Chicago Sky guard DiJonai Carrington said her flagrant foul Aug. 8 against Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham was unfortunate and unintentional. She also clarified her "white privilege" post on social media was not in response to being given the foul."Its just who I am. Im never going to just let an open layup be had," Carrington told reporters Monday, Aug. 10, before the team's road game against the Seattle Storm. "You can pull clips from, I dont know, however many seasons of me making that (play). Obviously Im just coming back from injury, so maybe my timing or my lift wasnt where it needs to get. It was unfortunate I made contact with her in the way that I did, but it was never intentional."Carrington made her season debut for the Sky on July 30 after recovering from a foot injury. She was ejected from their game against the Fever for a flagrant foul penalty 2, which is given for "unnecessary and excessive" contact, according to the WNBA rulebook.Carrington, who is Black, fouled Cunningham from behind on a fast-break layup late in the first quarter of the nationally-televised game at the United Center in Chicago. Cunningham, who is white, was knocked to the court from the impact. The play was reviewed andupgraded to a flagrant 2after officials determined Carrington wound up and followed through on the contact with Cunningham's head and neck.Cunningham recently made headlines for her comments on transgender athletes, and Carrington emphasized that had nothing to do with the on-court situation. "Look, it might happen again. Thats just how I play, Im always going to go all out and try to get a stop," Carrington said. "But, like I said, Im never intending to hurt somebody regardless of anything, outside noise or whatever the situation may be.DiJonai Carrington clarifies social media postIn the immediate aftermath of her ejection, Carrington postedWHITE PRIVILEGE on social media and tagged the Fever. She then posted the date of the next Sky-Fever game, which will take place in Chicago on Aug. 23 (7 p.m. ET on NBC), and added a smiley face emoji.During interviews Monday, she declined to elaborate on what she meant in her social media posts."Ive already spoken to the people who have the potential to have the agency to make the change that Im hoping comes about not just from this incident but ones in the past and ones that are obviously going to be coming up in the near future probably as well," Carrington said. However earlier Monday evening, Carrington took to social media again in response to a video featuring Emmanuel Acho in which the former NFL linebacker said, "You cant call that foul 'white privilege.'"Carrington pushed back on Acho, writing, "Ive never once claimed that the assessment of the foul was white privilege (that was your assumption). Try exercising your critical thinking skills, I know you studied psych."She continued in her response to Acho, who currently hosts a youtube show on sports:"Furthermore, Im the LAST thing from ignorant or asinine when it comes to speaking on 'white privilege,' do ya research on that one. I actually went to school, one of the top universities might I add, to educate myself on this exact subject. I would never use that term as a rhetorical weapon knowing the historical and social weight it holds without having the proper evidence to substantiate it."Carrington, 28, played for Stanford for four years and earned two degrees: a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Bachelor of Arts in African-American/Black Studies, before spending her final season of college ball at Baylor, where she earned a Masters of Education, according to her LinkedIn profile and Stanford women's basketball bio on the school's athletics website.A 2021 second-round draft pick, Carrington won Most Improved Player and an All-Defensive First Team honors in 2024.What did DiJonai Carrington discuss with the WNBA?Carrington said she asked the WNBA for consistency in punishments for fouls but did not express optimism.After the foul Aug. 8, Cunningham got up quickly and appeared to push and swipe at Carrington. Cunningham had to be held back by her teammates as she and Carrington continued attempting to make contact with one another."I would just love consistency across the board when it comes to things like that. Whether its the foul that I committed, whether its the reaction, the retaliation, I would just love it to be consistent across the board regardless of the name on your jersey or your skin color or the score of the game, the stakes whatever," Carrington said during interviews Monday. "I would love there to just be consistency when it comes to all of that. I dont think were there yet. Thats something that Ive talked to the league about as well. I think that will eliminate a lot of frustrations that we all have."I dont feel encouraged. But that doesnt mean youre going to stop fighting for what I believe is right and thats just consistency. I think everyone would benefit from that. Were all here to play our hardest and win games. There is never mal-intent with any of these things."This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What DiJonai Carrington said about flagrant foul on Sophie Cunningham, 'white privilege' post

We've officially entered the training camp edition of the Pittsburgh Steelers' countdown to kickoff. With fans needing to wait only 34 more days until the Steel City brand of football returns when the Steelers host the Atlanta Falcons on September 13, we'll take a look at the most recent and best players to ever wear No. 34.Steelers current No. 34: CB Donte Kent, K Laith MarjanSecond-year cornerback Donte Kent and undrafted rookie kicker Laith Marjan are both currently wearing No. 34 on the Steelers roster.Last 5 Steelers to wear No. 34Laith Marjan, 2026-presentDonte Kent, 2025-presentJalen Elliott, 2024Chandon Sullivan, 2023Terrell Edmunds, 2018-2022Best No. 34 in Steelers history: LB Andy RussellAnother countdown to kickoff brings us to an all-time great linebacker in Steelers' history: Andy Russell.Russell, selected by Pittsburgh with the 220th overall pick in the 16th round of the 1963 NFL Draft, was a ten-time team captain and part of arguably the greatest linebacker trio in NFL history. Russell played in 168 games for Pittsburgh and never missed a contest due to injury.During his time with the Steelers, Russell won two Super Bowls with the legendary Steel Curtain defense, as well as earning seven Pro Bowl nominations, one First-Team All-Pro selection, and two Second-Team All-Pro selections before retiring in 1976.Russell was also named to the Pittsburgh Steelers All-Time Team and the Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Honor, a truly remarkable legacy that deserves to be recognized as the greatest Steeler to ever wear No. 34.For up-to-dateSteelerscoverage, including any training camp news and updates, follow us on X@TheSteelersWireand give ourFacebook pagea like. This article originally appeared on Steelers Wire: Steelers legendary LB leads 2026 countdown to kickoff: Day No. 34

Yeah, getting those preseason votes is a reason to get a smile from head coach Tom Mendoza. | Credit: Marquette UniversityLate on Monday evening, I said, hey, it is Monday, does that mean the AVCA preseason poll came out today? Lo and behold, it sure did.Okay, lets get a notepad out and figure out whos in here that Marquette volleyball is going to play this season Wait. Whats this? Down here in the receiving votes?MARQUETTE HAS 28 POINTS WORTH OF VOTES. THEY START THE 2026 SEASON AS THE UNOFFICIAL #34 TEAM IN THE COUNTRY!Thats awesome. I legitimately did not expect that. With the loss of so many seniors and three starters departing via transfer, including top attacker Natalie Ring, I presumed that the coaches that have a ballot would just say ah, yes, NCAA tournament in head coach Tom Mendozas first season, but come on, top 25 to start next year? Not so fast my friend. A lot of them did! Nebraska is #1 and they have over 1,500 points! Marquette has only 28! But 28 is more than the two points across two ballots that you need to get mentioned in the Receiving Votes area, and thats great.As for Marquettes schedule, well, Tom Mendoza didnt shy away from anything. MUs first match of the season will be against preseason #2 Texas, as they get the Longhorns at Fiserv Forum in the AVCA First Serve event. Texas snagged one first place vote to sneak past #3 Kentucky and their four first place votes and land right behind the Cornhuskers.Things dont really get easier for Marquette from there. Next on the schedule is a two-match trip to southwest Ohio, and that means facing Dayton and their 22 points in the preseason poll. One week later, Marquette will be out in California for two matches, including one against host and preseason #5 Stanford. One week after that and its a home-and-home two match weekend series against Illinois, who ended up with seven points to be the unofficial #41 team in the country at the start of the season.MU has just three non-conference matches left after that, with all three in Wisconsin. Two are at home against teams not earning votes, but one is in Madison against preseason #6 Wisconsin. If Marquette pulls a stunner along the way somewhere here, this will be a battle of two ranked teams, but Im not going to start holding my breath until after those Illinois contests.According to the AVCA poll, Marquette goes into the season as the second best team in the Big East. Well see how well that holds up, but Creighton is ranked at a well-deserved #13 to start the year and take the title of league favorite in the eyes of the voters. Marquette gets the Bluejays on the road in the fourth match of conference play on October 4th, then hosts them seven matches later on October 29th. Thats not it for Big East teams! Villanova has three points worth of votes, and that makes them the unofficial #43 team in the country. Marquette hosts Nova on October 10th, then visits Jake Nevin Field House on November 6th. I dont know if they can win their way up towards the top 25 in non-conference play, but it would be nice to get at least a votes vs votes game in Big East action.As mentioned, Marquettes first game of the season is against Texas at Fiserv Forum. Thats scheduled for first serve at 7pm Central on August 24th, and FS2 is going to pick up the broadcast on that one.You can check out the entire top 25 right here.Follow Anonymous Eagle on social mediaFacebook:AnonymousEagleInstagram:AnonymousEagleSBNBluesky:AnonymousEagle

The women's strawweight championship is on the line in the UFC 330 co-main event on Saturday. Champion Mackenzie Dern puts her belt on the line for the first time again Gillian Robertson.UFC 330 Countdown takes an in-depth look at the co-main event title bout between the two submission specialists.UFC 330 Countdown: Dern vs. Robertson

The women's strawweight championship is on the line in the UFC 330 co-main event on Saturday. Champion Mackenzie Dern puts her belt on the line for the first time again Gillian Robertson.UFC 330 Countdown takes an in-depth look at the co-main event title bout between the two submission specialists.UFC 330 Countdown: Dern vs. Robertson

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Even with almost one-third of their big-league roster shipped out of town ahead of last week's MLB trade deadline, the Mets continue finding ways to win ballgames.The offense has been clicking on all cylinders, the starting pitching continues to deliver, and the new-look bullpen has stepped up tremendously over the past two series.That was again the case during Monday's series-opener in Atlanta.New York jumped all over Braves right-hander Bryce Elder, striking for seven runs on 10 hits over the first three innings to establish a commanding early lead.They received contributions from up-and-down the lineup, but Brett Baty was accountable for the big blow, launching his first career grand slam as part of a five-run top of the first.It was really cool, Baty said. First homer here, now my first grand slam here -- I havent hit many grand slams in my life too, so its definitely pretty cool.Christian Scott faltered a bit, allowing the high-powered Braves to scratch their way back in the game, but the Mets bullpen again delivered some big innings to get the job done down the stretch.Jonathan Pintaro allowed a run behind Scott, but then Nate Lavender and Daniel Duarte combined for three scoreless frames, before handing the ball to Kodai Senga, who was terrific to secure his first career save.Its been next man up, Andy Green said.We lost a lot of guys in this bullpen, but we also gained a lot of talent, Scott added. Not enough credit goes to those guys, theyve really done an unbelievable job.Just like that, New York improves to 6-1 with just two games remaining on their nine-game road trip.The boys are swinging some hot bats, the bullpen is doing their thing and the starters are always going to do their thing, Baty said. Its been fun, were rallying around each other and weve just been playing some really good ball.

Davion Brown (11), Luke Stuewe (83) and WR coach Fontel Mines. | John Schneider - SB NationIn a perfect world, Virginia Tech head coach James Franklin would prefer each of his true freshmen sit out their first year as htey get acclimaeted to the college game. But sometimes, some first-year players are just too good to sit. During his time at Penn State, Franklin was not afraid to put a true freshman on the field. With fall camp underway at Franklins new job, are there any freshmen standing out?Back in the spring, there was a lot of buzz around true freshman cornerback Amauri Polydor. At that time, wide receiver Davion FatRat Brown had yet to arrive. Brown would enroll in late May. Hes on campus now and is apparently making an impression. Everyone expects Ayden Green and QueSean Brown to be Virginia Techs top two receivers in 2026. But everything is wide open for the No. 3 receiver role. There are plenty of candidates, but the 6-foot-1, 204-pound freshman is already making his case. During media day on Sunday, Franklin was discussing Virginia Techs receivers. Who was stepping up as VTs No. 3 receiver. Franklin named five guys total, but FatRat was the only first-year player. FatRat is a guy that I think has flashed as a true freshman, Franklin said. I think theres a lot of guys talking about him and excited about him.WR competition pic.twitter.com/nTZJxWUtR4 HokieSports (@hokiesports) August 9, 2026 The Hokies have only been practicing for a few days, so Brown must really be making a name for himself. If you watched FatRat in high school, you saw a player whos game looked tailor-made for an easy transition to the next level. Hes thickly built and explosive, who is phenomenal after the catch. In case you needed a reminder:Brown can work in the slot or outside. Hes fast and hes tough to bring down. You can see how those skills would translate so easily to the next level. Now that Franklin has put his name out there, dont be surprised if FatRat is playing significant minutes next month.

Has Devin Williams' injury opened a door to a new role for Kodai Senga?After Williams was placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to Aug. 8, with a right shoulder strain, Senga received the first crack at a save opportunity on Monday night.Senga faced the heart of the Braves' batting order, striking out both Matt Olson and Michael Harris II before working around a two-out walk with a fly ball to pin down his first career major league save in the Mets' 8-5 victory over the Braves in the series opener at Truist Park in Atlanta. "Didn't soft serve him," Mets interim manager Andy Green told reporters. "Those were some of the best hitters in the league. Really good stuff. His first two punchouts were sensational, they're really good forkballs to punch those guys out. He was great. Hopefully he feels great tomorrow and he's ready to go again."The only problem for Senga on a milestone evening? Where was the ball?Carson Benge appeared to give the ball to a fan in the crowd along the right-field line after making the game-ending catch. Senga threw up his arms and gave a laugh near the mound as Benge trotted in from the outfield."I think Benge is trying to tell me that I should have just punched him out," Senga said with a smile through an interpreter after the game.With Williams out for at least two weeks and a makeshift bullpen in place after the Mets' trade deadline sell-off, there is a wide-open opportunity in high-leverage innings for the Mets. Senga, who struggled mightily in the rotation and is settling into a single-inning, high-leverage role for now, could be one of the beneficiaries of a void in late innings.For now, Senga is embracing his opportunity to pitch key spots for the Mets."I thin k it's a great environment for myself," Senga said. "First of all, my body feels great. I'm able to go out and perform even in short innings, regardless of the situation. Certainly there are things that are difficult or differences that I have to adjust to, but even with that, there's a lot to learn, and again, I think it's a great environment."The next question might be how Senga, who was used to pitching once every six days as a starter in Japan, is able to adjust to the grind of the bullpen workload.Senga came out firing on Monday night, touching 99.9 mph with his fastball against Olson out of the gate. After Olson fouled off three straight pitches, Senga buried a forkball to send down the Braves first baseman. He followed up two straight fastballs with a forkball to fan Harris.Senga said he would like to keep his other pitches available to keep batters off balance, but for now, his high velocity and plunging forkball have shown effectively in short bursts. He has now thrown three straight scoreless innings of relief with four strikeouts. "It's definitely two sensational pitches," Green said. "He doesn't have a need to expand the arsenal. Third batter there, mixed in a few more pitches, but those are the two that are kind of his bread and butter right now. Obviously was able to plow through two of the best hitters in the league."With strong returns early, leverage reliever could be a role for the Mets to consider with Senga moving forward. He is owed $14 million for 2027 with a $15 million club option for 2028. The Mets will have plenty of opportunities to see him get settled there down the stretch.For now, Senga does not want to close any doors on how he can be deployed."As soon as I think, 'OK, I'm not a starter anymore. I'm going to be a reliever,' then I think the mental switch makes it very difficult to throw longer innings," Senga said, "so I want to keep that in the back of m mind while still going out and performing, whether it's one inning, one hitter, whatever the situation is."This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Kodai Senga locks down 1st career save for Mets. Could more be ahead?