Sports category, Page 356
Mark Madden: Steelers wallow in mismanagement, illusion of success
The Pittsburgh Steelers maintain credibility based on two brands: their logo and the Rooney family. Simply being the Steelers is enough. But now the Steelers are not serious people. The Steelers wallow in mismanagement that isn’t acknowledged, let alone corrected. They’re clueless. The current disappointment isn’t just a blip. It’s...
New Saint Vincent football coach Casey Goff comfortable with putting life into struggling programs
Casey Goff grew up the youngest of three brothers, so it would have been natural for him to try to keep up with the other two. In actuality, Goff, the new football coach at Saint Vincent, said he didn’t even try. Even the younger of his two older siblings was...
Kiski Area grad Abbie Johns shows plenty of promise in freshman season with Shippensburg women’s basketball
As college debuts go, Abbie Johns couldn’t have asked for much more. The Kiski Area grad opened her freshman season with the Shippensburg women’s basketball team by scoring 14 points in just 16 minutes against then-No. 10 Fayetteville State. In fact, Johns made her first shot: a 3-pointer late in...
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins appear in steady hands with 1st-year coach Kirk MacDonald
The Pittsburgh Penguins have placed a considerable amount of trust in Kirk MacDonald. MacDonald, 41, is in his first campaign leading the Penguins’ American Hockey League affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. This year marks MacDonald’s first at the AHL level, as he joined the Penguins organization after coaching the Dubuque Fighting Saints...
Tim Benz: Debunking the theory that Pittsburgh couldn’t handle a Steelers’ losing season
A common refrain from defenders of head coach Mike Tomlin and the Steelers franchise is that Pittsburgh should be more grateful for the team’s current situation. I frequently hear that Pittsburgh fans and media members couldn’t handle a four- or five-win season if that’s what it took for the Steelers...
Madden Monday: AFC and NFC title games show how much of a ‘fraud’ the Steelers have become
In Sunday’s NFC Championship game, the Philadelphia Eagles routed the Washington Commanders, 55-23. In the AFC Championship, the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills stood at the 50-yard line and exchanged haymakers for three hours before the Chiefs emerged with a 32-29 victory. That’s 139 total points in the two...
First Call: Russell Wilson to Vegas may be discussed; Steelers speaking with Missouri QBVideo
Monday’s “First Call” has a potential free-agent destination for Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson. Former Steeler Antwaan Randel El is reportedly getting a new coaching job. A college quarterback is drawing the Steelers’ attention. Marc-Andre Fleury is honored yet again. And if the Penguins can’t beat Monday night’s opponent, they...
Chiefs get more Patrick Mahomes magic, advance to 3rd straight Super Bowl
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Patrick Mahomes threw for 245 yards and a touchdown, ran through the Buffalo Bills defense for two more scores and relied on his defense at key moments to help the Kansas City Chiefs win 32-29 on Sunday night and reach the Super Bowl for the third...
South Carolina’s arena DJ suspended 1 game for playing song by Flau’Jae Johnson’s late father
COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina athletic department announced Sunday that the women’s basketball team’s arena DJ has been suspended for one game for the choice of music played at the end of the Gamecocks’ win over LSU on Friday. The DJ, who goes by the stage name DJ T.O.,...
Minor league report: Emil Bemstrom’s hat trick leads Penguins past PhantomsVideo
Forward Emil Bemstrom had a hat trick and an assist for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in a 5-1 win against the rival Lehigh Valley Phantoms at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre on Sunday. Linemate Ville Koivunen recorded four assists while defenseman Mac Hollowell contributed a goal and an assist for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton...
Ryan Pressly waives no-trade clause to join the Chicago Cubs
CHICAGO — The Chicago Cubs are finalizing a trade for Ryan Pressly, adding the right-hander to the back end of their bullpen in their second major offseason deal with the Houston Astros. Pressly has agreed to waive his no-trade clause, according to a person familiar with the situation, and there...
Commanders warned referees can ‘award a score’ after 4 penalties near goal line in loss to Eagles
PHILADELPHIA — The Washington Commanders jumped offside four times in a sequence of five plays while trying to stop the Philadelphia Eagles’ vaunted tush push — earning them a warning from the referee that he could award the Eagles a touchdown if the Commanders did it again. The Eagles had...
World champ Ilia Malinin lands 6 quad jumps, cruises to his 3rd straight U.S. Figure Skating titleVideo
Ilia Malinin laid in the middle of the ice at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships on Sunday as everyone else stood in ovation. He has that effect on people. In another stunning display of athleticism, the reigning world champion landed six of his seven planned quad jumps — including the...
Naomi Girma is women’s soccer’s first million-dollar player after moving to Chelsea from San Diego
Women’s soccer has its first million-dollar player after United States defender Naomi Girma moved from San Diego Wave to Chelsea on Sunday. Chelsea announced the signing of Girma without disclosing the fee but The Athletic and the BBC were among those reporting the English champions have spent 900,000 pounds ($1.1...
Be brave. That’s what Madison Keys kept telling herself on way to winning Australian Open
MELBOURNE, Australia — Be brave. Go for it. Those were the mantras Madison Keys turned to as she confronted the most significant points of her tennis career, trapped in the cauldron of a third set that was tied at 5-all, 30-all in the Australian Open final against two-time defending champion...
Hurts, Barkley each rush for 3 TDs to help Eagles reach Super Bowl with 55-23 win over WashingtonVideo
PHILADELPHIA — Saquon Barkley dashed 60 yards for a touchdown on Philadelphia’s first play and finished with 118 yards and three scores, Jalen Hurts rushed for three TDs and the Eagles soared into the Super Bowl with a 55-23 win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday. Hurts and the Eagles...
Steelers positional analysis: Outside linebacker could have different look if T.J. Watt is on move
This is the seventh in a series examining the Pittsburgh Steelers roster, position by position, heading into the offseason. Today: Outside linebackers T.J. Watt’s future with the Pittsburgh Steelers undoubtedly will be a topic of discussion within the organization this offseason. It’s not just that the former NFL Defensive Player...
Penn State’s James Franklin pries coveted assistant away from rival to be Lions’ new DC, per reportsVideo
Few know the impact Jim Knowles can have on a defense better than James Franklin. Knowles, one of the top defensive minds in the sport, is expected to be Penn State’s new defensive coordinator, according to multiple reports. Franklin hired Knowles away from Ohio State, where he spent the last...
Fordham knocks off Duquesne on go-ahead 3-pointerVideo
Duquesne’s latest visit to Fordham’s historic Rose Hill Gymnasium in New York on Sunday left the Dukes in a bitter mood for their return trip to Pittsburgh. Again. Josh Rivera’s 3-point shot with 24 seconds left erased a 1-point deficit and gave Fordham a 65-63 victory, the Rams’ first in...
Mark your calendars: Saturday opener for deer rifle hunting backed by Pa. game commissioners
It’s not official yet, but hunters can probably start planning for the sport’s biggest weekend in Pennsylvania — the opening day for the deer rifle season in late November. The Pennsylvania Board of Game Commissioners on Saturday unanimously gave preliminary approval to hunting and trapping season schedules for 2025-26. The...
Penske’s pair of Porsches dominate as The Captain wins Rolex 24 at Daytona for 2nd consecutive year
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Roger Penske started his 59th season in motorsports the same way he closed last year — as a champion. Porsche Penske Motorsport on Sunday won the Rolex 24 at Daytona for the second consecutive year, and third time overall, to continue the domination “The Captain” flexed...
Gateway grads Courtney Jackson, Tui Faumuina-Brown turn attention toward NFL Draft
Courtney Jackson and Tui Faumuina-Brown shined during their time in a Gateway football uniform. Neither skipped a beat at the next level — Jackson at Syracuse and Arkansas State and Faumuina-Brown at UConn. Their impact was significant up to and including the final games of their collegiate careers, bowl victories...
Penguins defensemen Kris Letang, Marcus Pettersson happy with unexpected reunion
The Pittsburgh Penguins’ decision to weld Kris Letang with Marcus Pettersson on a defensive pairing in recent weeks wasn’t necessarily rooted in a sense of familiarity between the two long-time teammates. Make no mistake, that made the choice easier to implement. But that reunion was something of a happy accident....
Jannik Sinner beats Alexander Zverev in 3 sets for his 2nd Australian Open title in a row
MELBOURNE, Australia — There’s all sorts of ways beyond merely the score to measure just how dominant Jannik Sinner was while outplaying and frustrating Alexander Zverev during the 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-3 victory Sunday that earned the 23-year-old Italian a second consecutive Australian Open championship. The zero break points Sinner...
Minor league report: Penguins, Sergei Murashov conquer CometsVideo
Goaltender Sergei Murashov made 29 saves on 30 shots for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in a 2-1 win against the Utica Comets at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday. The result improved Murahsov’s record at the American Hockey League level to 3-0-0. Forwards Rutger McGroarty and Vasily Ponomarev each scored...
