SPORTS digest

Girard, Hubbard tickets on sale

GIRARD

Tickets for Saturday’s regional final between Girard and Hubbard will be on sale at Arrowhead Stadium on Wednesday through Friday from noon to 4 p.m. The cost for pre-sale tickets is $8. The game is at Niles’ Bo Rein Stadium at 7 p.m.

Columbiana picks six for Hall of Fame

COLUMBIANA

Four athletes, a coach and a contributor have been selected for the Columbiana High School Athletic Hall of Fame.

The athletes are Rick Clark (1987), Tucker Cope II (2001), Derek Garrod (2002) and Ian Schmidt (2001). Donald Groubert (1996-2002) is the coaching nominee and John Kelton is the contributor.

The induction ceremony will be on Jan. 12 at 6 p.m. at Columbiana High School and will be recognized during a basketball double header against Southern.

Tickets are $25 and $12 for kids age 6 to 10.

Louisville fires Bobby Petrino

LOUISVILLE, KY.

Louisville has fired coach Bobby Petrino with two games left in a spiraling season that includes five blowout losses in which the Cardinals allowed at least 50 points.

The school announced Petrino’s dismissal Sunday morning with statement from athletic director Vince Tyra, who said he “did not have the confidence” the coach could turn things around next season. The change “needs to start happening now.” Tyra said a new head coach would be chosen soon to “restore our football program to national prominence.”

Louisville (2-8) lost 54-23 at No. 13 Syracuse on Friday night, dropping to 0-7 in Atlantic Coast Conference play.

Petrino, 57, departs with a 77-35 mark in two stints with Louisville, including 36-26 since returning in 2014. His exit will be expensive for Louisville, which owes him $14 million under terms of his contract extension signed in April 2016.

However, the school was left with little choice but to release Petrino with the team struggling and sections of empty seats at Cardinal Stadium recently after opening a new north end section in a $63 million renovation project.

Mercedes clinches F1 title in Brazil

SAO PAULO

Lewis Hamilton won the Brazilian Grand Prix on Sunday, helping his Mercedes team to take the constructors’ title.

Hamilton, who had already sealed his fifth Formula One title, started from pole position and finished less than two seconds ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.

Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen completed the podium at Interlagos.

Hamilton’s 10th victory in the season was helped by Force India’s Esteban Ocon, who collided with Verstappen on the 44th lap when the Dutchman led.

Verstappen managed to stay in the race and get closer to Hamilton in the final laps, but it wasn’t enough for him to get his second consecutive victory.

Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel finished sixth.

MLB All-Stars win in Japan

TOKYO

Yadier Molina and J.T. Realmuto both homered on Sunday to lead the MLB All-Stars to a 7-3 win over Japan for their first win of the six-game exhibition series.

Realmuto hit a solo homer to right in the fourth at Tokyo Dome and Mitch Haniger scored on a throwing error by Japan starter Shinsaburo Tawata in the fifth to give the MLB All-Stars a 2-1 lead.

Molina followed with an opposite-field three-run blast to right that knocked Tawata out of the game and gave his team a 5-1 advantage.

The visitors added two more runs in seventh.

Eugenio Suarez doubled over the head of left fielder Seiji Uebayashi, scoring Juan Soto from second. Suarez then scored on a single by Haniger.

Japan won the first two games. The next game is in Hiroshima on Tuesday followed by two games in Nagoya on Wednesday and Thursday.

Staff/wire report