Sunday, August 20, 2017
Scrappers win on Black Bears error
GRANVILLE, W.VA.,
A fielding error by West Virginia Black Bears shortstop Robbie Glendinning gave the Mahoning Valley Scrappers a 2-1 win.
Glendinning made his error with the bases loaded in the top of the third, sending Tyler Friis and Ernie Clement home. Chris Sharpe’s RBI-single in the fifth split the deficit in half.
The Scrappers had just four hits in the contest, with Friis hitting a double. James Karinchak struck out seven in two and two-thirds of an inning of work to get the win.
Curbstone Coaches to honor world champions
BEAVER TOWNSHIP
The Curbstone Coaches will honoring the Poland Junior League softball team, which recently won a world championship in Kirkland,. Wash., during a luncheon gathering Monday at the Avion Banquet Center on Western Reserve Road.
The event begins at noon and the $11 buffet luncheon is open to the public.
Halep in line for No. 1 ranking
MASON
Simona Halep moved within a victory of the No. 1 ranking.
The second-ranked Halep needed just 54 minutes to cruise past Sloane Stephens 6-2, 6-1 on Saturday in the Western & Southern Open semifinals, and can displace Karolina Pliskova as the top of the ranking with a victory over Garbine Muguruza on Sunday.
The fourth-ranked Muguruza reached her first W&S final with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over defending champion Pliskova.
The men’s final will feature two first-timers. Grigor Dimitrov outlasted John Isner 7-6 (4), 7-6 (10) in the first men’s semifinal. Nick Kyrgios beat David Ferrer 7-6 (3), 7-6 (4).
Halep, seeking her first No. 1 ranking, has yet to drop a set in the tournament and appears to be peaking at just the right time.
“I think I played my best match on hardcourt so far,” said Halep, who can become the first Romanian woman to be ranked No. 1. “It felt great. I moved very well today. From the first point, I felt like I was going to play good tennis.”
Indiana mistake costs player eligibility
BLOOMINGTON, Ind.
Indiana University has apologized to defensive back Bryant Fitzgerald for a mistake that will cost the freshman his first year of eligibility.
In a statement issued Saturday, athletic director Fred Glass acknowledged the school’s compliance office failed to properly advise Fitzgerald of his eligibility requirements.
Indiana appealed to the NCAA on Aug. 3. It was denied Friday.
Glass also says the school has changed the process to ensure a similar mistake will not occur in the future. He also criticized the NCAA for not granting the waiver when it “could have and should have.”
Fitzgerald, a defensive back, will remain on full scholarship and will receive all student-athlete services but, as a non-qualifier, cannot play in games or practice this season.
U.S. gymnast Biles considers comeback
ANAHEIM, CALIF.
Olympic gymnastics champion Simone Biles is back in the gym. Just don’t call it a comeback. At least, not yet.
Biles, who won four gold medals at the 2016 Summer Games, says she is just testing the waters as she considers a return to competition. The 20-year-old has spent the year since Rio de Janeiro taking a break from the sport and says she is in no hurry to make any sort of concrete decision.
Biles joked she has done little more than walk her dog since she left Brazil, though that’s hardly true. She competed on “Dancing With the Stars” and wrote a book while crisscrossing the country on a post-Olympic tour.
If she gets serious about a return, Biles will have to search for a new coach after longtime mentor Aimee Boorman took a job in Florida last fall.
Staff/wire report