Crosby Leads Penguins To Win Over Edmonton

January 10, 2025 4:39 am

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Sidney Crosby had a goal and two assists to move into ninth on the NHL’s career scoring list as the Pittsburgh Penguins beat Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers 5-3. The Penguins captain tied Hall of Famer Joe Sakic at 1,641 points with an assist on Bryan Rust’s first-period goal. Crosby then moved past Sakic with an assist on Drew O’Connor’s sixth goal of the season later in the period as the Penguins raced to a 4-1 advantage. Rust also had a goal and two assists for Pittsburgh. McDavid finished with three assists and Leon Draisaitl scored twice for Edmonton.

NFL Moves Vikings-Rams Playoff Game To Arizona

January 10, 2025 4:41 am

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The NFL has moved the Rams’ wild-card playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings to Arizona after days of devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area. The playoff game will be played Monday night at State Farm Stadium, the home of the Arizona Cardinals, in suburban Glendale, Arizona. The league announced the decision Thursday, a few hours after yet another fire broke out in an area several miles from the Rams’ training complex in the Woodland Hills neighborhood. Los Angeles has been besieged by multiple wildfires all week following two days of extraordinary wind across the vast metropolitan area.

Basketball, Thursday/Friday, Jan. 9-10

January 9, 2025 2:25 am

High school basketball teams across the WPIAL are finishing their first trips through section play between now and Tuesday, Jan. 14. Here’s a rundown of Thursday and Friday section section schedules for teams in Washington & Greene Counties:

Thursday, Jan. 9
Girls
5A Peters Township 62, Uniontown 21
5A Trinity 48, Albert Gallatin 43
4A Laurel Highlands 72, Ringgold 13
3A Brownsville 56, Charleroi 24
3A McGuffey 57, Wash High 50
3A Keystone Oaks 48, Waynesburg 33
2A Brentwood 45, Burgettstown 39
2A Fort Cherry 68, Northgate 3
2A Beth-Center 49, Bentworth 35
2A California 55, Jeff-Morgan 37
2A Chartiers-Houston 58, Carmichaels 17
1A Bishop Canevin 54, Avella 37
1A Clairton 72, Mapletown 34
1A West Greene at Serra Catholic (postponed to Tuesday, Jan. 14, 6:30 pm)

Boys
2A Chartiers-Houston 61, Beth-Center 45

Friday, Jan. 10
Girls
6A Canon-McMillan at Norwin, 6 pm
1A Mapletown at Geibel Catholic

Boys
6A Canon-McMillan at Norwin
5A Peters Township at Ringgold
5A Trinity at South Fayette
3A McGuffey at Sto-Rox
3A Carlynton at Wash High, 6 pm
3A Brownsville at Charleroi
3A Ligonier Valley at Waynesburg
2A California at Bentworth
2A Burgettstown at Beth-Center
2A Chartiers-Houston at Mapletown
2A West Greene at Fort Cherry
2A Carmichaels at Jeff-Morgan
1A Aquinas Academy at Avella

Wrestling/Basketball, Wednesday, Jan. 8

January 8, 2025 12:01 am

The WPIAL dual meet wrestling season heads down the home stretch. The top two teams in each section qualify for the WPIAL Team Tournaments along with two wild cards chosen by the Wrestling Committee.  In 3A Section 2, Canon-McMillan and Trinity remain unbeaten and will face off in two weeks with the section title on the line. Peters Township is 2-1 in Section 3 with a match against Mt. Lebanon Jan. 22 with the second spot behind Bethel Park on the line. In Section 7, Ringgold lost to Thomas Jefferson. The Rams will have to beat Belle Vernon in two weeks to grab an automatic bid..

In Class 2A, Chartiers-Houston and McGuffey won their Section 1 opening bouts easily. Burgettstown leads Section 2 with Avella and South Side to meet Jan. 22 with the second spot on the line. Bentworth and Beth-Center are both 2-0 in Section 3 ahead of their match Jan. 22, likely to decide the section title.

Wednesday, Jan. 8
Wrestling
3A-2 Canon-McMillan 52, Waynesburg 15
3A-2 Trinity 63, South Fayette 9
3A-3 Peters Township 46, Upper St. Clair 17
3A-7 Thomas Jefferson 48, Ringgold 12

2A-1 Chartiers-Houston 51, West Greene 24
2A-1 McGuffey 65, Wash High 9
2A-2 Avella 41, Hopewell 22
2A-3 Beth-Center b41, Frazier 30
2A-3 Jeff-Morgan 71, Brownsville 0

Girls Basketball
3A Seton-La Salle 75, Wash High 37
2A Beth-Center 48, Carmichaels 13

Boys Basketball
3A Wash High 61, Sto-Rox 37
2A Frazier 67, California 43
2A West Greene 68, Burgettstown 40
2A Carmichaels 37, Mapletown 27
1A Avella 74, Cornell 31

Trip To National Title Game On The Line For Penn State

January 9, 2025 4:46 am

A trip to the College Football Playoff title game awaits for the winner between Penn State and Notre Dame in the semifinals of the first year of the expanded 12-team format. The winning coach Thursday, either Penn State’s James Franklin or Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman, will have the chance to become the first Black coach to win a national title at college football’s highest level. Awaiting the winner is a matchup against either Texas or Ohio State. The title will be decided January 20 in Atlanta.

Russell Wilson Trying To Focus On Present

January 9, 2025 4:45 am

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson is trying to enjoy the ride as he prepares for the playoffs. Wilson and the Steelers head to Baltimore in the first round searching for the franchise’s first postseason victory in eight years. Wilson’s play has dipped in recent weeks, one of the reasons Pittsburgh heads into the playoffs on a four-game losing streak. The 36-year-old will be a free agent in March. How he fares in the playoffs could determine whether he comes back to Pittsburgh. Wilson says the future will take care of itself and he’s trying to embrace what he calls a “special” time of the season.

Eagles QB Jalen Hurts Returns To Practice

January 9, 2025 4:42 am

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts was a limited participant in practice for the first time since he suffered a concussion in Week 16, clearing the way for him to start this weekend in an NFC wild-card playoff game. Hurts could return for Sunday’s home game against the Green Bay Packers. He threw for 2,903 yards this season with 18 touchdowns and five interceptions.

Pens Fall To Blue Jackets In Shootout

January 8, 2025 4:34 am

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Kirill Marchenko and Kent Johnson scored in the shootout and the Columbus Blue Jackets rallied to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 on Tuesday night. Elvis Merzlikins, who made 20 saves, stopped Bryan Rust and Sidney Crosby in the shootout, as Columbus came back from a 3-1 deficit in the third period. Adam Fantilli scored a third-period power-play goal and Dmitri Voronkov scored twice, giving him nine goals in seven games. Rickard Rakell scored twice and Michael Bunting set a career high with his eighth power-play goal. Crosby had two assists. Tristan Jarry made 26 saves.

Duke Rolls Over Pitt

January 8, 2025 4:37 am

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Star freshman Cooper Flagg scored 14 of his 19 points after halftime to help No. 4 Duke beat Pittsburgh 76-47. Flagg’s big night included a jaw-dropping play on a coast-to-coast dunk over Guillermo Diaz Graham in the second half. Fellow freshman Kon Knueppel added 17 points for the Blue Devils. Duke has now won nine straight games. Cameron Corhen scored 11 points to lead the Panthers. Pitt had won five in a row and was unbeaten in league play coming into Cameron Indoor Stadium. But Pitt shot just 31% and didn’t score for the last eight minutes.

Raiders Fire Coach Antonio Pierce

January 8, 2025 4:38 am

HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — The Las Vegas Raiders have fired Antonio Pierce after just one season as their full-time coach. It’s the latest in a line of coaching changes for the Raiders over the past several years. Pierce took over as the interim coach midway through the 2023 season and went 5-4 the rest of the way. That earned strong player support for him to get the job on a full-time basis. But the Raiders went on a 10-game losing streak this season to put his job in jeopardy. Minority owner Tom Brady is expected to have a role in the Raiders’ coaching search.