Sports briefs
W&J in magazine’s preseason top 25
The Washington & Jefferson football team came in ranked No. 24 in NCAA Division III, according to College Football Preview Magazine presented by Lindy’s Sports.
W&J recorded its 39th consecutive winning season last fall when it went 9-2. The Presidents capped the season with a 35-18 win over Hobart in the ECAC Asa S. Bushnell Bowl.
The Presidents return seven starters on offense and six on defense.
Lindy’s has W&J’s Dawson Dietz listed on their All-Division III first team. Dietz put together a standout sophomore season last fall as he led the PAC and ranked seventh in Division III with 23.5 tackles for loss. Dietz had 11 sacks.
Pens add to front office staff
The Pittsburgh Penguins hired Vukie Mpofu as Director of Hockey Operations and Legal Affairs, the team announced Monday.
Mpofu’s primary responsibilities will include advising and assisting Pittsburgh’s Hockey Operations Department with player contract negotiations, ensuring compliance with the collective bargaining agreement, salary cap, and leading the Research and Development Department.
The 27-year-old has spent the previous two seasons with the Los Angeles Kings as their Manager of Hockey Operations and Legal Affairs.
In baseball
Marcell Ozuna hit a go-ahead homer in the seventh, Spencer Strider allowed three hits in seven innings while striking out 10 and the Atlanta Braves beat the Minnesota 4-1 Monday night.
Ronald Acuña Jr. added a two-run homer in a three-run seventh. It is a matchup of first-place teams in the NL East and AL Central.