Photo by Dave Winder, MSU Athletics
WEBB SNARES OVC CHAMPIONSHIP FOR JSU
Zion Webb passed for one touchdown and ran for two as 10th-ranked Jacksonville State defeated Murray State 28-14 on Sunday to win the Ohio Valley Conference regular-season title and the league’s auto bid to the FCS Playoffs. The Racer scores came when DeQuan Dallas caught a 30-yard touchdown pass from Preston Rice and when Rice hit Jacob Bell for a 13-yard touchdown midway through the fourth quarter. LaMartez Brooks led the Racer receiving corps with eight catches for 95 yards, while Bell and Dallas tallied 94 and 86 yards respectively. The Racers finish at 5-2, with at least some hope of landing one of six at-large bids when the FCS field is announced on Sunday. The Racers had not previously won five OVC games since the 2011 season. In other OVC games yesterday:
Southeast Missouri 46, Tennessee State 23
UT Martin 40, Tennessee Tech 7
The Austin Peay at Eastern Illinois game was postponed due to COVID issues within the Governors program.
RACERS ADD HANNIBAL
Murray State men’s basketball has added South Carolina transfer Trae Hannibal for next season. The 6-2 guard out of Hartsville, South Carolina, will have three seasons to play at Murray State. Hannibal saw action in 20 games this past season for the Gamecocks averaging 6 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. He had four games of double-digit scoring including back-to-back 15-point games against Missouri and Georgia where he hit a combined 12-of-14 shots from the field. Hannibal had 62 points and 20 rebounds in his final game at Hartsville High School.
RACER WOMEN CLAIM WEAVER TITLE
The Murray State women’s golf team finished at 898 Saturday for a two stroke win over Central Arkansas at the Jan Weaver Invitational, and marks the Racers’ first title in their home event since 2017. The Racers Payton Carter and Sarah Forsythe shared fourth place at 223. Taylor Ledwein of Bradley was the medalist with a 216.
RACER BASEBALL WINS SERIES FINALE
After losing a Friday doubleheader, Racer baseball salvaged the finale of a three-game series with an 11-6 home win over SEMO on Saturday. The Racers are now 16-14 overall and 6-5 in the OVC heading into Tuesday’s 4 pm home game with Kentucky State.
RACER SOFTBALL SPLITS TWINBILL
Tennessee Tech took two of three games from Racer softball when the teams split a twinbill on Saturday with the Racers claiming the opener 3-2 in 9 innings before dropping the nightcap 3-1. The Racers will take a 15-23 overall and 12-10 OVC record into this weekend’s home series with Belmont.
RACER TENNIS SPLITS
Murray State tennis split the weekend, earning a 4-3 victory over SIUE on Friday before coming up short in a 4-3 contest against Eastern Illinois on Saturday. The Racers close the regular season on Friday with a Battle of the Border rivalry clash at Austin Peay.
SATURDAY’S HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL SCORES
Murray High 7, University Heights 0
Calloway County 15, Union County 4 (Kentucky 2A Sectional)
Paducah Tilghman 16, Calloway County 0 (Kentucky 2A Sectional)
Today Murray plays Fulton City at the All-A Classic Regional Tournament at St. Mary while Calloway County hosts Christian County
FRIDAY’S HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL SCORES
Russellville 13, Murray High 0
Murray High 16, Franklin-Simpson 4
Calloway County 2, Union County 0
SATURDAY’S HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL SCORES
Calloway County 10, Paducah Tilghman 0 (Kentucky 2A Sectional)
Calloway County will play at Clarksville today at 5:30 while Murray High visits St. Mary tonight at 7:30.
SACRED HEART WINS GIRLS SWEET 16
Sacred Heart claimed the Mingua Beef Jerky Girls Sweet 16 title with a 49-47 win over Marshall County in Saturday night’s championship. Halle Langhi led all scorers with 19 points while 1st Region Player of the Year Cayson Conner scored 16 points. The Lady Marshals end the season with a 25-3 record.
CARDINALS HAMMERED BY BREWERS; O’NEILL TO IL
The Cardinals fell behind early and couldn’t recover in a 9-3 loss to the Brewers at Busch Stadium. Daniel Ponce de Leon fell to 1-and-1 after giving up seven runs on six hits in one and a third. Austin Dean drove in a pair for St. Louis, which dropped two of three in the series. The Cards host the Nationals tonight, with the airtime set for 5:50 on WNBS AM and FM…The Cardinals will not have Tyler O’Neill for at least ten days after he was placed on the injured list with a right groin strain. The left fielder exited Saturday’s loss after suffering the injury in an at-bat in the second inning. Outfielder Lane Thomas and right-hander Johan Oviedo were called up yesterday. Pitcher Jake Woodford was optioned to open up the second roster spot.
GRIZZLIES FALL TO INDIANA
Jonas Valanciunas had a career night with 34 points and 22 boards, but it was not enough for the Grizzlies, who lost 132-125 to the Pacers in Memphis. Ja Morant finished with 23 points in defeat. The Grizz drop to 26-and-25 and host the Chicago Bulls tonight.
AREA HOCKEY ROUNDUP
Ryan Johansen scored the only goal in the shootout in the Predators’ 3-2 win over the Stars in Nashville. The Preds host the Lightning tomorrow night. The Blues visit the Wild tonight. St. Louis has won three straight, including two straight against Minnesota at the Enterprise Center.
UPSET WINNER IN LEXINGTON STAKES
King Fury is the winner of the Lexington Stakes after facing 18-to-one odds. The horse pulled off the upset Saturday at Keeneland. He earns 20 points on the leaderboard for the Kentucky Derby. If he doesn’t earn enough points to make the Derby, he will race in the Preakness.
GEORGE TO BECOME HEAD FOOTBALL COACH AT TSU
Eddie George will be the new head football coach at Tennessee State. Multiple outlets report the former Titans running back and 1995 Heisman Trophy winner is replacing Ron Reed as head coach. George is scheduled to be introduced to the position tomorrow. His number-27 is retired by both the Titans and Ohio State.
PIPPIN, JR DECLARES FOR NBA DRAFT
Vanderbilt guard Scotty Pippen Jr. has declared for the 2021 NBA Draft. He is the son of the Chicago Bulls Hall of Famer. The younger Pippen led the Commodores in scoring last season as a freshman. He has not hired an agent and could return to school.
NATIONAL SPORTS BRIEFS
Hideki Matsuyama is celebrating his first career green jacket. He shot a one-over 73 on Sunday, but held on to beat Will Zalatoris by one shot at The Masters. Matsuyama finished at 10-under par, becoming the first male Japanese player to win a major. Jordan Spieth tied for third.
It’s Martin at Martinsville. Martin Truex Jr. picked up his second win of the season as he took Sunday’s Cup Series race at Martinsville. Truex Jr. held off Chase Elliott for the win. Denny Hamlin finished third. William Byron was fourth, while Kyle Larson rounded out the top-five.
J.D. Martinez went 4-for-6 with three home runs to help the Red Sox outslug the Orioles 14-9 in Baltimore. He sat out Saturday’s game with a cold, but was cleared to return on Sunday. Rafael Devers went deep twice as Boston won its sixth straight game since an 0-and-3 start.
The season may be over for Golden State rookie James Wiseman. Multiple reports say the Warriors center tore the meniscus in his right knee and could be sidelined the rest of the way. Wiseman was injured Saturday against the Rockets and is being further evaluated.
Today is the last day for NHL clubs to swing a deal for the stretch run. The league’s trade deadline is at 3 p.m. Eastern. TSN reports the Bruins have agreed to acquire Taylor Hall and Curtis Lazar from the Sabres in exchange for Anders Bjork and second-round pick this year.
SUNDAY’S SCOREBOARD
MLB National League
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Pittsburgh Pirates 7, Chicago Cubs 1
Milwaukee Brewers 9, St. Louis Cardinals 3
San Francisco Giants 4, Colorado Rockies 0
Arizona Diamondbacks 7, Cincinnati Reds 0
Los Angeles Dodgers 3, Washington Nationals 0
Philadelphia Phillies 7, Atlanta Braves 6
Miami Marlins at New York Mets (Suspended)
MLB American League
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Boston Red Sox 14, Baltimore Orioles 9
Cleveland Indians 5, Detroit Tigers 2
New York Yankees 8, Tampa Bay Rays 4 (F/10)
Kansas City Royals 4, Chicago White Sox 3 (F/10)
Seattle Mariners 8, Minnesota Twins 6
Los Angeles Angels at Toronto Blue Jays (at Dunedin, FL) (Postponed)
MLB Interleague
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San Diego Padres 2, Texas Rangers 0
NBA
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Atlanta Hawks 105, Charlotte Hornets 101
Boston Celtics 105, Denver Nuggets 87
New Orleans Pelicans 116, Cleveland Cavaliers 109
Milwaukee Bucks 124, Orlando Magic 87
New York Knicks 102, Toronto Raptors 96
San Antonio Spurs 119, Dallas Mavericks 117
Indiana Pacers 132, Memphis Grizzlies 125
Minnesota Timberwolves 121, Chicago Bulls 117
LA Clippers 131, Detroit Pistons 124
Miami Heat 107, Portland Trail Blazers 98
NHL
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Buffalo Sabres 5, Philadelphia Flyers 3
Vegas Golden Knights 1, Arizona Coyotes 0
Colorado Avalanche 4, Anaheim Ducks 1
Pittsburgh Penguins 5 New Jersey Devils 2
New York Islanders 3, New York Rangers 2 (OT)
Washington Capitals 8, Boston Bruins 1
Nashville Predators 3, Dallas Stars 2 (SO)
NASCAR
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1. Martin Truex Jr.
2. Chase Elliott
3. Denny Hamlin
PGA The Masters (at Augusta, GA)
——
1. Hideki Matsuyama (-10)
2. Will Zalatoris (-9)
T3. Jordan Spieth (-7)
T3. Xander Schauffele (-7)
MONDAY’S SCHEDULE (All times are Eastern)
MLB National League
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6:35 p.m. – San Diego Padres at Pittsburgh Pirates
7:10 p.m. – Philadelphia Phillies at New York Mets
7:20 p.m. – Miami Marlins at Atlanta Braves
7:40 p.m. – Chicago Cubs at Milwaukee Brewers
7:45 p.m. – Washington Nationals at St. Louis Cardinals
9:45 p.m. – Cincinnati Reds at San Francisco Giants
MLB American League
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2:10 p.m. – Boston Red Sox at Minnesota Twins
7:05 p.m. – Seattle Mariners at Baltimore Orioles
7:07 p.m. – New York Yankees at Toronto Blue Jays (at Dunedin, FL)
7:10 p.m. – Texas Rangers at Tampa Bay Rays
8:10 p.m. – Los Angeles Angels at Kansas City Royals
8:10 p.m. – Cleveland Indians at Chicago White Sox
8:10 p.m. – Detroit Tigers at Houston Astros
MLB Interleague
——
9:40 p.m. – Oakland Athletics at Arizona Diamondbacks
NBA
——
7:30 p.m. – Los Angeles Lakers at New York Knicks
7:30 p.m. – Philadelphia 76ers at Dallas Mavericks
8:00 p.m. – San Antonio Spurs at Orlando Magic
8:00 p.m. – Brooklyn Nets at Minnesota Timberwolves
9:00 p.m. – Chicago Bulls at Memphis Grizzlies
9:00 p.m. – Sacramento Kings at New Orleans Pelicans
9:00 p.m. – Washington Wizards at Utah Jazz
10:00 p.m. – Denver Nuggets at Golden State Warriors
10:00 p.m. – Houston Rockets at Phoenix Suns
NHL
——
7:00 p.m. – Detroit Red Wings at Carolina Hurricanes
7:00 p.m. – Chicago Blackhawks at Columbus Blue Jackets
7:00 p.m. – Toronto Maple Leafs at Montreal Canadiens
7:00 p.m. – Winnipeg Jets at Ottawa Senators
8:00 p.m. – St. Louis Blues at Minnesota Wild
9:00 p.m. – Arizona Coyotes at Colorado Avalanche
10:00 p.m. – Vegas Golden Knights at Los Angeles Kings
10:30 p.m. – Anaheim Ducks at San Jose Sharks
