Vinicius Jr scores twice as Real Madrid beat Espanyol 2-0 to keep Barcelona waiting to win the La Liga title, which they could now do when the two rivals meet in next Sunday’s El Clasico.
MATCH REPORT: Espanyol 0-2 Real Madrid
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Norris was left to rue the pit stop decision – “How did we not win this?” he said over the radio. “We can make it easier for ourselves.”
But this was a strong showing from McLaren, who introduced a major upgrade package this weekend, which brought them right into the fight with Mercedes.
Leclerc was brought in on lap 21 for his stop, and complained over the radio that he had not been consulted.
The decision did drop him down the field and force him to fight past slower cars. He regained third, but then lost it again to Norris’ team-mate Piastri on the penultimate lap as he began to struggle for grip.
Leclerc then spun on his own on the last lap, shortly after Piastri had overtaken him, and he lost two further positions into and out of the final corner, as first Russell and then Verstappen came past him.
Verstappen pitted under the safety car for his fresh tyres, hoping the gamble would pay off. It dropped him to the back, but with some aggressive overtaking and the others pitting in front of him, it put him in the lead mid-race.
But he was never going to hold on with his worn tyres, and he slipped down. Still, fifth was a decent result after his early error, which was followed by some very aggressive racing that prompted complaints from some of his rivals.
Leclerc slipped back to sixth, ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton, whose car was damaged in a first-lap clash with Alpine’s Franco Colapinto.
The Argentine took eighth, ahead of the Williams cars of Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon.
Verstappen faces an investigation from the stewards for crossing the white line on pit exit, while a collision between Russell and Verstappen while they were racing in the closing stages and in which the Mercedes’ front wing was damaged is also under consideration.
Ruby Cochrane and Olga Nikolaeva epitomized the mindset Mira Costa brought to Saturday afternoon’s Southern Section Division 1 girls’ beach volleyball championship match at Long Beach City College.
Trailing 13-9 in the deciding third set of their match against JSerra’s top duo of Sara Moynihan and Emma Champagne, the Stanford-bound seniors rallied to win the last six points and complete the Mustangs’ 5-0 sweep to reclaim the title they lost 3-2 to league rival Redondo Union last spring.
“We wanted to end our senior year with a bang and not be the only pair to lose,” Cochrane said.
Upon receiving the championship plaque, players formed a circle and took turns kissing it as they passed it around.
Mira Costa captured its third title in four tries since the CIF sanctioned the sport in 2023 and when you add the eight Interscholastic Beach Volleyball League titles the Mustangs won prior to that they deserve to be called queens of the beach.
Our coach was like, ‘you’re capable of coming back,’ so we had to do it,” Nikolaeva added. “Ruby is one of my best friends and we have a great bond.”
The Mustangs’ other four tandems each won in straight sets — Allyn Hilt and Lily Sprague at No. 2; Lily Vandeweghe and Lucy Matuszak at No. 3; Sofia Sala and Samantha Nammack at No. 4 and Lily Enfield and Lerin Rosenthal at the No. 5 spot.
Mira Costa (24-1) is 75-3 in four seasons of CIF Southern Section competition, including 67-0 against every team other than Redondo Union, against which it holds an 8-3 advantage. The Mustangs improved to 5-0 against the Lions (17-3), who upset Redondo Union in the semifinals.
The Mustangs have won 14 of 15 sets in their three Division 1 finals victories.
Bishop Montgomery, making its first finals appearance, prevailed 3-2 over Edison thanks to the heroics of sophomore twins Hailey and Alyssa Waters, who clinched the championship with a 13-21, 21-17, 15-12 victory over the Chargers’ tandem of Sydney Kershaw and Emery Oakes.
“Being twins causes fighting but we’ve always played together and our connection makes us stronger,” Alyssa said.
“Before that last set we took a minute to talk to each other,” Hailey added. “We knew what we were doing.”
The Knights’ No. 1 duo of sisters Stacy and Stephanie Balestrieri and the No. 4 duo of Kendall McKechnie and Carli Duda both won in straight sets.
Freshmen Hannah Martin and Lucy Morris earned the decisive point with a 21-16, 22-20 win on Court 5 in Long Beach Millikan’s 4-1 triumph over Windward.
“We didn’t know the score or what was going on in the other matches,” Martin said. “:Lucy and I were just focusing on ours. We’re really close friends but this is our first time playing together in CIF. We both play indoor too but in beach you have to have more trust because it’s only two of you.”
Madison Jones and Johanna Swerdloff won 21-17, 16-21, 15-8 at No. 2, Bella Bonales and Estale Lopez won 21-15, 21-18 at No. 3 and Olivia Vits and Samantha Guman won 21-12, 21-15 at No. 4 for the Rams (14-7), who lost to Long Beach Wilson in the Division 2 final last year.
Millikan is the third Moore League school to win a Southern Section title in the brief history of the sport, joining Wilson and Long Beach Poly, who won Divisions 2 and 3 last year. The Bay League is only other with multiple champions (Mira Costa and Redondo Union).
In the first finals appearance for both programs, Oak Park swept the last four courts to claim the inaugural Division 4 crown against Campbell Hall, a Division 3 semifinalist last season. Seniors Athena Trewyn and Kaela Raquel won 19-21, 21-19, 15-12 on Court 3 to notch the clinching point for the Eagles (11-5).
“We’ve never made it past the quarterfinals and we didn’t even make the playoffs last year,” said second-year coach Josh Giron, whose team practices at North Ranch Playfield in Thousand Oaks, a 30-minute drive from campus. “We have one court for 20 girls and sometimes we have to cancel practice because another team’s using it.”
Trevor Brown needs to beat his alma mater, Hart High, to win the Foothill League baseball title.
Brown, a first-year head coach at West Ranch, has his team at 8-3, which is tied for first place with Castaic going into Friday’s regular-season finale against Hart at West Ranch.
West Ranch defeated Hart 6-5 earlier this week.
Brown was a standout catcher for Hart, then went on to star at UCLA and played briefly with the San Francisco Giants.
They say catchers make the best managers, and Brown is another example of using his catcher’s experience to help with coaching.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com
Who: Arsenal vs Fulham
What: English Premier League
Where: Emirates Stadium, London, United Kingdom
When: Saturday, May 2, at 5:30pm (16:30 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the buildup on Al Jazeera Sport from 13:30 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream.
For all the talk of Arsenal having blown their Premier League title hopes after being reeled in by Manchester City, the truth is that come Saturday, they could have re-established a six-point lead to pile the pressure on Pep Guardiola’s side.
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City’s 2-1 victory over Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium on April 29 meant that, having trailed by 10 points a few weeks earlier, they were able to knock Mikel Arteta’s side off the summit for the first time since October.
Momentum appeared to have shifted completely, but the fixture schedule may have come to Arsenal’s rescue as they try to clinch a first English crown since 2004.
With City otherwise engaged in FA Cup semifinal action last weekend, Arsenal ground out a 1-0 home win over Newcastle United to end a four-match losing streak in domestic competitions.
On Saturday, they host London rivals Fulham while City do not play again in the league until Monday, when they face a tough-looking trip to European-chasing Everton.
While City would have two games in hand before they kick off at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, the prospect of again having to make up a six-point gap with absolutely no margin for error would be a serious test of their resolve.
According to data analysts Opta, Arsenal are still favourites to end the season on top – but that could all change if they stumble against Marco Silva’s Fulham.
Sitting in 10th place with four games, Fulham are still very much in the hunt for European qualification and will be looking to exploit any Arsenal fatigue after Arteta’s side’s 1-1 draw at Atletico Madrid in the Champions League semis on Wednesday.
“We will go there with no fear, and play for the badge,” Fulham midfielder Josh King said.
History will be a considerable comfort, however, to Arsenal fans struggling to cope with the title-race tension.
Fulham have played 32 times away to Arsenal in all competitions and never won.
City’s record at Everton is equally impressive, though, losing none of their last 18 in all competitions and winning 15 of them and drawing three.
Whatever the outcome of Arsenal’s derby with Fulham, a City win at Everton would then give them the chance to crank up the pressure as their next league game at home to Brentford comes the day before Arsenal’s trip to West Ham United, a fixture being described as Arsenal’s toughest in the run-in.
Arsenal beat Fulham 1-0 in the reverse fixture between the sides earlier this season at Craven Cottage.
Leandro Trossard scored the only goal of the game on October 18, in the 58th minute.
The home side failed to register a shot on target, while Arsenal managed five and had a 63 percent share of possession.
The west London club secured a 2-1 home win in the Premier League two seasons ago.
Raul Jimenez and Bobby De Cordova-Reid scored the goals to turn the game around following Bukayo Saka’s fifth-minute opener.
This will be the 67th meeting between the sides, with Arsenal winning 44 of the encounters and Fulham claiming the spoils nine times.
The first match between the sides came in 1904 in an FA Cup tie that Arsenal won 3-2.
The next game came 10 years later when the sides met in the league for the first time, with Fulham exacting revenge with a 6-1 home win in the old Division Two.
Both the German and fellow forward Eze were injured in the Premier League win against Newcastle last week, but the latter shrugged off his knock to appear as a substitute against Atletico.
Jurrien Timber and Mikel Merino are both definite absentees through injury, but Riccardo Calafiori returned to the bench for the Champions League game in midweek and could be in line for a start.
Raya; Mosquera, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Odegaard, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Gyokeres, Eze
Former Tottenham winger Ryan Sessegnon could return from a knock sustained in Fulham’s last outing, but Alex Iwobi’s thigh problem means he will not face his former club.
Kenny Tete and Kevin remain confirmed absentees.
Leno; Castagne, Andersen, Bassey, Robinson; Berge, Lukic; Wilson, Smith Rowe, Chukwueze; Jimenez
Make it 17 and counting.
That is how many boys’ tennis titles Palisades has won in a row after its 18.5 to 11 victory over Taft in the City Section Open Division championship match Wednesday afternoon at Balboa Sports Center in Encino.
Freshman Kensho Ford, who reached the CIF singles semifinals at the Ojai tournament four days earlier, swept his four sets at No. 1 as expected — dropping a total of three games in the process — but what co-coaches Robert Silvers and Bud Kling did not anticipate was Zach Cohen sweeping at No. 4 to give the top-seeded Dolphins a split of the 16 possible singles points.
Cohen played No. 1 doubles with Zach Stuffman all season but was itching to play singles for the playoffs and wound up winning all six of his sets including two before being subbed out for the last two rotations in Monday’s semifinal rout of fourth-seeded Marshall.
“I’ve been asking for two years now and when Coach Rob told me Saturday I’d be in singles I was so excited,” said Cohen, who was also the Division I individual champion while pacing the Dolphins to their fifth straight cross-country team title in November at Elysian Park.
Five is nice, but 17 straight is a dynasty unparalleled in City Section history. No team in any sport from a City school has ever produced a longer streak and no coach has more City crowns than Kling’s 55 (33 boys, 22 girls). Palisades has also appeared in 21 straight finals. The last time two other schools met for the City’s upper division title was 2004 when El Camino Real defeated West Valley League rival Granada Hills.
Palisades got another surprise when the sophomore tandem of Josh Glaser and Bennett Murphy, who were bumped up to varsity a month earlier, won all three of ithebsets at No. 3 doubles, beating the Toreadors’ top two duos in tiebreakers.
Taft’s Dannes Djalilov won two sets at No. 1 singles during Wednesday’s City Section Open Division tennis final.
(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)
Danees Djalilov took two of his four sets at No. 1 singles and Brandon Celestine did the same at No. 4 for the second-seeded Toreadors, who were the last team to defeat Palisades in the finals — doing so in 2007 and 2008 led by two-time City individual singles winner Josh Tchan.
Moments after Ford finished off his 6-0 victory over Alec Volodarskiy to move his team within half a point of the championship, Stuffman and new partner Jack Plotkowski put the Dolphins over the 15-point threshold by completing a sweep at No. 1 doubles with a 6-2 ousting of Taft’s No. 2 team.
Taft was seeking its eighth City title and first since winning Division II in 2019.
After watching Manchester City slip to a 3-2 defeat by Brighton on Saturday, Arsenal fans started to believe they had a chance.
And Slegers’ team made sure to capitalise on the opportunity with seven unanswered goals against Leicester, improving their goal difference to 33 – six behind City.
Leah Williamson’s glancing header – the Gunners’ seventh against Leicester – also took their tally to 103 goals under Slegers. No WSL team has scored more since she was appointed – initially as interim boss – in October 2024.
“Clean sheet, seven goals scored, different scorers – it was a great night for us,” Slegers said to Sky Sports.
“You saw so many players playing the Arsenal way, we played attractive football and we were very brave in everything we did.”
What will also boost Arsenal’s belief is their squad’s strength in depth.
With the second leg of their Women’s Champions League semi-final against Lyon awaiting on Saturday, Slegers rested Williamson, Lotte Wubben-Moy, Mariona Caldentey, Caitlin Foord and Alessia Russo against the Foxes.
Their replacements did the job.
On her 100th WSL appearance, Maanum scored the opening goal and assisted two more, while Smilla Holmberg bagged her first two goals in an Arsenal shirt.
Stina Blackstenius has often had to play second fiddle to Russo, but the Swede, who scored the winning goal in last season’s Champions League final, showed her quality with two goals in the space of nine minutes.
“Everyone knows their role and brings their strengths. There are such high levels of communication and trust within the team, on the pitch, off the pitch,” Slegers added.
Beau Greaves became the first woman to win a PDC ranking title by defeating Michael Smith 8-7 in the Players Championship 11 final in Milton Keynes.
The 22-year-old checked out with 142 in the deciding leg to seal victory against the former world champion, closing with a double 11.
Greaves enjoyed a strong run to her encounter with Smith, defeating Rob Cross 6-5 and Gary Anderson 7-1 on the way to the final.
It is the latest step in Greaves’ ascendant career, after she recorded a 114-match winning run in the PDC Women’s Series and became the first woman to hit a nine-dart finish on the PDC ProTour.
Elsewhere in the tournament, world number two Luke Humphries exited in the third round 6-5 to Max Hopp, while Premier League Darts players Stephen Bunting and Josh Rock fell in the first round.
The event did not feature world champion Luke Littler, who is yet to play in a Players Championship event this year, while Michael van Gerwen, Jonny Clayton, Gerwyn Price and Nathan Aspinall were also not in the field.
LA JOLLA — Sinia Plotz scored to begin each half and Anna Reed finished with 10 saves to lead USC to a 10-9 victory over California on Sunday night at the Canyonview Aquatic Center, earning the Trojans a seventh national championship in women’s water polo.
It’s the first championship for Casey Moon in his second season as the Trojans’ head coach. USC last claimed the title in 2021.
Holly Dunn scored on a power play with 23 seconds left in the first quarter to pull Cal even, but Ava Stryker answered with seven seconds remaining and USC took a 3-2 lead.
Emily Ausmus scored for a two-goal lead and Stryker added her second goal to give the Trojans a 6-3 advantage with 3:15 left before halftime. Eszter Varro answered with a goal eight seconds later for the Golden Bears and another one with 2:07 left to cut it to 6-5.
Ausmus found the net with eight seconds left, but Dunn scored on a shot just before the buzzer to get Cal within 7-6 at the break.
Plotz scored to begin the second half and give USC a two-goal lead, but Varro scored for the third time and Cal trailed 8-7.
Meghan McAninch scored on a power play midway through the quarter for a 9-7 lead. Julianne Snyder cut into the deficit with 48.7 seconds left and the Golden Bears had a tying shot by Dunn hit the crossbar. Talia Fonseca had one of her 11 saves on a shot by USC’s Alma Yaacobi at the buzzer and Cal trailed 9-8 heading to the final quarter.
Rachel Gazzaniga scored two minutes in to again give USC a two-goal lead. Despoina Drakotou scored the final goal of the match on a five-meter penalty shot after an exclusion on Reed with 5:23 remaining. Reed had a save on an earlier penalty shot.
The fourth-seeded Golden Bears (16-8), looking for their first championship, knocked out defending champion and top-ranked Stanford 13-11 in the semifinals to advance to their second final in three seasons under coach Coralie Simmons — in her 10th season. UCLA beat Cal 7-4 in the 2024 final and Stanford topped Cal 9-5 for the 2011 championship.
No. 3-seed USC advanced with an 11-10 victory over second-seeded UCLA in the other semifinal.
The event was hosted by UC San Diego.
Here, both sides decided to get down to it from the get-go. No feeling their way in, no shadow boxing. With Hearts going for the title and Hibs busting a gut to derail them, there was a school of thought that this was the biggest Edinburgh derby of them all in the league.
And it felt like it. Boy, did it fizz and crackle. Seven minutes in and Martin Boyle scored. His last derby and there he was, writing his own farewell script. Or so he would have hoped.
Jamie McGrath’s vicious free-kick, Beni Banigime dozing and in rushed Boyle – cool and calm, a sidefoot to the solar plexus of the visitors. Down the Hearts end, too. A perfect view of their nightmare start.
Easter Road basked not just in the sunshine but in the anxiety of their guests, the unspeakable horror of having their league dream buffeted by their greatest rivals.
What unfolded was pulsating, a red card for Sallinger only four minutes after Boyle scored, a daft act of handling the ball outside his own area and a call that was easier to make than the officials made it look.
Everybody knew that Sallinger was goosed on first, or second, viewing. The officials took five or six minutes. It was a calamity for Hibs.
The mood completely shifted and shifted some more when the news came through that Rangers had blinked first in the title race. Later, McInnes spoke of the importance of winning your first post-split game and he was right.
Hearts and Celtic are now on the front foot.
LONDON — The fabled two-hour barrier for a marathon has been broken, officially, in an once-inconceivable achievement in sports.
Not by one runner, but two.
In a race for the ages, Sabastian Sawe of Kenya won the London Marathon in 1 hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds on Sunday, shattering the previous men’s world record by an astonishing 65 seconds.
“What comes today is not for me alone,” the 29-year-old Sawe said, “but for all of us today in London.”
Just 11 seconds further back was Ethiopia’s Yomif Kejelcha, who — running in his first-ever marathon — also covered the 26.2-mile (42.2-kilometer) course in under 2 hours.
Completing the podium was Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo, who broke the previous world-record time — set by Kenya’s Kelvin Kiptum in Chicago in 2023 — by seven seconds, finishing in 2:00:28.
In an exhilarating sight, Sawe ran quicker as the marathon went on, covering the second half of the race in 59 minutes and 1 second. He pulled clear with Kejelcha after 30 kilometers and then made his solo break in the final two kilometers, sprinting along the finish on The Mall to loud cheers.
Sabastian Sawe of Team Kenya runs ahead of Yomif Kejelcha of Team Ethiopia during the London Marathon on Sunday in London.
(Warren Little / Getty Images)
Sawe, who retained his title in London, said it was a “day to remember for me” and thanked the huge crowds who lined the streets of the British capital to witness what might be regarded as a feat marking the peak of human physical achievement.
“I think they help a lot,” he said, “because if it was not for them you don’t feel like you are so loved … with them calling, you feel so happy and strong.”
Breaking two hours in a marathon has been a long time coming — and has been done before.
However, when Eliud Kipchoge — the Kenyan long-distance great — achieved the feat in Vienna in 2019, it was in a specially tailored race called the “1.59 Challenge” that was arranged by British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe in favorable conditions, on a 6-mile (9.6-kilometer) circuit, and using rotating pacemakers.
That meant it wasn’t classed as an official race setting, so Kipchoge’s time of 1:59:40 didn’t go in the record book.
In any case, Sawe surpassed that time by 10 seconds on a mostly flat course across London in dry, sunny conditions.
Sabastian Sawe, of Kenya, smiles and holds up his adidas shoe with his world-record marathon time written on it Sunday in London.
(Alex Davidson / Getty Images)
“The goalposts have literally just moved for marathon running,” Paula Radcliffe, a former winner of the London Marathon, said during commentary of the race for the BBC.
At the turn of the century, the world’s best time for the men’s marathon was 2:05:42, set by Khalid Khannouchi in Chicago in 1999.
Khannouchi broke his own record by four seconds in 2002 — the last time the fastest men’s marathon was run in London — and it has been whittled down gradually over the last 24 years by a succession of Kenyan and Ethiopian runners, including Haile Gebrselassie, Wilson Kipsang, Kipchoge and most recently Kiptum.
A record was also set in the women’s race, with Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa pulling away with about 500 meters remaining to win in 2:15:41 and defend the title in the fastest-ever time in a women’s-only marathon.
However, it was 16 seconds slower than the course record set by Radcliffe in 2003 when it was a mixed race.
Tigst Assefa celebrates as she crosses the finish line during the London Marathon women’s race in a record time Sunday.
(Ian Walton / Associated Press)
Kenya’s Hellen Obiri was 12 seconds back in second place in a personal-best time on her London debut and compatriot Joyciline Jepkosgei was third, a further two seconds adrift. It was the first time three women have run under 2 hours, 16 minutes in a marathon.
“I screamed when I finished because I knew I was breaking the world record,” Assefa said.
“I felt much healthier today and have worked really hard on my speed and all my training has paid off.”
In the wheelchair races, there was a Swiss double with Marcel Hug powering to a sixth straight men’s title — and eighth in total — and Catherine Debrunner beating Tatyana McFadden in a close finish to defend the title.
At a school with the rich athletic tradition of Santa Ana Mater Dei, it is rare to be the first to achieve anything, but Matteo Huarte made history Saturday by becoming the Monarchs’ only CIF singles champion at the Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament.
After losing in straight sets to Rishvanth Krishna from Irvine University in last year’s final, Huarte was not about to squander his second chance. He raced to an early lead in the first-set tiebreaker, then broke to open the second set on his way to a 7-6 (3), 6-1 victory over Woodbridge’s Brayden Tallakson in front of a packed grandstand at Libbey Park.
Huarte had four service breaks — the last being a cross-court passing shot on match point. The final resembled Huarte’s semifinal win versus Irvine University’s JiHyuk Im in which he took the first-set tiebreaker 7-4 then cruised 6-2 in the second set.
“I’m happy I was able to do it for my school,” said Huarte, a junior who has committed to USC. “We’ve played each other a couple times and the key was to manage his serve and get into the rally. Once I got ahead of him in the tiebreak and then won the first game of the second set I was able to run away with it.”
Mater Dei’s only other title in the Ojai tournament’s long and storied history came in doubles in 2008 when Charlie Alvarado and Chris Freeman upset top-seeded Tyler Bowman and Jon Kazarian of Peninsula in three sets.
“It’s kind of hard to believe I’m the first to do it,” said Huarte about his singles title.
Last year, Huarte fell in the Southern Section semifinals to Palos Verdes ninth-grader Andrew Johnson, who went on to beat Tallakson 6-4, 6-3 in the final.
Tallakson was trying to make history of his own Saturday at a venue near and dear to his heart.
Woodbridge’s Brayden Tallakson celebrates after his quarterfinal victory over Beckman’s Rohan Grewal at the Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament on Saturday.
(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)
“I started playing tennis down in lower Libbey, my dad Steve grew up here and won the men’s tournament, so this place is like home for my family,” said Tallakson, who quickly downed Palisades freshman Kensho Ford 6-2, 6-1 in the semifinals. “Matteo came out real aggressive, I made a couple errors on big points and he was just the better player today.”
Tallakson won the boys’ 14s division at Ojai in 2022 and had he prevailed Saturday, he would have been the first player to capture CIF singles and doubles titles at Ojai since Santa Barbara’s Nathan Jackmon won the doubles in 1993 and the singles in 1994. Tallakson won the doubles crown in 2023 with older brother Avery, with whom he will reunite next year at Boise State.
Peninsula seniors Colin Bringas and Edward Feuer completed one of the most dominant runs through the doubles draw ever seen at Ojai by beating Harvard-Westlake’s Aaron Chung and Chase Klugo 6-4, 6-2 in the finals. The Panthers’ duo did not drop a set in six matches and did not give up more than three games in a set until the first set Saturday when they broke in the ninth game to go up 5-4 and then served it out.
Bringas and Feuer are the first Peninsula pair to reach the CIF final at Ojai since 2011 and the third tandem in history to win it, joining Rylan Rizza and Jeff Kazarian in 2001, and Kazarian and Tiege Sullivan the following year.
Peninsula seniors Colin Bringas, left, and Edward Feuer celebrate after winning the CIF boys’ doubles title at the Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament on Saturday.
(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)
“We’ve been playing together since second or third grade and we’ve been best friends since middle school at Ridgecrest Intermediate [in Palos Verdes],” Bringas said. “I always play the ad side, he’s always played the deuce court. I think the key was big serves … they make it easy for the net person to put balls away.”
Bringas and Feuer have partnered at Ojai the last three years, losing in the quarterfinal round as sophomores and juniors but steamrolling this year. They made a measly three unforced errors in a 6-1, 6-1 semifinal wipeout of Marina’s David Tran and Alejandro Hill. Tran was playing in his second straight final, having taken the runner-up prize with Trevor Nguyen in 2025.
“We were confident we’d win, but we felt the pressure and knew there are a lot of good teams here,” said Feuer, who plays No. 1 singles for dual matches while Bringas plays the No. 1 doubles spot with another teammate. “It’ll be really strange playing against each other next year.”
Bringas is bound for Westmont College and Feuer is headed to Point Loma Nazarene — rival NCAA Division II programs in the Pacific West Conference.
Harvard-Westlake, Woodbridge and University shared the Griggs Cup trophy, presented to the school with the most combined wins in singles and doubles. All three notched seven victories to force a three-way tie for only the fifth time since the award debuted in 1955 and the first since Santa Barbara, Palisades and Fresno Bullard were tri-champions in 1997. University has won it 13 times.
Arsenal would move six points clear of second-placed Manchester City if they beat Fulham in their home game next week, though City, who were in FA Cup semi-final action this weekend, would have two games in hand.
That is because Manchester City were playing in the FA Cup semi-final earlier on Saturday against Southampton and are not back in league action until Monday, 4 May when they play Everton.
Having that buffer of points built up by the time of City’s next game at Everton on Monday 4 May would be a huge boost for Arteta’s side given they went into this weekend off the top for the first time since October.
According to Opta, Arsenal have a 72.44% chance of lifting the Premier League trophy at the end of the season compared to the 27.56% chance of Manchester City.
“You can’t question their fight. Arsenal have given absolutely everything on that pitch today,” former Crystal Palace and Brighton striker Glenn Murray said on BBC Radio 5 Live.
“Another huge three points for Arsenal to keep them top of the league.”
Arsenal are without a major trophy since the FA Cup triumph of 2020 which came in Arteta’s first season in charge.
And captain Martin Odegaard said that the effort the players put in is because every member of the team is doing what they can to get over the line.
“It was tough, very intense, very physical,” he told Sky Sports. “We did everything we could and we got the win, the most important thing was to bounce back with a win and get over the line with the three points.”
But for Odegaard, who played the full 90 minutes, and the rest of the squad attention quickly switches to the Champions League semi-final against Atletico Madrid on Wednesday.
“This schedule is crazy,” Odegaard added. “We just have to keep going. It is the end of the season, just leave everything out that we have inside, fight every single game and we just have to keep going.
“That’s where we want to be but it is going to go all the way to the end. We are ready for it and we will fight every single day.”
Barcelona move 11 points clear of Real Madrid in the La Liga title race with five games to play.
Published On 25 Apr 202625 Apr 2026
Fermin Lopez and Marcus Rashford’s goals took Barcelona to the brink of the La Liga title with a 2-0 win at Getafe.
The defending champions moved 11 points clear of second-place Real Madrid, who drew at Real Betis on Friday to dent their hopes of finishing the season with a trophy.
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Hansi Flick’s side can win their second consecutive Spanish title if they overcome Osasuna next weekend and Real Madrid fail to beat Espanyol.
“It’s not done, we have five more games, and we’re only focused on the next one,” Flick told reporters.
“We will celebrate when it’s time, but not now.”
Barcelona were without vital injured wingers Lamine Yamal and Raphinha, but still did enough to see off Jose Bordalas’s tricky side, sixth, in the Madrid suburbs.
“We were aware of what was going to happen here, we were going to have few chances, and I think we played well, competing well defensively and putting away the chances we had,” Lopez told Movistar.
“We know we’ve got a big advantage [in the title race], but even so, we can’t relax, I know it’s a cliche, but it’s the truth.”
Getafe set out to disrupt Barcelona’s rhythm with small fouls, and Barca struggled to create many clear opportunities.
Flick opted for Swedish winger Roony Bardghji in place of Yamal and chose Lopez on the left over Rashford.
Dani Olmo made the first with a neat dribble, speeding into Getafe territory, but pulled his shot wide of the far post.
Eventually, the hosts made the breakthrough just before half-time when Pedri played in Lopez.
Wearing a protective mask after hurting his face in a collision with Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Juan Musso during Barcelona’s Champions League quarterfinal elimination last week, Lopez stayed calm to slot home.
The midfielder imitated Yamal’s usual “304” celebration in tribute to the injured teenage star.
“The truth is he’s really important for us, it’s a shame that he can’t play any more, but the important thing is that he recovers well and is ready for the World Cup,” added Lopez.
With Getafe needing to come out of their shell to find an equaliser, Barca had more opportunities after the break.
David Soria saved from Olmo after he met Jules Kounde’s cross, and then the French defender headed a Joao Cancelo ball narrowly off-target.
Martin Satriano threatened for the hosts before Rashford, on loan from Manchester United, secured Barcelona’s triumph.
Robert Lewandowski sent the England international charging through on goal, and he slipped a low effort past Soria to help Barca put one hand on the trophy.
“Marcus, in the second half, he came on and used the space they gave us,” said Flick.
“I’m happy that we scored this goal for the team and also for him.”
Getafe goalkeeper Soria acknowledged Barca were clinical enough to clinch victory.
“They were very efficient, you give away two chances, and they score them both,” he said.
“It’s a shame to have gone in behind at half-time because it puts you in a difficult spot.”
Five years ago, longtime baseball coach Joe Cascione left coaching the sport to start a women’s tennis team at Mission College.
On Wednesday, Mission College won the state women’s tennis championship armed with local players from Kennedy, Granada Hills, Sylmar and Birmingham high schools, among others.
It’s quite an achievement to win it all with local athletes.
Key contributors included Amy Nghiem, Priscilla Grinner and America Fragoso from Granada Hills; Jaelyn Rivera from Birmingham; Josilyn Rivera and Natalia Ponce from Kennedy; Alitzel Ortega Partida from Golden Valley; Genesis Nochez from West Ranch and Kristen Bonzon from Sylmar.
Cascione singled out his players for their passion and commitment.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
St Johnstone win 2-0 at Dunfermline Athletic to wrap up the Scottish Championship title with two games to spare.
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“I’m trying to be very patient. But we are good and just waiting a little bit.
“We have a few tests in the next few days and then we will see how the injury is and what the next steps will be.”
The 22-year-old, who won clay-court titles in Monte Carle, Rome and Roland Garros and reached the final in Barcelona last season, could lose significant ground to Sinner in the rankings because of the injury.
Italian Sinner reclaimed the number one ranking this month after beating Alcaraz in the Monte Carlo final.
Alcaraz said: “I’d rather come back a little later but in great shape than come back early, rushing around, and unwell.
“God willing, I have a very long career ahead of me, many years, and pushing myself too hard at this Roland Garros could seriously harm me in future tournaments.
“Things happen in the professional world. You have to accept them. I need to recover really well if I don’t want it to affect me later on.”
Australian Hannah Green’s strong start to 2026 continued with victory in the JM Eagle LA Championship – her fourth triumph of the year.
In March, she became the first Australian to win the Women’s Australian Open since 2014, and lifted the LPGA’s Women’s World Championship and the Australian WPGA Championship.
In Los Angeles, Green holed a curling 12-foot birdie putt on the first play-off hole to win this LPGA Tour event for the third time in four years.
It was a stunning victory for Green given she had briefly been six shots adrift of the lead after Kim Sei-young chipped in for an eagle three on the 11th.
Green responded with the first of five birdies in six holes as she reeled in Kim and Im Jin-hee and all three finished on 17 under par.
“I didn’t think I was still in the tournament,” said Green, who won her only major, the Women’s PGA Championship, in 2019.
On her tournament-winning stroke, she added: “I had that putt, similar line in regulation, so I felt somewhat comfortable.”
Kim had already missed a 35-foot birdie attempt while Im – penalised a stroke for slow play during Saturday’s third round – was also unable to get down in three after a wayward tee shot.
The tournament was played at El Caballero for the second year because of course renovations at Wilshire where Green had won this title in 2023 and 2024.
During Saturday’s round, the tournament’s prize money was increased by $1m to $4.75m (£3.5m), lifting the purse to the highest on the tour outside of the major championships and season-ending CME Group Tour Championship.
As a result of that, Green took home $712,500, up from $562,500.
The Chevron Championship, the first women’s major of the year, stars on Thursday in Houston, Texas.
Bayern Munich come from behind to secure a 4-2 victory against Stuttgart and win their 35th German Bundesliga title with four games to spare.
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Real win the final of Spain’s premier annual knockout football competition with a dramatic penalty shootout in Seville.
Published On 19 Apr 202619 Apr 2026
Real Sociedad beat Atletico Madrid 4-3 on penalties to win the Copa del Rey on Saturday following a 2-2 draw after extra time, with goalkeeper Unai Marrero saving two spot kicks in the shootout to help his side win the trophy for the fourth time.
Sociedad last won the Cup in 2021, when the delayed 2020 final was also played at the La Cartuja stadium in Seville, but there were no supporters present due to the COVID pandemic.
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This time, the Basque side’s fans were behind the goal to witness Marrero save Atletico’s first two penalties from Alexander Sorloth and Julian Alvarez.
Atletico keeper Juan Musso then stopped Orri Oskarsson’s kick, but Pablo Marin kept his nerve to net the winning penalty.
“I tried to clear my mind. Calm and serene,” Marin told RTVE. “Real is my life. I’ve lived here since I was a child. This is the greatest thing I could ever dream of – winning a title with the team of my life.”
The last time the two sides met in the final was 1987, when it also finished 2-2 with Sociedad coming out on top on penalties, and they repeated the job to deny Atletico, who were looking for their first Copa del Rey win since 2013.
Ander Barrenetxea had given Sociedad the lead after 14 seconds, but Ademola Lookman levelled in the 19th minute. Mikel Oyarzabal then put the Basque side back in front with a penalty on the stroke of halftime.
Alvarez drew Atletico level, with seven minutes remaining, to force the extra period in a dramatic final.
Diego Simeone’s Atletico were fresh from reaching the Champions League semifinals, but Sociedad, managed by American Pellegrino Matarazzo, triumphed despite twice losing the lead.
Sociedad stunned Atletico from the start. After a punt downfield from Marrero, Goncalo Guedes crossed into the box, and Barrenetxea rose above his marker to send a looping header beyond Musso.
Atletico levelled with Lookman collecting a pass from Antoine Griezmann and sending a precise low strike through the legs of a defender and into the far bottom corner.
Some Sociedad fans were celebrating, as they thought their side had retaken the lead when Guedes’s deflected shot flew into the side netting, but when Musso later fouled Guedes, captain Oyarzabal converted the penalty in first-half added time.
“I’ve never walked on water, but it must feel something like this,” said Oyarzabal, who scored the only goal of the game from the penalty spot when his side won their last Copa.
Sociedad looked like hanging on until Alvarez struck an unstoppable shot from just inside the area, letting Thiago Almada’s pass through his legs before turning to send the ball into the top corner.
In the opening period of extra time, Musso pulled off a double-save from Luka Sucic and Oskarsson, with Alvarez hitting the upright at the other end, as both sides created chances before running out of steam, and penalties beckoned.
Marrero danced across his line as the Atletico players lined up their penalties, and his mind games paid off.
“I knew that if it went to penalties, I had a lot of confidence in myself,” he said.
“The team and the fans did, too. I still can’t believe it.”
Matarazzo has worked a remarkable turnaround at Sociedad since taking over in December, with the club hovering above the relegation zone but now seventh in the standings and, even more importantly, with a trophy to show for their work.
Simeone’s Atletico have one final chance of silverware, with a last-four meeting against Arsenal in the Champions League.
“We have a beautiful challenge ahead of us. We want the Champions League, and we’ll do everything possible to win it,” Atletico captain Koke said. “But tonight is a sad night.”
For a club of Glentoran’s stature, it is hard to believe they are without a title in 17 years.
It has been a long wait for their supporters, who came out in their numbers, and that is why Friday’s game felt so significant to the club.
If Larne pick up the point they need against the Swifts, Glentoran will end the season without a trophy but things could have played out so differently.
They lost the BetMcLean Cup final to bitter rivals Linfield thanks to Chris McKee’s extra-time penalty, while the Irish Cup and County Antrim Shield both slipped away in shootout defeats.
After clawing their way back into the title race after looking out of contention before Christmas, the Glens look like they will come up just short in the league. It’s all about the fine margins.
“Whether we win the league next week or not, I think we have made huge improvements as a football club but that doesn’t take away the disappointment,” Devine said.
“Second, third – it is nothing and we have to accept that. We need a snooker and if we can get a snooker next week, it is important that we uphold our side of the bargain.
“I thank the fans with all my heart. This is a massive club that deserves success.”
Devine said the lack of a clinical edge was “painful” but his players “emptied the tank”.
They will now have to rebound as they travel to the north coast with hope, rather than expectation.
“We are not out of it, we have one more game left in the current campaign to try make sure we get a win,” Devine added.
“This league has thrown up a lot of shocks and surprises and crazy results over the years and hopefully we can do our side of the bargain, but Larne are firmly in the driving seat with a home game to go.”
Javokhir Sindarov wins the Candidates Tournament with a round to spare and will face India’s Gukesh next.
Published On 15 Apr 202615 Apr 2026
Uzbek grandmaster Javokhir Sindarov has clinched victory in the chess Candidates Tournament with a round to spare, drawing with Dutchman Anish Giri to set up a World Championship match against India’s Gukesh Dommaraju.
The 20-year-old stormed through the event in Cyprus on Tuesday, winning six of his 13 games and losing none in a dominant performance never seen at the Candidates.
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Sindarov moved to 9.5 points, two clear of second-placed Giri on 7.5, after the Dutchman failed to convert a winning position against China’s Wei Yi in the previous round.
“It was the hardest week in my life. I even slept really bad the last few days. I am very happy to finish this tournament with a win,” Sindarov said after his win.
The tournament had been seen as a possible last opportunity for the old guard to mount another challenge for the world title, but Americans Fabiano Caruana and Hikaru Nakamura never seriously threatened.
Gukesh won the title in 2024, defeating China’s Ding Liren in the 14th and final game of their match. Ding had himself become champion by beating Ian Nepomniachtchi after Magnus Carlsen, the five-times champion who remains world number one, relinquished the crown, citing a lack of motivation.
“I do not want to think a lot about the upcoming World Championship match right now. I know it will be a very hard match,” Sindarov said.
“Gukesh has an experience of playing at this level. But I have a very good team. I have a lot to work on, and I will work a lot for this and take my chances.”
While Sindarov’s breakthrough and the broader rise of a younger generation are likely to prompt new speculation about a Carlsen comeback, the Norwegian has said he has no intention of returning to the classical World Championship cycle.
A precise date and a venue for the World Championship match have yet to be announced.