COLLEGES
Alison Smisdom scored five goals as second-seeded Albany (13-5) rolled to an 8-1 win over sixth-seeded Maine (8-12) in an America East field hockey semifinal Friday in Lowell, Massachusetts.
Taylor Stanford got Maine’s only goal.
MEN’S HOCKEY: Lynden Breen and Bradly Nadeau scored goals and goalie Victor Osman made 25 saves as Maine beat Merrimack 2-1 in a men’s college hockey game Friday at North Andover, Massachusetts.
The Black Bears (4-1) took the lead 1:03 into the second period when Breen scored. Nadeau extended the edge at 10:44 of the second period. Josh Nadeau assisted on both goals.
For Merrimack (3-3), Matt Copponi scored with less than a minute left in regulation, while Hugo Ollas made 20 saves.
WOMEN’S HOCKEY: Ann-Frederique Guay completed a hat trick with a power-play goal at 3:36 of the third period as Maine (4-5, 2-3 Hockey East) rallied for a 4-3 win over Boston College (5-5-1, 5-1-1) in Boston.
Guay also scored on a power play in the second period, then tied the game at 3-3 late in the second.
Ava Stevenson was the other Maine goal scorer. Black Bears goalie Jorden Mattison made 25 saves.
FOOTBALL: Michigan has fired Connor Stalions, the low-level football staffer who is at the center of an NCAA investigation into impermissible scouting of opponents and sign stealing, a person with knowledge of the decision told The Associated Press on Friday.
The person said Stalions, who was suspended with pay two weeks ago, failed to show up for a scheduled hearing Friday and informed the school through his attorney he would not participate any internal or external investigations.
HOCKEY
ECHL: Justin Young’s goal with 10:35 remaining spoiled a comeback by the Maine Mariners and lifted the Norfolk Admirals to a 4-2 win in the opener of a three-game weekend series in Norfolk, Virginia.
Maine erased a 2-0 deficit, getting a goal from Andrew Peski in the second period and an unassisted tally by Reid Stefanson in the third, exactly one minute before Young restored Norfolk’s lead. Brian Bowen added an empty-net goal with 1:02 left.
Shane Starrett made 31 saves for the Mariners.
GOLF
PGA: Camillo Villegas shot an 8-under 64 for the second straight round and takes a two-shot lead into the weekend at the World Wide Technology Championship at Las Cabos, Mexico.
Matt Kuchar was two shots back at 14 under with Stephan Jaeger and Justin Suh another shot back.
LPGA: Japanese golfers Shiho Kuwaki and Nasa Hataoka shared the top of the leaderboard with a two-stroke lead after the second round of the LPGA’s Japan Classic in Omitama, Japan.
Kuwaki carded her second straight round of 7-under 65, and Hataoka came in with a 66, putting them at 14-under 130.
Xiyu Lin (67) of China amd Japanese players Mone Inami (68) and Akie Iwai (69) were tied for third.
TENNIS
PARIS MASTERS: Grigor Dimitrov booked his spot in the semifinals with a 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 win over Hubert Hurkacz that ended his rival’s hopes of qualifying for the ATP Finals.
Dimitrov next faces Stefanos Tsitsipas, who had no problem beating Karen Khachanov, 6-3, 6-4, for his 300th career win.
In another quarterfinal, Novak Djokovic beat defending champion Holger Rune – who beat Djokovic in last year’s final – after a nearly three-hour battle, 7-5, 6-7 (3), 6-4. He will meet Andrey Rublev, who beat Alex de Minaur 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 for a place in the final.
WTA FINALS: Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka reached the semifinals for the second consecutive year, holding on to defeat Elena Rybakina 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 on Friday in a round-robin match.
Sabalenka went 2-1 in round-robin play and advanced as the second-place finisher in her group. Jessica Pegula finished atop their group at 3-0.
The two semifinalists from the other singles group were scheduled for later Friday, with U.S. Open champion Coco Gauff taking on Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova, and four-time major champ Iga Swiatek meeting three-time Slam runner-up Ons Jabeur.
AUTO RACING
FORMULA ONE: Max Verstappen of Red Bull will start this weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix in pole position, but his teammate, Sérgio Perez, lagged in ninth position after Friday’s qualifying in Sao Paulo.
Verstappen clocked 1 minute, 10.727 seconds in qualifying, which was cut short due to rain.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc will start in second position, with a lap 0.294 seconds behind Verstappen.
TRACK AND FIELD
DOPING CHARGE DROPPED: World champion steeplechase runner Norah Jeruto of Kazakhstan has been cleared of doping after arguing that ulcers and a bout of COVID-19 could explain unusual blood test results.
The Kenya-born Jeruto won the 3,000-meter steeplechase title for Kazakhstan at last year’s world championships in Eugene, Ore., but couldn’t defend it at this year’s competition after she was charged with doping in April.
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