May 3, 2021 3:53 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers invested heavily in improving their sagging running game during the NFL draft. Pittsburgh used its first four selections on players who could help a rushing attack that finished last in the NFL in both yards and yards per carry in 2020. Coach Mike Tomlin says the arrival of a group that includes running back Najee Harris and tight end Pat Freiermuth makes the run game better.
May 3, 2021 3:55 am
PALM HARBOR, Fla. (AP) – Sam Burns finally won for the first time on the PGA Tour after twice failing to convert 54-hole leads. Burns had two big birdies on the back nine that led to a 3-under 68 and a three-shot victory over Keegan Bradley. Burns got some help from Bradley hitting into the water on the 13th hole. Bradley and Burns were tied through 36 holes and 54 holes, and they stayed that way through 12 holes on Sunday.
May 2, 2021 1:03 am
WASHINGTON, PA — Top-seeded Washington & Jefferson College posted an 18-3 victory over No. 3 Thiel College Saturday afternoon in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Lacrosse Championship Tournament title game. The victory completes a perfect 10-0 run for W&J against PAC competition this spring. W&J was ranked No. 2 in the most recent NCAA Division III Great Lakes regional ranking. Thiel finishes its season with a 7-3 record. As the winner of the PAC Championship Tournament, W&J will receive the conference’s automatic-qualifying bid to the Division III Championship. The field for this year’s Division III Championship is scheduled to be announced Monday, May 3 at 10:30 a.m. (EDT). First and second round games are scheduled for Saturday-Sunday, May 8-9.
W&J ripped off the first nine goals of the game and left no doubt in claiming its first PAC title in school history. The Presidents previously claimed conference titles as a member of the Ohio River Lacrosse Conference (ORLC) in 2016 and 2017. W&J sophomore Amanda Effland (Frederick, MD) tallied nine points and freshman Kaitlyn Brown (Charlotte Hall, MD) registered 10 saves in the win. Four different W&J players registered hat tricks in the title game. Effland paced the offense with three goals, six assists and three ground balls. Junior Clara Sherwood (Indiana, PA) finished with three goals and five draw controls. Sophomore Sarah Labovitz (Great Falls, VA) added three scores, five draw controls and three ground balls. Sophomore Becca Ghion (Yough) also chipped in three goals as well. Sophomore Gabby Galla (Erie) led a defensive unit that thwarted the Tomcats efforts offensively, finishing with five caused turnovers and five ground balls in the win. Freshman Sofia Jenkins (Hughesville, MD) totaled four points on two goals and two assists while adding three draw controls, two caused turnovers and a pair of ground balls.
May 2, 2021 7:24 am
WASHINGTON — Bryan Rust scored two unassisted goals, Tristan Jarry made 23 saves and the Pittsburgh Penguins shut out the Washington Capitals 3-O Saturday night to reclaim first place in the East Division. Trade deadline pickup Jeff Carter also scored his fourth goal in 10 games in a Penguins uniform. Jarry registered his second shutout of the season as the Penguins beat the Capitals for the sixth time in eight meetings this season. Two nights after each team clinched a playoff berth, this potential postseason preview looked awfully lopsided. The Penguins pounced on opportunities and scored on three of their first 13 shots against Ilya Samsonov to suck the life out of the crowd of just over 2,000. It was far from the complement of talent either team would want in a playoff series. The Capitals didn’t have captain and leading goal-scorer Alex Ovechkin and top defenseman John Carlson because of lower-body injuries, and the Penguins remained without forward Evgeni Malkin and Brandon Tanev with injuries that have kept them out for several weeks. But Pittsburgh hasn’t slowed down. With captain Sidney Crosby inching into the MVP discussion, the Penguins have won 16 of 23 games without Malkin and again look like a legitimate Stanley Cup contender.
May 2, 2021 7:27 am
PITTSBURGH — Jack Flaherty pitched six solid innings to keep his record perfect and Paul DeJong hit a three-run homer in the first inning to send the St. Louis Cardinals over the Pittsburgh Pirates 12-5 on Saturday night. Flaherty (5-0) struck out nine while winning his fifth straight start. He gave up three runs on six hits and two walks and improved to 7-1 in 10 career starts against the Pirates. DeJong’s drive off Trevor Cahill (1-3) capped a four-run first. The first run of the inning scored when Tommy Edman hit a leadoff double and scored on Paul Goldschmidt’s one-out single. The Cardinals have scored 61 runs in the six games Flaherty has started this season. St. Louis won for the seventh time in nine games. The Cardinals have also won six games in a row at Pittsburgh and 14 of their last 16 at PNC Park. Edman, Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado each had three of the Cardinals’ 15 hits. Arenado drove in three runs with a two-run, bloop double in the seventh inning that put St. Louis ahead 7-3 and an RBI triple in a five-run ninth. Rookie Justin Williams capped the ninth-inning outburst with a pinch-hit, two-run homer. Colin Moran had three hits and two RBI for Pittsburgh, which lost its third straight game. Cahill lasted 5 1/3 innings, allowing five runs and seven hits with five strikeouts and three walks.
May 2, 2021 7:28 am
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — John Velazquez was in a familiar place, in the lead aboard Medina Spirit in the Kentucky Derby and holding off the stretch bid of three challengers. This time, Bob Baffert couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Medina Spirit won by a half-length on Saturday, giving Baffert his seventh victory, the most of any trainer in the race’s 147-year history. The jockey and trainer — both Hall of Famers — teamed up eight months ago to win a pandemic-delayed Derby in September with Authentic, who raced to an early lead and hung on. That wasn’t so surprising. This one was. Sent off at 12-1 — astronomical odds for a colt trained by the white-haired, two-time Triple Crown winner — Medina Spirit was in a street fight thundering down the stretch. The dark brown colt was pressed by Mandaloun on his outside. Hot Rod Charlie was coming fast outside of Mandaloun, with 5-2 favorite Essential Quality giving chase on the far outside. Velazquez earned his fourth Derby victory aboard the colt that was purchased as a yearling for $1,000 and was a bargain-basement buy at $35,000 for current owner Amr Zedan of Saudi Arabia. By comparison, Zedan recently paid $1.7 million for an unraced 2-year-old.
May 1, 2021 12:11 pm
GREENVILLE, PA — Third-seeded Washington & Jefferson College earned a 2-1 victory over No. 4 Westminster College Friday night in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) Men’s Soccer Championship Tournament title match at Alexandre Stadium in Washington. The Ptitle is the second-straight for W&J and is the program’s fifth overall. The Presidents also won back-to-back conference titles in 2003-04. Friday night’s match was the first time since 2010 that the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds will play for the PAC championship.
Westminster (5-5-1) took the lead in the 15th minute when junior Tyler Caterino (Monessen) received a pass from sophomore Payton Goodwin (Plum) in the box off a deflection from a free kick. W&J (8-2-1) evened the match at 1-1 in the 43rd minute when junior Thomas Einolf (Middletown) tallied an unassisted goal in the 43rd minute. In the 81st minute freshman Jayden Da (Rockville, MD) drew a foul to gain a free kick opportunity for W&J. Junior Joey Feola (Central Catholic) chipped a ball into the box that sophomore Zach Bowser (Beaver) delivered with a header for the game-winner. W&J junior Samuel Miller (Lewisburg) made six saves in the victory. Westminster sophomore Jad Jadallah (Canfield, OH) had two saves in the loss. Westminster finished with a 23-11 advantage in shot attempts (7-4 on-goal). Westminster also had an 8-1 edge in corner kicks.
May 1, 2021 10:17 am
PALM HARBOR, Fla. (AP) – Sam Burns and Keegan Bradley share the lead heading into the third round of the PGA’s Valspar Championship in Florida. Burns surged up the leaderboard with an 8-under 63 to catch up with Bradley who carded a 66. Bradley ended his 65 by holing out for eagle from 100 yards in the ninth fairway, over a deep bunker to the elevated green. The shot left him guessing until he saw the fans jump out of their seats. They are four strokes ahead of Lucas Glover, Max Homa and Charley Hoffman. Phil Mickelson bogeyed two of his final three holes and missed the cut by one shot.
May 1, 2021 10:15 am
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) – The Kentucky Derby is back in its traditional spot on the sports calendar – the first Saturday in May. After getting postponed until September last year because of the pandemic, it returns today with about 45,000 fans in attendance – about 100,000 fewer than usual. Essential Quality is the early 2-1 favorite in a field of 19 horses. The 147th edition could be one of several firsts. A Black jockey could win for the first time in 119 years and a female trainer could win for the first time. Trainer Bob Baffert, a six-time winner, goes for his record seventh, albeit with a 15-1 shot.
May 1, 2021 4:06 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) -Matt Carpenter hit his second pinch, three-run home run in as many days and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-3. Carpenter connected off Duane Underwood Jr. in the sixth inning to put the Cardinals ahead 6-1. Carpenter took the Philadelphia Phillies’ Aaron Nola deep Thursday in a game the Cardinals won 4-3 in 10 innings. St. Louis’ Tyler O’Neill had three hits, including a leadoff home run in the fourth inning. Nolan Arenado hit two run-scoring bloop doubles as St. Louis won for the sixth time in eight games.
