Championship

Reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen closed to within 12 points of leader Lando Norris heading into final round in UAE next weekend.

Four-time Formula One (F1) world champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing kept the three-way 2025 drivers’ championship battle alive with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri after securing victory in the penultimate race of the season at the Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday.

Verstappen closed to within 12 points of McLaren’s Norris, who finished fourth at Lusail Circuit, heading into the 24th and final round in Abu Dhabi next weekend.

Norris’s teammate Piastri finished second in the race after starting on pole position and is now 16 points behind in the championship battle. But the Australian is still in with a chance to win the drivers’ title.

Carlos Sainz of Williams finished third in Qatar to round out the podium behind Verstappen and Piastri.

The victory was Verstappen’s 70th grand prix career victory.

The top three drivers now each have seven wins for the 2025 season.

McLaren get it wrong on early safety car call

Piastri won the holeshot to the first corner with Norris alongside him on the front row, only to be overtaken by Verstappen, who began the race from third spot on the grid.

During lap seven, Red Bull pitted Verstappen under a safety car, resulting in a free pit stop, unlike McLaren, which kept its two drivers out on the track, resulting in Norris and Piastri losing valuable time later when they made their final stop.

This played into Verstappen’s hands, with the Dutchman able to control the race for the remainder of the 57-lap contest, crossing the finish line ahead of Piastri by just under eight seconds.

“Clearly, we did not get it right tonight,” conceded Piastri.

“I drove as fast as I could, but it wasn’t to be. In hindsight, it is pretty obvious what we should have done, but we’ll discuss that as a team. [It’s] a little bit tough to swallow at the moment,” the Australian added.

Verstappen said: “An incredible race for us. We made the right call to box under that safety car. A strong race for us on a weekend that was tough.”

The McLarens now head to Abu Dhabi with a hard-charging Verstappen looking to repeat history by clinching a championship in the last race at Yas Marina, having done so when he overtook Lewis Hamilton on the final lap after a controversial finish in 2021.

“It’s possible now, but we will see,” said Verstappen, who had written off his chances earlier this season. “I don’t really worry about it too much.”

In a matter of weeks, Ventura High football coach Tim Garcia will help move his son, quarterback Derek Garcia, into the dorms at Nevada Las Vegas. They’re having one last hurrah, and the memories are going to be priceless.

On Saturday night, Ventura won the Southern Section Division 6 football championship with a 63-28 win over St. Pius X-St. Matthias. It means Ventura’s season keeps going with next week’s state regional playoffs to be announced on Sunday.

Derek passed for 288 yards and one touchdown. Dad was also happy that running back James Watson had 247 yards rushing and four touchdowns.

Earlier this week at the championship luncheon, the Garcias were smiling even though the coach/son role will soon be ending at Ventura. It’s a rite of passage leaving the nest for the son to explore the world.

Derek is thankful he’s had his father at his side for four years of fun and excitement, and what a way to celebrate with a Southern Section championship and maybe even more.

This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email [email protected].

David Puig became the first Spanish winner of the Australian PGA Championship since Seve Ballesteros in 1981 with a two-shot victory in Brisbane.

The 23-year-old, who also competes on the LIV Golf Tour, carded a bogey-free five-under 66 in Sunday’s final round to claim his first DP World Tour title on 18 under.

It is Puig’s third title as a professional after two wins on the Asian Tour in 2023 and 2024. His previous best on the DP World Tour was third at the Ras Al Khaimah Championship in January.

“It feels amazing,” said Puig, who finished 10th in the 2025 Liv Golf Rankings. “I’ve really had a lot of close calls in a few events throughout this year and last year and I wasn’t able to pull it through.

“I was pretty nervous, especially thinking about the past a little bit, what I could have done a little better. But I kept my composure really well.”

As well as emulating legendary compatriot Ballesteros, Puig is also the first European winner since England’s David Howell in 1998.

China’s Ding Wenyi also carded a final-round 66 to finish second on 16 under, with Australian Marc Leishman and New Zealand’s Nick Voke tied for third one shot further back.

Portugal’s Ricardo Gouveia began the final day as joint-leader but struggled to a one-over 72 to finish tied for eighth with Australian Daniel Gale.

On a cool Saturday morning at Fresno’s Woodward Park, Oliver Hunter of Dana Hills became his school’s fifth consecutive state cross-country champion by winning the Division 3 championship with a time of 14 minutes 55.3 seconds.

“He trusted the process. He was all smiles,” coach Craig Dunn said.

Evan Noonan won three titles and Jai Dawson won the other. Hunter was a little concerned early in the season about being pushed and being fit, but Dunn told him again and again, “Trust the process,” and he was ready for his best effort after winning last week’s Southern Section Division 3 championship.

In Division 1 boys, Redondo Union won the team title and Conor Lott of Clovis North held off Maximo Zavaleta of King to win the individual title. Lott ran 14:43.2 and Zavaleta finished in 14:49.7. In Division 1 girls, Jaelyn Williams of San Diego Eastlake won in 16:28.1.

Summer Wilson of Irvine won the Division 2 girls’ title with a course-record time of 16:20. Aelo Curtis of Ventura was second in 16:35.6. Sacramento Jesuit won its 11th boys’ title.

El Toro won the Division 3 girls’ title. Carol Dye of Santa Margarita placed third in 17:22.2.

JSerra won the Division 4 boys’ and girls’ titles. Vin Krueger of Oaks Christian was third in 15:10.5 in the boys’ race.

In Division 5 boys, Olly O’Connor of Viewpoint won the title in 14:52.7.

World number one Judd Trump secured a hard-fought first-round win over Scotland’s Stephen Maguire on the opening day of the 2025 UK Championship at York Barbican.

Trump, who won this event in 2024 and 2011, defeated the Scot 6-4 in an entertaining clash to move into the last 16 where he will play China’s Si Jiahui.

Maguire, the 2004 winner, made breaks of 86, 111, 82 and 86 but also made costly errors, with Trump stealing the eighth frame on a respotted black having trailed 26-61.

Trump has not won a tournament since his success at the same venue 12 months ago. He lost in the final of the Players Championship, the Northern Ireland Open and the Champion of Champions.

Earlier on Saturday, Si became the first man through to the last 16 after making easy work of Wales’ Ryan Day with a 6-0 victory in just over two hours.

The Welshman failed to register a single point in four of those six frames, scoring only 55 points in total compared to 521 from Si, who made breaks of 61, 80 and 68.

Sixteenth seed Si also potted 151 balls, with only 16 from Day, whose highest break of the afternoon was only 22.

More to follow

Friday was just another day at the office for Darnell Miller.

Santee’s senior running back arrived on time, rushed for 190 yards and three touchdowns, and clocked out early as the Falcons soared past Hawkins 35-6 to win the City Section Division III championship at Birmingham High.

Watching from the sideline, as he does almost every game, was Darnell’s 10-year-old brother, Frederick, a fifth-grader at Twenty-Eighth Street Elementary who Darnell picks up from school and brings to practice every day.

“What I love most about this sport is all the friends I’ve made. … I’m a shy person, but it’s made me more vocal, taught me discipline and to take care of my responsibilities,” said Miller, who likes football best despite also playing guard on the basketball team in the winter and running for the track team in the spring. “I just do what I do. This is my last year, so I want to finish strong.”

Darnell Miller and his 10-year-old brother, Frederick, pose with the City championship trophy and plaque after Santee’s victory in Division III.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Miller began the day averaging 15.1 yards per carry, having rushed for 3,103 yards and 37 touchdowns, and wasted no time adding to those totals against the second-seeded Hawks (10-3). He ended Santee’s first drive with an 11-yard touchdown run, added a five-yarder in the second quarter and a nine-yarder in the third quarter to make it 35-0. Quarterback Daynian Alvarado scored the Falcons’ other two touchdowns on runs of one and 13 yards.

“Darnell is a very hard working, humble young man and everything you want a captain to be,” said Santee coach John Petty, who guided the Falcons to their only other City title in 2018. “He’s the first person in the locker room and the last to leave.”

The win wrapped up a dominant run for the No. 1-seeded Falcons (10-4), who defeated their four playoff opponents by an average margin of 29 points.

The Hawks averted the shutout midway through the fourth quarter when Justin Cortez capped a 10-play, 55-yard drive with a five-yard scoring run.

His job done, Miller got to sit out the entire fourth quarter after upping his touchdown count to 43 touchdowns this season (40 rushing, one receiving and two on kickoff returns). Despite impressive stats, Miller has received only one scholarship offer — from Pikeville, an NAIA program in Kentucky.

“My goal is to keep playing, wherever that is,” Miller said.

They were going to win. They were going to lose. All in one breath, all in one month.

Win. Lose. Win. Lose. Win. Lose.

Win!!!

Weeks later the chest still pounds, the throat still thickens, the mind still has not completely grasped.

The Dodgers won their second consecutive World Series championship this fall in pure dramatic art.

A catch worthy of a statue. An out at home plate by history-making inches. A cheating outfielder steals a victory. A struggling first baseman steals a marathon. A sore-handed catcher steals a title.

The greatest postseason game by one player in baseball history. The greatest World Series by one pitcher in baseball history. The greatest moment by a Dodger benchwarmer in baseball history, a guy so embedded in the landscape of Los Angeles sports that he will be forever known simply by two abbreviated versions of his name…

Miggy Ro.

Enough said.

It’s perhaps appropriate today to give thanks for the drama, thanks for the art, thanks for the breathtaking uncertainty of the diamonds of October.

Thanks, baseball, for creating the tableau for the Dodgers’ 13 most memorable playoff moments, one for every win, one for every scream, one for every occasion when you thought it couldn’t get any crazier.

Then it did.

The Philadelphia Phillies’ Nick Castellanos is out at third after Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts gets the throw from Max Muncy and applies the tag in the ninth inning of Game 2 of the NLDS at Citizens Bank Park.

(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)

Next five fixtures: Sharks (H), Ospreys (A, Challenge Cup), Black Lion (H, Challenge Cup), Dragons (A), Ulster (A)

It has been a difficult start to life in Galway for former England boss Stuart Lancaster, who replaced Pete Wilkins as Connacht head coach in the summer.

After an opening win over Benetton was followed by the Storm Amy-enforced postponement of their Scarlets game, the western province lost to Cardiff, Bulls and Munster before the international break.

The 28-27 loss to the Bulls in Galway and 17-15 reverse to Munster in Limerick were tough pills to swallow, but Lancaster has had a solid month to devise a plan for breathing new life into Connacht’s season.

It starts with the visit of the Sharks to Dexcom Stadium on Saturday (19:45 GMT). After three defeats in their first four games, the South African side signed off before the November break with a 29-19 win over Scarlets.

The Sharks will be without most of their Springboks, including Siya Kolisi, Eben Etzebeth, Bongi Mbonambi, Ethan Hooker and Andre Esterhuizen.

For the hosts, Ireland internationals Bundee Aki, Cian Prendergast and Finlay Bealham are available for selection, but Mack Hansen has been ruled out.

Hansen, who starred at full-back in Ireland’s win over Australia earlier this month, is nursing hand and foot injuries with Connacht unsure on a timeline for the 27-year-old’s return.

After facing the Sharks, Lancaster will lead Connacht into European action for the first time as the Challenge Cup returns with a trip to Ospreys followed by a home game against Georgian side Black Lion.

An emotional Scott Donaldson said “I think my dad was doing something” after he came back from 5-0 down to beat Stuart Bingham 6-5 in the final round of qualifying for the UK Championship.

Donaldson, whose father Hector died aged 70 on 2 October, was messaging his wife about driving home when he was 4-0 down against the 2015 world champion in Wigan.

Bingham had knocked in breaks of 71 and 117 on the way to moving one frame away from victory and a place in the main tournament.

However, Donaldson produced a stirring comeback to stun his rival as the Scotsman made breaks of 56 and 64 before a 110.

He then added breaks of 51, 91 and 64 to complete victory and book a spot at the UK Championship, which starts at the York Barbican on Saturday.

HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS

CITY SECTION

FRIDAY’S SCHEDULE

At Birmingham High

DIVISION I

#5 Marquez vs. #2 South Gate (time TBA)

DIVISION II

#2 San Fernando vs. #1 Cleveland (time TBA)

DIVISION III

#2 Hawkins vs. #1 Santee (time TBA)

SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE

At Southwest College

OPEN DIVISION

#6 Crenshaw (10-1) vs. #1 Carson (8-3), 6 p.m.

SOUTHERN SECTION

(Games at 7 p.m. unless noted)

FRIDAY’S SCHEDULE

DIVISION 1

Santa Margarita vs. Corona Centennial at Rose Bowl

DIVISION 3

Oxnard Pacifica at Palos Verdes

DIVISION 7

Barstow at Apple Valley

DIVISION 8

Beckman at Brea Olinda

DIVISION 12

Santa Paula at Grace

DIVISION 13

Woodbridge at Montebello

DIVISION 14

South El Monte at Pioneer

8-MAN

DIVISION 1

Flintridge Prep at Cornerstone Christian

SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE

DIVISION 2

Los Alamitos at San Clemente

DIVISION 4

La Habra at San Jacinto

DIVISION 5

Rio Hondo Prep at Redondo Union

DIVISION 6

Ventura at St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy

DIVISION 9

Ramona at Cerritos Valley Christian

DIVISION 10

Tahquitz at Hillcrest

DIVISION 11

Baldwin Park at Valley View

8-MAN

DIVISION 2

Lancaster Baptist at Cate, 1 p.m.

Lando Norris closes in on first Formula One Drivers’ championship after finishing second to Max Verstappen in Nevada.

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen won the Las Vegas Grand Prix on Saturday, but McLaren’s Lando Norris has one hand on the Formula One title after finishing second and stretching his lead over teammate Oscar Piastri to 30 points.

Piastri finished fourth after Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli, who was ahead of the Australian at the chequered flag, had five seconds added for jumping the start.

George Russell, last year’s winner of the floodlit race and, like Norris, making his 150th start, completed the podium for Mercedes.

With two grands prix and a sprint remaining, worth a maximum 58 points, Norris has 408 points to Piastri’s 378 with four-time world champion Verstappen still mathematically in contention on 366.

Norris finished 20.741 seconds behind but can now secure his first title in Qatar next weekend, with McLaren having already clinched the constructors’ crown for the second year in a row.

Quite a decent gap

“The car was working pretty well, much more to my liking,” said Verstappen, ferried to the podium with Norris and Russell in a LEGO pink Cadillac convertible driven by actor Terry Crews as fireworks lit up the sky over the strip.

“It was at the end quite a decent gap.”

It was the 69th win of Verstappen’s career and his sixth of the season, as well as his 125th podium and eighth in a row in the 150th Grand Prix of Red Bull’s partnership with Honda.

Norris lost the lead to Verstappen at the start, dropping to third when he ran wide at the first corner and opened the door for the Dutch driver and Russell.

He retook second from Russell on the 34th of 50 laps but then had to manage fuel to the finish.

“I let Max have a win,” he joked. “I let him go, let him have a nice race. No, I just braked too late,” he added, with an expletive on the live television feed that could land the Briton in trouble with the governing FIA.

“It was not my best performance out there, but when the guy wins by 20 seconds, it’s because he has just done a better job and they’re a bit quicker.”

Antonelli finished fifth with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc sixth and Williams’ Carlos Sainz seventh. Isack Hadjar was eighth for Racing Bulls, and Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton completed the top 10.

Piastri dropped from fifth to seventh on the opening lap after contact with Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson, who plunged to last with a badly damaged car.

Verstappen was 20 seconds clear of the field by lap 23 and pitted at the halfway point, rejoining in the lead after Russell and Norris had already switched to the hard tyre.

Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll was taken out by Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto, as the Brazilian rookie dived aggressively into the first corner and ran out of road, with both retiring immediately.

Alpine’s Pierre Gasly was also a spinner at the start, and the virtual safety car (VSC) was triggered on the second lap for marshals to retrieve debris between turns one and four.

The VSC was deployed again on lap 16 for more debris on track after Williams’ Alex Albon and Hamilton collided, with the latter racing from 19th and last on the grid to 13th on the opening lap.

Albon, whose team lost radio contact with the car from the start, was handed a five-second penalty for causing the collision and also reprimanded for a starting procedure infringement.

Luke Littler has reached the Players Championship quarter-finals by beating Ricardo Pietreczko 10-6 in Minehead.

The 18-year-old was made to work for his spot in the last eight as he came back from 5-3 down.

Once Littler leveled the score he pulled clear, only allowing the German to win one leg to reduce the deficit to 8-6.

Littler, who was beaten by Luke Humphries in the final last year, says he is “definitely chasing” to win the competition for the first time.

“This is one I’ve not won and everyone does know that,” he told ITV. “I’m definitely chasing for it so hopefully I can come back tomorrow and get another win.”

Littler averaged 102.67 to Pietreczko’s 90.41, and threw six maximum 180s to his opponent’s two.

Earlier in the day, he reached the last 16 with a composed 6-3 success against Ross Smith, never letting his opponent take the lead.

A 10-6 victory for Gerwyn Price against Martin Schindler sealed the Welshman’s progress following a 6-1 triumph over Sebastian Bialecki.

The Haim family is on the verge of celebrating another City Section championship while playing for El Camino Real.

Last season, All-City infielder Juju Haim helped the baseball team win the City Section Open Division title at Dodger Stadium.

On Saturday, his sister, Talya, will try to quarterback El Camino Real’s flag football team to a City Division I title. The Royals face Carson at 5 p.m. at Garfield.

There are four games at Garfield. Here’s the link to the finals schedule.

Talya is a junior who has been the starting shortstop for the softball team since her freshman year. She picked up flag football quickly, becoming an accurate passer and mobile quarterback. She has 40 touchdown passes this season.

Carson will present a severe challenge with a pair of talented sophomore quarterbacks in Sa’niya King and Soriyah Maulupe.

Talya is hoping to earn some bragging rights from big brother and add her own ring.

This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email [email protected].

CIF STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS

At Santiago Canyon College, Orange

FRIDAY’S RESULTS

DIVISION V

Hilmar d. Elsinore, 26-24, 25-16, 25-19

DIVISION I

Harvard-Westlake d. Roseville Woodcreek, 25-22, 25-14, 25-17

SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE

DIVISION II

Clovis West (30-13) vs. Cypress (24-10), 11 a.m.

DIVISION III

Redwood City Sequoia (24-15-1) vs. Academy of Our Lady of Peace (21-11), 1:30 p.m.

DIVISION IV

Reedley Immanuel (26-16) vs. Capistrano Valley Christian (13-21-1), 4 p.m.

OPEN DIVISION

Rocklin (37-4) vs. Mater Dei (34-5), 6:30 p.m.

Luke Littler won his first match as world number one to progress at the Players Championship Finals, while Gian van Veen produced a second stunning comeback victory against Luke Humphries in the space of a month.

Less than a month after upsetting Humphries in the final of the European Championship, Van Veen fought back from three legs down to defeat the defending champion 6-5 in Minehead.

Humphries flew out of the traps with checkouts of 145, 40 and 83, but Van Veen came roaring back with finishes of 161 and 81 on bullseye.

The former world number one steadied himself before losing throw at 4-4, before two Van Veen misses allowed Humphries to set up a deciding leg.

Van Veen’s hard work looked to be in vain as he missed five match darts, but Humphries was equally wasteful and fell to a fourth consecutive loss to the Dutchman.

It has not been the best month for Humphries, who earlier this month surrendered his world number one crown to Littler when he lost to ‘The Nuke’ in the Grand Slam of Darts final.

Meanwhile, Littler breezed into the second round with a 6-1 victory against Jeffrey de Graaf.

After being introduced to the crowd as world number one for the first time in his career, Littler averaged 104.46 to continue his hunt for a first Players Championship title.

“It felt absolutely amazing, probably one of the best feelings I’ve had, to be world champion and world number one at the same time – but there is more to come,” Littler told ITV Sport.

“This is the title I haven’t won yet. Last year I came up short against Luke Humphries so I want to tick this one off.”

The 18-year-old will face Ross Smith in the second round after the Englishman saw off Ryan Meikle 6-1.

Top seed Gerwyn Price was not at his best against Max Hopp – missing six darts when trying to take a 5-2 lead – but the German failed to capitalise and Price won 6-2.

Stephen Bunting notched a routine 6-2 victory over Ritchie Edhouse, before Nathan Aspinall dispatched Karel Sedlacek 6-3.

Four-time world champion Raymond van Barneveld limped out with a 6-3 defeat by Krzysztof Ratajski.

Rob Cross, Dave Chisnall and Jonny Clayton were all beaten in the afternoon session, with James Hurrell defeating former finalist Clayton with a 99.2 average.

World number six James Wade progressed with a comfortable 6-3 win over Mickey Mansell.

Shaun Murphy claimed his first victory over Ronnie O’Sullivan since 2017, with a 4-0 whitewash, as he moved into the quarter-finals of the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship.

It was the first occasion since 2023 that seven-time world champion O’Sullivan had failed to win a frame in any contest of seven frames or more.

Murphy, who had also earlier defeated 15-year-old Ziyad Al-Qabbani 4-0, produced several stunning pots and registered breaks of 53 and 93 against O’Sullivan, who had very little time to find his rhythm.

“I don’t know what the statistics are, but it is a long time since I have tasted victory against Ronnie and they are special any time they come up even in short match like this,” Murphy told TNT Sports.

“It is such a prestigious event and you know everyone is trying 100% so despite it only being a best-of-seven I was pleased with how I played and delighted to get through.

“I just tried to go out and play like I have all season and thankfully for me most of those long reds went in.”

Murphy will now face current Crucible champion Zhao Xintong in the last eight on Thursday (20:00 GMT) in an event that has attracted huge publicity for offering a reward of $1m (£760,000) for potting the golden ball after making a maximum 147.

Meanwhile, John Higgins delivered a withering assessment of the table conditions in the Saudi Arabian capital despite compiling consecutive breaks of 106 to seal a 4-0 success over Ding Junhui.

“There are so many…like beer mats underneath the table and it’s raised up,” said the Scot.

“Somebody really needs to get told. I don’t know who has passed that but it’s pathetic for a million-pound tournament. It really is bad.”

Stephen Hendry, who was working as a studio pundit for TNT Sports, added: “It’s incredible how much it’s been built up.

“I can only assume the floor is so uneven they have had to build the table up, but as a player you can really feel the difference.”

Higgins, 50, will now meet last year’s winner Mark Allen on Thursday, aiming for a place in the semi-finals.

Some of the world’s top snooker players speak to BBC Sport about whether they would rather pot the golden ball, worth $1m (£760,000), or win the Riyadh Season Snooker Championship in Saudi Arabia, which starts on Thursday.

A 167 golden break in snooker is where a player completes a maximum break of 147 and then pots a 20-point golden ball immediately after it.

READ MORE: What is a 167 golden break and how does it work?

The Mater Dei High girls’ volleyball team had a lot to play for after coming within one victory of a third consecutive Southern Section title.

The Monarchs quickly turned the page and set their sights on the state championship. Now they find themselves one win away from attaining that after upsetting No. 1 Sierra Canyon, 20-25, 25-16, 25-22, 25-16, in the Southern California Regional Open Division final Tuesday night in Chatsworth.

Outside hitter Westley Matavao led the way with 18 kills and afterward gave a shout-out to her cousin on the opposite side of the net, Missouri-bound setter and fellow junior Lucky Fasavalu.

“We’re family, I love her as a person, she comes to play every match and she knows how to run an offense,” said Matavao, an early commit to UCLA. “We wanted this so much after losing to them last time and we came out swinging tonight.”

A thunderous kill by Addison Coady ended the third set and Mater Dei opened a seven-point lead early in the fourth to ensure there would be no comeback by the home side.

“We played with so much confidence and our energy showed up,” Matavao added. “We have specific serving targets so we focused on that and were in great position on our blocking.”

Mater Dei will try to capture its third state Open Division title at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Santiago Canyon College in Orange, where the Monarchs (34-5) face Northern California champion Rocklin (37-4), which upset top-seeded Archbishop Mitty in five sets Tuesday.

Layli Ostovar had 14 and 21 digs, Emma Kingston had 10 kills and six blocks, Lizzy Robinson had 19 digs, Kalea Lee had 24 assists, Sam Capinpin had 17 assists and Jael Smith had six blocks.

The Monarchs not only avenged their loss in the section final, they snapped Sierra Canyon’s 19-match winning streak and handed the Trailblazers (41-4) their only defeat in California all season.

Mater Dei won its first nine head-to-head meetings with Sierra Canyon before losing in four sets in the Southern Section Division 1 final Nov. 8 at Cerritos College. It was the Trailblazers’ fourth section title and halted Mater Dei’s bid for a three-peat under head coach Dan O’Dell.

Mater Dei won its first state Open Division title in 2018 and its second in 2023.

China’s Wu Yize powered past John Higgins 10-6 in the International Championship final to win his first ranking title.

The 22-year-old home favourite hit four centuries in Nanjing, including a 137 break, in a superb display which lifts him into the world’s top 16 for the first time.

Four-time world champion Higgins, 50, hit a 101 break in the third frame but the Scot could not keep up as he looked to become the first player to win a ranking title in five different decades from their teens to 50s.

Wu impressed to seal the win with another century break of 108 and become the 80th player to win a professional ranking event title.

“Honestly, it feels unbelievable,” said Wu.

“Deep down I always believed I had the ability to win a title. Every day I kept thinking about it. I had a strong will to lift a trophy. That belief carried me through this week.”

Higgins said: “I was nowhere near good enough all day. He was striking the ball beautifully. He was by far the better player. It reminded me so much of playing Paul Hunter – the way he gets through the ball and gets so much action on it. He is a brilliant player.

“There’s no point in getting too down. It could open the floodgates – it goes to show the good hands snooker is in. I’m glad that I’ll probably be retiring in a couple of years with guys like that potting them off the lampshades. He is a total star.”

World number 30 Rai led by one shot overnight, but a rollercoaster final day began with Fleetwood moving out in front after opening with a birdie and hitting an eagle at the par-five second.

Four successive birdies on the front nine moved Rai ahead again, only for a bogey at the eighth to hand the initiative back to Fleetwood.

A host of players began to bunch up behind the leaders, including McIlroy. The Northern Irishman eagled the par-five second but it was a run of five successive birdies at the turn that lifted him back into contention, with a birdie at the last moving him to 24 under and the clubhouse lead.

Meanwhile, birdies at the 16th and 17th drew Rai back level with Fleetwood, who saved par with another clutch putt at the second-last to ensure it stayed that way heading to the 18th.

Rai spurned his first chance on the 18th green, but made no mistake on the same hole in the play-off to secure his third DP World Tour Title.

It was his first win on the tour since the 2020 Scottish Open, when he also beat Fleetwood in a play-off.

The Abu Dhabi Championship is the first of two DP World Tour end-of-season play-off events, with the top 70 players competing this week and the leading 50 advancing to next week’s finale in Dubai.

Rai began the tournament 55th in the standings, but this victory means he will go into next week’s event ranked ninth.

McIlroy, who is two behind Colin Montgomerie’s record of eight years as the tour’s number one, leads the Race to Dubai standings by 767 points from Marco Penge, the Englishman who has won three times on tour this year.

Penge carded a final-round nine-under 63 to finish tied for ninth on 20 under alongside Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre and Angel Ayora of Spain.