Month: May 2021

NCAA Championship: Match play field, pairings set for 2021 men’s quarterfinals

Everything you need to know for the quarterfinals of the men’s NCAA Championship.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The men’s individual national champion has been crowned, which means one thing: it’s time for match play.

Clemson senior Turk Pettit won the individual national title at the 2021 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship on Monday evening, signing for an even-par 70 to seal the deal at 7 under, one shot clear of 54-hole leader and Oklahoma State freshman Bo Jin.

Oklahoma State entered Monday’s final round of stroke play atop the leaderboard but fell back to second at even par for the week. Hosts Arizona State climbed from third to first to take the No. 1 seed at 3 under, followed by the Cowboys, Pepperdine (+5), Oklahoma (+10), Illinois (+14), Florida State (+16), Vanderbilt (+24) and North Carolina (+25).

Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings: Men’s team | Men’s individual

With the quarterfinals set to begin on Tuesday morning and the semifinals to follow, here’s a breakdown of the teams and matches competing for the team national championship (All Times Eastern).

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Memorial Day Munson — Noah Harris

Remembering UGA football legend and First Lieutenant Noah Harris.

Georgia legend Larry Munson’s last call was remembering an American hero, UGA cheerleader Noah Harris.

His on-the-air calls of Georgia Bulldog moments are part of the fabric of college football and his unabashed love of Georgia endeared Larry Munson to generations of Dawg Nation. The gravelly voice that produced “Appleby to Washington”, “We just stepped on their face with a hobnailed boot”, “Lindsay Scott! Lindsay Scott! Lindsay Scott!”, “My God, a freshman!”, “So we’ll try to kick one a hundred thousand miles” and so many more, Munson’s last call may have been his finest.

Munson’s final bequest, before he passed away in 2011 at the age of 89, was for the Georgia faithful to remember the rewarding but terribly short life of US Army 1st Lieutenant Noah Harris, a former Bulldog cheerleader captain.

At Munson’s memorial service, his family requested that donations be made to the Noah Harris Cheerleading Scholarship. The endowed scholarship is awarded annually to a student-athlete on the cheerleading team who demonstrates outstanding character, leadership, and dedication to the athletic program and the community.

Harris, who met Munson at the broadcaster’s home, was one of those people that make college football great. From the small Georgia mountain town of Ellijay, Harris led 93,000 fans in Sanford Stadium in cheering on the Dawgs.

Harris graduated from Georgia in 2003. After 9/11, he had joined ROTC and entered the Army as a first lieutenant in the 3rd Infantry Division. In June 2005, while on patrol, Harris was tragically killed near Baghdad by an Iraqi insurgent rocket-propelled grenade.

At Gilmer High School in Ellijay, Harris was a student leader, captain of the football team and a state wrestling champion. He entered Georgia and brought his spirit and athleticism to the cheerleading squad.

Harris excelled in the classroom as well. He was selected for the first class of the prestigious University of Georgia’s Terry College Leadership Scholars Program. His adviser, Professor James Link told radio station WUOG, “The guy always had a smile on his face. He wasn’t a complainer. He was an optimist, and that’s probably what I’m going to remember the most. He was always happy and always was on to the next thing.”

Harris had an infectious smile and a zest for life. His former cheerleading partner, Shelly Gorbiesky recalled to WUOG how well Harris interacted with people, especially children — “He just gets down to their level and, you know, would play with them –if it was a boy, he’d kind of rough and tumble with him and he just had that personality about him.”

While in Iraq, Harris initiated Operation Noah’s Dream. Friends and family sent him thousands of Beanie Babies and stuffed soccer balls so he could hand them out to the local children. He was affectionately known for having “bullets in one pocket, Beanie Babies in the other.”

To try to raise his unit’s morale, Harris also organized a pen pal program that paired his fellow soldiers with UGA students.

At his memorial service in Ellijay, on what would have been his 24th birthday, nearly half the town’s 2,000 residents remembered Army First Lieutenant Noah Harris for making the supreme sacrifice. Since Harris’ death in 2005, “There have been two dozen babies named after Noah,” said his father, Rick Harris, a former Marine. The Ellijay post office is named for Harris.

At the service, dog tags with Harris’ name, the date he died and an acronym of the way he led his life- IDWIC, ‘I do what I can,’ were distributed. In such a short time period, Noah Harris did more than most of us can even imagine. He left a lasting legacy and will always be fondly remembered.

As this 2021 Memorial Day comes to a close, take a moment to remember First Lieutenant Noah Harris and the other brave 309 UGA students who made the supreme sacrifice in the line of military duty. You can support UGA and remember both Harris and Munson by making a donation to the UGA Foundation, Noah Harris Cheerleading Scholarship in memory of Larry Munson, Bulldog

Club, PO Box 1472, Athens, GA 30603.

Elite defensive end from Bishop Gorman sets Notre Dame official visit

Moss would be a fantastic addition to the ‘22 Irish class

When Las Vegas defensive end Cyrus Moss released his top-5 five schools last month, it meant most likely those schools would get one of the five coveted official visits.

This evening, Moss has finalized his plans to visit South Bend, which will happen in under three weeks.

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He’s schedule to make a visit to Oregon this coming weekend, Moss’ only other scheduled trip. At the current moment, the six-foot-six-inch and 220-pound edge rusher is viewed as one of the best recruits in the country.

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The official visits that Moss takes will no doubt make an impact on his recruitment. With the way that new defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman has been recruiting to fit his scheme, the talented defender would fit that mold.

The Irish would love to land a commitment from Moss and getting him on campus is a great step in that direction.

‘She’s got it’: Cheyenne Woods raves about former prodigy, U.S. Women’s Open rookie Amari Avery

Amari Avery, who is one of 40 first-timers in the U.S. Women’s Open, is at ease talking about how she might help diversify the game.

SAN FRANISCO ­– Cheyenne Woods had heard the scouting report on Amari Avery from friends on the Symetra Tour. She met her for the first time this spring at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. On Monday, Avery and Woods played nine holes together at The Olympic Club.

“She’s only 17 years old and she’s got it,” said Woods. “She’s killing it.”

Avery first started trying to qualify for the U.S. Women’s Open age 11. She’s one of 40 first-timers in the field and one of 30 amateurs at the 76th U.S. Women’s Open. Avery first burst onto the national scene in 2013 when she starred in the 2013 Netflix documentary, “The Short Game.” Even now, she’s often recognized from the film. While she hates to watch herself on TV, she does appreciate what the documentary has meant to her young career.

“Without the short game, I wouldn’t be, I guess, as relevant,” she said. “My golf game kind of speaks for itself.”

Avery, who has yet to play on the LPGA, is competing in her first major championship this week. She has Brian Thompson, a former teaching pro at Olympic, on the bag. Thompson left the golf industry to take a job in software development and is now a member at the club. He too has watched “The Short Game.”

U.S. WOMEN’S OPEN: Tee times | TV, streaming information

Last month Avery competed in her first Symetra Tour event, the Garden City Charity Classic, after winning the Mack Champ Invitational and earning the Symetra Tour MVP Invite.

At the event, Avery was grouped with fellow Black golfers Shasta Averyhardt and Alexis Belton. The trio talked during the round about how few Black players there are in all levels of the game.

Even at 17, Avery wants to be part of the movement that works to change that.

“My little sister had a tournament in Arizona,” she said. “Like I said, me and her are usually the only African-Americans out there. I was shocked to see that there were four (Black) girls in the field.

“It’s definitely tough that there’s not a lot of us out here, but from what I’ve seen, there’s a lot of girls and guys coming out. It is growing, slowly but surely.”

Avery, the 2019 California Women’s Amateur champ, has committed to USC but signed up for LPGA Q-School this year. She’ll likely turn professional if she earns her card. Either way, she plans to get started on her senior year of high school this summer and launch her next chapter (college or the LPGA) in January of 2022.

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As for this week, Avery said the main goal is to stay out of the rough, though she’d also like to be low amateur. She has a practice round scheduled with top-ranked amateur Rose Zhang on Tuesday and Lydia Ko on Wednesday. She’s friends with Sophia Popov and Carlota Ciganda from her time on the Cactus Tour, where she won an event last spring.

On Sunday in San Francisco, a local LPGA-USGA Girls Golf chapter requested Avery for a Cisco virtual Q&A. She signed flags that will be shipped over to the juniors.

As seen during a virtual junior clinic featuring Amari Avery via a Cisco board during the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open Cisco virtual junior Clinic at Lake Chabot Golf Course in the Oakland, Calif. on Sunday, May 30, 2021. (Copyright USGA/Jeff Marsh)

Avery seems comfortable in the spotlight and is at ease talking about how she might change the game. Tiger Woods remains her hero.

“Just to see that he has taken the game so far, not only for African-Americans, but for everyone else as well, “said Avery. “That, I really look up to. That’s kind of what I want to do with my career as well.

“Obviously I want to bring more African-Americans into to the game of golf, but I also want to bring little girls in general, just bring more people.”

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Toronto Maple Leafs blow 3-1 series lead to the Montreal Canadiens after disappointing Game 7 loss

Yes, the Maple Leafs have blown yet another lead.

The Toronto Maple Leafs and their fans know this feeling all too well by now. The Maple Leafs had three chances to eliminate the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs and failed to do so each time, resulting in their own exit from the postseason with a 3-1 loss in the series finale.

On Monday, during the most-dreaded Game 7 of all time, the Maple Leafs playoff aspirations ended with a whimper. It was quite a painful game to watch from the Maple Leafs perspective, as Toronto and Montreal played to a scoreless first period in a clear attempt not to make mistakes, but then the Canadiens got the opening goal three minutes into the second and that was… that.

There is set to be a lot of questions leveled at the Maple Leafs this offseason, but let’s start with what we do know:

  • Toronto has not won a playoff series since 2004.
  • The Maple Leafs have eight straight losses in playoff series clinching games.
  • For the majority of the 2020-21 NHL season, the Maple Leafs were at the top of the North Division, ultimately leading by five points at season’s end.

This is no doubt an incredibly disappointing end to the Maple Leafs season. Toronto was favored and expected by many to be the lone team standing from the North Division after the opening rounds of the playoffs. This Toronto team was probably the best we had seen in some time, with a deep offensive lineup, a well-rounded defense, and goaltending that just needed to be average to win.

Instead, the Maple Leafs’ offensive dried up at the worst possible time. The NHL’s leading goal scorer this season in Auston Matthews — who had 41 goals in the regular season — was held to just one goal and five total points in seven games. Mitch Marner, the Maple Leafs’ top point producer this season, had four points in six games. William Nylander? Four goals in the first four games of the postseason, then just one in the final three games.

It’s not fair to put all of the Maple Leafs woes on the young stars of the team. Trade deadline acquisition Nick Foligno had one assist in four games, while Toronto’s veterans in Jason Spezza, Joe Thornton, Wayne Simmonds, and Alex Galchenyuk weren’t able to come up big when it mattered. Of course, the loss of captain John Tavares to an accidental — but very scary — injury in the opening moments of Game 1 hurt Toronto big time, yet the Maple Leafs were able to win three games without him, but not the fourth.

That’s not to take anything away from the Canadiens here either, as Montreal played out of their minds defensively. And when they weren’t able to keep the Maple Leafs to the edges of the offensive zone, Carey Price in net was there to save the day. Price was, without a doubt, the MVP for Montreal in this series, putting up a heroic Game 7 performance and posting a .947 save percentage throughout the first round.

And yet, if you’re the Maple Leafs, this playoff showing is nothing but a catastrophic disappointment. It’s hard to even say where Toronto goes from here, whether they deem this to be an aberration and that their players have more to give, or if they’ll make cataclysmic changes to their roster over the next few months in an attempt to shake off their ghosts once and for all.

One thing is for certain, however, and it’s that the Maple Leafs will absolutely be the team to watch this upcoming offseason after yet another inadequate, underwhelming playoff performance.

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3 observations: Bradley Beal, Wizards stay alive with win over Sixers

With Joel Embiid out, the Washington Wizards stayed alive for another day.

The Philadelphia 76ers were looking to complete their first playoff sweep since 1985, but a closeout game is always the toughest. The Washington Wizards are also led by a former MVP in Russell Westbrook and an elite scorer in Bradley Beal. They were not just going to lie down.

On top of that, the Sixers lost Joel Embiid to an injury and they also were dealing with foul trouble to Ben Simmons. All of that called for a tough 122-114 loss as the Wizards forced a Game 5 back in Philadelphia on Wednesday.

Tobias Harris led the Sixers with 21 points and 13 rebounds with five assists, Tyrese Maxey had 15 off the bench, George Hill had 14, Danny Green had 11, Simmons had 13 and 11 rebounds, Seth curry had 10, and Furkan Korkmaz had seven.

Here are the observations following a tough loss:

What would be a successful 2021 season for the Jags?

The Jacksonville Jaguars endured a lot of change this offseason, and rightfully so after acquiring the worst record in franchise history last season. With that being the case, Shad Khan acquired a new coach in Urban Meyer, who started the overhaul …

The Jacksonville Jaguars endured a lot of change this offseason, and rightfully so after acquiring the worst record in franchise history last season. With that being the case, Shad Khan acquired a new coach in Urban Meyer, who started the overhaul process by bringing in various players and coaching assistants.

Due to the additions of many new faces, including a rookie quarterback in Trevor Lawrence, many media members have the Jags winning three to five games in 2021. However, when looking at the offseason they had after bolstering the secondary, defensive line group, and receiving corps, acquiring closer to six wins doesn’t feel out of the realm of possibilities.

Oddly enough, six wins would also tie Khan’s second-best season, and while it would be nothing to exactly jump for joy for, it would mark a significant leap from their one-win campaign last season. That said, the purpose of today’s poll is to gauge if a 6-10 record would be considered a success in eyes of our readers.

If not that, what figure would mark a successful season, regardless of if it’s more or less than six wins? Vote away as we’ll keep the poll open for a few days.

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Fan who ran onto court during Sixers vs. Wizards game banned, arrested

A fan who ran onto the floor in Washington D.C. has been banned and he has been arrested.

Yet another fan incident happened in the NBA Playoffs on Monday between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Washington Wizards as there are some fans who just can’t sit still and enjoy the game.

A fan ran onto the court in the third quarter of Game 4 on Monday and he attempted to make a jump at the basket next to Sixers big man Dwight Howard. After the jump, the fan was tackled by security and he was carried off the floor while receiving cheers and “MVP” chants from the crowd.

He was then arrested and taken out of the arena in swift action by Washington D.C. police.

Afterward, Monumental Sports & Entertainment released a statement that the fan base been banned from Capital One Arena and that charges are being pursued by the D.C. police department.

This is a shame after everything that has gone on with the fans in these playoffs. At this point, it is on the fans themselves to be able to contain themselves and just enjoy the game.

This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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A security guard thankfully tackled a fan who ran onto the court during the Sixers-Wizards game

What is going on with fans at NBA games?

What in the world is going on with fans at NBA games? In just the past week we’ve seen ugly moments that included someone dumping popcorn on Russell Westbrook, someone spitting on Trae Young, and someone throwing a water bottle at Kyrie Irving.

Well, on Monday night we had another awful moment when a fan ran onto the court during the Sixers-Wizards game in Washington D.C.

I gotta ask the question again: WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOING ON WITH FANS AT NBA GAMES?

This dude somehow thought it would be fun to run on the court while the game was going on. That’s not a smart thing to do and it’s not even close to being an OK thing to do. It’s dumb and dangerous and anyone who does it should be arrested and face stiff punishments.

Here’s the moment from the third quarter:

I mean, come on. What is wrong with people?

Thankfully security was able to get this guy off the floor and into handcuffs:

We need to be better than all of this.

So much better.

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49ers QB conundrum leaves San Francisco out of pre-season MVP discussion

The San Francisco 49ers and Jimmy Garoppolo are way down the BetMGM preseason MVP odds.

The 49ers could very well be back in Super Bowl contention this year, but don’t expect them to have anyone in the MVP discussion. BetMGM’s pre-season MVP odds don’t leave San Francisco players off the list entirely, but it takes more than 30 spots to finally find one.

Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is the first 49ers player to make his way into the BetMGM odds at 125-to-1, so a $1 bet fetches $125 if he wins the award. George Kittle is 150-to-1 and Nick Bosa is 500-to-1.

Typically the award goes to signal callers because of their impact on the game, so naturally quarterbacks are all among the leaders. Patrick Mahomes is the pre-season leader at 5-to-1. The first nine players and 13 of the first 15 in the odds are quarterbacks.

Garoppolo is the 26th quarterback listed, which is an indicator of where he stands among the other top passers in the league, and what oddsmakers think of his ability to play a full season.

If he at any point loses his job or is unavailable for more than a handful of games, his chances to win the award effectively evaporate. On top of that, he’d need a ton of things to go right to win. He’d need the 49ers to be one of the three or four best teams in the league, and he’d need to be the reason they got there. Simply repeating his 2019 campaign wouldn’t be enough.

The fact the No. 3 overall pick, Trey Lance, could take over as early as Week 1 can’t help Garoppolo’s odds. Uncertainty about his job security will push any potential Garoppolo bettors even further away from an already precarious MVP case.

Kittle and Bosa are also there, but the odds a tight end wins the award are slim, and a defensive player would need to be more impactful than Aaron Donald has been at any point in his career, which seems like a long shot.

The good news for the 49ers is they don’t need an MVP candidate to be among the NFL’s top teams. They’re going to ride a committee of running backs and a stout defense if they make a return to the top of the NFL standings no matter who starts under center.

[Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.]