Michigan State holds off pesky Western Michigan
Payton Thorne capped three consecutive drives with touchdown passes in the first half and threw for a fourth score in the final quarter to help No. 15ranked Michigan State pull away Thursday night and beat Western Michigan, 3513, in East Lansing.
The Spartans played well in spurts, but also struggled for long stretches against the Broncos in the opener. After taking a 21-3 lead early in the second quarter, they allowed an average Mid-American Conference team to pull within eight points late in the third quarter.
Michigan State was fortunate Thorne’s uneven performance included four touchdowns to match his career high. He finished 12 of 24 for 233 yards with an interception.
Thorne’s fourth touchdown, a 43-yard pass to Tre Mosley, on the next drive ended any doubt about the outcome.
Baseball
Washington’s offensive roll continued as they pounded out 11 hits in an 8-2 win against the visiting Windy City ThunderBolts (33-60) to begin the final series of the Wild Things (6034) regular season.
Pro basketball
Chicago Bulls guard Lonzo Ball is expected to miss training camp as he continues to battle long-term pain and discomfort in his left knee following a January meniscus surgery.
• The Boston Celtics said that Danilo Gallinari tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee while playing for Italy during a FIBA World Cup qualifier against Georgia last month.
Hockey
The Vancouver Canucks signed forward J.T. Miller to a seven-year, $56 million contract. The 29-year-old Miller was Vancouver’s leading scorer last season with 99 points on 32 goals and 67 assists in 80 games. He was set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2022-23 season.
Soccer
Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC will hold a special ceremony to induct former coach, general manager and television broadcaster Gene Klein to the Riverhounds Hall of Fame at halftime of a home game next Saturday against Louisville City FC at Highmark Stadium.
Golf
Lucy Li already is assured of an LPGA Tour card for next year. The 19-year-old Californian Li had five birdies in a seven-hole stretch on the back nine and kept bogeys off her card the rest of the way for a 7-under 64 that gave her a two-shot lead in the Dana Open in Sylvania, Ohio.
• Matthew Wolff became a footnote in LIV Golf history with the first hole in one, an ace that carried him to a 7under 63 and a one-shot lead on a pair of newcomers in the LIV Golf InvitationalBoston.
Auto racing
As IndyCar speeds into the final two races of its season and the tightest championship race in nearly two decades, a top contender has taken an early hit. Josef Newgarden was penalized six spots on the starting grid because Team Penske changed his engine ahead of the Portland Grand Prix.
Colleges
No. 10 Pitt battled past a stubborn Cincinnati team, (20-25, 25-20, 23-25, 25-19, 15-5), inside Smith Fieldhouse in Provo, Utah. The Panthers ended the match on a 21-5 run to come back and take their opening match of the BYU Nike Invitational. Julianna Dalton recorded a career-best 17 kills. In the second game, Pitt (4-1) earned its third sweep of the season (25-21, 25-18, 25-15) defeating Utah State.
• No. 21 Penn State women’s volleyball (4-0) opened the Tiger Challenge with a 3-1 (25-22, 22-25, 25-22, 25-15) win against Iowa State at LSU’s Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Zoe Weatherington led the way for the Nittany Lions, hitting .500 with 15 kills.
• The RMU volleyball team opened play in the Chick-fil-A Robinson Labor Day Classic, splitting a pair of matches at UPMC Events Center. The Colonials (2-3) fell in the opener to William & Mary, 3-1, before rebounding to earn a 3-1 win against Canisius.