anthony Becht said. “I love this team. They deserve to be 4-1.”...