June 9, 2022 3:54 am
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – Jocelyn Alo and Tiare Jennings fueled Oklahoma’s record-setting offensive burst to help the Sooners move a victory away from successfully defending their Women’s College World Series title. Alo and Jennings each hit two home runs and top-seeded Oklahoma rolled past unseeded Texas 16-1 in Game 1 of the best-of-three championship series. Oklahoma set a World Series record with six home runs and matched records for runs and victory margin. Alo and Jennings each have five home runs in the World Series, surpassing the single-series record of four set by several players, including Alo last year. Alo increased her career Division I homer record to 122, and Jennings drove in five runs to set a record for RBIs in a series with 14.
June 9, 2022 3:51 am
BOSTON (AP) – Jaylen Brown scored 27 points, Jayson Tatum added 26 and the Boston Celtics beat back another third-quarter onslaught by the Golden State Warriors in a 116-100 victory Wednesday night that gave them a 2-1 lead in the NBA Finals. Marcus Smart added 24 points and helped lead a defensive effort that held the Warriors to 11 points in the fourth quarter. Stephen Curry led Golden State with 31 points and six 3-pointers. He had 15 points in a 33-25 third quarter by the Warriors but was hurt late in the fourth after Al Horford rolled into his leg on a loose ball. It was similar to a play during the regular season in which Smart dove into Curry’s legs while chasing a loose ball. Klay Thompson broke out of a finals slump and finished with 25 points and five 3s. But the Warriors’ shooting couldn’t save them on a night the more athletic Celtics outmuscled them for a 47-31 rebounding advantage. Game 4 is Friday in Boston.
June 9, 2022 3:47 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Brian Flores says he’s focused on his new job with the Pittsburgh Steelers and not his class-action lawsuit against the NFL. Flores took the league and three of its teams to court in February shortly after being fired as head coach of the Miami Dolphins. Flores claims in the lawsuit that the league is “rife with racism.” Now an assistant coach with the Steelers, Flores says he’s excited for the opportunity to continue his career and not think too much about what’s happened in the past. The lawsuit is making its way through the federal court system in New York. Written arguments on whether the case should head to arbitration are due in August.
June 8, 2022 7:29 am
The Women’s College World Series is set. Oklahoma is looking for back-to-back titles as they go up against a Texas team that is the first unseeded team to reach the finals in NCAA history. Arguably the decade’s most dominant softball program, Oklahoma is in its third straight championship series and seventh in the past ten years. The Sooners are 57-3 and look to end an historic season with a sixth national championship in program history. The Longhorns, meanwhile, are 47-20-1 and are 4-1 in the WCWS. A stark contrast to its 5-7 record to start the season. You can hear complete coverage of the Women’s College World Series on WJPA 1450AM.
June 8, 2022 3:53 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Diontae Johnson says he is trying to block out his contract status. Johnson is entering the final year of his rookie contract and is coming off a season in which he had a career-best 107 receptions. Johnson says he’s been paying attention to the big-dollar contracts signed by some of the league’s top receivers during the offseason. Johnson says he would prefer to stay in Pittsburgh but is confident he’ll be fine either way as long as he keeps producing.
June 8, 2022 3:56 am
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – Nikita Kucherov scored on a breakaway and Andrei Vasilevskiy had 33 saves, helping the Tampa Bay Lightning shut down the New York Rangers 4-1 and evening the NHL’s Eastern Conference final at two games apiece. Kucherov took a pass from Ondrej Palat in the middle of the ice and skated in on goaltender Igor Shesterkin to give the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions a two-goal lead just over 13 minutes into the second period. Palat, Pat Maroon and Steven Stamkos also scored for the Lightning, who have rebounded from losing the first two games of the series on the road to keep their bid to become the first team in nearly 40 years to win three consecutive Stanley Cup titles alive. Game 5 is Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.
June 8, 2022 3:57 am
UNDATED (AP) – Tiger Woods has pulled out of the U.S. Open and says his body “needs more time to get stronger for major championship golf.” He said he hopes to be ready to play in a charity pro-am event in Ireland ahead of the British Open at St. Andrews in July. The U.S. Open is next week at The Country Club at Brookline outside of Boston. Woods made a surprise return to golf at the Masters just 14 months after he broke bones in his right leg and ankle in a car crash. He later played the PGA Championship at Southern Hills but withdrew after the third round. Woods has won the U.S. Open three times, most recently in 2008.
June 7, 2022 3:46 am
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) – Artturi Lehkonen scored 1:19 into overtime, and Colorado rallied to beat the Edmonton Oilers 6-5 Monday night, completing a four-game sweep in the Western Conference final and sending the Avalanche to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2001. Colorado will take on the winner of the Eastern Conference final between the New York Rangers and two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning. Cale Makar, Devon Toews Gabriel Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen also scored for Colorado. Pavel Francouz stopped 30 of 35 shots. Zach Hyman scored twice for the Oilers. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Connor McDavid and Zack Kassian also scored for Edmonton. Leon Draisaitl had four assists and goalie Mike Smith finished with 36 saves.
June 7, 2022 3:50 am
UNDATED (AP) – A 24th woman has filed a civil lawsuit alleging sexual misconduct by Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson, who is also awaiting possible discipline from the NFL.
The latest lawsuit was filed in Houston by attorney Tony Buzbee, who is representing all 24 women. Buzbee says in a statement that the women “continue to stand firm for what is right.” Watson’s lead attorney Rusty Hardin did not immediately reply to a request seeking comment. Hardin has repeatedly said Watson has done nothing wrong. Watson has been accused by massage therapists of harassing, assaulting or touching them during appointments and the latest lawsuit makes similar allegations. Watson could be suspended if the league determines he violated its personal conduct policy.
June 6, 2022 11:56 pm
Peters Township baseball gave up a 7-run third, clawed back to within two but got a runner thrown out at home, snuffing out the late rally in a season ending loss. West Allegheny steadily built the lead on the way to a shutout over Thomas Jefferson to advance to the quarterfinals against Bethel Park. Burgettstown baseball, West Greene softball scored one-run victories to advance. The PIAA Baseball & Softball brackets have been updated with winners. Sites/times for Thursday’s quarterfinals are due out Tuesday. Bracket links are below along with a listing of first-round scores and quarterfinal pairings in our neighborhood. We’ll definitely have the Burgettstown game for you on WJPA-AM (1450).
Baseball PIAA Brackets — Click Here — Softball PIAA Brackets — Click Here
First Round, Monday, June 6
Baseball
6A Cumberland Valley 7, Mt. Lebanon 0
6A Upper St. Clair 2, Altoona 0
5A West Allegheny 7, Thomas Jefferson 0
5A Ephrata 9, Peters Township 7
5A Bethel Park 4, Central Mountain 3
2A Burgettstown 6, Johnsonburg 5
Softball
1A West Greene 9, Conemaugh Valley 8
5A Armstrong 13, Chartiers Valley 6
Quarterfinals, Thursday, June 9
Baseball
6A Upper St. Clair vs. Warwick, 12 noon at Mt. Aloysius College
5A West Allegheny vs. Bethel Park, 2 pm at W&J’s Ross Memorial Park
2A Burgettstown vs. Redbank Valley, 2:20 pm at Slippery Rock University — WJPA-AM (1450) or Listen Here!
Softball
1A West Greene vs. DuBois Central Catholic, 3 pm at Slippery Rock University
