LOCAL

LOCAL

South Range wins, 2-1

WARREN — Nick Scheetz and Alex Baker scored first-half goals as the South Range High boys soccer team defeated Warren Harding 2-1.

Scheetz and Joe Stephenson had assists and goalie Luke Yeagley recorded nine saves for the Raiders (3-2).

Vallos let go

SEATTLE — Former Boardman High and Wake Forest standout Steve Vallos was released by the Seattle Seahawks, the Associated Press reported in its list of weekend transactions. He was a guard in preseason camp.

NATION

NFL transactions

NFL coaches, gearing up for the start of the regular season, whittled their rosters to 53 players over the weekend. Most of the cuts were obvious -- rookies who were not drafted and who only played in garbage time of exhibition games, over-the-hill veterans hoping to stretch their careers one last season -- but some cuts we never saw coming.

•FIVE SURPRISING CUTS

Byron Leftwich, QB, Jacksonville -- The seventh overall pick in the 2003 draft never made it through a complete season and sat out 15 games in the last two years. Then David Garrard outplayed him in training camp.

Cory Schlesinger, FB, Miami -- A three-time Pro Bowl alternate, Schlesinger lined up with the first-team offense all summer and was slated to be the starter. In the end, though, the Dolphins preferred 270-pound rookie Reagan Mauia.

Buster Davis, LB, Arizona -- It isn’t often that a team parts ways with a third-round pick, but the Cardinals gave up on a player they had signed to a three-year, $1.7 million deal.

Donovin Darius, S, Oakland -- Darius, a Jacksonville castoff who averaged more than 100 tackles over his nine-year career, was supposed to bring a hard-hitting attitude on the field and leadership in the locker room. He was slowed by a calf injury, though.

Quentin Moses, DE, Oakland -- Moses, the first pick of the third round in April, was competing for the starting right end job, but was lost in the shuffle when the Raiders began moving defensive linemen around. Tommy Kelly moved from defensive tackle to end, and claimed the job on the right side. Then the Raiders acquired DT Gerard Warren from Denver.

•FIVE SURPRISES

Troy Smith, QB, Baltimore -- Winning a Heisman Trophy is no guarantee a quarterback can make it in the pros (see: Jason White, Eric Crouch, Danny Wuerffel ... ). But they like the attitude they see, if not his 51.6 passer rating..

Kenton Keith, RB, Indianapolis -- Keith, formerly of the Saskatchewan Roughriders, has never had an NFL carry in a regular-season game, but that didn’t scare off the Colts. They felt good enough about him to release DeDe Dorsey.

Sav Rocca, P, Philadelphia -- The Eagles released Dirk Johnson, their punter the last four seasons, to make room for Rocca, a former Australian football player. The reason? It came down to numbers. Rocca had a net average of 38.9 yards on his punts; Johnson’s average was 34.8.

Gary Baxter, CB, Cleveland -- Baxter is a seasoned veteran, so it wouldn’t be so surprising that the Browns would keep him around ... except that he’s coming off two torn knee tendons, and a comeback like that would be unprecedented. He didn’t participate exhibition games this summer.

Chris Wilson, DE, Washington -- The Redskins’ defensive line is in the middle of a youth movement. The emergence of Wilson, who played for Division II Northwood University and in the Canadian Football League, allowed the team to release respected veteran Renaldo Wynn.

Detroit tops Indiana;
Game 3 tonight

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — It’s pretty much guaranteed that when its season is on the line, the Detroit Shock come to play. For some reason, everything just clicks. Including Sunday’s 77-63 win over the Indiana Fever in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals at the Palace, the Shock is 6-0 in elimination games in the last two years and 10-3 in franchise history.

Rapid, Crew tie

COLUMBUS — Conor Casey scored in the 85th minute to give the Colorado Rapids a 1-1 tie with the Columbus Crew on Sunday, keeping the teams even in their bid for the eighth and final spot in the MLS playoffs. Eddie Gaven scored in the 45th minute for Columbus. Columbus (6-7-10) and Colorado (7-9-7) both have 28 points. In the new playoff qualifying format, the top two finishers in each conference, plus the next four teams based on points.

Vindicator staff⁄wire reports