YSU to meet Vikings

YOUNGSTOWN — Youngstown State had six players score at least eight points, and the Penguins pulled away from Wright State in the second half for a 76-60 win in the first round of the 2026 Horizon League Women’s Basketball Championship on Wednesday at the Beeghly Center.

YSU advances to the semifinals of the tournament and will play Cleveland State at 2:30 p.m. on Monday at Corteva Coliseum in Indianapolis. YSU is 23-8 overall and is in the semifinals for the first time since the 2018-19 season.

Leetonia seeks noms for HOF

LEETONIA — The Leetonia Athletic Hall of Fame is now accepting nominations for the Class of 2026. Induction of the new members will be held the weekend of September 4-5. Nomination forms are available on the school website www.leetonia.k12.oh.us and the administration office. Deadline to nominate someone is May 31. Nomination forms should be mailed to Leetonia Athletic Hall of Fame 450 Walnut Street, Leetonia, OH 44431.

Guardian hits homer

Australia opened the World Baseball Classic by beating Taiwan 3-0 on Travis Bazzana’s homer in the seventh inning and a two-run home run in the fifth by Robbie Perkins at the Tokyo Dome on Thursday.

Bazzana was the first pick in the 2024 MLB amateur draft and is expected to be in Triple A this season in the Cleveland Guardians organization.

“If you think of the two things I thought about most growing up it was, like, playing in the WBC and being in the Tokyo Dome cause we’d always come here — and playing the World Series and MLB. It’s special,” Bazzana said.

Of course, his World Series dream is yet to come.

He also credited Perkins for getting Australia in front, removing some pressure.

“It makes slowing down the environment a touch easier when you have two runs already,” Bazzana said. “I was feeling good in the box and got a good pitch to hit.”

The two big swings were enough in a tight game dominated by pitching. Taiwan managed only three hits and Australia had seven.

It was a critical victory for Australia, which also won its first game in 2023, defeating South Korea en route to reaching the quarterfinals and a narrow 4-3 loss to Cuba.

Australian starter Alex Wells pitched three no-hit innings.

Sabres control Penguins

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Ryan McLeod and Alex Tuch scored short-handed goals and the Buffalo Sabres beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-1 on Thursday night.

McLeod now has a league-best five short-handed goals this season. Josh Norris added a power-play goal, Owen Power scored and Mattias Samuelsson scored an empty-net goal for the Sabres, who won their fifth straight game.

Tage Thompson established a career-best, nine-game point streak with an assist. Buffalo has points in 10 straight road games, matching the longest road point streak in franchise history.

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stopped 26 shots for the Sabres, who are 11-2-1 in their last 14 games.

Bryan Rust scored a short-handed goal for the Penguins, who lost consecutive games in regulation for the first time since Jan. 10-11.

Evgeni Malkin was given a major penalty for slashing Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin at 38 seconds of the second period. Malkin, who was also assessed a cross-checking minor, was ejected, which snapped a 10-game home point streak.

Arturs Silovs made 21 saves for the Penguins, who have points in 14 of their last 17 games.

After Malkin’s penalty, Norris scored on the power play at 4:10 to give the Sabres a 2-1 lead. Buffalo continued on the power play after Pittsburgh unsuccessfully challenged for goaltender interference. The Penguins are 0 for 7 on goaltender interference challenges this season.

Tuch continued a four-game point streak with a goal at 6:18 and Power gave the Sabres a 4-1 lead with 9:30 to play in the second period.

The 39-year-old Malkin has been suspended twice in his NHL career.

one game for high-sticking Philadelphia’s Michael Raffl in February 2019, and four games in April 2022 for cross-checking Nashville’s Mark Borowiecki.

Pittsburgh is already without captain Sidney Crosby for a minimum of four weeks because of a lower-body injury.

Up next

Sabres: Host Nashville on Saturday.

Penguins: Continue a three-game homestand Saturday against Philadelphia.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl