CYAN
SPORTS
COLLEGE SOCCER
MAGENTA
NBA
Thunder trade Thabeet to 76ers OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma City Thunder have traded center Hasheem Thabeet and cash to the Philadelphia 76ers for a protected secondround draft pick in 2015 and a trade exception. The deal was announced on Tuesday. The Thunder have a year to use the trade exception. Thabeet, a 7-foot-3 defensive specialist from Tanzania, played in 66 games in 2012 and averaged nearly a block per contest. His playing time was reduced last season when first-round pick Steven Adams emerged as the backup center. The Grizzlies made Thabeet the second overall pick in the 2009 draft. The former Connecticut star also has played for the Houston Rockets and the Portland Trail Blazers.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
SMU adds Kevlar-fortified liners to helmets DALLAS (AP) — SMU has added Kevlar-fortified liners designed to lower the risk of concussions to the inside of its football helmets. The Mustangs on Tuesday announced a multiyear partnership with Unequal Technologies for the helmet liner and other body protection gear. SMU is believed to be the first NCAA Division I football program to partner with the company, whose products use a composite fortified with Kevlar and Accelleron to absorb impact forces. Albert Veytia, SMU’s equipment manager, began experimenting with Unequal padding three years ago after the company was responsible for outfitting Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo with protection following a rib fracture. The school says some SMU student-athletes have since used layers of Unequal padding to reinforce shoulder pads or rib protectors and help protect against injuries.
SPORTS TRIVIA QUESTION: In what year was the city of Dallas granted an NFL expansion franchise? TUESDAY’S ANSWER: The Philadelphia Eagles retired jersey No. 60 in honor of Hall of Fame center and linebacker Chuck Bednarik (1949-1962) who missed only three games during his 14-year career. In 1960, as a 35-year-old two-way player, Bednarik led the Eagles to an NFL Championship.
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St. Louis at Pittsburgh 11:30 p.m. MLB.
BLACK
SHAWNEE NEWS-STAR | SECTION B Wednesday, August 27, 2014 QUESTIONS? Contact Sports Editor Richard Stroud at 405-214-3932 or richard.stroud@news-star.com
HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL
HIGH SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL
Shawnee sweeps El Reno
Bison fall in season opener Oklahoma Baptist dropped its season opener at fifth-ranked Oklahoma Wesleyan Monday night, falling 3-1 in Bartlesville. Pablo Garcia scored the lone Bison goal just before halftime to cut the OWU lead to 2-1. OWU got goals from Victor Gouveia and Shaddrick Kaphuka, as well a successful penalty kick by Nemanja Zalad. The Bison got five shots on the night, including three by Austin Strain. Strain, Garcia and Ruben Basurto accounted for OBU’s three shots on goal. Marcus Oliveira recorded five saves. The Bison return to action at 8 p.m., Thursday, at home against Jarvis Christian. That match was originally scheduled as a men’s and women’s doubleheader, starting with the Lady Bison at 5 p.m., but was moved back to a 6 p.m. start for the women due to expected high temperatures.
YELLOW
Tecumseh pitcher Caitlin Bingham fouls off a pitch during the Lady Savages’ 10-4 win over Shawnee on Tuesday. RICHARD STROUD STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
TECUMSEH’S SECOND CHANCE Lady Savages win rematch with Shawnee By Richard Stroud richard.stroud@news-star.com
TECUMSEH – Given a second chance to put together a big offensive inning in their game against Shawnee on Tuesday, the Tecumseh Lady Savages didn’t miss again. Tecumseh (9-2) got four hits but could only score one run in the bottom of the second inning. Shawnee (5-4) answered with three runs in the top of the third to take their only lead of the game. The Lady Savages, ranked sixth in Class 4A, answered with four runs in the third and three more in the fourth to take control of Tuesday’s game, pulling away for a 10-4 win in the second meeting between the two teams this season. Tecumseh got three infield hits in the second inning and added five more over the remainder of the game. The Lady Savages also took advantage of five walks issued by Shawnee pitching. “We were able to get a few good bunts down, utilize some of our speed and do enough to get it done,” Tecumseh head coach Chad Trahan said. “We’ve just got to be better fielding the bunt,” Shawnee head coach David Rolette said. “We gave up four in the fourth inning then walk three in the next inning. We’ve just got to be able to throw more strikes.” Tecumseh got an unearned run in the bottom of the first to take the early lead. Four straight singles in the second inning, three of them in the infield, led to a second run in the next frame, but the Lady Savages left the bases loaded. Shawnee would get the bats going in the top of the third. Up to that point, Tecumseh pitcher Caitlin Bingham had retired all six batters she faced, but a leadoff walk by Jessica Strong was followed by three hits and two errors, leading to three Shawnee runs.
Shawnee catcher Taylor Chamblin checks the baserunners after blocking a low pitch during the Lady Wolves’ loss to Tecumseh on Tuesday. RICHARD STROUD STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Kelsey Simmons and Taylor Chamblin both had RBI hits in the inning, giving Shawnee a 3-2 lead. The Lady Savages would bounce back in the bottom of the inning. Franki Hull had a one-out double, followed by base hits from Bailey Smith and Sierra Humphrey to tie the score. An error and a bunt single would lead to another three runs before the inning ended. Tecumseh would take advantage of three straight bases-loaded walks to put the game away in the fourth inning, eventually building a 10-3 lead.
Bingham settled down after the rough third, allowing a hit and a walk over the next three innings. Shawnee got an unearned run in the seventh for the final margin. “Caitlin threw well,” Trahan said. “They put some pressure on us defensively and we didn’t handle it well, but other than that I thought we played well.” Tecumseh will open the Prague Tournament on Thursday morning at 10 a.m. against Coalgate. Shawnee will open its own tournament on Friday at Firelake, taking on Pryor at 3:30 and Coweta at 7:30.
HIGH SCHOOL SOFTBALL ROUNDUP
Herring leads Chandler past Seminole CHANDLER – Neleigh Herring hit a grand slam and pitched the final three innings in relief as the Chandler Lady Lions won their seventh straight game on Tuesday, holding off Seminole 12-8. Chastyn Spruill put the Lady Lions (13-2) up early with an RBI double in the first inning, but the Lady Chieftains took advantage of some Chandler fielding errors to take a 3-1 lead in
the top of the third. Herring’s grand slam in the bottom of the inning put Chandler in the lead for good. Both teams added three runs in the fourth inning and, after Seminole had made the score 8-7, the Lady Lions put the game away with four in the top of the sixth. Katie Lane was the winning pitcher, allowing four earned runs and five hits while striking out two in
four innings. The Lady Lions will open the Prague Tournament on Thursday against Millwood at 11:15 a.m. Asher blows out Allen ASHER – The Asher Lady Indians got their second run-rule win in as many days, downing Allen 10-0 in four innings at home Tuesday. Tarin Dubler went 3-3 at
the plate and pitched four shutout innings, allowing three hits in a walk with a pair of strikeouts. Desaray Goodgion had two hits, including a double and an RBI. Braxten Frazier added a triple. Asher took advantage of seven Allen errors. The Lady Indians (93) will open their own tournament on Thursday against Ripley at 5:40 p.m.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Sooners moving forward without Green-Beckham NORMAN (AP) — No. 4 Oklahoma expects its passing game to thrive, even without Dorial GreenBeckham. The 6-foot-6 receiver with NFL-level athletic ability left Missouri after off-the-field problems, and he transferred to Oklahoma hoping he could play this season. Now that the NCAA has rejected his waiver request, the focus shifts to Sterling Shepard, Durron Neal, K.J. Young and the rest of a talented, somewhat unproven unit
heading into Saturday’s opener against Louisiana Tech. Oklahoma also has to replace last year’s top receiver, Jalen Saunders, and Lacoltan Bester, the Sooners’ No. 3 receiver. Shepard, Oklahoma’s top returning receiver, caught 51 passes for 603 yards and seven touchdowns last season. Neal caught 13 passes for 176 yards a year ago. Young, a redshirt freshman, has impressed the team with his approach to the game.
Blake Bell will be the starting tight end after shifting from quarterback in the spring. Shepard was one of the stars in Oklahoma’s Sugar Bowl win over Alabama. He caught seven passes for 63 yards and a touchdown, and he ran for another score. “I think (Sterling) Shepard is a weapon when you look at what he does and how explosive he is,” Louisiana Tech coach Skip Holtz said. “They lost a lot of receivers from a year
ago, but they return one of their best in Shepard. He is an incredibly talented wide receiver that will give us fits. It is very hard to simulate his speed and athleticism on the outside. It will be a great challenge for our back end, our defensive back end.” Shepard will play outside instead of in the slot this season. “I had to work on my route running this summer,” he said. “That’s what SOONERS, Page 2B
The Shawnee Lady Wolves snapped a threegame losing streak with a 3-0 win over El Reno at home on Tuesday. The Lady Wolves (23) won 25-17, 25-18 and 25-21. Tiffany Gardner led Shawnee with 10 kills and added 9 digs. Bailey Kasterke had five kills, 20 assists and four aces. Abby Davies added 12 digs, while Dacey Hutcheson added two blocks and two aces. El Reno fell to 1-2 on the season. The Lady Wolves will host McAlester on Thursday.
NFL
Bryant: No contract talks during season ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Dez Bryant couldn’t stop smiling at the luxury watches that are more expensive than some cars, far removed from his days as a troubled rookie facing a lawsuit over unpaid jewelry bills. The Dallas Cowboys were giving their star receiver the fancy timepiece as a reward for being among just four players chosen to attend a news conference announcing a partnership with the Swiss manufacturer Hublot. Bryant beamed for the cameras during Monday night’s ritzy event at the $1.2 billion home of the Cowboys, and then offered one more illustration of his transformation. While reiterating that he wants to be paid like a big-time receiver, he wants negotiations to stop before the Sept. 7 opener against San Francisco with or without deal. Why? Because a player who was the king of distractions four years ago doesn’t want to be “distracted” once the regular season starts. “I don’t want to talk about it anymore,” Bryant said. “Put it behind me. I love this game. Either way, I feel like I can’t be distracted once I’m on the football field.” The fifth-year receiver is entering the final year of his rookie contract after Tyron Smith, drafted a year later and one of the teammates joining him for the watch presentation, recently got an eight-year extension that pushed the value of his deal to more than $100 million. Bryant has a base salary of $1.8 million in 2014, and the average of the highest-paid receivers is around $12 million per year. The 25-year-old believes he belongs in that company. “I believe a player should get paid what he deserves,” said Bryant, who is tied for the league lead with 25 touchdowns over the past two seasons. “If I’m top five, I’m top five. If I’m top three, I’m top three. If I’m top two, I’m top two.” Owner Jerry Jones, not one to offer many details on negotiations, didn’t reject Bryant’s suggestion that there was a “big chance” a deal could be done by the end of next week. Bryant’s agent, Eugene Parker, didn’t return a call seeking comment. “He’s got a good sense of it,” Jones said at NFL, Page 2B