BASEBALL
Phillip Sikes hit a two-run double in the third inning Monday night to put the Portland Sea Dogs ahead to stay in a 4-3 victory against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats in the opener of a three-game series at Hadlock Field.
Eddinson Paulino added an RBI single in the fifth and Tyler McDonough had a run-scoring grounder in the sixth for Portland.
After Portland starter Isaac Coffey allowed one run in five innings, reliever Wyatt Olds struck out six in three scoreless innings.
SOCCER
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONDSHIPS: France advanced to the quarterfinals after Randal Kolo Muani’s deflected shot secured a 1-0 victory against Belgium at Dusseldorf, Germany.
Kolo Muani sent in an effort in the 85th minute that looped off defender Jan Vertonghen and over the stranded goalkeeper Koen Casteels.
• Portugal reached the quarterfinals with a 3-0 advantage over Slovenia in penalty kicks after neither team scored in regulation or extra time at Frankfurt, Germany.
WOMEN’S LEAGUE: Amy Rodriguez was fired before the end if her first season coacing the Utah Royals, who have a 2-11-2 record and are in last place in the National Women’s Soccer League.
CYCLING
TOUR DE FRANCE: Biniam Girmay of Eritrea became the first Black African rider to win a stage Monday as he sprinted to victory in the third stage at Turin, Italy.
Girmay also made history in Italy two years ago when he won a stage at the Giro d’Italia to become the first Black African to take a victory in a Grand Tour, the term that encompasses the three major three-week races: the Giro, the Tour and the Spanish Vuelta.But the victory was marred when he was rushed to a hospital after getting hit in the left eye by a prosecco cork he popped open during the podium celebration, forcing him to abandon the race.
GOLF
U.S. SENIOR OPEN: Richard Bland shot a 4-under 66 in the final round at Newport, Rhode Island, catching leader Hiroyuki Fujita after rain postponed the finish to Monday morning and then banging a chip shot off the pin to beat him on the fourth playoff hole and win his second straight senior major.
Bland gained five shots on Fujita in the final round, which was delayed by thunderstorms Sunday with eight holes remaining. When the golfers returned, Fujita’s consistency — he hit 38 straight fairways in regulation before the rain delay — had abandoned him.
OLYMPICS
MEN’S BASKETBALL: The last four spots in the 12-team field for the Paris Games start getting decided Tuesday, with the beginning of winner-take-all qualifying tournaments in Spain, Latvia, Puerto Rico and Greece.
Each site will host to a six-team tournament that runs through July 7, and the four winners get the last four spots in the Olympic field.
COLLEGES
FOOTBALL: Utah designated longtime defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley as the “head coach in waiting” who will take over whenever Kyle Whittingham steps down.
Scalley is entering his 17th year on Whittingham’s Utah staff and his ninth season as defensive coordinator.
SOFTBALL
ADVISOR HIRED: Kim Ng was hired as a senior advisor for the Athletes Unlimited Softball League that will launch in 2025. Ng is a former Miami Marlins GM.
– Staff and news service report
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Modify your screen name
Join the Conversation
Please sign into your Press Herald account to participate in conversations below. If you do not have an account, you can register or subscribe. Questions? Please see our FAQs.