RACER VOLLEYBALL UNVEILS 2021 SCHEDULE
Murray State will make early season trips to Georgia, Missouri, and Indiana, as part of the 2021 volleyball schedule announced Tuesday. The Racers will begin the season August 27-28 in Macon, Georgia at a tournament hosted by Mercer. MSU opens its OVC slate September 24 against Eastern Illinois at home.
LOUISVILLE ATHLETIC EVENTS TO BE AT FULL CAPACITY
The University of Louisville announced that the KFC Yum Center will be at full capacity for Cardinals games this season. The university announced that home games for all Louisville sports will be at full capacity. The university announced in May that home football games will be at full capacity.
CARDINALS EDGE ARIZONA
In baseball, Nolan Arenado drilled a two-run homer in the Cardinals 3-2 win over the D-Backs at Busch Stadium. Carlos Martínez struck out six batters and allowed one-run over six frames, improving to 4-and-9. Alex Reyes got his 19th save of the season. The Cards go for the sweep today with airtime set for 11:20 this morning on WNBS.
AREA MINOR LEAGUE REPORT
In area minor league action, the Louisville Bats fell to the Nashville Sounds 8-2, and the Memphis Redbirds game versus the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp was suspended with the game tied at 1 in the sixth inning due to unplayable field conditions.
BULLDOGS FORCE GAME THREE WITH VANDY
Mississippi State pounded Vanderbilt, 13-2, in game two of the College World Series to force a winner-take-all clash tonight in Omaha. Scotty Dubrule led the offensive charge with four RBIs, and Houston Harding and Preston Johnson platooned to allow just four Vandy hits. The Bulldogs and the defending champs will play for all the marbles tonight, with a marquee pitching matchup expected between Will Bednar and Kumar Rocker.
VANDY AD CONDEMNS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE AT CWS
Vanderbilt athletic director Candice Storey Lee is condemning the use of slurs at the College World Series finals. Storey Lee says that racially offensive language was used and directed at the parents of the Commodores players during Game One. She tweeted she was “deeply troubled” by the comments made and that “such hateful language has no place anywhere in our society”. The NCAA also released a statement on the incident and said any parties responsible for unacceptable actions would be removed by stadium security. Vanderbilt is playing Mississippi State in the finals, seeking its second straight CWS title.
HARDAWAY STAYING AT MEMPHIS
According to The Athletic, Penny Hardaway will stay at Memphis as the Tigers head men’s basketball coach. Hardaway recently interviewed for the open Orlando Magic head coaching position. Memphis has also hired Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown to be an assistant on Hardaway’s staff.
LAWMAKERS PREPARE FOR NIL BILL
Kentucky lawmakers are preparing to file a bill that would allow college athletes to have some earning power. The bill reflects action taken by Governor Beshear last week in an executive order. The order allows college athletes to profit from the use of their name, image, and likeness. Lawmakers say the athletes should have a share in how they are portrayed.
ILLINOIS NIL BILL SIGNED INTO LAW
Illinois college student-athletes are set to be eligible for compensation for their efforts. Governor J.B. Pritzker signed Illinois’ Student-Athlete Endorsement Rights Act into law yesterday. The law gives college athletes the opportunity to hire agents and sign endorsement deals using their name, likeness, image, or voice. The law goes into effect tomorrow.
CADIZ TO STAY WITH NASHVILLE SC
Nashville SC is securing the services of designated player Jhonder Cadiz through the rest of the 2021 season. The club announced yesterday they had extended Cadiz’s loan from powerhouse Portuguese team S.L. Benefica. Since arriving in Music City, the 25-year-old Cadiz has helped the Boys in Gold to eight wins, eight draws, and only two losses. So far in 2021, Cadiz has scored two goals and an assist in 380-minutes.
NATIONAL SPORTS BRIEFS
Police in California are investigating Los Angeles Dodgers star pitcher Trevor Bauer after a woman accused him of assault. TMZ Sports reports the woman’s attorney explained she suffered “physical and emotional pain,” and has been granted a temporary domestic violence restraining order. In a statement, Bauer’s attorney denied the accusation and noted the pair had a “brief and wholly consensual sexual relationship” in April. The statement also argued the basis for filing a protection order is “fraudulent” and “omits key facts.”
Lou Williams scored 21 points as the Trae Young-less Hawks took down the Bucks 110-88 in Game Four of the Eastern Conference Finals in Atlanta. Young was out as he battles a foot injury. Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo exited the game in the second half with a hyperextended left knee. The series is tied at two games apiece. Game Five is Thursday in Milwaukee. Tonight, the Suns look to close out the Clippers in Game Six of the Western Conference Finals in Los Angeles.
Serena Williams’ quest to tie Margaret Court’s record for major championships by a woman ended abruptly Tuesday as the 23-time grand slam winner was forced to withdraw with a right-leg injury. Williams slipped while up 3-1 in the first set against Aliaksandra Sasnovich, eventually forcing her to retire during the first set, despite the crowd showing overwhelming support. A similar situation occurred during Roger Federer’s first-round matchup against Adrian Mannarino, who slipped and fell, hurting his leg during the fourth set. Both injuries occurred on Centre Court and critics have pointed to rain in recent days as to the cause.
The Lightning will look to take a commanding lead in the Stanley Cup Final tonight when they face the Canadiens in Game Two in Florida. Tampa Bay won Game One 5-1 over Montreal. Thanks to his two-goal, one-assist effort in Monday night’s win, forward Nikita Kucherov joined Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux as the only players with 30-plus points in consecutive postseasons. The Habs may have forward Joel Armia back for tonight’s game. He didn’t travel with the team initially to Tampa because of a positive COVID test, but has since rejoined the team.
Mariners pitcher Hector Santiago has been suspended for ten games and fined by MLB for having a foreign substance on his glove. Santiago is the first player to be ejected and suspended under MLB’s new rule. The 33-year-old lefty claimed he was only using rosin after he was ejected in Sunday’s Mariners-White Sox game and is appealing the suspension. Santiago’s glove was sent to MLB headquarters in New York, but ESPN reported that the glove wasn’t necessarily inspected further and that Santiago’s punishment is based on the umpires’ original report of finding a foreign substance.
TUESDAY’S SCOREBOARD
MLB National League
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Philadelphia Phillies 4, Miami Marlins 3
San Diego Padres 5, Cincinnati Reds 4
New York Mets 4, Atlanta Braves 3
Milwaukee Brewers 2, Chicago Cubs 1
St. Louis Cardinals 3, Arizona Diamondbacks 2
Colorado Rockies 8, Pittsburgh Pirates 0
Los Angeles Dodgers 3, San Francisco Giants 1
MLB American League
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New York Yankees 11, Los Angeles Angels 5
Toronto Blue Jays 9, Seattle Mariners 3
Boston Red Sox 7, Kansas City Royals 6
Baltimore Orioles 13, Houston Astros 3
Chicago White Sox 7, Minnesota Twins 6
Texas Rangers 5, Oakland Athletics 4
Detroit Tigers at Cleveland Indians (Postponed)
MLB Interleague
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Washington Nationals 4, Tampa Bay Rays 3
NBA Playoffs
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Atlanta Hawks 110, Milwaukee Bucks 88
(Best-of-seven Eastern Conference Finals tied, 2-2)
NHL Stanley Cup Final
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No Games Scheduled
WNBA
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Atlanta Dream 73, New York Liberty 69
Connecticut Sun 90, Washington Mystics 71
WEDNESDAY’S SCHEDULE (All Times Are Eastern)
MLB National League
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1:15 p.m. — Arizona Diamondbacks at St. Louis Cardinals
2:10 p.m. — Chicago Cubs at Milwaukee Brewers
3:10 p.m. — Pittsburgh Pirates at Colorado Rockies
7:05 p.m. — Miami Marlins at Philadelphia Phillies
7:10 p.m. — San Diego Padres at Cincinnati Reds
7:20 p.m. — New York Mets at Atlanta Braves
MLB American League
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7:00 p.m. — Los Angeles Angels at New York Yankees
7:07 p.m. — Seattle Mariners at Toronto Blue Jays (at Buffalo, NY)
7:10 p.m. — Detroit Tigers at Cleveland Indians
7:10 p.m. — Kansas City Royals at Boston Red Sox
8:10 p.m. — Baltimore Orioles at Houston Astros
8:10 p.m. — Minnesota Twins at Chicago White Sox
9:40 p.m. — Texas Rangers at Oakland Athletics
MLB Interleague
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4:05 p.m. — Tampa Bay Rays at Washington Nationals
NBA Playoffs
——-
9:00 p.m. — Phoenix Suns at Los Angeles Clippers
(Suns lead best-of-seven Western Conference Finals, 3-2)
NHL Stanley Cup Final
——-
8:00 p.m. — Montreal Canadiens at Tampa Bay Lightning
(Lightning lead Stanley Cup Final, 1-0)
WNBA
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8:00 p.m. — Chicago Sky at Dallas Wings
10:00 p.m. — Minnesota Lynx at Phoenix Mercury
10:30 p.m. — Las Vegas Aces at Los Angeles Sparks
