Garcia, 28, tops Gauff, 18, at US Open for 1st Slam semi
NEW YORK (AP) — Caroline Garcia has beaten 18-year-old American Coco Gauff 6-3, 6-4 at the U.S. Open to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal at age 28. The 17th-seeded Garcia had lost both of her two previous matches against the 12th-seeded Gauff but was the better player in Arthur Ashe Stadium on Tuesday night. The Frenchwoman stretched her winning streak to 13 matches and solidified her status as someone playing as well as anyone in women’s tennis at the moment. Garcia has not dropped a set at Flushing Meadows this year. She finished last year ranked 74th but is projected to rise into the top 10 next week. Garcia will face Wimbledon runner-up Ons Jabeur next.
Khachanov stops Kyrgios in 5 sets; faces Ruud in semifinals
NEW YORK (AP) — Karen Khachanov has advanced to the first Grand Slam semifinal of his career by edging Nick Kyrgios 7-5, 4-6, 7-5, 6-7 (3), 6-4 at the U.S. Open. Kyrgios could not quite follow up his victory over defending champion Daniil Medvedev. The match began Tuesday night and concluded after midnight on Wednesday at a rowdy Arthur Ashe Stadium. Early in the match, two spectators were kicked out after one gave the other a haircut in the stands. The No. 27-seeded Khachanov will face No. 5 Casper Ruud on Friday for a berth in the championship match.
AP Top 25: Georgia moves up to No. 2, passing Ohio State
Georgia moved up to No. 2 in the first Associated Press college football poll of the regular season. The Bulldogs passed Ohio State after the defending national champions dominated their opener. Alabama remained No. 1 in the AP Top 25 presented by Regions Bank, receiving 44 of 63 first-place votes. The Bulldogs narrowed the gap on the Crimson Tide after beating Oregon 49-3. Georgia received 17 first-place votes. Ohio State slipped to No. 3 and received two first-place votes. Michigan moved up four spots to No. 4. Clemson dropped one place to No. 5. Florida debuted at No. 12 after its thrilling victory at home against Utah. The Utes slipped six spots to No. 13 after the loss. Oregon’s loss to Georgia sent the Ducks all the way out of the rankings.
Olson HR vs former team, surging Braves top A's, catch Mets
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Matt Olson hit a three-run homer against his former club and the Atlanta Braves won their sixth in a row, outslugging the Oakland Athletics 10-9 and finally catching the slumping Mets atop the NL East. The reigning World Series champion Braves pulled even with a New York team that had held sole possession of the division lead for 147 days since April 12 but has lost three straight.
Dodgers outslug Giants 6-3, Muncy homers twice
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Joey Gallo blasted a go-ahead, three-run homer in the second inning and Max Muncy added a pair of solo shots in the Los Angeles Dodgers' 6-3 win over the San Francisco Giants. The NL West leaders reduced their magic number to six while improving to 11-4 against the Giants this season. Tyler Anderson won his 14th game for Los Angeles. The Giants' four-game winning streak ended. San Francisco got homers from Lewis Brinson and Brandon Crawford. All of the game's runs came on homers.
Sue Bird's career ends as Aces top Storm to reach to Finals
SEATTLE (AP) — Sue Bird’s career came to an end as Chelsea Gray scored 15 of her 31 points in the fourth quarter, and the Las Vegas Aces advanced to the WNBA Finals with a 97-92 win over the Seattle Storm in Game 4 of their semifinal series. The Aces won the best-of-five series 3-1, all the games tense, pressure-packed and filled with spectacular shot-making. The Aces ended up making more, most notably Gray, who made five of six shots down the stretch and scored 12 of the final 20 points for the Aces. It will be the third Finals appearance in franchise history for Las Vegas.
Sun rout Sky 104-80, force Game 5 in semifinals series
UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — DeWanna Bonner and Courtney Williams each scored 19 points to help the Connecticut Sun rout the Chicago Sky 104-80 and force a decisive Game 5 in their WNBA playoff semifinal series. Alyssa Thomas added 17 for Connecticut, which will travel to the second-seeded Sky for the winner-take-all game on Thursday. Chicago raced out to a 22-6 lead and never looked back. Kahleah Copper scored 16 points and Emma Meesseman added 14 for the Sky.
MLB asked to voluntarily accept minor league union
NEW YORK (AP) — The Major League Baseball Players Association is asking MLB management to voluntarily accept the union as the bargaining agent for minor leaguers. The union's deputy executive director sent a letter to MLB claiming a majority of minor leaguers signed authorization cards. The MLBPA launched the minor league unionization drive on Aug. 28. Players with minor league contracts earn as little as $400 weekly during the six-month season. They would become their own bargaining unit within the MLBPA.
U.S. Soccer, players formally sign equal pay agreements
Representatives for the men’s and women’s U.S. national teams signed their historic collective bargaining agreements with U.S. Soccer, formally closing a long and acrimonious fight over equal pay. The federation announced in May that it had struck separate agreements with the players’ unions on contracts that run through 2028. A signing ceremony was held following the women’s friendly match against Nigeria at Audi Field in Washington D.C., with U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh among those on hand. The new contracts include identical pay structures for appearances and tournament victories, revenue sharing and equitable distribution of World Cup prize money.
Hairy situation at US Open: 2 removed for haircut in stands
NEW YORK (AP) — There was quite a hairy situation at the U.S. Open. Two men’s stay in the Arthur Ashe Stadium seats was, um, cut short after one buzzed the other’s head right there in the stands while Nick Kyrgios and Karen Khachanov played their quarterfinal. They had clippers and the sort of cape a barber usually uses to keep a customer clean. Soon enough, social media users were all excited about how a YouTuber known for his pranks had pulled this one off. Tournament security removed the two from the match.