June 1, 2021 3:52 am
UNDATED (AP) – Carey Price made 29 saves and the Montreal Canadiens advanced to the second round by beating the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 in Game 7. Brendan Gallagher, Corey Perry and Tyler Toffoli also scored for the Canadiens, who stormed back from a 3-1 deficit for the third time in franchise history to win a series. Montreal advanced to the second round for the first time since 2015. The Canadiens will take on Winnipeg after the Jets swept Edmonton in the Canadian-based North Division’s other series. Game 1 is Wednesday at Winnipeg. William Nylander had a late goal for Toronto, which hasn’t advanced in the postseason since 2004. In other NHL playoff action: Casey Cizikas scored on a breakaway with 14:48 gone in overtime and Semyon Varlamov returned to the net to make 39 saves to lead the New York Islanders to a 4-3 victory over the Boston Bruins and knotting their second-round playoff series at one game apiece. Game 3 is Thursday night in New York. Josh Bailey, Kyle Palmieri and Jean-Gabriel Pageau all scored in the second period. But Brad Marchand set up Patrice Bergeron’s one-timer to make it a one-goal game midway through the third. Then Marchand tied it with a goal of his own about five minutes later.
May 31, 2021 1:25 am
The 2021 PIAA Track & Field Championships were completed over the weekend at Shippensburg University. Taylor Shriver (Waynesburg) was the only gold medalist from the Washington & Greene County area, clearing 13 feet to win the Class 2A pole vault championship. Shriver’s vault was two feet better than the silver medalist, Corinn Brewer from Greensburg Central Catholic. Here is the list of medalists from the two-county area:
Girls
Discuss 2. Miranda Schramm, Burgettstown
300m hurdles 4. Makayla Boda, California
400m run 4. Mara Whalen, Ft. Cherry
800m run 4. Mara Whalen, Ft. Cherry
100m hurdles 6. Clara Barr, McGuffey
100m dash 7. Alyssa Clutter, Trinity
High jump 4. Eden Williamson, Trinity
Pole vault 1. Taylor Shriver, Waynesburg
Boys
Long jump 7. Colton Whyte, Burgettstown
110m hurdles 8 Christopher Davis, Canon-McMillan
4x400m relay 4. Canon-McMillan
4x100m relay 4. Washington
800m run 7. Gabe McConville, Waynesburg
May 31, 2021 3:57 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Charlie Blackmon got three extra-base hits and keyed a two-run rally in the ninth inning that sent the Colorado Rockies past the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3. Blackmon hit two doubles and a triple as the Rockies ended a five-game losing streak. They were shut out in both games of a doubleheader against Pittsburgh on Saturday. After Pirates closer Richard Rodriguez walked Ryan McMahon with one out in the ninth, Blackmon hit an RBI double off the wall in center field to make it 3-all. Blackmon scored the go-ahead run on a two-out single from Matt Adams. The loss wasted the Pirates debut of Chase De Jong who allowed one run on three hits over five innings. De Jong was making his first western Pennsylvania pitching appearance since winning the title game of the 2008 PONY League World Series for Long Beach, CA.
May 30, 2021 1:46 am
HIGH POINT, N.C. — The second-ranked Washington & Jefferson College baseball suffered a 9-2 loss to Birmingham-Southern an elimination game Saturday morning at the six-team, double-elimination NCAA Division III High Point, N.C. Regional at Truist Point.
The loss ends the Presidents’ season with an overall record of 37-3. The 37 wins are the third most in single-season history for W&J. That total trails only the 2017 (42 wins) and 2019 (38 wins) squads that reached the Division III College World Series. Their .925 winning percentage currently ranks as the best in Division III in 2021. The class of 2021 finished their four-year careers with 106 victories.
May 30, 2021 7:37 am
GAME 1
PITTSBURGH — JT Brubaker tossed six shutout innings to help the Pittsburgh Pirates win the first game of a seven-inning doubleheader against the Colorado Rockies 7-0 on Saturday. Pittsburgh snapped a six-game skid by handing Colorado a fourth straight loss. Brubaker (4-4) allowed only two hits until the sixth inning, when Raimel Tapia had a leadoff single and C.J. Cron was hit by a pitch to load the bases with one out. Charlie Blackmon and Brendan Rodgers flied out to end the inning. The right-hander gave up four hits with five strikeouts before being relieved by Chasen Shreve in the seventh. Brubaker recovered from his previous two starts, when he allowed five runs in 5 2/3 innings against the St. Louis Cardinals on May 18 and surrendered seven in 5 1/3 to the Atlanta Braves five days later. Bryan Reynolds hit his team-leading sixth homer, a two-run shot to right that pushed the lead to 5-0 in the fifth, and Gregory Polanco scored on a fielder’s choice, making it 6-0 later that inning. Polanco had a sacrifice fly an inning later.
GAME 2
PITTSBURGH — Mitch Keller and the Pittsburgh bullpen finished off a pair of seven-inning shutouts, and the Pirates blanked the Colorado Rockies 4-0 to sweep a doubleheader Saturday. After JT Brubaker excelled to win the opener 7-0 and end Pittsburgh’s six-game losing streak, Keller was equally impressive. The Pirates shut out a team in both games of a doubleheader for the first time since Oct. 3, 1976, against the St. Louis Cardinals. Pittsburgh pitchers combined to hold Colorado to just six total hits. The Rockies have lost five in a row. After going 1 for 4 with a double in the opener, Adam Frazier hit a leadoff homer in the second on the first pitch from Austin Gomber (3-5). It was Frazier’s 10th career leadoff homer, tied with Al Martin for the second most in team history behind Barry Bonds’ 20. Frazier scored in the third, making it 2-0, when catcher Elias Diaz attempted to catch him stealing third as Bryan Reynolds drew a walk. Diaz, formerly with the Pirates, threw the ball into left field. Ka’ai Tom later homered and Jacob Stallings hit his first major league triple.
May 29, 2021 1:38 am
The Pirates announced that the Friday night weekend series opener against the Colorado Rockies has been postponed. The teams will play a split doubleheader Saturday at 11:40 am and 3:40 pm. Hear both games on WJPA-AM (1450).
May 28, 2021 3:51 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Chicago Cubs took advantage of some heads-up baserunning by Jose Baez to edge the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-3. Baez got in a rundown between home and first after a routine grounder, buying time for Willson Contreras to score all the way from second. Baez reached second on the play then scored on a single by Ian Happ to help the Cubs win for the ninth time in 11 games. Gregory Polanco, Bryan Reynolds and Michael Perez homered for Pittsburgh. The Pirates have dropped six in a row and 8 of 9.
May 27, 2021 2:43 am
SOFTBALL–CLICK for WPIAL Brackets–West Greene (1A) and Canon-McMillan (6A) will play for WPIAL softball titles after tough, hard-fought semifinal wins. The Pioneers topped South Side Area and are back in the finals for a fifth consecutive season. West Greene has won four straight WPIAL titles and clinched a state tournament berth with the win. The Big Macs let a pair of two-run leads get away but got a clutch two-out hit to down Norwin, putting the Big Macs in the title game for the first time since 2014, the last of three straight trips to the championship game. The Big Macs also clinched a state tournament berth with the win.
BASEBALL–CLICK for WPIAL Brackets— All four baseball teams from the two-county area came up short in semifinal games Tuesday. McGuffey, Peters Township, Carmichaels and Jeff-Morgan saw their WPIAL title hopes dashed but will all play in third-place games next week. Peters Township and Carmichaels have clinched state playoff berths while McGuffey and Jeff-Morgan must win their consolation game to advance.
WPIAL Third-Place Consolations at W&J’s Ross Memorial Park
Tuesday, June 1
2:00 pm 1A #6 Jeff-Morgan vs. #1 Eden Christian (winner only advances to PIAA)
7:00 pm 2A #3 Carmichaels vs. #4 Serra Catholic (both teams have qualified for PIAA)
Wednesday, June 2
1:00 pm 3A #4 McGuffey vs. #2 Avonworth – WJPA-AM (1450) or Listen Here! (winner only advances to PIAA)
5:00 pm 5A #13 Peters Township vs. #3 West Allegheny – WJPA-AM (1450) or Listen Here! (both teams have qualified for PIAA)
WPIAL Championships at California University’s Lilley Field
Wednesday, June 2
12:00 n 1A #1 West Greene vs. #3 Union
Thursday, June 3
12:00 n 6A #6 Canon-McMillan vs. #1 Bethel Park, Thursday – WJPA-AM (1450) or Listen Here!
May 29, 2021 1:47 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Penguins have serious issues with their goaltending following a first-round playoff loss to the New York Islanders. Goalie Tristan Jarry allowed 21 goals in six games, including three in a 3-minute span of Game 6 that helped the Islanders take the series. Jarry has two years left on his contract but his future could be elsewhere. Captain Sidney Crosby says he hopes the team’s core group stays together going forward but changes could be coming. The Penguins are just 3-13 in their last 16 playoff games.
May 28, 2021 3:53 am
TORONTO (AP) – The Montreal Canadiens will play at least one more game this postseason. The Canadiens have forced Game 6 in their Stanley Cup first-round series by beating the Toronto Maple Leafs, 4-3 in overtime. Nick Suzuki scored 59 seconds into OT after the Habs blew a 3-1 lead in the third period. Jake Muzzin extended the game by scoring twice in a 5:02 span. Joel Armia provided two goals for the Canadiens, who will host Game 6 on Saturday. Montreal’s Carey Price finished with 32 saves.
