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US Open: Jessica Pegula reaches her 7th Grand Slam quarterfinal. She is 0-6 at that stage so far

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NEW YORK (AP) — Jessica Pegula is back in the quarterfinals at the U.S. Open after a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Diana Shnaider on Monday, her seventh trip to that round at a Grand Slam tournament. Now comes the hard part: Pegula is 0-6 in major quarterfinals over her career.

The No. 6-seeded Pegula, an American whose parents own the NFL’s Buffalo Bills and NHL’s Buffalo Sabres, is on quite a run at the moment, having won 13 of her past 14 matches, all on hard courts. That included her second consecutive title in Canada and an appearance in the final at the Cincinnati Open, where she lost to No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka.

“I feel like there’s been more pressure this year, because I did so well coming into this tournament,” the 30-year-old Pegula said. “I want to keep working my way and hopefully bringing my best tennis for the later rounds this time.”

Also returning to the quarterfinals was Karolina Muchova, a 6-3, 6-3 winner over No. 5 Jasmine Paolini, the runner-up at the French Open and Wimbledon this season. Muchova enjoyed a breakthrough 2023, getting to the final in Paris and the semifinals in New York, before needing surgery on her right wrist in October, sidelining her for 10 months.

“This was my worst and most serious injury, I would say. But, I mean, I love the sport, so in my head, I was like, ’I will do everything I could to (get) better and try.’ And here I am today,” Muchova said. “I’m just a really happy kid now.”

Pegula made it to the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows two years ago, before losing to No. 1 Iga Swiatek, who went on to win one of her five major championships. There could be another meeting against Swiatek looming: Pegula next faces the winner of Monday night’s match between Swiatek and No. 16 Liudmila Samsonova.

Three of Pegula’s six quarterfinal exits at Slams came against a No. 1 player — Swiatek twice and Ash Barty once.

Asked during her on-court interview in Arthur Ashe Stadium what she needs to do to get to the semifinals this time, Pegula joked: “I always say I just need to win the match to get to the semis, and then that’ll solve everything, right?”

She continued: “Listen, it doesn’t really matter to me. I mean, every match is every match. I’ve always played it like that. It just so happens to be (the) quarterfinals, but at the same time, to be able to say I’ve been in that position many, many times is great. So I just have to keep putting myself there and keep trying to play my game.”

That game worked quite well against the 18th-seeded Shnaider, a 20-year-old Russian who played one season of college tennis at NC State and won a silver medal in women’s doubles at the Paris Olympics.

Pegula compiled 22 winners, hit six aces, saved 7 of 9 break points that she faced and claimed five of Shnaider’s service games.

“I feel like I’m moving so much better around the court,” Pegula said, adding that this was the “best, off the ground, that I’ve felt.”

___

AP tennis:

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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Father charged with second-degree murder in infant’s death: police

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A Richmond Hill, Ont., man has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of his seven-week-old infant earlier this year.

York Regional Police say they were contacted by the York Children’s Aid Society about a child who had been taken to a hospital in Toronto on Jan. 15.

They say the baby had “significant injuries” that could not be explained by the parents.

The infant died three days later.

Police say the baby’s father, 30, was charged with second-degree murder on Oct. 23.

Anyone with more information on the case is urged to contact investigators.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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Ontario fast-tracking several bills with little or no debate

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TORONTO – Ontario is pushing through several bills with little or no debate, which the government house leader says is due to a short legislative sitting.

The government has significantly reduced debate and committee time on the proposed law that would force municipalities to seek permission to install bike lanes when they would remove a car lane.

It also passed the fall economic statement that contains legislation to send out $200 cheques to taxpayers with reduced debating time.

The province tabled a bill Wednesday afternoon that would extend the per-vote subsidy program, which funnels money to political parties, until 2027.

That bill passed third reading Thursday morning with no debate and is awaiting royal assent.

Government House Leader Steve Clark did not answer a question about whether the province is speeding up passage of the bills in order to have an election in the spring, which Premier Doug Ford has not ruled out.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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Alberta forestry minister says wolverine, lynx trapping limits lifted to gather data

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EDMONTON – Alberta Forestry Minister Todd Loewen says the decision to lift limits on trapping for animals like wolverines is being done to get more data on what to do with them.

Until recently, trappers on Crown land were almost entirely prohibited from trapping wolverines, lynx, river otters, and fishers — but Loewen’s decision means it’s now open season on all four.

Loewen says it was impossible for him to defend the virtual ban on these fur-bearing creatures because current population numbers for the animals are not known.

He says by lifting the limits, the government and conservationists will better understand the overall health status of each species through the data collected by trappers.

Conservationist Ruiping Luo, with the Alberta Wilderness Association, says the government should find a way to collect the data without killing the animals.

Luo says while lifting the ban may not lead to extinction, any further species loss or damage could create a domino effect with consequent harm to ecosystems.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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