NORTHERN SECTION BASEBALL PLAYOFFS Gridley earns No. 1 seed in Division III

The Northern Section released its baseball playoff brackets for its two largest divisions on Friday, and three Mid-valley teams will begin their push for section titles in Division III starting next week.

Topping the list of local clubs was Gridley High, which as expected, received the the No. 1 seed after winning its first Butte View League title since 2005.

The Bulldogs (23-3-1, 10-0 BVL) will open the playoffs at home on Tuesday against No. 8-seeded Yreka (9-17, 4-6 Northern Athletic League).

Should Gridley win, it will host the winner between No. 4 Corning (10-9, 5-5 Westside League) and No. 5 Orland (7-11-1, 3-7 BVL) in a doubleheader next Friday to start a bestof-three semifinal series.

On the other side of the bracket, Sutter (20-7-1, 8-2 BVL) earned the No. 3 seed and will open the playoffs at home on Tuesday against No. 6 Central Valley (8-13, 5-5 NAL). The Huskies saw their run of seven straight BVL titles come to an end with Thursday’s loss to Gridley, but are looking to extend their Northern Section record by winning a seventh straight section championship.

NEW ORLEANS – The three Warriors’ stars sat at the podium, symbolizing something that usually remains unfamiliar.

After seamlessly returning in his first game back since staying sidelined for 5 ½ weeks, Stephen Curry suddenly experienced his encore becoming less compelling. After usually scoring nearly all season with ease, Kevin Durant represented one of many Warriors’ scorers that struggled finding consistency. And though his intensity hardly diminished against his opponents, Draymond Green’s presence did little to bolster the Warriors’ defense.

Mix those uncharacteristic ingredients together, and the Warriors cooked a bad-tasting recipe. The Warriors finished with a 119-100 Game 3 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday, an outcome that yielded a few implications.

The Warriors have a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference semifinals, setting up a potential series-tying Game 4 on Sunday at New Orleans and scheduling a necessary Game 5 on Tuesday at Oracle Arena. The Warriors’ latest hiccup also serves as a reminder that their shooting accuracy and defensive effectiveness are never foregone conclusions.

“They brought more force and intensity to the game than we did. I thought we made mistakes we didn’t make in the first two games,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “Also, they played a lot better.”

Meanwhile, many on the Warriors played a lot worse.

In what marked his second game since sitting the past 5½ weeks with a Grade 2 MCL The Golden State Warriors’ Kevin Durant dribbles against the New Orleans Pelicans’ Solomon Hill during the third quarter of Friday’s playoff game in New Orleans. Durant scored 22 points, but the Pelicans won 119-100.

sprain in his left knee, Curry returned to the starting lineup with the possibility to play around 30-32 minutes. Instead, the normally proficient Curry scored 19 points while shooting only 6-of-19 from the field and 3-of-9 3-point range in 27 minutes Afterwards, Kerr observed that “Game 2 is always the hardest after you come back from an injury.”

“I was rushing a little bit and just missed shots. But I’m not going to get in my head about it,” Curry said. “I have another opportunity on Sunday. I can’t really dwell anything. You obviously study the film and try to pick their defense apart a little bit better, be a little more patient and be more selective with shots, especially if you don’t have it going early. Other than that, just play your game and figure it out.”

If only Curry’s teammates could also play

Las Vegas Review-journal/tns Vegas Golden Knights left wing Erik Haula celebrates a goal past San Jose Sharks goaltender Martin Jones during the first period of Game 5 of Friday’s Stanley Cup Playoff game in Las Vegas. The Golden Knights won 4-2 to take a 3-2 lead in the series. Game 6 in Sunday in San Jose.

their game and figure it out. Instead, the Warriors’ offense stalled in nearly every way. They went 35-of-92 from the field. They shot 9-of-31 from 3-point range. Their 22 assists fell well short of the Pelicans’ 36.

If Curry is not making shots, the Warriors usually have Durant and Klay Thompson to do it for them. That did not always play out on Friday. Thompson finished with 26 points on 9-of22 shooting, but he went scoreless in the first quarter and missed his first four shots. Durant had 22 points, while going 8-of-18 from the field and 5-of-6 from the free-throw line. Yet, that could not overshadow two developments. Durant continued his post-season struggles from 3-point range (1-of-6). Durant also only shot 2-of-6 from the field in the second half.

The Honkers (24-5, 17-1 TCC) will find out their seeding when the Sac-joaquin Section playoff brackets are released next week. First-round games are scheduled for Tuesday, May 15.

SOFTBALL Sutter 6, Marysville 2 In Sutter – Darcy Gillen went 3 for 4 with a double and a solo home run, and Hailey Peterson finished 2 for 3 with a double, triple and an RBI to lead the Huskies to a nonleague victory over the Indians at Ruth Lowman Field.

Emma Mcconville also connected for a solo home run and Hailey Schamanski added a double to help the cause for Sutter. Peterson earned the win in the circle by allowing five hits and striking out nine.

Hannah Clavelle hit an RBI double and scored once, Raina Hudson went 2 for 3 with an RBI and Izzy Mendoza was 2 for 3 with a double for Marysville.

The Huskies (23-1), who finished perfect in the Butte View League, will continue to prepare for the playoffs by hosting Colusa in a nonleauge game on Tuesday. The Indians (12-9, 8-2) return to Golden Empire League action on Monday at West Campus, where a win would clinch at least a share of the league title.

BOYS TENNIS Indians teams reach finals In Stockton – Marysville saw two of its doubles teams reach the finals and post runner-up finishes after two days of competition at the Sac-joaquin Section Co-ed Championships at the Oak Park Racquet Club.

The Indians’ boys doubles team of Nick Vang and Solomon Thao, and the girls doubles team of Leticia Staples and Amanda Yang, both went 2-0 on Thursday to advance to the semifinals. They then picked up another win on Friday before finally losing in the finals to finish second in the section for co-ed tennis.

Both doubles teams won GEL titles last week.

Lindhurst’s boys doubles team of Andrew Vang and Peter Thao reached the semifinals and finished third.