SPORTS DIGEST || Springfield game heard on Sports Animal, 1390

Springfield game heard on Sports Animal, 1390

The Sports Animal (WNIO-AM 1390) will broadcast Springfield’s postponed Division IV state semifinal baseball game tonight at Huntington Park in Columbus.

Game time is 7 p.m. with the broadcast to begin at 6:40. Game 4 of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Eastern Conference Finals series against Boston will be pre-empted.

McDonald’s Tayala places 22nd at NCAAs

EUGENE, ORE.

McDonald High graduate Matthias Tayala placed 22nd out of 24 competitors in the hammer throw at Thursday’s NCAA Division I outdoor national championships.

Tayala (Kent State) threw 60.24 meters (197-8 feet) on his second attempt. He fouled his first and third throws. The top nine advanced to the finals.

Mixed martial arts card set Saturday

An amateur mixed martial arts card scheduled Saturday at St. Lucy’s Palermo Center, 394 Tenney Ave., Campbell, will feature two title fights. Bekzod Abdurakhmonov of Clarion, Pa., will compete for the open 155-pound title against Josh Hillard of the Grappling House in Adena. Another Grappling House fighter, John Saxton, will try to wrest the 185-pound title from current champion John Antinintis.

The card includes 10 more amateur fights with local fighters Saeed Garner of Struthers, Ron Vincent of Warren, Frank Masimore of Hubbard and Robbie Neumann of Struthers scheduled to compete. A 120-pound female bout is scheduled between Esther Graves of Erie, Pa., and Jen L’Insalata of Clarion.

Tickets can be purchased for $25 at the Boardman-Poland Quaker Steak and Lube, 435 Boardman-Poland Road. Tickets at the door are $30. For more information or to order ringside tickets call promoter Chuck Haskell at 724-699-1725. Gates open at 6 p.m. and the fights start at 7:30.

Amron Lanes hosting doubles tournament

CANFIELD

Amron Lanes is hosting a 9-pin, no-tap doubles tournament through Saturday.

The event is sponsored by H.D. Davis, CPAs. Teams consist of two women or one woman and one man.

Squad times are 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. today and Saturday. Cost is $18 per person. Call 330-533-3339 for more information. Walk-ins are welcome.

The women’s leaders are currently Pat Rohrbaugh and Norma Diver (1,749). The mixed leaders are Bryttany Martin and John Girardi (1,751).

Nuggets fire Karl, this year’s coach of the year

DENVER

The starless Denver Nuggets just lost their biggest name on the bench. George Karl was ousted Thursday less than a month after winning the NBA’s Coach of the Year award. His tenure with the Nuggets is over after 8 1/2 seasons.

The longtime coach is following general manager Masai Ujiri out the door in Denver after Ujiri, the league’s executive of the year, recently left to become GM of the Toronto Raptors.

Bess boosts Browns’ receivers at minicamp

BEREA

Davone Bess is the oldest wide receiver on the Cleveland Browns, but that’s strictly a relative term. Bess, 27, is squarely in the prime of his career and was the most consistent pass catcher throughout a three-day minicamp that concluded Thursday.

Emerging wideouts Greg Little and Josh Gordon are Cleveland’s future at the position, but Bess might be its most important asset. The sixth-year pro was acquired from the Miami Dolphins in an April 26 trade, then promptly signed a three-year contract extension.

The potential of Little and Gordon is high, but their maturity remains a concern.

The latter issue again came to the forefront Wednesday, when Gordon used his Twitter account to brag that he was “undefeated” drag racing on nearby Interstate 71. The tweet was deleted within hours.