UIC sweeps YSU volleyball

UIC sweeps YSU volleyball

YOUNGSTOWN

The Youngstown State volleyball team struggled to get going offensively on Friday at Beeghly Center in a three-set loss to UIC. The set scores were 25-19, 25-22, 25-19.

The Penguins had 30 kills and 32 attack errors. The Flames had 10 blocks, but 22 of YSU’s errors came without the block being a factor. UIC hit just .124.

Lori Vanbeek led Youngstown State with 11 kills, and Sam Brown was next with six. Brown posted a match-best 13 digs, and Sarah Varcolla was part of four of YSU’s eight blocks.

YSU’s first lead of the match came in the third set, and the Penguins led for the final time at 13-12. UIC scored the next six points behind Grace Murphy’s serve, and YSU had four attack errors in that stretch. An Aleah Hughes kill cut the deficit to 19-17, but that’s as close as the Penguins got.

Phantoms win road game vs. Muskegon

MUSKEGON, mich.

The Youngstown Phantoms did all of their heavy lifting in the first period to beat the Muskegon Lumberjacks 3-1. Evan Wisocky, Alex Esposito and Dominic Dockey all scored in a span of six minutes in the opening period. Nicholas Werbick collected two assists.

Andrei Svechnikov picked up the lone goal for Muskegon in the third period.

Ivan Kulbakov made 17 saves for the Phantoms. His Lumberjacks counterpart, Keith Petruzelli, was yanked after 20 minutes of play. Adam Brizgala made 15 saves in relief.

Youngstown will play Muskegen tonight at 7:15 p.m.

No. 7 Louisville outlasts Duke

LOUISVILLE, Ky.

Lamar Jackson provided a cushion with a 2-yard touchdown run with 1:32 remaining and No. 7 Louisville held off Duke 24-14 on Friday night.

The Cardinals caught a break after Evan O’Hara’s 46-yard field goal missed wide left as Duke’s Breon Borders was called for roughing the kicker. The penalty moved the ball to the 14 and Jackson did the rest with a 12-yard run followed by the short score that Louisville (5-1, 3-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) sorely needed.

Jackson accounted for 325 yards of offense and two touchdowns, hitting Jaylen Smith with a 5-yard scoring pass on the opening drive. Jeremy Smith added an 80-yard TD run in the third quarter, and O’Hara kicked a 22-yard field goal as the Cardinals came off the bye and earned the program’s 500th victory.

Duke (3-4, 0-3) remained winless in ACC play but gave Louisville more than it expected.

J.R. Smith signs $57M extension with Cavs

CLEVELAND

A person with direct knowledge of the negotiations says free agent guard J.R. Smith has agreed to a contract offer to return to the defending NBA champion Cavaliers.

Smith has been waiting out of training camp with the Cavs but now has a deal in place, said the person who spoke to The Associated Press on Friday night on condition of anonymity because the package has not been finalized.

ESPN.com reported Smith will sign a four-year, $57 million deal.

The 31-year-old Smith was a major contributor last season when the Cavs rallied in the finals to beat Golden State. He averaged 12.4 points and shot 40 percent on 3-pointers in 77 games.

Smith made two huge 3-pointers early in the second half as the Cavs completed an historic comeback after being down 3-1 in the series.

The sides had been in a stalemate over the amount and length of a contract.

Welsh soccer player found not guilty of rape

CARDIFF, Wales

A former English Premier League player was found not guilty of rape on Friday following a retrial, ending a five-year case.

Ched Evans, a Wales international who has played for Manchester City and Sheffield United, wept and hugged his fiancee after the verdict was given at Cardiff Crown Court. The 27-year-old Evans admitted to having sex with a teenager in a hotel in north Wales in May 2011 but always insisted it was consensual. He was convicted of rape in April 2012 and released from prison after serving half of his five-year sentence.

Staff/wire report