U.S./World Sports category, Page 342
Martin Truex Jr. wins at Vegas in opening race of NASCAR Cup Series playoffs
LAS VEGAS — Martin Truex Jr. raced his way into the second round of NASCAR’s playoffs with a victory Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the opening round of the postseason. The win is Truex’s series-best fifth of the season and again cemented Joe Gibbs Racing as the team...
Former NASCAR driver killed in single-engine plane crash
STERLING, Conn. — Modified stock car great Michael Stefanik was killed in a single-engine plane crash. He was 61. State police say the crash happened Sunday afternoon in Sterling near the Rhode Island state line. They say the single-engine, single-seat Aerolite 103 took off from the Riconn Airport in Coventry,...
Suzann Pettersen wins dramatic Solheim Cup for Europe then retiresVideo
GLENEAGLES, Scotland — Suzann Pettersen stood over the final shot of her golfing career, not quite realizing it also was the last shot of the most dramatic Solheim Cup ever played. Europe’s players had their hands over their mouths, and their captain could barely watch. Blissfully unaware of what was...
AP Top 25: Cal, Arizona St move in to give Pac-12 6 ranked
California and Arizona State moved into the AP Top 25 college football poll to give the Pac-12 six ranked teams, the most for the conference in almost four years. A weekend filled with blowouts left the top half of the AP media poll presented by Regions Bank mostly unchanged. Clemson...
Bob Baffert: Justify’s positive test came from contaminated food
Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert denied giving 2018 Triple Crown winning horse Justify a banned substance that caused a positive test prior to last year’s Kentucky Derby and blamed the result on contaminated food. Baffert said in a statement Thursday that he “unequivocally” rejects the implication he would give...
Tennessee fan bullied for self-made T-shirt offered scholarship
One dedicated young fan just earned a college education for showing his true colors. After some unfortunate events for a University of Tennessee supporter, the school is offering honorary admission to UT and he has been awarded a four-year scholarship to the university. The fourth-grade Altamonte Springs, Fla., boy drew...
Report: Justify failed drug test before Triple Crown run
NEW YORK — The New York Times said Justify won the 2018 Triple Crown after a failed postrace drug test at a California track that could have kept the horse out of the Kentucky Derby. The newspaper reported Wednesday that Bob Baffert-trained Justify tested positive for the drug scopolamine after...
Analysis: USA Basketball’s World Cup plan went awry long ago
DONGGUAN, China — USA Basketball’s plan for a third consecutive World Cup title started going off the rails long before this tournament even began, after just about everyone who was originally asked to play for this team turned down the opportunity. As such, this outcome was not exactly unexpected. The...
Bryson DeChambeau headlines PGA Tour opener in West VirginiaVideo
U.S. Presidents Cup team members were told to get out and play, and Bryson DeChambeau is eager to please. DeChambeau is heeding captain Tiger Woods’ call for his eight players to stay sharp heading into the December matches. At No. 10, DeChambeau is the highest-ranked player in the world entered...
Dennis Rodman talks feeling bigger than Michael Jordan ahead of ESPN ’30 for 30′
Dennis Rodman had some pretty wild things to say in an interview posted Tuesday. While talking with Jackie MacMullan, The Worm discussed many topics in the 30-plus minus video posted to NBA on ESPN’s YouTube channel ahead of the release of his “30 for 30.” Rodman, 58, said at one...
Steelers legend Lynn Swann resigns as Southern Cal athletic director
LOS ANGELES — Southern Cal athletic director Lynn Swann resigned after three tumultuous years atop one of the nation’s most prestigious athletic departments. The 67-year-old Swann, a Hall of Fame receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers, signed his letter of resignation Monday, just two weeks into USC’s football season. Dave Roberts,...
Analysis: Federer-Nadal-Djokovic rivalry remains compellingVideo
NEW YORK At some point, of course, Rafael Nadal and the rest of the Big Three will stop winning Grand Slam titles, someone younger will emerge and a shift at the top of tennis will happen. Just not yet. And while so much attention in the sport has been focused...
Rafael Nadal holds off rally, wins U.S. Open for 19th major titleVideo
NEW YORK — The 19th Grand Slam title that seemed so inevitable for Rafael Nadal during the first two-plus sets of the U.S. Open final suddenly seemed in doubt as Daniil Medvedev forced it to a fifth. What had all the makings of a crowning morphed into a real contest...
Kevin Harvick wins Brickyard 400 as Jimmie Johnson’s NASCAR playoff streak ends
INDIANAPOLIS — Kevin Harvick’s nearly flawless run Sunday ruined any chance of Jimmie Johnson executing his win-and-in playoff strategy. A crash with 55 laps to go made it official: Johnson’s perfect postseason record is over. On a day Harvick won the pole, led all but 42 laps and raced to...
LSU’s win over Texas gives SEC 3 of top 4 spots in AP Top 25 poll
The SEC held three of the top four spots in the Associated Press college football poll after LSU’s road victory against Texas pushed the Tigers to No. 4. Clemson remained No. 1 on Sunday, receiving 56 first-place votes out of 62 in the Top 25. No. 2 Alabama received six...
Joe Burrow’s 4 TD passes lead LSU to wild win over Texas
AUSTIN, Texas — Joe Burrow passed for 471 yards and four touchdowns, including a 61-yarder to Justin Jefferson with 2 minutes, 27 seconds left, and No. 6 LSU pulled out a wild 45-38 victory over No. 9 Texas on Saturday night. The biggest nonconference game in Austin since No. 1...
Bianca Andreescu upsets Serena Williams in U.S. Open final
NEW YORK — Bianca Andreescu displayed the same brand of big-serving, big-hitting, in-your-face tennis that Serena Williams usually does. And now the 19-year-old from Canada is a Grand Slam champion, earning her first such title while preventing Williams from collecting a record-tying 24th. Andreescu took charge early in the U.S....
No. 7 Michigan escapes Army’s upset bid with double-OT win
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Michigan is off to a wobbly start this season, and Army almost took advantage. Jake Moody made a 43-yard field goal, and the seventh-ranked Wolverines forced and recovered a fumble to hold on for a 24-21 double-overtime win over the Black Knights on Saturday. The Wolverines...
The Undertaker drops in on College GameDay, talks UFC 242 on ESPN
The Undertaker made a rare non-wrestling TV appearance on Saturday. ESPN’s College GameDay was in Austin for the Texas vs. LSU game and the WWE star made a special appearance on the program. ? THAT'S THE UNDERTAKER'S MUSIC ? pic.twitter.com/6DCURh9GdO— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) September 7, 2019 ‘Taker repped his Longhorns...
1 more for 24: Serena Williams reaches U.S. Open final again
NEW YORK — With another U.S. Open final in sight, and Grand Slam title No. 24 within reach, Serena Williams got past a slightly shaky start and quickly took control. Williams turned in an increasingly impressive performance for a 6-3, 6-1 victory over No. 5-seeded Elina Svitolina of Ukraine in...
Rafael Nadal beats Schwartzman in 3 tight sets to reach U.S. Open semis
NEW YORK — Rafael Nadal kept pulling away in his U.S. Open quarterfinal, then getting reeled back in by Diego Schwartzman. In the first set, Nadal led 4-0 before Schwartzman got to 4-all. In the second, Nadal went up 5-1 before Schwartzman made it 5-all. Took more than two hours...
Chase for Tom Herman ends well for Texas, LSU
AUSTIN, Texas — The chase was on for Tom Herman. In late 2016, Texas and LSU were eyeing the young hotshot coach from Houston until a wild Thanksgiving weekend that included a Tigers win, a Longhorns loss and leaked details of contract negotiations swung Herman to Texas and pushed LSU...
Speedy Tevin Bush gives lift to sluggish West Virginia offense
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Hints that Tevin Bush could make an impact for West Virginia in 2019 began at a simple team-building exercise during preseason camp. During a game of musical chairs, 300-pound linemen were knocking each other over to get to empty seats when the song stopped. The speedy, 5-foot-6...
Erratic Federer loses to Grigor Dimitrov in U.S. Open quarterfinals
NEW YORK — Betrayed by his forehand, and maybe his body, too, Roger Federer is out of the U.S. Open. Federer gave away a lead against a guy he’d never lost to and was beaten 3-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 by 78th-ranked Grigor Dimitrov in the quarterfinals before a stunned...
Notre Dame searches for answers after uneven performance in opening winVideo
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — There are some questions marks for No. 8 Notre Dame after a somewhat lackluster showing on the road to open the season, even if it ended with a 35-17 win over Louisville. The silver lining for coach Brian Kelly: He was able to give his inexperienced...
