Diede de Groot wins US Open women’s wheelchair for her 12th straight Grand Slam title

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 23:23:24 GMT

Diede de Groot wins US Open women’s wheelchair for her 12th straight Grand Slam title NEW YORK (AP) — Diede de Groot won her 12th straight Grand Slam wheelchair singles title Sunday, beating Yui Kamiji 6-2, 6-2 in the U.S. Open women’s final.The Dutch star completed her third straight calendar-year Grand Slam, including a Golden Slam in 2021, when she also won the Paralympic gold medal. De Groot has won six straight U.S. Open titles and 20 major singles titles overall — not that she keeps count.“I’d like to really not worry about it too much, because then you’re going to start to think about, ‘Oh, I want to reach this or I want to reach that,’” she said. “I really just want to focus on my game, and that’s what I did today. So that’s what I’m really proud of. But I think just being this consistent is what I’m really proud of. Being able to do it multiple times in the year.”De Groot hasn’t lost a Grand Slam singles match since falling in the French Open semifinals in 2020.Alfie Hewett, the No. 2 seed, beat Gordon Reid 6-4, 6-3 in a matchup of British player...

Sykes’ lob at buzzer lifts Mystics over Liberty 90-88

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 23:23:24 GMT

Sykes’ lob at buzzer lifts Mystics over Liberty 90-88 NEW YORK (AP) — Brittney Sykes scored on a lob pass at the buzzer to lift the Washington Mystics to a 90-88 victory over the New York Liberty on Sunday to close out the regular season.Sykes, who finished with 20 points, caught an inbounds pass from Natasha Cloud in the lane and put it in before the buzzer, ending the Liberty’s eight-game winning streak and any chance to get the top seed in the playoffs.The teams will meet in the first round of the WNBA playoffs, with Game 1 on Friday in New York.The final play was set up after Breanna Stewart blocked Elena Delle Donne’s shot on the baseline with 0.5 seconds remaining.Washington (19-21) turned a 71-67 lead to start the fourth quarter into a double-digit advantage. New York was down 84-74 with 4:41 left when Sabrina Ionescu was fouled hard on a drive by Tianna Hawkins. The foul was upgraded to a flagrant one. Ionescu made both free throws to start a 14-4 burst to tie the game on Stewart’s layup with 21.5 seconds left.Cloud worked the ...

Ogunbowale scores 32 points in season finale as Wings pull away from Dream 94-77 in playoff preview

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 23:23:24 GMT

Ogunbowale scores 32 points in season finale as Wings pull away from Dream 94-77 in playoff preview COLLEGE PARK, Ga. (AP) — Arike Ogunbowale scored 20 of her 32 points in the second half and the Dallas Wings pulled away for a 94-77 over the Atlanta Dream on Sunday, closing the regular season with a playoff preview.The fourth-seeded Wings (22-18) are home against the fifth-seeded Dream (19-21) in a best-of-3 playoff opener on Friday. Dallas swept the season series 3-0, winning by seven and 12 at home.Ogunbowale drilled a 3-pointer and turned a steal into a layup to cap a 13-2 game-breaking surge to open the fourth quarter. That put the lead at 79-60 with 6:51 to play.Natasha Howard scored 15 points with nine rebounds and four assists and Teaira McCowan had 12 points and 10 rebounds. Rhyne Howard scored 19 points for Atlanta, which shot 38% from the field. Cheyenne Parker and Allisha Gray both added 13.The Wings had 44-39 lead at the half. Dallas led by as many as 10 in the third quarter before taking a 66-58 lead into the fourth quarter.___AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-bask...

Derek Carr’s New Orleans debut is a success as the Saints edge the Titans 16-15

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 23:23:24 GMT

Derek Carr’s New Orleans debut is a success as the Saints edge the Titans 16-15 NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Derek Carr passed for 305 yards and a touchdown in a difficult but successful Saints debut, and New Orleans held on to beat the Tennessee Titans 16-15 on Sunday.The Saints’ defense did not allow a touchdown, intercepted Ryan Tannehill three times, sacked him three times, and stopped Tennessee on 10 of 12 third down plays.Chris Olave caught eight passes for 112 yards for New Orleans, while Rasheed Shaheed had five receptions for 89 yards and the game’s lone touchdown. Michael Thomas, who missed the final 14 games last season, returned to catch five passes for 61 yards. The teams traded field goals for most of the game before New Orleans finally found the end zone with 1:23 left in the third quarter. Carr pump-faked and lofted a pass toward the right side of the end zone an instant before the pocket collapsed. Shaheed was in the clear and hauled in the 19-yard scoring pass to make it 16-9.After the Titans’ Nick Folk hit two more field goals from 45...

Luis Rubiales resigns as Spanish soccer president following unwanted kiss with World Cup winner Jennifer Hermoso

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 23:23:24 GMT

Luis Rubiales resigns as Spanish soccer president following unwanted kiss with World Cup winner Jennifer Hermoso (CNN) — Luis Rubiales resigned from his position as president of the Spanish soccer federation following weeks of fierce criticism over the unwanted kiss with Women’s World Cup winner Jennifer Hermoso.Rubiales said that he had informed the interim president of Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) that he had resigned and “I have also let him know that I have also resigned my position in UEFA so that my Vice-presidency position can be filled,” according to a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.He wrote that “waiting around” would not “contribute anything positive, neither to the Federation nor to Spanish football. Among other things, because there are actual powers which will prevent my return.”He added that his family had “suffered the effects of an excessive persecution, as well as many falsehoods, but it’s also true that in the street, every day more, the truth is being imposed.”Rubiales’ unwanted kiss on Hermoso after the team’s victory in the Women’s World Cup final on Augu...

Thousands in Massachussetts remain without power days after storm

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 23:23:24 GMT

Thousands in Massachussetts remain without power days after storm Thousands of Massachusetts residents remain without power following a storm that ravaged the Bay State beginning on Friday evening.National Grid officials announced that power was restored to more than 60,000 residents throughout the state as of Sunday morning. By Sunday evening,  approximately 12,000 customers remained without power. The majority of those were in Andover and North Andover, according to an outage map maintained by the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency.The North Andover Town’s online announcement page included an update Sunday, saying they are working with National Grid and that the area outages were expected to be resolved Sunday. Officials also mentioned the Red Cross shelter at the North Andover Senior Center remains open for those in need.The Town of Andover advised residents that The Robb Center, used for a cooling and charging location, remained open for residents to use until 10 p.m. and will reopen Monday at 9 a.m. About  35% of Andover residents rema...

Sweet 16: Hanover finally downs Duxbury

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 23:23:24 GMT

Sweet 16: Hanover finally downs Duxbury The Hanover coaches knew it was going to take a total team effort to slow down Duxbury Thursday night.Mother Nature left them with no choice.Forced to dip deep into the roster due to unseasonably warm weather, the Hawks stayed the course and ended the Dragons’ 12-game winning streak, 28-18.Interim coach Brian Kelliher spoke in glowing terms about his team’s perseverance.“The irony is that we were feeling great about the way the game was going, then all a sudden, we had kids cramping in the third quarter,” Kelliher said. “We were playing kids who were backups to our backups, It was a testament to those kids because they don’t get many opportunities in practice, but they stepped up and made plays.”This wasn’t any old team they were playing. Duxbury, the top dog in the Patriot League for the past 25 years, had beaten Hanover by double digits all 11 games they’d played since 1996.One could understand if Hanover developed a here-we-go-again mentality after D...

Heat up in San Diego County prompts closure of two popular hiking trails

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 23:23:24 GMT

Heat up in San Diego County prompts closure of two popular hiking trails SAN DIEGO (KSWB) -- Two popular hiking trails in Cleveland National Forest near San Diego will be closed through the weekend due to extreme heat.Starting Friday, Cedar Creek Falls and Three Sisters Falls trails will be closed to hikers by the U.S. Forest Service, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Office. The closure will run through Monday, Sept. 11.This comes as the National Weather Service has issued an Excessive Heat Warning for San Diego County's desert areas, including Borrego Springs, Ocotillo Wells and El Centro.The warning will be in effect from 10 a.m. Saturday to 8 p.m. Sunday. According to NWS, "dangerously hot" conditions are expected to set in for areas under the warning during this time with temperatures forecast to peak around 106 to 112 degrees.Both the Cedar Creek Falls and Three Sisters Falls trails have been closed by the Forest Service for several prolonged periods this summer due to heat warnings and advisories. However, there have still been multiple ...

Driver, passenger killed in rollover crash on I-15

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 23:23:24 GMT

Driver, passenger killed in rollover crash on I-15 FALLBROOK, Calif. -- A driver and a passenger were killed in a rollover crash in the Fallbrook area Sunday, said California Highway Patrol.The incident occurred around 1:33 a.m. when a 32-year-old man was driving a Lexus NX350 in the southbound lanes of Interstate 15. For reasons still under investigation, CHP says the Lexus veered off the roadway to the right and overturned. Driver killed after crashing into Eucalyptus tree off I-5 According to officials, both the driver of the Lexus and a passenger -- a 28-year-old woman -- were pronounced dead at the scene. It is not yet known if alcohol and/or drugs contributed to the cause of this collision. The identity of both the driver and passenger will be released through the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office.The investigation is ongoing. CHP is asking anyone who has information or may have witnessed this incident to contact the Oceanside Area CHP office at (760) 643-3400.

Spanish soccer president Luis Rubiales resigns after nonconsensual kiss at Women’s World Cup final

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 23:23:24 GMT

Spanish soccer president Luis Rubiales resigns after nonconsensual kiss at Women’s World Cup final MADRID (AP) — Suspended Spanish soccer federation president Luis Rubiales has resigned from his post after kissing a player on the lips without her consent in a scandal which overshadowed Spain winning the Women’s World Cup for the first time.Rubiales announced his resignation Sunday in a message posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.“After my swift suspension by FIFA, and the rest of the cases building against me, it is clear that I cannot return to the post,” Rubiales said in his statement.Rubiales kissed Jenni Hermoso during the awards ceremony after Spain beat England to win the title on Aug. 20 in Sydney, Australia. Spanish state prosecutors accused Rubiales of sexual assault and coercion after the unwanted kiss, the country’s prosecutors’ office said Friday, two days after Hermoso formally accused him of sexual assault.He had already been suspended from his job by FIFA for his conduct at the final and, after soccer’s world body opened a disciplinary case, remained defia...