WOMEN THOUGHT THEY HAD DEAL WITH USA HOCKEY; WILL TRY AGAIN MONDAY
The 23 members of the U.S. women’s hockey team thought they had an agreement with USA Hockey last Monday to end their standoff before the governing body reversed course. The tentative deal — which included substantial increases in wages and other benefits — was agreed to during meetings in Philadelphia between the players and their representatives and USA Hockey executives. But the deal was rebuffed by USA Hockey’s 15-member executive committee, a person with knowledge of the negotiations who is unable to speak publicly told USA TODAY Sports on Sunday. The players were informed Thursday that the USA Hockey executive board had rejected that original agreement, the person with knowledge of the talks said. The players received a counteroffer that they found “unacceptable” and it was quickly re- jected. USA Hockey spokesman
Dave Fischer said Sunday night that it was “patently false” that the executive committee voted down the original proposal. He described the talks as “ongoing.” Thursday was the same day USA Hockey began to seek replacement players for the IIHF Women’s World Championship set to begin this Friday in Plymouth, Mich. Those efforts have stalled as high school students and adult league players declined USA Hockey’s offer to be replacement players. An emergency board meeting is scheduled to take place via a conference call at noon ET Monday, according to a person on the 92-member board who declined to speak publicly because of the sensitive nature of the talks. The board is expected to vote to approve the original deal voted down by the executive board last week. “We are hopeful that at tomorrow’s meeting of USA Hockey’s board of directors, the members will agree to the terms that those at the negotiating table in Philadelphia saw as a reasonable path forward,” the players said in a statement Sunday. “Those terms reflected 15 months of negotiations and significant compromise by parties on both sides. We are incredibly grateful for the support we have received from the hockey community, professional players associations across the sports world, fans and beyond.”
uAmerican NHL players plan to skip participating in the IIHF Men’s World Championship in May if USA Hockey uses replacement players at the women’s tournament, USA TODAY Sports confirmed Sunday. USA Hockey continued to seek out replacement players during the weekend, although it has struggled to land enough players to fill out the roster as several would-be players took to social media to state they had rebuffed offers to play. The 23 members of the U.S. women’s national team announced March 15 plans to boycott the tournament after negotiations that centered on more financial support stalled. The Women’s World Championship is set to begin Friday in Plymouth, Mich. If USA Hockey cannot come to terms with team members and uses replacement players, it would “trigger” a boycott of the Men’s World Championship, a person with knowledge of the talks among NHL players who is not authorized to speak publicly told USA TODAY Sports. — A.J. Perez
NADAL ADVANCES IN MIAMI
Rafael Nadal recovered from a dismal start Sunday to beat Phil
ipp Kohlschreiber 0-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the third round in the Miami Open. The comeback left Nadal unusually pumped up for an early-round match. When he closed out the victory, he threw an uppercut, leaned back and screamed at the sky as the crowd roared. Nadal is a four-time runner-up who has never won Key Biscayne, perhaps the most glaring gap on the résumé of the 14time Grand Slam tournament champion. No. 2 Kei Nishikori beat No. 25 Fernando Verdasco 7-6 (7-2), 6-7 (5-7), 6-1. No. 3 Mi
los Raonic pulled out after aggravating a right hamstring injury that sidelined him for nearly a month. LEE WINS LPGA’S KIA CLASSIC
Mirim Lee shot 7-under-par 65 to win the Kia Classic by six strokes Sunday and tie the tournament record of 20 under. It was the South Korean’s third LPGA tour victory and first since winning two titles in 2014, her rookie year. Lee, 26, tied the tournament record set in 2015 by
Cristie Kerr, who tracked down Lee with a 65 to win by two strokes. Lee twice just missed putts that would have put her at 21 under. She left an eagle putt short on 16 and rolled a 40-foot birdie putt even with the hole on 18. So Yeon Ryu of South Korea and Austin Ernst of Greenville, S.C., tied for second at 14 under. Lee came into the final round with a one-shot lead over Mi Jung Hur. SPRINT CAR DRIVER DIES AFTER CRASH IN FLORIDA Sprint car driver David Steele was killed after a crash at Desoto Speedway in Bradenton, Fla., on Saturday night. Amateur video posted to YouTube shows Steele’s car trying to make a pass going into Turn 1. The left front tire clips the right rear of a car in front of him, and Steele’s car spins into the air and crashes into the outside retaining wall, hitting driver’s side first. Medics attempted to treat him, but he was pronounced dead, according to the Associated Press. According to a story posted on the speedway’s Facebook page, Steele, 42, crashed on the opening lap of the Southern Sprint Car Shootout Series. The driver won the U.S. Auto Club (USAC) Silver Crown Series in 2004 and 2005. Steele recently won a record 100th event in Florida and held numerous records at the 0.375-mile asphalt oval.
VETTEL WINS F1 RACE Sebastian Vettel jumped onto the podium at the Australian Grand Prix and held up his right index finger, celebrating the end of Ferrari’s Formula One drought and a break in Mercedes’ dominance. Ferrari hadn’t won an F1 GP since Vettel’s victory in Singapore in September 2015, and so his unrestrained joy signaled renewed confidence from him. “For now, we’re just over the moon,” the four-time world champion said after holding off Mercedes teammates Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas. “It’s been a great day for us. The team has been working so hard at the track as much as back at the factory. It’s a great feeling.” With regulations designed to make the 2017 F1 cars faster — wider tires, greater aerodynamics, bigger fuel loads and increased downforce — Vettel proved Ferrari’s extra pace in preseason testing was genuine. He finished in 1 hour, 24 minutes, 11.672 seconds, nearly 10 seconds clear of Hamilton, to give Ferrari its first win in Australia since Kimi Raikkonen took the title in 2007.