AP Sports Summary for Friday, June 9th, 2023.
Panthers rally, top Golden Knights 3-2 in OT in Game 3 of Stanley Cup final
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Carter Verhaeghe scored 4:27 into overtime and the Florida Panthers pulled off some more postseason dramatics to beat the Vegas Golden Knights 3-2 in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final on Thursday night. Matthew Tkachuk tied it with 2:13 left in the third period for the Panthers, who got the franchise's first title-series game win in seven tries. Florida had to fend off a power play to start overtime, and Verhaeghe got the winner from the slot to get the Panthers within 2-1 in the series. Game 4 is Saturday night. Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 25 shots for Florida. Adin Hill made 20 saves for Vegas, but got beat on the only shot that came his way in overtime.
Matthew Tkachuk returns from big hit in Stanley Cup Final, adds more playoff heroics
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Florida Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk returned after leaving Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final and provided more of his trademark playoff heroics. Tkachuk was sidelined early after a big hit from Vegas Golden Knights forward Keegan Kolesar. Before the absence he set up the Panthers' first goal. Late in the third period he scored to tie it with 2:13 left in regulation and set the screen on the overtime winner. Tkachuk is now tied for the most points in postseason.
Florida back in Stanley Cup Final after taking advantage of matchups at home vs. Vegas
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Being at home proved to be crucial for the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights. Coach Paul Maurice getting the right matchups allowed his team to win Game 3 in overtime and cut its series deficit to 2-1. Each of Florida's goals in regulation came with Matthew Tkachuk's line against the opponents Maurice wanted on the ice. And Carter Verhaeghe's goal also showed the Panthers can be competitive in this series at even strength despite special teams woes.
Djokovic and Alcaraz meet in French Open semifinals; other matchup is Zverev vs. Ruud
PARIS (AP) — Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz are scheduled to play against each other for the first time in more than a year when they meet in the French Open semifinals. The much-anticipated showdown is the first singles match on Friday at Court Philippe Chatrier. It is the 45th Grand Slam semifinal for Djokovic, a 36-year-old from Serbia, and the second for Alcaraz, a 20-year-old from Spain. Djokovic is hoping to leave Roland Garros this year with his third title in Paris and his 23rd major championship overall, which would break a tie with rival Rafael Nadal for the most by a man in the history of tennis. The other semifinal will follow, pitting Casper Ruud against Alexander Zverev.
Oklahoma wins third straight Women's College World Series title, extends record win streak to 53
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Jordy Bahl threw three innings of perfect relief and Oklahoma won its third straight Women's College World Series title and seventh overall, beating Florida State 3-1 for a two-game sweep. The Sooners finished 61-1 and extended their Division I-record win streak to 53 games. They have won six titles since 2013 after getting their first in 2000, all under coach Patty Gasso. Oklahoma's only defeat was a 4-3 loss at Baylor on Feb. 19. The Sooners set a record for win percentage and have the fewest losses of any NCAA champion. They led the nation in runs per game, earned run average and batting average.
Heat still confident, Nuggets remain focused as NBA Finals reach Game 4
MIAMI (AP) — Jimmy Butler showed up in plush blue slippers Thursday for what was officially called practice. Kyle Lowry was trying to distract him during an interview session. Nikola Jokic continued to say how he doesn't care about statistics. Jamal Murray talked about all the fun he's having. At this point, there isn't a lot of off-day, on-court work for the Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat. Game 4 of the NBA Finals is Friday night in Miami. The Nuggets got a historic effort from Jokic and Murray to reclaim the lead in the series with a 109-94 win Wednesday night.
NY governor warns Belmont Stakes could be affected if air quality doesn't improve
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has warned that the Belmont Stakes could be canceled if air quality doesn't improve. Racing at Belmont Park was called off on Thursday because of hazy, smoky conditions from wildfires in Canada. It was the second straight day that the bad air affected sports in the northeastern United States. In Major League Baseball, the Washington Nationals' home game against the Arizona Diamondbacks was called off. The Belmont is the final leg of horse racing's Triple Crown. Hochul says it could be scrapped if the air quality index exceeds 200. She says horses will have to undergo additional evaluations if the air is in the 150-200 range.
José RamÃrez hits 3 homers to power Guardians to 10-3 win over slumping Red Sox
CLEVELAND (AP) — José RamÃrez homered in his first three at-bats to power the Cleveland Guardians to a 10-3 win over the Boston Red Sox. RamÃrez connected for a solo shot in the first inning off Matt Dermody, belted a two-run shot in the third and added another solo blast in the sixth when the Guardians collected eight straight hits. RamÃrez came up a second time in the sixth bidding for a rare four-homer game, but struck out. The four-time All-Star had another chance in the eighth, but grounded to third. There have only been 16 four-homer games in the majors since 1901. The last to do it was Arizona's J.D. Martinez in 2017.
In this youth baseball league, fans who mistreat umpires are sentenced to do the job themselves
DEPTFORD, N.J. (AP) — Baseball is steeped in the tradition of fans wanting to jeer the umpire. One Little League in New Jersey is taking a more hands-on approach. It's trying to curb the appetite among the crowd watching 10- and 11-year-olds play baseball who curse at the unpaid volunteers behind the plate. The fans could become the umpires if they won't follow league rules on sportsmanship. Outbursts of bad behavior at sporting events for young people have had frightening consequences for officials at all youth levels. The Deptford Little League is hoping its solution is a preventative one.
MLS hopes Messi will boost attendance, TV viewers and market share
NEW YORK (AP) — After two decades competing against Real Madrid, Manchester United and Brazil, Lionel Messi will be going against the NFL, Major League Baseball and the NBA. Major League Soccer is hoping for a breakout boost to its television audience and market share after Messi joins Inter Miami next month. Following Pelé's signing with the New York Cosmos in 1975 and David Beckham joining the LA Galaxy in 2007, Messi is expected to become the third supreme soccer evangelist in a nation where the sport has been playing catch-up for more than a century.
AP-Scorecard
Here are the scores from yesterday's sports events:
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INTERLEAGUE
Final Baltimore 6 Milwaukee 3
Final Philadelphia 3 Detroit 2
Final L.A. Angels 3 Chicago Cubs 1
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AMERICAN LEAGUE
Final Tampa Bay 4 Minnesota 2
Final Chicago White Sox 6 N.Y. Yankees 5
Final N.Y. Yankees 3 Chicago White Sox 0
Final Toronto 3 Houston 2
Final Cleveland 10 Boston 3
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NATIONAL LEAGUE
Arizona at Washington 1:05 p.m. (Postponed)
Final L.A. Dodgers 6 Cincinnati 0
Final San Francisco 6 Colorado 4
Final Atlanta 13 N.Y. Mets 10
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NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE PLAYOFFS
Final OT Florida 3 Vegas 2
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WOMEN'S NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Connecticut 94 Las Vegas 77
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TODAY'S SPORTS SCHEDULE
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INTERLEAGUE
Arizona at Detroit 6:40 p.m.
Miami at Chi White Sox 8:10 p.m.
Oakland at Milwaukee 8:10 p.m.
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AMERICAN LEAGUE
Texas at Tampa Bay 6:40 p.m.
Boston at N-Y Yankees 7:05 p.m.
Kansas City at Baltimore 7:05 p.m.
Minnesota at Toronto 7:07 p.m.
Houston at Cleveland 7:10 p.m.
Seattle at L-A Angels 9:38 p.m.
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NATIONAL LEAGUE
L-A Dodgers at Philadelphia 7:05 p.m.
N-Y Mets at Pittsburgh 7:05 p.m.
Washington at Atlanta 7:20 p.m.
Cincinnati at St. Louis 8:15 p.m.
San Diego at Colorado 8:40 p.m.
Chi Cubs at San Francisco 10:15 p.m.
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NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION PLAYOFFS
Denver at Miami 8:30 p.m.
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WOMEN'S NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
New York at Atlanta 7:30 p.m.
Indiana at Minnesota 8 p.m.
Phoenix at Dallas 8 p.m.
Chicago at Los Angeles 10 p.m.
Washington at Seattle 10 p.m.
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