Great Plains News Digest
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MINNESOTA
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US–Immigration-Transportation Funds
Judge rules Trump administration can’t require states to help on immigration to get transport money
SUMMARY: A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from withholding billions of dollars in transportation funds from states that don’t agree to participate in some immigration enforcement actions. Twenty states sued after they said Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy threatened to cut off funding to states that refused to comply with President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda. U.S. District Judge John McConnell Jr. on Thursday barred federal transportation officials from carrying out that threat before the lawsuit is fully resolved. An attorney for the Department of Transportation had argued that the department had the legal discretion to set conditions on states receiving the congressionally appropriated funds.
WORDS: 595 – MOVED: 06/20/2025 9:40 a.m. CDT
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OKLAHOMA
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US–Opioid Crisis-Purdue Pharma
Purdue Pharma’s $7B opioid settlement plan could get votes from victims and cities
SUMMARY: A judge could decide Friday whether to advance OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma’s $7 billion-plus plan to settle thousands of lawsuits over the toll of opioids. State governments across the country have already signed on to the deal. If a judge approves, it would go to votes of other groups, including local governments and individual victims. Members of the Sackler family who own the company would pay up to $7 billion and give up ownership on the company. The U.S. Supreme Court rejected an earlier version of the deal because of the way it would have protected members of the family from lawsuits.
WORDS: 513 – MOVED: 06/20/2025 8:12 a.m. CDT
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SPORTS
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IOWA
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BKL–Fever-Valkyries
Kayla Thornton scores 16 points as Valkyries rally past Caitlin Clark, Fever 88-77
SUMMARY: Kayla Thornton hit two key 3-pointers over the final 4:57 and scored 16 points to go with six rebounds, and the Golden State Valkyries rallied past Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever 88-77. Clark had 11 points, nine assists and seven rebounds and her layup with 4:12 remaining pulled Indiana within two points — but Golden State had an answer to each threat. A raucous crowd roared as the Valkyries (6-6) sold out their sixth straight home game to start the season
WORDS: 381 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 11:14 p.m. CDT
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KANSAS
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BBO–Royals-Rangers
Jac Caglianone goes deep twice for 1st homers in majors as Royals beat Rangers 4-1
SUMMARY: Top prospect Jac Caglianone went deep twice for his first two homers in the majors, and the Kansas City Royals finished their first three-game sweep at Texas since 2003 with a 4-1 win over the Rangers. Vinnie Pasquantino added a two-run shot. Michael Wacha held the Rangers hitless until Wyatt Langford’s one-out single in the sixth. Wacha was the third Kansas City starter to win for the first time in June as part of the sweep. The Royals were coming off a 0-6 homestand that matched their longest losing streak of the season.
WORDS: 369 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 4:11 p.m. CDT
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BBO–Royals-Caglianone
Royals top prospect Jac Caglianone goes deep twice at Texas for his 1st big league homers
SUMMARY: Jac Caglianone has gone deep twice for his first two home runs in the big leagues. The top prospect of the Kansas City Royals hit both homers in lefty-lefty matchups in a 4-1 victory over the Texas Rangers. Caglianone won lefty-left matchups both times a day after sitting for the first time in the majors in part because of a left-handed starter for Texas. The 22-year-old hit a pair of solo homers. The first led off the second inning, and the second opened the ninth.
WORDS: 678 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 2:43 p.m. CDT
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GLF–Korn Ferry Tour-59
Adrien Dumont de Chassart shoots 59 in Wichita Open for 14th sub-60 round in Korn Ferry Tour history
SUMMARY: Adrien Dumont de Chassart of Belgium shot an 11-under 59 on Thursday in the Wichita Open for the 14 sub-60 round in Korn Ferry Tour history. Dumont de Chassart had 12 birdies and a bogey in the morning round at storm-damaged Crestview Country Club, with players allowed to lift, clean and place their golf balls in the fairways because of wet conditions. The 25-year-old former Illinois player broke the course record of 60 set by Justin Suh in the 2022 final round and matched by Alejandro Tosti in the 2023 final round. Cristobal del Solar set the Korn Ferry Tour record last year with a 13-under 57 in the Astara Golf Championship. Frankie Capan III and Stephan Jaeger have shot 58 on the tour.
WORDS: 356 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 6:46 p.m. CDT
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MINNESOTA
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BBO–Twins-Reds
Buxton powers Twins past Reds to stop 6-game slide
SUMMARY: Byron Buxton hit two home runs, including the second of back-to-back shots with Kody Clemens, and Ryan Jeffers had a homer and four RBIs as the Minnesota Twins beat the Cincinnati Reds 12-5 to end a six-game losing streak. Buxton, who went deep in all three games of the series, connected off Nick Martinez to give him leadoff homers in consecutive games. Buxton then launched his 15th homer in the second inning for a 4-2 lead following a two-run shot by Clemens. Jeffers added his fifth homer in the eighth, with Carlos Correa aboard.
WORDS: 411 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 3:27 p.m. CDT
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FBO–Women’s Tackle Football
Women’s tackle football gives female athletes opportunities in a game dominated by men
SUMMARY: Women have been playing tackle football for decades, mostly under the radar. Two leagues have raised their profile enough to have women competing for championships on ESPN2 in high-end venues. The Women’s National Football Conference will have its title game on the network for the first time. The game will be broadcast live on Saturday from the Dallas Cowboys’ Ford Center, a roughly 12,000-seat venue in Frisco, Texas. The Women’s Football Alliance will be back on the network for its championship game on July 26 at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, where MVP jerseys from previous title games are on display.
WORDS: 1104 – MOVED: 06/20/2025 12:18 a.m. CDT
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MISSOURI
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BBO–Royals-Rangers
Jac Caglianone goes deep twice for 1st homers in majors as Royals beat Rangers 4-1
SUMMARY: Top prospect Jac Caglianone went deep twice for his first two homers in the majors, and the Kansas City Royals finished their first three-game sweep at Texas since 2003 with a 4-1 win over the Rangers. Vinnie Pasquantino added a two-run shot. Michael Wacha held the Rangers hitless until Wyatt Langford’s one-out single in the sixth. Wacha was the third Kansas City starter to win for the first time in June as part of the sweep. The Royals were coming off a 0-6 homestand that matched their longest losing streak of the season.
WORDS: 369 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 4:11 p.m. CDT
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BBO–Cardinals-White Sox-Game 1
Contreras and Pozo rally Cardinals past White Sox in 1st game of doubleheader
SUMMARY: Willson Contreras hit a tying homer in the eighth inning and pinch-hitter Yohel Pozo singled home the go-ahead run as the St. Louis Cardinals rallied past the skidding Chicago White Sox 5-4 in the first game of a doubleheader. Chicago reliever Cam Booser began the eighth with a 4-2 lead and gave up a leadoff single to Alec Burleson. Contreras hit the next pitch out to left-center for a two-run shot. Nolan Gorman reached on Booser’s throwing error and scored the tiebreaking run with two outs when Pozo hit a line drive to left field on a full-count pitch, sending the White Sox to their seventh consecutive defeat. St. Louis has won three of four since a six-game slide.
WORDS: 412 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 5:07 p.m. CDT
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BBO–Royals-Caglianone
Royals top prospect Jac Caglianone goes deep twice at Texas for his 1st big league homers
SUMMARY: Jac Caglianone has gone deep twice for his first two home runs in the big leagues. The top prospect of the Kansas City Royals hit both homers in lefty-lefty matchups in a 4-1 victory over the Texas Rangers. Caglianone won lefty-left matchups both times a day after sitting for the first time in the majors in part because of a left-handed starter for Texas. The 22-year-old hit a pair of solo homers. The first led off the second inning, and the second opened the ninth.
WORDS: 678 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 2:43 p.m. CDT
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BBO–Brewers-Durbin
Brewers rookie Durbin, a Chicago-area native, hits home run in ‘homecoming’ at Wrigley Field
SUMMARY: Brewers infielder Caleb Durbin was able to thrill — and upset — a group of friends and family at Wrigley Field with one swing of the bat. The 25-year-old rookie from the Chicago suburb of Lake Forest, Illinois, cracked a two-run home run in the second inning Thursday that put Milwaukee ahead en route to an 8-7 win over the Cubs. He connected in his second game at the North Side ballpark and fifth in Chicago, following three against the White Sox earlier this season. While Durbin’s relatives and old Lake Forest High School pals were rooting for him, many also were pulling for the Cubs.
WORDS: 485 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 6:53 p.m. CDT
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BBO–Cardinals-White Sox-Game 2
Arenado hits 350th homer, drives in go-ahead run in 10th to help Cardinals sweep doubleheader
SUMMARY: Nolan Arenado hit his 350th homer in the third inning and drove in the go-ahead run in the 10th to help the St. Louis Cardinals beat Chicago 8-6 on Thursday night to sweep a doubleheader and hand the White Sox their eighth straight loss. Rookie Andre Granillo, who got the final out in the seventh for his first career victory in the first game, pitched a scoreless 10th for his first save in his fourth appearance. JoJo Romero (3-3) worked a scoreless ninth for the victory. Arenado hit the milestone homer following a three-run shot by Alec Burleson in the third and finished 3 for 5. He’s the seventh player with 350 homers and 10-plus Gold Gloves.
WORDS: 380 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 8:18 p.m. CDT
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FBO–Women’s Tackle Football
Women’s tackle football gives female athletes opportunities in a game dominated by men
SUMMARY: Women have been playing tackle football for decades, mostly under the radar. Two leagues have raised their profile enough to have women competing for championships on ESPN2 in high-end venues. The Women’s National Football Conference will have its title game on the network for the first time. The game will be broadcast live on Saturday from the Dallas Cowboys’ Ford Center, a roughly 12,000-seat venue in Frisco, Texas. The Women’s Football Alliance will be back on the network for its championship game on July 26 at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, where MVP jerseys from previous title games are on display.
WORDS: 1104 – MOVED: 06/20/2025 12:18 a.m. CDT
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NEBRASKA
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BBC–Coastal Carolina-Gilmore
Coastal Carolina is in CWS finals, and retired coach Gary Gilmore is happy to watch from afar
SUMMARY: Coastal Carolina has won 26 straight games and is in the finals of the College World Series. Gary Gilmore said he has had no second thoughts about retiring after last season even though the Chanticleers are on this sensational run. The 67-year-old Gilmore attended no Coastal Carolina games this season until the Chanticleers’ first two in the CWS last weekend. He sat in the stands at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha. He and his family will be back when the best-of-three finals against LSU start Saturday.
WORDS: 927 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 1:41 p.m. CDT
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FBO–Women’s Tackle Football
Women’s tackle football gives female athletes opportunities in a game dominated by men
SUMMARY: Women have been playing tackle football for decades, mostly under the radar. Two leagues have raised their profile enough to have women competing for championships on ESPN2 in high-end venues. The Women’s National Football Conference will have its title game on the network for the first time. The game will be broadcast live on Saturday from the Dallas Cowboys’ Ford Center, a roughly 12,000-seat venue in Frisco, Texas. The Women’s Football Alliance will be back on the network for its championship game on July 26 at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, where MVP jerseys from previous title games are on display.
WORDS: 1104 – MOVED: 06/20/2025 12:18 a.m. CDT
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BBC–CWS-Committed Coastal Carolina
Coastal Carolina all in on keeping baseball program a national power in new era of college sports
SUMMARY: Though many athletic programs outside the power four conferences are expected to drop off competitively when scholarship limits are removed and revenue sharing begins July 1, College World Series finalist Coastal Carolina is committed to continue playing with the big boys in baseball. Rosters will be capped at 34 in Division I baseball going forward, and first-year athletic director Chance Miller told The Associated Press all 34 at Coastal Carolina will receive full scholarships and be in line for direct rev-share payments. Miller said he also believes the Chanticleers will be competitive for name, image and likeness opportunities.
WORDS: 637 – MOVED: 06/20/2025 11:16 a.m. CDT
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OKLAHOMA
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SOF–Gasso’s Gig
Patty Gasso to make broadcast debut for Athletes Unlimited Softball League
SUMMARY: There’s not much Patty Gasso hasn’t done in the softball world, but she’s found something new to try. The U.S. national coach who has led the University of Oklahoma to eight national titles will be on a broadcast team for the first time. She will assist Amanda Scarborough, Chuckie Kempf and Savanna Collins when the Talons play the Volts in an Athletes Unlimited Softball League game. Gasso is taking advantage of the fact that the AUSL is in a traveling format in its first year and is visiting Oklahoma’s home field for a series.
WORDS: 508 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 9:57 a.m. CDT
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BKN–NBA Finals
Pacers roll past Thunder 108-91 to send the NBA Finals to a deciding Game 7
SUMMARY: Obi Toppin scored 20 points, Andrew Nembhard added 17 and the resilient Indiana Pacers sent the NBA Finals to a winner-take-all Game 7 by rolling past the Oklahoma City Thunder 108-91 on Thursday night. Pascal Siakam had 16 points and 13 rebounds for Indiana, while Tyrese Haliburton — playing through a strained calf — scored 14 points for the Pacers, who started slowly and then turned things into a blowout. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 21 points for the Thunder, who pulled their starters after getting down by 30 going into the fourth. Jalen Williams added 16. Game 7, the first one in the NBA Finals since 2016, will be Sunday night in Oklahoma City.
WORDS: 569 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 9:08 a.m. CDT
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BKN–NBA Finals-Thunder Thud
Thunder on the wrong end of 36-9 run, head home for Game 7 showdown against resilient Pacers
SUMMARY: The run lasted about 12 minutes, roughly the span of a full quarter. When it started, Oklahoma City was down by just one point. And when it ended, after a 36-9 run, plans for Game 7 were being made. There was no championship celebration for the Thunder on Thursday night — and their first chance at winning these NBA Finals was a colossal dud. Oklahoma City got blown out 108-91 by the Indiana Pacers in Game 6, sending the series back to the Thunder’s home floor for a winner-take-all Game 7 on Sunday night.
WORDS: 473 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 10:22 p.m. CDT
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BKN–NBA Finals-Pacers-Haliburton
Tyrese Haliburton helps spark Pacers’ Game 6 win over Thunder while playing with strained calf
SUMMARY: Tyrese Haliburton played with a strained left calf and helped spark the Indiana Pacers to a victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 6 of the NBA Finals. His night ended early, and that was a good thing for the Pacers, who cruised to a 108-91 win. Haliburton finished with 14 points in 23 minutes. Haliburton has been dealing with lower leg issues throughout the series and the calf strain flared up in Game 5 on Monday night. He missed his first four shots on Thursday. And then, he somehow got back to normal.
WORDS: 857 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 5:56 p.m. CDT
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BKN–NBA Finals-Thunder Watch Party
Thunder fans expecting to celebrate NBA title see hopes dashed as Indiana forces Game 7
SUMMARY: Oklahoma City fans who confidently flocked to the Paycom Center expecting to celebrate the Thunder’s first NBA championship went home facing the possibility that their team might not win the title. The Thunder took a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series into Thursday night’s Game 6 in Indianapolis, and Indiana’s star player, Tyrese Haliburton, was hobbled with a strained calf. It didn’t matter. Indiana rolled to a 108-91 win, and now Thunder fans will have to rally one more time, at home in Game 7. Fans started to leave the arena at the end of the third quarter.
WORDS: 624 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 10:34 p.m. CDT
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BKN–NBA Finals-Pacers
Pacers avoid 2nd straight home-court playoff exit, routing Thunder to force Game 7
SUMMARY: The Indiana Pacers did not let another home-court opportunity slip away Thursday night. Not with a raucous crowd on its feet almost from start to finish, not with Reggie Miller and nearly a dozen former Pacers cheering them on and certainly not with the first NBA title in franchise just two wins away. So the Pacers dug down, fought through injuries and finally played their way. They knocked down 3-pointers, forced turnovers and had the heavily gold-clad crowd doing high-fives between the third and fourth quarters as Indiana extended its season with a 108-91 victory over the the Oklahoma City Thunder. The winner-take-all Game 7 is Sunday night in Oklahoma City
WORDS: 596 – MOVED: 06/19/2025 10:30 p.m. CDT
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BKN–NBA Finals Guide
NBA Finals guide: When the games are, how to watch, what the odds are
SUMMARY: Game 7 awaits. The Indiana Pacers sent the NBA Finals to the ultimate game, beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 108-91 on Thursday night to tie the title series at 3-3. The all-or-nothing deciding game of the series is Sunday night in Oklahoma City. It’ll be the 20th Game 7 in NBA Finals history. Home teams have gone 15-4 to this point — but a road team won the most recent one of these showdowns, when Cleveland topped Golden State in 2016.
WORDS: 1140 – MOVED: 06/01/2025 8:57 a.m. CDT
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BKN–NBA Finals-Looking Ahead
For Pacers and Thunder, there’s no looking back now. All eyes are only on Game 7 in the NBA Finals
SUMMARY: Game 6 of the NBA Finals had been over for only about 10 or 15 minutes, and the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder were turning the page. What happened over the previous couple of hours had already been deemed irrelevant. The only thing on their minds: Game 7. A back-and-forth title matchup will end on Sunday night with an ultimate game, the first winner-take-all contest in the NBA Finals since 2016. It’ll be Pacers at Thunder, one team getting the Larry O’Brien Trophy when it is over, the other left to head into the offseason wondering how they let the chance slip away.
WORDS: 796 – MOVED: 06/20/2025 7:34 a.m. CDT
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BKN–NBA Finals-Game 7-Numbers
Inside the numbers: Pacers, Thunder set to play Game 7 for NBA title on Sunday night
SUMMARY: For the 20th time, there will be a Game 7 in the NBA Finals. Indiana will play at Oklahoma City on Sunday night in the final game of the season, with the winner getting the Larry O’Brien Trophy. Home teams are 15-4 in Game 7 of the finals, but a road team — Cleveland, over Golden State — won the most recent of those games in 2016.
WORDS: 860 – MOVED: 06/20/2025 12:21 p.m. CDT
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