Max Verstappen believes Lando Norris' victory at the Miami Grand Prix will not be his last in Formula One, having been unable to match the McLaren star's pace in Florida.

Norris took his maiden F1 victory at the Miami International Autodrome, racing from fifth on the grid to finish seven seconds clear of three-time world champion Verstappen.

Verstappen started on pole but struggled to match Norris' pace on the hard tyres as he failed to win a race for just the second time this season.

The Red Bull driver has four victories in six outings in 2024, having retired at the Australian Grand Prix in March as Ferrari's Carlos Sainz took the spoils.

Speaking after Sunday's race, Verstappen said: "You win, you lose. We're all used to that in racing, right? Today was a bit tricky.

"I think already on the medium tyres it didn't feel fantastic, we were pulling away but not like it should be. Then once we made a pit stop I heard the lap times McLaren were doing and I was like, 'Well, that's pretty quick!'

"Once they also switched onto the hard tyre, they just had more pace, especially Lando – he was flying. It was incredibly difficult for us on that stint, but if a bad day is P2 I'll take it.

"I'm very happy for Lando, it's been a long time coming and it's not going to be his last one, so he definitely deserves it today."

Some have suggested McLaren may be the most likely team to challenge Red Bull's dominance this year, having arrived in Miami with a raft of upgrades to their MCL38 car.

Asked whether Sunday's race was a true representation of McLaren's pace, Verstappen said: "I hope not! 

"They came with an upgrade, for sure it looks like it works so we have a bit of work to do from our side.

"I think it definitely wasn't our strongest weekend in terms of race pace, but we'll analyse it all and try to come back stronger."

Trailing by 18 points in Game 7, the Cleveland Cavaliers' season appeared to be over. Donovan Mitchell, however, had other ideas.

Mitchell scored 39 points to help rally the Cavaliers to a 106-94 win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday to advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Fouth-seeded Cleveland, who won their first playoff series since 2018, will now face the top-seeded Boston Celtics in Tuesday's series opener.

The Cavaliers won their first playoff series without LeBron James since 1993, though it looked like they were heading for a second straight first-round exit as they found themselves trailing 49-31 with less than four minutes to go in the second quarter.

The Cavs cut it to 10 at half-time, and Mitchell helped Cleveland complete the comeback with a sensational third quarter.

After finishing with 50 points in Friday's 103-96 Game 6 loss, Mitchell had two more points than the entire Magic team in the third, scoring 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting as Cleveland outscored Orlando 33-15 to take a 76-68 lead into the fourth.

The Magic stayed within striking distance throughout the first half of the final period until Darius Garland finally found his shot.

Garland scored 10 of his 12 points in the final six minutes of the game, a stretch that began with a made 3-pointer to put the Cavaliers up by 11 points.

The Magic only connected on 3-of-15 3-point attempts after half-time and made just 4-of-24 shots (16.7 per cent) in the pivotal third quarter.

Paolo Banchero led Orlando with 38 points and a career high-tying 16 rebounds but Franz Wagner and Jalen Suggs combined for just 16 points on 3-of-28 shooting.

At 21 years and 175 days old, Banchero became the second-youngest player in NBA history to have at least 35 points and 15 rebounds in a playoff game. The only player younger was Magic Johnson (20 years, 276 days) on May 16, 1980.

Caris LeVert added 15 off the bench for the Cavaliers, while Evan Mobley had 11 points and a playoff career-high 16 boards.

Cleveland again played without All-Star centre Jarrett Allen, who sat out the final three games of the series due to a rib contusion.

He averaged 17 points and 13.8 rebounds in the series' first four games, and his status for Game 1 in Boston is uncertain.

Shohei Ohtani went 4 for 4 and delivered his first two-homer game as a Los Angeles Dodger to power his new team to a 5-1 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Sunday.

Ohtani's big performance enabled the Dodgers to complete a sweep of this three-game series between National League clubs who each won their division last season.

Two other notable offseason additions also contributed to Los Angeles' fourth straight win. Teoscar Hernandez added a two-run homer, while James Paxton yielded just one run on five hits over 6 2/3 innings to improve to 4-0.

Ohtani staked the Dodgers to an early lead with a two-run homer off Max Fried in the first inning. The 2023 American League MVP later singled in the sixth before Hernandez launched Fried's curveball into the stands in left center field to extend the margin to 4-0.

Paxton kept Atlanta off the scoreboard until the seventh, when Marcell Ozuna connected for his 10th home run of the season to move into a tie with Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson and injured Los Angeles Angels star Mike Trout for the major league lead.

Ohtani joined that group an inning later with a titanic 464-foot blast off A.J. Minter in the eighth.

Fried (2-1) struck out seven in seven innings, but was dealt his first loss of 2024 after allowing four runs on just four hits.

 

Red Sox end Twins' streak as bats break out

Sparked by two-run homers from Ceddane Rafaela and Rafael Devers, the Boston Red Sox broke out of an offensive funk to snap the Minnesota Twins' 12-game winning streak with Sunday's 9-2 victory.

Boston also received two-run doubles from Vaughn Grissom and Dominic Smith to halt a three-game skid in which it scored a combined four runs. The Red Sox had gone six consecutive games without a home run until Rafaela connected off Minnesota starter Joe Ryan in the fifth inning to break a 1-1 tie. 

The Twins' 12-game run was tied for the franchise's second-longest winning streak since relocating to Minnesota in 1961, surpassed only by a 15-game stretch in 1991.

Minnesota did own a 1-0 lead following Ryan Jeffers' solo homer off Cooper Criswell in the third inning, but Rob Refsnyder doubled home Jarren Duran in the fourth to pull Boston even.

Rafaela then followed Reese McGuire's single with his fifth homer of the season to give the Red Sox a 3-1 advantage in the fifth. The score remained that way until Boston broke the game open with four runs against the Twins' bullpen in the eighth.

After loading the bases with one out on a Devers single, a Tyler O'Neill double and a walk, Grissom drove in two with an opposite-field double that preceded Smith's two-run double that increased the lead to 7-1.

The Twins got a run back in their half of the eighth when Max Kepler doubled and scored on Trevor Larnach's single, but Devers followed a triple by Duran with his blast off reliever Jay Jackson in the ninth.

Brennan Bernardino received the win after retiring both batters he faced in relief of Criswell, who allowed one run in 4 1/3 innings.

Ryan (1-2) surrendered three runs while striking out five in six innings.

 

Harper's three-run homer helps Phillies stay hot

Bryce Harper's three-run homer in the third inning provided the biggest blow as the scorching Philadelphia Phillies won their fifth straight game by holding on for a 5-4 victory over the San Francisco Giants. 

J.T. Realmuto had three hits and Alec Bohm extended his hitting streak to 18 games to help Philadelphia win for the ninth time in 10 outings. The Phillies, owners of MLB's best record at 24-11, are 16-3 since April 15.

The Phillies also got a strong effort from Taijuan Walker in his second start back from the injured list. The right-hander worked 6 1/3 innings and allowed three runs while striking out seven to move to 2-0.

Walker was touched for a run in the first inning after permitting a single to Lamonte Wade Jr. and a run-scoring double to Michael Conforto. The veteran hurler settled down from there, though, and the Phillies pulled even in the second when Bohm reached second on an error and later crossed the plate on Edmundo Sosa's infield single.

Harper then put Philadelphia ahead in the third when he followed a walk to Kyle Schwarber and a Realmuto single with a drive into the home bullpen off San Francisco starter Logan Webb.

Webb (3-3) struck out six but was removed after throwing 98 pitches in four innings. The Giants' ace was tagged for five runs - four earned - on six hits and two walks.

Walker protected the 5-1 lead until serving up a two-run homer to Thairo Estrada in the seventh. The Giants inched closer on Jakson Reetz's solo homer off Jose Alvarado with one out in the ninth, but the Philadelphia closer retired the next two hitters to record his seventh save of the season.

Reetz's homer was his first in the majors. The catcher had his contract purchased from Triple-A prior to the game.

Bohm kept his hitting streak alive in his final plate appearance when he doubled in the seventh. 

 

Lando Norris said it was “about time” after he claimed his maiden Formula 1 victory in the Miami Grand Prix on Sunday.

The 24-year-old started the race in fifth but took the chequered flag with a seven-second advantage over Max Verstappen, who had taken pole position.

Norris capitalised with a timely pit stop behind the safety car following a crash between Kevin Magnussen and Logan Sargeant, who was unable to finish the race.

Verstappen had led for the first 29 laps despite missing the chicane on lap 21 and hitting a bollard, but when the race restarted with 27 remaining, he struggled to keep pace with Norris, who was the quickest car on the track.

Charles Leclerc rounded out the podium, pipping his Ferrari team-mate Carlos Sainz to third, with Sergio Perez just beating Lewis Hamilton to a top-five finish.

After getting his first win in his 110th F1 race, Norris was quick to praise his team for their hard work in the process.

Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: "About time! What a race. It's been a long time coming. Finally, I've managed to do it.

"I'm so happy for my whole team. I finally delivered for them. Long day, tough race. Finally, on top, so I'm over the moon.

"Thanks to McLaren, everyone. I'll give a shout-out to my mum and dad, of course.

"I'm just proud. A lot of people doubted me along the way. I've made a lot of mistakes over my last five years in my short career, but today we put it altogether.

"This is all for the team. I stuck with McLaren because I could believe in them and do believe in them. Today we proved exactly that." 

Trailing by 18 points in Game 7, the Cleveland Cavaliers' season appeared to be over.

Donovan Mitchell, however, then took over.

Mitchell scored 39 points to help rally the Cavaliers to a 106-94 win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday to advance to the Eastern Conference semi-finals.

Fouth-seeded Cleveland, which won its first play-off series since 2018, will now face the top-seeded Boston Celtics in Tuesday's series opener.

 

The Cavaliers won their first play-off series without LeBron James since 1993, though it looked like the team was headed to a second straight first-round exit as Cleveland found itself trailing 49-31 with less than four minutes to go in the second quarter.

The Cavs cut it to 10 at half-time, and Mitchell helped Cleveland complete the comeback with a sensational third quarter.

After finishing with 50 points in Friday's 103-96 Game 6 loss, Mitchell had two more points than the entire Magic team in the third, scoring 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting as Cleveland outscored Orlando 33-15 to take a 76-68 lead into the fourth.

The Magic stayed within striking distance throughout the first half of the final period until Darius Garland finally found his shot.

Garland scored 10 of his 12 points in the final six minutes of the game, a stretch that began with a made 3-pointer to put the Cavaliers up by 11 points.

The Magic only connected on 3-of-15 3-point attempts after half-time and made just 4-of-24 shots (16.7 per cent) in the pivotal third quarter.

Paolo Banchero led Orlando with 38 points and a career high-tying 16 rebounds but Franz Wagner and Jalen Suggs combined for just 16 points on 3-of-28 shooting.

At 21 years and 175 days old, Banchero became the second-youngest player in NBA history to have at least 35 points and 15 rebounds in a play-off game. The only player younger was Magic Johnson (20 years, 276 days) on May 16, 1980.

Caris LeVert added 15 off the bench for the Cavaliers, while Evan Mobley had 11 points and a play-off career-high 16 boards.

Cleveland again played without All-Star centre Jarrett Allen, who sat out the final three games of the series due to a rib contusion.

He averaged 17 points and 13.8 rebounds in the series' first four games, and his status for Game 1 in Boston is uncertain.

Nikola Jokic paid tribute to "special player" Anthony Edwards following the Minnesota Timberwolves shooting guard's influential display against the Denver Nuggets.

Edwards notched up a career playoff high of 43 points as the Wolves drew first blood in the Western Conference semi-finals series with a 106-99 victory over the reigning champions in Game 1.

The two-time NBA All-Star shot 17-for-29 - including seven-for-10 on jump shots - seven rebounds, three assists, two blocks and one steal to become only the second player aged 22 or under in postseason history after Kobe Bryant to record successive 40-point performances.

Edwards has now scored 119 points across his last three playoff outings; the highest tally by a Wolves player across a three-game span in their postseason history. 

The 22-year-old's exploits caught the eye of last season's NBA Finals MVP in Jokic, who shot just 11-for-25 (and two-for-nine from three-pointers) and conceded a game-high seven turnovers as the Nuggets surrendered home-court advantage at Ball Arena.

"To be honest, he's a special player," he said of Edwards. "I have huge respect for him; he can do everything on the floor. You need to give him respect for how good and how talented he is."

Minnesota have looked inspired during the playoffs, with a sweep of the Phoenix Suns helping them advance beyond the opening round for the first time since their only previous semi-final appearance in 2004.

And Edwards insists he and his team-mates are not daunted by the prospect of appearing in unfamiliar territory.

"Going against the best player in the world is always fun, going against the best team in the world is always fun," he said. "Our guys came out and competed, so it's not about me personally, it's about my team.

"It's not about introducing ourselves to anybody; we know who we are. We're coming out and as long as we've got each other's backs, it doesn't really matter what anybody else thinks."

The West Coast Fever delivered a commanding performance against the New South Wales Swifts in the Suncorp Super Netball League on Sunday, maintaining their unbeaten streak with a resounding 75-59 victory. The win marks the Fever's fourth consecutive triumph in the league.

 Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard led the charge for the Fever, showcasing her shooting prowess with an impressive tally of 59 goals from 60 attempts. In contrast, Samantha Wallace-Joseph of the Swifts managed 34 goals from 35 attempts.

 The match was evenly poised at halftime, with the Fever holding a narrow 35-33 lead. However, they seized control in the second half, outscoring the Swifts 40-26 to secure a decisive victory.

 Both teams displayed high-intensity play from the outset, with the ball swiftly transitioning between players and into the hands of their sharpshooters, Fowler-Nembhard and Wallace-Joseph. The Fever capitalized on their offensive strategies, utilizing precise passing to set up scoring opportunities for Fowler-Nembhard against a formidable Swifts defence.

 Although the Swifts showed promise in the second quarter, tightening their defensive pressure and causing turnovers, the Fever regained momentum after halftime. Fowler-Nembhard continued to dominate in the shooting circle, supported by a cohesive midfield effort led by Kelsey Browne.

 Defensively, Sunday Aryang played a pivotal role for the Fever, effectively neutralizing key Swifts players and disrupting their attacking flow. The Fever's relentless defensive pressure and cohesive teamwork ultimately propelled them to a convincing victory.

 With this win, the West Coast Fever maintain their unbeaten run in the Suncorp Super Netball League, showcasing their championship potential early in the season. The team's performance underscores their depth and skill across all facets of the game, setting a strong foundation for future success in the competition.

Aryna Sabalenka is encouraged by her run to the Madrid Open final and feels her performance levels "can only get better", despite defeat by Iga Swiatek.

In a repeat of last year's showpiece, the world number two went down 7-5 4-6 7-6 (9-7) in a thrilling encounter with the Pole, who avenged her loss from 12 months ago. 

Sabalenka, who saw three championship points go begging, narrowly missed out on becoming only the second woman to win three titles in Madrid after Petra Kvitova. 

Nevertheless, the reigning Australian Open champion reached her first final since triumphing in Melbourne, while extending her winning streak in the Spanish capital to 11 matches before defeat to the world number one.

"I really want to see many more finals against [Swiatek]. I want to see more wins than losses," she said. "But I really hope that we'll be able to keep the level or increase the level every year.

"I'm happy with the level I played, with the effort I put into this match and into this week. I'm leaving Madrid with positive thoughts.

"Probably when I broke [Swiatek] in the third set, I should have been more focused on my serve. But at the same time, it's not like I double-faulted; she played great tennis, and she broke me back.

"I think after the Australian Open, I struggled for a couple of months. It's been intense. I'm super happy that, here in Madrid, I was able to bring it all together and be able to get back to my level. It can only get better from now on."

Swiatek was not to be denied a third title of the season - a tally only matched by Elena Rybakina - and she has now won each of her last seven WTA Tour-level finals since losing out to Sabalenka in Madrid last year.

The three-time French Open champion has also now triumphed in every European clay court tournament at WTA 500 level or higher.

"When I look back in maybe a few years, it will mean a lot," the Pole said. "But for now, I'm just happy that I won this tournament anyway. It doesn't matter to me if I won it before or not. I try to win each tournament that I play.

"I think it was more about who was going to be less stressed and who was going to be able to play with more freedom.

"For most of the match, I felt like some decisions [from her] were pretty courageous. I was sometimes a little bit back. So, in the end, I just wanted not to do that and to also be courageous.

"I don't know what made a difference. I think we both deserved to win; I think it was only about those little points in the tiebreaker."

Brent Rooker homered twice in a 10-run third inning and Brett Harris hit the first two home runs of his major league career as the surprising Oakland Athletics reached .500 with a 20-4 pounding of the Miami Marlins on Saturday.

Rooker became the first Athletics player in 30 years to go deep twice in an inning and became the 60th in major league history. Trea Turner of Philadelphia was the last to do it on Aug. 19. The most recent A’s player to do it was Mark McGwire against Seattle in 1996.

Shea Langeliers and JJ Bleday also homered for the Athletics, who have won six straight and eight of nine to get to .500 for the first time since they were 1-1 after a win on April 1, 2023.

Rooker finished with three hits and tied a career high with five RBIs, Bleday had three hits and drove in four, while Langeliers and Darrell Hernaiz added three hits apiece.

Oakland collected 21 hits, its most since it had 25 at Houston on Sept. 10, 2019.

The A’s are the biggest surprise in baseball after losing 112 games last season. Oakland didn’t win its 17th game last season until June 12.

 

Twins beat Red Sox for 12th straight victory

Max Kepler’s home run backed a strong outing by Pablo Lopez and the Minnesota Twins won their 12th straight game, 3-1 over the Boston Red Sox.

The Twins’ streak matches their run from the 1980 season, tied for the second-longest in team history. The club record for consecutive wins is 15, set in June 1991, the last season Minnesota won the World Series.

Lopez allowed one run on five hits over six innings with one walk and eight strikeouts. Three relievers worked two scoreless innings before Cole Sands pitched the ninth for his second save.

Kepler homered off Cam Booser in the fourth inning to snap a 1-1 tie and Carlos Correa’s sacrifice fly in the sixth closed the scoring.

The Red Sox lost their third in a row and have gone six consecutive games without a home run, their longest streak since six straight in 2022.

 

Muncy hits three home runs in Dodgers’ win

Max Muncy had the first three-home run game of his career among his four hits and Shohei Ohtani added three hits with a home run to lift the surging Los Angeles Dodgers to an 11-2 rout of the Atlanta Braves.

Freddie Freeman also had three hits for the Dodgers, who have won three straight and 10 of 12.

Muncy hit a two-run shot in the second inning off Bryce Elder and added solo shots in the seventh and eighth innings to become the first Dodger with a three-homer game since Trayce Thompson on April 1, 2023.

Ohtani led off the third with his eighth home run and surpassed manager Dave Roberts for most homers by a Japanese-born player with the Dodgers.

Tyler Glasnow struck out 10 and became the second pitcher in the majors to reach six wins. He allowed two runs on five hits over seven innings.

 

Anthony Edwards poured in a playoff career-high 43 points and Naz Reid scored 14 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter as the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Denver Nuggets 106-99 on the road in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals on Saturday.

Edwards had 25 points in the first half and Reid took over in the fourth quarter, scoring 10 straight points at one point during a pivotal late run.

His 3-pointer with 4:19 remaining capped the surge for a 94-88 lead and the Timberwolves held on down the stretch, with Edwards scoring eight points in the final three minutes.

Game 2 is Monday night in Denver.

Nikola Jokić had 32 points, nine assists and eight rebounds but also had seven turnovers for Denver and Jamal Murray added 17 points after he was held scoreless in the first half.

Karl-Anthony Towns battled foul trouble to score 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting and Mike Conley added 14 points and 10 assists for the Wolves, who improved to 5-0 in these playoffs. 

Three days after knee surgery, Minnesota coach Chris Finch was on the bench in the second row, next to the scorer’s table and behind assistant Micha Nori, who did the instructing, roaming and switching.

Max Verstappen continued to be critical of his own performance despite taking pole position for the Miami Grand Prix.

Verstappen, who won the sprint earlier on Saturday and had on Friday claimed pole in qualifying for that event, recorded a best time of 1:27.241 round the track in the final qualification session for Sunday's race.

The reigning Formula One world champion will share the front row with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, who like in the sprint, came second.

Leclerc's team-mate Carlos Sainz pipped Red Bull's Sergio Perez to third, while Lando Norris rounded out the top five.

Verstappen, though, was not particularly thrilled with his drive, continuing the trend after both qualifying on Friday and the sprint race.

He said: "We definitely improved the car a bit but I don’t know what it is but every single year we come here I find it extremely difficult to be very consistent with the car and tyre feeling over one lap. It’s super hard to make sure that Sector One feels good and Sector Three at the end of the lap to make that happen together is incredibly tough.

"Again today it was really about finding that balance, I think we did ok, it wasn't the most enjoyable lap out of my career especially with how slippery it is and you aren't very confident on the lap but we are on pole."

Leclerc said: "I felt so much on the limit. It was very close until Q3, where we started to push for the last one or two tenths. We started to lose the tyres in sector two and three, overheating them quite a bit. That's where we lost a little bit of time.

"However, the race is long and this morning we showed a good pace, so I hope tomorrow we can put Max under a bit more pressure."

Lewis Hamilton recovered from a 20-second penalty in the sprint race to qualify in seventh, one place behind Mercedes team-mate George Russell.

Iga Swiatek clinched the Madrid Open title after downing defending champion Aryna Sabalenka in a gruelling final.

In a rematch of last year's final, the top two players in the world did battle in thrilling fashion on Saturday, with Swiatek eventually prevailing 7-5 4-6 7-6 (9-7) after three hours and 14 minutes on court.

It marked Swiatek's first title in Madrid, and the Pole had to do it the hard way, saving three championship points before finally coming out on top in the tie-break, which she sealed with her second championship point when Sabalenka sent a backhand long.

This victory means Swiatek, who has won the French Open on three occasions, has now won every European clay court tournament at WTA 500 level or higher.

It was also Swiatek's seventh victory over Sabalenka, from what was their 10th meeting.

Data Debrief: Clay queen Swiatek rolls on

Swiatek has now won her past seven WTA Tour-level finals, since the defeat to Sabalenka in Madrid last season, while only Elena Rybakina can match her haul of three titles so far in 2024.

This was the longest singles final of the year so far on the WTA Tour, while it was the fourth show-piece match in a WTA 1000 event to be decided by a third set tie-break.

Since the format’s introduction in 2009, only Serena Williams (13) and Victoria Azarenka (10) have more WTA 1000 titles than Swiatek, whose tally of nine equals the efforts of Simona Halep and Petra Kvitova.

Meanwhile, of players to have made at least 10 appearances at clay court tournaments, only Chris Evert, Margaret Court and Steffi Graf have a higher ratio of victories in the Open Era than Swiatek (8/18).

In fact, Swiatek has now claimed a tournament victory in 31 per cent (9/29) of the WTA 1000 main draws she has entered, the highest percentage of any player since the format’s introduction in 2009.

Jannik Sinner has joined Carlos Alcaraz in withdrawing from the Italian Open due to injury.

Sinner, who pulled out of his quarter-final tie with Felix Auger-Aliassime at the Madrid Open this week, is suffering with a hip issue.

It means the world number two will not participate in what would have been a home tournament in Rome, in what is sure to be a disappointment to the Italian fans.

"It is not easy to write this message but after speaking again with the doctors and specialists about my hip problems I have to announce that unfortunately I will not be able to play in Rome," he wrote on X.

"Obviously I'm very sad that I didn't recover, it being one of my favourite tournaments ever. I couldn't wait to come back and play at home in front of the Italian crowd."

Sinner added he was focusing on recovering in time to play at the French Open, which starts towards the end of May.

On Friday, world number one Alcaraz withdrew from the Italian Open due to an arm problem.

Formula One world champion Max Verstappen claimed victory in the sprint race ahead of the Miami Grand Prix.

Verstappen clinched pole for the sprint in Friday's qualifying session, and capitalised on that effort to finish ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc on Saturday.

The Dutchman had to see off an early push from Leclerc, but ultimately had too much.

Sergio Perez, Verstappen's Red Bull team-mate, recovered from an early mistake to finish third.

Daniel Ricciardo took fourth, having fended off the challenge of both Carlos Sainz and Oscar Piastri.

It was a bad drive for Lewis Hamilton, who was penalised for speeding in the pit lane, dropping him from eighth down to 16th.

Top Bajan female golfer, Emily Odwin, made history when she became the first Barbadian golfer to win an American Collegiate Conference Championship by helping the Southern Methodist University Mustangs win the American Athletic Conference Women's Golf Championship from April 15-17 at the Southern Hills Plantation Club in Brooksville, Florida.

Odwin’s Southern Methodist University (SMU) Mustangs staged a major come back from a tournament-low 12-under 276 to move up two spots.

They then overcome a nine-stroke deficit to secure the title, becoming only the second team to repeat as champions in the process.

Odwin, who is also the first Barbadian female to ever play NCAA Division One golf, had a five-under 211 to lead her team’s charge along with teammates Ellie Szerk and Mackenzie Lee. All three tied for fifth in the individual standings.

Odwin shot a three-under 33 on the back nine to shoot up the standings. 

She joined the Mustangs after transferring from the University of Texas and has played for them in seven starts this season in which she had four top ten finishes.

 

Adrian Newey acknowledged Lewis Hamilton's interest in working with him at Ferrari came as a flattering compliment for the outgoing Red Bull designer.

Hamilton will complete his switch to Ferrari next season as the Italian team managed to convince the seven-time world champion to leave Mercedes.

Newey will also be on the move early next year and is free to join a rival team ahead of the 2026 season.

Hamilton said working with Newey would be a "privilege", with one of the best designers in Formula One history at the top of his list of people to work with.

Those comments did not go unnoticed by Newey, who spoke to Sky Sports about a potential link-up with Hamilton ahead of the Miami Grand Prix on Sunday.

"F1 is all-consuming. I've been at it for a long time now," Newey said of his decision to leave Red Bull after joining the team in 2006.

"2021 was a really busy year because of the tight battle with Mercedes, through the championship and at the same time, putting all the research into the RB18 [the 2022 car].

"There comes a point where I just felt, as Forrest Gump said, 'I'm feeling a little bit tired'.

"It's very kind of Lewis to say that. I'm very flattered. At the moment, it's just take a bit of a break and see what happens next."

Newey's decision to part ways with Red Bull was announced on Wednesday, though the acclaimed designer says it has been on his mind for a while.

"A little while now. I guess over the winter a little bit," Newey said when asked about his intentions to depart.

"Then as events have unfolded this year, I thought, I'm in very lucky position where I don't need to work to live. I work because I enjoy it.

"I just felt now is a good time to step back a bit, take a break and take stock of life.

"Then maybe at some point I will stand in the shower and say 'right, this is going to be the next adventure'.

"But right now, there is no plan."

The Orlando Magic survived a "special" Donovan Mitchell showing to overcome the Cleveland Cavaliers and force Game 7 in the NBA Playoffs.

Mitchell posted 50 points but that was not enough for the Cavaliers, who will have home advantage on Sunday in the winner-takes-all decider after their 103-96 loss in Game 6.

Mitchell's half-century haul tied for the second most in a loss in a potential series clincher in NBA history, according to ESPN.

Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley was quick to heap praise on Mitchell as Orlando edged through to a series decider.

"He was going, but the other guys didn't have it going as much," Mosley said. "No one overreacted [to Mitchell]. He's a special, special player.

"To be able to have 50 and only make three 3s, that's very special. But our ability not to overreact or panic to what was happening because we continued to share it, move it, trust each other."

Mitchell scored all his team’s 18 points in the fourth quarter, including a pair of 3s.

The Cavaliers star fell one point shy of matching the franchise playoff scoring record set by LeBron James, who had 51 in May 2018 against Golden State in the NBA Finals.

"We missed shots. Mine went in, but if it's not 50 maybe it's 60 or whatever it is," Mitchell said. "Maybe it's 30-10-10, whatever the game calls for. It is what it is.

"We didn't win the game. If I had 20 more, we would be up 20 more. Whatever the game calls for, it's my job to figure it out."

Cleveland won Games 1, 2 and 5 but Mitchell says previous encounters will be meaningless come the decider.

"All of the stuff you've done for six games all goes out the window," Mitchell said. "It's all about desperation and will.

"It's going to be just like tonight – find ways to continually be relentless. I have no doubt that we'll show up."

Franz Wagner had 26 points and Jalen Suggs added 22 for the Magic, who have not won a series for 14 years.

"Anything they have done to try and throw us off our game, knock us off balance, we've responded to it," Suggs said.

"We didn't want to end it here, and I think we all found comfort in that – in understanding how much pressure, you can call it, is on this game. But it was just another game for all of us."

Defending champions Craig Simpson and Wendy McMaster will be gunning for top honors again at the Rangers Gun Club shoot which is set for Sunday May 6th with a 10 am shotgun start at the True Juice Complex in Bog Walk, St. Catherine.

The venue is considered to be happy hunting ground for the two defending champions. It is the venue where Simpson posted his highest score in the sport (97 out of a possible 100) and where McMaster dethroned her daughter and two-time winner Aliana, to take the top spot. 

Competition for top honors will be stiff as some of the Jamaica Skeet Club's best shooters will be on the course. They include nine-time national shotgun champion Ian Banks, six-time national shotgun champion Shaun Barnes, four-time national shotgun champion Christian Sasso, other national shotgun champions like Chad Ziadie, his father Geoffrey Ziadie, Ray McMaster, Andrew Hopwood, Nicholas Benjamin and young David Wong as well as former winner Nicholas Chen.

On the female side the top contenders include two-time winner Aliana McMaster and sister Leanne, Renee Rickhi who is part of the Jamaica Rifle Association's Alpha Angels lady shooters, Marguerite Harris and granddaughter Lori-Ann Harris among others. 

Shooters in various classes from A - E, Hunters or Beginners, Juniors, Sub-Juniors and Ladies will be competing hard in order to win their classes and in some cases move up to higher and more challenging classes. The event features an eighteen-station driving course. 

The shooters will face targets of varying types including true pairs (birds launched at the same time), rabbits (birds released on the ground), birds in the air released at different speeds and directions as well as some targets released over gentle flowing streams on the lush green course. 

The Rangers Gun Club is expecting another big field of approximately one hundred and fifty shooters to conquer the expansive driving course for a day of individual and team competition which will feature the local gun clubs. For the third year in a row four clubs will compete for that trophy. The competing clubs are Driftwood Gun Club, Rangers Gun Club, Trelawny Gun Club and defending champion - the Jamaica Gun Club. 

Part proceeds from the event will be donated to the Food for the Poor organization. 

The lead sponsor for the Rangers Gun Club Sporting Clays shoot is Sterling Asset Management while Worthy Park Select, National and STLSOLAR are the next level sponsors. 

The club has a rich history of young business men and some of their fathers who loved shooting getting together in the mid-1980s to start the Rangers Gun Club at their Salt Gully base in St. Catherine. They initially focused on bird shooting then took on sporting clays which is currently the most popular form of the sport.

 

Jamaica’s trio of Latanya Wilson, Shamera Sterling-Humphrey, and Romelda Aiken-George again produced strong performances, as their Adelaide Thunderbirds team outclassed GIANTS Netball 69-49, at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre, on Saturday.

Aiken-George led from the front with 29 goals from 35 attempts, backed by Lucy Austin, who scored 23 goals from 24, including two super shots, while Lauren Frew (9 goals from 9 attempts), and Georgie Horjus (8 goals from 9 attempts), also got in on the act.

While the shooters were clinical for the most parts, it was the defensive work of Matilda Garrett, Sterling-Humphrey, Wilson and others, that limited GIANTS –the team of another Jamaican Jodi-Ann Ward –in the 20-goal win.

Sophie Dwyer, with 26 goals from 27 attempts, and Jo Harten 18 goals from 24 attempts led the scoring for the GIANTS, while Matisse Letherbarrow got the other five goals.

The Thunderbirds, who entered the contest with two wins and a loss, were always favoured to come out tops, as the GIANTS struggle to find their footing, and are yet to secure a win this season.

With the use of a variety of combinations from her ten-strong roster, Head coach, Tania Obst, ensured GIANTS didn’t stand a chance, as her Thunderbirds team won all four quarters, 18-12, 19-11, 17-13, and 15-13.

Though Jamie-Lee Price was crucial for the GIANTS, doing a wealth of work in both attack and defence for her team, her hard work was not always rewarded as a few shots were missed and unforced errors were made. That, coupled with the fact that Adelaide’s defenders Garrett and Sterling-Humphrey applied intense pressure, made life even more difficult for the GIANTS.

The Thunderbirds’ fine form continued after the half-time interval, while the GIANTS once again struggled to stay in touch with their host. Despite being down, Dwyer’s confidence for the GIANTS didn’t waver and she found her rhythm which was important for the visitors.

However, as it felt like there was a momentum shift, Dwyer broke on the centre pass, giving up much-needed possession, and the positional swap between Wilson and Sterling-Humphrey made life miserable for the GIANTS, as it caused confusion for their shooters in the circle.

The Thunderbirds went into the final period 54-36 up and denied the GIANTS of almost any opportunity to get the ball down court smoothly and easily.

Before the final Power Five, Obst again changed combinations as the Thunderbirds pressed the ascendancy and completed the handsome victory. They now have three wins from four games.

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