Metro Sports Report

Robinson gives No. 2 Eagles a boost

Kirkwood Coach Kim Muhl never saw Leah Robinson play in high school and never saw her play in any spring or summer tournaments.

In fact, he cannot remember if Robinson played in any pick-up games when she visited Kirkwood on a recruiting trip last year.

It didn't matter.

The coach at Kentucky State University thought Robinson could use a little seasoning at a junior college before attending a four-year school, so he called Muhl and recommended his friend take a look.

Muhl also sought a second opinion from another college coach and got another strong recommendation.

"It's all about having friends," Muhl said Wednesday night with a smile. "She visited, liked it here and we signed her."

It turned out to be a great piece of recruiting, even though Muhl barely had to lift a finger.

Robinson has been a key reserve for the second-ranked Eagles all season and showed her worth again in a 78-42 stroll past Ellsworth in an ICCAC conference game at Johnson Hall.

Stranded SWCC players turn to summer league

The softball players at Southwestern Community College in Creston were bitterly disappointed this winter when the school announced it was canceling the 2018 season because there were only 11 student/athletes on the team.

Now at least two of those SWCC players will be finding an outlet in the Iowa Women's Softball League this summer. It's not the same as a college campaign, but it's the next-best thing in Iowa.

Addison Westercamp, a freshman at Southwestern, contacted the league this past weekend about playing this summer. She has not enrolled yet, but plans to register in the near future.

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Westercamp contacted Meghan Gould, another freshman at Southwestern, and Gould promptly enrolled in the IWSL on Saturday. So even though SWCC will not be playing any games this spring, Westercamp and Gould will get to play 16 games this summer.

Gould is a middle infielder who was named to the Blue Grass All-Conference team while attending Murray High School. She lives in Osceola. Westercamp is a third baseman who attended Moulton-Udell High School.

Olivia Goodale, a sophomore All-American pitcher at Indian Hills Community College, also has enrolled for Year 2 of the summer league, putting 32 players in the fold with many more on the way.

KCC baseball splits with No. 17 Johnson County

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. - The Kirkwood baseball team split a doubleheader  with Johnson County Community College Sunday.

The Eagles won the first game, 9-4, in eight innings. Johnson County  took the nightcap, 4-3.

Kirkwood (2-2) and Johnson County (8-3) split the four-game series in  Kansas. Johnson County is ranked No. 17 in NJCAA Division I. Kirkwood  is not ranked in Division II.

The first game was tied, 4-4, after seven innings. The Eagles plated  five runs in the top of the eighth for the victory.

Kaden Wadle pitched 2 1/3 shutout innings for the Eagles in the opener  and got the victory in relief.

Izaya Fullard went 2-for-5 in the first game and scored a pair of  runs. Kal Youngquist and Max McCay drove in two runs. Ellison Hanna  scored twice.

No. 3 KCC men win title in thriller

CRESTON - The third-ranked Kirkwood men's basketball team claimed the  outright ICCAC conference title Saturday afternoon and they did it by  edging the 2017 national champs in a thriller.

Doug Wilson had a monster game for the Eagles with 23 points and 13 rebounds, including the go-ahead tip-in with 16 seconds left in an  82-80 verdict over 18th-ranked Southwestern in Creston.

Kirkwood raised its records to 22-4 overall and 10-0 in the conference  with its 14th win a row. There are two games left in the regular  season, but nobody can catch the Eagles now.

Kirkwood trailed, 80-79, when Wilson tipped in a shot to give the  Eagles an 81-80 advantage. The Eagles stopped Southwestern from  scoring to preserve the lead, then the Spartans fouled Kirkwood  freshman Jay Small to stop the clock and prolong the game.

Small made 1-of-2 free throws for an 82-80 lead, then Wilson stole the  ball in the final seconds to preserve the victory.

Chris King popped in 24 points for Kirkwood. LJ Stansbury contributed  14 points for the Eagles.