Sports category, Page 724
‘Play the right way’: Gold Glove 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes evolving into a model player for Pirates
BRADENTON, Fla. — John Wehner didn’t need defensive analytics or awards to prove what his eyes were telling him when he called Ke’Bryan Hayes the best defensive third baseman he’d ever seen. But Wehner was going out on a limb, as Hayes was only a rookie for the Pittsburgh Pirates...
WR Marvin Harrison Jr., QBs Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, Jayden Daniels vie for top spot
INDIANAPOLIS — Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels arrived in Indianapolis as Heisman Trophy winners. Drake Maye is seeking to add to his family’s impressive athletic legacy. And the only player who might prevent those three talented quarterbacks from going 1-2-3 in this year’s NFL Draft appears to be All-America receiver...
Minor league report: Sam Poulin, Radim Zohorna return as Penguins beat CheckersVideo
Two goals by forward Vinnie Hinostroza led the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to a 4-1 home win against the Charlotte Checkers at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre on Friday. Forward Sam Poulin recorded three assists for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (28-18-7-1) while linemate Radim Zohorna contributed a goal and an assist. Poulin (seven games) and...
Moon rallies past Franklin Regional to secure 5th WPIAL boys basketball title
One team got hot in the fourth quarter, and the other was not. Moon’s Michael Santicola broke a fourth-quarter tie with consecutive 3-pointers about a minute apart as the top-seeded Tigers rallied late to defeat No. 2 Franklin Regional, 53-48, in the WPIAL Class 5A boys basketball final Friday night...
Caitlin Clark eager to enjoy rest of the ride at Iowa before draft
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Caitlin Clark knew with Iowa’s final regular-season home game looming, it was time to make her decision about whether to enter the WNBA Draft or stay in college for a fifth season. That’s why Clark announced Thursday that she would go to the WNBA at the...
Norwin topples North Allegheny to capture 3rd WPIAL girls basketball championshipVideo
Sweets to the sweet. Norwin girls basketball coach Brian Brozeski, who revealed after Friday’s night’s WPIAL Class 6A title game that he likes to bake, likened his team and its run to championship to making a pie. “It’s the perfect recipe,” Brozeski said, pointing to the eight girls who joined...
After loss in court, NCAA pausing investigations into 3rd-party NIL deals with athletes
Following another courtroom loss, the NCAA has halted investigations into booster-backed collectives or other third parties making name, image and likeness compensation deals with Division I athletes. In a letter to member schools Friday, NCAA President Charlie Baker said the Division I Board of Directors directed enforcement staff “to pause...
Fanatics founder Michael Rubin says company unfairly blamed for new MLB uniforms
BOSTON — Fanatics founder Michael Rubin says his company is being unfairly blamed for new Major League Baseball uniforms that have see-through pants and other fit and design problems. “This is a little bit of a difficult position,” he said Friday at the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference. “We’re purely...
Olympic commission suggests changes, including splitting grassroots, elite systems, nixing word ‘amateur’
A panel charged with reviewing the Olympic structure in the U.S. is calling for Congress to consider wide-ranging changes, including government funding of the U.S. Center for SafeSport, severing grassroots from the elite sports system and even removing the word “amateur” in a potential rewrite of the 1978 law that...
Deer Lakes tops rival Burrell to win 2nd straight WPIAL Class 3A title
Billy Schaeffer couldn’t quite put into words what it meant for Deer Lakes to win back-to-back WPIAL boys basketball titles and this time do so against rival Burrell. But the wide smile on his face told the story. “I don’t know what to say, so I’m just going to keep...
Former Aliquippa, Pitt corner M.J. Devonshire wants to follow in his mentor’s footsteps in NFL
As far as mentors go, M.J. Devonshire may be without peers when it comes to the prospects attending the NFL Combine in Indianapolis. When the former Pitt cornerback was contemplating whether to return to school for a sixth season or declare for the NFL Draft, all he did was dial...
Bryan Reynolds, Jared Triolo clear deck with homers as Pirates beat Rays
BRADENTON, Fla. — Bryan Reynolds took play-by-play announcer Greg Brown’s “clear the deck” home run call to another level. Reynolds smashed a cannonball that sailed over the deck and left field bleachers and out of LECOM Park, his second shot this week that left the ballpark. It inspired Jared Triolo...
Penguins recall forward Jonathan Gruden
The Pittsburgh Penguins recalled Jonathan Gruden from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League on Friday. This marked the third transaction in less than 48 hours with Gruden. On Thursday afternoon, he was recalled to the NHL roster only to be returned to the AHL roster approximately 10 hours later. This...
Sizable gap between analytics, results continues to confound Penguins
A lie detector test would be in order for anyone claiming to have predicted that at this increasingly late juncture of the season, an inability to score enough goals would be the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Achilles’ heel. From afar, as the Penguins got underway in October, inconsistent goaltending, struggles on the...
Super Bowl champion, former Steelers linebacker Andy Russell dies at 82
Andy Russell, the seven-time Pro Bowl linebacker who won two Super Bowl rings with the Pittsburgh Steelers, has died. Russell, a 16th-round draft pick who played 12 seasons with the Steelers, was 82. A source confirmed Russell’s death to TribLive. A cause of death was not immediately known. News partner...
Mark Madden: Pittsburgh is lucky to have had all-time great sports announcers
Bill Hillgrove retired. Kind of. He will cease doing Pittsburgh Steelers radio broadcasts after 30 years. But Hillgrove will continue to do Pitt football and basketball. It says a lot about Hillgrove’s limitless energy when, at 83, he wants to slow down gradually. And continue to serve as the midnight mayor...
Retiring Steelers voice Bill Hillgrove: ‘If it’s not for the fans, we don’t have a game’
After 30 years of doing radio play-by-play for Pittsburgh Steelers games, Bill Hillgrove announced Thursday that he would be retiring from that position. However, he will continue to do play-by-play for Pitt football and basketball. “You can’t completely stop,” Hillgrove said during Thursday’s “Breakfast With Benz” podcast. “I think people...
Tim Benz: Omar Khan already has 1 different approach than Kevin Colbert
In the 21 months since Omar Khan took over for Kevin Colbert as the Pittsburgh Steelers general manager, we have spent a lot of time trying to figure out ways the two men might be different. Khan may be a little more aggressive in free agency and moving up the...
First Call: Omar Khan talks about Steelers’ need at ILB, Diontae Johnson’s future
Friday’s “First Call” examines Omar Khan’s statements about the Pittsburgh Steelers’ inside linebacker situation and Diontae Johnson’s future. Plus we look at a busy weekend for local college hoops and the Robert Morris hockey playoff game. Inside out If you are looking for comfort when it comes to the Steelers’...
Pitt Take 5: Final 3 games before ACC Tournament should not be overlooked
Interest in Pitt’s final three regular-season games isn’t the same as it would have been if the Panthers had defeated either Wake Forest or Clemson. At this point, no one wants to hear the initials N-I-T when N-C-A-A are the only letters that really matter in March. Nonetheless, Pitt has...
Jack Suwinski wants to hit in the middle of the order, improve play in center field for Pirates
BRADENTON, Fla. — When the Pittsburgh Pirates played their Grapefruit League home opener, Jack Suwinski found his name in the same spot of the batting order as he was at the end of last September. Pirates manager Derek Shelton had Suwinski hitting cleanup, behind Oneil Cruz, Bryan Reynolds and Ke’Bryan...
Penguins shut out by Kraken, winning streak snapped
The Pittsburgh Penguins had a modest three-game winning streak halted as they were shut out for the third time this season, losing to the Seattle Kraken, 2-0, at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle on Thursday. Kraken goaltender Philip Grubauer unofficially made 33 saves to record his first shutout of the...
Penn State veteran defensive lineman no longer with the program
As spring camp nears, Penn State will be without a veteran defensive lineman. Defensive tackle Jordan van den Berg is no longer on the roster, a team spokesperson confirmed to PennLive on Thursday night. The news of his exit was first reported by on3. Van den Berg, who was not...
Pitt’s Jeff Capel says ‘smarter’ nonconference scheduling could clear smoother path to NCAA Tournament
Before the start of the season, Jeff Capel felt good about Pitt’s nonconference schedule. There was a trip to Morgantown, W.Va., where the Mountaineers are usually tough to beat. Plus, Capel scheduled a home date with a Missouri team from the SEC that was in the NCAA Tournament last season....
Analysis: Big Ten and SEC power play undermines credibility of playoff
The College Football Playoff unveiled a 12-team format in the spring of 2021 that looked like an exciting step in the evolution of the postseason, with potential to lift the sport’s national profile even further while boosting all five power conferences and keeping the other five relevant. Three years later,...
