Sports briefs
Wild Things re-sign Ward
The Wild Things have signed their first player for the 2022 Frontier League season.
Washington announced the re-signing of shortstop Nick Ward.
Ward, a Pennsylvania native, batted .269 this summer with 18 doubles, five home runs and 37 RBI. He drew 67 walks, which ranked third in the league and his .420 on-base percentage was fourth. Ward also had 21 stolen bases.
“It’s fitting that Nick is the first one announced to come back. After all, he’s our leadoff hitter,” said manager Tom Vaeth. “We’re happy to have Nick back in the fold. His ability to be a high on-base percentage guy is key to what we want to do and be as an offense. Also, he is one of the best defensive shortstops in the league.”
In college basketball
Mark Turgeon’s tenure at Maryland is over, less than a month after the start of his 11th season at the helm.
Again, the Terrapins were struggling to reach their potential — although the abrupt change still came with a jolt, just eight games into the 2021-22 campaign.
“After a series of conversations with Coach Turgeon, we agreed that a coaching change was the best move for Coach Turgeon and for the Maryland men’s basketball program,” athletic director Damon Evans said in a statement.
Maryland announced Friday that Turgeon was stepping down, and the athletic department described the move as a mutual decision. Assistant Danny Manning was made interim coach for the rest of the season.
When he took over, Turgeon had the challenging task of replacing Gary Williams, who led the Terrapins to their only national title in men’s basketball in 2002.
• James Karnik had 17 points and tied his career high with 13 rebounds, Quinten Post scored 13 points and Boston College never trailed in its 73-57 win over Notre Dame in the Atlantic Coast Conference opener for both teams.
• Alfonso Plummer scored 24 points, Kofi Cockburn had a double-double and Illinois cruised to an 86-51 victory over Rutgers in the Big Ten opener for both teams.
In the NFL
Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians would like to see the NFL expand an investigation of the COVID-19 vaccination status of two players on his team to include other rosters around the league.
Responding publicly for the first time to the league suspending wide receiver Antonio Brown and safety Mike Edwards for three games for misrepresenting their status with fake vaccination cards, Arians said Friday those may not be the only cases of their kind in the league.
• With three running backs listed as questionable, the Seattle Seahawks could elevate Adrian Peterson from the practice squad to play against San Francisco, coach Pete Carroll said.
Peterson was signed this week by the Seahawks due to concerns about depth at running back. Alex Collins, Rashaad Penny and Travis Homer are all dealing with injuries that left DeeJay Dallas as the only healthy running back on the roster.
Carroll didn’t say it was a certainty Peterson would be elevated, but said the 36-year-old was ready if called upon.
In the NBA
Darius Garland had 32 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds, and the Cleveland Cavaliers went on a 19-0 run spanning part of each half in a 116-101 rout of the Washington Wizards on Friday night.