Short of a technological breakthrough, the vaunted Monterey Shale oil formation underlying much of the southern Central Valley will yield no more than about 600 million barrels, or 96 percent less than previously believed, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The lower estimate, reported Wednesday by the Los Angeles Times, could be a big disappointment to Kern County's oil industry, which in recent years has attracted large investments from companies anxious to tap what the EIA had said was nearly 14 billion barrels of California shale oil.

Cal State Bakersfield should have a good idea of Seattle's strengths and weaknesses heading into today's Western Athletic Conference baseball tournament opener.

The same can be said for the Redhawks' knowledge of Bakersfield.

The ECHL announced on Tuesday that the Board of Governors has approved a request from the Las Vegas Wranglers for a voluntary suspension for the 2014-15 season.

The Wranglers were in informed in December that Boyd Gaming, the owner of the Orleans Arena where they had played the past 11 years, was not renewing their lease.

The ECHL announced on Tuesday that the Board of Governors has approved a request from the Las Vegas Wranglers for a voluntary suspension for the 2014-15 season.

The Wranglers were in informed in December that Boyd Gaming, the owner of the Orleans Arena where they had played the past 11 years, was not renewing their lease.

Services scheduled

Lester "Buddy" Aston, 72, Bakersfield, Feb. 21. Service 11 a.m. May 24, Amazing Grace Tabernacle. Doughty-Calhoun-O'Meara Funeral Directors.

Services scheduled

Johnnie Mae Cerro, 87, Bakersfield, May 17. Memorial Mass noon May 23, Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Doughty-Calhoun-O'Meara Funeral Directors.

PORTLAND, Maine — Most fans only see the clubhouse when its covered in clear plastic during a playoff champagne celebration, or during a post-game interview with the player.

But what happens before, during and after the game when there are no celebratory moments or post-game interviews?

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Two third-period goals to tie the game had the cow-bell equipped crowd of 4,122 whipped into a frenzy on Saturday night at Sullivan Arena.

Under prompting of the public address announcer, the crowd stood and roared as an overtime period against the Condors was about to begin.

Ben Lively limited Stockton to a run on five hits in seven innings to lead the Bakersfield Blaze to a 9-5 victory over the Ports on Sunday in Stockton.

Lively (7-1) walked two and had four strikeouts.

Services pending

Frank Cooper, 90, May 18, Bakersfield. Rucker's Mortuary.

ANCHORAGE -- Gary Steffes scored three minutes into overtime to life the Condors to a 3-2 victory over Alaska Saturday at Sullivan Arena.

The victory evened the ECHL Western Conference FInals at a game apiece with the next three games in Bakersfield, starting on Friday night.

SEATTLE -- Austin Davis and Hayden Carter combined to hold Seattle University to just four hits as Cal State Bakersfield rolled to a 10-0 win on Saturday to close out the Western Athletic Conference regular season.

The Roadrunners (24-31) are at the WAC baseball tournament beginning Wednesday.

SEATTLE -- Austin Davis and Hayden Carter combined to hold Seattle University to just four hits as Cal State Bakersfield rolled to a 10-0 win on Saturday to close out the Western Athletic Conference regular season.

The Roadrunners (24-31) are at the WAC baseball tournament beginning Wednesday.

Dallas-based Alon USA Energy Inc. has proposed an oil car offloading facility at the company's Rosedale Highway refinery.

A similar facility by Houston-based Plains All American Pipeline LP is under construction near Taft.

Because oil shipments from North Dakota to California qualify as interstate commerce, primary oversight responsibility falls to the federal government. But in practice, many state and local agencies also have a hand in preventing, preparing for or responding to oil spill accidents.

Here's a look at some of the government agencies most prominently involved:

A series of recent derailments have raised concerns about the risks of shipping oil in mile-long "unit trains," especially highly combustible light crude from the Bakken shale formation in and around North Dakota.

Here are some recent accidents involving shipments of Bakken crude:

First responders think of the rail yard by Bakersfield High School when they envision the worst-case scenario in Kern County's drive to become a major destination for Midwestern oil trains.

If a derailment there punctures and ignites a string of tank cars, the fireball's heat will be felt a mile away and flames will be a hundred feet high. Thick acrid black smoke will cover an area from downtown to Valley Plaza mall. Burning oil will flow through storm drains and sewers, possibly shooting flames up through manholes.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The Alaska Aces spent much of the third period on Friday night pressuring the Condors.

And it was a turnover with less than three minutes left that led to the winning goal as the Aces beat the Condors 2-1 in the opening game of the ECHL Western Conference Finals before 4,197 at Sullivan Arena.

SEATTLE -- Cal State Bakersfield's hopes of earning the No. 2 seed in next week's Western Athletic Conference baseball tournament were dashed Friday when Seattle posted an 8-5 win, the Roadrunners' fourth straight loss.

CSUB (23-31, 14-12 WAC) concludes its regular season today at noon with the series finale vs. Seattle.

SEATTLE -- Seattle University damaged Cal State Bakersfield's hopes of earning the No. 2 seed in next week's Western Athletic Conference baseball tournament with a 4-2 win on Thursday to open a regular season-ending three-game series.

The loss drops Bakersfield to 23-30 overall and 14-11 in the WAC.