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Tonga’s 1st try keeps Utah Warriors’ playoff dreams alive with 3rd-straight win

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Tonga’s 1st try keeps Utah Warriors’ playoff dreams alive with 3rd-straight win


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HERRIMAN — The Utah Warriors’ third straight win was never in serious jeopardy on Saturday.

But Tomasi Tonga’s first try of the season was bigger than any match-winner.

The Herriman native dived for the try line in the final seconds of the weekend’s match against Rugby ATL, dotting it down in the mere corner of the west try zone to give Utah a 28-12 win over Rugby ATL to keep the home club’s playoff hopes alive with three matches remaining in the 2023 regular season.

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With their third straight win, the Warriors improved to 9-4 with 43 points on the season, tied with Houston for third place in the West and a tiebreaker over the SaberCats on head-to-head results after Saturday’s win in front of a franchise-record crowd of 4,650 fans at Zions Bank Stadium. Only Seattle (11-2) and San Diego (11-1) sit in front of the Warriors in the Western Conference with 54 points on the year.

“It’s unreal. I love playing here; I get excited when we get home games,” said Warriors front row Onehunga Havili after the match. “Everyone is loud from the start to the end. … I think they deserve the win, and they deserve us getting to the playoffs as we play for our fans and our families.”

Joe Mano and Joel Hodgson each scored in the first half, and Utah jumped out to a 14-5 lead by halftime.

The Warriors stretched the advantage to 21-5 through Calvin Whiting’s try in the 47th minute. Atlanta responded just a few moments later to pull within 21-12, but Utah dominated the front row and controlled the scrum to take a two-score lead into the final 10 minutes.

All that the Warriors lacked was a fourth try, which would’ve given Utah a crucial bonus point as it tried to keep pace with the Houston SaberCats for the third and final playoff berth out of the Western Conference.

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Instead, it was the visiting Rattlers that pushed for a third try that would’ve earned the East’s fourth-place team a bonus point for losing by seven or fewer points. But the try never came, after Utah forced two turnovers from less than five meters out in the final 10 minutes.

Tonga sprinted with seconds remaining, stretching for the post to dot down what would’ve been the Warriors’ fourth try in the closing seconds.

The former U-17 and U-18 All-American who prepped at Herriman High worked his way up to professional rugby with the local Utah Saints amateur side and the Warriors’ Selects developmental team.

But on Saturday night, the 6-foot, 230-pound center pushed his hometown club crucially closer to postseason contention with a try that also went to video review to confirm the call on the field.

“I think the boys are just having belief on each other and start playing for each other,” Havili said. “It was our goal to get to the playoffs, and now we just have to play every game and fight for that spot.”

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Utah hits the road next Saturday, June 4 to face the West co-leading Seattle Seawolves in Tukwila, Washington. The Warriors then return home June 10 at 8 p.m. MDT to host the Chicago Hounds in the regular-season home finale before wrapping up the regular season June 19 at the New York Ironworkers.

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Utah

Utah is now completely out of drought status

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Utah is now completely out of drought status


SALT LAKE CITY — For the first time in five years, the entire state of Utah is out of a drought status.

The latest map from the U.S. Drought Monitor shows no part of the state being in drought status, though about 25% is still considered abnormally dry.

“Portions of the state, mainly along that eastern and southern border, are abnormally dry,” KSL Meteorologist Matt Johnson said. “But basically, we are completely out of a drought.”

Johnson says this is because Utah’s most recent wet winters have been crucial in restoring the state’s water supply.

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“We’ve had two really good winters, one of them record-setting, as far as snow-water equivalent. So this has been huge for getting us on the right path.”

However, Johnson said whether we stay out of drought conditions will be contingent on how hot it gets this summer, and how much rain Utah gets when monsoon season hits. 

“If we’re not in a drought, now we are planning for the next,” Johnson said, quoting a saying from The Utah Department of Natural Resources. “That just kind of comes with the territory…we are one of the top three driest on average so it’s not foreign territory for us to have dry weather.”

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“Planting parties” at Utah Lake working to rid the lake of invasive phragmites

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“Planting parties” at Utah Lake working to rid the lake of invasive phragmites


UTAH COUNTY, Utah — The Utah Lake Authority is hosting “planting parties” to put native vegetation in places where invasive plant species had previously been spreading.

Phragmites are a type of reed that have been taking over at Utah Lake and places across the country. Utah Lake Authority’s Deputy Director Sam Braegger said they have been partnering with other agencies to keep the phragmites at bay.

Now Braegger said they’re working toward revegetation with lots of groups who want to help them plant more native species.

“It’s been great to have groups come and help in that way, and I think they find it very fulfilling to spend an hour or two on the shoreline,” he said. “Our staff are all out there with them. They get to learn and ask questions about the lake. And then, help give back in putting plants into the ground.”

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Utah Lake Authority has spent more than 15 years dealing with phragmites, according to Braegger.

“Beating back the phragmites has been necessary for some time because phragmites is very aggressive,” he said. “It grows in very thickly, so it’s terrible habitat. There’s not very much of wildlife, birds and fish, that can get in there.”

This is the Utah Lake Authority’s first time doing a “concentrated revegetation” effort.

“We’ve put out some seed before, in recent years, but just seed is all we’ve done,” Braegger said. “This year, for the first time, we’re going out and actually planting 10,00 plugs.”

Braegger said the goal is to plant over 40,000 seed plugs next year.

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Heather Peterson is a reporter and producer for KSL NewsRadio. She also produces Utah’s Noon News.

Potentially toxic algal bloom detected at Utah Lake

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Videos show fireworks veer into crowd at Stadium of Fire concert in Utah, injuries reported

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Videos show fireworks veer into crowd at Stadium of Fire concert in Utah, injuries reported


Multiple videos have surfaced Thursday evening showing a fireworks display at the Stadium of Fire concert in Provo, Utah, with rogue shots straying into the audience. Early reports state that one person was taken to a hospital with serious injuries while others were reportedly injured.

Several firefighters immediately responded to reports of injuries in the crowd, according to Fox 13 in Salt Lake City.

Fireworks at large gatherings in Utah are nothing new, like the ones that lit up the sky above the stadium for the grand finale of the Opening Ceremony of the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympic Games at the Rice-Eccles Olympic Stadium. (Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

The incident happened at LaVell Edwards Stadium, the football facility for Brigham Young University. Just as the national anthem is heard ending, and as four fighter jets fly over the stadium, a fireworks display begins behind the stage.

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Fireworks shot into the sunlit sky vertically, but stray sparks are seen firing horizontally into the crowd near the stage. Crowdgoers were reportedly seen waving their hands in the air for officials to render help.

Freedom Festival, which facilitates Stadium of Fire and other yearly events across the country, tweeted that all fireworks were “thoroughly checked” before Thursday’s show and then checked again after the incident.

“Safety is of the utmost importance to us. All pyrotechnics at Stadium of Fire are thoroughly checked before the show, and were rechecked after tonight’s incident. Our thoughts are with those who were impacted, and we are following up with them to make sure they are okay.”

UTAH FIRE CAPTAIN DIES IN COLORADO RAFTING ACCIDENT AT DINOSAUR NATIONAL MONUMENT

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After a pause in activities, the concert resumed with Jonas Brothers taking the stage around 9 p.m. and closing out the show with no other reported mishaps.

Provo Police Department spokesperson Janna-Lee Holland told KUTV the incident happened just after the flyover.

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The number of injuries and each of their severities is unknown at the time.

Videos like the one seen in this tweet show pyrotechnics not only firing into the stands, but also onto the field where people were either standing or in a seated area.

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