http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx National Sports News brought to you by Tbnewswatch.com Sun, 19 May 2013 18:51:34 GMT 5 http://www.tbnewswatch.com/images/tbnewswatchlogo.JPG http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280359 SAN JOSE, Calif. - The Los Angeles Kings are now the team bemoaning a late penalty while the San Jose Sharks celebrate a dramatic win. With the script being flipped from Game 2 in Los Angeles, the Sharks have played their way back into this second-round series against their Southern California rivals. Logan Couture returned from a second-period injury to score a power-play goal 1:29 into overtime that helped the Sharks bounce back from two losses in Los Angeles to beat the Kings 2-1 in Game 3 on Saturday night. The second loss was particularly crushing as San Jose led 3-2 late in regulation before a pair of penalties — including a questionable delay-of-game call — led to two power-play goals that gave Los Angeles a 2-0 series lead. Instead of moping around, the Sharks responded with a big win. "I thought the transition from being down to, 'Let's get ready to go,' was exceptional," coach Todd McLellan said. "The leaders did a great job. But you always have to take that test. You find out a lot about your team. We obviously showed up to play tonight." This time, the Sharks were the beneficiaries of some late game calls. Tommy Wingels drew a hooking penalty on Robyn Regehr with 41.7 seconds left in regulation. But the call that really had the Kings steaming came when Trevor Lewis was called for goaltender interference when he crashed into Antti Niemi with 4.5 seconds remaining. Los Angeles argued that Patrick Marleau pushed Lewis, and goalie Jonathan Quick got a game misconduct for arguing with the officials after the game. "I find it very tough to believe that a player as intelligent as Trevor Lewis, that he'd run the goalie," Kings forward Dustin Penner said. "I asked him and he said he got pushed from behind. I believe him. I'm disappointed that the refs had enough confidence to make a gutsy call like that in the last 30 seconds of the period. "It's pretty impressive when you have enough gall to guess because I'm going to look at the tape and I'm going to see if he got pushed because I know what it's like to drive the net." That gave San Jose a 5-on-3 advantage for the first 1:19 of overtime. The Sharks couldn't convert with two extra men, but got the winner after Regehr came back when Marleau set up Couture in front, who beat Quick for the game-winner. "They said we got a break last game, so now they got a break," Kings coach Darryl Sutter said. Dan Boyle scored a power-play goal early in the first period, and Niemi made 26 saves for the Sharks, who have dominated on home ice all season. Rookie Tyler Toffoli scored the lone goal for the defending Stanley Cup champion Kings, who had won six straight games since dropping the first two in the opening round in St. Louis. Quick made 38 saves. Game 4 is Tuesday night in San Jose. Couture's first career playoff overtime goal came after he missed most of the second period when he limped off the ice favouring his left leg. He returned to an ovation in the final minute of the second and then got the Sharks back into the series in overtime. "When you see someone leave after stepping on a puck like that, you don't know if he's going to come back or not," Marleau said. "And now he has his stick back in the game. And he scores the overtime winner. It's huge. It's to see him be able to push through that kind of pain." The Sharks survived a scoreless second period in which they played with a short bench for much of it. Marty Havlat, back for the first time since being knocked out of Game 1 in the first round because of a lower-body injury, left after the first period and didn't return. Defenceman Scott Hannan missed time early in the period after sliding face first into the boards, and Couture was also out. Despite having just 10 forwards for most of the period, the Sharks got the better chances with only a sterling pad save by Quick against Andrew Desjardins keeping the game tied at 1 heading into the third. "Guys really stepped up," Pavelski said. "The fourth line played a lot. Guys stepped up with short shifts. We had good game management. We did a good job." The sold-out crowd was in a frenzy from the start, hoping to help the Sharks rebound from the late-game collapse in Game 2 in Los Angeles that put them in the 0-2 hole. This time, the Sharks were on the positive end of a puck being played into the seats, getting a power play 90 seconds into the game when Jake Muzzin's clearing attempt went over the glass for a delay of game. It took just 4 seconds for San Jose to get its first power-play goal of the series as Joe Pavelski won the faceoff against Anze Kopitar back to Marleau, who fed Boyle for the blast from inside the blue line. The Kings withstood that early storm, getting the equalizer shortly after killing a second power play midway through the period. Brad Stuart turned the puck over, trying to come out of the defensive zone, right to Toffoli, who skated in and beat Niemi with a backhand to make it 1-1. NOTES: The Kings made a couple of lineup switches with F Tanner Pearson playing in place of Jordan Nolan, and Keaton Ellerby replacing Alec Martinez, who was on the ice for all three San Jose goals in Game 2. Pearson is the third Kings player ever to make his NHL debut in the post-season. ... The Sharks were fined $100,000 before the game for general manager Doug Wilson's comments Friday criticizing the suspension of F Raffi Torres for the rest of the series for his Game 1 hit that knocked out Jarret Stoll. Sun, 19 May 2013 07:58:01 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280359 http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280377 INDIANAPOLIS - Indiana spent the entire season perfecting its defence. On Saturday, it produced the biggest payoff for the Pacers in nearly a decade. Roy Hibbert's block of Carmelo Anthony's dunk attempt midway through the fourth quarter spurred an 11-2 run that rallied the Pacers to a 106-99 victory in Game 6 of their second-round series, sending them into their first Eastern Conference final since 2004. New York native Lance Stephenson scored nine points in the run, finishing with a playoff career-high 25. "That's why they pay me the big bucks this summer, so I have to protect the paint," said Hibbert, who signed a $58 million contract last summer. "If all else fails, meaning the offence, I have to protect the paint." With players from both teams standing on the court as the final seconds ticked off and Pacers fans roaring in appreciation, the sellout crowd wasted little time breaking into chants of "Beat The Heat!" For Indiana, it sets up a post-season rematch with the defending NBA champs, the team that eliminated them last May after the Pacers had taken a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven semifinals. The Heat wound up winning Game 4 at Indiana and followed that with two more wins as Danny Granger struggled with a knee injury. Indiana used the lessons from that series as motivation to improve this season and wound up beating the Heat twice at home before losing the third game of the season series at Miami. The Pacers will return to South Florida for Game 1 on Wednesday night. With Granger missing all but five games this season because of the lingering knee injury, the Pacers put an even greater emphasis on playing defence and it showed. Indiana led the league in rebounding, defensive field goal percentage and defensive 3-point percentage while finishing second in points allowed per game during the regular season. It was no different in the playoffs, as the Knicks found out. New York had another subpar shooting night Saturday, making just 40 per cent of its shots, and again wound up on the wrong side of a 43-36 rebounding discrepancy. In the paint, New York was outscored 52-20, and Anthony, who finished with 39 points, scored just four points in the final 12 minutes when he went 2 of 7 from the field. Iman Shumpert added 19 points, hitting five 3-pointers, and J.R. Smith scored 15. Nobody else was in double figures. The combination, as it had been in the previous three losses to Indiana, produced the same frustrating result. "They have a hell of a defence. They hold down the paint. They do a great job, do a hell of a job of controlling the paint, closing it down, making it tough for guys," Anthony said. "You've got to give them guys credit, especially when they got a chance to set. Roy Hibbert gets to sit in the paint, causes havoc." It's not just that. The biggest question coming into Saturday's game was whether starting point guard George Hill would play. He took part in the team's morning shootaround, was cleared by the team doctors and wound up returning two days after missing Game 5 with a concussion. His return gave the Pacers a big boost. Hill finished with just 12 points on 2-of-10 shooting but had five rebounds and four assists, and kept the Pacers composed enough to commit only nine turnovers — 10 fewer than Thursday night's loss in New York. The results showed up everywhere on the floor. Paul George had 23 points, five rebounds and four assists. David West added 17 points, five rebounds and four assists, and Hibbert finished with 21 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks, none bigger than the stuff on Anthony that changed the game. Stephenson had 10 rebounds and three assists in his best post-season game ever. The reason: He wanted to avoid a trip home. "I just didn't want to go back to New York and play Game 7," Stephenson said. "Just get it done with now and I'd do whatever it takes to do that today. It showed tonight." The New York native made sure of it. After George grabbed the rebound off of Hibbert's block, Stephenson took a pass from West and scored on a layup to tie the score at 92 with 4:51 left in the game. Stephenson followed that with a steal and drove in for a layup, drawing a foul and completing a three-point play. After grabbing another rebound and making two more free throws, West tipped in a miss and Stephenson closed the decisive spurt with another layup. Suddenly, the Pacers led 101-94 with 1:53 to go. New York never got another chance to tie the score or take the lead again despite making a far more typical 13 of 30 from 3-point range. "It's tough to go out this way," coach Mike Woodson said. "I didn't make it happen for us and that's what's disappointing." The Pacers have a far different goal now as they get ready to face LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Miami. "We're not satisfied with where we're at," coach Frank Vogel said. "We feel like there's no ceiling on this team this year." Notes: New York failed to become the ninth team to rally from a 3-1 deficit. ... Indianapolis 500 pole winner Ed Carpenter made the short trip from the track to Bankers Life Fieldhouse, where he is a regular attendee. ... Colts coach Chuck Pagano also attended the game. ... The Knicks were 18 of 18 from the free throw line. Sun, 19 May 2013 08:47:36 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280377 http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280362 MIAMI - Brandon McCarthy pitched a three-hitter for his first win since being struck in the head by a line drive last season, helping the Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Miami Marlins 1-0 on Saturday night. Gerardo Parra led off the game with a home run for Arizona, which has won four in a row. Miami has dropped a season-worst seven straight games. McCarthy (1-3) struck out five and walked two while throwing 68 of 99 pitches for strikes in his third career shutout. He was hit in the head by an Erick Aybar liner on Sept 5. 2012, against the Angels while with Oakland. He suffered a skull fracture and underwent surgery that ended his season. Parra's home run to right-centre field came on the first pitch from Tom Koehler (0-2). It was Parra's third career leadoff home run. BRAVES 3, DODGERS 1 ATLANTA (AP) — Evan Gattis and Andrelton Simmons hit consecutive homers off Kenley Jansen in the eighth inning, powering the Braves to the victory. Kris Medlen, Cory Gearrin, and Craig Kimbrel combined on a two-hitter for Atlanta. Chris Capuano led 1-0 before he allowed a one-out single to B.J. Upton in the eighth. Dodgers manager Don Mattingly brought in Jansen (1-2) to face Gattis, a rookie pinch hitter. Gattis lined Jansen's 2-2 pitch into the left-field seats for his eighth homer to give Atlanta a 2-1 lead. Simmons hit Jansen's next pitch on a higher arc into the seats in left-centre. Gearrin (1-0) pitched a scoreless eighth in relief of Medlen, who gave up two hits and an unearned run in seven innings. Kimbrel pitched a perfect ninth for his 13th save. REDS 10, PHILLIES 0 PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Bronson Arroyo pitched five-hit ball over 7 2-3 innings and Joey Votto was 4 for 4 with a homer, leading Cincinnati to the victory. Arroyo (4-4) struck out six and allowed one runner to reach third in winning his third straight start against Philadelphia. He was 1-7 in his first 10 games against the Phillies, but has figured them out over the last two seasons. Votto had a two-run shot and walked twice to reach safely six times. Ryan Hanigan hit a three-run homer. Kyle Kendrick (4-2) gave up four runs and eight hits with a season-high four walks in six innings. Kendrick hadn't allowed more than two runs in his previous seven starts. Cincinnati won for the seventh time in its last eight games and improved to 4-1 against the Phillies this year. PADRES 2, NATIONALS 1 SAN DIEGO (AP) — Everth Cabrera singled in the go-ahead run in the eighth against Jordan Zimmermann, and Yonder Alonso homered and helped turn a heads-up double-play for San Diego. Zimmermann (7-2) was trying to become the first player in the majors to eight wins this season. Cabrera singled in Alex Amarista, who reached when catcher Kurt Suzuki fielded his bunt and forced John Baker at second. Zimmermann tried to pick off Amarista but his throw was wide of first baseman Adam LaRoche for an error, allowing Amarista to take second. Cabrera's hit made a winner of Eric Stults (4-3). The left-hander went a season-high eight innings, allowing one run and four hits while striking out five and walking two. Huston Street pitched the ninth for his 10th save in 11 chances. CUBS 8, METS 2 CHICAGO (AP) — Scott Feldman pitched shutout ball into the seventh inning and drove in two runs with a big two-out double, helping Chicago to its fifth win in seven games. The Cubs can win three straight series for the first time with a victory on Sunday. Anthony Rizzo had two hits and his first home run since signing a seven-year contract on Monday. Chicago was going for its first shutout since a victory over Colorado on Aug. 26, but Rick Ankiel broke it up with a two-run homer off Hector Rondon with one out in the ninth. Feldman (4-3) allowed seven hits, struck out six and walked one in 6 2-3 innings. The right-hander improved to 4-0 with a 1.27 ERA in five games since he lost each of his first three starts in his first year with the Cubs. Mets starter Jeremy Hefner lost his fifth straight decision to start the season. Hefner (0-5) was charged with four runs and five hits in four innings. ROCKIES 10, GIANTS 2 DENVER (AP) — Tyler Chatwood threw into the sixth inning and Wilin Rosario hit a two-run homer off Tim Lincecum in Colorado's rout of San Francisco. Promoted from Triple-A Colorado Springs before the game for his second stint with the Rockies this season, Chatwood (2-0) had a shaky second inning but settled in after that and handcuffed the Giants, who managed one run and six hits in 5 2-3 innings. Rosario made a nifty defensive play to thwart a big second inning and drove in three runs for the Rockies, who beat the Giants for the second straight time after snapping a 10-game losing streak to them with a 10-9 win one night earlier, ending their longest streak over a division opponent since divisional play began in 1969, according to STATS. Lincecum (3-3) committed a costly throwing error that led to a three-run third inning and also had a balk when he slipped off the mound that led to another run in the fourth before Rosario took him deep for his ninth homer in the fifth. BREWERS 6, CARDINALS 4, 10 INNINGS ST. LOUIS (AP) — Jeff Bianchi drove in two runs with a 10th-inning single up the middle, lifting Milwaukee over St. Louis. Joe Kelly (0-2) allowed runs for the first time in five appearances and took the loss. He allowed two hits and a walk in one inning for the Cardinals, who fell to 0-3 in extra-inning games. John Axford (1-3) gave up one hit and two walks in 1 1-3 innings to earn the win. Axford struck out two, including pinch-hitter Daniel Descalso with the bases loaded to end a ninth-inning threat. Jim Henderson worked a perfect inning for his eighth save in eight chances. INTERLEAGUE ASTROS 4, PIRATES 2, 11 INNINGS PITTSBURGH (AP) — Jason Castro led off the 11th inning with a double and scored the go-ahead run on a close play, giving Houston its second win in three games after losing six straight. Castro doubled off the top of the centre-field fence against Bryan Morris (1-2), and Carlos Pena was intentionally walked one out later. The runners moved up on a wild pitch and Castro scored when he beat second baseman Neil Walker's throw home on Matt Dominguez's fielder's choice grounder. Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle argued the call with plate umpire C.B. Bucknor and was ejected. Pinch-hitter J.D. Martinez followed with an RBI single to make it 4-2. Rookie Jose Cisnero struck out five in 3 2-3 scoreless relief innings for his first major league win. Sun, 19 May 2013 08:05:02 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280362 http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280361 BALTIMORE - Matt Joyce hit a big two-run double in a six-run ninth-inning rally, lifting the Tampa Bay Rays to a 10-6 victory over the Orioles on Saturday, ending Baltimore's franchise-record streak of 109 straight wins when leading after seven innings. Joyce also homered and finished 3 for 5 with five RBIs. It was the third straight road victory for the Rays, all of them come-from-behind wins. Trailing 6-4, Kelly Johnson hit a one-out homer off Jim Johnson (1-4), whose club-record streak of 35 straight saves ended Tuesday. Johnson then loaded the bases on two walks and a hit before Joyce doubled to the right-centre gap for a 7-6 lead. Ben Zobrist followed with a two-run double off Darren O'Day, who later issued a bases-loaded walk to Luke Scott. Adam Jones and Chris Davis homered for the Orioles, who have lost four straight. Alex Torres (1-0) worked four hitless innings for the victory. ANGELS 12, WHITE SOX 9 ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Alberto Callaspo hit a three-run homer in Los Angeles' five-run seventh inning, and the Angels snapped Chicago's four-game winning streak. Callaspo also had a pair of sacrifice flies to give him five RBIs on the day. Mark Trumbo added his 10th homer for Los Angeles, which finished with 17 hits. Robert Coello (1-0) recorded his first major league victory, retiring all five batters he faced and striking out three after relieving Joe Blanton after another ineffective performance. Ernesto Frieri got four outs for his eighth save. Hector Gimenez had four hits and three RBIs for the White Sox, who allowed only 10 runs during their winning streak. Paul Konerko and Alexei Ramirez had three hits apiece, and Adam Dunn drove in two runs before leaving in the fifth because of back spasms. Nate Jones (0-4) got the loss. INDIANS 5, MARINERS 4 CLEVELAND (AP) — Jason Kipnis scored the winning run in the ninth inning when Brendan Ryan's throw pulled catcher Jesus Montero off the plate, sending the Indians to the victory. Kipnis, who won Friday's game with a three-run homer in the 10th, sparked the winning rally with a leadoff single against Oliver Perez (1-1). He moved to third on Asdrubal Cabrera's double and Nick Swisher was walked intentionally to load the bases. Mark Reynolds then hit a sharp ground ball that forced Ryan to make a diving stop, and he was unable to get the forceout at home. The dramatic victory came after Chris Perez (2-0) blew a save opportunity in the top half of the inning, allowing two-out solo homers to Raul Ibanez and Justin Smoak. Reynolds hit his 12th homer and finished with three RBIs as Cleveland won for the 16th time in its last 20 games. YANKEES 7, BLUE JAYS 2 NEW YORK (AP) — Robinson Cano hit a pair of two-run homers to back a solid effort by David Phelps, and the Yankees beat the Blue Jays for the ninth straight time at Yankee Stadium. Phelps (2-2) struck out eight while allowing one run in a season-high seven innings, helping New York beat Toronto for the eighth time in nine games this season. Cano connected off Brandon Morrow with two outs in the third after Brett Gardner drove in the first run of the game with an RBI single. Cano also hit one off Morrow (1-3) with two out in the fifth, a shot that gave him his second multihomer game of the year. He has 12 such games for his career. Travis Hafner returned to the Yankees' lineup after missing five games because of right shoulder inflammation and hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning. Edwin Encarnacion connected for his 12th homer for Toronto. RANGERS 7, TIGERS 2 ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Elvis Andrus had a career-high five hits, Mitch Moreland homered and Texas roughed up Anibal Sanchez in its victory over Detroit. Andrus scored three runs, had two RBIs and stole a pair of bases as he hit leadoff for the second straight game in place of ailing second baseman Ian Kinsler. Andrus finished off his 5-for-5 game with a single to right in the eighth. Moreland hit a solo shot off Sanchez leading off the third, his 10th home run of the season. Sanchez (4-4) gave up a season-high six runs in 2 2-3 innings, his shortest start in almost two years. The right-hander yielded nine hits, walked two and struck out two. The Rangers (28-15) have the best record in the American League, one game better than the New York Yankees. Texas starter Justin Grimm (3-3) gave up two runs in 6 2-3 innings to snap a three-game losing streak. RED SOX 12, TWINS 5 MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — David Ortiz homered twice and drove in six runs to torment his former team once again, leading Boston over the Minnesota. Dustin Pedroia had two hits, two walks and an RBI, extending his hitting streak to 10 games. Daniel Nava also went deep for the Red Sox, who have won four straight following a slide in which they had lost 10 of 14. Scott Diamond (3-4) gave up six runs on eight hits and walked three in 4 1-3 innings for the Twins, who have lost four in a row to fall into last place in the AL Central. Pedro Florimon had two hits and two RBIs and Joe Mauer extended his hitting streak to 15 games with two hits. Craig Breslow (1-0) pitched 1 2-3 innings of scoreless relief for the win. Ortiz also had a single and a walk, raising his batting average to .362 in a game that lasted 3 hours, 53 minutes. ATHLETICS 2, ROYALS 1 OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Brandon Moss hit a tiebreaking triple in the sixth inning to help Tommy Milone outduel Ervin Santana in Oakland's win over Kansas City. The A's had just five hits and were held to two runs for the third consecutive game but made it hold up in front of a rare sellout crowd at the Oakland Coliseum. The A's also beat Kansas City 2-1 on Friday. Milone (4-5) wasn't crisp and pitched with runners on base in all but one of his six innings. The left-hander allowed a run in the first inning then blanked the Royals the rest of the way to end his five-game losing streak. Billy Butler singled twice and drove in the only run for Kansas City, which has lost nine of 12. Santana (3-3) pitched much more effectively than Milone but was denied in his third attempt at earning his 100th career victory. Sun, 19 May 2013 08:48:22 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280361 http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280338 SASKATOON - Nathan MacKinnon scored at even strength, on the power play and while shorthanded in the second period Saturday as the Halifax Mooseheads exploded for five straight goals to defeat the Portland Winterhawks 7-4 in the first game at the MasterCard Memorial Cup for both teams. The slick centre from Cole Harbour, N.S., also added an assist to his hat trick, while Martin Frk, with a goal and an assist, Jonathan Drouin, Luca Ciampini and Stephen MacAuley also scored for Halifax. Zachary Fucale made 37 saves to get the win for the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League champions, who got two assists from MacKenzie Weegar. Troy Rutkowski had two goals for Portland, while Tie Rattie, with a goal and two assists, and Seth Jones also scored. A shaky Mac Carruth allowed seven goals on 35 shots in taking the loss for the Western Hockey League's top team. Derrick Pouliot added three assists. The game featured three top ranked North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting ahead of next month's draft in Jones, MacKinnon and Drouin and the trio did not disappoint as each contributed offensively. But the night belonged to MacKinnon. Ranked as the No. 1 North American skater for the draft in the early part of the season before being overtaken by Jones, MacKinnon put an exclamation point on his performance late in the second period to put the game effectively out of reach. With a goal and an assist already in his back pocket and the Mooseheads up 4-3, the 17-year-old danced around the big Winterhawks defenceman on a Halifax power play at 14:03 and beat Carruth before firing a puck past the beleaguered netminder from behind the Portland goal-line with 1:25 left in the period. With the teams tied 1-1 after the first, goals came fast and furious in the second. Rutkowski scored on a shot from the point past a screened Fucale after just 39 seconds and Rattie wove through the Halifax defence on a Portland power play before sliding a backhand home at 2:11 for a 3-1 Winterhawks lead. The two-goal deficit seemed to spark the Mooseheads, who scored in quick succession to knot the game again. Drouin popped a rebound in from the top of the Portland crease at 3:16 before MacKinnon scored his first of the night on a deflection 1:20 later. After the Winterhawks' Oliver Bjorkstrand chimed a shot off the crossbar behind Fucale about eight minutes into the period, Campini gave Halifax the lead by walking out of the corner and beating Carruth on the power play at 11:17. MacKinnon then went to work offensively on the power play and the penalty kill to effectively seal it. Rutkowski scored on a Portland man advantage at 1:09 of the third to cut the Halifax lead to 6-4, but MacAulay restored the Mooseheads' three-goal edge with a shot that was deflected by a Portland defender in front of Carruth at 5:33. It wasn't as easy early on for the Mooseheads as the Winterhawks, who carried the play for much of the first period in outshooting Halifax 16-7, were unlucky to be tied 1-1 heading to the second. Rattie ripped off a puck off the post for Portland that stayed out five minutes into the game and Fucale was forced to make a couple of big saves for a Halifax team that was a bit scrambly in its own zone. Despite having the better chances, the Winterhawks trailed 1-0 after MacKinnon wheeled into the offensive zone and found Frk in the slot, who beat Carruth through the five-hole. Jones evened the score just 55 seconds later by taking a pass from Tyler Wotherspoon off the rush and beating Fucale with a snapshot over the glove. The Mooseheads take on the host Saskatoon Blades (0-1) on Sunday, while the next game for the Winterhawks goes Monday against the London Knights (1-0). Halifax was 2 for 6 on the power play, while Portland scored twice on its eight chances. Notes: Steve Hartley, the son of Calgary Flames coach Bob Hartley, is an assistant with Halifax. ... The crowd of 8,771 at the Credit Union Centre joined in to help the anthem singer after she forgot the words to The Star-Spangled Banner. ... Super Fan Cameron Hughes has attended the first two games of the tournament, whipping up the crowd up during commercial breaks. Hughes was profiled in Sports Illustrated last August. ... The Memorial Cup was first awarded in 1919. The trophy was donated by the Ontario Hockey Association in honour of the soldiers killed in the First World War. After a rededication in 2010, it now recognizes Canadian soldiers killed in any conflict. ... Portland has won two Memorial Cups (1983, 1998). Halifax is looking for its first title. Sat, 18 May 2013 22:37:45 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280338 http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280301 BALTIMORE - Oxbow has won the Preakness, ruining Orb's bid to capture the Triple Crown. Oxbow led from start to finish. It was the sixth Preakness victory for Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas and 15th Triple Crown victory, most in horse racing history. "I get paid to spoil dreams," Lukas said in an interview with NBC moments after the victory. Orb finished fourth. The Kentucky Derby winner was a 3-5 favourite in Saturday's race, but he became another casualty of starting on the rail in the Preakness. Since 1950, only two horses have won the middle jewel of the Triple Crown from the No. 1 post position. Orb's five-race winning streak ended on an overcast, windy day at Pimlico Race Course. The brown colt had not lost since Nov. 24. Oxbow was coming off a sixth-place finish in the Kentucky Derby, where he made a move for the lead in the final turn but faded. In the Preakness, Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens took control at the outset and never relinquished the advantage. Oxbow covered the 1 3/16th miles in 1:57.54. He went off as a 15-1 underdog and paid $32.80, $12 and $8.80. Itsmyluckyday finished second and paid $7.80 and $5. Mylute paid $5.20 to show. Mylute, with Rosie Napravnik in the saddle, came in fifth in the Kentucky Derby. Racing at the track where she earned her first career victory, Napravnik was attempting to become the first female jockey to win the Preakness. Sat, 18 May 2013 18:40:03 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280301 http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280278 NEW YORK, N.Y. - Robinson Cano hit a pair of two-run homers to back a solid effort by David Phelps, and the New York Yankees beat the Toronto Blue Jays for the ninth straight time at Yankee Stadium, 7-2 Saturday. Phelps (2-2) struck out eight while allowing one run in a season-high seven innings, helping New York beat the Blue Jays for the eighth time in nine games this season. Cano connected off Brandon Morrow with two outs in the third after Brett Gardner drove in the first run of the game with an RBI single. Cano also hit one off Morrow (1-3) with two out in the fifth, a shot that gave him his second multihomer game of the year. He has 12 such games for his career. Travis Hafner returned to the Yankees' lineup after missing five games because of right shoulder inflammation and hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning. The AL East's top team will send ace CC Sabathia to the mound Sunday with a chance to complete its second sweep of Toronto in the Bronx in three weeks. The Yankees took four straight from April 25-28. The Blue Jays counter with NL Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey. Toronto has lost 23 of its last 28 games at Yankee Stadium. Making his fourth start in place of the injured Ivan Nova, Phelps was at his best with runners on base. In the first, he walked Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion but picked Bautista off second base and struck out J.P. Arencibia to end the inning. With runners on first and second in the third, Phelps got Melky Cabrera to ground into a double play. After again walking Bautista, he struck out Encarnacion with a high fastball for the third out. The Blue Jays cut the lead to 3-1 in the fourth. After Adam Lind had the first of his two doubles, Colby Rasmus hit a sharp liner that Curtis Granderson, playing right field for the first time in his big league career, got spun around on and Lind scored. But Phelps struck out Maicer Izturis to limit the damage. Phelps was greeted on the field just in front of the dugout with a handshake from manager Joe Girardi after a 1-2-3 seventh. Phelps yielded six hits and walked three. David Robertson gave up Encarnacion's homer in a rainy eighth inning. Morrow had his start pushed back from Wednesday because of neck and back tightness, and the rest appeared to have served him well early. He retired six in a row before Jayson Nix singled to start the third. With two outs, Gardner singled to centre field and third base coach Rob Thomson signalled Nix home with a feverish windmill of his right arm. Nix slid in before the throw arrived. Cano then sent the next pitch on the shortest possible journey out of the ballpark, just clearing the fence down the right-field line. Cano hit his 12th of the year in the fifth with a no-doubter to right-centre, driving in Austin Romine, who singled. Morrow was lifted after throwing 75 pitches in five innings. He allowed seven hits and five runs. NOTES: Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner, at the stadium for fan photo day, said he was pleasantly surprised but "not shocked" by New York's early success, considering all the injuries. ... New York acquired INF Reid Brignac from Colorado for cash. He was recently designated for assignment by the Rockies. ... Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said LHP J.A. Happ (skull fracture, knee) is still sidelined because of the knee injury he sustained when he fell to the turf after being hit in the head by a line drive and is not near pitching again. Gibbons said Happ's head is fine. ... Blue Jays RHP Josh Johnson (triceps) will make his first rehab start on Monday for Class-A Dunedin. ... Cabrera doubled for the fifth straight game, a career high. Sat, 18 May 2013 16:27:21 GMT http://www.tbnewswatch.com/sports/national.aspx?cid=280278