Sports category, Page 2399
Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov tops Penguins’ Sidney Crosby in NHL MVP voting
Coming into the NHL’s annual postseason awards ceremony Wednesday night, Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby didn’t think he had a great shot at winning his third Hart Trophy as league MVP. His assessment was right on the money. Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov, who won the scoring title by 12 points...
Bryan Reynolds homer caps Pirates’ 6-run, come-from-behind win over Tigers
Wednesday afternoon before his struggling team’s game, manager Clint Hurdle discussed what Trevor Williams’ return meant for the Pittsburgh Pirates. It wasn’t just Williams’ pitching ability the Pirates so desperately needed, Hurdle said. They also would benefit from a much-harder-to-define intangible. Williams’ contagious competitiveness shined through Wednesday in his outing,...
Central Catholic grad Shipley wins WPGA Junior championship on 3rd playoff hole
Neal Shipley and Brady Pevarnik finished the 99th Western Pennsylvania Golf Association’s Junior championship in the dark Wednesday. After a thunderstorm delayed play at 2:21 p.m., the 36-hole event was far behind schedule. Thanks to some clutch putting on the final hole and the first three playoff holes, Shipley walked...
Pitt unveils Aaron Donald Football Performance Center
What Aaron Donald wanted everyone to know Wednesday night had nothing to do with his muscular arms and quick feet, his two NFL Defensive Player of the Year awards or his Super Bowl appearance earlier this year. No, the night was all about how sincerely humbled he was to have...
Penn State’s Jason Nolf receives Big Ten Medal of Honor
The Big Ten announced Penn State senior Jason Nolf received the conference’s Medal of Honor award, given annually for athletic and academic excellence. Nolf is a three-time NCAA wrestling champion. The kinesiology major finished with a record of 117-3. He finished with 60 pins, 27 technical falls and 16 major...
Steven Brault will start Sunday for Pirates, Jordan Lyles will make rehab start that day
Manager Clint Hurdle clarified the short-term future of the Pittsburgh Pirates starting rotation Wednesday, saying Steven Brault will start Sunday’s game, and Jordan Lyles will make a minor league rehab start that day. Lyles has been on the injured list since June 10 because of hamstring tightness. Hurdle said he...
Kevin Gorman: How ex-WPIAL star Cameron Johnson rose to projected NBA 1st-rounder
Mike Rodriguez received the phone call from Pitt director of basketball operations Brian Regan on Easter Sunday in April 2014, with a favor to ask and only a 30-minute warning. Jamie Dixon was headed to Pittsburgh International Airport, and the former Panthers coach wanted to stop on his way to...
Division I commitment on tap for Greensburg Central Catholic grad Jassan Eubank
Navigating the recruiting process for a second time has been a mostly pleasurable experience for Jassan Eubank. But now comes the hardest part: picking a college. The former Greensburg Central Catholic football standout has spent the better part of two years marketing himself as a Division I prospect. With eight...
Pirates injury updates: Erik Gonzalez ‘making tremendous progress,’ could play games soon
Erik Gonzalez was eligible to come off the 60-day injured list Wednesday. While that didn’t happen, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ Opening Day shortstop is much closer to being activated than many people thought he would be at this point. Gonzalez has been out since suffering a clavicle fracture in a collision...
Dominican AG: David Ortiz shooting result of mistaken identity
The Dominican Republic’s lead prosecutor said former Red Sox slugger David Ortiz was not the target of a shooting in a nightclub in his hometown on June 9. Attorney General Jean Alain Rodriguez said the target was another man, dressed similarly to Ortiz, who was seated with the ex-baseball star...
Racer Michael Norris set to defend title at Lernerville’s Firecracker 100
Last year, Michael Norris stood on top on top his car waving the checkered flag to a chorus of cheers from the Lernerville Speedway crowd after successfully beating the World of Outlaws touring regulars in the Friday night 30-lap preliminary feature during the Firecracker 100 weekend. It was a popular...
NHL notebook: Flyers sign center Kevin Hayes
The Philadelphia Flyers signed center Kevin Hayes to a $50 million, seven-year contract. Hayes becomes the Flyers’ third-highest paid player with a deal worth $7.14 million per season and should step in as their new No. 2 center behind Sean Couturier. General manager Chuck Fletcher announced the signing Wednesday, saying...
Report: Lions’ Matthew Stafford played with broken bones in backVideo
Matthew Stafford has started 128 consecutive games for the Detroit Lions, a streak surpassed in NFL history by only five quarterbacks: Brett Favre, Eli Manning, Peyton Manning, Philip Rivers and Matt Ryan. But according to a writer for the team’s official website, he played at least a few of those...
Christen Press stays positive entering World Cup match vs. Sweden
LE HAVRE, France — A devastating missed penalty kick by Christen Press in a loss at the Olympics could have been the lowest point of her career. Instead, it was a motivator and defining moment for the American forward. “I think when I look back on my career, all the...
Police release video, search for brawlers at youth baseball game
LAKEWOOD, Colo. — Colorado authorities said they are investigating a fist fight between adults over a teenage umpire’s calls during a youth baseball game involving 7-year-olds. Video shot by spectators shows men exchanging punches on the field. Lakewood police spokesman John Romero said police want help identifying a man shown...
Coach Joe Lewandowski guides U.S. team to upset of Serbia at 3×3 World Cup
Point Park men’s basketball coach Joe Lewandowski has Team USA poised and feeling confident after opening day of the FIBA 3x3 World Cup in Amsterdam. The U.S. team won both of its games Wednesday, including a 21-16 victory over three-time defending champion Serbia, which had won 15 straight games. The...
NHL salary cap could initiate trade free-for-all
Matt Niskanen wasn’t totally shocked when the Washington Capitals traded him to Philadelphia last week. One look at their salary cap picture explained it. “I know what kind of situation Washington was in, so I knew there was a possibility,” he said. General managers say there is more trade chatter...
Michel Platini: ‘It hurts,’ soccer star says of police questioning
PARIS — After a day of police questioning centering on his former role as a top decision-maker in soccer, Michel Platini was released from custody without charge in the early hours Wednesday and said he found the experience painful given “everything I’ve done” in the sport. Summoned Tuesday morning to...
Pitt football lands 3-star RB recruit Henry Parrish Jr.
The Pitt football team landed its ninth recruit for the Class of 2020 when three-star running back Henry Parrish Jr. made a verbal commitment Wednesday, according to his Twitter account. When Parrish enrolls next year, he will be the fourth Florida running back on the roster, joining current junior A.J....
Zion’s time: Williamson center of attention at NBA draft
NEW YORK — Zion Williamson smiled his way through nearly half an hour of questions, trying to portray himself like any player just hoping to be drafted. Suddenly, a tall, thin newcomer pushed his way to the front of the shoulder-to-shoulder swarm surrounding Williamson and shot down that idea. “What...
Pirates’ Francisco Cervelli (concussion) cleared for all baseball activities, has no symptoms
Francisco Cervelli is back in the Pittsburgh Pirates clubhouse. His return to the active roster might not be far behind. Out since May 26 because of a concussion, Cervelli was cleared last week by neurologist Dr. James Valeriano to “resume all baseball activities,” Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk...
After piggybacking on baseball, NFL stood tall in expansion
George Halas wanted an NFL team in Dallas, and in 1960 the influential founder of the Chicago Bears helped Clint Murchison get one. Less than 10 years later, a league that for decades piggybacked geographically on baseball went from 16 to 26 franchises in a merger with the rival American...
5 names to remember at forward for the NHL Draft
When scouts talk about this year’s NHL Draft being deep, they primarily are talking about forwards. It’s a talented crop headlined by a handful of stars from the U.S. National Team Development Program. That depth could cause an extremely talented player to drop to the Penguins at pick No. 21....
Can Penguins reach their offseason goals without trading Phil Kessel?
If the Pittsburgh Penguins had been able to trade winger Phil Kessel to the Minnesota Wild as general manager Jim Rutherford intended last month, it would have revealed the message the team was sending about its plans to bounce back from a disappointing finish to last season. More hunger and...
Grizzlies trade Mike Conley to Jazz for 3 players, 2 picks
The Memphis Grizzlies traded away the final piece of the franchise’s best years Wednesday, sending veteran point guard Mike Conley to the Utah Jazz for a trio of players, a person familiar with the deal told the Associated Press. The Grizzlies swapped Conley for forward Jae Crowder, guard/forward Kyle Korver...
