SPORTS digest

YSU’s Love to be Curbstone speaker

BEAVER TOWNSHIP

Rick Love, Youngstown State University associate athletic director, will be the guest speaker at Monday’s luncheon meeting of the Curbstone Coaches at Avion Banquet Center.

The event begins at noon and the public is welcome to attend. Love is expected to update the group on changes coming to the athletic landscape at YSU.

Mercyhurst North East takes two from EGCC

AUSTINTOWN

The Eastern Gateway Community College baseball team dropped a doubleheader to Mercyhurst North East on Saturday at Austintown Fitch High School.

The Gators lost the opener 9-7 and the nightcap 8-3.

In the first game, Evan Knaus led the Gators (15-16, 9-11 Ohio Community College Athletic Conference) with a grand slam, double and five RBIs. Antonio Walker had two hits, including a double and Hayden Kristophel also added a double. Pitcher Dylan Dickey took the loss.

In the second game, Derickmael Cuadrado was the losing pitcher and the Saints limited the Gators to three hits.

Nick Benson hit a solo home run and Jerermiah Papa and Knaus each had a single for EGCC.

EGCC will meet Mercyhurst North East (20-15, 10-8) will meet again today in a doubleheader at Rich Coppola Field.

First pitch is set for 4:30 p.m.

Thiem upsets Nadal in Barcelona semifinal

BARCELONA, Spain

For the second week in a row, Rafael Nadal has fallen in the semifinals of a clay-court tournament he has dominated for more than a decade.

Dominic Thiem defeated Nadal 6-4, 6-4 in the Barcelona Open on Saturday, becoming the first player other than Novak Djokovic to defeat the Spaniard on clay four times.

The loss for Nadal came one week after he was beaten by Fabio Fognini in Monte Carlo.

Nadal was seeking to add to his 11 titles at both events.

Now, the 17-time Grand Slam champion will be looking to recover his normally unstoppable form on clay before next month’s French Open, which he has also won 11 times.

Thiem will try to win his second title of the year today against Daniil Medvedev, who upset fourth-seeded Kei Nishikori 6-4, 3-6, 7-5.

It was a tour-best 25th win this year for the 14th-ranked Medvedev, who was coming off a semifinal appearance in Monte Carlo. It will be his first-ever clay court final.

Reddick wins Xfinity race at Talladega

TALLADEGA, Ala.

Tyler Reddick held off Gray Gaulding in a two-lap shootout to win the NASCAR Xfinity Series race Saturday at Talladega Superspeedway for his first victory of the year.

Reddick withstood a last-lap move by Gaulding to survive the caution-packed race and overcame a speeding penalty on pit road and brushes with both the wall and rookie Noah Gragson. Nobody could get by him after a restart from the eighth caution, a red flag after a seven-car wreck.

His car sustained damage on the right side after hitting the outside wall.

Gaulding took second for his best series finish and Christopher Bell was third.

It was Reddick’s first win in nine races this season, but he already had six Top 5 finishes and extended his points lead.

The 23-year-old also won the $100,000 bonus as the top finisher among the four drivers who qualified. He passed Chase Briscoe with 10 laps left and kept the lead through late restarts in the No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet. It was the first Xfinity win at Talladega Superspeedway for Childress and the first win for Randall Burnett as a crew chief.

Reddick had to cut his victory news conference short to make a fill-in qualifying run for today’s Cup race. Brendan Gaughan missed qualifying to return home for his son’s first communion but is returning for the race.

Staff/wire reports