Lane Thomas hits 3-run homer, Cleveland’s bullpen torments Tigers as Guardians win ALDS opener 7-0

Canada’s Kerri Einarson defeated Sweden’s Isabella Wrana 6-1 on Saturday to reach the semifinals at the HearingLife Tour Challenge.

Einarson, from Gimli, Man., stole three points in the fifth end when Wrana was light with her final throw. The teams shook hands after the minimum six ends were completed.

The four-time Canadian champions have Dawn McEwen filling in at second this week for Shannon Birchard (injury). Team alternate Krysten Karwacki is playing lead for Briane Harris (suspension).

In other early games, Kaitlyn Lawes of Winnipeg beat Italy’s Stefania Constantini 5-2 and Ottawa’s Rachel Homan topped South Korea’s Eun-Jung Kim 5-3.

Japan’s Satsuki Fujisawa secured the other semifinal berth when she outscored South Korea’s Eun Ji Gim 9-6.

The men’s final four was finalized on Saturday afternoon at the Bell Aliant Centre.

Matt Dunstone made a draw for three points to give his Winnipeg-based team a 6-5 win over Brad Jacobs of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. Brad Gushue of St. John’s, N.L., scored a late deuce for a 5-4 victory over Scotland’s Ross Whyte.

Winnipeg’s Mike McEwen beat Switzerland’s Yannick Schwaller 5-3 and Bruce Mouat doubled James Craik 8-4 in a matchup of Scottish rinks.

The semifinals at the season-opening Grand Slam event were scheduled for Saturday night and the finals were set for Sunday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 5, 2024.

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CF Montreal has surged above the Major League Soccer playoff line with a late-season unbeaten run.

Now the players will try to keep their foot on the gas and clinch their spot in the post-season.

“The most important thing is not to get complacent, not to get comfortable where we’re at,” goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois said Friday. “We know, especially in this league, how everything could change after one game.”

Montreal (10-12-10) won its third straight game by defeating Atlanta United 2-1 on Wednesday — its first road victory since March 10 — and climbed to eighth in the Eastern Conference ahead of the penultimate Matchday at seventh-place Charlotte FC on Saturday.

Laurent Courtois’s side has 40 points, three clear of ninth-place Toronto FC, 10th-place Philadelphia Union and 11th-place D.C. United. Toronto, however, only has one game remaining on the calendar.

A victory on Saturday would guarantee Montreal a playoff berth provided one of D.C. or Philadelphia doesn’t win their respective matches. If Montreal draws, it can still clinch if either D.C. or Philadelphia loses.

The eighth- and ninth-place teams face off in a wild-card game on Oct. 22. The winner would meet Argentine superstar Lionel Messi and Supporters’ Shield winners Inter Miami CF in a best-of-three series beginning Oct. 25.

Sirois hopes Montreal can secure its place before meeting New York City FC at home on MLS Decision Day on Oct. 19, which follows an international break, but he also isn’t keen on settling for a wild-card spot.

With Charlotte (12-11-9) five points ahead in the standings, he believes Montreal should be gunning for seventh.

“The mentality I’d like to go into Saturday’s game with is the one where we’re trying to go for the seventh place, where we’re trying to go and win in Charlotte and make that possible,” Sirois said.

Defender George Campbell doesn’t believe Montreal should change its approach now that they’re the ones defending a playoff spot instead of chasing it.

“We can’t get complacent and overconfident or cocky, but we have to know that we’re a good team and we can compete with anyone,” Campbell said.

Amid a roller-coaster season that featured a nine-game winless streak, Montreal is hitting its stride at the perfect moment, earning 12 out of a possible 15 points in its last five matches.

Sirois said players struggled to find consistency while learning the system of their first-year head coach, but now they’re running on all cylinders.

“Each player is doing what they need to do and performing very well individually, which makes us very strong together,” he said.

It helps when one of those individuals is the team’s striker delivering on what he’s paid to do.

Josef Martinez, a league MVP in 2018, is turning back the clock of late with five goals in three outings, including both goals against Atlanta — his former club.

“He can do and execute stuff that nobody else can, and when he’s like this with the proper service, he’s unstoppable,” Courtois said after Wednesday’s win. “He’s one of the most exciting players I’ve ever seen, it’s an honour for me to coach him.”

After juggling his squad much of the season, Courtois has leaned on a nearly identical starting 11 the last three games.

That will likely have to change on Saturday with Montreal playing its third contest in eight days.

“The turnaround is short. There are players who are performing and have a lot of minutes, and there are also players who are fresh,” he said. “We’ll try to make the least risky decisions possible.”

Montreal’s strong run of form started with a 2-1 home victory against a defensively stout Charlotte side on Sept. 14. Sirois expects a more “aggressive” match on the road at Bank of America Stadium.

“Tomorrow, Charlotte might have a bit more possession, wanting to attack us a bit more,” he said. “At the end of the day, there might be a bit more pressure on them because they know that if we win, we’re two points behind them.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 4, 2024.

EDMONTON – After losing two in a row to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, the Edmonton Elks’ playoff hopes hang by a thread.

The 5-10 Elks will need to win their final three games of the regular season — at Commonwealth Stadium this Saturday to Saskatchewan, on the road to Calgary and then the home finale against the Toronto Argonauts — to have any sort of post-season chance.

“We’ve got a three-game regular season right now, that’s the way we’re approaching it,” said Elks head coach Jarious Jackson as his team prepared for the Riders. “It starts this weekend with Sask.”

After an 0-7 start, the Elks caught fire and won five out of six. But two lopsided back-to-back losses against the Blue Bombers have put the team’s playoff hopes in critical condition. The Elks haven’t made the playoffs since 2019.

“It’s bigger than that,” said quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson who threw for 223 yards and three touchdowns in last weekend’s 55-27 loss to the Bombers. “It’s about pride. It’s about who the hell we are and how we want to finish. It’s about pride in what we do, pride in how we operate. If you truly love the game of football, you have pride in it.

“It’s been an unbelievably tough season. Three games to decide it. This is what it comes down to.”

Meanwhile the Riders (7-7-1) can clinch a playoff spot with a win on Saturday — as long as they get help. The Lions would need to beat the Stampeders, and the Blue Bombers would need to triumph over the Tiger-Cats this weekend to set up that scenario.

Coach Corey Mace expects a game where two teams will treat it like their backs are against the wall.

“I’m sure Edmonton is (motivated), but the reality is, so are we,” said Mace. “We really just kind of focus inward on getting the job done for ourselves. If we handle what we’re supposed to handle, everything will fall where it needs to fall.”

The Riders will likely start the game with their No. 3 option at running back, Frankie Hickson, getting the bulk of the carries. A.J. Ouellette is on the six-week disabled list, and Ryquell Armstead is out with a bad shoulder.

“I’d lean Frankie, but nothing is out of the equation, yet,” said Mace.

Hickson has 392 yards rushing on 76 carries this season. Thomas Bertrand-Hudon will deputize him.

Meanwhile, the Riders remember that the Elks ran them over the last time these two teams met. In Week 9, the Elks rushed for 276 yards in a 42-31 win, with Javon Leake going off for 169 of them.

Leake was limited in practice this week, as he recovers from a thigh issue. He is listed as active on the depth chart. But running back Kevin Brown will miss the game due to injury,

“The running game’s awesome,” Bethel-Thompson said of the team’s rushing corps, which also includes Justin Rankin. The trio of Leake, Brown and Rankin have combined for 1,594 rushing yards this season, so even with Brown out, the Elks should be in good shape when the ball is handed off.

For Bethel-Thompson, it’s about the rest of the offence offering the running game the help it needs.

“The running game has been there. It’s about executing on second down and staying on the field,” he said.

Jackson said the Elks’ recent win over Saskatchewan was closer than it appeared. In fact, the Riders held a 21-20 lead over the Elks after three quarters.

“It was a very close game,” Jackson said. “Don’t get fooled by what the end score was because, at the end of the day, we popped a couple at the end of the game to make it a little bit out of reach.”

SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS (7-7-1) AT EDMONTON ELKS (5-10)

Saturday, Commonwealth Stadium

DEFENSIVE BOOSTS: The Elks and Riders got good news this week, as they both get key defensive backs back to health. Riders DB C.J. Reavis is expected to return after a one-week absence. And, the Elks get Darrius Bratton back into the fold.

“I told the coaches I’m not missing more games,” said Reavis. “I wanted to play last week.”

OPENING DAY MEMORIES: The Riders beat the Elks 29-21 at Commonwealth Stadium in the 2024 season opener for both teams. Receiver Shawn Bane caught three touchdown passes.

OFFENCE DOESN’T WIN CHAMPIONSHIPS: The Elks are 5-10, despite leading the CFL in offensive points per game (28.1), touchdowns (46) and being second in yards per game (376.4) and first downs (325).

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 4, 2024.