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When Kevin Martin decided to retire this year, he thought hed have plenty of company. The dean of Canadian curlers -- with four national titles, a world championship, both a gold and silver at the Olympics and a record 18 Grand Slams on the World Curling Tour -- looked around and saw plenty his age or older holding brooms. "I thought this year there would be a lot of guys retiring," Martin, 47, said Tuesday. "I thought I would just be one of the many. As it turns out, Im the only one. Theres nobody else, Im the only guy!" Instead of retiring, other senior skips have played a game of musical chairs as teams have reformed and players have moved about the country. And Martin says the desire to secure that all-important Olympic berth is the reason. "The shuffling I think is completely because of the Olympics and that curling has become a four-year sport," he said. Younger teams are looking at skips at or near 50-plus and wondering whether they have what it takes to compete, not just next season but also down the road. And those skips who have never won that Olympic berth (as Martin did three times, failing to earn a medal in 1992) are reluctant to give up while they think theres still a chance. Manitobas Jeff Stoughton, 50, who has parted ways with his former team and formed a new one and Ontarios Glenn Howard, 51, who has seen his squad fragment as well, are cases in point. "Its hard I think for young guys to be with a 50, 51, 52 or whatever age guy and think four years down the road," Martin said. "Thats not easy. "Jeff and Glenn still play brilliantly but will they in four years? I dont think they can answer that." The result has been a lot of movement. "Its really exciting. Its probably the most excitement Ive seen in our sport in a long time," said Martin. "I think the young guys that are coming up are dealing with it really well by doing all of these shakeups and trying to figure out how they can get the very, very best team." The latest move was Kevin Koes former Alberta team, which is the reigning national champion, picking up former B.C. skip John Morris on Tuesday to take them into key events next season, including a return trip to the Tim Hortons Brier. Its the first time the current mens champion will get an automatic ticket without having to win a provincial title. Two younger teams at the elite level remain intact: Olympic gold-medallist Brad Jacobs, 28, and his team from Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., and Mike McEwen, 33, from Winnipeg. Former Olympic champ Brad Gushue, 33, from Newfoundland and Labrador has made only one move, returning former teammate Mark Nichols, who had been curling with Stoughton. After finishing out of the medals at the world championships, Koe, 39, announced a new team that includes Marc Kennedy at third, Ben Hebert at lead and Brent Laing at second. Kennedy and Hebert won Olympic gold with Martin and Laing was a two-time world champion with Howard. "Those are your top four I think going forward," said Martin of those four teams. After watching all the moves, though, does Martin have any second thoughts about his decision to quit the game? "I am so ready. To be honest with you, I think I was ready after Vancouver," he insists. But Martin recognizes that had he pulled the plug then, at the age of 43, he might have come out of retirement. Theres no chance of that now. "Im in a real good spot, Im busy outside the ice," he said. "Theres tons of stuff going on." First, hes got a new job as a broadcaster and curling ambassador with Rogers Sportsnet. Then theres his curling store in Edmonton, part interest in a golf-course development in Phoenix and his curling academies to run. For Martin, the icing on the cake this year was going out a winner after being disappointed at the Olympic curling trials. He beat Jacobs 4-3 in the mens final Sunday to win the Players Championship in the final tournament of his career, his 18th Grand Slam win on the professional tour he played a role in developing. "To have the 18th Slam work out . . . it makes it all that much easier," he said. As for the only thing he regrets in a lifetime of curling, it was that failure to medal in 1992, when curling was still an Olympic demonstration sport. He knew he wasnt good enough to win gold that year. "But then we played the U.S. in the bronze game and thats a game I think we should have won," Martin said. For one thing, it would have given him one of each medal. "The one game . . . over all the years that Id like to have back is that bronze game in 1992," he added. Cameron Meredith Jersey . The NFL says Wednesday that the game between the Atlanta Falcons and Detroit Lions at Wembley on Oct. 26 will start at 1:30 p. Natrell Jamerson Jersey . - Hitting was supposed to be the Pittsburgh Pirates weakness coming into the season yet they lead the major leagues in home runs through the first 16 games of the season. http://www.authenticsaintssportsonline.c...rd-gold-jersey/. HABS HEADED TO CONFERENCE FINAL The Montreal Canadiens scored early in Game Seven, built a lead and protected it well on their way to a 3-1 series-clinching win over the Boston Bruins. While this game or series isnt necessarily a referendum on the value of fourth lines, the Canadiens certainly benefitted from production lower down their forward depth chart. Custom Saints Jerseys .C. - Steve Clifford isnt exactly singing his teams praises after the Bobcats won for the sixth time in seven games. TreQuan Smith Jersey . 3 seed Phillip Kohlschreiber from Germany. Defending champion Marin Cilic also reached the semifinals -- his fourth in Zagreb -- defeating fellow Croat Ivan Dodig. German qualifier Bjorn Phau beat Dudi Sela of Israel to reach his first semifinals in nearly five years. WASHINGTON -- Sidney Crosby was everywhere Monday night, from start to finish. All of 46 seconds into the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-2 victory over Alex Ovechkins struggling Washington Capitals, Crosby assisted on Chris Kunitzs goal. Then, after Washington made it 1-all, Crosby drew a penalty. And 11 seconds later, on Pittsburghs third shot of the evening, Crosby put the puck in the net himself. Later, with the score again tied, Crosby had the secondary assist on Kunitzs second goal. And finally, when Ovechkin and the Capitals had a power play for most of the last two minutes, Crosby was on the ice, helping kill off the chance. "It was a very good game," Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said about Crosby. "All aspects." Now theres an understatement. "We saw a 5-on-5 play. We saw the speed (Crosbys line can) generate, and got the scoring chances," Bylsma added. "Used him in defensive situations, and (he) did a great job there on the penalty kill in the third." Crosby finished with his 30th goal and two assists to raise his NHL-leading point total to 87, matching his uniform number. The Penguins beat Washington for the seventh consecutive time and overtook idle Boston for the Eastern Conferences best record. The Capitals, who began the day outside of the playoff picture in 10th place in the East, have lost four of their past five games to fall into what Ovechkin called a "desperate position." The teams play each other again Tuesday at Pittsburgh. Mondays game featured the largely uneventful NHL debut of Russian forward Evgeny Kuznetsov, a player Capitals general manager George McPhee likened to the Loch Ness Monster: "Weve heard of you, but we havent seen you." The winger was a first-round draft pick in 2010, but has been playing in Russia. He signed a contract Saturday and got on the ice for the first time about two minutes into Mondays game, part of Washingtons fourth line with Tom Wilson and Jay Beagle. Wearing No. 92, Kuznetsov also got a bit of a run alongside Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom, annd even some power-play action.dddddddddddd. He took 12 shifts for 10 minutes, 22 seconds, took two shots and blocked one. "We have to be patient and be realistic about expectations, because its a foreign league for him. Its a foreign system. Hes never played this way," Capitals coach Adam Oates said. "Hes never played in front of this many people, really. So for me, I want to ease him in." Penguins rookie goalie Jeff Zatkoff made 31 saves. Ovechkin, the three-time MVP who leads the NHL with 44 goals, was held without a point and was limited to four shots. Pittsburgh went ahead 1-0 on its first shot, when Crosby slid the puck across the ice to left wing Kunitz. Easily gliding past defenceman Mike Green, Kunitz flipped his shot past Jaroslav Halak, still wearing an all-white goalies mask in his second start for Washington after arriving last week in a trade. Green, Oates said, "got caught a little flat-footed on the play, probably a little surprised at the end of the shift that Kunitz had that much juice." The Capitals evened things less than 2 1/2 minutes later on Eric Fehrs 11th goal. That tie did not last long: 38 seconds afterward, Backstrom was sent to the penalty box for slashing Crosby -- who soon made it 2-1 off Evgeni Malkins assist. "I dont take too many of those. Its nice to see one go in," Crosby said. "Im usually a little closer when they go in." The Capitals got to 2-all on Backstroms power-play score at the 8:57 mark of the second period. This tie was a short one, too, lasting a little more than 3 1/2 minutes. And, not surprisingly, Crosby was involved in Pittsburghs goal again. He dropped a no-look pass back to Lee Stempniak, whose shot was kicked away by Halak, but Kunitz was there to poke in the rebound for his 31st goal. Oates summed it up this way: "Their big dogs scored." Notes: Pittsburgh went 3-2 on its season-high five-game road trip. ... Kuznetsovs appearance marked Washingtons fourth game in a row in which a player made his debut with the club. White NFL Jerseys Cheap Youth NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Stitched NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Titans safety Michael Griffin and wide receiver Kendall Wright have kept an open spot between them on the sideline during the national anthem this season.Come Sunday, Griffin says he may ask Chris Johnson if he wants to fill that space one last time.Then the jokes will stop, because Griffin knows only too well how dangerous CJ2K can be — no matter how poor this season has been for him or his new team, the Jets.I really just think hes going to come in there and try to prove something, Griffin said. We dont have the best rushing defence right now. Theyre second in rushing offence, so Im pretty sure hes coming in licking his chops thinking he gets that opportunity to get out there and shine.When the Jets visit the Titans on Sunday, its a meeting of 2-11 teams in which the loser moves closer to drafting No. 1 overall in May.The Titans have lost seven straight in the worst skid for this franchise since 1994. The Jets have lost three straight, including 30-24 in overtime at Minnesota last week, with coach Rex Ryans days seemingly numbered.Its definitely draining in the fact that your record says something about your team, that its just horrible, Ryan said. Were 2-11, both teams are 2-11, and obviously nobody feels good about that. Thats for sure. Nobody wants that, nobody in their wildest dreams thought that that would happen, but here we are.Tennessee released Johnson in April to avoid paying $8 million to a running back who turned 29 in September. Johnson is averaging 4.5 yards a carry for the Jets, but splitting the work with Chris Ivory has him set to miss a 1,000-yard season for the first time in his career.So in a season that hasnt been close to what Johnson expected with the Jets, heres a chance in a game he circled when the schedule came out.It should be fun to go back to my old stomping grounds and be able to play at LP Field, Johnson said.Here are some things to watch for Sunday:STOPPING CJ: Johnson is part of the NFLs second-best rushing offence, averaging 149.7 yards per game. Ivory is leading the Jets with 714 yards and five TDs, but New York goes with whoevers running best. Johnson ran for a season-high 105 yards two weeks ago against Miami.The Titans are last in the NFL, allowing 141.5 yards rushing per game.I just hope nobody gets him amped up during the game talking crazy if weve got him contained, Griffin said of Johnson.TESTING GENO: Turnovers have been a problem for the Jets who have had three interceptions returned for TDs this season, including their first play last week. Smith is making his third straight start trying to show management he deserves to stick around in 2015.JAKES BACK: With rookie Zach Mettenbergers sprained shoulder keeping him out of practice, Jake Locker is back as Titans starter after being benched in October. Locker was carried off the field on a stretcher the last time these teams met, but he threw for three TDs in that game for the win. He really carved us up, Ryan said of Locker. Again, we havent forgotten that, thats for sure.WALKING WOUNDED: The Jets hope to get defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson back after turf toe kept him out the past two games, and hes testing a special shoe. Wide receiver Percy Harvin says he will play despite a sprained ankle that had him in a walking boot early in the week. The Titans have been without their starting offensive tackles the past two games.EARLY MISTAKES: The Titans have fallen behind each of the past four games, with the deficits only getting larger. They trailed 30-0 before losing 36-7 to the Giants last week. Obviously, the biggest thing for us is not to shoot ourselves in the foot early, which we seem to have been doing quite a bit of lately, Titans coach Ken Whisenhunt said.___AP Sports Writer Dennis Waszak in Florham Park, New Jersey, contributed to this report.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org___Follow Teresa M. Walker on Twitter: http://twitter.com/teresamwalker Chukwuma Okorafor Jersey .A. 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Joe Haden Jersey .com) - The Chicago White Sox have officially announced that the club has agreed to terms with utilityman Emilio Bonifacio on a one-year, $4 million contract that includes a team option for the 2016 season.TORONTO – The Blue Jays put an end to an ugly four-game losing skid and afterward the manager was happy to state the obvious. “It was a much needed win, I will definitely say,” said John Gibbons after his club beat Boston 7-1. Baseballs a strange game. It was an ugly homestand, the Blue Jays lost four of six to divisional rivals the Orioles and Red Sox, yet are sandwiched in-between the two teams with Baltimore a half-game ahead and Boston a half-game behind. In five of the six games, Toronto at some point held a lead of three runs or more. The Jays won only two of those five games, Sunday afternoon being one of them. Yet a crisp, efficient win which combined strong starting pitching, clutch relief work, good defence and potent offence buoyed the mood of the club as it heads out on an eight-game road trip through Kansas City, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. “It was a complete joint effort,” said R.A. Dickey, who tossed 6 1/3 innings of one run ball. “I felt like we all had a hand in todays game. It was a game that I felt really good.” Dickey, who didnt walk a hitter for the first time in his Toronto tenure, left with one out in the seventh. The Red Sox had runners at second and third following a hit batsman and a double. Steve Delabar came in and got Jackie Bradley Jr. to pop up to third baseman Brett Lawrie and David Ross to fly out to centerfielder Jose Bautista. Inning over, the 2-1 lead preserved and the Jays would tack on two in the seventh and three more in the eighth to issue a final score that doesnt reflect how close the game was played for most of the afternoon. Edwin Encarnacion had two hits and two RBI, hitting four line drives in his four at-bats. Combined with the final out he made in Saturdays loss, a line drive to centerfield, Gibbons is seeing signs his slugging first baseman is beginning to emerge from a near-dormant first month of the season. “Today I thought he was really using his hands well,” said Gibbons. “Hes like anybody else. Confidence can waver a little bit. I dont care how good you are, how long youve been around or how productive youve been the last couple of seasons. This games all confidence.” Brett Lawrie hit his sixth home run of the season, a solo shot off Jon Lester in the second inning. The timing was important; the Red Sox had taken a 1-0 lead in the top half of the inning. “Definitely,” said Lawrie of the quick response. “This is one of those games you want to win, especially with an off day (Monday) and us going on the road and leaving a sour taste in 40-thousand peoples mouths when we go on the road (with a loss.) We want positivity going on the road.” The Blue Jays open a three-game set in Kansas City on Tuesday night. Right-hander Dustin McGowan will get the start against Royals left-hander Jason Vargas. MORROW UNFAMILIAR WITH McGOWANS DIABETES-RELATED FATIGUE As Dustin McGowan considers a change to his in-game regimen in an attempt to combat fatigue, fellow type 1 diabetic Brandon Morrow is in a comfortable routine and hasnt experienced anything similar to what McGowans going through. “Ive never felt physically fatigued during a game,” said Morrow. “I have nothing to compare it to. What would somebody without diabetes be feeling at the same point? I feel like I recover, physically, as well as anybody else with regulated blood sugar. I think its almost, not an advantage but you really learn your bbody well.dddddddddddd” McGowan deals with wild swings to his blood sugar levels during games in which hes pitching. In Wednesdays outing against Baltimore, he took a reading of more than 300 milligrams per deciliter. To put that in perspective, the average blood sugar level for a resting, non-diabetic is between 100 and 120 milligrams per deciliter. He will wear his insulin pump in Tuesday nights game at Kansas City in the hopes of regulating his blood sugar level. Morrow, on the other hand, has a strict program he follows that begins about four hours before each start. There are six to eight checkpoints, as he calls them, during that time span. Morrows food and drink schedule is meticulous; his exercise and warm up routine equally so; he checks his blood sugar level about an hour and a half before first pitch. Shortly before game time, hes paying close attention. “If I ever go low its in the bullpen,” said Morrow. “Thats a two, three minute adjustment. During the anthem, the anthems always a time I check my blood sugar and if I need a juice or whatever we have something ready to go.” When the Blue Jays are on offence, Morrow will check his blood sugar level two or three times in the early innings of his starts. “My blood sugars crept up a little bit during games sometimes but Ive never felt like Ive just lost energy, like saying getting into the sixth inning and my body just shuts down,” he said. “Ive never felt that way.” High blood sugar levels can sap a diabetic of energy and can cause vision problems, particularly blurriness. Morrow says its never gotten to the point where he blames the condition for an inability to command his pitches. Low blood sugar levels can have an effect similar to drunkenness. There have been times when Morrows been awakened in the middle of the night. Hes in a cold sweat and his hands are shaking. He quickly drinks a glass of juice or eats a small portion and then waits the 15 minutes or so it takes for his body to regulate. WALKER DISCUSSES EJECTION Pitching coach Pete Walker wasnt pleased with home plate umpire Jeff Kelloggs strike zone in Saturdays 7-6 loss to the Red Sox. He was ejected in the third inning. Walker and Kellogg exchanged words following a mound visit. Perhaps the fact his pitching staff has walked 99 hitters so far this season is grating on Walkers nerves?“Maybe its been building, I dont know,” said Walker. “Its frustrating to watch the staff that we have walk guys because they are guys that know how to throw strikes, know how to attack the strike zone. Their philosophy and our philosophy is to attack early and expand late. It seems like were getting behind and making poor pitches behind in the count.” Heres another frustrating fact: entering Sundays play, the Blue Jays have had leads of at least three runs in four of the first five games of this home stand. The record in those four games: 1-3. The pitching isnt holding up. One day its the starter and the next its the bullpen. “Its really slight, slight mechanical adjustments for a couple of guys but for the most part its their mentality of attacking the zone and trusting their stuff and not buying into the fact that something like this can become contagious,” said Walker. “You walk a few guys, you start thinking about it. The sooner they can get out of their own heads and just get back to pitching and making pitches and trusting their stuff, the sooner we get over this hump.” White NFL Jerseys Cheap Youth NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Stitched NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '

SEVILLE, Spain -- Barbora Zahlavova and Andrea Hlavackova put the Czech Republic into the Fed Cup semifinals after winning the final doubles point against Spain on Monday. The Czechs rallied from a 2-1 deficit to play Italy in the last four for the second consecutive year following a 7-6 (7), 6-3 victory over Carla Suarez Navarro and Silvia Soler-Espinosa. Rain wreaked havoc on the weekend schedule, forcing the first-round tie to a third day. Suarez Navarro put Spain up 2-1 on Monday following her second singles victory. Lucie Safarova returned to the court to keep Czech hopes alive with a 4-6, 6-1, 6-3 win over Soler-Espinosa. The visitors seized the momentum in the deciding rubber of the best-of-five tie by winning the first-set tiebreaker on the clay. Germany and Australia meet in the other semifinal, which will be played on April 19-20. 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Stiverne stopped Chris Arreola in the sixth round Saturday night, claiming the WBC heavyweight title belt vacated by Vitali Klitschko.BALTIMORE - The New England Patriots put on a performance worthy of a division winner. Making it even sweeter was that it came at the expense of the defending Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens, who bounced New England from the post-season last season. Logan Ryan had two interceptions, LeGarrette Blount scored twice and the playoff-bound Patriots breezed to a 41-7 victory Sunday, ending the Ravens four-game winning streak and diminishing their post-season hopes. The previous time these two teams met, the AFC title hung in the balance and Baltimore used a strong second half to pull out a 28-13 victory. In this one, New England took a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter and never let up behind a defence that forced four turnovers and had four sacks. The Patriots (11-4) were assured their fifth straight AFC East title before the game started when Miami lost at Buffalo. Its the 11th division crown for New England coach Bill Belichick, tied with Don Shula for most since the 1970 merger. "Happy to win the AFC East," Belichick said. "Hopefully, we can build off this game." Tom Brady completed 14 of 26 passes for 172 yards and a touchdown. He has led his team to 11 division titles, two more than any other starting quarterback in NFL history. "Theyre all special. Its hard to come by, and this teams really fought hard all year," Brady said. "Weve earned it. Eleven wins in the NFLs not easy, and to win a division titles not easy." The loss eliminated the Ravens (8-7) from contention in the AFC North and dropped them into a tie with Miami and San Diego for the final AFC wild-card slot. Baltimore closes the regular season at Cincinnati, which displaced the Ravens as division champs. "We got to go in there and win. That was going to be the case no matter what," said Harbaugh, who is in danger of missing the post-season for the first time in his six seasons with Baltimore. It was the Ravens most lopsided loss since a 37-0 defeat at Pittsburgh in 1997. Things went so bad for Baltimore that Justin Tuckers run of 33 straight field goals ended when he went wide left on a 37-yarder with 14:19 remaining. Joe Flacco went 22 for 38 for 260 yards and two interceptions for the Ravens, who fell to 6-2 at home. Wearing a brace on his left knee after being injured last week in Detroit, Flacco had difficulty escaping the unyielding pressure applied by NNew Englands defensive front.dddddddddddd "I dont think he played well," Harbaugh said. Refusing to use the brace as an excuse, Flacco said, "I would have liked to play better. The brace had nothing to do with anything." Baltimore trailed 20-0 late in the third quarter when Ray Rice was stuffed for no gain on a fourth-and-1 at the New England 4. That effectively ended any chance of a comeback. The Ravens scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak by Flacco with 9:21 left, enabling Baltimore to avoid its first shutout loss since 2002, against Tampa Bay. It was of very little consolation to the defending champs. "Its a tough pill to swallow," safety James Ihedigbo said. "Definitely a frustrating loss." New England scored on a 7-yard run by Blount with 2:05 to go to make it 27-7, then added another touchdown when an errant snap eluded Ravens backup quarterback Tyrod Taylor and Chandler Jones recovered the ball in the end zone. Tavon Wilson capped the scoring with a 74-yard interception return with 40 seconds remaining. Baltimores previous three games were decided by three points or fewer, but it became evident early that this one would not be close. New England went up 7-0 on its second possession. A 34-yard pass interference penalty against Jimmy Smith put the ball at the Baltimore 1 before Blount bulled into the end zone. Three plays later, Flacco threw into double coverage and was intercepted by Ryan at the New England 47. After completing a 34-yard pass to Danny Amendola, Brady connected with Shane Vereen for a 4-yard score. The Patriots quickly got the ball back, and Stephen Gostkowski kicked a 45-yard field goal on the first play of the second quarter to make it 17-0. Shortly after halftime, the Ravens went for it on fourth-and-3 at the New England 39 and Flacco threw an incomplete pass. Baltimores next possession ended with Ryans second interception of the game and fifth of the season. Seven plays later, Gostkowski kicked a 42-yard field goal. Flacco tried to rally the Ravens, but after a 42-yard completion to Torrey Smith produced a first down at the New England 13, he couldnt get into the end zone. Notes: New England DB Devin McCourty left with a head injury, and Vereen left with a groin injury. ... Tuckers miss was his first since Week 2. ... Baltimore finished with more yardage, 358-300. 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PITTSBURGH, Pa. - With a couple of flicks of the wrist, the Chicago Blackhawks headed into the NHL All-Star break with momentum.Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane beat Marc-Andre Fleury in a shootout to lift the Blackhawks to a 3-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday night.Chicago improved to 8-2 in games decided after regulation when Toews beat Fleury between the legs, and Kane followed with a wrist shot the goalie watched sail by his blocker.We have great confidence, Toews said. Our goaltender can make stops and we have shooters who like to be in that situation. We like our odds given the circumstance.The Blackhawks also regained swagger following a pair of decisive home losses to Winnipeg and Dallas. Chicago thumped Arizona 6-1 on Tuesday and backed it up by surviving a game effort from the undermanned Penguins to win in Pittsburgh for only the second time since 1997.Even if things arent going so well, were good at taking responsibility for it and not dragging our feet around and dwelling on what were not doing or whats not going our way, Toews said. We just find ways that we can make things better, and we showed an example of that in the last two games.David Rundblad and Marian Hossa scored in regulation for Chicago. Corey Crawford made 33 saves and held Pittsburghs David Perron and Sidney Crosby in check in the shootout.It was a tough game, Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said. You find when you win these types of games, it makes you a good team.Zach Sill scored his first NHL goal and Steve Downie added his eighth of the season for the Penguins. Fleury stopped 24 shots but Pittsburgh hobbled into the break with a fourth straight loss, among them a bruising overtime defeat in Philadelphia on Tuesday that included injuries to stars Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin.Letang was held out as a precaution following a frightening collision with Philadelphias Zac Rinaldo. Malkin skated during warm-ups on Wednesday before telling trainers he couldnt play due to an undisclosed issue. Malkins status for All-Star weekend is uncertain.The absence of two vital parts of Pittsburghs core took some of the punch out of the game both teams hope is a Stanley Cup preview, though neither has looked like a top-flight contender the last month.Pittsburgh has cooled to fall just off the pace of the first-place New York Islanders in the crowded Metropolitan Division. Chicago trails surprising Nashville and steady St. Louis in the Central.Rundblad gave the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead 6:56 in. The defenceman took advantage of a dominant shift by the top line of Hossa, Toews and Brandon Saad. The trio kept the puck buried in Pittsburghs zone for more than a minute, with Rundblad taking a feed from Hossa at the point and sending a shot past a well-screened Fleury for his fourth goal.Hossa doubled Chicagos lead early in the second with his 10th goal, a wrist shot from just inside the left circle that Fleury barely saw through the sea of bodies. Yet just when it appeared the Penguins were ready to collapse, they responded behind some unlikely contributors.Sill went 47 games before recording the first point of his career with an assist against Minnesota last week. He didnt wait nearly as long to earn his second, sending a wrist shot from the slot over Crawfords glove 5:21 into the second.The fourth-line forward nearly smacked a Chicago player in the head with his stick during a giddy celebration, one that provided the spark necessary to wake the Penguins from a weeklong swoon.Downie tied it at 12:22 of the second, stuffing a rebound past a sprawled Crawford for his first goal since Jan. 2. That set up an electric back-and-forth third period that played in stark contrast to Pittsburghs penalty-filled meeting with the Flyers the night before.When weve been short players, really short players we seem to be able to pick it up, coach Mike Johnston said. We need to be able to do that when we have everybody in the lineup. ... Our depth really stepped it up.NOTES: The Penguins host Winnipeg next Tuesday but will play 21 of their final 36 games on the road. ... The Blackhawks face a difficult six-game trip after the break, starting next Wednesday at Los Angeles. ... The game was stopped twice in the first period due to a clock malfunction. One delay lasted nearly five minutes. ... The Blackhawks went 1 for 2 on the power play. The Penguins were 0 for 2. ... Philadelphia general manager Ron Hextall said Rinaldo feels horrible about his illegal check on Letang. Rinaldo will have a teleconference with the NHLs Department of Player Safety on Monday. Jaromir Jagr Jersey . Anything less than gold for either nation is considered a disappointment. Yet for Switzerland, advancing to the semifinal might be a victory in itself. Radko Gudas Jersey . McCutchen was cut before the series opener against Seattle on Monday night, when Lewis was set for his first start for Texas since July 18, 2012. Texas selected Lewis contract from Triple-A Round Rock. http://www.nhlflyersproauthentic.com/jak...key-jersey/.com) - Quarterback Cardale Jones will return to Ohio State next season. Sam Gagner Jersey . - Andre Drummond had his best night on the boards. Brian Propp Jersey . The mixed zone is not a place to make friends.RALEIGH, N.C. -- When the Boston Bruins take a two-goal lead, they can pretty much count on skating off with a win. The Bruins surged ahead early against the Carolina Hurricanes and then relied on their penalty-killers to earn a 4-1 victory on Monday night. Beginning with its 2010-11 Stanley Cup championship season, Boston is 100-6-6 in games it has taken a two-goal lead. It took the Bruins about 10 minutes to establish the margin against Carolina, which had won five of seven in the series. Boston killed four Carolina penalties, including 63 seconds when down two skaters, to extend its streak of consecutive penalty kills to 32. "Its commitment," Boston coach Claude Julien said. "Most of all, were winning battles. Were doing a good job of standing teams up." That wasnt the case in late October when Boston allowed goals on five consecutive power plays. "We were really awful on the (penalty kill), which is really unusual for us," said Tuukka Rask, who made 23 saves. "We wanted to go back to basics, killing one penalty at a time." Reilly Smith and Carl Soderberg had a goal and an assist each in the first period. Johnny Boychuk scored midway through the third, and Milan Lucic added an empty-net goal for Boston, which has 11 points in seven games (5-1-1). Carolinas Tuomo Ruutu scored his first goal of the season with 4.8 seconds left in the opening period, but Boston didnt waver. "That was impressive for me that we kept our composure despite that one," Julien said. Bostons penalty-killing unit was especially effective in the second period, when it worked morre than a minute of the Hurricanes 5-on-3 advantage after penalties to Boychuk and Gregory Campbell.ddddddddddddThe Bruins also killed a third-period penalty while leading 2-1. Carolina has scored only one goal in its last 21 power plays. The Hurricanes played their first game since Oct. 24 with Cam Ward in net. Ward, who missed 10 games because of a leg injury, made 26 saves. He rebounded from a rough start in which he gave up two goals on Bostons first four shots. "I thought Cam competed hard," Carolina coach Kirk Muller said. "He started off (with) two that werent easy to make saves on. After that, he hung in there." Smith gave Boston the lead with a power-play goal 2:31 into the game. Loui Eriksson passed to Soderberg, who found Smith in front for a one-timer that got past Ward for his third goal. Soderberg redirected a shot by defenceman Dennis Seidenberg to put Boston ahead 2-0 midway through the first period. The Hurricanes netted their only goal when a pass from Eric Staal went off the skate of Bostons Patrice Bergeron and caromed to Ruutu, who nudged the puck past Rask. NOTES: With Ward activated from the injured list, the Hurricanes reassigned goalie Mike Murphy to Charlotte (AHL). ... Ward is 12-12-2 against Boston in 26 games. ... Carolina centre Jordan Staal played in his 500th NHL game. ... Bostons Eriksson extended his point streak to six games with an assist on Smiths goal. ... Boston defenceman Adam McQuaid missed his fourth consecutive game. ... The teams will meet again Saturday in Boston. ... The announced attendance was 13,919. White NFL Jerseys Cheap Youth NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Stitched NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '

MILWAUKEE -- Yovani Gallardo sauntered through the clubhouse holding the barrel end of a bat, then headed down a hallway before his start against the Baltimore Orioles. No game-ending hit needed Wednesday night. This time, he earned a victory on the mound. The Milwaukee right-hander struggled through 6 2-3 innings, but got backed up by Ryan Brauns early two-run double and Khris Davis three-run homer in the eighth to beat Baltimore 8-3. On Tuesday night, Gallardo delivered a game-winning RBI double as a pinch-hitter in the 10th inning. He went 1 for 2 on Wednesday, though the rest of the lineup took care of the offence. "To add on late like that -- huge," manager Ron Roenicke said. "We keep waiting for one of those and we got it." Gallardo (3-3) overcame two solo shots by Nelson Cruz, who leads the majors with 19 home runs. He gave up three runs on four hits and five walks in 6 2-3 innings for his first victory since April 6, a span of nine starts. Gallardo walked the bases loaded in the fourth with two outs, escaping by getting Jonathan Schoop to ground out. Gallardo said he was rushing through his delivery at times in the evening, and catcher Jonathan Lucroy went out several times to try to refocus his pitcher. "Obviously three walks in a row is never good," Gallardo said. "But I was able to make a pitch whenever I needed to get out of it." Gallardo left after Nick Markakis doubled with two outs in the seventh. Markakis scored on Manny Machados single off reliever Brandon Kintzler to get Baltimore within 4-3. Adam Jones added another single, and lefty reliever Will Smith made a wild pickoff throw to put runners at second and third with Orioles slugger Chris Davis up. But Smith, the setup man with a potent slider, struck out Davis swinging. He sandwiched three more strikeouts around a hit in the eighth to cap his 1 1-3 scoreless innings. The Brewers broke away in the eighth off relievers Brad Brach and Brian Matusz. Pinch-hitter Rickie Weeks singled to left past a drawn-in infield and Khris Davis high fly off Matusz then sailed around the left-field pole for the 8-3 lead. "We let that eighth inning get away from us. I liked our chances there if we could have held it to one run," manager Buck Showalter said. Davis hit his ninth homer of the year, and third in three games. No, he wasnt trying to outshine the Baltimores more notable power-hitting Davis. "I know how to hit, thats what I love to do the most," said the Brewers Davis, who extended his hitting streak to seven. "As long as I keep loving it, the games going to love me back." Cruz has taken a liking himself to Miller Park after hitting three homers in two games. His second homer Wednesday went more than 400 feet to dead centre, and Cruz pointed two fingers skyward after crossing the plate before bumping fists with a smiling Machado at the dugout steps. "Nellie, hes a perennial hitter," Orioles starter Bud Norris said. "Weve seen him for years in other leagues and everything else, but to have him over here in Baltimores been outstanding." The NL Central-leading Brewers took two of three in the teams first interleague meeting since 2008. The Brewers had the early advantage against Norris (3-5), who allowed four runs, five hits and three walks in six innings. Braun hit a hard chopper down the first-base line for his two-out double with runners on second and third. Braun and Carlos Gomez each had two hits and a stolen base for Milwaukee. NOTES: Orioles LHP Johan Santana, signed as a minor league free agent during the off-season after missing all of the 2013 season following shoulder surgery, is likely to make one more outing in extended spring training, manager Buck Showalter said. The Orioles would then like the former Cy Young Award winner to make at least two minor league starts. ... Baltimore sends Ubaldo Jimenez (2-6) to the mound Thursday in the opener of a four-game series in Houston. Milwaukee is off Thursday before returning Friday with Marco Estrada (4-2) against the Chicago Cubs. Alphonse Areola Jersey .S. womens soccer team to a 2-0 win over China in Colorado in the afternoon. Angel Di Maria Paris Saint-Germain Jersey . -- J.R. Sweezy was the one part of the Seattle Seahawks offensive line that had avoided injuries or having to change positions this season. http://www.psgsoccershop.com/c-1-customized.aspx. Sterling was banned for life and fined US$2.5 million by the NBA on Tuesday for racist comments the league says he made in a recorded conversation. Nash, who plays for the rival L.A. Lakers, spoke as a representative of current NBA players at a press conference assembled by Sacramento mayor and National Basketball Players Association adviser Kevin Johnson. Marco Verratti Jersey . Garcia had eight birdies overall to go with a lone bogey on the fourth to move to an 18-under total of 198 at the Asian Tour event. "I was able to hit some really nice shots and then was able to roll two or three really good putts in and it was nice to be able to finish birdie, birdie on this difficult finishing stretch," Garcia said. Julian Draxler Jersey .com) - Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki was named the National League Player of the Month for April.BALTIMORE -- Nelson Cruz might not have to carry the Baltimore Orioles offence anymore, now that Chris Davis and Adam Jones are starting to find their groove. Davis homered and had four RBIs, Jones had three hits and scored three runs and the Orioles beat Cleveland 8-4 Friday night to snap the Indians four-game winning streak. Cruz hit his 15th homer, collected his team-high 43rd RBI and upped his batting average to .286. "I think this is really the first time weve all been swinging the bat well collectively," Davis said of himself, Cruz and Jones. "Nelsons been hot all year. Jonesy is really starting to come on and obviously me coming off the (oblique) injury, Ive started to swing the bat. Its big for us, especially in the middle of the lineup." Davis hit a two-run double in the third inning and put Baltimore up 5-4 in the fifth with his seventh home run, the fourth in four games. He led the majors with 53 homers last year, and while hes not on that kind of pace, Davis appears to be heating up. "I think Im just putting together better at-bats," he said. Nick Markakis had four hits for the Orioles, who have 38 runs and 62 hits in their last five games. Bud Norris (3-4) gave up four runs, six hits and three walks in six innings to earn his first win in four starts since May 1. It wasnt his finest effort, but the run support certainly helped. "These guys can swing," Norris said. "Theyre professional hitters. Theyve been doing it for a long time." Making his second major league appearance, Clevelands T.J. House (0-1) allowed five runs and 11 hits in six innings. He was first left-hander to make his initial big league start with the Indians since David Huff on May 17, 2009. House had the misfortune of going against a Baltimore team that now has scored at least six runs in five straight games, one short of the club record. "It was fun," House said. "Obviously the results didnt end the way I wanted them to, but I had a good time out there and next time I get the chance to do it I hope to be able to perform a little better." Jason Giambi hit a three-run homer for Cleveland, the 439th of his career, breaking a tie with Andree Dawson for 41st place on the all-time HR list.dddddddddddd Prior to connecting, the 43-year-old Giambi was 1 for 15 with no homers and no RBIs this year. The drive gave Cleveland a 4-3 lead. "Ive been taking some good at-bats," Giambi said. "I just wanted to try to put a ball in play there to get us a run. We had a runner on third, less than two outs, and just kind of keep the train moving. I just kind of got it up in the air a little bit and it went out of the ballpark." Cruz put Baltimore up 1-0 with a shot to right-centre in the second inning, and Davis doubled to right to make it 3-0 in the third. Cleveland responded with a four-run fourth. After Lonnie Chisenhall doubled in a run, Carlos Santana walked and Giambi followed with an opposite-field drive into the left-field seats. "At the time it was huge," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "It got us right back in the ballgame, put us ahead. Thats when youre starting to feel like OK, here we go, well find a way to win this one, too." But Davis followed an infield hit by Jones with a shot to right field in the fifth to put Baltimore ahead to stay. The Orioles added three unearned runs in the seventh off Mark Lowe, whose throwing error on a potential double-play ball allowed a run to score and preceded an RBI groundout by J.J. Hardy and a run-scoring double by Delmon Young. NOTES: Orioles 3B Manny Machado was given the day off after leaving in the 12th inning Thursday night with a sore right groin. Manager Buck Showalter termed the injury "the proverbial day-to-day" and said he expected Machado to avoid the 15-day disabled list. ... The Orioles recalled LHP T.J. McFarland from Triple-A Norfolk before Fridays game and optioned RHP Preston Guilmet to Norfolk. ... Cleveland SS Asdrubal Cabrera and 1B Nick Swisher did not start Friday because of knee soreness, but both are expected to avoid the DL, Francona said. Cabreras MRI Friday morning came back negative, Francona said. ... RHP Ubaldo Jimenez will start for the Orioles on Saturday against his former team. Jimenez played with the Indians before signing with Baltimore as a free agent during the off-season. 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MINSK, Belarus -- Alex Burrows suffered an apparent right knee injury in the first period of Team Canadas game against Italy at the world hockey championship and will not return. Italian forward Joachim Ramoser made knee-on-knee contact with Burrows in Canadas offensive zone with 56 seconds left in the first period. Burrows, who plays for the Vancouver Canucks, was down on the ice in a lot of pain before being attended to by trainers and helped off the ice. The 33-year-old Burrows was not able to put any pressure on his right leg as he was helped off by Brayden Schenn and Nathan MacKinnon. Ramoser was given a five-minute major penalty and an automatic game misconduct. A Hockey Canada spokesman said early in the second period that Burrows was out of the game with a lower-body injury and was being evaluated. Its the second straight year a Canadian player was the victim of a knee-on-knee hit at this tournament. Eric Staal was on the receiving end of one in the quarter-final in 2013 against Sweden, suffering a sprained MCL. Alex Edler was suspended the remainder of that tournament and then the first two games of the Sochi Olympics for injuring Staal. Ramosers hit will be subject to review by the IIHF, though replays made it look like the contact was not intentional. Cameron Payne Jersey . Chelsea took until the second half to trouble the leagues bottom team, but Schuerrle then ripped through the defence with ease at Craven Cottage to keep Jose Mourinhos side on track for the title. Zach LaVine Jersey . Smith, an eighth overall pick, had two goals in only 276 minutes of playing time over 16 appearances last season. The left side midfielder played only 43 minutes in three games this season. http://www.authenticbullsauthority.com/. Blatter also told reporters Saturday after meeting with Qatars emir that the decision to award the tournament to the desert nation is "not reversible." There have been calls to move the tournament because of Qatars intense heat. Bobby Portis Jersey . Maximilian Arnold put Wolfsburg ahead in the eighth minute, when the stationary Fallou Diagne allowed him to guide Patrick Ochs cross beyond the helpless Freiburg goalkeeper, and Ivica Olic doubled the lead three minutes later after Luiz Gustavo did well to set him up. Custom Chicago Bulls Jerseys . - Vince Wilfork has played only two career games in Kansas City.DALLAS -- The Dallas Stars have placed defenceman Stephane Robidas on injured reserve with a broken right leg and recalled Jamie Oleksiak from their AHL affiliate. The team said Saturday that the 36-year-old Robidas is expected to miss four to six months, jeopardizing his return this season. He was injured when he slid hard into the boards in the second period of a 22-1 shootout loss to Chicago on Friday.dddddddddddd Robidas ranks fourth among Dallas defencemen in games (704), assists (165) and points (211). The Stars signed him as a free agent in 2005. He has five points in 24 games this season. Oleksiak leads all Texas Stars defencemen with three goals in 22 games. The 20-year-old made his debut for Dallas last season. White NFL Jerseys Cheap Youth NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Stitched NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '

The Chicago-based band will be hitting the road with Touché Amoré in the months ahead in support of their newest effort. You can see if they will be in your city here. In the meantime take a listen to the entire album here: Jung-ho Kang Jersey . -- Caris LeVert had 14 points and a career-high 11 rebounds for his first career double-double, and No. Starling Marte Jersey .C. - Goodyear has warned teams that increased speeds at Charlotte Motor Speedway will put a heavy emphasis on the right front tires in Saturday nights race a€” a potentially key development for drivers trying to advance in the Chase for the Sprint Cup Championship. http://www.pittsburghpiratesprostore.us/...pirates-jersey/. Amid a rain of confetti, Shabazz Napier basked in the celebration on the court after being named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four following the 60-54 win over Kentucky. Gerrit Cole Jersey .com) - Ryan Johansens creative moves and hometown appeal highlighted Team Folignos successful night at the NHL All- Star Skills Competition. Willie Stargell Jersey .J. Ellis have avoided arbitration, agreeing to a one-year contract. ARGELES-GAZOST, France -- Vincenzo Nibali crushed everyone on the last mountain leg of the Tour de France on Thursday, all but ensuring he will be crowned champion when the race ends in Paris in three days. On the big, final climb of Stage 18, the Italian broke out of the peloton, chased down breakaway riders, and rode solo in front for the last eight kilometres (five miles) uphill. Nibali, who captured his fourth stage of the Tour, stuck out his tongue, tapped his chest, and raised a fist skyward as he finished the 145.5-kilometre (90-mile) leg more than a minute ahead of Thibaut Pinot of France, who was second. Rafal Majka of Poland, in third, was another two seconds back. The remarkable effort by Nibali, set to become the first Italian to win the Tour since Marco Pantani in 1998, essentially reduced the race drama to who will join him on the podium on the Champs-Elysees on Sunday. "I didnt want to lose command. My goal was to win here," Nibali said. "It was important to me to win another stage in the Pyrenees. The team worked really hard and this victory is for them." He is also set to become only the sixth rider to win all three Grand Tours of France, Italy and Spain. He won the 2013 Italian Giro and the 2010 Spanish Vuelta. One man basking at the finish line was Alexandre Vinokourov, the general manager of Nibalis Astana team, and a former rider who was expelled from the 2007 Tour for blood doping. He said the stage victory was "not by chance." "We said, we need to show that theres a boss," Vinokourov told French TV. The last time the term "boss" was used regularly at the Tour was when a doped-up Lance Armstrong won seven in a row. While three stages are left, Fridays is mostly flat and unlikely to allow a breakaway rider to gain time. The last real challenge will be Saturdays individual time trial, but Nibalis lead is so big -- 7 minutes, 10 seconds ahead of Pinot, and 7:23 ahead of Frances Jean-Christophe Peraud -- that it would take a disaster for him to lose the yellow jersey before Sunday. "It was a very good day," said Pinot, who rose a spot from third, "but Nibali is untouchable.dddddddddddd" The race for second heated up: Alejandro Valverde of Spain lost crucial seconds on the last climb and fell from second overall to fourth, two seconds slower than Peraud. But Valverde is considered a stronger time-trial rider than Pinot, and possibly Peraud. "Everything is possible," Valverde said. "Before, I was ahead, now Im behind, but its very tight. Im pretty happy." After setting off from Pau, riders tackled the famed Tourmalet pass -- the highest Pyrenean peak on this Tour -- before heading up to Hautacam ski station. Both climbs are among the toughest in professional cycling. Two breakaway riders, Mikel Nieve of Spain and Blel Kadri, a Frenchman who won Stage 8, were the first over Tourmalet more than 4 1/2 minutes ahead. But by the valley below, the duo had lost two minutes: Nibalis chasing bunch was gaining. That was partly because Valverdes Movistar squad bolted ahead in a challenge to Nibali. The Italian didnt let that last long, and Valverde was caught within a few minutes. By the foot of Hautacam, the main contenders were bunched together. Then, American Chris Horner, who beat second-place Nibali in the Vuelta last year, broke away. Nibali stayed with him, and then, rounding a curve and looking back for the peloton, burst ahead. Nibali said later he had memories of Horners Vuelta victory in mind. That said, Horner was little threat for the Tour title: He was about 35 minutes behind when the stage began. On the way up, Nibalis shoulder whacked the outstretched elbow of a woman speaking on a mobile phone on the side of road, with her back to the peloton. He winced briefly. "Happily, it wasnt serious for her or me," Nibali said. Stage 19 on Friday in southwestern France will likely end in a sprint finish, and Nibali and his Astana teammates will keep a close watch on the riders closest to him in the general classification. They are no longer rivals, nor challengers. White NFL Jerseys Cheap Youth NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Stitched NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '

With a second-place finish at the womens rugby World Cup, Canada showed it deserved a place among the sports elite teams.Figuring out how to stay there is the next challenge, and it could be a big one.The Canadian womens team received unprecedented exposure during its run to the final of the World Cup, which ended in a tough 21-9 loss to England on Sunday. Canadas games were televised live, and winger Magali Harveys brilliant 100-metre try against France in Canadas semifinal win made highlight reels across the country.But even after such a successful tournament, head coach Francois Ratier said in an interview after the final that its possible the team might be forgotten after what he called its 15 minutes.It remains to be seen how Rugby Canada builds on the historic World Cup performance, the precedent set by the sustained interest in womens soccer after Canadas bronze-medal performance at the London Olympics could serve as a possible model.I think the fact that it was shown on TV is going to make a huge difference, because women around the world and especially in Canada got to see what we were doing on the field and see what it was all about, Harvey said on a conference call Wednesday. So Im hoping that its going to promote the sport and push females around Canada to try that sport or any other sport.But as helpful as the exposure is, there are hurdles. Ratier said fundraising for the team was a considerable obstacle and getting fixtures against quality teams is a challenge for Canada, but not European teams.Ratier said Wednesday one of the key challenges facing Canada over the next three years is developing depth. While Canadas roster has star power — Harvey won the IRB womens rugby player of the year award, while captain Kelly Russell, who Ratier calls Canadas best player, was a finalist — heavyweights like New Zealand, England and France have more overall depth and can overcome injuries and fatigue easier.Its increasing the depth in certain positions, and making sure that when we have an injury we can replace her with a (quality player), Ratier said. Its identifying more talent and developing more players in the key positions. This is the key for the next three years.And those players will likely have to incur a substantial cost to participate in the next World Cup. Ratier estimated that Canadian players spent around $10,000 out of their own pockets to attend the World Cup and the preparation tournaments leading up to it.Ratier said its a big commitment considering we are playing teams that are funded, like New Zealand, England and France.When you see the French who are paid 120 euros a week when they are away, its not big but at least they can survive, he said. For us, some of the girls had to resign from their job to go to this World Cup.Money doesnt appear to be an issue for Harvey, who said she doesnt think about the big contracts athletes of her calibre get in mainstream professional sports.I do it for the love, I do it for the passion, and I do it because I love representing Canada, she said.But representing Canada is not always easy, especially in the three years that follow a World Cup. Ratier after Sundays final that Canada has trouble lining up quality opponents at the same time that France and England are playing in the prestigious Womens Six Nations Championship.There are also some lingering infrastructure issues compared to countries where rugby is considered a top-tier sport for women. Harvey said she was offered little guidance when she first got into rugby in high school, though she added the level of coaching in Canada is improving.It was pretty scary because there were no coaches who knew how to play rugby so they would just put you on the field and tell you to play, she said. Now its getting better. Coaches are more informed and teach you more. Jim Kelly Bills Jersey . Kerber will next play Estonias Kaia Kanepi, who beat American qualifier Victoria Duval 6-1, 6-3. In other first-round matches, Lucie Safarova beat 2010 French Open champion Francesca Schiavone 6-4, 6-4 and American Bethanie Mattek-Sands had a 6-4, 6-3 win over Canadas Eugenie Bouchard. Josh Allen Bills Jersey .com) - The San Francisco Giants delivered plenty of big hits to tie the World Series. http://www.shoptheofficialbills.com/Elit...y-Bills-Jersey/. Just ask Arsenal fans. However, Arsene Wenger has repeatedly told anyone willing to listen that finishing in that spot is more important than winning a cup competition. AJ McCarron Bills Jersey .Y. -- A month ago, Syracuse was unbeaten, ranked No. Eddie Yarbrough Bills Jersey . -- In the stadium program sold at the Miami Dolphins game on Halloween, Richie Incognito was asked whos the easiest teammate to scare.AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- For the first time in nearly three decades, Joe Dumars wont play a major role in shaping the future of the Detroit Pistons. Dumars stepped down as Detroits president of basketball operations Monday, a day after the Pistons lost their home finale and fell to 29-52 with one game remaining in the season. Detroit will miss the post-season for a fifth consecutive year. "Its time to turn the page on a wonderful chapter and begin writing a new one," Dumars said in a statement. "Ive had the pleasure of working with some great people throughout the last 29 years as both a player and executive, and Im proud of our accomplishments. Tom Gores and ownership is committed to winning and they will continue to move the franchise forward." Gores took over as owner in 2011, with the team clearly in a rebuilding mode, but expectations were higher this season after the Pistons signed Josh Smith and traded for Brandon Jennings. The new-look roster flopped, and now somebody else will be in charge of the next effort to bring Detroit back to the post-season. "Joe Dumars is a great champion who has meant so much to this franchise and this community," Gores said. "We are turning the page with great respect for what he has accomplished not only as a player and a front office executive, but as a person who has represented this team and the NBA with extraordinary dignity." A message was left with Dumars seeking additional comment. Dumars will remain an adviser to the ownership team, but this is the end of an era. Drafted by the Pistons in 1985, Dumars spent his entire 14-year playing career with the franchise, winning NBA titles in 1989 and 1990. He was Detroits vice-president of player personnel during the 1999-2000 season before being promoted to president of basketball operations. Dumars was named the NBAs 2003 executive of the year, and the Pistons won another title the following season. For the first half of his tenure as team president, Dumars Pistons were a model of consistency, even as players and coaches came and went. Detroit reached the Eastern Conference finals every year from 2003-08, but after the team slid back into mediocrity, some of Dumars most aggressive moves backfired.dddddddddddd In 2008, Dumars traded Chauncey Billups in a deal that brought Allen Iverson to the Pistons. That didnt work out well, and neither did the decision to sign Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva to big contracts during the 2009 off-season. Dumars had another chance to turn Detroits fortunes around last off-season. When he acquired Smith and Jennings, the Pistons looked like they could become a playoff team, but the new lineup never really meshed, and this ended up being another frustrating season. Coach Maurice Cheeks did not even make it through his first season as Detroits coach. He was fired in February, and the team fell well out of post-season contention under interim coach John Loyer. "Its been tough, guard Rodney Stuckey said after Sundays loss. "From Day One, our mindset was making the playoffs, and unfortunately we didnt do that. We underachieved, and now were going home. Theres always next year. ... To be honest, I really dont know what we need. Thats not my decision." Stuckey might not be back with the Pistons next season. Hes set to become a free agent. "Its going to be a lot of changes here," Stuckey said. "Im going to sit around and see what happens, and once July comes Ill make my decision." Detroit does have one of the games top young big men in Andre Drummond, but the Pistons have struggled to draw fans, and this uninspiring season did little to help in that regard. After taking over the Pistons, Gores ended up giving Dumars three more seasons as general manager, but now the pressure is on ownership to find someone who can put together a roster -- and identify a coach -- that can help the Pistons at least become relevant again. "We know that we can move in the right direction if theres the right moves being made and the attitudes are good in the locker room," forward Kyle Singler said. "My message is: Well be better." White NFL Jerseys Cheap Youth NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Stitched NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '

WASHINGTON -- Juan Lagares was ready to contribute when given the opportunity. "I know I can play. Thats what I do. Thats what Im here for," Lagares said after driving in three runs with a homer and a single and robbing Washingtons Jayson Werth of a home run in New Yorks 5-2 win on Saturday. Lagares came in 5 for 27 in his past 11 games, but he provided a jolt for the struggling Mets. He singled in a run during a three-run first and homered with one on and one out in the third to give New York a 5-0 lead. Hes batting .304 for the season. "Well, hell play tomorrow," Mets manager Terry Collins said to laughter following the game. "He had a good game. Thats great. Thats why we put him in there today," Collins added. "Gios not easy to hit, but hes got a (better) chance to have some success against lefties than he has been against righties, so I let him in there." The Mets outfielder took a homer away from Werth with a leaping catch against the wall in centre. "Im not surprised by anything he does defensively, not a thing," said Collins, who also praised Lagares for his offensive work this week with assistant hitting coach Luis Natera. "I try to be positive, try to do my work in the cage and try to be ready for the opportunity," Lagares said. "Thats the key, be positive and keep working." Bartolo Colon (3-5) allowed two runs and five hits over eight innings as New York snapped a three-game losing streak and won for the first time in 10 tries against Washington. Rookie Eric Campbell drove in two runs and had his first two-hit game, and Daniel Murphy added two hits as well for New York. Colon, who turns 41 next week, came in 0-2 with an 8.31 ERA (17 runs in 17 1-3 innings) in three starts this month -- all on the road. On Saturday, he retired the last 11 hitters he faced. "He made big pitches, he pitched ahead," Collins said. "You know, you looked up and you saw he had 70 pitches, you kind of figured hes on his game." Jenrry Mejia pitched the ninth for his first career save. Ian Desmond had two hits, including a two-run homer, for Washington. Gio Gonzalez (3-4) took the loss, suffering his second straight poor start. Coming off a 9-1 loss at Oakland in which he allowed seven earned runs in five plus innings, he lasted just three innings Saturday. "Arm slot wasnt where I wanted it to be. Up in the strike zone the entire time, falling behind on everyone. You can see it just wasnt a good game at all," Gonzalez said after allowing five earned runs and seven hits. The Mets scored one more run in the first inning Saturday than they had in the previous 27 combined. With one out, Murphy lined a single to centre and David Wright followed with an infield hit between first base and the mound. After Chris Young walked, Campbell sent a single to centre to score Murphy and Wright. Lagares, in the starting lineup for the first time since Tuesday, blooped a single to right, scoring Young with the third run. It marked the 10th time this season that Washington had allowed three or more runs in the first inning. In the third, Campbell singled with one out and Lagares drove a 3-2 fastball into centre. Desmonds homer in the fourth pulled the Nationals within 5-2. Werths leaping catch at the wall with two outs in the ninth preserved Friday nights 5-2 Washington win. He was the victim on Saturday, however, when he appeared to pull the Nationals within 5-3 with a drive to centre to open the sixth, but Lagares raced to the wall, leaped and reached back to grab the drive. "I know he hit it good," Lagares said. "I just go like I always go, hard, and try to make the catch." NOTES: Craig Stammen pitched four innings of scoreless relief for the Nationals. ... Murphy has hit in nine straight (13 for 36) and in 34 of the 40 games hes played. ... Nationals 1B Adam LaRoche tested his strained right quad Friday and said he hopes to be ready to return when hes eligible to come off the disabled list May 25. ... New Yorks Zack Wheeler (1-3, 4.53) opposes Jordan Zimmermann (2-1, 3.59) in Sundays series finale. Ray Allen Jersey . But its also a smart game. Theres more to the Kings than banging bodies. They take a toll mentally on their opponents. Custom Milwaukee Bucks Jerseys . Messis father, Jorge Horacio Messi, is apparently still under investigation for an alleged 4 million euros ($5.3 million) in unpaid taxes from Messis image rights from 2007-09. Messis public relations firm confirmed Spanish media reports that the state prosecutor has asked for Messi to be dropped from the investigation that began in June 2013. http://www.nbabucksproshop.com/.C. -- The Steve Smith era in Carolina is over. Oscar Robertson Jersey . Carcillo was a little of both for New York in Game 3. Derek Stepan, Martin St. Louis, Dan Girardi and Carcillo scored goals, leading the Rangers to a 4-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Jersey . Marcus Olsson, 23, joins Blackburn on a free transfer from Swedens Halmstads. He made 139 appearances and scored 17 goals in his four years with the club. He earned his first caps for Sweden this month, featuring against Bahrain and Qatar. MADRID, Spain -- A week after finishing the World Cup as the tournaments top scorer with six goals, Colombia forward James Rodriguez signed a six-year deal with Real Madrid on Tuesday. The 23-year-old Rodriguez, who helped Colombia reach the quarterfinals in Brazil, passed a medical examination at the Sanitas Clinic in the northern suburb of La Moraleja. "Im very happy," Rodriguez said as he left the clinic. "Everything went well." In the afternoon he was presented to thousands of cheering fans at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. Many wore Colombian national colours and waved flags. Madrid president Florentino Perez welcomed the forward and referred to him as James - which he pronounced in the Spanish style as ha-mes - Rodriguez. Perez said the late Madrid great and honorary president Alfredo Di Stefano had also come to the club from Colombia, where he had been playing before his arrival in Spain. "Colombia will be at your side," said Perez, raising a loud cheer from fans in the stadium. Rodriguez said: "I hope to win many titles here, Hala Madrid," invoking the clubs chant. Spanish sports newspapers Marca and As both reported that Madrid had agreed to pay French club Monaco 80 million euros ($108 million) for Rodriguez. He is expected to join the squad onn Aug.dddddddddddd 1. Rodriguezs goal against Uruguay in the second round of the World Cup, when he chested the ball down and then volleyed it in, was voted the best goal of the tournament. "I think they (Madrid) were interested in me before my goal against Uruguay," Rodriguez said. "But by scoring that goal I enhanced my chances of coming here." Rodriguez will strengthen Madrids attacking lineup, joining Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema up front. The forward said he was aware of Madrids strength in depth, adding that he was ready to play in different positions if required to do so by the coach. "I just want to train hard and be in good condition for when I am called upon to play," he said. The Colombia forward will wear the No. 10 shirt, vacated when Mesut Ozil left Madrid for Arsenal. The shirt is inscribed with just "James" above the number. Asked if he had heard rumours that fellow countryman Radamel Falcao might also be headed for Madrid, Rodriguez said Falcao is a great player. "But it is not in my competence to talk about such things." Rodriguez, who joined Monaco from Porto last year, is Madrids second signing ahead of the new season after Germany midfielder Toni Kroos joined Thursday from Bayern Munich. White NFL Jerseys Cheap Youth NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Stitched NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '

NEW YORK -- On a humid and sticky night at sold-out Citi Field, it was Randall Delgado who stayed strong late while Matt Harvey wilted. Delgado outpitched Harvey for his first major league win in more than a year, and the Arizona Diamondbacks snapped a five-game skid with a 5-3 victory over the New York Mets after a long rain delay Wednesday. "We beat a very good pitcher," Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson said. "We stayed with it and we had some very good at-bats." Mets nemesis Cody Ross hit a three-run homer off Harvey to put Arizona ahead. Delgado struck out a career-high nine and walked none in seven innings to give the NL West leaders their first victory by a starting pitcher since Wade Miley beat St. Louis on June 5. Diamondbacks starters went 0-11 over the next 24 games until Delgado (1-2) held New York in check for his first win since June 6, 2012, with Atlanta at Miami. "I think this is a special team and when you have a special team you put up really nice and weird streaks," reliever Heath Bell said. "I mean, we were in first place before that streak and were in first place after that streak, so its one of those weird streaks. But yeah, it was really nice to get a win for one of the starters." Delgado was 0-6 in his previous nine starts dating to last season. The 23-year-old right-hander from Panama, obtained in the January trade that sent slugger Justin Upton to the Braves, had received only six runs of support during that stretch, including two in three starts for Arizona -- none in his past two outings. "The team played awesome today," Delgado said. "It feels good." Josh Satin hit his first career homer and David Wright also went deep in front of a rare packed house at Citi Field. Daniel Murphy homered in the eighth off David Hernandez, then Bell got three outs against his former team for his 15th save. The Diamondbacks ended their longest slide of the season and won for the second time in 10 games, improving to 2-7 on a 10-game road trip against NL East teams. Harvey (7-2) is a strong candidate to start the All-Star game on his home mound July 16. Hoping to boost his bid, he pitched through traffic early and took a shutout into the sixth. But he faded late and ended up charged with nine hits and a season-high five runs in six-plus innings. The 24-year-old righty struck out nine and walked three, matching his most free passes this year. The five runs allowed tied his career high set Aug. 5 last year in San Diego. "The All-Star games not on my mind. I have one thing to do and thats to put up zeros, and I didnt do that," said Harvey, who acknowledged he didnt refocus properly after the rain delay. "Pretty much all night I wasnt making good pitches and wasnt hitting my spots too well. The ball was up a little bit and they took full advantage of that." Diamondbacks slugger Paul Goldschmidt was rested, so teammate Cliff Pennington and Gibson needled the big first baseman that he must be under the weather with "Harveyitis." But on this night, it was Delgado who had staying power. Eric Chavez started in Goldschmidts place and batted third, chasing Harvey with an RBI double off the left-field wall in the seventh. "To beat one of the best obviously feels good," Ross said. "Tonight we had a really good approach as a team." A sellout crowd of 41,257 on Fireworks Night -- the largest at Citi Field all season -- waited out a rain delay of 1 hour, 51 minutes, and filled up the seats enough to do a respectable Wave. Harvey was slow to find a rhythm, though not his 98 mph fastball. Two singles and a walk loaded the bases in the first before Martin Prado grounded sharply into an inning-ending double play. Prado then failed to make a barehanded pickup of Eric Young Jr.s slow roller that went for an infield single leading off the bottom half. The third baseman accidentally booted the ball toward the foul line, then finally stomped it twice into the turf in frustration. Harvey quickly turned it on, striking out his next four batters, and had a 2-0 lead in the sixth when Arizona got to him. Miguel Montero walked on 10 pitches, Prado singled and Ross lofted a two-out drive into the left-field corner for his fifth home run. "It was a ton of energy when I came into the dugout, and sort of a shot in the arm that maybe we needed," Ross said. Suddenly trailing 3-2, Harvey yanked his cap off his head and wiped sweat off his face. "That was the change, pretty much. After that, I dont think he was the same. It was humid, he had 100 pitches already," Montero said. "Lately weve been seeing a lot of 96, 97 mph pitchers. When we see a guy throwing 88, we dont feel as comfortable apparently. ... We just grinded every at-bat." Harvey walked Tony Campana to start the seventh and Aaron Hill blooped a single before Chavezs double made it 4-2. Montero added a sacrifice fly off Scott Rice. "Pretty much put it on a tee for him," Harvey said of the hanging slider to Ross. "Obviously, its a pitch I wish I could have back, but its over and done with." NOTES: Diamondbacks OF Gerardo Parra was out of the lineup for the second consecutive night after he was shaken up trying to make a diving catch on the warning track Monday, leaving him with scrapes and bruises on his face and arm. Gibson said he thought Parra would probably be available off the bench. ... Campana, called up from Triple-A Reno before the game, threw out Murphy at second on a leadoff single in the fourth off the left-centre fence -- just before Wright homered. ... Goldschmidt flied out as a pinch-hitter in the eighth. ... Mets manager Terry Collins said RHP Shaun Marcum (1-9) will make his scheduled start Saturday night in Milwaukee after an MRI came back clean. Mike Gesicki Jersey . Pospisil, the seventh seed, saved match points in each of the last two sets before falling to the unseeded Dutchman. "I wasnt very happy with the way I was playing,"said Pospisil. Durham Smythe Dolphins Jersey . Bjoerndalen, who had failed to win any major race for two years before Sochi, writes in a Facebook entry that he is "full of energy and inspiration" after winning the 10-kilometre sprint and mixed relay at last months Olympics. http://www.officialauthenticdolphinsshop...ore-jersey.html. -- Michael Phelps is 0 for 1 in his comeback to the pool. Josh Sitton Jersey . A little more than one year after missing a last-second tip-in that would have given the Wolverines a share of the Big Ten regular-season title, the 6-foot-8 forward scored on a layup with 7. Custom Miami Dolphins Jerseys . The Packers, Lions and Bears were a combined 35-15 and as long as Jay Cutler can say healthy, all three could make the playoffs in 2012.Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - Bryan Murray wanted Paul MacLean to prove him right and show everybody Ottawas down year in 2013-14 was nothing more than an aberration. Instead, MacLean only proved to his general manager that the Senators needed a new coach. MacLean won the Jack Adams Trophy following the lockout shortened 2012-13 season, but less than 18 months later Murray realized he had no choice but to let go of his head coach. However, it wasnt just missing the playoffs last season or the clubs mediocre 11-11-5 start to 2014-15 that did in MacLean. Ottawas GM also couldnt abide MacLeans inability to mesh with some of his players. At first glance, MacLean could have been mistaken for a players coach. He had an easygoing way with the media when the Pesky Sens made a run to the second round of the 2013 playoffs. It was easy to jump to the conclusion that MacLean had a similar rapport with his players, but Murray painted a different picture of the coach when he announced the firing on Monday. Murray revealed locker room tension created by MacLean and a whole lot more when he met with the media to discuss the coaching change. There was an uneasiness in our room, Murray said. Some of the better players felt they were singled out a little too often maybe. The GM also agreed with a reporter who said communication had become a one- way street with MacLean at the helm, saying the fired coach was not as open to listen and take ideas and go back and forth in the communication part. MacLeans penchant for speaking a little too freely with the media at times also led to his downfall in Ottawa. In fact, comments MacLean made Saturday may have hastened his demise with the Senators. Speaking to TSNs Chris Cuthbert before Saturdays game in Pittsburgh, MacLean made some disparaging remarks about his own club when asked if hed be more worried about facing the Penguins when Sidney Crosby was on a hot streak, or if he was struggling. All I know is Im scared to death no matter who were plaaying, MacLean said.dddddddddddd Whether its Sidney Crosby or John Tavares or the Sedins, I go day-by-day and Im just scared to death every day of who were playing. And sometimes, MacLean added. Im scared to death of who Im playing. Anybody who has paid attention to MacLeans public comments since he began as a rookie head coach with the Sens in 2011-12, knows he can wield a wicked sense of humor. Its possible MacLeans comments to Cuthbert may have been an attempt at gallows humor made by a guy who knew his job was at stake. Whether MacLean was joking or not, Murray took the statement to heart. And how could he do otherwise? After all, taking a shot at the quality of players in Ottawa is pretty much the same thing as criticizing the GM himself. The fact that he makes statements that Im afraid who I put on the ice type of thing, that kind of sent a loud message to me that, whether it was in jest or otherwise, that maybe he didnt believe in the group the way we thought we believed in the group when we started the year, said Murray. Of course, Murray also gave on-ice reasons for firing MacLean. Ottawas defensive positioning and the clubs problems with turning the puck over are the GMs biggest concerns, and something he tasked new head coach Dave Cameron with fixing. Like MacLean before him, Cameron will get his first crack at an NHL head coaching job in Ottawa. However, instead of being impatient with the Senators and insulting them when things dont go well, Murray is hoping Cameron will help the inexperienced Senators grow into a winning NHL team. I dont know if hes a players coach or a demanding coach, Murray said of Cameron. [But] I do know that hes a teacher. For Camerons sake, lets hope hes a learner too. While serving as an assistant under MacLean over the last few seasons, Cameron knows all about the things his predecessor did to lose favor in Ottawa. If Cameron can avoid the same mistakes, theres a chance both he and the Sens will be better off because of it. White NFL Jerseys Cheap Youth NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Stitched NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '

KAPALUA, Hawaii -- Jordan Spieth thought the Plantation Course was a blast to play when he arrived at Kapalua. He had even more fun Friday. Coming off a sensational rookie season, Spieth opened the new year by never coming close to bogey and making a 12-foot birdie putt on the last hole for a 7-under 66. That gave him a share of the lead at the Tournament of Champions with fellow newcomer Michael Thompson, Chris Kirk and Webb Simpson. "Its a course that I shouldnt make a lot of bogeys on if you keep the ball in play and just think your way around the course," Spieth said. "Ultimately, I did some good preparation and did a lot of hard work the last two or three weeks getting ready for today, and now just happy to be in good position after the first round." The wind off the west coast of Maui was the biggest surprise, shifting direction and speed throughout the opening round on a mostly sunny afternoon. But with an inch of rain overnight, the Plantation Course was soft enough that only two players in the 30-man field of PGA Tour winners failed to break par. Kirk thought he might be one of them when he first got to this slice of paradise. He had not played since winning the McGladrey Classic at Sea Island two months ago, and his first practice round was a skins game with Matt Kuchar and Scott Brown. Kirk got shut out and figures he shot about 80. When it counted, he was on the money, especially late in the round by closing with five straight birdies. The last two were not easy, especially with the wind blasting into him on the 17th hole, a par 4 that measures 545 yards down the hill. He hit a poor tee shot and had to smash a 3-wood into 30 feet for an unlikely birdie. He had to hit 3-wood and 9-iron for his final two shots on 18 to make birdie. "Some slightly more exciting birdies in the last few holes," he said. For the opening round of the year, where players are still trying to shake off some rust, the leaderboard has rarely been this tight. PGA champion Jason Dufner had four birdies and an eagle on his front-nine 30, only to settle into a string of pars on the back nine for a 6-under 67. Kevin Streelman bogeyed his last two holes and also was at 67, along with Zach Johnson and Ryan Moore. The top 10 players were separated by three shots. Adam Scott, coming off a two wins and a runner-up in Australia, and defending champion Dustin Johnson were among those at 70 On a day like this, experience might have been overrated. "I think the more times you play it, the more advantage you have," Kirk said. "Today was a little bit funny. Today was a day with the wind ... Ive never played in this wind. All the guys who have played here a bunch of times, youre very rarely going to see that wind. So that could throw some people off that were used to it." Even the players at Kapalua for the first time have watched enough of it on television to know how the ball reacts on the ground. Thats why Thompson was so surprised to see that his tee shot on the 18th bounced back a few feet. "From what I understand from guys that Ive talked to, that ball at least rolls 40 yards," Thompson said. "So its playing obviously very different." Spieth is getting plenty of attention going into a new year, mostly to see if he can back up his amazing rookie season. He had no status on any tour at this time a year ago, and by the end of the year he had won a tournament (John Deere Classic), finished No. 7 in the FedEx Cup and played on the Presidents Cup team. He is easing his way into the year, coming out to Maui with only his agent, still finding time to enjoy the Pacific and everything else at Kapalua. "Its almost like a vacation tournament in a sense," Spieth said. "Its been an awesome week so far. Obviously, Im here for this reason, and I dont have my family here with me. So theres definitely more of an emphasis on golf than maybe some other guys are putting into it here. Maybe thats an advantage." DIVOTS: Along with 13 newcomers to Kapalua, there were a few new -- or different -- faces on the bags. Simpson is using the caddie of Bubba Watson because the wife of his regular looper, Paul Tesori, is about to have a baby. The biggest change was with Patrick Reed, whose wife has carried his bag for his entire professional career. She is expecting their first child, so her brother is taking over. ... Kapalua is the toughest walk on tour, especially for the caddies. So it didnt help when Kip Henley, the caddie for Brian Gay, felt the bag heavier than usual on the fourth tee. He searched into the umbrella pocket and found a bottle of red wine that had been in the bag since the OHL Classic in Mexico last November. Gay gave it to his wife, who was in the gallery. Jaire Alexander Jersey . - Loosening up for their first training camp practice, the Miami Dolphins high-stepped sideways up and down the field while House of Pains song "Jump Around" blared on the loudspeakers. Josh Jackson Packers Jersey . - The Detroit Lions have placed tight end Brandon Pettigrew on injured reserve, ending his season. http://www.officialpackersteamgears.com/jk-scott-jersey/.ca. Hello Kerry, After watching Nino Niederreiter clobber Alex Burrows with an open-ice hit on Wednesday, do you think he should have gotten more than the two minutes for interference. Oren Burks Jersey . Or at least on everyone elses expectations. Costa Rica followed up its surprise win over Uruguay with another World Cup stunner on Friday, beating four-time champion Italy 1-0 to secure a spot in the next round and eliminate England in the process. Muhammad Wilkerson Jersey .com) - A chant of Zeke reverberated around AT&T Stadium before Ezekiel Elliott powered into the end zone for his fourth and final touchdown.KITCHENER, Ont. - Brent Pedersen scored twice and added an assist as the Kitchener Rangers beat the Erie Otters 7-4 on Tuesday night in Ontario Hockey League action.Liam Maaskant, Brandon Robinson, Adam Mascherin, Ryan MacInnis and Justin Bailey supplied the rest of the offence for the Rangers (14-8-6), who snapped a two-game losing skid.Alex DeBriincat, Patrick Fellows, Kurtis MacDermid and Nick Betz all had goals for Erie (22-6-2), which lost its third-straight game.ddddddddddddawson Carty got the win in net for the Rangers, stopping 20 shots. Daniel Dekoning made 45 saves for the Otters.Kitchener went 1 for 4 on the power play while Erie scored once on five opportunities. 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TORONTO - As Amir Johnson took a seat, having just picked up his sixth foul towards the end of Thursdays first overtime period, Patrick Patterson fouling out minutes earlier, Dwane Casey and his coaching staff mulled over their next move. Huddling up, Casey consulted with his assistants for over 30 seconds before looking to the far side of his bench and reluctantly calling for Jonas Valanciunas. The Raptors starting centre had been a spectator since late in the third quarter, amounting to roughly an hour of real time spent on the bench since he was last on the floor. As his coach feared, Valanciunas was more than a little rusty, playing 25 seconds in the first OT frame and the bulk of the second until Casey opted to go with Tyler Hansbrough to close the game in the third and final period of extra time. "It really wasnt fair to Jonas," Casey said in hindsight, following his teams marathon 134-129 loss to Washington. "It wasnt his fault." Upon reentering, Toronto immediately ran a pick-and-roll for Valanciunas, however the pass from Greivis Vasquez - who was trapped on the right elbow - was mistimed and ultimately deflected before it reached Valanciunas in the middle of the key, the turnover charged to Vasquez. A few minutes later, Valanciunas received the ball on the left block and with the clock winding down he flipped up a quick shot that was swatted by Marcin Gortat, his first of two field goal attempts in the period, both blocked by Gortat. With just over one minute remaining in double OT, the game tied at 116, Valanciunas negated a Vasquez runner, needlessly tipping in the shot that was already on its way down, above the cylinder. The look of frustration on the sophomores face said it all. This was not his night. The Raptors were outscored by 14 points in the 29 minutes that Valanciunas was on the floor. "I feel really sad," Valanciunas lamented, with his head down after the game. "I feel really bad right now. I could do a much better job than what I did." Valanciunas lost more than his rhythm, sitting as long as he did in the second half of Thursdays ball game. His confidence appeared to be at an all-time low. The second-year centre has had a rough couple of weeks, averaging 7.1 points and 7.6 rebounds, shooting 45 per cent in 24 minutes per in his last eight games. Over the previous eight contests, he put up averages of 15.4 points, 10.8 rebounds, shot 58 per cent from the field and logged just over 29 minutes a night. Perhaps fatigue has played a factor - he eclipsed his minute total from his rookie season last week - but the most noticeable variation in his approach hinders on an immeasurable concept that he has downplayed in the past. Swagger. Valanciunas is a different animal when he plays with that edge, anger and fire, when he gets outside of his head, stops over-thinking the game and just plays basketball. Too often you can almost see his thought process on the court, his movements are robotic as he aims to avoid disaster, fearful of making a mistake that will draw the ire of his head coach. However, hes at his best when he plays freely and Casey knows it. "The key is patience, not getting down on yourself, have fun," Casey said after morning shoot-around on Thursday. "I mean youre playing basketball. Theres no pressure on JV to produce. The pressure is on DeMar (DeRozan) and Kyle (Lowry) and Amir, the older guys." Given the unreasonably high preseason expectations its easy to overlook the fact that Valanciunas is still only 21-year-old, playing in his first full season after missing a sizeable chunk of his rookie campaign due to injury. Hes had an eventful year, participating in Summer League for the Raptors and competing with Lithuania in the FIBA qualifying tournament during the offseason. Hes still learning the NBA game, getting fully accustomed to his surroundings and most importantly finding his way as a player. None of that is lost of Casey, who refuses to put the cart before the horse when it comes to the development of his young centre. "I told him to stay with it," Casey said after Valanciunas logged just 17 minutes in Tuesdays win over Cleveland. "Right now hes pressing so much. [I] just told him to relax [and] play basketball." On account of their unexpected success this season the Raptors ultimate objective has been altered slightly. Although theyre now looking ahead to the playoffs and hoping to make some noise come April, their primary goal has not changed. Casey is still focused on developing his young players, namely Valanciunas and fellow sophomore Terrence Ross. "The hardest thing to do is to develop and win at the same time," Casey said. "Luckily weve got some wins and these guys are developing at the same time. Its the hardest thing to do because a lot of times theyre in there when they really dont deserve to, not as much lately but in the first part of the year." However, Casey wont coddle either sophomore with unconditional playing time. Valanciunas, like Ross, has had the opportunity to play and learn through his mistakes but the criteria for remaining on the floor long enough to do so has been made clear since the get go. "Offensively right now, hes not making his post moves, but thats going to come," Casey said. "Get some sweat shots, get some tip-ins, go to the offensive boards, screen. Do some of the sweat jobs and that will help him get his rhythm in the post." The process is gradual and, as Casey reminds us, its not going to happen overnight. Valanciunas possesses the ability, the desire and the work ethic to be a top tier NBA centre but its not going to happen in the middle of his second season. It takes time and no one in the Raptors organization will rush him. For now, Valanciunas is a matchup play. His minutes will continue to be sporadic as Casey leans on quicker, more experienced and versatile defenders in Johnson and Patterson some nights, depending on the opponent and whichever version of Valanciunas comes to play. Through it all, he cant lose focus and most importantly he cant lose his confidence. Hes got to keep his head up - on and off the floor - continue to work and learn whether hes in the game or on the bench. The Raptors are exercising patience with their young big man but he needs to be patient with himself. Daryl Worley Jersey . Venus Williams advanced to the ASB Classic final in Auckland on a walkover when fellow American Jamie Hampton withdrew from their semifinal Friday with a right hip injury. Gareon Conley Jersey . The Toronto Blue Jays star won his second consecutive Hank Aaron Award as the most outstanding offensive performer in the AL on Monday after votes by fans and a panel of Hall of Famers were tallied. http://www.authenticraidersfansclub.com/...Switzer-Jersey/. -- Broncos defensive end Derek Wolfe was alert and recovering at a Denver hospital Saturday after suffering seizure-like symptoms when the teams bus pulled into the airport Friday afternoon for the flight to Kansas City. Doug Martin Jersey . However, Therrien added that Galchenyuks status for next Wednesdays game against the Detroit Red Wings is questionable. Galchenyuk has been out since Jan. 6 with a broken right hand. Johnny Townsend Raiders Jersey . Assistant coach Glen Gulutzan said Thursday that Edler, who played Tuesday in Nashville, is out indefinitely.RYBINSK, Russia - Italys Federico Pellegrino and Swedens Jennie Oeberg took advantage of a weakened field to win freestyle sprint races Saturday at a cross-country skiing World Cup meet.Pellegrino held off four Russians to secure his third win of the season in 2 minutes, 34.99 seconds, 0.69 ahead of Sergei Ustyugov and 0.77 ahead of Andrei Parfyonov.Alex Harvey, of St-Ferreol-les-Neiges, Que., was the top Canadian in 28th.With most members of the domminant Norwegian team skipping the Rybinsk meet, Oeberg became the first non-Norwegian woman to win an individual World Cup race this season.ddddddddddddThe Swede won in 3:02.54, denying Russias Natalia Matveeva a win in front of her home crowd by 0.48 seconds.Switzerlands Laurien van der Graff edged Russian Anastasia Dontsenko in a photo finish to take third, 0.76 seconds behind Oeberg.Alysson Marshall of Salmon Arm, B.C., was 42nd. 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CALGARY -- The Calgary Stampeders announced Thursday that they signed import linebacker Deron Mayo to a contract extension. Mayo will be entering his third season with the Stampeders. He played primarily on special teams as a rookie in 2012, and became a starter at outside linebacker during the Week 4 of last season, and finished second on the team with 57 tackles. Mayo also excelled at special teams, recording nine tackles. "Deron has been a force both on special teams and on defence during his two years with the team," said coach and general manager John Hufnagel. "He did an exceptional job stepping in as a starter for us last season and I look forward to his continued improvement." Courtland Sutton Broncos Jersey . -- Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw was placed on the 15-day disabled list Saturday for the first time in his seven-year career because of a swollen muscle in his left upper back. Sua Cravens Jersey . But that changed when he committed a five-minute major penalty and helped pave the way for a comeback by the Philadelphia Flyers. Vincent Lecavalier scored at 2:45 of overtime and the Flyers rallied from a two-goal deficit for a 5-4 victory on Sunday. http://www.broncosrookiestore.com/Bronco...-Jewell-Jersey/. Team spokesman Donald Beauchamp said there was no new information on the 80-year-old Hall of Famers condition. The family has requested privacy. Marquette King Jersey . Azarenka needed exactly one hour in a 6-1, 6-0 rout of Austrian Yvonne Meusburger to start the night session at Laver Arena. Sharapova had a much easier time earlier in the day with cooler conditions and took full advantage in 6-1, 7-6 (8-6) win over Frenchwoman Alize Cornet, while Radwanska had to rally for a 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 victory over Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Josey Jewell Jersey .C. United on Saturday night and boost the Unions playoff hopes. Nick DeLeon scored in the 36th minute for United (3-23-6), which had ample opportunities to build on its lead but went its 10th straight match without a victory.Which are the most credible Manchester United transfer rumours right now? Sky Sports has teamed up with Football Whispers to bring you the most up-to-date transfer talk as Jose Mourinho looks to improve his squad ahead of the upcoming Premier League season.Football Whispers have developed a unique algorithm to take all of the transfer rumours from across the globe and calculate the likelihood of them happening. They track transfer stories and give them a score out of 5.0, with the hottest Whispers closest to 5.0.Here are the top three:1. Paul Pogba (Juventus) - 4.3This transfer saga rumbles on and, according to Sky in Italy, Manchester United have had an £85m bid for Paul Pogba rejected by Juventus. Pogba once again tops Football Whispers list for transfer rumours United had the offer turned down on Tuesday but have reportedly been told by the Italian champions that a world-record transfer fee in excess of £100m for the France midfielder would be accepted.It is understood Juventus have now accepted Pogba wants to leave the club, although the cost of the deal has already priced Real Madrid out of the market. Would Pogba transform Man Utd? What kind of impact would Paul Pogba have at Man Utd? How would he fit into Jose Mourinhos side? Uniteds initial offer was made during a meeting between executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward, Pogbas agent Mino Raiola and Juventus general manager and CEO Giuseppe Marotta.Pogba remains on holiday and will not return to Turin until August 6.2. Fabinho (Monaco) - 4.3 Fabinho is reportedly open to a Premier League move Fabinho stays in the top three Manchester United Football Whispers with a rating of 4.3, as media reports continue to link the right-back to a £22m move to Old Trafford.Jose Mourinho is keen to strengthen his defence and has touted the 22-year-old as a potential signing.Fabinho, who is reportedly open to a move to the Premier League, and Mourinho share the same agent in Jorge Mendes and the Brazil international made his only loan appearance at Real Madrid under the new United manager in May 2013.Want to know more about Fabinho? Read a profile of the Monaco full-back here.3. James Rodriguez (Real Madrid) - 3.5 James Rodriguez returns to the Football Whispers ttop three on Friday Not too far behind the first two names in the Football Whispers list, James Rodriguez has jumped back into the top three after failing to appear on Thursday.ddddddddddddThe forward struggled to hold down a regular starting place at the Bernabeu last season under two different managers, and Colombia coach Hernan Dario Gomez has urged the world-class player to seek first-team football elsewhere next term. Hottest Man Utd whispers - Friday, July 22 Player Club FW rating (out of 5) Paul Pogba Juventus 4.3 Fabinho Monaco 4.3 James Rodriguez Real Madrid 3.5 Raphael Varane Real Madrid 3.1 Leonardo Bonucci Juventus 2.5 Felipe Anderson Lazio 1.2 Blaise Matuidi PSG 1.2 Dont forget to follow the most up-to-date information around the clock with the Sky Sports Transfer Centre Also See: Transfer Centre Latest transfer news Paper Talk Man Utd fixtures White NFL Jerseys Cheap Youth NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Stitched NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '

TORONTO - Kyle Lowry laid flat in the centre of the key, hands on his head as he stared straight up at the top of the Air Canada Centre, likely seeing nothing at all, having just missed the biggest shot of his eight-year career. Although, technically it was not a shot. With their season on the line, the ball was in Lowrys hands, deservedly so. The clock showed 6.2 seconds as the Raptors inbounded, trailing by only one in the dying moments of a deciding Game 7. Jason Kidd and his Nets team had little doubt the ball would find Lowry. The star point guard caught the pass, with Deron Williams draped all over him, and went straight toward the rim as Kevin Garnett came over to trap. Lowry split the two defenders and floated a shot up at the basket just as Paul Pierce entered the fray in time to block it. As the buzzer sounded, putting an end to Torontos magical season, Lowry - the teams heart and soul - fell to the court. What was going through his head? "Whats not?" he shot back. DeMar DeRozan was the first one to come over. Crouching over the sprawled out Lowry, DeRozan offered up some words of encouragement. "He said, If anyone is taking that shot, Im living and dying with you taking it and trying to get that shot off," Lowry recounted after the Raptors heartbreaking 104-103 Game 7 loss. "It was one of those things, a brotherly moment." DeRozan helped the point guard up and the Raptors two best players walked off the court - Lowry with his jersey over his face - to a rousing ovation from their appreciative fans. "It was big time," Amir Johnson said of the scene. "Just them showing their appreciation, how well we did this season and how hard we worked. So it was a sad moment but bittersweet, I guess." The Raptors couldnt hide their disappointment after falling just short of advancing to the Conference Semifinals Sunday afternoon, it was written all over their faces, but they have no reason to hang their heads. The sellout ACC crowd stood and chanted in salute of their team, the game - however frustrating - served as a good reminder of why. With five minutes left, the Raptors appeared dead in the water. Frustrated and coming undone in the moment, down 10, their season was on life support but, like hes done so many times before, Dr. Lowry refused to let them die. Lowry scored 13 of his game-high 28 points in the final quarter and the Raptors came storming back. That resiliency has been their most admirable quality all year. They had led the NBA in fourth-quarter scoring differential, earning 11 comeback wins, eight more than the season prior. "Were going to fight until our last breath," said DeRozan after scoring 18 points, playing with the flu, as Casey revealed following the game. "Were going to leave it out there, every single thing we have there on the court." "We battled," added Johnson, who recorded his first playoff double-double of 20 points and 10 rebounds before fouling out early in the fourth quarter. "I would go to war with these guys any day and they showed a lot of pride and a lot of heart tonight. We just ran out of time." Lowry and his unwavering resolve have a lot to do with the teams late-game tenacity and so, with their season in the balance, they had no qualms with letting him decide their fate. "That young man did everything he could to get to the basket," Casey said of Lowry on the final possession. It was what they had drew up, Lowry going to the rim, though it was a slight variation of what was intended, with poor spacing that ultimately led to the blocked shot. "He tried to will his way to get that extra point." One point separated the teams Sunday and after 11 meetings - in the regular season and playoffs - Toronto and Brooklyn each scored 1,070 points. The series was as close as they come. "We were right there," Casey pointed out, and if a few calls from another highly critiqued officiating crew went their way they may have pulled it out. But in the end, the Nets were the better team Sunday and that was the case, more often than not, throughout the series. Joe Johnson - the best player on either side over the seven-game span - proved un-guardable again, scoring half of his 26 points in the fourth quarter, while the Raptors youth and inexperience continued to rear its head. Although Terrence Ross turned in his best game of the series, securing the steal that made Torontos final possession possible, the bar had been set low. Fellow sophomore Jonas Valanciunas scored just three points to go along with five rebounds in one of the quietest outings of his brief career. As a team, the Raptors wanted to go further, they believed they were ready and came just one play short of proving it. Even after the loss, with their season now over, the progress theyve made does not go to waste. Three of their starters had never appeared in a playoff game. Only four players on their roster had ever experienced a Game 7, no one has emerged victorious from one. This experience is invaluable and can only serve them well, both individually and as a collective, going forward. "Im proud of our guys," Casey said. "Nobody gave them a snowballs chance in you know where to be here. They competed all year. This group has a lot of stuff in front of them, a lot of basketball in front of them. The organization is in a great spot." "This playoff run is nothing but positive for these young men and anyone that thinks any different doesnt know basketball." Markus Wheaton Eagles Jersey . Hoefl-Rieschs exit — from the downhill course into safety nets, then airlifted from the slope by helicopter — left Anna Fenninger of Austria favourite to win her first giant crystal trophy one month after becoming an Olympic champion. Paul Worrilow Jersey .200. His solution to his hitting woes was business in the front and a party in the back."That would be a mullet," Norris says. http://www.eaglespromart.com/haloti-ngata-eagles-jersey/. And theyre pointing to the NHLs biggest market: Toronto. With Gretzky paid out for what is believed to be $7 to 8 million, Gretzky may be eager to get back into the NHL and TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reports that the Maple Leafs are very much interested in The Great Ones services. Dallas Goedert Eagles Jersey . Granlund scored 2:04 into the first period. Max Reinhart, on his first NHL shift of the season, neatly stripped the puck from Zack Smith at the Senators blue-line. As he moved in, his attempted shot deflected into the slot where Granlund buried a shot past Craig Anderson. Michael Bennett Jersey . Two-time Olympic bronze medallists Savchenko and Szolkowy received 79.02 points to finish ahead of world bronze medallists Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford of Canada, who had 77.01 points. TORONTO -- The clock was ticking down and the Toronto Raptors were clutching a one-point lead. And Kyle Lowry, the player who has so often carried them down the stretch, was in the locker-room getting treatment for a sore and swollen knee. But with DeMar DeRozan leading the way, the Raptors showed the resiliency that has become part of their makeup this season en route to a 107-103 victory over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday. "Every win is great for us right now for what were trying to do, especially with Kyle out and Amir (Johnson) out," said Raptors coach Dwane Casey. "Hopefully it gives our guys some confidence. . . guys who stepped in, to go where we need to go." Johnson missed all but the first three minutes with an ankle injury. DeRozan poured in 29 points, and was key in the fourth quarter, doling out a couple of assists and uncharacteristically taking a charge. "Those are the winning plays that hes learning to make and hes making now, other than just scoring," Casey said. "Hes doing a great job of scoring but theres so many other things when he plays those kinds of minutes, especially now with Kyle out, hes got to do a lot more." When he somehow cut his finger with just over three minutes to go, he continued to play despite the blood that was smeared across his shorts. "I kind of split the middle of my hand, the webbing of my hand, I didnt even notice," said DeRozan, who estimated he had four or five stitches. "I looked down and my whole hand was soaked." Jonas Valanciunas and Greivis Vasquez added 15 points apiece, and Terrence Ross finished with 14 for the Raptors (43-32). James Harden scored 26 points to top the Rockets (49-25), who were missing Dwight Howard (ankle) for the third consecutive game. Chandler Parsons added 20. Lowry missed the game after a hard knee-on-knee collision with LeBron James in the Raptors 93-83 loss to Miami two nights earlier. His X-rays were negative, so there was no structural damage. Johnson played the first three minutes but headed to the locker-room with a sore right ankle. But despite the absence of not only two of the teams top contributors but arguably its two hardest workers, the Raptors werent going to let this game slip away. With seven games to go, every game is meaningful as the Raptors fight for a favourable opponent in the post-season and homecourt advantage. Vasquez, who started at point guard, said its no surprise that DeRozan and the Raptors stepped up so well in Lowrys absence. "Its not hidden that (DeRozan and Lowry) are our leaders. We go as they go. And everybody else understands that," said Vasquez. "This is why we have a healthy locker-room, were not fighting egos, we know whats going on. Those two guys are going to score, those two guys are going to make winning plays. And whenever one of those guys goes down, weve got their back. Thats what this team is all about. "This is not a fluke. We earn wins, and we earned a win tonight." Houston, which has now dropped seven straight decisions in Toronto, was coming off a 105-96 loss the previous night at Brooklyn, and arrrived in Toronto at 3 a.ddddddddddddm. Wednesday. The Raptors led by as much as 20 points in the third against the fourth-place team in the mighty Western Conference. But they allowed the Rockets to pull within 90-80 heading into the fourth and it was during a stretch in the final 12 minutes that the Raptors really felt the absence of Lowry and Johnson. The Rockets pulled within two points with 8:45 to play but that was as close as the visitors would get, and when a wide-open Ross drained a three-pointer with four minutes to play it brought the crowd to its feet and gave Toronto a six-point lead. There were some tense moments as Houston showed some life late. Jeremy Lin drained a three-pointer to cut Torontos lead to three points with nine seconds left, but a free throw by Vasquez sealed the Raptors victory. "We are a team that is desperate for a win right now," Lin said. "Weve dropped three in a row, definitely not a good feeling. We just have to regroup. The one thing I will say is that Im proud of how hard we played but we didnt play great in terms of execution, in terms of coverage and a lot of those little things." As for Lowrys knee injury, Casey said sitting his starting guard wasnt a matter of getting him rest. Wednesdays game was one the coach really wanted to win, so if Lowry could have played, he would have. "Theres a pride factor, you want to win, you want to win a division, you want to win and try and get home court," Casey said. "Were in position, so theres no use of letting off the pedal now. Every game for me is desperate. "But its not live or die or anything like that, were not going to risk a kids health to try to do that." Lowry is averaging 17.4 points, 7.6 assists and 4.8 rebounds. Johnson, whos averaging 10.8 points and 6.8 boards, has long battled bad ankles, but the hardworking forward normally plays through the pain. The fact he left the game is worrisome. The Raptors are tied with Chicago for third in the Eastern Conference and two-and-a-half games ahead of Brooklyn. The good news is Wednesdays game was the Raptors last against a Western Conference opponent. And of the remaining games, Toronto plays last-place Milwaukee twice, and Philadelphia (second-last) once. The Raptors got off to a sloppy start, falling behind by 12 points midway through the first quarter. Toronto ended the quarter with a 12-2 run capped by a three-pointer by Vasquez and trailed 25-23 heading into the second. DeRozan led the way with 15 points in a second quarter that Toronto finish with a 13-4 run, and when the Raptors all-star drilled a 32-footer at the buzzer it sent Toronto into the dressing room with a 55-50 lead. A pair of free throws by Salmons gave the Raptors a 20-point lead -- their biggest of the game -- with just under four minutes to go in the third. But the Rockets finished with an 18-8 run to make it a 10-point game with a quarter to go. NOTES: The Raptors have another tough game Friday when they host the Indiana Pacers. The Raptors are in Milwaukee on Saturday before returning home to face the Sixers and New York Knicks. . . Toronto FC midfielder Dwayne DeRosario was at the game. White NFL Jerseys Cheap Youth NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Stitched NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Autographed Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Discount Jerseys ' ' '

After the San Francisco Giants tied the game with two outs in the top half of the inning, Kolten Wong homered off of Sergio Romo in the bottom of the ninth to give the St. Louis Cardinals a 5-4 walk-off victory to even the National League Championship Series at 1-1. Cards starter Lance Lynn went 5 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on six hits. He struck out three and walked one. His Giants counterpart, Jake Peavy went four innings, allowing two runs on four hits. He walked three and struck out a pair on 76 pitches. Matt Carpenter, Oscar Taveras and Matt Adams also had solo shots for the Cardinals. Romo (0-2) took the loss for the Giants. Seth Maness (2-0) got the win. Game 3 goes Tuesday afternoon in San Francisco at 4pm et/1pm pt. Dennis Smith Jr. Youth Jersey . Forward Iker Muniain scored the winner in the 70th minute after Bilbaos incessant pressure recovered the ball and sparked a counterattack inside Barcelonas half. Neymar was once again tagged to pick up Messis goal-scoring duties, but when he wasnt frustrated by slippery footing Bilbaos defence got the better of him. Dennis Smith Jr. Swingman Jersey . Thats 14 consecutive losses to the two-time defending champs, and most of them were over before they even began. Result notwithstanding, Sundays game had a very different feel to it. http://www.mavericksteamofficial.com/den...vericks-jersey/. Beckham finished 2 for 4, adding a double in the first inning. Chicago has won eight of 12 to get back to .500 (27-27). The White Sox are 6-3 against Cleveland this season after losing 17 of 19 to their American League Central rival in 2013. Mike Aviles went 1 for 2 with a walk and drove in Clevelands run. Dennis Smith Jr. White Jersey . -- Nick Bjugstad snapped out of his scoring slump and spoiled Drew MacIntyres first NHL start. Dennis Smith Jr. Blue Jersey . And rest hardly led to rust for the two-time defending NBA champions.NEW YORK -- Mark Teixeira has provided consistent power for weeks. The rest of the New York Yankees joined in Saturday. Teixeira hit a two-run homer, Zoilo Almonte connected in his first start of the season and New York went deep five times for a 7-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. It was the second time since 2011 that five Yankees players homered in one game. "It was nice to see," manager Joe Girardi said. "Our team is built for this park." Brett Gardner and Alfonso Soriano also homered off a struggling Edinson Volquez to back five scoreless innings from David Phelps (1-0). Brian McCann added a two-run drive in the eighth against reliever Vin Mazzaro as New York won for only the second time in eight home games. Coming off consecutive road shutouts against the crosstown rival Mets, the Yankees took their third straight following a four-game slide. "We had a very good game overall," Soriano said. "Thats what we expect." Starling Marte homered and had three hits in his return to the starting lineup for the Pirates, winless at Yankee Stadium since Harvey Haddix pitched them to a 5-2 victory in Game 5 of the 1960 World Series. Volquez (1-4) gave up six hits -- four homers -- and no walks in 6 1-3 innings, dropping to 0-4 in his last five starts. Teixeira connected on a 1-2 pitch following Derek Jeters single in the first for his eighth home run in his last 17 games. It was the 350th of his career, tying Chili Davis for sixth place among switch-hitters. Almonte sent Volquezs first pitch of the third into the raised bleachers in right-centre for his second major league homer. Called up from the minors Tuesday, Almonte was a late addition to the lineup when centre fielder Jacoby Ellsbury was scratched with flu-like symptoms. Gardner homered leading off the sixth and Soriano did the same in the seventh. "They are great hitters and I made a lot of mistakes," Volquez said. "You cannot make a lot of mistakes in this ballpark." After a rainout Friday night, 47,353 fans turned out on a beautiful afternoon for the Pirates first visit to the current Yankee Stadium. They went 0-6 in interleague games at the old place, swept in a June 2005 series and again two years later. Phelps pitched out of early trouble to earn his first win as a starter since July 4, 2013, at Minnesota. After beginning the season in the bullpen, the right-hander was making his third staart since replacing injured Michael Pineda in the rotation.dddddddddddd "At the end of the day it was five zeros and Ill take that," he said. "You dont want to grind every time out, but its one thing that Ive kind of done this year. I havent really had my best stuff yet." Phelps got some help from the overaggressive Pirates, who ran into three outs on the bases. "We were pushing guys out there," manager Clint Hurdle said. "Those are the chances you want to take when youre not getting those big hits with runners in scoring position, try to push yourself across the plate or get yourself in scoring position." Dellin Betances tossed two innings in relief before Adam Warren and Matt Daley finished up. Phelps is 3-0 with a 1.08 ERA in his last three starts at Yankee Stadium. "He made pitches when he had to," Girardi said. "There were some good plays." Pirates bopper Pedro Alvarez, who grew up a few miles from Yankee Stadium, went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts in his first game against the Yankees. He left about a dozen tickets for family and friends and was expecting his father to be in the crowd. Two calls were overturned on replay challenges, one in favour of each team. Both plays involved tags by Jeter at second base. "We won with the home run today, which were capable of doing," Teixeira said. "We have to score a little bit more and I think the last few games our pitching has really picked us up. So its good to see us break out today." NOTES: Marte (lower back tightness) made his first start in a week. ... 1B Ike Davis, traded by the Mets last month, went 0 for 3 with a walk and three strikeouts in his return to New York. ... Girardi said he would be "kind of shocked" if LHP CC Sabathia (right knee) is able to return after only 15 days on the disabled list. "We dont know when hes coming back," Girardi said. ... Pineda (shoulder muscle) is scheduled to throw 25 pitches on the side Sunday. ... Ichiro Suzuki (back) entered in RF in the ninth and is likely to play in the traditional doubleheader Sunday -- the first single-admission twinbill at Yankee Stadium since 2004. ... RHP Hiroki Kuroda chose to start the opener Sunday against Pirates RHP Charlie Morton. LHP Vidal Nuno will pitch the second game against RHP Gerrit Cole, who spurned the Yankees to attend UCLA after they drafted him out of high school. 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