Blaney advances to the NASCAR round of eight
In a battle of Ford drivers in which the blue oval was determined to find its way to victory lane, Ryan Blaney held off Kevin Harvick at the Talladega Superspeedway finish line as Blaney advanced into the round of eight of NASCAR's playoffs.
Harvick, who is retiring at the end of the year, remained winless on the season and was disqualified after the race when his car failed inspection.
Blaney used a crossover move from the outside lane to the inside to nudge ahead of Harvick with two laps remaining. Blaney in his Ford for Team Penske and Harvick in a Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing finished essentially in a drag race with both drivers refusing to lift as a crash broke out behind them.
“I've won it by more than I have the last couple years. That one might have been by 4 feet, the others were by 2 but you just don't know,” said Blaney, a three-time winner at Talladega. “You just kind of drag race a line and hope you get help.”
Blaney joined William Byron as the two drivers locked into the round of eight. The field of 12 will be pared next Sunday to eight following the race on The Roval at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
MLS LAFC held scoreless again in loss at home
Splitting opposing center backs, Real Salt Lake's Cristian Arango found the space he needed before leaping into the air.
As the Colombian repeatedly did during two years as a fan favorite with the Los Angeles Football Club, Arango found a way to put his team on the board at BMO Stadium on Sunday night.
Except this time the bullish forward lowered his head and stood in silence after executing a perfect header, quietly brushing hair from his face rather than celebrating how he usually does.
Arango's 99th professional goal in the 72nd minute gave Real Salt Lake (1311-7, 46 points) the 1- 0 victory in a critical Western Conference showdown.
The score stuck through regulation and seven minutes of stoppage time, rendering LAFC (12-10-9, 45 points) without a goal for the fourth consecutive match and fifth in six outings as the defending MLS Cup champions attempt to sort themselves out as the postseason approaches in perhaps their worst form of the season.
Sunday's result on Carlos Vela bobblehead night came in the lone MLS match of the day, dropping LAFC into fourth place in the West, four points above the playoff line with three games left in the regular season.
NBA Blazers send Holiday to Celtics in deal
Jrue Holiday was out of the Eastern Conference for just a few days, and now it's the Boston Celtics who will hope that the Olympic gold medalist and NBA champion can help deliver them another title banner.
The Celtics finalized a deal with Portland on Sunday to land Holiday, who was shipped to the Trail Blazers last week by Milwaukee in the trade that sent seven-time All- Star Damian Lillard to the Bucks.
Boston gave up two key pieces — point guard Malcolm Brogdon, the NBA's reigning Sixth Man of the Year, and forward Robert Williams — and Portland gets two future first-round draft picks. The Blazers will receive what would have been Golden State's firstround pick in 2024 (topfour protected) and Boston's first-round selection in 2029.
NHL Defenseman Thomson joins Ducks off waivers
The Ducks claimed defenseman Lassi Thomson on waivers from the Ottawa Senators on Sunday, adding a former first-round pick to their defense corps without sacrificing any assets.
Thomson, who turned 23 last week, has 18 games of NHL experience spread across the past two campaigns. He has spent three seasons playing significantly at the American Hockey League level, where he has racked up 72 points in 135 contests.
The Tampere, Finland native came through the development system of his hometown club, Ilves, and also played his draft year in Canadian Major Junior hockey for the Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League. The move to North America paid off, earning him a slot in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft's first round (No. 19 overall).
He made strides two seasons ago, when he completed the bulk of his NHL action (16 games) and enjoyed his most productive season in the AHL on a per-game basis. The Sens would likely have preferred to have continued developing him in the minors to start the campaign, but now he'll make the move to either Anaheim or San Diego, the home of the Ducks' AHL affiliate.
Thomson was one of four Senators placed on waivers this weekend and was the only player claimed by another franchise, in fact thus far he was the only player from any club to be claimed.
It had been a fairly active day for waiver wire activity overall with AHL training camps opening.
The Ducks placed just one player, veteran minor pro defenseman Trevor Carrick, on waivers, while the Kings exposed winger Samuel Fagemo, defenseman Jacob Moverare and center Akil Thomas, among others, to potential claims. — Andrew Knoll
WNBA Liberty win, advance to the WNBA Finals
Jonquel Jones scored 25 points, including five in the final minute, and New York earned its first trip to the WNBA Finals in 21 years with an 87-84 win over the host Connecticut Sun.
The former Sun star added 15 rebounds and four blocked shots for the Liberty, who will face defending champion Las Vegas in a matchup of the league's two so-called “super teams” that starts on Oct. 8.
League MVP Breanna Stewart led New York with 27 points and Betnijah Laney added 21 in the Game 4 clincher of the best-of-five series.
MVP runner-up Alyssa Thomas had 17 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists for Connecticut. It was her first triple- double of the postseason after recording a record six during the regular season.
GOLF Rookie Ryu collects first LPGA victory
Hae Ran Ryu completed a wire-to-wire run to her first LPGA Tour title, a three-shot victory at the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship.
The 22-year- old rookie from South Korea had four birdies and an eagle in her last nine holes at Pinnacle Country Club to shoot a 5-under 66 and finish at 19-under 194 in the 54-hole event. Ryu, the LPGA QSeries medalist last year, earned $345,000.