Teens move on to quarterfinals

NEW YORK — Leylah Fernandez is a self-described “happy-go-lucky girl” having the time of her life at this U.S. Open, raising her fists, pumping her arms and riling up crowds while beating two past champions to reach her first Grand Slam quarterfinal. A day before her 19th birthday, the unseeded left-hander from Canada grabbed the last five games to eliminate 2016 title winner Angelique Kerber 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2 on Sunday, demonstrating an earlier upset of 2020 champion Naomi Osaka, the No. 3 seed, was certainly no fluke. With grit and guile, plus a veteran’s poise in the face of big deficits against much more accomplished opponents, Fernandez is displaying strokes and a demeanor that left Kerber offering this assessment: “She can go really far in the next few years.” How about over the next week? There’s no time like the present for the teens in tennis: Also into the quarterfinals with a win Sunday was Carlos Alcaraz, an 18-year-old from Spain who became the youngest man to get that far at the U.S. Open since 1963 by outlasting his 32-year-old foe, 141st-ranked qualifier Peter Gojowczyk of Germany, 5-7, 6-1, 5-7, 6-2, 6-0. The 55th-ranked Alcaraz got past No. 3 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas in his previous match and is the youngest player with two five-set Grand Slam wins in a row since Michael Chang was 16 at the 1988 U.S. Open. There’s yet another 18-year-old in fourth-round action Monday: British phenom Emma Raducanu, who plays 43rd-ranked Shelby Rogers of the United States. A quarterfinalist in New York a year ago, Rogers eliminated No. 1 seed Ash Barty late Saturday night, winning 6-2, 1-6, 7-6 (5). Barty was 5-0 in career matches against Rogers, and then she went up two breaks at 5-2 in the third set. Rogers’ mindset at that point? “Can’t get any worse. You’ve lost to her every time,” the 28-year-old from South Carolina said. “Try something different.” She obviously did, outlasting the two-time major champion in a match that took 2 hours, 8 minutes.

FOOTBALL

› ATLANTA — Thomas Hammock had no interest in his underdog Northern Illinois football team settling for going to overtime at Georgia Tech. Once Rocky Lombardi’s second touchdown pass in the final minute brought the Huskies to within one point, Hammock didn’t hesitate to keep his offense on the field. The coach ordered a 2-point play for the win, Lombardi’s 2-point pass to Tyrice Richie with 38 seconds remaining survived an officials’ review, and Northern Illinois pulled off a stunning 22-21 upset win of the Yellow Jackets late Saturday night in the opener for both teams. Hammock said a potential tying kick wasn’t an appealing option after Lombardi’s 3-yard touchdown pass to Clint Ratkovich cut Tech’s lead to 21-20. “Easy decision,” Hammock said. “We came here to win and we expected to win, and that’s what we got done.” Tech, a Power Five program as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, was favored by 18 1/2 points over Northern Illinois of the Mid-American Conference — the league known for filling TV slots with midweek games. The visitors led 14-0 but had to regroup after Tech backup Jordan Yates,

who took over when starting quarterback Jeff Sims sustained an arm injury, rallied the Jackets with three straight touchdowns. For Tech coach Geoff Collins, who was 3-9 in 2019 in his debut season and 3-7 last year, seeing his team rally but then lose in the final minute was a crushing start to a third year with higher expectations. “Obviously it hurts,” Collins said. “There’s a lot of guys in that locker room who are hurt.” Former Dalton High School standout Jahmyr Gibbs,a

freshman star for the Jackets in 2020 despite injuries, ran for 99 yards on 20 carries.

SOCCER

› SAO PAULO — A World Cup qualifier between Argentina and host Brazil was suspended amid chaotic scenes after local health officials walked onto the pitch Sunday in a bid to remove three players who didn’t comply with coronavirus restrictions. The match featuring Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Brazil’s Neymar was stopped in the seventh minute. The referee eventually suspended the scoreless game after players, coaches, football officials and local authorities argued for several minutes on the field at NeoQuimica Arena. Brazil’s health agency said three of Argentina’s England-based players should have been in quarantine instead of playing in the match. FIFA will have to determine what happens next with the qualifier.