SPORTS
SECOND SPOT FOR BODYBUILDER TEAM
By BRENT STUBBS Chief Sports Editor bstubbs@tribunemedia.net
THE Bahamas Bodybuilding, Wellness and Fitness Federation’s 17-member national team returned from the 52nd Central American and Caribbean Bodybuilding Championships with second place.
The championship was staged at the Pavilion on the Ramp in Rodney Bay, Gros Islet, in St Lucia over the weekend and Team Bahamas was led by the gold medal performance from junior sensation Shantae Rahming from the newly formed Southern Bahamas Association in North Andros.
The Bahamas, also with Alexander Kemp competing in four divisions and earning two medals, ended up with a gold, three silver, six bronze, four fourth places, two fifth and a sixth place to come in second behind champions Barbados.
Rahming captured the lone gold in the bikini fitness junior category and she teamed up with George Wilson for the bronze in the fitness pairs category. She also got third in both the women’s fitness model and the bikini fitness 164cm. Kemp got a silver in the men’s fitness), bronze in the men’s fitness model), fourth in the fifth challenge) and
sixth in the men’s physique open.
Grand Bahamian Orick Nesbitt claimed the silver in the men’s super
Gremlins and Ballers triumph
THE SWD Gremlins and the Ballers Elite both pulled off game one of their respective New Providence Softball Association’s men and women best-of-five playoff series on Tuesday night at the Bankers Field at the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex.
The SWD Gremlins stopped the Titans 13-0 in their series and the Ballers Elite outslugged the Black Scorpions 15-8. Game two in both series will be played tonight.
The two winners will go on to play the winners of the other half of the semifinal series between the men’s Renegades and the Chances Mighty Mitts and the ladies’ Sunshine Auto Wildcats against the Platinum Pool Sharks.
Both the Renegades and the Wildcats are currently leading 2-0 in their series.
Here’s a summary of the other half of the other semifinals series played on Tuesday: SWD Gremlins 13, Titans 0: Angelo Watson and Gee Bethel provided. 1-2
offensive punch and Norman Bastian was solid as a rock on the mount as the Gremlins won their men’s semifinal series opener. Watson went 1-for-1 with a double, driving in three runs and scoring another, while Bethel was 1-for-3 with a triple, three RBI as well and a run scored.
Bastian produced a pitcher’s shutout in the abbreviated game. Mariano Cartwright was tagged with the loss.
The Gremlins scored two runs in the first and third, but had a breakout second inning as they erupted for nine unearned runs to push the game out of reach.
Ballers Elite 15, Scorpions 8: The Ballers Elite had a ball, rapping the Scorpions apart with 14 hits on 15 runs in their rout as they took the initial lead in their ladies’ semifinal series.
Kenesha Kelly went 2-for-2 wirth a triple, a RBI and three runs scored;
SOFTBALL - SEE PAGE TWO
heavyweight) and 4th in the men’s masters, while Kyle King was a bronze medalist in the classic bodybuilding 175cm.
Jackie Cleare clinched a bronze in the bikini fitness 172cm, 4th in the bikini masters) and she teamed up with Judah Forbes in the fitness pairs. Denica Thompson was 4th in the women’s wellness.
Khalid Ross was 5th in the classic bodybuilding; Ryan Payne was 4th in the men’s physique masters and 6th in the men’s physique 176cm.
In addition to competing with Rahming, Wilson was fifth in the men’s phyisque up to 176cm to round out the performances from Team Bahamas.
Federation president Wellington ‘Cat’ Sears, who serves as the head coach, said it was an improvement from last year’s when the Bahamas placed eighth.
The difference this year, he said, was the fact that the federation was able to host a national championship to select the team. It was the second year that Sears has taken over as the new president of the federation.
“Representing The Bahamas under a legitimate federation is an honor and a privilege,” Sears said.
“There is a big difference between competing for yourself in an unsanctioned event and competing for your country under a recognised organisation.
“Our athletes carried the flag proudly and proved the strength of Bahamian talent on the international stage.
More importantly, through our junior programme, we are committed to saving our young men and women from violence by creating positive opportunities through sports and fitness.”
Every medal won, according to Sears, is a testament to hard work, discipline, and national pride.
“We are proud of this team and we are just getting started,” he stated.
He thanked the sponsors, including Island Luck and the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, who made it possible for the team to travel, despite the fact that they had to take the long route in a cost saving factor.
“I think the travel played a major factor because we had to stay overnight instead of going directly to St Lucia from Florida,” Sears said. “But overall, the performances were excellent.
“It was really rough, but we made it just in the nick
of time. We had to stop overnight in Jamaica and twice in Trinidad before we got to St Lucia. So it was rough.”
From the team’s performances, Sears said the federation will now have to concentrate a lot more on its junior program to build the sport for the future.
“The country’s lone gold medal came from the junior division, earned by a competitor from the Southern Bahamas Bodybuilding Association in North Andros,” Sears stressed.
“This achievement underscores the promise of the federation’s junior program, which has been identified as a key focus for future development.” Sears emphasised that the results are part of a longterm vision to strengthen the sport at the grassroots level, with a particular focus on youth development and community impact.
Plans are in the works right now, according to Sears, to host a National High School Bodybuilding Championships, but the federation is trying to ascertain the best month to be able to accommodate the student-athletes, especially those who are preparing for graduation.
SIDELINED JAZZ: IT’S TOUGH WHEN YOU’RE WATCHING
By JONATHAN BURROWS Tribune Sports Reporter jburrows@tribunemedia.net
JASARADO “Jazz” Chisholm was not in the Yankees’ starting lineup on Tuesday in game one of the AL Wild Card Series against the Red Sox in which they lost 3-1, a move that shocked many given his breakout season and no reports on any injury or rehabbing.
Facing Boston’s left-handed ace pitcher Garret Crochet, Yankees manager Aaron Boone opted to start Amed Rosario at second base instead of Jazz. Rosario had produced a strong track record against Crochet, going 5 for 8 with a home run during the regular season, which Boone cited as part of his reasoning for starting him over Jazz.
“Every player is not going to agree with every decision that I have to make, and that’s okay. I try to help them understand the thought process and what I’m thinking, and I did that with Jazz,” Boone said.
Chisholm was informed of the decision via text message the night before the game. After the game, he appeared visibly frustrated. When asked if he was surprised not to start, he said “I guess, yeah.” On another question from a reporter, he answered “It’s always tough when
you’re watching when your team is down.” Boone stood by his decision, framing it as a strategic choice aimed at matchups. He emphasized that he chooses lineups with broader considerations in mind, not simply rewarding past performances.
Boone also acknowledged Jazz’s emotional response, saying “he is a guy that wears his emotions on his sleeves. Wasn’t necessarily how I would handle it, but then again, I don’t need him to put on a happy face on.”
Earlier in September, Jazz made it clear that he hoped to remain with the Yankees beyond his current contract. In a feature in Sports Illustrated, he said: “I don’t want to leave New York. If you’ve ever played here, you would never want to leave. At the end of the day, it just depends on whether they want me.”
Jazz benching in a crucial playoff game conflict, at least in optics, with the notion that he is a fundamental piece the club should build around. This move may feed narratives about how Boone and the Yankees’ front office view Jazz’s role on the team. If the organization views him as a franchise cornerstone, this benching may become a part of a broader conversation about how much faith the Yankees really do have in Jazz.
SHANTEA Rahming with team manager and head coach Wellington ‘Cat’ Sears.
Overtime victory for Ballers over top-seeded Crimestoppers
By JONATHAN BURROWS
Sports Reporter
THE Bahamas Government Departmental Basketball Association (BGDBA) championship series continued yesterday evening at the AF
Adderly Gymnasium, as the number three-seeded Nassau Flight Services Ballers pulled off a 79-76 overtime win over the number one seeded Police CrimeStoppers. With the win, the Ballers evened the bestof-seven series at 2-2, setting the stage for a
pivotal game five. “We had to get together and play team ball, fundamental ball… we didn’t come here to look pretty, we just come to put that ball in the basket, once we play together and don’t row against our self we’re going to accomplish what we could accomplish,” said Ballers head coach Christopher Moss.
Leading the way for the Ballers was Abel Joseph, who delivered a doubledouble performance with 23 points and 12 rebounds. Guard Deonta Tinker added 19 points and seven rebounds.
“It was a big win, all we have to do now is take it one game at a time now that the series is best out if three now,” said Abel Joseph. “Once we play NFS basketball, no one is going to beat us,” he added. The CrimeStoppers were led by Dion McPhee, who posted 21 points and eight rebounds followed by Sirmar Rolle who scored 12 points in the losing effort.
The series now shifts to a critical game five on Friday evening at the AF Adderly gymnasium, with tip-off scheduled for 7.30pm.
$62M FOUR-YEAR DEAL LINED UP FOR JOVIC
By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer
THE Miami Heat and forward Nikola Jovic have agreed on the framework of a four-year, $62.4m extension, a person with knowledge of the talks said
Wednesday night. The person spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press because the contract has not been signed. It’s a significant commitment by the Heat to Jovic, who averaged 5.5 points as
a rookie, 7.7 points in his second season and then 10.7 points last season. Jovic is coming off a strong summer working with the Serbian national team, and the Heat expect that his role is going to continue to grow this
season. “He’s becoming more mature, more professional,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said earlier this week at media day, when asked about Jovic and how his time with the Serbian team has helped in
recent summers. “And if you’re hanging out with players much older than you, it just naturally happens. I’ve seen growth from him over three years because of that standard that they’ve had in that program.”
Otherwise, the 6-foot10 Jovic — the No. 27 pick by Miami in the 2022 draft — would have been a restricted free agent next summer.
BALLERS AND GREMLINS WIN IN SOFTBALL
from page one
Shonte Cargill was 2-for-3 with three runs scored; Sophia Cartwright was 2-for-3 with. double, a RBI and two runs scored and Alliyah Wilmort went 2-for-4 with three RBI and a run scored. Sari Albury got the win over Nabria Hamilton on the mound. The Ballers scored a run on a hit in the first, six runs on five hits in the second, one run on two hits in the
third, three runs on as many hits in the fourth, one run on one hit in the fifth and three runs on two hits in the sixth.
Akia Rose was 2-for-3; Mia Rolle was 1-for-2 wirth a run scored and Deante Colebrook was 1-for-2 with an RBI and a run scored in a losing effort. The Scorpions responded with a pair of runs on a hit in the first, one run on two hits in the second, four runs on a hit in the fifth and a run on a hit in the sixth.
The Heat and Jovic had until Oct. 20 to work out an extension.
MIAMI Heat forward Nikola Jovic dribbles during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on February 12 in Oklahoma City.
Photo: Nate Billings/AP
Jazz to the rescue as he dives home to secure 4-3 victory
By MIKE FITZPATRICK
AP Baseball Writer
JAZZ Chisholm Jr
zipped all the way home from first base on Austin Wells’ tiebreaking single in the eighth inning, and the New York Yankees extended their season Wednesday night with a 4-3 victory over the Boston Red Sox in Game 2 of their AL Wild Card Series.
Unhappy he was left out of the starting lineup in the opener, Chisholm also made a couple of critical defensive plays at second base that helped the Yankees send the best-of-three playoff to a decisive Game 3 on Thursday night in the Bronx.
In the latest chapter of baseball’s most storied rivalry, the winner advances to face AL East champion Toronto in a best-of-five Division Series beginning Saturday.
Ben Rice hit an early two-run homer and Aaron Judge had an RBI single for the Yankees, who got three innings of scoreless relief from their shaky bullpen after starter Carlos Rodón put the first two batters on in the seventh.
Devin Williams worked a one-hit eighth for the win,
and David Bednar got three outs for his first postseason save. Judge pumped his fist when he caught Ceddanne Rafaela’s flyball on the right-field warning track to end it.
Trevor Story homered and drove in all three runs
for the Red Sox, who won the series opener 3-1 on Tuesday night behind ace lefty Garrett Crochet. With the score tied in the seventh, Chisholm saved a run with a diving stop of an infield single by pinch-hitter Masataka Yoshida. Story
then flied out with the bases loaded to the edge of the center-field warning track to end the inning, and firedup reliever Fernando Cruz waved his arms wildly to pump up the crowd.
Chisholm also made a tough play to start an
inning-ending double play with two on in the third — the first of three timely double plays turned by the Yankees. There were two outs in the eighth when Chisholm drew a walk from losing pitcher Garrett Whitlock. Chisholm was running on a full-count pitch when Wells pulled a line drive that landed just inside the right-field line and caromed off the low retaining wall in foul territory.
Right fielder Nate Eaton made a strong, accurate throw to the plate, but the speedy Chisholm barely beat it with a headfirst slide as Wells pumped his arms at first base.
New York took a 3-2 lead in the fifth when Judge’s sinking looper went off the glove of diving left fielder Jarren Duran for a run-scoring single. Trent Grisham scored from second after drawing a twoout walk and advancing on a wild pitch.
Story connected on Rodón’s third pitch of the sixth to tie it again with his second career postseason homer.
Rodón then issued a four-pitch walk to Alex Bregman. But after a mound visit from manager
Aaron Boone, the lefthander avoided further damage when he got Carlos Narváez to ground into an inning-ending double play.
New York jumped ahead early when Cody Bellinger singled with two outs in the first and Rice, also left out of the lineup Tuesday against Crochet, lined the first postseason pitch he saw to right field for a two-run homer.
With the Yankees threatening in the third, Boston manager Alex Cora lifted starter Brayan Bello from his first postseason outing and handed the game to a parade of relievers who held New York in check until the eighth.
Up next Hard-throwing rookie Cam Schlittler (4-3, 2.96 ERA) starts Game 3 for New York. The 24-year-old right-hander grew up in Boston, where he attended Northeastern University, but has said he always wanted to play for the Yankees.
Rookie left-hander Connelly Early (1-2, 2.33 ERA) will pitch for Boston in place of injured Lucas Giolito. Early has made four major league starts since his debut on September 9.
MACHADO AND MILLER STAR AS PADRES BEAT CUBS
By JAY COHEN AP Baseball Writer
MANNY Machado hit a two-run homer, Mason Miller dominated again and the San Diego Padres beat the Chicago Cubs 3-0 on Wednesday, sending their NL Wild Card Series to a decisive third game.
Jackson Merrill hit an early sacrifice fly as San Diego avoided elimination after losing 3-1 on Tuesday. Dylan Cease struck out five in 3 2/3 innings before handing the ball to his team’s hard-throwing bullpen.
“That’s what postseason is about, man,” Machado said. “It’s a beautiful thing to be playing here in front of these crowds and with what’s at stake.” The finale of the bestof-three series is back at Wrigley Field on Thursday.
The playoff-tested Padres are looking for a repeat of 2020, when they dropped Game 1 in the special pandemic wild-card round before advancing with two
stake just like there was today,” Machado said. “Our backs are still up against the wall, so go out there and try and play our best baseball for the next 27 outs.” Chicago finished with four hits. The franchise is making its first appearance in the playoffs in five years, and it hasn’t advanced since it eliminated Washington in a 2017 NL Division Series. “I think the first two games is really what you expected in this series, and I think tomorrow will be
a lot of the same,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. I think we’re made for that. We’re going to have to produce more offense tomorrow; there’s no question. We didn’t do enough offensively today.”
San Diego jumped in front on Merrill’s flyball to right off Andrew Kittredge in the first, driving in Fernando Tatis Jr. Kittredge started for Chicago as an opener, and the righthander was replaced by left-hander Shota Imanaga in the second.
The Cubs threatened in the fourth, putting runners on first and second with two down. Adrian Morejon then retired Pete CrowArmstrong on a bouncer to first.
“Adrian came in and was just outstanding, really fantastic,” San Diego manager Mike Shildt said.
The Padres added two more runs on Machado’s 404-foot drive to left off Imanaga in the fifth. Tatis reached on a leadoff walk and advanced on a sacrifice
ahead of Machado’s 12th career playoff homer.
“That splitter was meant for down in the zone and just hung a little bit,”
Imanaga said through a translator, “and for me it was like, why did that happen and something I’m going to think about, make those adjustments that I need to.”
The three runs were more than enough for San Diego’s bullpen, with Miller and Robert Suarez combining for 14 pitches of over 100 mph.
Morejon pitched 2 1/3 perfect innings before Miller showed off his electric stuff while striking out five consecutive batters. The 6-foot-5 right-hander reached 104.5 mph on a called third strike to Carson Kelly in the seventh that was the fastest pitch in the postseason since Statcast started tracking in 2008.
Miller, who was acquired in a trade with the Athletics on July 31, struck out the side in the seventh in his postseason debut on
Tuesday. The eight straight Ks tied the postseason record set by Josh Hader in 2022. Miller was pulled from Game 2 after he hit Michael Busch with a slider with two outs in the eighth. Suarez retired Nico Hoerner on a liner to right before working a one-hit ninth for the save.
“You’ve got to get pitches to hit,” Counsell said. “If players of this talent don’t give you pitches to hit, it’s tough to get hits. They did a pretty darned good job of that today.”
Up next Yu Darvish gets the ball for San Diego on Thursday, and Jameson Taillon starts for Chicago.
Darvish played for the Cubs for three seasons before he was traded to the Padres in December 2020.
The right-hander said he enjoys pitching at Wrigley.
“Yeah, this place did me good,” he said through a translator. “The organisation, the fans did me good,
NEW York Yankees’ Jazz Chisholm Jr dives into home plate to score on a hit by Austin Wells against the Boston Red Sox during the eighth inning of Game 2 of an American League wild-card baseball playoff series, on Wednesday in New York.
Photos: Frank Franklin II/AP
JAZZ Chisholm Jr rounds third base on his way home to score.
SAN Diego Padres’ Manny Machado reacts after hitting a two-run home run during the fifth inning. Photo: Erin Hooley/AP
At 58, Tom Cillo is tackling his dream of playing college football
By WILL GRAVES
AP National Writer
THE shouts of “Yeah, Tom!” started the moment
Tom Cillo crossed the white paint on the sideline and stepped onto the field at Girardi Stadium.
After a couple of bounces to expend some of the nervous energy and a playful cup of his left ear toward the crowd, the oldest freshman nose tackle in the country dropped down into a three-point stance.
Cillo glanced across the line of scrimmage at King’s College freshman center Anthony D’Antonio, four decades younger than the 58-year-old Cillo.
“What’s up, Tom?” D’Antonio said, extending his hand out of respect.
Cillo returned the favor.
A few seconds later, the pleasantries ended.
D’Antonio snapped the ball and surged toward Cillo. Cillo, at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, “small” only by football’s outsized standards, rose to meet him.
The whistle soon sounded to signal the end of the play following a shortish gain. And in that moment, Cillo was no longer burdened by the inescapable mid-life question of “what if?” He was no longer a curiosity, but an official, game-tested NCAA Division III college football player, just like everyone else in uniform on this sun-drenched early fall Sunday. Even if, in many ways, Cillo is like no one else.
“It doesn’t compare to the birth of your children,” the father of three said after making his debut as a member of Lycoming’s junior varsity in a 16-9 victory on Sept. 28. “But I’m telling you, from a competitor’s standpoint and a guy that’s loved to compete at different things over the years, I think this goes to the top of the chart. This was awesome.”
And, he stressed, just the beginning. Those adrenaline-fueled half-dozen snaps did not mark the end of a journey, but merely a
milepost along the way. “Now that I’ve got some actual game reps, it’s going to keep building,” Cillo said, the smile emerging from his salt-and-pepper beard growing ever wider. “I can’t wait.” Why would he? He’s waited long enough. Far too long, if he’s being honest.
‘Put it out of sight’
So how did Cillo get here? How did a guy who is drawing from his pension and will be eligible for Social Security before he graduates end up leading his Gen Z teammates in an old-school postgame cheer of “Hip Hip Hooray”?
How did someone who drives to campus every day in a sedan that might be older than some of his fellow freshmen become an unlikely — if perfect — brand ambassador for a topical pain reliever as part of a NIL deal?
Dave Bellomo is glad you asked.
Bellomo and Cillo — who have known each other for 30 years — were sipping beer in the middle of a catch-up session last spring when the conversation took a turn.
Cillo had recently left his job as part of the Williamsport Recreation Department, where for more than three decades he kept the local streets and parks clean in the northcentral Pennsylvania town most widely known as the home of the Little League World Series. He took a maintenance gig at Williamsport Area High School, where he graduated from in 1984, to give himself something to do.
Somewhere deep inside, Cillo could feel the clock ticking.
“I have some regrets,” Cillo told Bellomo.
Not going to college was one of them. Never playing football — Cillo made it through a couple of training camp practices in high school before quitting — was another.
Bellomo, who served as Cillo’s de facto trainer as
Cillo navigated everything from power lifting to marathons to triathlons, had one question.
“I’m like, ‘Why don’t you?’” Bellomo said.
Bellomo pointed out that Cillo had been able to make it to his late 50s without any serious injuries. He’d stopped using recreational drugs in his early 20s and said goodbye to heavy drinking in his 30s, replacing those vices with a relentless curiosity and an innate desire to test himself.
Plus, Cillo’s kids — stepson Shawn is 32, Nicole is 28 and Ryan is 21 — are now grown. Ana, his wife of nearly 30 years, had always been wary but supportive whenever her husband wanted to try something new. There was literally nothing holding him back.
Well, other than the fact that no one has ever done something quite like this.
There have been AARPeligible college football players before. Tom Thompson and Alan Moore were both 61 when they booted extra points. Mike Flynt returned from a long break from the game to play one final season at linebacker for NAIA-level Sul Ross State at 59. Joe Thomas Sr. moonlighted as a running back for South Carolina State at 55. All of them, however, had some level of experience. And none of them played in the trenches. Cillo, a lifelong Raiders fan, knew plenty about football but had never buckled a chinstrap in a meaningful way in his life.
If he was going to make a run at this, he would be starting from scratch less than 24 months from the start of his 60s.
Who cares, Bellomo told him. Hearing someone else say out loud what he’d long told himself privately provided the spark Cillo needed.
“It’s time to put regret, not even in the rearview mirror, but time to put it out of sight,” Cillo said. “Rearview mirror means you can still see it. I wanted it out of the picture altogether. It was time. It was now or never.”
Bellomo, who has trained athletes off and on since the 1990s, came up with a plan. Strength wasn’t going to be an issue, not for someone who can pull a firetruck. Conditioning, flexibility and recovery were another matter entirely.
Enter what Bellomo called “‘Rocky’-type stuff.”
Sprinting up the massive hill that leads up to Williamsport High School. Then doing it again, only this time while carrying a 100-pound rock. Stretching exercises that would bring Cillo to the brink of tears. Cold immersion. Myofascial Therapy. Saunas. And that was the easy part. Cillo needed to apply to Lycoming, a small school of just over 1,000 students, and get accepted. Navigating the sea of paperwork wasn’t exactly easy for someone who hadn’t been in the classroom for 40 years. Throw in the fiscal strain of paying for tuition out of pocket — Cillo is using some of that pension to offset the cost — and it’s a lot.
“I’m taking a risk academically, I’m taking a risk physically, definitely a risk financially,” Cillo said. “I smile a lot, but I’m smiling through the stress.”
‘Pump the brakes, brother’ Lycoming defensive coordinator Steve Wiser, who actually taught Cillo during high school, called Warriors junior defensive lineman Mason Woodward shortly before training camp started, in need of a favor.
Wiser asked Woodward to help out an incoming freshman. When Wiser mentioned, “By the way, Tom is 58,” Woodward thought it was a prank.
Then Cillo inclinepressed 315 pounds nearly a dozen times.
“That’s when I knew it was serious,” Woodward said.
Being strong is one thing. Knowing how to use that strength to play football is something else. For all of the wisdom gleaned from his life experiences, Cillo was a neophyte when it came to Xs and Os.
“It was tough,” Cillo said. “Some days I’d wake up and say, ‘You’ve got to get around.’ And my body would say, ‘Pump the brakes, brother.’”
The brakes might have been pumped, but they were never stopped. Cillo willed his way through two weeks of 12-hour days of practices, meetings, walkthroughs and meals. When the Warriors broke camp, Cillo was one of 117 players remaining on the roster.
“He’s taken some lumps, but he keeps coming back,” coach Mike Clark said. “He keeps learning, keeps working. It’s all part of the process.”
‘He’s got to earn it’ And it is a process. While Cillo understands the uniqueness of his journey, he’s also just another freshman trying to figure out how to balance school and football, albeit with outside responsibilities his teammates may not experience for decades, if at all.
A typical school day begins with a conversation between his mind and his body about who is going to move first. The predawn hours are spent studying — Cillo is majoring in criminal justice for now — and chugging coffee. Then it’s off to campus in his black Chuck Taylors for classes. Sometime in between, he’ll try to sneak in a little treatment for whatever might be hurting on a given day.
While the rest of the Warriors head back to their dorms, Cillo instead checks in on his 90-year-old mother Rita, who is dealing with a host of health issues.
Sometimes that means staying the night to keep an eye on her, which often means going without sleep.
The cycle repeats itself the next day. And the next.
It’s a lot to handle at any age, let alone one that’s nudging toward Medicare eligibility. No wonder Cillo considers merely getting to the sideline in uniform every weekend a victory.
“Going through all this stuff, the day-to-day grind, I’ve earned the right to be out there,” he said. On this point, Cillo is adamant.
Yes, his social media feed is starting to gain some traction. Yes, he’s probably the only college athlete in the country to have an endorsement deal with a pain relief ointment company thanks to rules that allow players to make money off their name, image and likeness (NIL).
And, yes, he’ll lean into a portion of his burgeoning celebrity if it inspires others and maybe helps pay a bill or two along the way.
The last thing Cillo wants out of this is sympathy or preferential treatment in the locker room or on the field. Clark, 54 and in his 18th season at Lycoming, never promised Cillo anything other than an opportunity.
“He’s got to earn it,” said Clark, who described Cillo as an older brother. “He’s trying.”
‘Everyone just loves him’ Sure, the competitor in Cillo wants to be on the
field every play. The man who will turn 59 in January learned long ago that life doesn’t work like that. If he never plays in a varsity game, which would make him the oldest non-kicker to ever see action in an NCAA contest, so be it. He is fully committed to seeing this through as long as his body allows. This is not a stunt for attention. It is not a one-off. There are parts of this just as rewarding as playing time, including the chance to impact his teammates in ways that have nothing to do with the game.
Cillo provides countless rides and will occasionally pick up the tab for a post-practice meal. He’ll give advice when asked, but doesn’t want to overstep. Those acts of service are done not in an effort to buy their friendship, but because it’s what he figured teammates do. It’s one of the many reasons Cillo is no longer “the old guy” to those who practice alongside him.
“Everyone just loves him,” Woodward said. “It’s like, ‘Oh yeah, it’s Tom.’” Clark, whose only nod to Cillo’s age is letting Cillo call him “Mike” instead of “Coach” when the rest of the team isn’t around, credits Cillo’s presence for helping the Warriors stay focused amid a winless start, intangibles that last year’s group struggled with during a difficult season.
If that’s what eventually becomes Cillo’s legacy at Lycoming, it’s an arrangement he can live with. The rush he felt when assistant coach David Becker told Cillo he was going to start the second half against King’s College only reinforced his desire to keep going. But he’s under no illusion that he’ll be a starter or even a rotational player anytime soon, if ever. Playing is just part of this experience. So is creating bonds with young men just starting to find their way. Cillo has been where they’re going. He’s wellversed in regret and missed opportunities.
If there’s anything he wants people to take away from this, it’s the message that it’s never too late.
“I know there are people out there just like me, holding themselves back,” he said. “And I want to tell those people, ‘Don’t do it any longer. If you have a dream, if you have a passion, follow through with it.’”
AFTER seeing his first college football game action, Lycoming College nose tackle Tom Cillo (40) and teammates celebrate a 23-16 win over King’s College in an NCAA Division III junior varsity college football game in Williamsport, Pa., on Sunday.
Photo: Gene J Puskar/AP
ACC bets on being first league in college football to bring TV viewers inside live replay reviews
By AARON BEARD
AP Sports Writer
FLORIDA State and Virginia were locked in a double-overtime thriller as the ball headed to Seminoles receiver Duce Robinson in the end zone.
Robinson bobbled the catch, then continued that juggle through the back of the end zone and out of bounds. The call was a touchdown, the kind of narrow-margin play certain to get closer scrutiny in replay review.
Only now, TV viewers for Atlantic Coast Conference games like that one get a clear window into how officials decide to overturn or uphold those calls.
The ACC is the first college league to let viewers listen live to reviews during select broadcasts. There’s no waiting for referees to take off their headset after a mystery-filled stoppage and deliver a verdict. Instead, viewers can hear frame-byframe discussions between stadium officials and the replay command center at the league headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina.
It’s offered a welcome dose of transparency, along with rave reviews for taking viewers somewhere they’ve never been before.
“You hear the whole conversation,” said Bryan Jaroch, ESPN vice president of sports production.
“That transparency takes out any of the secondguessing of how they came to their decision. I would love to see this across every conference. We’re trying to push for that. But I think it’s exactly what we need to do.”
The first run
The debut came with 6:34 left in the first quarter of the Aug. 30 game between SMU and East Texas A&M on the ACC Network, a review that overturned a fumble call on Mustangs quarterback Kevin Jennings by ruling his arm was coming forward for an incompletion.
There have been seven games with the replay listen-in, generally earmarked for Friday night broadcasts on ESPN or ESPN2, as well as Saturday nights on the ACC Network. The plan can vary beyond that based on the volume of games monitored by the replay center at any one time,
such as adding the Clemson-Georgia Tech game on Sept. 13 on ESPN with only one other ACC team playing in that same noon Eastern slot.
The ACC and ESPN, which have a media rights deal through the 2035-36 season, are still tinkering with the visual presentation of video overlays and graphics. But the experiment already has succeeded in pulling back the curtain with reviews, most notably with critical late calls such as Robinson’s later-overturned catch in FSU’s loss at Virginia.
“I think generally speaking, when people communicate, things get better,” Duke coach Manny Diaz said. “Because when people don’t communicate, then people assume, right? Our brains are designed to tell stories, so we either have the facts of the story or we make up the facts of the story.
“So I think it’s a good move for the league. It seems like it’s been
well-received, to at least hear the thought process behind upheld, reversal, whatever. So at least people know what’s being said.”
The next usage comes with a spotlight of Saturday night’s matchup between No 3 Miami and No 18 Florida State.
“So here it is at prime time on ABC,” Jaroch said. “So I think even more people will see it and say: ‘Wow, that is amazing. That’s exactly what we’re looking for.’”
Getting started
ESPN had experimented with providing access to replay-review conversations going back to XFL games in 2023. The broadcaster had worked with the ACC last year to have a rules analyst listen to conversations between the on-field referee, the stadium replay official in the booth and the Charlotte replay centre.
Then ESPN suggested letting viewers listen in, too.
The ACC had been working with off-site replay
assistance for roughly a decade back to its previous home in Greensboro.
When it opened its current headquarters in Charlotte two years ago, the plan included a video feed in the new command centre showing replay officials huddling around monitors to study replays.
“We always say we have nothing to hide in that room,” said Michael Strickland, league senior vice president for football. “We wanted to put our money where our mouth was. So we started with the camera and that worked well. TV liked to use it.
“This sharing of the audio is kind of just the next iteration of that underlying philosophy that we’ve had for quite a while. And it is reflective of the ACC being willing to be a first mover in many different areas.”
Jaroch credited the ACC for making “a leap of faith” by putting those pressurepacked reviews on display. As he said: “Access always wins when it comes to fans.”
Strickland credited Commissioner Jim Phillips for signing off on the idea as good for the league and, more broadly, the sport.
“He could’ve easily said, ‘I don’t want to take that risk,’” Strickland said. “But he did not. He went the other route. It’s pretty awesome to work for somebody who believes in a group of people like he did and does.”
Making the call
The ACC has had highprofile chances to show viewers how reviews work.
Take a late TD catch in the Clemson-Georgia Tech game, for example. The Tigers’ Josh Sapp hauled in a pass near the back of the end zone and pinned the ball against his left thigh, then bobbled it further as he fell out of bounds.
The broadcast showed game referee Adam Savoie communicating via headset with the stadium replay official and the replay center crew in Charlotte. But now the audio fills in formerly
missing gaps in that evaluation as officials combed through multiple angles in slow-motion playback.
“Do you see a loss of control with the foot in the white?” Savoie eventually asked.
“I don’t think he has control there,” a voice replied.
“I agree with you,” Savoie said before announcing the call was overturned.
Or there was the review of Robinson’s near-catch in the Virginia loss — “Still moving here, still moving,” a voice said of the ball in a frame-by-frame narration — as momentum carried Robinson out of the end zone before securing the catch.
“We believe in everybody that’s involved in the process,” Strickland said. “Because if we didn’t believe in them, they wouldn’t be here. So why not do it at the end of the day? And it’s nice to see that faith has been rewarded.”
FLORIDA State wide receiver Duce Robinson receives the ball runs downfield during the first half of an NCAA college football game on Friday in Charlottesville, Va.
Photo: Robert Simmons/AP
ALBERTO RIVERON, right, the Atlantic Coast Conference supervisor of football officials, works in the league’s gameday operations centre in Charlotte, NC.
Photo: Aaron Beard
PSG SINKS BARCELONA WITH LATE WINNER IN THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE AND MAN CITY HELD BY MONACO
By JAMES ROBSON AP Soccer Writer
GONCALO Ramos
struck a 90th-minute winner as Paris Saint-Germain sealed a statement win over Barcelona in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Trailing 1-0 at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys and without injured star forwards Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, defending champion PSG fought back for a 2-1 victory against one of the favourites to lift the trophy in May.
“It doesn’t matter which of our players are in the team. When they are wearing our shirt, carrying our badge on their shirt, then the amount of attitude and effort is non-negotiable,”
PSG coach Luis Enrique said.
Manchester City had to settle for a 2-2 draw with Monaco after Eric Dier scored a 90th-minute penalty for the hosts.
Villarreal and Juventus also ended 2-2 after Renato Veiga’s late equaliser.
Arsenal beat Olympiakos 2-0.
PSG is still the team to beat
PSG’s trip to Barcelona was always seen as the standout clash of matchday two. Both teams are expected to go far, with PSG aiming to join Real Madrid as the only other club to successfully defend the trophy in the Champions League era. Barcelona, a semifinalist last campaign, is intent on turning last season’s domestic dominance into European triumph.
But despite the anticipation, neither team was at the height of its powers, with so many players missing.
While PSG was without the attacking trio that fired it to victory last term, Barcelona was also missing the injured Raphinha, while Robert Lewandowski was on the bench.
Lamine Yamal was available, but it was Ferran Torres who gave the home team the lead in the 19th minute.
Senny Mayulu leveled the game in the 38th and substitute Lee Kang-in came close to a winner by hitting the post late on.
But there was was still more drama to come when
Achraf Hakimi squared the ball beyond Barca’s defense and Ramos slid in the winner. It’s now two wins from two for PSG at the start of it defense of the title and an early statement against one of its main rivals.
“We lost today, and I don’t like that. We have to accept this defeat and admit that Paris are so good,” Barca coach Hansi Flick said. “We are disappointed, the fans are disappointed. We have to accept that we were beaten, but work on getting better.”
Haaland scores two but Man City held Erling Haaland did what Erling Haaland does with two more goals in the Champions League, but it wasn’t enough to seal victory in Monaco.
Having become the quickest player to reach 50 goals in the competition
last month, the Norwegian looks certain to become the quickest to reach 60. Lionel Messi managed it in 80 appearances. Haaland is on 52 after 50 games.
But that will be of little comfort to Pep Guardiola, who watched his team squander two points by conceding a late penalty that Dier converted to seal the draw.
“It isn’t good enough,” Haaland said. “We have to try to win the next game. It is the only thing we can do.”
Hot shot Hojlund
Discarded by Manchester United, Rasmus Hojlund is showing the type of form that earned him an $82 million move to Old Trafford in the first place. He struck twice to earn Napoli a 2-1 win over Sporting Lisbon. That’s three goals in five appearances — after having scored two in his last 13 games for United.
It certainly helps when he can feed off the kind of service Kevin De Bruyne can deliver and the former Man City playmaker was provider of both of Hojlund’s goals.
Borussia Dortmund routed Athletic Bilbao 4-1 and Bayer Leverkusen was held 1-1 at home by PSV Eindhoven.
Perfect Arsenal
Another win for Arsenal and another clean sheet. The 2-0 victory over Olympiakos was its sixth shutout in nine games this season.
Goals from Gabriel Martinelli in the first half and Bukayo Saka in stoppage time maintained Arsenal’s 100 perfect start in the competition. Another team with a perfect record so far is Qarabag after its 2-0 win over Copenhagen. Abdellah Zoubir and Emmanuel
Addai were on target for the Azerbaijani team.
Woltemade scores again Nick Woltemade is doing his best to make Newcastle fans forget about Alexander Isak. The club-record $93m signing scored his third goal in four starts for Newcastle to set up the 4-0 rout of Union Saint-Gilloise. The Germany international was signed to fill the sizable void left by Isak’s contentious move to Liverpool. And he has made an instant impact. His 17th-minute goal at Lotto Park might not have been the prettiest — diverting Sandro Tonali’s goalbound shot past Kjell Scherpen — but it got Newcastle off to the perfect start. It also highlighted his useful knack of being in the right place at the right time.
Woltemade has now scored in back-to-back
games after his goal against Arsenal on Sunday. He still has some way to go to prove he can replace Isak, who scored 54 goals in 78 Premier League starts for Newcastle, but the early signs are promising after his move from Stuttgart. Anthony Gordon struck twice from the penalty spot — scoring either side of halftime to put Newcastle in control and substitute Harvey Barnes added a fourth.
More thrills for Juve Last time out, Juventus was involved in an eight-goal thriller against Dortmund that ended in a 4-4 draw with all the goals coming in the second half. By those standards, the 2-2 at Villarreal was relatively mild. But there was still a late twist as Veiga, who spent the second half of last season on loan at
came up with
Juve,
the equaliser.
BARCELONA’s Ferran Torres reacts at the end of the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, yesterday.
Photo: Joan Monfort/AP
MANCHESTER City’s Erling Haaland, top, scores his side’s second goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Monaco and Manchester City at the Louis II stadium in Monaco, on Wednesday.
Photo: Philippe Magoni/AP
NAPHEESA COLLIER SLAMMED THE WNBA’S
LEADERSHIP. HERE’S WHY THAT MATTERS
By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer
NAPHEESA Collier is more than just a WNBA star who is critical of her league and its leadership.
The Minnesota Lynx player is a vice president of the players union, which means she will be sitting across from WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert at the negotiating table ahead of an Oct. 31 deadline to reach a new collective bargaining agreement.
If that doesn’t cause enough tension, Collier is also a co-founder of Unrivaled, a three-on-three women’s basketball league that plays in the winter and features WNBA stars. That could give her additional leverage to try to press the WNBA as talks unfold.
Here’s a look at some of the implications of Collier’s headline-grabbing comments.
Player negotiations with the WNBA are already tense. Could they get worse?
As an executive on the negotiating team, Collier will have a loud voice in the room when in-person negotiations between the two sides continue. She was at the face-to-face meeting at All-Star weekend in July that included dozens of players. There have been meetings since, but players haven’t really been able to attend because they’ve still been in season.
“We’re working hard to
make sure that we are putting ourselves in the best position to negotiate for what we think is fair,” Collier said. “We have a lot of meetings internally to make sure we’re on the same page and we’re all lockstep for this. Just making sure we’re super aligned.”
There also is the trust factor. During her comments at an end-of-season media session this week, Collier revealed conversations that were to remain private that she had had with the commissioner in February. That could undermine trust that is often needed to carry out negotiations. For all the faults that Collier cited in her prepared comments, Engelbert has delivered on many of her promises since coming into the league in 2019. She will have added six expansion teams by 2030 and secured a major new media rights deal for the next decade that will bring in more than $2.2 billion. Engelbert also had the league pay for a full charter
flight program this season that the players hope will be added to the new CBA to address concerns about issues ranging from safety to travel time.
The commissioner has said all along that the league is hoping for a transformational agreement that includes significantly increased player salaries and benefits. There’s little reason for Collier’s remarks to detract from that goal.
How are other players responding to Collier’s comments?
Players across the league backed Collier either on social media or at Game 5 of the WNBA semifinals series between Las Vegas and Indiana that the Aces won in overtime.
WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson said she was appreciative of Collier and the union for standing up for the players.
“I’m grateful to have those type of people to be able to continue to speak up for us,” Wilson said after the Aces advanced to the WNBA Finals. “I’m going
to ride with Phee always.
Obviously, she’s a business girlie and she has her own stuff going on, but moving forward, we’ve gotta continue to stand on business as we talk about this CBA negotiation.”
Other players, including Rookie of the Year Paige Bueckers, backed Collier on social media, calling her “Queen Phee” in an Instagram Story while the song “Pink Pony Club” plays in the background.
What do the negotiations mean for free agency?
Nearly every player not on a rookie contract will be a free agent this offseason, hoping to cash in on a potential giant leap in the league’s salary structure. Free agency usually has taken place in January, with players meeting with teams and able to sign in February.
Players have been able to work out and get treatment for injuries at their former team’s facility in the offseason before becoming free agents. In a
worst-case scenario where owners decided to lock out the players or the players decided to go on strike, those courtesies would go away.
Could Collier’s Unrivaled league give players more leverage?
The 3-on-3 league will start its second season in January and already has expanded to 54 players and added two new teams. The domestic league, made up entirely of WNBA players, now gives players another option to earn money, which would lessen the impact of a lockout or strike.
Last season, players in the league had an average salary of more than $220,000, which was close to the maximum base salary in the WNBA.
Unrivaled will add Bueckers to an already loaded roster that includes Collier, Breanna Stewart and Angel Reese. It also has set itself up for the future by offering NIL deals to many of the top college players.
MARINE FORECAST
Roger Federer leads the Tennis Hall of Fame nominees. See who else made the list...
By HOWARD FENDRICH
AP Tennis Writer
ROGER Federer leads the list of nominees announced Wednesday for the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s class of 2026. He was the first man to win 20 Grand Slam singles titles and ushered in an era of unprecedented greatness with younger rivals Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. With a terrific forehand and serve, an attacking, all-court style and footwork that helped make everything seem so effortless, Federer won 103 trophies and 1,251 matches in singles, totals surpassed among men only by Jimmy Connors in the Open era, which began in 1968.
Federer finished five seasons at No 1 in the ATP rankings, spent a record
237 consecutive weeks in that spot, led Switzerland to the 2014 Davis Cup title and teamed with Stan Wawrinka to claim a doubles gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. At the height of his powers, Federer reached a record 10 consecutive Grand Slam finals from 2005-07, capturing eight titles in that span; he extended that dominance by making 18 of 19 major finals into 2010. There also were streaks of 36 quarterfinals in a row and 23 straight semifinals.
Federer, an ambassador for the game who often spoke in English, French and Swiss German at news conferences, played his last match at Wimbledon in 2021. He was a month shy of 40 at the time. His retirement
announcement didn’t come until the following year, and he bid farewell with an appearance alongside Nadal in doubles at the Laver Cup, an event his management company founded.
Federer is joined in the Hall’s player category on the ballot by two-time major singles champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and 2009 US Open winner Juan Martin del Potro. There are two nominees in the contributor category: TV announcer Mary Carillo and administrator Marshall Happer. The inductees will be announced in November.
Federer is among eight men with at least one singles trophy from each of the sport’s four most important events, winning eight at Wimbledon, six at the
Australian Open, five at the U.S. Open and one at the French Open. He completed his career Grand Slam at Roland-Garros in 2009.
His first major championship came at the All England Club in 2003, and he broke Pete Sampras’ then-record for a man of 14 Slam titles by winning Wimbledon in 2009, defeating Andy Roddick 16-14 in the fifth set of the final.
Eventually, Federer was overtaken in the Grand Slam standings by Nadal, who retired last year at age 38 with 22, and Djokovic, who is still active at 38 with 24.
“I always say it’s wonderful to be part of that selective group,” he said about the so-called Big Three in a 2021 interview with The Associated Press.
“How can you compare? What’s better? To win when you’re old or when you’re young? I have no idea, you know. Is it better to win on clay or grass? Don’t know. Is it better to have super dominant years or come back from injury? I don’t know. It really is impossible to grasp.”
Federer’s run of five consecutive US Opens — no man has won two in a row there since — ended in the 2009 final with a five-set loss to del Potro. At the time, del Potro was not quite 21 and seemed destined for an elite career thanks in part to his booming forehand, but a series of wrist and knee injuries derailed the 6-foot-6 (1.98-meter) Argentine. He ended up with 22 tour-level titles and a career-high ranking of No
3, while reaching one other Grand Slam final, finishing as the runner-up to Djokovic at the 2018 US Open. Del Potro earned a silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics and helped Argentina win the Davis Cup that year. His last appearance at a major tournament was a fourthround run at the 2019 French Open.
Kuznetsova won major trophies in singles at the 2004 US Open and 2009 French Open, and in doubles at the Australian Open on 2005 and 2012, got to No 2 in the WTA rankings in singles and No 3 in doubles, and was part of three championships with Russia in the competition now known as the Billie Jean King Cup. Kuznetsova won 18 tourlevel events in singles and 16 in doubles.
