Sports category, Page 1493
Gateway grad Brisker, Ji’Ayir Brown come up with big plays to preserve Penn State’s win over WisconsinVideo
MADISON, Wis. — Penn State’s defense continually stood tall, and Wisconsin kept stubbing its toe whenever it approached the end zone. That made the difference Saturday when the 19th-ranked Nittany Lions outlasted No. 12 Wisconsin, 16-10, to end the Badgers’ 25-game winning streak in home openers. Gateway grad Jaquan Brisker...
JT Brubaker reinstated from IL to start Saturday against the Cubs, Kyle Keller optioned
JT Brubaker has been reinstated from the 10-day injured list and will try to snap the Pittsburgh Pirates’ four-game losing streak when he starts against the Chicago Cubs at 2:20 p.m. Saturday at Wrigley Field. The right-hander was placed on the IL on Aug. 25 with a right thumb contusion,...
Former Steeler, broadcaster Tunch Ilkin dies after fight with ALS
Tunch Ilkin, the former broadcaster and tackle whose hard-nosed play on the football field was matched by his kindness and generosity off it, died Saturday after a year-long fight with ALS, the Pittsburgh Steelers announced. He was 63. Ilkin had a four-decade association with the Steelers, the first 13 as...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: What’s the holdup with T.J. Watt’s contract?
Why hasn’t T.J. Watt signed yet? We keep getting told a contract extension is imminent. But the definition of “imminent” cites a time frame that is momentary, not several weeks. Are the Pittsburgh Steelers flinching on giving Watt the guaranteed money he wants, reportedly in the neighborhood of $100 million?...
Don’t call him old, but do call Cameron Heyward a veteran leader for Steelers
As one of only six who have won the “Chief Award” multiple times as the Pittsburgh Steelers player most cooperative with media, Cameron Heyward has demonstrated a good relationship with local reporters. So much so, apparently, they aren’t afraid to needle him. And as one of the Steelers’ elder statesmen,...
Week 1 high school football roundup for Sept. 3, 2021: Aliquippa tops Beaver Falls
Isaiah Martinez ran for two 1-yard touchdowns as Class 4A No. 3 Aliquippa earned a 39-25 victory over Class 2A No. 2 Beaver Falls (0-2) in a nonconference football game Friday night at Geneva. Dorius Moreland opened the scoring for Aliquippa (1-0) with a 35-yard fumble return. Tajier Thornton also...
Central Catholic rights ship with blowout of Penn Hills
Last week, Central Catholic coach Terry Totten felt his defense bent a lot. This week, it corrected course and held Penn Hills to 66 yards in a 48-7 win Friday. The Vikings (1-1) used that defense and pass rush to create offense by winning the field-position battle. Nine Central Catholic...
2021 WPIAL statistical leaders for rushing, passing, receiving in Week 1
Top performers for Week 1 of high school football in Western Pennsylvania. Passing 353 - Connor Roberts, Trinity (20 of 32) 293 - Gavin Miller, West Allegheny (10 of 17) 273 - Cadin Olsen, Armstrong (21 of 32) 262 - Jaren Brickner, Beaver Falls (13 of 22) 261 - Sam...
Seneca Valley stuns Pine-Richland with late touchdown pass
The adrenaline still was running at maximum for Brandon Ross moments after catching the winning touchdown pass in the final 10 seconds to propel his Seneca Valley Raiders to a 24-20 win over Pine-Richland. “I might have blacked out a little,” Ross said. “I just remember catching it, running on...
Pirates farm report for Sept. 3, 2021: Altoona’s Mason Martin breaks up no-hit bid in 9th
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 50-55) lost to Iowa (Cubs) 9-7. RHP Cam Vieaux (7.67) started and went 1⅔ scoreless innings, striking out two and walking one. RHP Matt Eckelman (2-5, 4.88) ended up with the loss, allowing three runs (one earned) over 2⅓ innings. He also struck out three and walked one....
Senior quarterback steps up, leads Thomas Jefferson past Gateway in battle of top-ranked teamsVideo
Quarterback was considered a big question mark for Thomas Jefferson, so coach Bill Cherpak intended to give a couple of players snaps there. Joe Lekse altered those plans. The senior first-year starter threw for two touchdowns and rushed for another Friday night as Thomas Jefferson defeated host Gateway, 21-16, in...
Penn-Trafford jumps out to early lead in rout of Hempfield
This scoring on the first play of the game thing is catching on at Penn-Trafford. First-year senior quarterback Carter Green did it last week when he scored on a 99-yard run against Norwin. This week it was senior running back Cade Yacamelli who took the first snap from scrimmage to...
Norwin’s Levendosky clutch in final minute of win versus Latrobe
Norwin runs the 2-minute drill almost every day at practice. So with 32 seconds left Friday in a nonconference game against Latrobe, Norwin quarterback Luke Levendosky ran it to perfection. The senior used his arm and legs to drive Norwin to the Latrobe 4, where junior Joe Castle nailed a...
Virginia Tech rattles Sam Howell, beats No. 10 North Carolina to open seasonVideo
BLACKSBURG, Va. — Braxton Burmeister ran for a touchdown and threw for another, and Virginia Tech made Sam Howell look pedestrian in a 17-10 victory over No. 10 North Carolina on Friday night in the opener for both teams. Burmeister scored on a 4-yard run and found James Mitchell for...
AP sources: Big 12 moving quickly to add 4 new membersVideo
The Big 12 is moving quickly on an expansion plan that could have the conference at 12 schools after Texas and Oklahoma leave, with BYU, Central Florida, Cincinnati and Houston as the “most intriguing” candidates. Three people familiar with the Big 12′s talks said Friday the eight schools being left...
Derrick Henry poised to run into more NFL history in 2021
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Derrick Henry is a man of few words, preferring to work hard with a tunnel-vision focus and let his play do all the talking. Henry has been almost shouting the way he keeps running into the NFL record books. Now the NFL’s back-to-back rushing leader has the...
Jon Rahm closes gap, but Patrick Cantlay still leads Tour ChampionshipVideo
ATLANTA — For the second day in a row, no one had a better score than Jon Rahm at the Tour Championship. That’s just what he needed to make up ground on Patrick Cantlay going into a weekend chase for $15 million. Rahm birdied his last three holes Friday for...
‘Grave concerns’ from UEFA over FIFA biennial World Cup pushVideo
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has “grave concerns” about FIFA’s plans to stage World Cups every two years and is astonished by the lack of consultation by Gianni Infantino’s governing body, according to correspondence obtained Friday by the Associated Press. Responding to a letter from Football Supporters Europe executive director Ronan...
Sloane Stephens loses past-champions showdown at U.S. Open
NEW YORK — Angelique Kerber won a matchup of previous U.S Open champions when she beat Sloane Stephens, 5-7, 6-2, 6-3, in the third round of the U.S. Open on Friday. The reward for the 16th-seeded Kerber? A potential date with No. 3 seed and defending champion Naomi Osaka. Kerber,...
Penguins invite Mt. Lebanon’s Matt Bartkowski, veteran forward Brian Boyle to camp
The Penguins are inviting a pair of veteran NHL players, including a Western Pennsylvania native, to training camp in September, the team announced Friday. Defenseman Matt Bartkowski, a Mt. Lebanon native, and forward Brian Boyle will attend camp on professional tryout contracts, hoping to make the team. Bartkowski, 33, has...
Anthony Alford’s 2 homers not enough as Pirates lose to Cubs
Steven Brault was sitting next to Michael Perez on the lower bench in the visiting dugout with an obstructed view of Wrigley Field when they heard Anthony Alford make contact with the pitch. It was so loud that the Pittsburgh Pirates battery mates turned and looked at each other, recognizing...
NHL to punish unvaccinated players more harshly this season
The NHL plans to punish unvaccinated players more harshly if they test positive for the coronavirus as part of new protocols for the upcoming season. Teams will be able to suspend unvaccinated players without pay if they cannot participate in hockey activities as part of the protocols, according to a...
Former Super Bowl champ David Patten dies in motorcycle crashVideo
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Former three-time Super Bowl champion David Patten Jr. died in a motorcycle accident. The Richland County (S.C.) Coroner identified the victim of a crash Thursday night as Patten, 47, who is from Columbia. Patten played with the New England Patriots from 2001 until 2004, wining three NFL...
Special teams leads to special feeling for Steelers’ Jamir JonesVideo
Jamir Jones’ eyes lit up. And it wasn’t just because he was still basking in the glow of making the cut for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ roster the day prior. A first-year player who was the recently completed training camp’s proverbial breakout darling, Jones was asked about the mentality of covering...
Penguins assistant coach Todd Reirden named to Mike Sullivan’s Team USA coaching staff
When he was head coach of the Washington Capitals, Todd Reirden was often tasked with figuring out a way to stop Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. At the Winter Olympics in Beijing in February, he’ll be at it again. Reirden, now a Penguins assistant coach, has been named one of...
