Conine gets first big league jack for Fish in 4-3 win over Giants at Oracle

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The Florida Marlins Jonah Bride (41) congratulates Griffin Conine (56) after Conine hit his first MLB home run in the top of the second inning at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sat Aug 31, 2024 (AP News photo)

Miami (50-86) 020 001 100. 4. 7 2

San Francisco (68-69) 000 011 010. 3 7. 0

Time: 2:22

Attendance: 36,087

Saturday, August 31, 2024

By Lewis Rubman

SAN FRANCISCO–On this cool Saturday evening, the Giants struggled for the second time in a row against the toothless Miami Marlins. This time there were no late inning heroics, and the home team went down, 4-3, falling once more below the .500 mark. That outside shot at a playoff berth is looking more and more unlikely.

Mason Black, Saturday night’s starting pitcher for the orange and gold was their third round choice in the 2021 draft. This year, he had divided his time between San Francisco, where he went 0-1, 8.79, and Sacramento, where his record was 5-6, 4.59 (2-1, 2.91 in August).

He was recalled to the parent club for tonight’s occasion. His performance wasn’t particularly impressive, but he still shows signs of promise. He was the losing pitcher, having allowed two runs, both earned, on four hits, one of them a homer.

That left him with no wins and two losses. But he didn’t walk anyone and struck out half a dozen opposing batters and managed to lower his ERA to 7.45. He threw 74 pitches to 18 batters. His five inning appearance was the longest of his so far short major league career.

Taylor Rogers, who replaced Black at the beginning of the visitors’ sixth, was ineffective in his 500th big league appearance, surrendering a leadoff homer to Connor Norby and leaving runners at the corners with one out when Spencer Bivens came on in relief and shut down the Miami rally by getting Jonah Bride to ground into a U6-3 double play.

Bevin stuck around to pitch another frame. The Marlins got a run off him, but they got some help from some unexpected sources. Otto López led off with a walk and tried to steal second. He was called safe, and the Giants tried to appeal the decision. Home plate umpire and crew chief Alan Porter disallowed the appeal, presumably because it hadn’t been requested within the required time limit.

López went on to score on ground outs by Griffin Conine and David Hensley. Erik Miller and Camilo Doval each pitched a hitless and scoreless inning..

Black’s opposite number, Edward Cabrera, brought an unimpressive 2-6, 5.60 record with him. His only previous appearance against the Giants came last year, when he was credited with the win in a game in which he held them to two runs, both earned, on six hits and two walks while garnering eight strikeouts. He lasted 5-1/3 innings tonight, permitting two runs, one earned, on six hits and a pair of walks. He threw 98 pitches, 61 for strikes. His record now stands at 3-6, 5.33.

Cabrera was followed by John McMillon (a perfect inning) and Jesús Tinoco, who surrendered a solo homer to Michael Conforto (his 15th), a 418 foot blast to right center in the eighth that travelled at 111.8 MPH and brought the Giants into a run of tying the contest. Calvin Fauche earned his fifth save with a perfect ninth that ended with strikeouts of Jerar Encarnación and a pinch hitting LaMonte Wade, Jr.

The rubber game of this three game set will take place Sunday, at 1:05 in the afternoon. Logan Webb (11-8, 3.24) will toe the rubber for the Giants. The Marlins haven’t announced who they’ll send to the mound

Bears Wake Up: Cal comes alive after halftime in 31-13 season-opening win over UC Davis

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY–When the prickly UC Davis Aggies made Division I-quality plays on Saturday afternoon, the Cal Bears were made to wince. When the Aggies reverted to their FBS status, the Bears proved resilient and pounced.

Not exactly what Coach Justin Wilcox wanted, but that initial pattern gave way to a dominant second half, and Cal cruised 31-13 over UC Davis in the season opener for both teams.

Wilcox never pretends to be satisfied, but after the totality of the 60 minutes in the last day of August opener, he wasn’t mad.

“It’s really a tale of two halves,” he said. “To be up a point at half, we were fortunate.”

Coach Tim Plough, a prized offensive assistant for Wilcox before assuming the head job at Davis, had his team prepared. They ran a whopping 52 offensive plays before halftime (but passed for only 221 yards in total) and made the atmosphere inside Memorial Stadium uneasy. Quarterback Miles Hastings simply took what Cal offered underneath, and the Bears were limited to 9:06 of possession time before the break.

“We never had any rhythm,” Wilcox said. “One of the keys for us is getting that first first down.”

Along with the lengthy possessions that unnerved Cal’s defense, Aggie Kavir Bains put a textbook lick on ball carrier Kadarius Calloway. That left the ball bouncing free inside Cal’s 5 yard-line, and Porter Connors skipped into the end zone with the scoop to trim Cal’s lead to 7-6.

But it was Nohl Williams’ momentum-turning, 80-yard kickoff that put Cal up 14-13 at half and put the home team in position to restore order.

Cal’s offensive line didn’t offer Fernando Mendoza enough time in the first, nor did they free leading rusher Jadyn Ott. The pre-season All-ACC runner had his afternoon end in the second quarter when he suffered an apparent ankle injury. But the Bears’ blocking was cohesive in a second half in which the Bears fashioned lengthy drives and relied on Jaivian Thomas and Byron Cardwell to run and break tackles as they outscored the visitors, 17-0.

“We’re the better team. We’re a well-oiled offense. We’re going to go and get this done,” Mendoza said in describing the Bears’ attitude to start the second half. “We’re going to go and do tempo, and we’re going to score. That’s what our offense thrives off of.”

The Bears’ aspirations to be a surprise, bowl-eligible team in their first season in the travel-happy Power 4 conference will demand them to survive visits to Florida State, SMU and Pittsburgh while hosting Miami, North Carolina State and Syracuse. Losing to California system school UC Davis for the first time in 12 meetings would not have been wise, and ultimately, the Bears were smarter than that.

In their premiere non-conference matchup with Auburn next Saturday, Cal gets its first shot at grabbing national attention in a rematch that narrowly went to the Tigers last season in Berkeley. This time, the heat, the travel, and Auburn’s speed and depth will make for a tougher test.

Ott’s availability will be monitored throughout the week after the speedy back became only the eighth Cal runner to reach 22 rushing touchdowns in his career. Ott’s 1-yard run midway through the first quarter was the initial score of the season and gave Cal an early 7-0 lead.

Ryan Coe, in his first game as a Cal Bear, kicked a 25-yard field goal and converted three extra points. Wilcox singled out his new kicker as “the kicker,” likely alluding to the Bears’ issues with the kicking game last season that jeopardized a couple of games.

Saturday’s game at Auburn starts at 2:30pm locally, and it precedes a home game against San Diego State and their initial ACC road trip to Tallahassee to face Florida State.

A’s Drop Game Two In Rangers Series 3-2 In a Walk Off; Butler homers but A’s fall short

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Oakland A’s Lawrence Butler (4) rounds the bases after slugging his 19th home run of the season in the top of the fourth inning against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field in Arlington on Sat Aug 31, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Barbara Mason

The Oakland A’s (59-77) fought their way back into this game after trailing 2-0. Another Lawrence Butler home run cut the Texas Rangers (64-72) lead in half in the fourth inning. The A’s tied up the game in the 6th inning when Brent Rooker doubled Lawrence Butler home.

It was a new ball game but it all came crashing down when A’s pitcher Tyler Ferguson loaded the bases with one out. A single from Leody Taveras was all it took for the 3-2 Ranger’s win.

Game recap: The Rangers took the early lead in the second inning 2-0. Jonas Heim hit a 373 feet home run with Nathaniel Lowe on base and that would be the only scoring for the Rangers going into the bottom of the ninth inning.

The Oakland A’s had some catching up to do trailing by a couple of runs. In the fourth inning Lawrence Butler cut the Rangers lead in half with a 367 feet home run. This was his sixth home run in five games. The A’s tied up this game in the 6th inning with a Brent Rooker double and a Lawrence Butler score. Neither team was able to reach home plate going into the bottom of the ninth inning.

Tyler Ferguson remained on the mound for the ninth inning after pitching the eighth and ran into some trouble. He hit Nathaniel Lowe followed by a Carson Kelly single. Jonas Heim popped out but then Ferguson walked Travis Jankowski and the bases were loaded with one out. Texas had a serious chance to walk off this game and that is exactly how this game ended. Leody Taveras singled and Ezequiel Duran ( who ran for Lowe) scored for the 3-2 win.

Oakland fought their way back into this game but they were unable to score another run in the game after the sixth inning. They went three and out in the seventh and eighth innings. They left two runners on base in the ninth inning but could not bring them home. Oakland finished this game with five hits, the Rangers with nine hits.

Oakland’s Joey Estes had a nice outing going six innings and allowing six hits, two runs, no walks with seven strikeouts. The Rangers starter Cody Bradford went seven innings allowing four hits, two runs, no walks with eight strikeouts in a solid game.

Game recap: After winning game one of their series with the Rangers Friday night 9-2, the A’s took the field in game two looking for another win. . Friday night the game was attended by over 28,000 fans and on Saturday night another well attended game for game two at Globe Life with 28,454.

It was a well pitched game Rangers starter Cody Bradford went seven innings, allowed four hits, two earned runs and eight strike outs. For the A’s Joey Estes six innings, six hits, two earned runs and seven strikeouts.

Sunday Oakland will be looking to win this series in game three. Mitch Spence will take the mound for the A’s with a 7-9 win/loss record and a 4.54 ERA. At the time of this post, the Rangers have not decided on a starting pitcher. First pitch for this game is scheduled for Sunday at 11:35 AM.

Oakland A’s podcast with Augie Mesenburg: Rooker goes yard twice, Bleday goes deep for 2 run HR

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Oakland A’s Brent Rooker (25) is congratulated by Lawrence Butler (4) after hitting a top of the seventh home run against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field in Arlington on Fri Aug 30, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the Oakland A’s podcast with Augie Mesenburg:

#1 Oakland A’s Brent Rooker hit home runs in the first and seventh innings at Globe Life Field in Arlington against the Texas Rangers on Friday night. With the two home runs Rooker has 31 home runs and no doubt he’s seeing the baseball just fine.

#2 Shea Langeliers connected for his 23rd home run of the season. Langeliers has had his share of good at bats and he provided one of the many runs for the A’s.

#3 JJ Bleday hit a three run homes in the top of the third inning against the Rangers.

#4 A’s pitching gave two runs to the Rangers and kept their run total under control with great pitching from starter JP Sears pitching seven innings, allowing five hits and one run.

#5 The good pitching by the A’s could very well help them close in on third place and this is their best opportunity facing the third place Rangers.

#6 The A’s will start RHP Joey Estes (6-6, ERA 4.37) and for the Rangers LHP Cody Bradford (4-2, 3.31) first pitch at Globe Life on Saturday night slated for 4:05pm PT.

Augie Mesenburg is a podcast contributor at http://www.sportsradioservice.com and is a reporter for 1080 KWAI Honolulu

San Francisco Giants podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: Giants rally in 8th to beat Marlins; Snell just needs some run support

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San Francisco Giants starter Blake Snell pitched seven innings allowing four hits and one run against the Miami Marlins on Fri Aug 30, 2024 at Oracle Park in San Francisco (AP News photo)

On the SF Giants podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson:

#1 San Francisco Giants were getting shutout by the Miami Marlins through seven innings until Matt Chapman came to the plate and with one swing of the bat hit a three run RBI double as the Giants took a 3-1 lead and eventually won by that score.

#2 The ball that Chapman hit was a slider on a two strike count. Chapman has been key all season long not only with his glove but also with the bat and Friday night was no different when he went yard in a the eighth inning Friday.

#3 Giants manager Bob Melvin was relieved on Friday night after Chapman’s big hit. The Giants had been struggling in particular the Giants had split a four game series with the Milwaukee Brewers but it was that fourth game loss 6-0 last Thursday which had Melvin worried.

#4 With the win on Friday the Giants are back at the .500 at 68-68 and are 6.5 games back for the last Wild Card sport. September will be a critical month for the Giants in order to try and catch up for a shot at the post season.

#5 It’s a Saturday night 6:07pm PT first pitch the Marlins will start Edward Cabrera (2-6, 5.60) and for the Giants RHP Mason Black (0-1, 8.79) at Oracle Park.

Jeremiah Salmonson is a Oakland A’s podcaster on Friday’s at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Cardinal Lose to Horned Frogs, 34-27 in Season-Home Opener on the Farm

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The Stanford Cardinal line up against TCU Horned Frogs at Stanford Stadium on Fri Aug 30, 2024 (Stanford Cardinal photo)

By Michael Roberson

STANFORD, Calif. — The Stanford Cardinal (0-1, 0-0 ACC) allowed the Texas Christian University Horned Frogs (1-0. 0-0 Big 12) to HOP around the campus, and fell to the Lone Star State visitors 34-27, on Opening Night in the Bay on Friday night.

The Duo Quarterback mode that Stanford head coach Troy Taylor implemented, was a hit early, as both Ashton Daniels and Justin Lamson reached paydirt, via the pass. However, the ploy did not result in the Cardinal getting the victory.

“Yeah, we had the lead late in the fourth quarter, so our guys battled. They’re a good team, resilient. We were able to take the lead with six minutes left and we got to get a stop and then we got to go back and score again.” Stated Stanford HC Troy Taylor.

“So just didn’t finish it. I thought we did a good job being resilient. Obviously struggled offensively in the second after early on and were able to stay in this. Defense made some good stops. Just wasn’t enough plays.”

Stanford was able to score on their initial drive, with the help of TCU’s costly penalties. As the Cardinal was about to turn the ball over on downs, guests from Texas committed a pass interference penalty. With the second chance, Daniels scrambles for a first down, which is aided by another TCU penalty, unnecessary roughness. Later in the drive, they commited yet another foul play, face masking.

Midway through the quarter, Daniels tossed a three yard touchdown to redshirt freshman Jackson Harris. The home team actually graciously accepted the plentiful gifts from their Southern guests. Stanford was up 7-0, garnering the first tally on the scoreboard. That immediate advantage was short-lived.

TCU marched down the field very efficiently, as sophomore QB Josh Hoover was a perfect 7-7 with his arm. He completed a 5-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Savion Williams to even the game at seven, near the end of the first quarter. After 15 minutes of play, the game was tied, 7-7.

In the second stanza, Stanford’s drive stalled. However, the Horned Frogs were were still in the gift giving mood. They gave the bal right back to Stanford on a fumble after a pass reception. They once again received their present with glee and used it wisely.

The drive was culminated with Justin Lamson throwing a two yard touchdown to redshirt freshman Ishmael Cisse, putting the Cardinal back up by seven, 14-7. That was the first touchdown for both players involved in the combination score.

Not to be outdone by their opponent’s philanthropy, Daniels threw an interception that was deflected to senior nose tackle Tymon Mitchell. TCU turned that into a 22-yard field goal by freshman kicker Kyle Lemmermann. Horned Frogs cut the deficit to four, 14-10, Stanford.

The Cardinal also decided to utilize their kicke; Senior Emmet Kenney booted a 35-yard conversion, putting them up 17-10 before the half. Stanford took the touchdown lead into the locker room.

The third quarter was all Horned Frogs, as they scored ten consecutive points and took the lead from the Cardinal, 20-17. This was done on a 42-yard FG by Lemmermann and a touchdown sneak by Hoover.

The Final quarter had an interesting start. TCU’s kicker missed a 39-yard FG attempt a little over three minutes into the timeblock. This would have put them up by six. Instead, Stanford took the lead back, on a one yard keeper by Lamson. The Cardinal led 24-20, with seven minutes left in regulation.

Less than four minutes later TCU’s Hoover threw another touchdown (4 yards) pass to have the Horned Frogs leap back in front by three, 27-24. They added to the advantage with another touchdown, after Stanford relinquished the ball on a 4th & 16 attempt. Sophomore running back Cam Cook scampered in for a seven yard touchdown. near the two minute warning. TCU was up ten at that point, 34-24.

With less than a minute left in the contest, Emmet Kenney converted a 45-yarder to bring them within seven, 34-27. When the clock hit zeros, that was the final score.

Ashton Daniels threw for 163 yards and a touchdown, while rushing for 89 more, and had a comment on what type of game he prefers:

“Yeah, yeah doesn’t necessarily matter to me. I wouldn’t rather have one game one game and one game the other. Whatever is helping our offense out best, whatever is scoring us points, is what I like.”

Justin Lamson scored a passing and rushing touchdown, ,and Elic Ayomanor had 102 receiving yards. TCU was led by their QB’s 353 passing yards, two touchdown via air, and one rushing. They also had two receivers with 100+ receiving yards.

Stanford is next in action Saturday September 9, back here on the Farm versus Cal Poly at 4 PM PDT, while TCU heads back to Texas to host Long Island, on the same dat at 5 PM CST.

Chapman’s three run double is a gamer as Giants rally in 8th to defeat Marlins 3-1

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San Francisco Giants Matt Chapman slugs a three run double to clear the bases in the bottom of the eighth against the Miami Marlins at Oracle Park on Fri Aug 30, 2024 (AP News photo)

Miami (49-86) 000 000 100.  1. 4. 0

San Francisco (68-68) 000 000 03x.  3. 6. 1

Time: 2:21

Attendance: 33,606

Friday, August 30, 2024

By Lewis Rubman

SAN FRANCISCO–In an unexpected pregame move, the  Giants outrighted valued veteran Thairo Estrada to Sacramento and recalled Brett Wisely to the big league club.  The outcome of the game was not unexpected, but the steps that led to it certainly were.

The floundering Marlins, 49-85 at game time, and  relying on the right arm of an undistinguished wannabe for six excellent innings, led the Giants, 1-0 after 7-1/2 frames before falling to their hosts, 3-1.

The come from behind triumph brought the home team back to its almost impenetrable glass ceiling of .500 at 68-68 and gave some hope that the orange and back might just sneak into the playoffs.

The Giants did not throw an undistinguished wannabe at the Marlins. They put Blake Snell on the mound to start the game. In spite of the defending Cy Young winner’s command problems in his last start, problems that him to leave that game after three innings, he had come out of the late-signing, injury induced first half ineffectiveness to earn a  2-0, 1.72 record in August when he threw his first pitch at 7:16 this pleasant Friday evening.

When he was through, Snell had thrown 96 pitches, 69 of which qualified as strikes, over seven innings, allowing only a single tally, on four hits and a walk. The only extra base hit off him was a first inning double to Jake Burger. Although the lefty had to settle for a no decision that kept his won-lost record  at 2-3, he reduced his ERA to 3.56.

Tyler Rogers relieved Snell to face the fish in the top of the eighth. He retired them in order, earning his third win against four losses and bringing his ERA down to 3.06. Ryan Walker earned his fifth safe by also setting the Marlins down one, two, three in the ninth.

The Marlins’ starter, Adam Oller, didn’t come to work with as impressive a resumé as Snell.He was 2-8, 6.30 in 2022 and 1-1, 10.07 for the departing Athletics last year. The Mariners claimed him on waivers in July and sent him to Tacoma,where he finished that season.

This year, he went to spring training as a non-roster invitee of the Cleveland Guardians. The Marlins signed him as a minor league free agent in July and sent him to their AAA farm team in Jacksonville before calling him up on the 18th of this month.

He pitched 10-1/3 in two starts since then and showed up at Third and King with a 1-1, 5.23 record. His work tonight was every bit as good as Snell’s. The rookie held the Giants to two hits and an equal number of walks over six frames.

One of those hits was an infield single by Mike Yastrzemski. The other was LaMonte Wade, Jr’s double in the third. He struck out eight of the 21 Giants he faced and, like Snell, chalked up a no decision. His ERA now is 3.31.

Mike Baumann, who followed Oller, was tagged with the loss and now stands at 3-1, 5.40. George Soriano, who allowed the three runners who were on base when he relieved Bauman in the eighth  to score, was charged with a blown save.

By the top of the seventh what had been a scoreless tie had evolved into a tense pitchers’ duel. The tension rose with Derek Hill’s leadoff single to right.

With Otto López at the plate, Hill stole his sixth base of the season, but he stayed when López flew out to Grant McCray deep into the right center field warning track. McCray made a good throw to third, which vindicated third base coach Griffin Benedict’s caution, especially after David Hensley smacked a line drive single to right to bring Hill home with the game’s first and Miami’s only run.

The Giants turned the game around in the home eighth.  Jerar Encarnación pinch hit for Casey Schmidt hit a lead off single to right center, McCray fanned, but Yaz drew a walk, sending Encarnación to second, where the newly returned Wisely pinch ran for him. Bauman fanned Michael Conforto for the second out.

It was at this point that Soriano replaced Baumann. He tagged Soriano’s sixth offering, an 85mph slider for a double to left center that cleared the bases and put the Giants ahead, 3-1

Mason Black (0-1, 8.79) will be recalled  from Sacramento to start Saturday, Saturday’s, game scheduled to begin at 6:05.  Edward Cabrera (2-6, 5.60) will be his opposite number for the Fish.

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Morris Phillips: As promised coach Taylor using Daniels and Lamson at QB vs. TCU

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Stanford Cardinal cornerback Collin Wright (6) heads to the field before their match up against the visiting TCU Horned Frogs at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto on Fri Aug 30, 2024 (Stanford Cardinal X photo)

On the Stanford Cardinal podcast with Morris:

The Stanford Cardinal had the lead in the first half 17-10 and got scoring help from quarterback Aston Daniels for the opening score when Daniels threw a three yard pass to Jackson Harris 7:57 in the first quarter. The Horned Frogs answered back with a quarterback Josh Hoover five yard pass to Savion Williams to tie it up 7-7 at 1:16.

Stanford head coach Troy Taylor who said he would use multiple quarterbacks and did so sending out Justin Lamson who tossed a two yard pass to Ismeal Cisse at 9:19 in the second quarter to take the lead once more at 14-7. The Horned Frogs Kyle Lemmerman booted a 22 yard field goal to make it 14-10 at 4:09. To end the first half scoring the Cardinal kicker Emmet Kenny with 1:36 left in the half hit a 35 yarder to make it 17-10.

In the third quarter Horned Frog kicker Lemmerman hit a 42 yard field goal at 9:11 and the Horned Frogs were closing in making it 17-13. The Horned Frogs surpassed Stanford when Hoover on a keeper scored on a one yard carry to make it 20-17 at 2:22 in the third quarter.

In the fourth quarter Stanford came back when Lamson took a keeper for one yard for a touchdown that gave the Cardinal a brief lead 24-20 at 6:57. TCU quarterback Hoover at 3:13 hit wide receiver Jack Bech with a four yard pass and TCU was back on top once again 27-24.

The Horned Frogs Cam Cook carried a seven yard hand off from Hoover for a touchdown to give TCU a ten point lead 34-24 at 1:51. Stanford had the last word on scoring but it wasn’t enough. Kenney booted a 45 yard field goal at 0:36 as TCU wins it on opening night 34-27.

Morris Phillips was podcasting the Stanford Cardinal for the opener of the 2024 season and is the Cal Bears beat writer for http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Dahlkemper, Hill, and Anderson with a goal each in Bay FC win over Portland 3-1

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Bay FC celebrated a road win against the Portland Thorns in NWSL action at Providence Park on Fri Aug 30, 2024 (Bay FC photo)

By William Espy

Bay FC’s inaugural season continued against the Portland Thorns on Friday night as they made their first appearance at Providence Park. It marked the return of Emily Menges to her former stomping grounds for the first time since she was traded to Bay FC in December.

Abby Dahlkemper made her proper Bay FC debut, as her previous appearance against Barcelona was just a friendly. Meanwhile, Australian goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold was making her debut for the Thorns. In the two teams’ only previous meeting, Portland walked away with a 3-2 win at PayPal Park on May 1.

With Savy King out of the lineup as she represents her country in the U20 World Cup in Colombia, Alyssa Malonson who recently signed a three-year contract extension was in the starting eleven for Albertin Montoya. Bay FC got scoring from Dalhkemper, Rachel Hill and Joelle Anderson to defeat the Thorns 3-1.

Bay FC Starting XI: Rowland, Dydasco, Menges, Dahlkemper, Malonson, Bailey, Pickett, Boade, Hill, Oshoala, Kundananji

Thorns Starting XI: Arnold, Reyes, Obaze, Hubly, Payne, Sugita, Coffey, Fleming, Spaanstra, Smith, Moultrie

Dahlkemper made an instant impact with her hometown team, giving them the lead off of a header just eight minutes into the match. She had a strong performance against Barcelona, and it’s clear she’s ready to push Bay FC to the next level and help them make a run toward the playoffs.

It was a night of firsts for Bay FC, as Rachel Hill extended the lead with her first goal with the club in the 17th minute. Menges was disrupting plays consistently defensively, helping prevent Portland’s dangerous offense from creating any high-quality chances.

A terrible play by Katelyn Rowland led to Sophia Smith getting Portland on the board. After some passing back and forth with Dahlkemper, Rowland passed it directly to the Thorns’ striker who put it away to make it 2-1.

Dorian Bailey would get shown a yellow card moments later, giving the Thorns a free kick right outside of the box. Smith’s shot went directly to Rowland who made the save. Portland seemed to score an equalizer in the 42nd minute, but it went to the video assistant referee as Smith was offside and the call was overturned.

Bay FC would maintain their 2-1 lead heading into halftime. They had a strong start to the match, but momentum had swung heavily in Portland’s favor after their goal. Bay was going to need to come out with another strong start in the second half to fend off one of the most dangerous teams in the NWSL.

Bay FC gave Portland another dangerous chance just moments into the second half, when a scramble in front of the goal could’ve easily resulted in a goal but they were able to keep it out of the net. Nicole Payne hit the inside of the goal post in the 48th minute, despite her appeal to the officials that it entered the net, it bounced off the post and out without crossing the line.

Bay were being their own worst enemy since Smith’s goal, and they needed to settle down and maintain composure to prevent handing the opposition more chances. Arnold denied a phenomenal shot by Rachael Kundananji in the 57th minute, preventing Bay from taking a two-goal lead.

Smith came off for Reilyn Turner in the 57th minute as well, a move that Rob Gale certainly didn’t want to make while behind a goal, but he was left with no choice. Joelle Anderson came into the game in the 65th minute for Bailey, which was a wise decision in a physical game when Bailey already had a card.

Rowland made a big save in the 68th minute when Alexa Spaanstra shot it from outside of the box. In the 70th minute, Anderson netted her third of the season to extend Bay’s lead to 3-1 off of a turnover by Kelli Hubly.

Hill recorded her second goal contribution on the night, assisting on the goal. Becky Sauerbrunn, Marie Muller and Payton Linnehan entered the game for Portland in the 75th minute for Obaze, Spaanstra and Coffey. Kundananji came off in the 89th minute for Maddie Moreau.

Caroline Conti entered the game in the 99th minute for Tess Boade, and a couple of minutes later the final whistle was blown. Bay FC entered one of the most difficult stadiums to play as a visitor in the NWSL and walked away with a decisive 3-1 win.

It was a crucial three points for Bay FC as they look to continue to hold off quite a few strong teams who are chasing them for the final playoff spot.

Aces Back On Winning Track Getting Past Dream 83-72

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Las Vegas Aces guard Tiffany Hayes (15) drives on the Atlanta Dream at Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas on Fri Aug 30. 2024 (Las Vegas Aces photo)

By Barbara Mason

The Atlanta Dream got close numerous times throughout the game but the Las Vegas Aces hung tight winning the game 83-72. A’Ja Wilson had another stellar game with 15 rebounds and 26 points. Tiffany Hayes also had a terrific game with 10 rebounds and 20 points. Kelsey Plum chipped in 16 points.

Game recap: The Aces won both the first and the second quarters of this game. They led after the first ten minutes of play 22-18. The Dream played a very competitive second quarter although the Aces did win it 22-20.

Las Vegas led at halftime 44-38 and going into the second half of play this game was hardly decided. The Aces have in the past really turned it on in the second half, especially the fourth quarter although it did not go their way in their last game against the Wings. They were looking to close out this game in the second half.

Atlanta continued to fight hard in the third quarter and got as close as four points in the early minutes of the quarter. The Dream kept challenging throughout the quarter but the Aces stubbornly hung onto the lead and after three quarters had a 65-58 lead. A’Ja Wilson already had a double double with 13 rebounds and 20 points.

At 6:34 in the fourth quarter, the Aces had established a 73-64 lead. Atlanta called a time out when Las Vegas began to extend their lead and showed no signs of letting down. The Dream had a lot of work to do with little time left in the game. With 2:11 left in the game, the Aces were distancing themselves from the Dream leading 79-67. Las Vegas closed out this game winning by the score of 83-72.

The high for the Dream was Allisha Gray who finished with nine rebounds and 17 points. They had three players in double digits but they could not match A’Ja Wilson and company.

Game notes: After a disappointing loss to the Dallas Wings Tuesday night in a tight game 93-90, the Las Vegas Aces were looking to bounce back Friday night against the Dream. The Aces are currently fighting to move up in the standings; they are in fifth place right now. They are a half game behind the fourth place Seattle Storm. The Storm were defeated by the New York Liberty Friday night 98-85 allowing to the Aces to move within a half game on the Storm.

Sunday the Aces will take on the Mercury in Phoenix. The Mercury will be a tough game for the Aces. They come in with a 16-16 record and could really cause some problems for the Aces. The Aces are still not playing their best ball yet although they did play a better game Friday night. Tipoff for the game is scheduled for 1:00 PM.