Sports briefs
High school baseball
When you talk about making an instant impact, it’s hard to beat what South Fayette sophomore pitcher Tyler Pitzer did Friday afternoon.
Pitzer, a righthander who was playing in his first high school game, threw a seven-inning no-hitter as South Fayette won the season opener 5-0 at North Catholic.
Pizter issued two walks and struck out 17 batters.
The game was a fine pitchers’ duel for four innings. South Fayette broke up a scoreless game with a four-run fifth inning that was highlighted by a three-run double by sophomore Chase Krewson.
The Lions were limited to only three hits. Jake Dunay had a double.
- Carmichaels is expected to be strong again in Class 2A and the Mikes started the season with a bang, steamrolling visiting Brownsville, 18-2 in three innings.
Winning pitcher Gavin Pratt went 2-for-3 with a home run, double and three RBI. Zachary Hillman was 1-for-2 with a home run, four RBI and three runs. Nick Ricco and Liam Lohr each had two hits, including a double, and drove in a pair of runs.
- Jefferson-Morgan scored single runs in each of the last three innings to edge visiting Avella 3-2 in eight innings.
Avella outhit the Rockets 12-3 but the Eagles’ could score only in the fourth inning. J-M forced extra innings with a run in the bottom of the seventh.
Owen Maddich was the winning pitcher. Easton Hanko hit a double for J-M.
The Eagles had 12 singles. Ty Jaworowski led the Avella offense with three hits, and Brian Martos and Blaze Allen each had two.
High school softball
Belle Vernon started its season Friday with a thrilling 10-9 victory over visiting Greensburg Salem in walkoff fashion.
The Leopards, who trailed 5-0 in the third inning, rallied to take an 8-5 lead before Greensburg Salem scored four times in the top of the sixth. Belle Vernon, however, won with a run in the sixth and one more in the seventh as Tara Callaway had a walkoff hit.
Gracie Sokol had a double and three RBI to lead Belle Vernon’s 15-hit attack. Callaway and Olivia Manack each had a double and two RBI, and Ava Zobovic smacked three singles. Talia Ross was the winning pitcher.
- South Fayette scored three runs over the final three innings to defeat North Catholic, 4-1.
Winning pitcher Stephanie Binek threw a five-hitter and struck out nine. Haley Nicholson drove in two runs, Lexie Vetter had three hits including two doubles, and Delaney Homer had a double among her three hits.
The Nos. 6 through 9 hitters in the South Fayette lineup combined to go 8-for-16.
- Madi Fischer threw a five-inning no-hitter and also belted a home run as South Side Beaver won at Avella, 10-0.
In college basketball
Shaka Smart is leaving Texas to coach Marquette.
Marquette announced the hiring Friday. It comes a week after Marquette fired Steve Wojciechowski and Smart’s Texas team was upset 53-52 by Abilene Christian in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Smart’s decision to head north ends a six-season tenure at Texas that fell short of the lofty expectations that accompanied his arrival. Smart went 109-86 with no NCAA Tournament victories at Texas after a remarkably successful six-year run at VCU.
In the NHL
Alex Ovechkin scored twice, Ilya Samsonov made 24 saves and the Washington Capitals rode their best players to a 4-0 victory Friday night and two-game sweep of the New Jersey Devils.
- The Buffalo Sabres’ overhaul has begun, with the spiraling team trading veteran center Eric Staal to the Montreal Canadiens.
Buffalo acquired the Canadiens’ third and fifth-round selections in the 2021 draft. The Sabres also agreed to retain $1.625 million of the final year of Staal’s salary.
Staal is a 17-year veteran, who can provide the Canadiens a late-season boost to their playoff hopes. Staal won’t be able to join the team immediately because he will have to first go into self-quarantine under Canadian health regulations for those traveling from outside the country.
Dick Stockton retires
Carlton Fisk retired from baseball in 1993 but the announcer who called his famous World Series home run has only just announced his own.
Dick Stockton is stepping away after a 55-year career that included stints with Fox, CBS and NBC. He had cut back on work in recent years – doing only NFL games for Fox – and said Friday during a telephone interview that he had been contemplating retirement for the past year.
The 78-year-old Stockton called at least 1,545 games on network television but the moment that stands out is Fisk’s dramatic game-winning home run in the 12th inning of Game 6 of the 1975 World Series that gave the Boston Red Sox a 7-6 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.
“There it goes, a long drive, if it stays fair … home run!”
Stockton called virtually ever sport during his career, including the 1992 and ’94 Winter Olympics for CBS. He was the network’s lead NBA voice for nine seasons and had a front-row seat for the league’s rise to prominence.
Stockton came to Fox in 1994 when it won the rights to broadcast the NFL. He called 714 games, with only Al Michaels calling more.