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“When it happens, our staff members want to protect each other because it’s a disgusting thing to happen. I wanted to calm the situation down.
“Livingston have been first class, they have CCTV here so they’ll identify who it was and take action.”
County’s chief executive Steven Ferguson echoed his manager’s comments, adding that the Highland club are “not going to accept that”.
Livingston manager David Martindale did not witness the incident but said it would be “disgusting if true”.
“I’m sure the club will get to the bottom of that,” he added. “It’s vile. Disgusting. Really, really disappointing.”
The game ended 1-1 after Ronan Hale’s late penalty cancelled out Danny Wilson’s opener, with the sides meeting in the return leg in Dingwall on Monday to decide which of the two will be in the top flight next season.
Granada Hills means business in the City Section softball playoffs that began Thursday. Beaten in the championship game the last two seasons, the Highlanders opened action with a 13-0, mercy-rule win over Banning in the Open Division.
Addison Moorman gave up no hits and struck out 11 in five innings. Lainey Brown and Elysse Diaz each had three hits. Granada Hills, seeded No. 1 in the eight-team tournament, will play host to Venice in Wednesday’s semifinals.
Venice 2, El Camino Real 1: In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Gondoliers won it when Abigail Acensio got a walk-off single with the bases loaded. Violet Acensio struck out four with no walks in nine innings. Sophomore Remy Glassman of El Camino Real struck out 12.
San Pedro 6, Kennedy 1: Caroline Baker scattered nine hits, while striking out eight with no walks, for the Pirates, who will have a rematch with Marine League rival Carson in the semifinals on Wednesday. Jenna Ortega had two hits and two RBIs.
Carson 16, Birmingham 5: The Colts picked up a mercy-rule win in the sixth inning. Rylee Gardner hit two home run and drove in six.
Cokanasiga will start on the wing against French Top 14 side Lyon on Friday night (20:00 BST) as Premiership leaders Bath look to clinch their second trophy of the season in the European Challenge Cup final, having also been part of the squad that won the Premiership Rugby Cup in February.
He scored a scintillating try last weekend as they thrashed Leicester 43-15 in the league, running from deep in his own half after Max Ojomoh’s interception.
Bath head of rugby Johann van Graan said Cokanasiga has become a “more rounded player” during his tenure at the club.
“He’s by far the biggest winger that I’ve coached but Joe’s got this amazing ability to finish tries, he’s got this hunger to get better,” he said.
“We’ve ID’d certain bits of his game he needs to get better and he’s become a much more all-round player.”
Cokanasiga agreed his consistency across the pitch has come with the more experienced he has become.
“As I’ve gotten older my priorities have changed of how I need to perform in the game,” he said.
“Then we’ve got people like [Bath attack coach] Lee Blackett that has a different view of the game than I do and that’s helped me improve massively.
“Johann’s someone I can go and speak to about anything and let everything out, he can be honest with me, I can be honest with him, same with Lee and JP [Ferreira, defence coach].
“They give you a lot of confidence and that’s massive in players.”
WEST SACRAMENTO — Taylor Ward hit a go-ahead grand slam, Logan O’Hoppe also homered in a five-run seventh inning and the Angels rallied past the skidding Athletics 10-5 on Thursday for their seventh consecutive victory.
Ward and O’Hoppe both connected off reliever Grant Holman (4-1), sending the A’s to their ninth loss in a row.
It was the second go-ahead slam in 10 days for Ward, who finished with three hits and five RBIs. He has an extra-base hit in eight straight games — one shy of the club record set by Darin Erstad in 1998.
Ward has 17 RBIs in his last 10 games. He and O’Hoppe each have 14 homers this season. Zach Neto also had three of the Angels’ 13 hits.
The Angels (24-25) completed a 7-0 trip, winning four games against the Athletics to sweep them on the road for the first time in 28 years. The Angels have hit multiple home runs in six consecutive games for the third time in franchise history (also 1961 and 2019). It’s only their third seven-game win streak in the last 10 seasons.
Victory over Marton Fucsovics on Wednesday was Djokovic’s first win on clay since completing the career ‘Golden Slam’ at the Paris Olympics last summer.
He is now within two wins of achieving his 100th ATP Tour-level singles title – a feat only achieved by Jimmy Connors and Roger Federer in the Open era.
“Last year I played semi-finals. Hopefully this year I can go at least a step further – that’s the goal,” said Djokovic, who was presented with a birthday cake following his on-court interview.
“I think I am playing really good tennis. Today there was a lot of tension on the court.”
Avenging his loss to Arnaldi was another timely victory before his latest bid to win an outright record 25th Grand Slam title, with the French Open beginning on Sunday.
Punching the air and letting out an almighty roar in celebration, it was clear how much another victory before the year’s second slam meant to Djokovic after an inconsistent start to the year.
Immediate exits in Madrid and Monte Carlo following defeat in March’s Miami Open final had left Djokovic, in his own words, facing up to a “new reality” as he pushes to create more history in the twilight of his career.
He made a solid start against 39th-ranked Arnaldi, cruising through the first set after going an early break up, but the second set was more wayward.
Djokovic smashed his racquet after going 4-1 down and briefly appeared to feel some discomfort on the knee which required surgery last June.
However, he reset admirably after unleashing his frustration on his racquet.
He swiftly ripped the set from Arnaldi’s grasp, reeling off five games in a row to win in one hour and 40 minutes, before receiving his cake and being sung to by the crowd.
“After the racquet breaking I kind of found my optimal state and balance mentally and emotionally to be able to play my best tennis when it was most needed,” Djokovic added.
The College Football Playoff will go to a more straightforward way of filling the bracket next season, placing teams strictly on where they are ranked instead of moving pieces around to reward conference champions.
Ten conference commissioners and Notre Dame’s athletic director came to the unanimous agreement they needed Thursday to shift the model that drew complaints last season.
The new format was widely expected after last season’s jumbled bracket gave byes to Big 12 champion Arizona State and Mountain West champion Boise State, even though those teams were ranked ninth and 12th by the playoff selection committee.
That system made the rankings and the seedings in the tournament two different things and resulted in some matchups — for instance, the quarterfinal between top-ranked Oregon and eventual national champion Ohio State — that came earlier than they otherwise might have.
“After evaluating the first year of the 12-team Playoff, the CFP Management Committee felt it was in the best interest of the game to make this adjustment,” said Rich Clark, executive director of the CFP.
The five highest-ranked champions will still be guaranteed spots in the playoff, meaning it’s possible there could be a repeat of last season, when CFP No. 16 Clemson was seeded 12th in the bracket after winning the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey was among those who pushed for the change in the second year of the agreement, though he remained cautious about it being approved because of the unanimous vote needed.
Smaller conferences had a chance to use the seeding issue as leverage for the next set of negotiations, which will come after this season and could include an expansion to 14 teams and more guaranteed bids for certain leagues. The SEC and Big Ten will have the biggest say in those decisions.
As it stands, this will be the third different playoff system for college football in the span of three years. For the 10 years leading into last season’s inaugural 12-team playoff, the CFP was a four-team affair.
The news was first reported by ESPN, which last year signed a six-year, $7.8 billion deal to televise the expanded playoff.
World number eight Aspinall has confounded critics who opposed his inclusion in the eight-man competition, having been ranked 11 when the picks were made.
His inclusion was questioned by fellow players Mike de Decker and Dave Chisnall amid suggestions his popular walk-on song Mr Brightside helped his case.
The Stockport-born player has battled online abuse over his participation, as well as recovering from injuries and dartitis to reach the final four.
“I came off social media because of the abuse I was getting,” said ‘The Asp’ after his second nightly win, in Aberdeen a week ago.
“I’m not being exaggerated here, but it ruined my life for a month, not just my life, my family’s. It was horrific. “
Aspinall has also come back from elbow, wrist and back injuries, along with tackling dartitis – a condition where players have a mental block when it comes to throwing on the stage.
Missing out on qualification seals a miserable campaign for Van Gerwen, whose last nightly win came back in April 2024.
The three-time world champion had seven victories and two runner-up spots from his previous 12 campaigns, with his last Premier League title in 2023.
“This is probably one of the hardest Premier Leagues I have ever played in – not in terms of players, but in terms of myself,” Van Gerwen admitted.
His cause was not helped when missing the ninth event of the season in Berlin with a shoulder injury sustained while trying to put a shirt on.
Whatever Canon King of Venice High had done earlier this season — he had six home runs — his performance on Tuesday night in the City Section Open Division semifinal game against Sylmar at Cal State Northridge earned him a lofty place few others have attained.
He was five for five with three RBIs and scored the winning run in the eighth inning of a 9-8 victory.
Canon King of Venice after going five for five and scoring the winning run in the B8 inning of 9-8 win over Sylmar that sends team to Dodger Stadium. pic.twitter.com/56cciChhUF
“It felt amazing,” he said. “My approach all day, get on base.”
Canon King going five for five and hitting the ball all different places was one of the great performances in City Section playoff history. Here’s a look at how he placed the ball where Sylmar couldn’t catch them. pic.twitter.com/OMwq1iIulP
He repeatedly looked for holes in Sylmar’s defense and sent the ball wherever they existed. It was an amazing display of bat discipline and knowledge. He had a single in the first inning, a two-run single in the second, a single in the fourth, a single in the sixth and a run-scoring double in the eighth.
You need to purchase tickets for Saturday’s City Section championship games at Dodger Stadium at ticket booths there. Tickets are $15 and $12 for students. Credit cards only. Gates for parking open at 8:30 a.m. Division I 10 a.m., Open at 1 p.m. Clear bag policy.
Now he gets to play in the Open Division final against El Camino Real at 1 p.m. Saturday at Dodger Stadium. He’s committed to Cal State San Marcos and is a three-time Western League MVP.
“Best hitter in the City in my time doing this,” Westchester coach Joshua Saperstein said.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email [email protected].
Centuries from Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope and Ben Duckett highlight a dominant batting display as England wrap up day one on 498-3 in the first innings of their single Test match against Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge.
The YULA and Shalhavet baseball teams have been banned from participating in next year’s Southern Section playoffs and placed on probation for pulling out in the middle of this year’s playoffs to participate in a Jewish baseball tournament in Ohio.
CIF rules do not allow schools to play in non-authorized events during the season of their sport.
Messages left for YULA have not been returned. A Shalhavet athletic representative said he was not allowed to comment.
YULA and Shalhevet baseball ineligible for next year’s playoffs as sanctions for pulling out this season to play in a Jewish tournament. pic.twitter.com/uz9rNBXeyX
The fact two Jewish schools decided a Jewish tournament was more important than the Southern Section baseball playoffs is fine — if they had not accepted playoff invitations. But they won their first-round playoff games, then forfeited to play in the Jewish tournament.
It provides clear evidence that whoever is in charge doesn’t take participating in CIF sports seriously and that should be a concerning message to parents and athletes at the two schools.
It’s tough enough for kids of Jewish faith to be taken seriously when they play sports and want to be the best. This episode perpetuates stereotypes and harms the progress made at the two schools by other coaches and other athletes.
Olav Kooij won a close-fought sprint on stage 12 of the Giro d’Italia as Isaac del Toro retained the pink jersey in Viadana.
Dutchman Kooij benefited from Visma-Lease A Bike team-mate Wout van Aert’s superb lead-out in the final kilometre.
Casper van Uden finished second with Britain’s Ben Turner of Ineos Grenadiers third.
“Only he [Wout] can do it, so to have him as support here is extraordinary,” said Kooij.
“I really need to thank him and also the rest of the team, they did a fantastic job.
“You don’t want to be too far [back] in that last corner, that’s maybe why we had to go a bit earlier than we wanted but I could jump on the wheel of Casper and pass him.”
Del Toro of UAE Team Emirates-XRG stayed out of the hectic fight for position in the closing stages to finish safely in the bunch and maintain his hold on the pink jersey.
A sprint for two bonus seconds at the Red Bull kilometre in Brescello means the 21-year-old heads into stage 13 with a 33-second lead over team-mate Juan Ayuso in the race overall.
Kooij’s British team-mate Simon Yates is in fourth, one minute and 11 seconds off the overall lead.
Previously limited to fastballs and splitters, Shohei Ohtani threw a handful of sliders and curveballs in his mid-week bullpen session, but that doesn’t mean he will be a two-way player again before the All-Star break.
Ohtani is lined up to potentially face hitters in a simulated game on Saturday in New York, but that doesn’t mean he will pitch in the upcoming four-week stretch that could determine the course of the Dodgers’ season.
As encouraged as the team is with his progress and as desperate as the Dodgers are for one of their sidelined frontline starters to return, they will continue to slow play Ohtani’s return to the mound, according to a person familiar with the team’s thinking but not authorized to speak publicly.
The Dodgers could use Ohtani’s arm, but they absolutely need his bat, and they don’t plan on jeopardizing his offense by exposing him to any unnecessary risks on the mound.
Which is a major gamble in itself.
Every one of their next 26 games will be against teams with winning records. Of them, 23 will be against teams that would have qualified for the playoffs if the regular season ended on Wednesday, the exception being the St. Louis Cardinals, who have won 13 of their last 17 games.
Starting on Friday at Citi Field with the opening game of a three-game series against the New York Mets, the stretch of games will include seven meetings with the San Diego Padres and three with the San Francisco Giants.
The Padres were 2 ½ games behind the Dodgers in the National League West entering Thursday. The Giants were just two back.
Considering the state of their pitching staff, the Dodgers could very easily emerge from this stretch of games in second, third, or maybe even fourth place in their division.
Roki Sasaki is targeting a return in late June from what the team described as a shoulder impingement, but the rookie never looked entirely comfortable before he went down, so who knows what he will offer them when he comes back.
Roki Sasaki is one of several Dodgers starting pitchers on the injured list.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
“Not sure I’ve ever seen their pitching so decimated,” an executive from a rival team said.
The loss of frontline starters is nothing new for the Dodgers, whose injury problems last year practically forced them to acquire Jack Flaherty at the trade deadline. What’s new is their lack of depth.
The returns of Tony Gonsolin and Clayton Kershaw have mitigated the problem but only so much. Along with the inconsistent Dustin May and the consistently mediocre Landon Knack, Gonsolin and Kershaw represent the rotation’s final line of defense.
In previous seasons, the Dodgers always seemed to have 10 pitchers in their organization who could beat a mid- or low-level opponent on any given day. However, the inability to keep their young pitchers healthy has cost them much of that depth. Emmet Sheehan, River Ryan and Gavin Stone underwent major surgeries last year. Michael Grove had a shoulder operation this year. Injuries have turned Bobby Miller into a pedestrian minor leaguer, but if another starter is injured, the Dodgers could be forced to call him up again.
Dave Roberts expertly managed a depleted rotation and exhausted bullpen in the playoffs last year, and he’ll have to do it again less than two months into the regular season. He could have to punt on certain games. When his team is behind, he could have to ask his starter to pitch an extra inning or two so that he could save his high-leverage relievers for games in which they are ahead.
This isn’t to say Ohtani’s pitching comeback should be expedited. Whomever they have pitching, the Dodgers will have to score runs to win another World Series, and that starts with Othani. Before they unleash Ohtani the pitcher, they have to protect Ohtani the hitter.
Because of that, they have gambled on May pitching more games like the one he pitched on Wednesday night in a 3-1 victory over Diamondbacks. They have gambled on Kershaw figuring out how to pitch as a 37-year-old returning from multiple operations. And they have gambled on Roberts managing an injury-ravaged pitching staff.
The wagers will decide what kind of season this will be, whether this is a year in which the Dodgers will run away with the NL West or one in which they will have to fight until the final days of the regular season to determine which team is granted a first-round bye in the playoffs.
Britain’s Emma Raducanu could face three-time defending champion Iga Swiatek in the second round of the French Open.
The 22-year-old, who was thrashed by Swiatek at January’s Australian Open, must first beat China’s Wang Xinyu in Paris.
British men’s number one Jack Draper plays Italy’s Mattia Bellucci in his opening match, with top-ranked Jannik Sinner a potential quarter-final opponent.
Italy’s Sinner, who has recently returned from a three-month doping ban, will start against France’s Arthur Rinderknech.
Defending men’s champion Carlos Alcaraz opens his title defence against Japan’s former world number four Kei Nishikori.
Novak Djokovic, who is aiming for a standalone record 25th Grand Slam, has been pitted against American Mackenzie McDonald.
The Serb great, who turned 38 on Thursday, has German third seed Alexander Zverev and Russian 11th seed Daniil Medvedev in his quarter of the draw.
The draw was conducted at Roland Garros on Thursday, with France and Paris St-Germain footballer Ousmane Dembele picking out the names, before the clay-court Grand Slam begins on Sunday.
From Ryan Kartje: With the contract between USC and Notre Dame set to expire and one of college football’s most storied rivalries in serious danger of ending, officials at USC extended an offer to Notre Dame earlier this month in hopes of continuing the historic series for at least one more season — through the fall of 2026 — a person familiar with the negotiations not authorized to discuss them publicly told The Times.
The future of the rivalry beyond that, in the eyes of USC’s leaders, hinges in large part on what happens with the format of the College Football Playoff — namely, the number of automatic qualifiers guaranteed to the Big Ten in future playoff fields. And until those questions are answered, USC leaders agree the best course forward for its century-old rivalry with Notre Dame would be to continue their arrangement one season at a time.
Anything else would be “a strategically bad decision,” a USC source said.
That timeline is where the two rivals find themselves at an impasse. Notre Dame is seeking a long-term extension of the series, and in an interview with Sports Illustrated earlier this week, Irish athletic director Pete Bevacqua not so subtly suggested that it was USC putting the rivalry at risk.
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NBA MVP
The case for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was simple. He’s the best player on an Oklahoma City Thunder team that had the best record this season and set a league mark for margin of victory. As if that weren’t enough, he also won the scoring title.
That’s an MVP season.
Gilgeous-Alexander was announced Wednesday as the NBA’s Most Valuable Player, his first time winning the award. It’s now seven consecutive years that a player born outside the U.S. won MVP, extending the longest such streak in league history.
It ultimately was a two-person race. Gilgeous-Alexander received 71 first-place votes and 29 second-place votes; Denver’s Nikola Jokic got the other 29 first-place votes and the other 71 second-place votes.
Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo was third, getting 88 of the 100 possible third-place votes. LeBron James of the Lakers came in sixth, James Harden of the Clippers was 11th.
No. 1 Oklahoma City vs. No. 6 Minnesota at Oklahoma City 114, Minnesota 88 (box score) Thursday at Oklahoma City, 5:30 p.m., ESPN Saturday at Minnesota, 5:30 p.m., ABC Monday at Minnesota, 5:30 p.m., ESPN Wednesday at Oklahoma City, 5:30 p.m., ESPN* Friday, May 30 at Minnesota, 5:30 p.m., ESPN* Sunday, June 1 at Oklahoma City, 5 p.m., ESPN*
Eastern Conference
No. 3 New York vs. No. 4 Indiana Indiana 138, at New York 135 (OT) (box score) Friday at New York, 5 p.m., TNT Sunday at Indiana, 5 p.m., TNT Tuesday at Indiana, 5 p.m., TNT Thursday, May 29 at New York, 5 p.m., TNT* Saturday, May 31 at Indiana, 5 p.m., TNT* Monday, June 2 at New York, 5 p.m., TNT*
A day after Teoscar Hernández returned to the Dodgers’ lineup, activated from the injured list Monday following a two-week absence because of an adductor strain, Roberts decided to sit the veteran slugger for the second of a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
It was a surprise choice, but with a simple reason.
Knowing Hernández would play only twice this week coming off his injury, Roberts wanted to ensure he would be available Wednesday to face former Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes.
“I just felt like having him in there tomorrow,” Roberts said Tuesday, “I feel good with.”
Twenty-four hours later, the result was even greater than he expected.
In the Dodgers’ 3-1 rubber-match victory over the Diamondbacks, Hernández delivered the night’s biggest swing in the bottom of the sixth, taking a wrecking ball to what had been a flawless outing from Burnes with a three-run home run that turned the game upside down.
Logan O’Hoppe hit two home runs and drove in three runs, Jo Adell and Zach Neto also homered and the Angels beat the Athletics 10-5 on Wednesday night for their season-high sixth straight victory.
O’Hoppe led off the fourth with his second homer of the game, third in two nights and 13th of the season, just before Adell hit his sixth. Neto’s two-run homer in the third, his eighth, gave the Angels the lead for good at 4-3. The Angels had five two-run innings.
Taylor Ward had three hits, including a triple and double. Jorge Soler had three hits, with two doubles and two RBIs.
Satou Sabally scored 25 points, Alyssa Thomas added 19 and the Phoenix Mercury held off the Sparks89-86 on Wednesday night.
Two free throws from Kelsey Plum had the Sparks, who trailed by 14 early in the fourth quarter, within one at 78-77 with 2 1/2 minutes to play in a game of long runs but Thomas scored the next six Phoenix points.
Plum kept pace, scoring the last 11 points of the game for the Sparks. That included the 500th 3-pointer of her career and then a shot with four seconds left. On that tightly contested desperation shot from the left wing, her foot was on the line so the Mercury led 87-86.
A second later Sabally made two free throws and Plum’s half-court heave wasn’t close.
From Chuck Schilken: NFL owners have decided to keep the “Tush Push,” the signature short-yardage play of the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, after a vote Wednesday at their spring meeting in Eagan, Minnesota.
Multiple media outlets are reporting that the vote was 22-10 in favor of the ban, falling short of the 24 votes it needed to go into effect. The teams that are said to have joined the Eagles in voting against the proposal were the Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns, Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, New Orleans Saints, New York Jets and Tennessee Titans.
The “Tush Push” is a version of a quarterback sneak in which two or three players line up behind the signal caller and help drive him forward in short-yardage situations.
The USC and UC Irvinecoaching legend guided Orloff for two years as an Anteater, watching Orloff become the baseball program’s all-time hits leader with his peak bat-to-ball abilities. But it wasn’t Orloff’s eye-popping swing or swift speed on the basepaths that captivated Gillespie the most. It was the future he imagined for his star infielder, the then-Big West Conference player of the year.
“I don’t know how else to say it: His instincts, his clue, his feel for the game, his baseball IQ, is like nothing else,” Gillespie said as Orloff’s collegiate career wrapped up in 2009. “He should be a major league manager. He might be wasted as a major league manager, because they can do so little, in terms of all these little things.”
The American Baseball Coaches Assn. Hall of Famer, who died in 2020, continued: “He probably should be a college coach, a college head coach.”
It’s mid-May and Orloff sits in the office Gillespie once occupied. Orloff is bald with a bright smile. He’s just 38, and yet this is his 12th season on the UC Irvine coaching staff — and his seventh as the Anteaters’ head coach.
Orloff settles down at a table, crosses his legs and is ready to reminisce, talk shop — and praise the mish-mosh ballclub that’s set the Big West aflame for the second consecutive season in which it won its second regular-season conference championship under the coach.
From Kevin Baxter: A bipartisan group of Congressional representatives are calling on Secretary of State Marco Rubio to streamline the government’s visa processing system to ensure visitors from abroad will be able to attend next year’s FIFA World Cup as well as the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The World Cup, which kicks off in less than 400 days, is expected to generate $3.75 billion in economic activity in the U.S. With SoFi Stadium in Inglewood hosting eight games, the economic impact on Southern California is estimated at nearly $600 million.
But cost-cutting measures proposed by Rubio could threaten that by reducing staff and closing some embassies and consulates, increasing visa wait times and making an already cumbersome system more complicated and costly. That could keep tens of thousands of fans at home.
Central 2 Dallas vs. Pacific 3 Edmonton at Dallas 6, Edmonton 3 (summary) Friday at Dallas, 5 p.m., ESPN Sunday at Edmonton, noon, ABC Tuesday at Edmonton, 5 p.m., ESPN Thursday, May 29 at Dallas, 5 p.m., ESPN* Saturday, May 31 at Edmonton, 5 p.m., ABC* Monday, June 2 at Dallas, 5 p.m., ESPN*
Eastern Conference
Metro 2 Carolina vs. Atlantic 3 Florida Florida 5, at Carolina 2 (summary) Thursday at Carolina, 5 p.m., TNT Saturday at Florida, 5 p.m., TNT Monday at Florida, 5 p.m., TNT Wednesday at Carolina, 5 p.m., TNT* Friday, May 30 at Florida, 5 p.m., TNT* Sunday, June 1 at Carolina, 5 p.m., TNT*
* If necessary
THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY
1877 — Baden-Baden, ridden by C. Holloway, catches Leonard just before turning into the stretch and wins the Kentucky Derby by two lengths.
1885 — Tecumseh, ridden by Jimmy McLaughlin, wins the Preakness Stakes by two lengths over Wickham.
1902 — Mastermam, ridden by John Bullman, wins the Belmont Stakes by two lengths over Renald.
1906 — Whimsical, the favorite ridden by Walter Miller, wins the Preakness Stakes by four lengths over Content.
1954 — Hasty Road, ridden by Johnny Adams, edges favored Correlation by a neck to win the Preakness Stakes.
1963 — European Cup Final, Wembley Stadium, London: José Altafini scores twice as AC Milan edge Benfica, 2-1 for first title to an Italian club.
1975 — Artis Gilmore scores 28 points and grabs 31 rebounds to lead the Kentucky Colonels to a 110-105 victory over the Indiana Pacers for the ABA championship.
1988 — Atlanta’s Dominique Wilkins trades bucket for bucket with Boston’s Larry Bird in the fourth quarter of Game 7 of the 1988 Eastern Conference semifinals until the Celtics escape with a 118-116 victory. Wilkins finishes with 47 points and Bird has 34 — with 20 of his points scored in the fourth quarter. The teams shoot a combined 58.8% from the field, the second highest mark in playoff history.
1988 — LPGA Championship Women’s Golf, Jack Nicklaus GC: Sherri Turner birdies final 2 holes to win her only major title, 1 stroke ahead of runner-up Amy Alcott.
1991 — NFL Owners agree to add 2 teams in 1994.
1993 — Riddick Bowe successfully defends his IBF and WBA heavyweight titles with a second-round knockout of Jesse Ferguson at RFK Stadium in Washington.
1994 — Toronto NBA franchise unveils name “Raptors” & logo.
1996 — 4th UEFA Champions League Final: Juventus beats Ajax (1-1, 4-2 on penalties) at Rome.
1997 — The Chicago Bulls win the lowest-scoring playoff game in NBA history, a 75-68 victory over the Miami Heat. The 143 combined points were two fewer than the previous postseason low set by Syracuse and Fort Wayne in 1955.
2003 — Annika Sorenstam becomes the first woman to play in a PGA Tour event in 58 years when she shoots a 71 in the first round of the Colonial in Fort Worth, Texas. Sorenstam misses the cut the next day by four shots.
2004 — English FA Cup Final, Millennium Stadium, Cardiff (71,350): Manchester United beats Millwall, 3-0; Ruud van Nistelrooy scores 2 and Cristiano Ronaldo 1 in Red Devils’ 11th title win.
2005 — Paula Creamer, 18, makes a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole to win the Sybase Classic by one stroke and become the second-youngest first-time winner on the LPGA Tour.
2006 — Pat Summitt becomes the newest millionaire coach — and the first in women’s basketball. Tennessee raises Summitt’s salary to $1.125 million for next season and extends her contract six years.
2009 — Dara Torres sets an American record in the 50-meter butterfly at the Texas Senior Circuit No. 2 meet at Texas A&M. The 42-year-old, breezes to victory in the 50 fly, touching the wall in 25.72 seconds to beat her record time of 25.84 seconds from the morning preliminaries. Both her times beat Jenny Thompson’s American record of 26.00 seconds, set in Barcelona in 2003.
2010 — UEFA Champions League Final, Madrid: Internazionale beats Bayern Munich, 2-0; Inter’s 3rd title and first treble (Italian Serie A & Cup).
2016 — The Tradition Senior Men’s Golf, Greystone G&CC: Germany’s Berhard Langer wins sixth of 13 Champions Tour majors by 6 strokes from Olin Browne.
2021 — 30 year old Scottish light-welterweight boxer Josh Taylor becomes Britain’s first undisputed world champion in the four-belt era by beating Jose Ramirez by unanimous decision in Las Vegas.
2022 — PGA Championship Men’s Golf, Southern Hills CC: 2017 champion Justin Thomas beats Will Zalatoris by 1 stroke in a 3-hole playoff after 54-hole leader Mito Pereira double bogeys the 72nd hole.
THIS DAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY
1933 — Joe Sewell of the New York Yankees struck out for the first time this season, during a 3-0 win over Cleveland. Sewell would strike out only three more times in 524 at-bats.
1942 — Ted Williams is sworn into the U.S. Navy, but will remain with the Red Sox until he is called for active duty.
1957 — The Boston Red Sox hit four home runs in the sixth inning of an 11-0 win over Cleveland. Gene Mauch, Ted Williams, Dick Gernert and Frank Malzone connected. All the homers came on the first 16 pitches from Cal McLish.
1958 — Ted Williams hits his 16th career grand slam to provide the Red Sox with the margin in an 8-5 win over the A’s. Ted’s 4th-inning blast, off Jack Urban, ties him with Babe Ruth for second place on the career slam list.
1959 — Baltimore’s Hoyt Wilhelm pitched a one-hitter against the New York Yankees for a 5-0 win. Jerry Lumpe’s single in the eighth spoiled the no-hit bid.
1963 — Mickey Mantle hit a pitch from Kansas City’s Bill Fischer off the right-field facade at Yankee Stadium in an 8-7 victory over the A’s.
1968 — Willie Stargell of the Pittsburgh Pirates hit three home runs, a double and a single in a 13-6 victory over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Stargell’s double just missed going out, as it bounced off the railing of the left-field bleachers.
1976 — St. Louis’ Reggie Smith hit three home runs — two right-handed and one left-handed — and drove in five runs in a 7-6 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. Smith’s third homer came with two out in the ninth and broke a 6-6 tie.
1977 — Boston and Milwaukee hit a combined 11 home runs in a 14-10 Red Sox victory at Fenway Park, tying a major league record. The Red Sox connected for six and the Brewers hit five in the first game of a doubleheader.
1983 — Cliff Johnson of the Toronto Blue Jays hit his 18th career pinch homer. The homer, off Baltimore’s Tippy Martinez, tied Johnson with Jerry Lynch on the career pinch home run list.
1990 — Andre Dawson sets a major-league record when he is intentionally walked five times during a 16-inning, 2-1 Cubs win over the Reds.
1998 — The Mets acquire catcher Mike Piazza from the Marlins in exchange for OF Preston Wilson, P Ed Yarnall and a player to be named. Piazza has barely spent a week with Florida, following a trade from the Dodgers.
1998 — Brian Cox went 6-for-6, including a grand slam in a 10-run third inning, as Florida State rolled past Delaware 27-6 in the NCAA Atlantic II Regional. Freshman Matt Diaz hit three home runs for the Seminoles.
2000 — Milwaukee beat Houston in the first game of a doubleheader, 10-9, coming back from a 9-2 deficit to tie the score with seven runs in the bottom half of the ninth inning. The Brewers won the game in the 10th on a home run by Jose Hernandez.
2001 — The Twins score 8 runs in the 3rd inning to give Brad Radke an 8-0 lead, then hold on to edge the Mariners, 12-11. The M’s will use the momentum to win their next 15 and set a franchise record.
2008 — Ken Griffey Jr. hits his 200th home run as a member of the Cincinnati Reds. He becomes the fourth player in major league history to hit 300 for one team and 200 with another. Preceding him are Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro and Jimmie Foxx.
2008 — Boston’s J.D. Drew and Mike Lowell hit grand slams to help Daisuke Matsuzaka remain unbeaten as the Red Sox posted an 11-8 win over the Kansas City Royals.
2009 — Michael Cuddyer hit for the cycle and matched his career high with five RBIs as Minnesota defeated Milwaukee 11-3. Cuddyer hit a three-run homer in the first inning, doubled in the third and singled in the fourth before completing the cycle by tripling on a broken-bat liner into the left-field corner in the sixth.
2012 — C.J. Wilson and Ernesto Frieri combined on a one-hitter to give the Angels a 4-0 win over Oakland. Cliff Pennington had the only hit — a one-out single in the fifth — for Oakland.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time…
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No wonder, given how special it was for him and his club. The goal was Johnson’s 20th of the season for club and country – his best return in a single campaign – and gave Spurs their first piece of silverware since 2008.
“I’m so happy right now,” he said. “This season has not been good at all, not one of us players care about that now.
“This team has not won a trophy for 17 years, it means so much.
“All the fans get battered, we get battered for not winning a trophy. We had to get the first one. I’m so happy. Ever since I came here it has been ‘Tottenham, good team but can’t get it done’, but we got it done.”
Finding himself 17th in the Premier League was not what Johnson would have expected when he joined Spurs from Nottingham Forest for a fee in excess of £45m in the summer of 2023.
While his old club have been one of the stories of the season, challenging for a Champions League spot, his current employers and boss Ange Postecoglou have been ridiculed for their dismal domestic campaign.
But Johnson, who also scored in Spurs’ Europa League semi-final win over Bodo/Glimt, said he and his teammates owed Postecoglou a debt of gratitude for “trusting in us” over the course of a successful European campaign that defied their struggles in the Premier League.
“He has done his job,” said Johnson. “He said he wins in the second year and he has, if there’s ever a time for a mic drop, it’s now [when he speaks to the media].
“I can’t thank the manager enough for how much trust he has in us, and he has a really good way of getting us up for it.”
Johnson added: “Tottenham Hotspur being 17th in the Premier League is not good enough. We had an unbelievable Europa League run. The fans have been so good, home and away, and they had the edge over the United fans. They were all here an hour before the game, they got us through the game.”
The Bruin Bombers. The Bash Brothers. The Splash Brothers.
Jordan Woolery and Megan Grant are open to any nicknames that reflect their standing as college softball’s most formidable hitting duo.
“Whatever anyone wants to call us,” Woolery said, “we don’t even care.”
Any credible nickname must recognize their staggering power. Bonus points are available for a reference to their native Bay Area. What’s not negotiable is the conveying of their connection, both as the best of friends and their proximity in UCLA’s batting order.
Woolery hits third, followed by Grant in the cleanup spot. It has been that way in every lineup card this season except for the three games in which Grant was either limited to pinch-hitting duties or sidelined because of a minor hamstring injury.
The payoff of pairing them together has been historic, a combination as proven as peanut butter and jelly or Simon and Garfunkel.
The junior sluggers have combined for more home runs (47) and runs batted in (161) than any other pair of hitters in the nation, vaulting the ninth-seeded Bruins (52-10) into the Columbia Super Regional to face eighth-seeded South Carolina (43-15). The best-of-three series starts at 10 a.m. PDT Friday in Columbia, S.C., the opener televised by ESPN2.
“The numbers that they’re putting up,” UCLA coach Kelly Inouye-Perez said of what might go down as the best hitting combo in school history, “are exciting and loud. These two are doing things that you just don’t see.”
Their spots in the order always start with the same ritual — a bat tap, accompanied by Woolery saying, “I got you.” Grant often returns the favor, especially when her teammate gets on base.
Early this season, after Arizona walked Woolery on four pitches, Grant smashed a three-run home run, providing the Wildcats extra reminders about why that was a bad idea.
“What I did was chest-bump Jordan about 50 times when we hit home plate together,” Grant said. “It was just the hypest moment, honestly.”
Woolery and Grant can often be found together in the dugout, on team planes or at Lamonica’s NY Pizza, their go-to stress relief spot in Westwood Village. They’re not roommates but might as well be; they invariably reside in one of their rooms long before the first pitch when Woolery braids Grant’s hair while watching “Catfish,” a favorite television show.
When a reporter inquired about their palpable bond, Grant cracked, “You can feel the aura?”
Both players immediately cracked up.
Separating the inseparable pair is a no-no. The last time it happened, amid a rare slump late last season, Inouye-Perez made the mistake of not putting them back to back in the batting order. They went a combined two for eight and made sure their coach knew about it the next day.
“It’s just the vibe was off, for sure,” Grant said, “so we had to talk to ‘Coach I’ about it.”
The Bruins’ Jordan Woolery has 22 home runs, 82 RBIs and a .423 batting average this season.
(Kyusung Gong / Associated Press)
Said Woolery: “Since then, we haven’t left each other’s side.”
Why would they?
Woolery and Grant’s RBI total is the highest by any duo in school history, surpassing the 158 RBIs that Stacey Nuveman and Julie Marshall tallied on the way to helping the Bruins win the 1999 NCAA championship.
When informed of the feat, after they had combined for 13 RBIs last weekend during the Bruins’ record-setting regional romp while outscoring three opponents by a combined 31-2, Grant placed her hand over her mouth in disbelief. Catcher Alexis Ramirez, seated next to Grant and Woolery in the interview room, patted Grant on the shoulder.
“Oh my God,” Ramirez said, offering another nickname, “Smash Brothers.”
Grant then threw an arm around Woolery in celebration, the teammates smiling widely.
“If Meg wasn’t awesome,” Woolery said, “I couldn’t be awesome, so just grateful to have her by my side.”
There’s symmetry in almost everything they do. Both players were finalists for USA Softball collegiate player of the year and have been first team all-conference selections in every season at UCLA.
Megan Grant (43), joining teammates in a celebratory “night night” gesture after hitting a home run Friday against UC Santa Barbara, has 25 home runs and 79 RBIs this season.
(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)
Grant’s 25 homers are tied with Ohio State’s Jasmyn Burns for the most in a single season by any Big Ten Conference player. If Grant hits another homer, she’ll break the conference record since Ohio State has been eliminated from the NCAA tournament.
Woolery, who has hit 22 homers, leads the team with 82 RBIs, and her .423 batting average trails only Savannah Pola’s .437. Collectively, the Bruins comprise one of the most fearsome lineups in the country, having piled up a team-record 28 mercy-rule wins.
Hitting coach Lisa Fernandez won’t rate Woolery or Grant over the other in terms of power.
“Oh, no,” Fernandez said with a laugh. “I mean, they’re both powerful. And I give them credit — as powerful as they are, they don’t just rely on that, you know what I mean? They understand when they need to go for theirs, they understand the process.
“I think they push each other, but they do it in a way that is also embracing each other’s gifts and successes, and I think that is a credit to them and the relationship that they have. We make a conscious effort to understand that one helps the other. The better Jo does, Megan has a chance to pick up RBIs and when Megan does great, Jordan, you’re going to see pitches, so you work together, they make each other great.”
Woolery and Grant have known each other since committing to UCLA when they were in the eighth grade. Even then, Fernandez said, she realized they “may be the best one-two combo in terms of power numbers that have played this game in terms of being back to back.”
Although Woolery dabbled in basketball growing up, Grant was once so smitten with the sport that she thought it was going to be her pathway to a Division I college scholarship. She even earned the nickname “Chef Megan” — a play on Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry’s nickname — before all of the hoopla about sticking with basketball ended when her travel-team coach told her that softball was her calling.
UCLA infielders Jordan Woolery (15) and Megan Grant (43) during a win over UC Santa Barbara. The two combined for 13 RBIs as the Bruins dominated their own regional tournament.
(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)
Grant’s toughness is rooted in playing baseball alongside two older brothers who spared no sympathy.
“Being the baby didn’t really mean anything to them, you know?” Grant said. “It was always hardcore — if you can’t catch, get out, that type of stuff.”
That sort of mentality comes in handy for both players while taking batting practice from Fernandez, widely regarded as the top pitcher in softball history.
“Having the greatest pitcher pitch to you after practice,” Woolery said, “that’s a dream, honestly.”
Although it would have been easy for one slugger to try to top the other, they immediately realized that pulling together would only amplify the possibilities.
“At the end of the day,” Woolery said, “our goal is to win a national championship, so we can’t do that if we’re competing against each other, you know?”
Grant likes to say that she has the best seat in the house, watching Woolery hit from the on-deck circle. Whenever one of the — insert nickname here — hits a home run, she always finds her beloved teammate in the dugout, leading to an embrace.
“It’s just like such a bliss moment,” Woolery said. “Just seeing Meg do her thing, it’s so special.”
Pressed about the nickname possibilities, both players finally acknowledge they do have a favorite.
Not surprisingly, it’s the same one, created by Vinny Lavalsiti, a member of the school’s athletics communications staff.
DIVISION 2 Great Oak 8, California 3 JSerra 7, Palos Verdes 1 Santa Margarita 2, Ganesha 1 Los Alamitos 7, La Serna 1
DIVISION 3 Yorba Linda 14, Valley Christian 3 Marina 3, St. Paul 1 Kennedy 7, Aquinas 2 Westlake 4, Mission Viejo 0
DIVISION 4 Long Beach Poly 9, Santa Monica 3 Harvard-Westlake 12, Dos Pueblos 9 El Toro 9, Indio 3 Warren 8, Hemet 1
DIVISION 5 St. Bonaventure 17, Patriot 3 Riverside North 4, Irvine 2 Cerritos 4, Canyon Springs 1 West Ranch 7, Lancaster 4
DIVISION 6 University 7, Cantwell-Sacred Heart 5 Ramona Convent at Pasadena Poly, Thursday at 4 p.m. Adelanto 16, San Jacinto 10 Rio Hondo Prep 12, Katella 11
DIVISION 7 Westminster 9, El Monte 7 Rancho Mirage 10, Edgewood 8 Silverado at Culver City, Thursday Riverside Notre Dame 8, Lakeside 5
DIVISION 8 Cathedral City 3, Orange 1 Lennox Academy 14, United Christian Academy 10 Calvary Baptist 5, Hawthorne 0 Hueneme 12, Downey Calvary Chapel 2
SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE (Games at 3:15 p.m. unless noted)
SEMIFINALS
DIVISION 1 Norco at Ayala El Modena at Temescal Canyon
DIVISION 2 JSerra at Great Oak Santa Margarita at Los Alamitos
DIVISION 3 Marina at Yorba Linda Westlake at Kennedy
DIVISION 4 Long Beach Poly at Harvard-Westlake Warren at El Toro
DIVISION 5 St. Bonaventure vs. Riverside North West Ranch at Cerritos
DIVISION 6 Ramona Convent / Pasadena Poly at University Rio Hondo Prep at Adelanto
DIVISION 7 Rancho Mirage at Westminster Riverside Notre Dame vs. Silverado / Culver City
DIVISION 8 Cathedral City vs. Lennox Academy Calvary Baptist vs. Hueneme
Note: Finals (all divisions) May 30-31 at Bill Barber Memorial Park, Irvine.
Games are being played at the Estadio Antonio Coimbra da Mota – a 5,000-capacity ground in Estoril – but it was transformed for the World Sevens.
From 20:30 BST on Saturday, following Estoril men’s 4-0 win over Estrela, stands were built, TV cameras put in place and large screens put up.
The match schedule was shuffled after United’s men reached the Europa League final – which they lost 1-0 to Tottenham on Wednesday – so Skinner’s side played earlier at the World Sevens to avoid a clash.
Fans initially came in slowly, with little more than 100 watching City’s win over Rosengard, but alcoholic drinks were flowing as more came throughout the night, filling a stand on the far side before Paris St-Germain’s 2-1 win over Benfica.
“It is interesting. It is something different. The stadium looks nice,” said City fan Leanne Woodall, who travelled out to Estoril.
Fan Charlotte Wilkins added: “I play seven-a-side football so I was really excited to see how the professional players did it and the tactics they used.
“We couldn’t find where we needed to go when we first got here, but now we’re in, it’s really good and there’s good vibes so far. It’s exciting.”
Organisers hope to fill the arena on Friday when the semi-finals and final will be played and more fans fly out to Portugal in anticipation of Saturday’s Champions League final between Barcelona and Arsenal (17:00 BST).
But first impressions from the players were certainly positive.
“It was so nice, I was really sad it was only one game today, I could play all day like this,” said Roma’s Hawa Cissoko.
“I think we took the game a bit more seriously at the beginning than Manchester United, they arrived on the pitch really [relaxed].
“Them doing this made me think ‘we are here to have fun’. We were doing this when we were kids. It makes me feel a bit like [I did] 10 years ago. That’s so nice.”
Manchester City interim manager Nick Cushing said the style of football was how they “believe the game should be played”.
Brazil forward Kerolin added: “I liked a lot the music. In Portugal the weather is really nice so everyone is like ‘OK, we like these vibes’.
“Of course we want to win and get some money! But it’s a little bit Brazilian I think. I like the ginga [an informal Brazilian term for expression of creativity with agility and trickery].
“I want to get back those things and be a little bit brave. Today I was a little bit unsure – but it will come.”
SACRAMENTO — Logan O’Hoppe hit two home runs and drove in three runs, Jo Adell and Zach Neto also homered and the Angels beat the Athletics 10-5 on Wednesday night for their season-high sixth straight victory.
O’Hoppe led off the fourth with his second homer of the game, third in two nights and 13th of the season, just before Adell hit his sixth. Neto’s two-run homer in the third, his eighth, gave the Angels the lead for good at 4-3. The Angels had five two-run innings.
Taylor Ward had three hits, including a triple and double. Jorge Soler had three hits, with two doubles and two RBIs.
Reliever Héctor Neris (2-1) got the win.
The Athletics have lost a season-high eight in a row during which they have been outscored 62-21. JP Sears (4-4) went five innings and gave up six runs and eight hits. The four homers he gave up were a career high.
Rookie Nick Kurtz hit his third and fourth homers. He also homered Tuesday. Lawrence Butler hit his seventh homer, a three-run shot,
Tyler Soderstrom and Max Schuemann had three hits each for the Athletics, who left 13 runners on base.
The Athletics’ Jacob Wilson, third in the majors with a .341 batting average, did not play after leaving Tuesday’s game when he was hit on left forearm with a pitch.
Key moment
Every homer went over 400 feet, with O’Hoppe’s second-inning two-run blast topping them all at 470, easily leaving Sutter Health Park, the Athletics’ temporary home.
Key stat
The Angels have homered in 11 straight games, the longest active streak in the majors. They have hit 15 homers in their last six games.
Up next
The four-game series concludes Thursday with the Angels’ Tyler Anderson (2-1, 3.04) set to start against Luis Severino (1-4, 4.22).
