Sunday's Report: Henley/Memorial, Bacon, Houston County's Harrelson, Mercer; Braves, NASCAR, colleges Falcons, UGA; NBA, MLB, NHL, NCAA postseason, NFL, French Open,
📰S📰C📰O📰R📰E📰B📰O📰A📰R📰D📰
Pro
âš¾ âš¾ âš¾ MLB âš¾ âš¾ âš¾
📰C📰O📰V📰E📰R📰A📰G📰E📰
Around/about Central Georgia
Henley jumps into contention at Memorial
Russell Henley’s third round belied his first two rounds at the Memorial in Ohio.
He turned in a bogey-free round Saturday to jump 30 spots into the top 15 and contention with a 4-under 68.
That put him in a tie for 14th, only three shots back of leaders Rory McIlroy, Si Woo Kim, and David Lipsky. A 68 was the third-best score of the day.
Henley’s third round was similar to the steady and patient golf he played in Augusta as well as the RBC Heritage and Charles Schwab Challenge, and through part of Friday’s second round.
He hit puts of 13, three, 3 ½, and seven feet for birdies, and was less than a foot from several more. He cruised up the leaderboard, reaching the top 15 fairly quickly, although he did so before a number of other players had teed off.
Henley is in a group that includes Sungjae Im, J.J Spaun, Jordan Spieth, and Sepp Straka, one shot up on Adam Schenk, Keith Mitchell, Matt Fitzpatrick, Rickie Fowler, and No. 1 Jon Rahm, No. 2 Scottie Scheffler another stroke back.
Henley is not in the field for the RBC Canadian Open in Toronto. The U.S. Open in Los Angeles follows that tournament.
Bacon outhit Blowfish, still fall
Macon had three more hits than Lexington Couty, but two errors and two unearned runs were the difference in the Bacon’s 8-7 road loss.
Antonio Brown (Mercer), Jett Lovett (Georgia Tech), and Jarrett Jenkins (Georgia Southern) each had two hits for Macon, which trailed 7-6 through four action-filled innings. A two-run seventh by Lexington County was countered by one by Macon in the eighth.
Macon hosts Florence on Tuesday, then visits Florence on Wednesday, and the two play back in Macon on Thursday.
Alumni Update
Houston County grad Harrelson rolling in regional for Texas Tech
Gage Harrelson didn’t have a good night at the plate, hitless in three at-bats Saturday.
But in center field? Oh, he had a good night in center.
He turned in perhaps a game-saving play in the top of the seventh inning of a 3-3 game.
That alone made the trip made by the Harrelson family worth it.
The play ended the inning, and Texas Tech scored two in the bottom of the eighth en route to a 5-4 win over the Gators in Gainesville.
The Red Raiders are the lone undefeated team in the Gainesville Regional, that also includes UConn and now-eliminated Florida A&M.
He went 2 for 5 with two runs in the 3-2 win over Connecticut on Friday
Harrelson is fourth on the Red Raiders with a .320 average and leads them with five triples. His six steals top the team as well.
Florida and UConn play an elimination game at 11 a.m. Sunday, the winner getting Texas Tech at 5 p.m. in a championship game, the Raiders one win from advancing to the Super Regional.
Honor Roll
Mercer wins SoCon’s Barrett-Bonner Award for eighth straight time
Around/About Georgia/Southeast
Braves notes: Rosario, TV contract …
Atlanta plans on Pitts being ready for opener
Jordan Davis, the Eagles’ Bulldog daddy?
Smart sees a crossroads with NIL
NBA/Basketball/WNBA
How Jokic exerts force shows how much he cares
Miami wants more FTs, Denver wants to be better
Heat need Butler to be more aggressive, set tone
Column-Will looming severe punishment deter Morant from another incident?
Adebayo works to stay mum on officiating
MLB/Baseball
Nationals’ Strasburg reportedly shutting down, again
Realmuto’s HR helps Phillies snap losing streak
Herbstreit goes Joe Crazy Fan on Reds’ beat writers, maybe without reading stories
NCAA softball/baseball
B-Tennessee outlasts Clemson in 14-inning epic
Tigers’ Cannarella ejected, to miss elimination game
S-Duo powers Oklahoma past Tennessee to semifinal
S-Sandercock leads Florida State into semi
B-Auburn goes two and Q at home
B-Kash’s two bombs puts Florida in loser’s bracket at home
S-Legendary career of Alabama’s Fouts comes to end
B-South Carolina finally back in a final
B-Duke slugger ignores ACL, blasts three bombs in regional opener
Hockey
Late surge lifts Knights past Panthers in opener
Russians in Cup Final try to focus on hockey amid war
Opinion
Remember the ABA and WHA during one of the greatest times of the year
Football/NFL/USFL/CFL/XFL
Ex-NFL Network reporter could get award from Goodell, who fired him?
Tennis
Gauff comes back to beat Russia’s Andreeva in battle of teens
Reigning Wimby champ Rybakina pulls out because of sickness
Stephens-Sabalenka get first women’s night match
Column-True bravery from Russia’s Lasatloma for coming out
Auto Racing
Busch nabs Gateway pole ahead of Blaney, Hamlin
Notes: Penalties for Briscoe, Elliott don’t fit crimes, Chastain vs. Byron final
Golf
Efficient McIlroy shares lead at Memorial
Just-turned-pro Zhang leads LPGA Mizuho Americas
College Sports
More parting thoughts from SEC meetings
Big 12 commish open to expansion
Saban in group headed to Washington on NIL issues
NY Times corrects story after Alabama’s Spears lawsuit
Tide manager says he was at the deadly shooting
Boxing/UFC/MMA
Davis ordered to complete hit-and-run sentence in jail
Sports and Gambling
Some states want to teach teens about the risks
Soccer
Dallas United withdraw from tournaments after racial slur allaged
Scoreboards