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Jackson to speak to Curbstone
Melissa Jackson, Youngstown State University women's basketball head coach, will be the guest speaker at Monday's luncheon meeting of The Curbstone Coaches at the Avion Banquet Center on Western Reserve Road in Beaver Township.
The event begins at 11:45 a.m., and the public is welcome to attend.
All sports fans are welcome and you do not need to be a current or former coach.
Curbstone taking HOF applications
Plans are underway for the Curbstone Coaches 58th Hall of Fame Induction ceremony that will be held on May 2.
This event is sponsored by Briarfield Health Care Centers Ed and Diane Reese.
Applications are being accepted for prospective hall of fame nominations. For an application to nominate or questions about the Hall of Fame ceremony, call or text 3305066774.
Nominations will close on Nov. 10.
YSU volleyball earns HL road win
FORT WAYNE, Ind. -- Kylie Surratt posted 15 kills, and Youngstown State's volleyball team knocked of Purdue Fort Wayne in four sets for a Horizon League road victory on Friday evening. The set scores at the Gates Sports Center were 25-22, 21-25, 25-22, 25-17.
Youngstown State improved to 7-9 overall and 3-2 in Horizon League play in picking up its first conference road win of the season. Purdue Fort Wayne was unbeaten in Horizon League play entering the match, and the Mastodons dropped to 10-8 overall and 4-1 in conference matches.
Surratt's 15 kills came on 29 attempts, and she had just three errors to hit .414. Layne Graffice, Abbie Householder and Ava Stratton each had eight kills, and the Penguins hit .270 as a team. Wrigley Takats added five kills and three aces to go along with a match-high seven blocks.
Kameron Blizniak recorded 23 assists and a team-high 13 digs, and Graffice and Householder both had 10 digs.
The Penguins had 10 blocks as a team, and Purdue Fort Wayne finished with 28 attack errors. The Mastodons also had 12 serving errors, which offset their 61-47 edge in kills.
Purdue Fort Wayne scored the first five points of the match, and it built a 7-1 lead following a kill by Trinity Rye. The Penguins stayed composed, and an 11-3 run allowed YSU to take a 14-11 lead. Graffice had three straight kills during that run as Youngstown State took its first lead at 12-11, and it remained ahead the rest of the set. Graffice finished with five kills on seven attempts without an error in the set.
The Mastodons did not trail in the second after taking a 9-8 lead, but the Penguins bounced back in the third to take a 2-1 lead in the match. Purdue Fort Wayne held a 14-11 lead in the third set before the Penguins scored seven straight points behind Takats' serve. A kill by Householder tied the set at 14, Surratt followed with two kills, and Takats laced two aces during the run. Stratton provided a boost offensively late in the set and finished with five kills on eight attempts.
YSU scored the first two points of the fourth set on a Purdue Fort Wayne serving error and a Graffice ace, and the Penguins remained ahead the rest of the way. A kill by Rye brought the Mastodons within 16-14, but YSU scored eight of the next 10 points to go up 24-16.
Rye finished with 25 kills on 56 attempts, but she committed 16 attack errors for Purdue Fort Wayne. Riley Rosneck recorded 20 kills, and Becky Barrett had a match-high 25 digs.
The Penguins will try to finish the weekend sweep when they play the Mastodons again on Saturday at 2 p.m. The match will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
Rangers goalie helped off ice
WASHINGTON -- New York Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin had to be helped off the ice after an awkward fall into his own net against the Washington Capitals on Friday night.
Shesterkin came well out of his crease to challenge a shooter and fell as he scrambled back to the net midway through the second period. The 30-year-old Russian caught his skate on the post as he slid back into the crease and collapsed into the net.
Shesterkin lay on the ice for several minutes holding his right knee as he received medical attention. He did not put any weight on his right leg as he was helped off the ice by teammates.
The 2022 Vezina Trophy winner missed a month of last season with a lower-body injury, contributing to the Rangers falling short of the playoffs.
Knicks put pause on contract talks
NEW YORK -- The New York Knicks are focused on their NBA title defense now and will worry about contract negotiations later.
That means Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart will have to wait on extensions they hoped would get done before the season.
The Knicks said Friday that won't happen, perhaps setting up an uncomfortable situation with some of their most important players.
"As an organization, our entire focus is on preparing for the upcoming season and delivering another year for our fans to be proud of. As a result, we will not be negotiating contract extensions until later in the season and will remain solely focused on preparing for the start of the season," according to a statement from a team spokesman.
The Knicks won their first NBA championship since 1973 in June but owner James Dolan said shortly afterward the team would avoid spending enough to trigger the penalties that come when a team reaches the second apron of the salary cap.
They re-signed most of their important free agents, but negotiations on extensions with Towns and Hart, plus key reserve Deuce McBride, haven't gone far. Towns, an All-Star in both seasons since coming to New York, seems particularly disappointed with comments he made recently. He is eligible for a four-year, $276 million deal. He is due to make $57 million this season and has a $61.1 million player option for 2027-28.
Hart will make $21 million this season and the Knicks have an option for 2027-28 at $22.4 million. He acknowledged that the contract situations could make it tough for players to focus -- and also noted what it could mean around the trade deadline.
The Knicks open their season on Oct. 20 against LeBron James and the Philadelphia 76ers.