Sports Archives - Page 3 of 6

The Fastest 8th Grader on Earth

March 16, 2022 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

Oliver Martinez interviews 8th-grader Chloe Elbaz who has earned many prestigious awards in cross country and track-and-field events. Some of these awards include her team winning 1st place in Amateur Athletic Union’s (AAU) Cross-Country Nationals just last December in North Carolina, and, individually, earning 2nd place nationally at the same meet in the 14-year-old division.

By Oliver Martinez, Middle-School Correspondent

Word of her successes filtered over to Blog, so I went out and interviewed 8th-grader Chloe Elbaz. We know her as an accomplished cross-country racer and track-and-field competitor. Now, the nation knows of her as well. She has won and placed in several races and events around the country. She’s very good at running and jumping and throwing–I mean, nationally good. Check out the video interview, and hear her tell about running and running well:

8th-grader Chloe Elbaz is a nationally recognized runner.

Soccer News, Rumors, and Scores

January 26, 2022 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

This week Oliver thrills us with the latest update on soccer, or football as we call it in England (or what the world knows as fútbol). In his article, Oliver provides us with the recent match scores and placings in the Premier League. On top of that, he shares up-to-date soccer rumors and news. – Sienna Price, Editor

By Oliver Martinez, Fútbol Enthusiast

Welcome back to soccer news, rumors and scores. Let’s start with the Premier League. On Saturday, January 15, Manchester City beat Chelsea 1-0. Manchester is now in 1st, and Chelsea moves to 3rd. On Saturday, January 15, the Wolves beat Southampton 3-1. The Wolves are in 8th, and Southampton is in 12th place. And, Aston Villa drew Manchester United 2-2! Because of this, Manchester U is in 7th and Aston V in 13th place. On Sunday, January 16, Liverpool beat Brentford 3-0, putting Liverpool in 2nd and Brentford in 14th.

As for La Liga, there have been no relevant games since last week.

Soccer Rumors and News: Big teams like Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, and Manchester City are looking to trade for Erling Haaland. Erling Haaland is a great player that is currently in Dortmund; his contract ends in 2024, but there is a release clause that would allow him to leave in the summer of 2022 for a total of 75 million euros (amp.marca.com).

Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea, and Bayern Munich are hoping to buy Spanish young star Pablo Gavi. One of Gavi’s accomplishments include being the youngest player to play for Spain’s national team. He was only 17. Another one of his accomplishments is being the fourth youngest to play for Barcelona in La Liga (espn.com). English soccer legend Wayne Mark Rooney, also known as Rooney, hopes to get a chance to coach Everton. “I’m the same as everyone else, I see the speculation on social media and in the newspapers. Of course Everton is a club I grew up supporting.” There is a strong possibility he will get the job–Everton just sacked Rafael Benitez (football365.com).

Notable Soccer Games in Premier League and La Liga

January 12, 2022 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

Oliver Martinez keeps us updated on the soccer news, rumors, and the recent games of the top leagues, La Liga and Premier League. – Editor Lilah Nick

By Oliver Martinez, Fútbol Enthusiast

La Liga (Spain) and Premier League (England) are some of the biggest, most important soccer leagues in the world. They have a few of the best players out there. I’ll go over their top games. Let’s start with the Premier League: Manchester United lost to the Wolverhampton Wolves 0-1 on January 3rd, leaving Manchester in 7th place in the league and the Wolves in 8th. Chelsea tied Liverpool 2-2 on January 2nd, leaving Chelsea in 2nd place and Liverpool in 3rd. Brentford beat Aston Villa 2-1 on January 2nd, leaving Brentford in 12th place and Aston in 13th.

Now let’s move on to La Liga: Getafe beat Real Madrid 1-0 on January 2nd. Real Madrid still stands in first place in the league and Getafe in 16. Atlético Madrid beat Rayo Vallecano 2-0 on January 2nd, leaving Atlético in 4th place and Vallecano in 6th. Barcelona beat Mallorca 1-0 on January 2nd. This leaves Barcelona in 5th place and Mallorca in 15th. Sevilla beat Cadiz 1-0 on January 3rd, leaving Sevilla in 2nd and Cadiz in 19th. Real Betis lost to Celta Vigo 0-2 on January 2nd; this leaves Real Betis in 3rd place and Celta in 12th.

Soccer Rumors and News:

Real Madrid is hoping to soon buy young talent Mbappe from PSG for 220 million euros (around 249 million dollars) (espn.com). After collapsing and suffering a cardiac arrest against Finland in an international match, Eriksen, after a brief hospital stay, hopes to return to soccer this year for the World Cup. Eriksen is only 29 years old. Lastly, the World Cup is around the corner, and teams around the world are getting ready for the biggest soccer event. The World Cup Finals will be played in Qatar. Qatar is requiring all fans to vaccinate if they want to see their favorite teams play fútbol. Top sources such as espn.com are hinting that maybe France may win the Cup again. Favored teams include Brazil, France, England, and Italy (espn.com). More soccer news to come.

And then there were four . . .

December 7, 2021 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

It’s College Football Postseason! Roman, our sports enthusiast, has the rundown on the conference championships leading into the bowls. — Ike Spry, Editor

By Roman Rickwood, Sports Enthusiast

Last Saturday began the first weekend of the postseason, and three out of the five conference championship games had major playoff implications. With there only being one undefeated team in the top 4, nothing was set in stone. The three important conference championships were the Big 12 Championship, the Big 10 Championship, and the SEC Championship.

In the Big 12 Championship we had Baylor (10-2) vs. Oklahoma State (11-1). With a win, the Oklahoma State Cowboys should have been a sure in for the playoff. But, they lost. It was a very dramatic loss. They lost on the last play of the game. They came up nine inches short, just a breath from a touchdown.

Next we had the Big 10 Championship game between #2-ranked Michigan and the come-from-behind underdog Iowa, who looked like they were surely down and out until just the right teams lost last week. Michigan stomped Iowa, 42-3.

Then we had, what I believed to be the most competitive game, #1-ranked Georgia vs. #2 Alabama for the SEC Championship. This was the third meeting between the two teams in the last four years. Alabama was 3-0 against the Dawgs; now, they are 4-0. (Despite Georgia being favored by one touchdown.) Alabama had to win to be in the playoff. Now, they are #1 nationally. These were the three most important conference championships out of the power-five conferences. These games were very close and incredibly competitive–in the first halves.

2021 SEC Championship Game: Georgia vs. Alabama matchup set after Crimson Tide clinch SEC West - CBSSports.com

After this weekend the playoff rankings are now set: #1. Alabama, #2. Michigan, #3. Georgia, #4. Cincinnati. Alabama is playing Cincinnati in the Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, and Georgia is playing Michigan in Hard Rock Stadium in Miami; both games are on New Year’s Eve. My way-too-early prediction for these games is that both Georgia and Alabama will outmatch their opponents and meet again in the national-title game in Indianapolis on January 10.

What’s Wrong with the Rams?

November 18, 2021 by szachik@pvs.org 1 Comment

Roman came dressed to Celebrity Day as Jalen Ramsey, Rams cornerback #5. He says Ramsey is the only player that looks like he cares. To say the least, Roman is disappointed with the Rams season so far.

By Roman Rickwood, Sports Enthusiast

The Rams are not a very good football team. They have an incredible head coach; the league leader in receiving yards Cooper Kupp; not to mention the newest addition, Odell Beckham, Jr.; and–at least on paper–a stellar defense, with headlining names like Aaron Donald, Jalen Ramsey, and the newly acquired Von Miller. So, why aren’t they better?

Aside from their winning record of 7-3, the Rams look like losers across the board. The first loss of the season came against division-rival Arizona Cardinals at the Rams’ brand new stadium, and, boy, was it a bad loss. The offense looked terrible, out of sync, and the defense looked lifeless and like they did not care. This was the first big test that the Rams faced this season, and they failed miserably: the defense showed its weakness, and the offense showed their flaws. It was a blowout loss to a very good team; however, it might have been a sign for things to come.

The Rams went on to win their next four games playing teams with losing records: the Seahawks, the Giants, the Lions, and the Texans. They won all four, but they only won 3 out of 4 convincingly and with ease.

Their next midseason test was once again at home to the red hot Titans. In this game, I will give credit to the defense as they played all right. The Rams struggled to get anything going and lost 28-16. In the long season of the NFL, losses are inevitable, and I think everyone believed the Rams would bounce back from this loss.

On the Tuesday after the loss, the Rams embraced their LA-ness and went out and got a controversial huge name superstar in Odell Becham, Jr.–perhaps the most LA person ever.

The Rams had another test against a beat-up San Francisco team last Monday night, and once again appeared to not show up to the stadium. The game started eerily similar to the week prior with two quick interceptions, one resulting in a touchdown. The Ram’s defense looked terrible, and it appeared as if they did not want to make adjustments or even tackle the guy with the ball. This was another embarrassing loss and another lackluster performance by both offense and defense.

There is not a whole lot of explanation for what is going wrong because when you have that much individual talent, you should be playing better. The Rams will need to start playing as a team if they want to even be considered a Superbowl contender. They are off this week and return next week against the Packers in Green Bay. (Great.)

The Atlanta Curse is Finally Broken

November 12, 2021 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

After winning the best of seven world series, the Atlanta Braves are the World Series champion. Even though the Astros didn’t cheat like last time, the Braves deserve a closer look into the challenges they faced this season. — Editor Ike Spry

By Roman Rickwood, Sports Enthusiast

The Atlanta Braves are your World Series Champions for the 2021 Major League Baseball season. They won the best of 7 series in six games, beating the Houston Astros in 4-2, winning the final game 7-0. This was a true team effort throughout the entire organization. The Atlanta Braves didn’t even have a winning record until late August.

To me the most amazing thing that the Braves did this season was complete a rebuild of their outfield midseason at the trade deadline. At the deadline, the Braves were dealing with injuries and absences of key players on their team, those main players being right fielder Ronald Acuna and Center fielder Marcel Ozuna. Ronald Acuna suffered a torn ACL early in the season and Marcel Ozuna was facing legal issues off the field and was suspended by the MLB. At the deadline, the Braves completed many trades in order to fill those critical holes, like adding designated hitter Jorge Soler (World series MVP), center fielder Adam Duvall (NL hitting champion), left fielder Eddie Rosario (NLCS MVP), and of course none other than right fielder Joc Pederson. What did they have to give up to get these incredible players? Almost nothing! Both Eddie Rosario and Jorge Soler, believe it or not, were not heavily sought after players, and the Braves easily acquired both of them–and boy did it pay off.

` Atlanta Braves ground Houston Astros to seal first World Series title in 26 years | World Series | The Guardian

With the help of incredible pitching from the Braves’ pitching staff and some incredible plays from the Braves’ infield, they managed to beat the best team in baseball, the Dodgers, and then advance to the World Series to deliver a deserved beating to the Houston Astros. This is one of the more improbable teams to win the World Series considering their overall performance in the regular season. It is a true testament to the importance of getting hot at the right time.

Swanson breaks out with tying HR to spark Braves' big inning – KXAN Austin — Dansby celebrates after hitting a homerun in Game 4 of the World Series.

The Storm

November 4, 2021 by szachik@pvs.org 4 Comments

By Roman Rickwood, Sports Enthusiast

Who needs a crystal ball when you have Roman to predict the future! If you planned on putting money on any of these games last week, next time wait for Roman to put out his most spot-on predictions and who knows, you might win some cash (maybe). — Editor Jessica Denyer

We always talk about the calm before the storm, but today we are going to talk about the storm. This past weekend in college football the storm arrived with a slate of many rivalry games and ranked matchups. First game up was the famed rivalry between Michigan and Michigan State. This year was a little bit different however as both teams were coming into this game undefeated and playing many of the same teams. To me this was the closest and most evenly matched game. I predicted a low-scoring defensive slug fest, and I was wrong. The betting line for this game had Michigan favored at -4.5 points, meaning that in order for this to cash, Michigan would have to win the game by 5 or more points. Michigan lost by 6 points. This year the game was played in East Lansing, which made it a Spartan home game. MSU had an incredible season this year under their new coach Mel Tucker. He brought new excitement and energy to the program. This was a signature win for him. Michigan was the best team MSU played all year. I liked Michigan State money line! I believed that MSU would play their game and have the benefit of a loud and excited home crowd to cheer them on. It worked. They actually came BACK and won: 37-33.

Michigan vs. Michigan State Odds, Promos: Bet $10, Win $200 if Either Team Covers +50, and More! — Michigan State vs. University of Michigan

Next game up was the famed Georgia-Florida game played annually in Jacksonville at TIAA Bank Stadium. While this game normally decides the SEC east, this year it was a little bit different. With Florida sitting at 4-3 and Georgia sitting at 7-0, this game did not have as many connotations as it has had in years past. However, this was still a rivalry game at a neutral site between two teams that absolutely hate each other. Georgia was favored by 15 points at -14.5. I personally thought this number was low, which is why I took Georgia with the points. I also took the over 50.5 points as I believed that Georgia would have something to prove to the Gators this year, and I believed they would be out for blood after the loss they suffered last year at the hands of the Gators. In the end, Georgia won by way over 15, and the two teams did not combine for over 50 points. Final Score: 34-7.

OSU vs. Penn State: Justin Fields throws for four touchdowns in Buckeyes' 38-25 win. — Ohio State vs. Penn State

Finally, to close out last Saturday’s big games and rivalries, we had Penn State at Ohio State. This game, much like the Georgia-Florida game, may not have had the same connotations as it has had in the past, but once again this was a rivalry game on Halloweekend. Penn State came into this game with two losses, essentially eliminating themselves from National Title contention. Ohio State came into this game with one loss and desperately trying to play their way into National Title contention. Vegas had the Ohio State Buckeyes favored at -18.5, and Vegas got it wrong. The game was relatively high scoring with an Ohio State offense pretty fiery and a Penn State Offense that had something to prove after only scoring 18 points in last week’s loss to Illinois. The Final Score: 33-24, Ohio State.

Last Saturday was the best weekend of college football that has been played so far this year, with so many marquee matchups. Regardless of if your team was playing in a big game last weekend, it was exciting college football to watch. Kudos to the networks for putting these games back to back to back.

TV, commentators set for the Georgia-Florida game — University of Georgia vs. University of Florida

When Alabama Loses, America Wins (According to Roman)

October 19, 2021 by szachik@pvs.org Leave a Comment

While the whole world was watching, college football fans got what they wanted most, an Alabama defeat. Was this an overreaction? An Alabama loss was bound to happen sometime. Is Alabama done? After this shake-up, we get to see just what happens next for college football. — Editor Ike Spry

By Roman Rickwood, College Football Enthusiast

Does anything unite a country more than Alabama losing a football game? I think not. This weekend, the undefeated Alabama Crimson Tide snapped their 19-game winning streak when they lost on a game-winning field goal to Texas A&M at Kyle Field, in College Station, Texas. Coming into this game, Alabama was ranked 5-0 and the favorite to win the National Championship, along with having the then Heisman favorite Bryce Young under center. The Texas A&M Aggies up until this point were having a relatively unimpressive and uninspiring season, partly due to losing their starting quarterback early in the season and losing a home game to a much inferior opponent, Mississippi State. Coming into this game, Texas A&M was 3-2 and unranked, and Alabama was 5-0 and ranked #1. Alabama was favored by 18 points, and no one believed they could lose. However, the one thing that the Aggies had going for them was this being a home game at one of the biggest stadiums in not only college football but the country.

Texas A&M fined for fans rushing the field following 7OT win over LSU; SEC still in contract with both schools over altercation

Kyle Field has a capacity of 102,733 screaming fans. Sometimes in sports, it does not matter how good you are; it is about what you can do under immense amounts of pressure. I would imagine 102,733 people willing you to a defeat would constitute immense pressure. The game started out all Aggies, and they closed out the first half leading 24-10. Immediately people turned on the game with hopes of seeing Alabama lose. However, many watched with skeptical eyes as it seems Alabama always finds a way to squeak out a win in these close games. But this time was different. While the Tide outscored A&M 28-17 in the 2nd half, it was not enough. The Aggies seemed to score when it mattered most, especially in the final seconds of the game when they needed to make a field goal. What do you know? They made it. Immediately hoards of students swarmed the field and began celebrating this historical victory, and of course with the influence of social media, the celebration continued across all fan bases, except in Alabama. They had been unseated as number one in the nation, and they lost to an unranked team for the first time since 2007. This is also the first time head coach Nick Saban had lost to his previous assistant coaches and coordinators who now work the A&M sidelines. He had a combined record of 24-0 against his old friends until now. Jimbo Fisher, the current head coach of Texas A&M, is the one “who finally beat the boss.”

Texas A&M becomes 3rd SEC school fined for field rushing after beating Alabama - al.com

This was the cherry on top of a perfect day in college football; not only was this the third time a field had been rushed post game, but this had incredible implications for how teams would be ranked come Monday. (Alabama dropped down to #5.) It is incredible to see such a hullabaloo about a sports team doing the very natural thing in losing, but that is what you get when you have been on top for a whole decade.

Jimbo Fisher Has Honest Take On Snapping Nick Saban's Streak

When superior teams play inferior teams, they are not supposed to lose. We often hear it called a fluke. I do not believe this was a fluke, and while I can not seem to land on a specific word or phrase to describe a loss of this magnitude; I did think of a few, a perfect storm, a football game, a stroke of bad luck, but how do you really describe the indescribable; you don’t. For me, I just like to keep it simple and call it . . . College Football.

Football is Back, and Roman is Happy

September 16, 2021 by szachik@pvs.org 1 Comment

People are back and together again. And, according to Roman, nothing brings us together like football and . . . mayonnaise!

By Sports Correspondent Roman Rickwood

College football is in full swing, and it is showing. As we move into week three of the college football season, we find ourselves in a very familiar and comforting time. While college football was played last year, it was anything but normal with some conferences only playing four games with no fans in the stadiums and no normal football season traditions. But, finally, after the wait of our lives, college football is back to its natural glory. There are no more Covid restrictions, or capacity restrictions, and most importantly no teams have severe enough outbreaks to where they had to cancel the game. We saw the return of out-of-conference play, another important thing that Covid took away.

Opening weekend in college football always features marquee matches from powerhouses across all five conferences. The #1 game in week one was (then) #2 Clemson vs (then) #5 Georgia; this game was played at Bank of America stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. This game ended 10-3 in favor of Georgia as well as ending up as the most watched game of the weekend. The opening weekend TV ratings for college football were as high as they have ever been and five times higher than the TV ratings of the 2021 NBA Finals (ESPN). I believe that one of the major contributors to these heightened ratings is credit to the fans in attendance. Personally when sports returned with no fans, I found it incredibly hard to watch, even to watch my favorite teams. There is something special about a packed stadium that just makes the viewing experience that much better.

Photo Credit: Roman Rickwood at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte

I went to the Clemson-Georgia game. It was sponsored by Duke’s Mayo, so there was a Mayonnaise-Eating Competition! The Georgia Redcoat school band marched in, sat in the stands, and played non-stop. And, . . . there was the tail-gating. There was barbecue brisket and ribs piled high on paper plates.

So far this season is looking like it will be a good one, especially considering how many upsets there have been and how many more there are to come. As for now I am just happy to have something to look forward to on Saturdays! This Saturday, kick-off is 9 a.m. You’ll see me camped out on the couch.

In celebration of college football returning, a Bulldog fan took on a Tiger fan in the age-old competition of eating mayonnaise.

Bonjour, Messi!

September 7, 2021 by szachik@pvs.org 1 Comment

By Roman Rickwood, Sports Analyst

Perhaps the biggest news in recent European Football is the transfer of Lionel Messi. Last month, he transferred from Spain’s Barcelona to PSG in Paris, France.

This was a colossal move that rocked the European football world since Messi has been with Barcelona since the age of 13. At the age of 13 he left his home in Argentina to join Barcelona’s academy or farm system. Messi spent 21 years with Barcelona and made them consistently a dominant team in European football.

Although Barcelona was incredibly dominant on the field and was able to seemingly sign any player that it desired, Barcelona had management and financial problems. This, to me, was very surprising considering how marketable Team Barcelona should have been; after all, it was one of the most notable clubs in the world with–at one point–two out of the five best players in football, those being Messi and Neymar. Barcelona currently has 1.6 billion in debt due to poor management and bad financial moves made by the club’s president (apnews.com).

Messi said he had no desire to leave the club and offered to reduce his salary by 50% just to stay with the club (“Messi’s Farewell Press Conference”). A reduction in salary is incredibly rare for a player of Messi’s caliber; he made a statement to the world. It was a statement of loyalty and gratitude. When Barcelona could not keep him and follow LaLiga salary rules, Messi had no choice but to transfer and sign with PSG, the largest and most dominant club in France.

Messi played in Paris one week ago. The fans of Paris-Saint Germain are thrilled to get one of the world’s most famous players. Last week, PSG won, with Messi on the pitch, 2-0, against Reims.

In my opinion, this was one of the biggest moves in European football history. This was the first transfer that the world-famous Messi ever made, and it exposed the financial problems in one of the world’s most popular clubs.