Page 2B SPORTS East Oregonian WNBA PLAYOFFS AP Photo/Ralph Freso Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner is guarded by Seattle Storm’s Sami Whitcomb (33) and Natasha Howard as she tries to drive to the basket during the first half of Game 4 of a WNBA basketball semifinals playoff game, Sunday in Phoenix. Griner, Mercury rally to beat Storm, force deciding Game 5 By BOB BAUM AP Sports Writer PHOENIX — Four times this postseason, the Phoenix Mercury have faced elimination. They’ve won all four and now it’s on to Seattle for another one. Brittney Griner pro- vided the deciding offense and necessary defense in the final seconds as the Mercury beat the Seattle Storm 86-84 on Sunday to force a deciding Game 5 in their WNBA semifinal series. The 6-foot-9 center scored on a short hook shot with 14.1 seconds to play then prevented Breanna Stewart from getting a shot off before the buzzer as the Mercury rallied from a 17-point deficit to beat the Storm in Phoenix for the second straight time. The Mercury had to sur- vive single-elimination games against Dallas and Connecticut just to get to the Storm, then fell down 0-2 with a pair of losses in Seattle. “It’s the team that shows a lot of heart in every single one of these games,” Gri- ner said. “Doing whatever it is, whoever it is at the time. At different points of time different people step up and make big plays, hustle plays. I think that’s what’s giving us that edge right now.” Griner had 29 points and 12 rebounds and DeWanna Bonner scored 21 of her 27 in the second half. Game 5 will be Tues- day night in Seattle. Diana Taurasi, who had 16 points, is 13-0 in her WNBA play- off career in winner-take- all games. The other semifinal series, between Atlanta and Washington, also has gone to a Game 5. The Storm lost Sue Bird with a broken nose with 4:23 left in the third quar- ter when she took an acci- dental elbow to the face from Stewart. Bird, who has broken her nose five times, said she will play in Game 5 with a facemask. “I think they lost their leader,” Bonner said. “However, for her going out, they still played great basketball. They were still making shots. ... They lost a big part of their puzzle but they still played great basketball. They only lost by two points.’” Stewart, the WNBA’s MVP, led Seattle with 22 points. Andy Nelson/The Register-Guard via AP Bowling Green wide receiver Scott Miller scores de- spite the efforts of Oregon safety Ugochukwu Ama- di in the first half Saturday. DUCKS: Defense showed flashes of quality Continued from 1B yards of offense. The Ducks had 292 yards passing and 212 yards on the ground. The Ducks utilized a running attack by commit- tee. CJ Verdell led Oregon with 13 carries for 55 yards. Darrian Felix had eight car- ries for 38 yards. Travis Dye had seven carries for 37 yards. Tony Brooks- James rushed five times for 27 yards. Cyrus Habi- bi-Likio had one carry for five yards and a touchdown. Oregon’s defense showed flashes of quality throughout the game. The Ducks forced three turn- overs, had three sacks and made seven tackles for a loss. Bowling Green did move the ball on Oregon, though. The Falcons had 389 yards of total offense, 253 in the air and 136 on the ground. “We started off way too slow,” said linebacker Troy Dye. “We need to work on that coming out of the locker room. But, we stepped up and handled adversity well. That’s a big thing we’re going to focus on this year.” Bowling Green caught Oregon flatfooted out of the locker room. The Ducks punted on their first posses- sion. The Falcons then put together a 10-play, 42-yard drive that culminated in a 36-yard field goal by Nate Needham, giving Bowling Green a 3-0 lead. The Falcons continued to shock the Ducks and the entire stadium. After a second consec- utive Oregon punt, Bowl- ing Green went up 10-0 on a 73-yard drive, taking 10 plays. The Falcons pushed the ball into the end zone when Jarret Doege con- nected with Scott Miller on a 6-yard slant across the middle. Tuesday, September 4, 2018 Ramirez, M’s bullpen shut down Orioles SEATTLE (AP) — Erasmo Ramirez allowed one run in 5 1/3 innings, and the Mariners’ bullpen shut down the Orioles the rest of the way in a 2-1 victory Monday. Ramirez (2-3) allowed two hits, struck out five and walked none. The right- hander is 2-1 in five starts since coming off the disabled list on Aug. 12. Edwin Diaz struck out the side in the ninth inning for his 52nd save and 26th one- run save, both of which lead the majors. Zach Duke, Nick Vincent and Alex Colome combined to pitch 2 2/3 scoreless innings before Diaz finished off the three-hitter. Ryon Healy had an RBI single and Dee Gordon added a sacrifice fly, both off Josh Rogers (1-1), who made his second major league start and allowed four hits and two walks in 5 1/3 innings. The Mariners were com- ing off a four-game split at Oakland that dealt a setback to their playoff hopes. The Orioles, who have the majors’ worst record, have lost four straight and 12 of 15. Jonathan Villar homered off the right-field foul pole in the fourth for Baltimore. Healy tied it in the bottom of the inning with a single to center after Rogers walked Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz. Gordon’s go-ahead sac- rifice fly followed Cameron AP Photo/Elaine Thompson Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Erasmo Ramirez, center, smiles while being re- lieved Monday against the Baltimore Orioles in the sixth inning of a baseball game. Maybin’s leadoff triple to the wall in right-center in the fifth. ROSTER MOVES The Orioles recalled C Chance Sisco and RHP Jimmy Yacabonis from Tri- ple-A Norfolk. Sisco was the DH Monday, going 0-for- 3. Yacabonis entered in the sixth and did not allow a hit in 1 2/3 innings. TRAINER’S ROOM Orioles: 1B Chris Davis was a late scratch because of an illness. Mariners: LHP Marco Gonzales (strained neck) pitched a bullpen session Monday. Gonzales was placed on the 10-day DL on Aug. 27, retroactive to Aug. 24. “Marco may have one more bullpen outing before we try to bring him back into the rotation,” manager Scott Servais said. DH Nelson Cruz was in the lineup after fouling a pitch off his right ankle on Sunday. “It’s really sore today, but you can’t keep that guy out of the starting lineup,” Servais said. UP NEXT RHP Alex Cobb (4-15, 5.11 ERA) will make his 26th start of the season Tuesday for the Orioles. Since Aug. 1, Cobb is 2-1 with a 2.66 ERA in six starts, including a complete-game victory on Aug. 18. LHP Wade LeB- lanc (8-3, 3.71) will make his 23rd start of the season for the Mariners. BEAVERS: Without Meyer, Buckeyes still rolled Continued from 1B on them their last time out, a 69-10 Civil War thumping in Eugene last November. The fifth-ranked Buck- eyes didn’t skip a beat with- out suspended coach Urban Meyer. Under acting head coach Ryan Day, they scored 11 touchdowns — one by the defense — and punted only once all afternoon. “A lot of things the last month have been out of our control as players,” said receiver Terry McLaurin, who had four receptions for 121 yards and two touch- downs. “We just wanted to come out here and do what we love. We’ve been work- ing so hard since the spring to get off on the right foot and have just been focused on being 1-0. It wasn’t all pretty today, but we got our goal.” Ohio State accounted for 35 first downs along with 721 yards total offense, and the latter were evenly spread — 375 yards rushing, 346 yards passing. “We played with tempo today, and we were aggres- sive,” said Day, nor- mally Ohio State’s offen- sive coordinator. “We stretched the field horizon- tally and stretched the field vertically.” In his first start, sopho- more quarterback Dwayne Haskins completed 22 of 30 passes for 313 yards and five touchdowns. Backup run- ning back Mike Weber, who gained for more than 1,000 yards two years ago, rushed for a career-high 186 yards and three TDs. “They’re top five in the country for a reason,” Ore- gon State linebacker Andrzej Hughes-Murray said. “They’re a big-time team. They just kept pounding at us. We had some good plays, but not enough in the end.” Oregon State will choose to focus on the positive, which mostly happened on offense. “To put up 31 points against a defense like that says something about what we can accomplish the rest of the year,” said sophomore Conor Blount, who went most of the way in the first half at quarterback after an injury to starter Jake Luton. The Beavers managed 15 first downs and 392 yards — 196 rushing, 196 passing. SCOREBOARD Prep sports PREP FOOTBALL Thursday Sherman at Pilot Rock, 7 p.m. Ione at Enterprise, 6 p.m. Friday Echo at Dayville/Monument, 1 p.m. Hood River at Pendleton, 7 p.m. Hermiston at Richland, 7 p.m. Tillamook at Mac-Hi, 7 p.m. Weston-McEwen at Irrigon, 7 p.m. Clatskanie at Umatilla, 7 p.m. Stanfield at Central Linn, 7 p.m. Santiam at Heppner, 7 p.m. Riverside at Portland Christian, 7 p.m. Arlington at Dufur, 7 p.m. PREP VOLLEYBALL Saturday Joseph 2, Ione 0 Lyle, Wash. 2, Ione 0 Prairie City Tournament Imbler 1, Echo 1 Echo 2, Harper Charter 0 Echo 1, Dayville/Monument 1 Echo 2, Adrian 1 Echo 2, Enterprise 0 Pilot Rock 2, Mitchell/Spray 0 Echo 2, Pilot Rock 0 Heppner Tournament Weston-McEwen 3, Portland Christian 2 Weston-McEwen 3, Crane 0 Vernonia 3, Weston-McEwen 0 Crane 3, Heppner 2 Portland Christian 3, Heppner 0 Vernonia 3, Heppner 2 Tuesday Dayton (WA) at Weston-McEwen, 4 p.m. Stanfield at Umatilla, 4 p.m. Heppner at Irrigon, 4 p.m. Echo at Ione, 5 p.m. Condon/Wheeler at Dufur, 5 p.m. Helix at Nixyaawii, 5 p.m. Tri-Cities Prep (WA) at Riverside, 6 p.m. Heppner vs. South Wasco (at Irrigon), 6 p.m. Baker at Pendleton, 6:30 p.m. Southridge at Hermiston, 7 p.m. Wednesday Riverside at Helix, 4 p.m. Pilot Rock vs. Riverside (at Helix), 5:30 p.m. Stanfield vs. Prescott (WA), 6 p.m. Pilot Rock at Helix, 7 p.m. Hermiston at Chiawana, 7 p.m. Thursday Mac-Hi at Umatilla, 4 p.m. Irrigon at Condon/Wheeler, 5 p.m. Ione at South Wasco, 5 p.m. La Grande at Pendleton, 6:30 p.m. Friday Pilot Rock at Gaston, 5 p.m. Pine Eagle at Nixyaawii, 5 p.m. Saturday Riverside at Helix, 9 a.m. Pilot Rock at Neah-Kah-Nie Tournament, 9 a.m. Ione at Condon/Wheeler, 9 a.m. Ione vs. Union (at Condon), 11 a.m. Prairie City at Condon/Wheeler, Noon Pasco at Hermiston, 12:30 p.m. Ione vs. Prairie City (at Condon), 2 p.m. Union at Condon/Wheeler, 3 p.m. Ione vs. Stanfield (at Condon), 4 p.m. Stanfield at Condon/Wheeler, 6 p.m. Heppner at Helix, 7 p.m. PREP BOYS SOCCER Saturday Oregon Episcopal 4, Riverside 1 Tuesday Portland Adventist at Riverside, 4 p.m. Umatilla at Mac-Hi, 4:30 p.m. Pendleton at La Grande, 6 p.m. Thursday Baker at Pendleton, 4:30 p.m. Saturday Banks at Mac-Hi, Noon Riverside at Catlin Gabel, 3 p.m. Irrigon at Trout Lake (WA), 4 p.m. PREP GIRLS SOCCER Saturday Riverside 13, Stevenson, Wash. 0 Hanford 4, Hermiston 1 Tuesday La Grande at Pendleton, 4 p.m. Umatilla at Mac-Hi, 4:30 p.m. Southridge at Hermiston, 7 p.m. Wednesday Pendleton at Baker, 7 p.m. Hermiston at Chiawana, 7 p.m. Saturday Mac-Hi vs. Banks (at The Dalles), 10 a.m. Riverside at Catlin Gabel, 1 p.m. Pasco at Hermiston, 2 p.m. PREP CROSS COUNTRY Saturday Mac-Hi, Heppner, Helix, Stanfield, Umatilla, Hermiston at Hermiston Runner Soul XC Fest Football National Football League Thursday, Sept. 6 Atlanta at Philadelphia, 5:20 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 9 San Francisco at Minnesota, 10 a.m. Houston at New England, 10 a.m. Pittsburgh at Cleveland, 10 a.m. Cincinnati at Indianapolis, 10 a.m. Jacksonville at N.Y. Giants, 10 a.m. Tampa Bay at New Orleans, 10 a.m. Buffalo at Baltimore, 10 a.m. Tennessee at Miami, 10 a.m. Kansas City at L.A. Chargers, 1:05 p.m. Dallas at Carolina, 1:25 p.m. Seattle at Denver, 1:25 p.m. Washington at Arizona, 1:25 p.m. Chicago at Green Bay, 5:20 p.m. Monday, Sept. 10 N.Y. Jets at Detroit, 4:10 p.m. L.A. Rams at Oakland, 7:20 p.m. NCAA Football Top 25 No. 1 Alabama (1-0) beat Louisville 51-14. Next: vs. Arkansas State, Saturday. No. 2 Clemson (1-0) beat Furman 48-7. Next: at Texas A&M, Saturday. No. 3 Georgia (1-0) beat Austin Peay 45-0. Next: at South Carolina, Saturday. No. 4 Wisconsin (1-0) beat Western Ken- tucky 34-3, Friday. Next: vs. New Mexico, Saturday. No. 5 Ohio State (1-0) beat Oregon State 77-31. Next: vs. Rutgers, Saturday. No. 6 Washington (0-1) lost to No. 9 Auburn 21-16. Next: vs. North Dakota, Saturday. No. 7 Oklahoma (1-0) beat FAU 63-14. Next: vs. UCLA, Saturday. No. 8 Miami (0-1) lost to No. 25 LSU 33-17, Sunday. Next: Next: vs. Savannah State, Saturday. No. 9 Auburn (1-0) beat No. 6 Washington 21-16. Next: vs. Alabama State, Saturday. No. 10 Penn State (1-0) beat Appalachian State 45-38, OT. Next: at Pittsburgh, Saturday. No. 11 Michigan State (1-0) beat Utah State 38-31, Friday. Next: at Arizona State, Saturday. No. 12 Notre Dame (1-0) beat No. 14 Mich- igan 24-17. Next: vs. Ball State, Saturday. No. 13 Stanford (1-0) beat San Diego State 31-10, Friday. Next vs. No. 15 Southern Cal, Saturday. No. 14 Michigan (0-1) lost to No. 12 Notre Dame 24-17. Next: vs. Western Michigan, Saturday. No. 15 Southern Cal (1-0) beat UNLV 43- 21. Next: at No. 13 Stanford, Saturday. No. 16 TCU (1-0) beat Southern U. 55-7. Next: at SMU, Saturday. No. 17 West Virginia (1-0) beat Tennessee 40-14. Next: vs. Youngstown State, Saturday. No. 18 Mississippi State (1-0) beat Ste- phen F. Austin 63-6. Next: at Kansas State, Saturday. No. 19 Florida State (0-1) lost to No. 20 Virginia Tech 24-3, Monday. Next: vs. Samford, Saturday. No. 20 Virginia Tech (1-0) beat No. 19 Flor- ida State 24-3, Monday. Next: vs. William & Mary, Saturday. No. 21 UCF (1-0) beat UConn 56-17, Thurs- day. Next: vs. SC State, Saturday. No. 22 Boise State (1-0) beat Troy 56-20. Next: vs. UConn, Saturday. No. 23 Texas (0-1) lost to Maryland 34-29. Next: vs. Tulsa, Saturday. No. 24 Oregon (1-0) beat Bowling Green 58-24. Next: vs. Portland State, Saturday. No. 25 LSU (1-0) 1-0) beat No. 8 Miami 33-17, Sunday. Next: Next: vs. SE Louisiana, Saturday. PACIFIC-12 CONFERENCE North W L California 1 0 Oregon 1 0 Stanford 1 0 Washington St. 1 0 Oregon St. 0 1 Washington 0 1 South W L Ariz. St. 1 0 Colorado 1 0 Southern Cal 1 0 PF 24 58 31 41 31 16 PF 49 45 43 PA 17 24 10 19 77 21 PA 7 13 21 Utah 1 0 41 10 Arizona 0 1 23 28 UCLA 0 1 17 26 Thursday’s Games Utah 41, Weber St. 10 Friday’s Games Stanford 31, San Diego St. 10 Colorado 45, Colorado St. 13 Saturday’s Games Ohio St. 77, Oregon St. 31 Auburn 21, Washington 16 Washington St. 41, Wyoming 19 Southern Cal 43, UNLV 21 California 24, North Carolina 17 Cincinnati 26, UCLA 17 Oregon 58, Bowling Green 24 Arizona St. 49, UTSA 7 BYU 28, Arizona 23 Saturday, Sept. 8 Arizona at Houston, 9 a.m. UCLA at Oklahoma, 10 a.m. Portland St. at Oregon, 11 a.m. Colorado at Nebraska, 12:30 p.m. North Dakota at Washington, 2 p.m. Utah at N. Illinois, 4:30 p.m. S. Utah at Oregon St., 5 p.m. Southern Cal at Stanford, 6:30 p.m. California at BYU, 7:15 p.m. Michigan St. at Arizona St., 7:45 p.m. San Jose St. at Washington St., 8 p.m. Baseball American League East Division W L Pct GB Boston 95 44 .683 — New York 86 52 .623 8½ Tampa Bay 74 63 .540 20 Toronto 62 75 .453 32 Baltimore 40 98 .290 54½ Central Division W L Pct GB Cleveland 77 60 .562 — Minnesota 63 74 .460 14 Chicago 56 82 .406 21½ Detroit 55 83 .399 22½ Kansas City 46 91 .336 31 West Division W L Pct GB Houston 85 53 .616 — Oakland 83 56 .597 2½ Seattle 77 61 .558 8 Los Angeles 67 71 .486 18 Texas 60 78 .435 25 ——— Sunday’s Games Detroit 11, N.Y. Yankees 7 Toronto 6, Miami 1 Chicago White Sox 8, Boston 0 Kansas City 9, Baltimore 1 Texas 18, Minnesota 4 Oakland 8, Seattle 2 Tampa Bay 6, Cleveland 4 Houston 4, L.A. Angels 2 Monday’s Games Boston 8, Atlanta 2 Chicago White Sox 4, Detroit 2 Houston 4, Minnesota 1 Oakland 6, N.Y. Yankees 3 Kansas City 5, Cleveland 1 Tampa Bay 7, Toronto 1 L.A. Angels 3, Texas 1 Seattle 2, Baltimore 1 Tuesday’s Games Tampa Bay (Stanek 2-3) at Toronto (Gavi- glio 3-7), 4:07 p.m. Kansas City (Duffy 8-11) at Cleveland (Clevinger 10-7), 4:10 p.m. Boston (Porcello 15-7) at Atlanta (New- comb 11-7), 4:35 p.m. L.A. Angels (Heaney 8-8) at Texas (Minor 10-7), 5:05 p.m. Detroit (Liriano 3-9) at Chicago White Sox (Giolito 10-9), 5:10 p.m. Minnesota (May 3-0) at Houston (Verland- er 13-9), 5:10 p.m. N.Y. Yankees (Happ 15-6) at Oakland (Hendriks 0-1), 7:05 p.m. Baltimore (Cobb 4-15) at Seattle (LeBlanc 8-3), 7:10 p.m. Wednesday’s Games Boston at Atlanta, 9:10 a.m. Kansas City at Cleveland, 10:10 a.m. Tampa Bay at Toronto, 4:07 p.m. L.A. Angels at Texas, 5:05 p.m. Detroit at Chicago White Sox, 5:10 p.m. Minnesota at Houston, 5:10 p.m. N.Y. Yankees at Oakland, 7:05 p.m. Baltimore at Seattle, 7:10 p.m. National League East Division Atlanta Philadelphia Washington New York Miami Central Division Chicago W 76 72 69 62 55 W 81 L 61 65 69 75 83 L 56 Pct .555 .526 .500 .453 .399 Pct .591 GB — 4 7½ 14 21½ GB — Milwaukee 78 61 .561 4 St. Louis 76 62 .551 5½ Pittsburgh 67 71 .486 14½ Cincinnati 59 79 .428 22½ West Division W L Pct GB Colorado 75 62 .547 — Los Angeles 75 63 .543 ½ Arizona 74 64 .536 1½ San Francisco 68 71 .489 8 San Diego 55 85 .393 21½ ——— Sunday’s Games Toronto 6, Miami 1 Chicago Cubs 8, Philadelphia 1 Milwaukee 9, Washington 4 Cincinnati 6, St. Louis 4, 10 innings N.Y. Mets 4, San Francisco 1 Colorado 7, San Diego 3 L.A. Dodgers 3, Arizona 2 Atlanta 5, Pittsburgh 1 Monday’s Games Boston 8, Atlanta 2 Washington 4, St. Louis 3, 10 innings Miami 3, Philadelphia 1 Pittsburgh 5, Cincinnati 1 Milwaukee 4, Chicago Cubs 3 Colorado 9, San Francisco 8 N.Y. Mets 4, L.A. Dodgers 2 San Diego 6, Arizona 2 Tuesday’s Games Cincinnati (Reed 0-1) at Pittsburgh (Mus- grove 5-8), 4:05 p.m. St. Louis (Mikolas 13-4) at Washington (Fedde 1-3), 4:05 p.m. Philadelphia (Arrieta 9-9) at Miami (Rich- ards 3-7), 4:10 p.m. Boston (Porcello 15-7) at Atlanta (New- comb 11-7), 4:35 p.m. Chicago Cubs (Montgomery 4-4) at Milwaukee (Miley 2-2), 5:10 p.m. San Francisco (Rodriguez 6-2) at Colorado (Marquez 11-9), 5:40 p.m. San Diego (Lucchesi 7-7) at Arizona (Ray 4-2), 6:40 p.m. N.Y. Mets (Vargas 5-8) at L.A. Dodgers (Hill 6-5), 7:10 p.m. Wednesday’s Games Boston at Atlanta, 9:10 a.m. Cincinnati at Pittsburgh, 4:05 p.m. St. Louis at Washington, 4:05 p.m. Philadelphia at Miami, 4:10 p.m. N.Y. Mets at L.A. Dodgers, 4:35 p.m. Chicago Cubs at Milwaukee, 5:10 p.m. San Francisco at Colorado, 5:40 p.m. Soccer Major League Soccer EASTERN CONFERENCE W L T Pts GF GA New York 17 7 4 55 50 29 Atlanta United 16 5 6 54 56 33 New York City 14 7 6 48 50 36 Columbus 12 8 7 43 35 34 Philadelphia 12 11 4 40 39 41 Montreal 11 14 3 36 37 45 D.C. United 8 11 6 30 42 43 New England 7 10 9 30 39 42 Toronto FC 7 14 6 27 45 52 Orlando City 7 16 3 24 40 61 Chicago 6 15 6 24 37 52 WESTERN CONFERENCE W L T Pts GF GA FC Dallas 14 6 7 49 47 37 Los Angeles 13 7 7 46 54 42 Kansas City 13 7 6 45 48 33 Real Salt Lake 13 10 5 44 48 46 Seattle 12 9 5 41 35 27 Portland 11 7 8 41 38 36 Vancouver 11 9 7 40 45 52 LA Galaxy 10 10 8 38 51 54 Minnesota 9 15 2 29 38 52 Houston 7 13 7 28 43 42 Colorado 6 14 6 24 31 48 San Jose 4 15 8 20 41 52 NOTE: Three points for victory, one point for tie. Saturday, September 1 Seattle 3, Sporting Kansas City 1 Montreal 3, New York 0 Philadelphia 2, Orlando City 2, tie Portland 1, New England 1, tie Columbus 2, New York City FC 1 FC Dallas 4, Houston 2 Los Angeles FC 4, Toronto FC 2 Real Salt Lake 6, LA Galaxy 2 Vancouver 2, San Jose 1 Sunday, September 2 D.C. United 3, Atlanta United FC 1 Wednesday, September 5 New England at New York City FC, 4 p.m. Saturday, September 8 D.C. United at New York City FC, 1:55 p.m. Orlando City at Sporting Kansas City, 5:30 p.m. Colorado at Portland, 7:30 p.m.