Raisman, Hernandez
celebrated by hometowns
Thousands of people turned out to welcome gymnasts Aly Raisman and Laurie Hernandez back to their hometowns after they won medals at the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
They were on the gold-medal winning U.S. women’s gymnastics team and also won individual medals.
In the Boston suburb of Needham, Massachusetts, a “Rally for Aly” was held for 22-year-old Raisman. She also won silver medals in the floor exercise and the individual all-around at the Olympics.
In New Jersey, residents of Old Bridge staged an elaborate ceremony Saturday to honor 16-year-old Hernandez. In addition to the team medal, she won a silver medal in the balance beam competition.
Solo takes indefinite
leave from Seattle Reign
Hope Solo has taken an indefinite leave from the Seattle Reign of the National Women’s Soccer League, less than a week after being suspended for six months by the U.S. national team for disparaging remarks about Sweden.
The move was announced Saturday by the Reign, saying that the Olympic goaltender has been granted personal leave. The team did not say how long Solo would be away.
It’s been a rough time for the record-breaking goalie. On Wednesday, she was suspended after calling the Swedes “cowards” for their defensive style of play after the U.S. lost the Aug. 12 match on penalty kicks.
Solo was previously suspended for 30 days early in 2015 for her conduct, and won’t be eligible for selection to the national team until February.
Meanwhile, the Reign made their announcement hours before Saturday night’s match against the Portland Thorns. Seattle signed goalkeeper Andi Tostanoski to replace Solo.
SAN FRANCISCO – The Giants placed right-hander Jake Peavy on the 15-day disabled list with a lower back strain.
The move announced Saturday is retroactive to Aug. 21. San Francisco recalled right-hander Albert Suarez from Triple-A Sacramento to start Saturday night’s game against the Braves in Peavy’s place.
Peavy was supposed to start for the first time since a demotion to the bullpen on Aug. 1. The 2007 NL Cy Young Award winner began having back pain this week in Los Angeles, and his conditioned worsened Friday.
Peavy had an MRI on Saturday and the team is awaiting results.
Manager Bruce Bochy says Peavy “can’t pitch the way his back is right now” and that it’s “a bad break for him.”
BALTIMORE – Ravens tight end Benjamin Watson tore his right Achilles tendon and is likely out for the season.
The injury occurred on Baltimore’s first offensive play in a preseason game against the Detroit Lions on Saturday night.
Watson appeared to trip while running a pattern and slumped to the turf. After he finally got up, he had to be helped off the field.
Signed as a free agent in March, Watson was expected to be a key element in the Ravens’ passing game. He had 74 catches for 825 yards and six touchdowns last season with New Orleans.
The 35-year-old broke into the league in 2004 with New England and played with Cleveland from 2010 through 2012 before going to the Saints.
He has 434 catches for 4,963 yards and 38 touchdowns in 163 games.
Rams receiver Austin gets
4-year, $42M extension
DENVER – Wide receiver Tavon Austin has signed a four-year contract extension with the Los Angeles Rams.
The deal was announced while the team was in Denver for an exhibition game Saturday night. NFL.com reported the deal was worth $42 million with $30 million guaranteed.
“Tavon has been an integral part of our offense and special teams since we drafted him in 2013,” coach Jeff Fisher said in a statement.
“It is important to our organization to retain players we’ve drafted and invested in, and Tavon is an example of that. We’re excited for him to continue his career with the Rams.”
In three seasons, Austin has 19 touchdowns: nine receiving, seven rushing and three on punt returns. He scored 10 TDs last season, tied with running back Todd Gurley for most on the team.
Austin caught 52 passes for 473 yards last season and rushed for 434 yards and four TDs.
Chiefs acquire CB Acker
from 49ers for draft pick
CHICAGO – The Kansas City Chiefs have acquired cornerback Kenneth Acker from the San Francisco 49ers for an undisclosed draft pick.
A sixth-round selection by the 49ers in 2014, Acker missed his rookie season because of a foot injury. But he played in 15 games last season and had three interceptions.
The deal was announced on Saturday.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta won his first ATP World Tour title Saturday, beating countryman Roberto Bautista Agut in three sets in the Winston-Salem Open final.
Busta, ranked 49th in the world, overcame dropping a first-set tiebreaker at the Wake Forest Tennis Center to upset 17th-ranked Agut 6-7 (8), 7-6 (1), 6-4 and win his first tour title in three final-round appearances, all coming in 2016.
Busta, 25, needed just over 2 hours to become the sixth first-time winner on the ATP World Tour this season, and the first to do so in an American tournament.
Agut, 28, was trying to win his third tournament this season, becoming the fifth player on tour to win three or more titles, and the fifth of his career. He won earlier this year at Auckland, New Zealands, and Sofia, Bulgaria.
NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Top-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska completed a dominating week at the Connecticut Open, beating Elina Svitolina 6-1, 7-6 (3) in the final.
The Polish star didn’t drop a set during the tournament. She took control of the final from the start, winning 20 of the first 27 points to take a 5-0 lead.
The 21-year-old Svitolina, from the Ukraine, held off two set points in the sixth game, but Radwanska was able to serve out the set in 29 minutes.
The second set was much closer and Radwanska saved two set points to force the tiebreaker.
But Svitolina, the 10th seed, committed 36 unforced errors, including a backhand into the net to end the match.
The title is the second this season for the Radwanska, who also won the Shenzhen Open in China in January. She will go into next week’s U.S. Open as the No. 4 seed.
ELKHART LAKE, Wis. – Michael McDowell won the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Road America on Saturday, edging Brendan Gaughan following an overtime restart.
McDowell beat Gaughan by 0.534 seconds on an overcast, sometimes misty afternoon at the sprawling road course. The Richard Childress Racing teammates went bumper-to-bumper midway through the last lap before McDowell held on at the finish line.
A regular on NASCAR’s top Sprint Cup circuit, McDowell took his first career Xfinity checkered flag.
Three cautions in a late eight-lap stretch led to several bumps and spin-outs in the field around the 14-turn course. The extra time had crew chiefs fretting about fuel strategy.
McDowell had more than enough, spinning his wheels into a wall at the finish line to burn his tires in a smoky celebration.
Brennan Poole finished third.
SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium – Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg clinched the pole position for the Belgian Grand Prix ahead of 18-year-old Dutchman Max Verstappen, while championship leader Lewis Hamilton will start today’s race from the back of the grid.
Cheered on by a large contingent of Dutch fans, Verstappen beat Sebastian Vettel’s leading time to move into contention, only for Rosberg to beat Verstappen’s mark and clinch his 28th career pole.
Kimi Raikkonen placed third, ahead of Vettel.
Rosberg, who trails Hamilton by 19 points in the title race, has a great chance to close the gap.
Hamilton’s grid penalties increased to 55 places after Mercedes had further engine changes, following those made during Friday’s practice.
With nothing to gain, Hamilton did only four laps early in qualifying before rolling into the team garage.
FARMINGDALE, N.Y. – Rickie Fowler kept bogeys off his card for the second straight day and closed with a 5-foot birdie putt for a 3-under 68, giving him a one-shot lead over Patrick Reed going into the final round of The Barclays.
Fowler had three par putts of 10 feet or more. He has gone 45 straight holes without a bogey at Bethpage Black.
Along with having a chance to win his first PGA Tour event in a year, Fowler is in prime position to earn a spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup team.
He was at 9-under 204.
Reed overcame a stretch of bogeys early for a 71, missing birdie chances on the last two holes.
Adam Scott had a 65, the low score of the tournament, and was two shots back.
PARIS – Olympic champion Ruth Jebet broke the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase world record by six seconds at the Diamond League meeting in Paris on Saturday.
The 19-year-old Jebet, born in Kenya but running for Bahrain, clocked 8 minutes, 52.78 seconds at Stade de France.
The previous record was 8:58.81 by Gulnara Samitova-Galkina of Russia at the 2008 Beijing Games.