February 7, 2026 4:37 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A jury has found former major league outfielder Yasiel Puig guilty of obstruction of justice and lying to federal officials investigating an illegal gambling operation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said Friday. The verdict came after a multiweek trial that featured testimony from Major League Baseball officials and Donny Kadokawa, a Hawaii baseball coach that Puig placed bets through. Puig now faces up to 20 years in federal prison.
February 7, 2026 4:39 am
OOLTEWAH, Tenn. (AP) — Former New York Jets player Darron Lee has been arrested in Tennessee and charged with first-degree murder. Authorities identified him as the suspect in the death of his girlfriend and took him into custody on Thursday. The Hamilton County sheriff’s office reported the incident. The victim’s identity has not been released. Lee, a former Ohio State linebacker, was the Jets’ 20th overall pick in 2016. He played 58 games with the Jets, Kansas City, and Buffalo from 2016 to 2020. Lee also faces charges of tampering with evidence, with additional charges possible as the investigation continues.
February 5, 2026 2:19 am
A handful of playoff berths and section championships are still up for grabs heading into the final nights of the basketball regular season. The Wash High girls lost at Keystone Oaks, ending the Little Prexies’ playoff hopes. Ringgold girls suffered the same fate, losing at Mt. Pleasant and being eliminated. Peters Township girls host Bethel Park Friday in a winner qualifies/loser is out game. We’ll have that game on WJPA-FM (95.3) and online. Also on Friday, McGuffey boys host Wash High, the Highlanders needing to win to join the Little Prexies in the playoffs. Ringgold’s boys host Trinity, the Rams qualifying with a win or a Baldwin loss.
On the Section championship front, Canon-McMillan girls win the outright 6A Section 2 title with a win Friday. Fort Cherry and Chartiers-Houston girls have each clinched outright section titles. Chartiers-Houston boys host Jefferson-Morgan. The Bucs win the 2A Section 3 title outright with a win. The Rockets grab a share of the championship with a win. We’ll have the Rockets & Bucs game on WJPA-AM (1450) and online. Here’s the Thursday section scoreboard:
Girls
5A Trinity 38, Uniontown 29
4A Mt. Pleasant 42, Ringgold 29
3A Keystone Oaks 48, Wash High 38 Watch/Listen Here
3A Seton-La Salle 56, McGuffey 32
3A Waynesburg 46, Charleroi 31
2A Fort Cherry 75, South Side 19
2A Burgettstown 50, Carlynton 34
2A Chartiers-Houston 63, Bentworth 36
2A California 45, Beth-Center 20
2A Jeff-Morgan 56, Carmichaels 33
1A West Greene 57, Avella 33
1A Bishop Canevin 47. Mapletown 20
Boys
2A Beth-Center 58, West Greene 47
2A Fort Cherry 84, Carmichaels 30
February 6, 2026 4:27 am
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Avery Hayes scored twice in his NHL debut, Arturs Silovs made 26 saves and the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Buffalo Sabres 5-2 on Thursday night in the final game for both teams before the Olympic break. Called up from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League with the Penguins hit by a series of injuries, Hayes tied at 1 at 9:18 of the period on his first shot on goal. He raced to beat defenseman Jacob Bryson to the puck and put a wrister past goalie Alex Lyon. Hayes made it 2-1 with 1:13 left in the period, taking Anthony Mantha’s short, backward pass and knocking it in. Fellow rookie Ben Kindel also scored twice. Tage Thompson scored his 30th goal of the season for Buffalo.
February 6, 2026 4:28 am
A person familiar with the negotiations tells The Associated Press that pitcher José Urquidy and the Pittsburgh Pirates have agreed to a $1.5 million, one-year contract. A 30-year-old right-hander, Urquidy adds depth to the Pirates staff and gives the team roster flexibility because he can be optioned to the minor leagues. He had Tommy John surgery on June 5, 2024, while with Houston, signed a $1 million, one-year deal with Detroit last March and returned to the major leagues on Sept. 14. He made two big league relief appearances last year and had a 7.71 ERA over 2 1/3 innings.
February 6, 2026 4:38 am
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Matthew Stafford edged Drake Maye for the AP NFL Most Valuable Player award on Thursday night in the closest race since Peyton Manning and Steve McNair were co-winners in 2003. Stafford received 24 of 50 first-place votes while Maye got 23. But Maye has a chance to go home this week with a Vince Lombardi Trophy. He leads the New England Patriots against the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl on Sunday.
February 5, 2026 2:05 am
The WPIAL basketball regular season wraps up on Saturday with the League’s steering committee set to release playoff brackets Monday afternoon. Most teams have one game remaining with a few playoff spots still to be decided. Here’s a look at the playoff status for the 19 schools from the Washington/Greene County area. (* clinched at least a share of the section title)
Girls
IN–Bentworth (2A), Beth-Center (2A), Burgettstown (2A), California (2A), Canon-McMillan* (6A), Chartiers-Houston* (2A), Fort Cherry* (2A), McGuffey (3A), Trinity (5A), Waynesburg (3A), West Greene (1A)
ALIVE–Peters Township (5A), Ringgold (4A), Wash High (3A)
OUT–Avella (1A), Charleroi (3A), Carmichaels (2A), Jeff-Morgan (2A), Mapletown (1A)
Boys
IN–Avella (1A), Bentworth (2A), Beth-Center (2A), Charleroi (3A), Chartiers-Houston* (2A), Fort Cherry (2A), Peters Township (5A), Wash High (3A), Jeff-Morgan (2A), Waynesburg (3A), West Greene (2A),
ALIVE–McGuffey (3A), Ringgold (5A)
OUT–Burgettstown (2A), California (2A), Canon-McMillan (6A), Trinity (5A), Carmichaels (2A), Mapletown (2A)
February 5, 2026 4:24 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Right-hander Mike Clevinger has agreed to a minor league contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates and will attend big league spring training camp. The 35-year-old is 60-44 with a 3.55 ERA across nine seasons with Cleveland, San Diego and the Chicago White Sox. Clevinger has dealt with injuries in recent seasons and struggled with the White Sox last spring after being moved to the bullpen. He bounced back after returning to the rotation with Triple-A Charlotte. Clevinger went 7-3 with a 4.20 ERA and 93 strikeouts in 22 starts in the minors last summer.
February 5, 2026 4:25 am
NEW YORK (AP) — The NHL has suspended Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Caleb Jones for 20 games for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy. The 28-year-old Jones says he believes he was exposed to a contaminated substance while receiving therapy from an outside health provider. Jones, who hasn’t played in the NHL since injuring his foot in October, says he didn’t use the substance intentionally. Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas said the club appreciates Jones’ transparency and that Jones has the team’s full support.
February 5, 2026 4:23 am
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Penn State hockey star Gavin McKenna is facing a felony assault charge stemming from an incident on Jan. 31. The 18-year-old McKenna was also charged with simple assault, harassment and disorderly conduct. McKenna is the presumptive top pick in this summer’s NHL draft. He was awaiting a preliminary hearing as of Wednesday. Details of the allegations against McKenna were not immediately available, and his representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The incident happened in the hours after Penn State lost to No. 2 Michigan State in an outdoor game at Beaver Stadium, home of the Nittany Lions football team.
