Trending
SALEM, BRANCH DROP IN POLL
Salem’s and West Branch’s football teams dropped in the latest Associated Press state high school poll.
The unbeaten Quakers (6-0) dropped two spots to 10th in Div. III after a 38-14 win over Minerva on Friday.
The Quakers host Marlington on Friday.
West Branch (5-1) suffered its first loss of the season in a 24-14 loss at the hands of Canfield. The Warriors are 14th after being eighth a week ago. West Branch will try to get back on track on Friday at Carrollton.
In Div. VI, South Range (6-0) remains third. In Div. VII, Toronto (6-0) moved up to 10th.
JACKSON RIPS WESTVILLE ACE
BELOIT -- Jim Jackson of Salem aced Westville Lake’s 130-yard, No. 3 with a pitching wedge on Tuesday.
Jackson was playing in the Tired Men’s Golf League field day. It was his second hole-in-one.
Steve Duckworth of Salem, Chuck Estep of Sebring and Tom Wiles of Minerva were his playing partners.
CRESTVIEW APPLIES TO OVAC
COLUMBIANA -- The Crestview Board of Education announced it will apply for membership in the Ohio Valley Athletic Conference at a special meeting set for 4:30 p.m. today in the Crestview Local Administration Office.
The Rebels were a part of the OVAC from 2016-2020 when it was an independent after the break-up of the Inter-Tri County League. Once the Rebels joined the Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference there was no longer a need to be in the OVAC. Since the MVAC Gray Division will no longer exist at the end of the school year, Crestview is once again in need of a conference structure.
If Crestview is approved to join the OVAC, every Columbiana County school except Salem would be in the conference.
Depending on division placement, this could mean the Rebels could get conference tournament opportunities against old rivals Columbiana and East Palestine.
BEAVER LOCAL TO PLAY FOR TITLE
ST. CLAIRSVILLE -- Beaver Local’s volleyball team will play unbeaten and state-ranked Martins Ferry for the Buckeye 8 Athletic League volleyball championship at 6:30 p.m. today at the ECO Center.
QUAKERS FINISH 13TH
ALLIANCE -- Salem finished in 13th place on Tuesday at the Div. I sectional boys golf tournament at Tannenhauf.
For the Quakers, Caden Arcuri had a 100, Eli James 102, Donald Blackburn 103 and Samual Ziegler 134.
District qualifying teams include North Canton Hoover (315), Canfield (320), Massillon Jackson (323) and Green (338).
Individual qualifiers not on qualifying teams were Alliance’s Jaymes Smith (77), Louisville’s Noah Ickes (78), GlenOak’s Eddie Karam III (81) and Massillon Perry’s Logan Stinard (83).
MOONEY STUDENT INJURED IN ACCIDENT
YOUNGSTOWN -- Luke Durst, a ninth grader at Cardinal Mooney High School, was critically injured in an ATV accident on Sunday.
Durst was a student in the Badger school system last year.
Mooney announced postponements of several school events including homecoming on Tuesday.
LOW TURNOUT
HOUSTON (AP) -- The crowd at Daikin Park was surprisingly sparse as the Houston Astros -- baseball’s first division winner with a .500 or worse record -- opened their Wild Card Series against the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday.
Large swaths of seats, especially in the upper deck, sat empty while right-hander AJ Blumbaugh delivered the game’s first pitch at 4:10 p.m.
The bottom two levels were much more filled than the upper deck, but many seats in the lower two decks were also empty.
Houston returned to the playoffs after missing out last year despite finishing 81-81. It’s the first time a team made the postseason without a winning record in a non-shortened season.
All those empty seats are a rare sight in a ballpark that is normally packed for the postseason.
The Astros averaged 30,519 fans per game during the regular season, which ranked 14th in the majors.
Houston fought through an injury-plagued season to reach the playoffs for the ninth time in 10 years. The Astros reached the American League Championship Series seven straight times from 2017-23 and advanced to the World Series four times, winning championships in 2017 and 2022.
BECKHAM RELEASED
Odell Beckham Jr.’s return to the New York Giants, with the fan-favorite making the team at age 33 after being out of football for more than a year, lasted just three games with no catches.
The Giants released Beckham on Tuesday and signed return specialist Braxton Berrios and fellow receiver Charlie Jones to the active roster from the practice squad.
“Wishing him the best,” edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux said. “He’s a legend in the game, and he’s fought so hard to make his way back in this league. And he’s definitely going to be able to make a statement somewhere, so I’m not worried for him.”
Beckham was thrown at just once during his brief cameo back with the team that drafted him in the first round in 2014. Coach John Harbaugh last week hinted at a bigger role for Beckham, saying he “would be all for it Sunday” against Tennessee and calling it “the perfect time.”
Jameis Winston threw one deep pass intended for Beckham during the first quarter. Fans later chanted “OBJ! OBJ!” to no avail, as Beckham was only on the field for six plays of the ugly, 12-7 win and 20 of 191 (10.5%) this season.