September 9, 2019 3:07 am
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) – The New England Patriots trolled the Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday and then blew them out Sunday night. A day after the acquiring former Steelers malcontent Antonio Brown, the defending Super Bowl champions showed they might not even need him, getting 341 yards and three touchdown passes from 42-year-old Tom Brady to beat Pittsburgh 33-3. Phillip Dorsett caught two touchdown passes, including a 58-yard score, and Josh Gordon – another disgruntled receiver who wore out his welcome elsewhere – caught one TD pass. On the night New England unveiled its sixth NFL championship banner, Super Bowl MVP Julian Edelman caught six passes for 83 yards and also completed a throw to help the Patriots begin their quest for back-to-back titles. The last team to do that: New England in 2003 and ’04. Facing the last team to beat them, the Patriots opened a 20-0 lead before Pittsburgh kicked a field goal on fourth-and-goal from the 1 with 10:17 left in the third quarter. Brady responded with a 58-yard touchdown pass to Dorsett and a 27-3 lead. Dorsett, who will be moving down the depth chart Monday when the Patriots make Brown’s signing official, had four catches for 95 yards and the first multi-score game of his career. Ben Roethlisberger completed 27 of 47 passes for 277 yards and an interception, with much of the production coming on non-scoring drives in garbage time. The offense showed the effects of losing two of its biggest playmakers: Brown, who talked and tweeted his way out of both Pittsburgh and Oakland in one offseason, and running back Le’Veon Bell, a two-time All-Pro who sat out all of last season to avoid a franchise tag. In their place, James Conner gained 21 yards on 10 carries; the Steelers gained only 32 yards rushing in all. Top receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster caught six passes for 78 yards, 26 of it coming on one throw in the final six minutes with the Steelers already trailing 33-3. The drive ended when Roethlisberger threw it into the end zone from the 41-yard line and was picked off by Devin McCourty. The Steelers had five full possessions in the first half and punted on four of them, going three-and-out three times.
September 8, 2019 7:12 am
Zack Swartz and Zahmere Robinson led the way as Wash High won for the 700th time in school history, taking down Summit Academy, 58-16, Saturday afternoon. The Little Prexies jumped in front with 26 first-quarter points. Swartz threw three TD passes and ran for two scores. Robinson scored three times including a 90-yard run to put the game’s first points on the board. Caleb Jackson, Mike Allen, Asa Charnik and Chance Cohen also scored, Cohen on a 80+yard kick return. Wash High (700-366-61) is just the fourth WPIAL team to amass 700 wins, joining Jeannette (750), New Castle (741) and Aliquippa (726). Greensburg Salem (695) is poised to be the next team to cross the 700-win threshold, followed by Clairton (684).
September 7, 2019 4:00 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Serena Williams lost her temper and then lost the match when she played for last year’s U.S. Open championship. She gets another chance Saturday night, again seeking a record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles title when she faces 19-year-old Canadian Bianca Andreescu. The 37-year-old Williams has lost all three major finals she has reached since returning from giving birth, including to Naomi Osaka in Flushing Meadows last year. That match is best remembered for Williams’ arguments with chair umpire Carlos Ramos. She remains one behind Margaret Court’s record for most Grand Slam trophies and seeks her seventh at the U.S. Open, 20 years after winning her first. Andreescu, 33-4 this season, can become the first Canadian woman to win a Grand Slam title.
September 7, 2019 3:59 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Adam Frazier capped Pittsburgh’s six-run seventh inning with a two-run triple, and the Pirates rallied to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 9-4 on Friday night. Last-place Pittsburgh scored each of its runs in the seventh with two outs. Josh Bell hit a two-run single off Andrew Miller. After run-scoring hits by pinch hitter Melky Cabrera and Jose Osuna, Frazier made it 7-4 when he tripled high off the 21-foot wall in right field. The NL Central-leading Cardinals had won six of eight. Miller (4-5), the second of three relievers in the seventh, got just one out and was charged with three runs and three hits.
September 6, 2019 2:58 am
CHICAGO (AP) – The Monsters of the Midway showed up for the NFL’s season opener. They were wearing gold, green and white. In a defensive battle also marked by sloppy offense and penalties, the Packers used the Bears’ usual trademark, a staunch D, and just enough from Aaron Rodgers on Thursday night to kick off the league’s 100th season with a 10-3 victory over their archrivals. A lack of action in the preseason clearly damaged both offenses, and Rodgers at times looked uncomfortable in the attack designed by new coach Matt LaFleur. But he is a two-time league MVP, and he hit Jimmy Graham for the game’s only touchdown in the second quarter. From there, it was an aggressive defense that would have made Vince Lombardi proud in the latest edition of the NFL’s longest rivalry, which the Packers lead 98-95-6. Green Bay has won 16 of the last 19 regular-season meetings, and Rodgers is 17-5. Chicago’s defense hardly slacked, getting five sacks – tying the most it has had against Rodgers. But it could do little with the ball and the Packers had five sacks of Mitchell Trubisky, who never found his stride. Former Bears safety Adrian Amos picked off an end-zone pass into double coverage with 1:58 remaining, the only turnover of the contest. Mason Crosby made a 39-yard field goal in the final period for Green Bay, while defending NFC North champion Chicago got a 38-yarder from Eddy Pineiro.
September 5, 2019 2:58 am
Antonio Brown says the Oakland Raiders have fined him close to $54,000 for missing a practice and walkthrough. The star receiver posted a letter on his Instagram account from general manager Mike Mayock saying that he was fined $40,000 for an unexcused absence from practice on Aug. 18 and $13,950 for skipping a walkthrough in Winnipeg on Aug. 22.
September 5, 2019 2:55 am
NEW YORK (AP) – Rafael Nadal has reached his 33rd Grand Slam semifinal and prevented Diego Schwartzman from making it to his first. Nadal beat Schwartzman 6-4, 7-5, 6-2 in Arthur Ashe Stadium to move a step closer to a fourth U.S. Open championship and 19th major title in all, which would be just one short of Roger Federer’s record. Nadal will meet No. 24 Matteo Berrettini of Italy in the semifinals Friday.
September 4, 2019 3:48 am
DETROIT (AP) – Niklas Kronwall is retiring after 15 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings The hard-hitting defenseman announced his retirement in a video Tuesday on the team’s Twitter account, saying he would be taking a new role within the organization. Kronwall played 953 games in his NHL career and was part of the Detroit team that won the Stanley Cup in 2008. Kronwall had three goals and 24 assists in 79 games last season.
September 3, 2019 3:44 am
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) – The New York Jets have hired former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward as a full-time offensive assistant. Ward worked with the Jets during the summer as a coaching intern and impressed coach Adam Gase and his staff. The 43-year-old Ward is the Steelers’ career leader with 1,000 catches, 12,083 yards receiving and 85 touchdown catches.
September 2, 2019 4:08 am
UNDATED (AP) – Justin Verlander has become just the sixth pitcher in major league history to toss at least three no-hitters, and the first to do it twice as a visitor in the same ballpark. Verlander threw a season-high 120 pitches and faced just one batter over the minimum in tossing a gem in the Houston Astros’ 2-0 win at Toronto. He didn’t allow a base-runner after Cavan Biggio worked out a one-out walk in the first inning. Verlander struck out 14 and completed the fourth no-hitter in the majors this season by retiring Bo Bichette on a grounder to third baseman Abraham Toro. It was a fitting end to the game since Toro broke a scoreless tie with a two-run homer in the ninth. The gem comes eight years after Verlander no-hit the Blue Jays in Toronto and 12 years after his first no-hitter. The 36-year-old also improved to 17-5 this season and lowered his ERA to 2.56.
