August 30, 2026 8:13 am
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Ryan Preece won the NASCAR Cup Series regular-season finale at Daytona International Speedway in overtime Saturday night to take the final playoff spot. Preece, who violently flipped twice in recent years at Daytona, moved to the front during a green-white-checkered finish. Bubba Wallace and Austin Cindric locked up the other two available spots. Wallace, Cindric, Shane van Gisbergen, Preece and Brad Keselowski started the night vying for the final three spots in the 10-race Chase for the championship. The playoffs begin next week at Darlington Raceway.
August 30, 2026 8:14 am
NEWPORT, R.I. (AP) — Roger Federer was brought to tears numerous times during his induction speech at the International Tennis Hall of Fame on Saturday. As sunset crept in at Newport’s grass horseshoe court at the entrance of the Hall, the 45-year-old Federer strolled up to the stage for his speech, kissed and hugged his wife, Mirka, who had just introduced him, and realized what a challenge it was going to be. “Oh man,” were the first words from the first man ever to win 20 Grand Slam singles titles. “This is very high level and a tough act to follow.”
August 29, 2026 4:44 am
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Quinn Mathews allowed one run over 5 2/3 innings for his first major league win, and Jimmy Crooks hit a two-run homer to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 4-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Ryne Stanek struck out two in the ninth for his second save. Nolan Gorman had a double in the third and Crooks followed with his fifth home run for a 2-0 lead. Jordan Walker and José Fermín singled leading off the fourth, and Nathan Church hit a sacrifice fly for a 3-0 advantage. Jared Triolo had two of Pittsburgh’s six hits and drove in a run with a two-out single in the fifth.
August 29, 2026 4:06 am
Riverhounds’ Gibson claims Coach of the Year award
PITTSBURGH (Aug. 26, 2026) — Pittsburgh Riveters head coach Scott Gibson was named the USL W League Central Conference Coach of the Year for 2026, adding to the club’s honors after an undefeated regular season and trip to the conference final. Gibson, the Riveters head coach for both of the team’s seasons, took the squad from a 6-1-3 record in its first season to a 9-0-1 finish this year winning a second consecutive Great Forest Division title. The Riveters conceded only five goals in 10 regular season matches and only trailed for nine minutes out of 900 while putting together the unbeaten slate. Beyond the on-field performance, Gibson also was the point man for putting together the Riveters’ roster. In the team’s second year, the roster boasted a mix of key homegrown returners with roots in the Riverhounds Academy, such as Piper Coffield, Bella Vozar and Lola Abraham, paired with a strong assortment of newcomers recruited to the team by Gibson, including Ellen Molloy, Brielle LaBerge and Taylor Green. Gibson was one of four Coach of the Year honorees, one from each USL W League conference. To see the full list of honorees, visit USLWLeague.com. The award comes one day after the Riveters were recognized as the Central Conference Organization of the Year.
August 28, 2026 4:24 am
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Ian Wheeler scored on a 2-yard run with 1:06 left, Steve Buechele completed an off-balance pass to Dante Pettis for a 2-point conversion and the Buffalo Bills beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 28-27 in the preseason finale for each team Thursday night. The Steelers’ last chance to pull ahead ended with Drew Allar’s pass sailing behind tight end Lake McRee on fourth-and-7 with 44 seconds remaining. It was a disappointing finish for Allar in an outing the rookie was attempting to separate himself from Will Howard in the competition for the Steelers’ third-string job. In squandering a 10-point lead over the final seven minutes, the Steelers closed the preseason 1-2. Buffalo was 3-0.
August 28, 2026 4:27 am
Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs is facing misdemeanor charges of battery and criminal damage to property stemming from what police described as a physical confrontation with his girlfriend three months ago. Jacobs was arrested May 26 and released from jail the next day as prosecutors decided whether to file charges. Jacobs was back on the field for organized team activities less than a week later and has been with the Packers for training camp. Jacobs’ attorneys issued a statement acknowledging the charges Thursday and saying the allegations will be addressed in court, not in the media.
August 28, 2026 4:25 am
Two days after the Southeastern Conference passed a rule barring players from returning to the league from the pros, a Texas judge put that rule on hold in a case involving more than 40 players. It was the latest piece of news in what has turned into a breakneck week of legal wrangling over the NCAA’s new five-year eligibility rule. The rule does not apply to college players who exhausted their fourth year of eligibility last spring; many are suing across the country for that fifth year.
August 27, 2026 4:24 am
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Jackson Merrill doubled, tripled, drove in a run and scored another to help Randy Vásquez reach 10 victories as the San Diego Padres beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 3-0 on Wednesday to avoid a three-game sweep. The Padres remained in possession of the National League’s third wild-card spot, one game ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks. San Diego has won 12 of 17 and 22 of 31. Merrill doubled to right with one out in the second off Bubba Chandler and scored on Luis Rengifo’s single to right.
August 27, 2026 4:25 am
ATLANTA (AP) — The Pro Bowl is no more. The NFL announced the move Wednesday, bringing an end to an exhibition of the league’s top players that was held in some form almost every year since 1951. The game wasn’t played in 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but that was the only pause in the postseason event. The league said 88 players will still be named as Pro Bowlers and honored in Los Angeles after this season. Several flag football events also will take place at that time. The Pro Bowl has waned in popularity in recent years.
August 27, 2026 4:30 am
The Big 12 Conference on Wednesday followed the Southeastern and Big Ten conferences in banning players who were on NFL rosters from returning to college. The decision by the Big 12 came a day after rulings by the SEC and Big Ten. Earlier Wednesday, the NFL made it clear that players who leave the NFL to return to college won’t be allowed to come back to the league this season. NFL executive Troy Vincent reiterated the longstanding policy at the league’s meetings Wednesday. Atlantic Coast Conference leaders were also discussing the topic this week.
