(NEW YORK) — With an impressive and powerful performance at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens on Wednesday, Frances Tiafoe is smashing his way through the U.S. Open tournament, proving it’s his time to shine — and making history in the process.
Tiafoe’s fast and furious play saw him finish his latest match with 18 aces and a roaring crowd as he defeated the No. 9-seeded Andrey Rublev in straight sets 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-0), 6-4 in the men’s quarterfinal. The 24-year-old advances to the semifinals, ending a 16-year drought for American men’s tennis in the U.S. Open semifinals.
The last time an American men’s tennis player reached the semifinals was Andy Roddick in 2006. (Roddick made it to the finals but was defeated by Roger Federer.) Following two significant upsets in the tournament so far, Tiafoe is also the first Black man from the U.S. to reach the semifinals since Arthur Ashe in 1972.
“The training is paying off,” Tiafoe said during a post-match interview with ESPN. “I’ve been putting in the time, and it’s starting to show.”
Tiafoe, wearing Serena Williams’ GOAT sweatshirt following his dominating defeat, is proof that the Williams sisters’ impact goes far beyond the next generation of Black female tennis players, but also has an inspiring effect on young Black men, as well.
Tiafoe, currently the No. 22 seed, had a shocking and emotional upset against the No. 2-ranked superstar Rafel Nadal, abruptly ending the veteran’s run in the fourth round on Monday.
But the journey to center court was no small feat for the 24-year-old.
A son of Sierra Leone immigrants who fled home from a war in the 90s and laid roots In Maryland, Tiafoe’s father worked as a maintenance man at the College Park’s Junior Tennis Champions Center in Maryland, converting an office into a home for Frances and his twin brother Franklin. This gave Frances access to the tennis facility and coaches — a place where Frances found his opportunity to play and love the sport.
Now a fan favorite, Tiafoe awaits his next opponent, either Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz; they are set to face off later Wednesday evening, and one will meet him at center court in the first major Grand Slam semifinal of his career.
(SEATTLE) — Sue Bird said her goodbyes to fans Tuesday night as the Seattle Storm lost to the Las Vegas Aces in Game 4 of the WNBA Semifinals.
The 97-92 loss marked the end of the 41-year-old guard’s legendary two-decade career in Seattle. She wrapped up the night with eight points and eight assists.
Bird began her career in 2002 when she was chosen by the Storm as their first overall pick in round one of the WNBA draft. She closes out her time in the league with four WNBA championships and five Olympic gold medals.
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Tuesday’s sports events:
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
INTERLEAGUE
Atlanta 10, Oakland 9
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Tampa Bay 8, Boston 4
Cleveland 4, Kansas City 1
Baltimore 9, Toronto 6
Texas 4, Houston 3
LA Angels 5, Detroit 4 (10)
Seattle 3, Chi White Sox 0
Minnesota at NY Yankees (Postponed)
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Pittsburgh 8, NY Mets 2
Philadelphia 3, Miami 2
St. Louis 4, Washington 1
Chi Cubs 9, Cincinnati 3
Colorado 10, Milwaukee 7
San Diego 6, Arizona 5
LA Dodgers 6, San Francisco 3
WOMEN’S NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION PLAYOFFS
Connecticut 104, Chicago 80
Las Vegas 97, Seattle 92
(LOS ANGELES) — It’s been a long time in the making — 27 years to be exact — but the girls’ softball team at James A. Garfield Senior High School in East Los Angeles brought home a championship trophy and plaque for the first time since 1995 earlier this summer.
If you were following the team this past spring, you would probably have never guessed that the Lady Bulldogs would come out on top. The victory was unexpected and a long shot because after all, they were on a losing streak and had lost all of their preseason games.
But Karla Bernal, the head softball coach and a physical education teacher at Garfield, never lost faith in her young players.
“It did start pretty rocky and it was really discouraging for our players because we did play a tough preseason game. We were playing top schools and schools that compete at a high level and unfortunately, we didn’t get any wins in our preseason and we went 0 and 7,” the 26-year-old coach told ABC News’ Good Morning America.
Bernal, who’s also a Garfield alumna herself, said she knew the team had talent and the potential to win. They just needed to put things into perspective and not get discouraged by their past record.
She recounted telling the high schoolers before the playoffs, “‘You know what? They seeded us 20 [out of 22]. No one expected us to actually make the playoffs so we have nothing to lose.'”
“‘We just need to go in there, keep doing what we’ve been doing, that’s believing that we belong and believing that we can compete at this level, not letting our failures define who we are, and always putting our teammates first because when we do that, we are going to get the results out,'” she continued.
The Lady Bulldogs had a lot of challenges to overcome during their season, which ran from January to June. They had player injuries and morale issues to work through and then their big disadvantage was that they had no home field to play on as their field was under reconstruction.
“Some schools, they have their own field and you’re on your field, you’re in your batting cages if they have batting cages throughout the fall … from August to December. We didn’t have that. We were actually practicing in our football field, on our outdoor basketball courts, on our tennis courts,” Bernal explained.
“This team never had to face anything like that. And also, coming back from COVID, we [were] still transitioning from those obstacles and those struggles that they had to go through as a person. So it was hard for my team knowing that we couldn’t get field time,” she added.
Arnie Carrillo, whose two daughters were on the Garfield team this past season, put it simply.
“It seemed like everything that could go wrong, did go wrong,” he said.
Despite it all, the Lady Bulldogs kept practicing and squeezed in field time at nearby East Los Angeles College, which loaned their softball field to the teen players.
Their turning point came at their play-in game, which the Lady Bulldogs had to win in order to qualify for playoffs.
“We came into a play-in game and it seemed like everything that went wrong started to go right and so we went on a run where we upset the no. 5 team, the no. 3 team, the no. 1 team, and then we ended up in in the championship game, and what a beautiful day, what a beautiful moment,” Carrillo recalled.
“I think the fact that the odds were against us, once playoffs started, it just lit something up for my team,” Bernal said. “I think they just started believing in their capability and their preparation and they just took off and represented our school really well.”
Garfield’s Bulldogs would go on to win 5-3 against the Panthers of Gardena High School, who at the time were the defending champions in the division.
One of Carrillo’s daughters, pitcher Nadia Carrillo, helped secure the Bulldogs’ victory by driving home the double runs that clinched their title.
For Carrillo, who like Bernal, is a Garfield alumnus, watching his two daughters thrive in softball has been especially meaningful. Back in 1995, he was in the stands watching Garfield win their championship and softball has become an important bond for the family.
“It comes back full circle with me being there in ’95. And then, in 2022, almost 30 years later,” Carrillo said. “My daughters are part of something beautiful as far as winning a championship for your community.”
Carrillo is now hosting an online fundraiser to get the Lady Bulldogs their well-deserved championship rings.
“It wasn’t an easy feat and so now, that puts us into trying to commemorate them with the rings, to have something that said, ‘You know what? I was a part of this program at this certain time of Garfield’s existence,'” he said.
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Monday’s sports events:
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
AMERICAN LEAGUE
NY Yankees 5, Minnesota 2
Toronto 7, Baltimore 3
Tampa Bay 4, Boston 3
Toronto 8, Baltimore 4
Chi White Sox 3, Seattle 2
Houston 1, Texas 0
Cleveland 6, Kansas City 5
LA Angels 10, Detroit 0
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Washington 6, St. Louis 0
Milwaukee 6, Colorado 4
Arizona 5, San Diego 0
San Francisco 7, LA Dodgers 4
NY Mets at Pittsburgh (Postponed)
TOP-25 COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Clemson 41, Georgia Tech 10
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Sunday’s sports events:
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
INTERLEAGUE
Toronto 4, Pittsburgh 3
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Oakland 5, Baltimore 0
Boston 5, Texas 2
N.Y. Yankees 2, Tampa Bay 1
Kansas City 3, Detroit 2
Minnesota 5, Chicago White Sox 1
Seattle 6, Cleveland 3
Houston 9, L.A. Angels 1
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Colorado 8, Cincinnati 4
Atlanta 7, Miami 1
Washington 7, N.Y. Mets 1
St. Louis 2, Chicago Cubs 0
Cincinnati 10, Colorado 0
Arizona 5, Milwaukee 1
San Francisco 5, Philadelphia 3
L.A. Dodgers 9, San Diego 4
WOMEN’S NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION PLAYOFFS
Chicago 76, Connecticut 72
Las Vegas 110, Seattle 98 (OT)
MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER
Portland 2, Atlanta 1
Colorado 0, D.C. United 0
CF Montreal 4, Toronto FC 3
Sporting Kansas City 2, LA Galaxy 2
Orlando City 0, Miami 0
New England 3, New York City FC 0
Seattle 2, Houston 1
San Jose 2, Vancouver 0
Los Angeles FC 2, Real Salt Lake 0
(UVALDE, Texas) — As cheers roared through the stands of the Honey Bowl Stadium in Uvalde, Texas, on Friday night, it was a flashback 50 years in the making for some men on the sidelines.
Before May 24, the most memorable event in Uvalde was winning the 1972 high school football state championship. The teenagers became local celebrities, and this weekend, those champions, now in their late 60s, returned home to Uvalde for a 50th anniversary celebration.
The tight-knit championship team grew up together, from grade school to high school, ’72 player Buck Lanning told ABC News.
“We had a real good class. … We were running the same plays and same program that we’d been doing since junior high,” Lanning, 67, said. “We didn’t have any real stars. Uvalde had just a real good set of athletes — every position we had good players.”
He stressed the team’s camaraderie, recalling a time he got into some youthful trouble, and the coaches wanted the mystery culprit to “fess up.”
“I didn’t fess up. And they’re like, ‘Alright, the whole team is gonna run punishment drills.’ The whole team were in punishment drills for me,” he said.
Lanning said the coaches told them, “Until we get the culprit on this, we’re gonna run every day.”
Uvalde:365 is a continuing ABC News series reported from Uvalde and focused on the Texas community and how it forges on in the shadow of tragedy.
Years later, Lanning said the coaches told him they were impressed that the boys were “willing to sacrifice for each other.”
Lanning called the ’72 season “magical,” and said they “played some real good teams.”
Carla Hamilton Gerdes of the class of ’72 was on Uvalde’s dance team.
At the championship, she said, “The first time we went onto the field in Austin — Memorial Stadium — our mouths hung open. To be in something that huge was amazing.”
After the win, “We were all down on that field — it was one big ol’ party!” Gerdes said.
The 1972 team was honored during halftime at Friday’s high school football game, the first home game of the season.
“For those guys to come back and talk to our kids — and a bunch of them still live in the community — they’re just great guys,” current Uvalde football coach Wade Miller said. “We want to honor them and play well.”
On Saturday, the ’72 champs served as Grand Marshalls of Uvalde’s Palomino Fest parade. Then came their biggest event of the weekend: a replay of the championship game at the Uvalde High School auditorium. Players brought their wives, children and grandchildren to experience the “magic.”
Randy Gerdes of the ’72 team didn’t have to recount the historic season to his wife — she lived it. Becky Gerdes, who was on Uvalde’s drill team, has been with Randy since high school. The couple has two children and four grandchildren. She said she encouraged her husband to come back to town for the reunion.
The nostalgia brought a heartwarming reason to smile in the wake of the May 24 shooting at Robb Elementary School that claimed the lives of 19 children and two teachers.
“It’s still hurting me every day,” ’72 football player Carlos “Charlie” Ramos said of the massacre.
One of the children killed at Robb, 10-year-old Tess Mata, was a family friend, he said.
“But we’ve got to continue, we’ve got to be strong and we’ve got to keep going,” 69-year-old Ramos said.
Ramos, who still lives in Uvalde where he owns an auto body shop, said football taught him to not be afraid of a challenge.
“It’s an encouraging game. It’s a challenging game. You got to be smart and physical,” Ramos said. “I’ve had some difficulties and I just kept on going, and think I’ve done pretty good.”
Lanning added, “Our coaches commanded a lot of respect. You had to work hard. … It carried through the rest of my life. It was ingrained.”
Through tears, Lanning said he hopes the reunion is “a ray of sunshine in the darkness.”
ABC News’ Megan Streete and Kat Caulderwood contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — After an incredible run at the U.S. Open, Serena Williams’ professional career most likely ended Friday after losing to #46 Ajla Tomljanovic who defeated her 7-5, 6-7(4), 6-1.
The 23 time champion took a professional bow on the same court she won her first grand slam tournament in 1999 and from here she “evolves” to the next chapter of her career. Williams departs the sport having won the most Grand Slam titles in the open era and will go down as the greatest of all time.
The icon who transcended the sport changed the face of tennis – both on the court and in the seats.
The crowd’s support for Williams – which during this open was slightly different than many in recent years – cheered every point as if it were a championship point and every fault from an opponent much to the dismay of that player.
A couple nights ago, Williams said, “I’m from Compton California and I made it.” Made it she certainly did.
Williams, basking in the moment, took a chance to thank her family, team and fans as she likely closed out her professional career in an on court interview. “It all started with my parents. And they deserve everything. So I’m really grateful for them,” she said.
“These are happy tears,” she said as she cried, adding “I’m so grateful.”
Would she reconsider that retirement talk: “I’m literally playing my way into this and getting better. I should have started sooner this year. I don’t think so, but you never know. I don’t know,” Williams said.
How is Williams spending her first day post professional career – resting and probably some karaoke.
In the final post match presser of her professional steer, she said she looked forward to being with her daughter Olympia. “Yeah, it’s been really hard on her, my career. So it will be, you know, nice just to do that and spend some time with her, do things that I never really have done or had an opportunity to do.”
Could we see Williams on court – the door seems to be shut but not sealed.
“I don’t know. I’m not thinking about that. I always did love Australia, though…Clearly I’m still capable. It takes a lot more than that. I’m ready to, like, be a mom, explore a different version of Serena,” Williams said.
As she closes out her career, the champ says that she hopes to be remembered for her impact on the sport.
“I’m such a fighter…I feel like I really brought something, and bring something, to tennis. The different looks, the fist pumps, the just crazy intensity. I think that obviously the passion I think is a really good word,” she said. “I just honestly am so grateful that I had this moment and that I’m Serena.”
(UVALDE, Texas) — After a summer plagued with grief, anxiety and anger, Uvalde gets an escape, celebrating the high school’s first home football game of the season.
Residents will descend on the Honey Bowl Stadium on Friday night to watch the Uvalde High School Coyotes take on the C.C. Winn High School Mavericks. Uvalde’s stadium is just 2.4 miles from Robb Elementary School, where 19 elementary students and two teachers were killed on May 24.
Senior Uvalde linebacker Justyn Rendon was selected by his coaches and peers for the honor of wearing the No. 21 jersey this season, commemorating the 21 victims killed.
“I automatically started crying,” his mom, Venessa Rendon, said when she learned the news. “I was proud. It was a very humbling moment.”
Justyn Rendon said nearly everyone in town was impacted by the massacre, including his own family. His youngest brother was at Robb that day and survived.
“I was devastated, I couldn’t get here fast enough. All the ‘what ifs?’ started playing through my mind,” said his father, San Antonio police officer Eluterio Rendon.
Now football is “like a therapy,” Justyn Rendon told ABC News.
At practice “everybody didn’t have to feel the sadness and the sorrow. They just were able to feel the comfort of the family that we have,” the 18-year-old said.
As the team gathered for a pre-game dinner Thursday night, they were greeted by surprise visitors: Houston Texans coach Lovie Smith and Texans linebackers Christian Kirksey and Kamu Grugier-Hill.
“Whenever you have the opportunity to be of help, to be of inspiration, or just to be a person that can get, you know, things of these young men’s minds. You can talk ball with, or talk life with, you just want to be there,” Texans linebacker Christian Kirksey told ABC News. “I think that we have a job not just playing football, but to be role models and to be a helping hand.”
“I think it’s awesome,” Uvalde coach Wade Miller said of the NFL visit. “It makes us feel the love that we’re getting from around the world and especially the state of Texas. And to have those guys here and keeping up with us, makes our kids feel really special.”
The surprises kept coming on Good Morning America Friday. The Texans are gifting Uvalde with new uniforms and equipment for the season, and will honor the team with “Uvalde strong” stickers on their helmets at their first home game on Sept. 11.
“We’ll always be in you corner, we’ll always have your back,” Kirksey said.
The Texans are also hosting a football clinic for the Uvalde community on Friday.
“The guys just enjoy giving back,” Texans owner Cal McNair told ABC News. “All these guys have really embraced that as what they do and what they believe in.”
The special NFL visit was made possible by the Texans’ athletic trainer, Roland Ramirez, who is a Uvalde native.
“It’s been tough. Some really close friends have lost loves ones … so it hits home for me,” he said.
Ramirez said he’s glad the Texans can extend support and encouragement to the high schoolers — and he’s especially excited to watch his alma mater take the field Friday night.
Uvalde football ended last season 2-8. But already this year is off to a new start.
The season began last Friday with an away game. Uvalde beat the Carrizo Springs Wildcats, scoring a total of 21 points — a poignant and powerful reminder of the 21 lives lost.
“It was just a sign that the 21 angels are looking down at this community, and saying that they’re here, that they’re still present, and that they will remain present. So that was a pretty, pretty special moment,” Eluterio Rendon said.
Defensive end Jonathan Elizondo, 17, said the tragedy has brought the team together and that they’re mentally stronger now.
Elizondo transferred to Uvalde in the wake of the shooting to lend support to his family. He has cousins who attended Robb.
“I just don’t want them to see this as, like, a tragic town, you know? I want there to be positivity again,” he said.
Football “brings everybody together” in Uvalde, and Justyn Rendon said he’s excited to “bring the joy back to this town” at Friday’s home opener.
“It’s gonna mean a lot more this season. … It’s gonna be very emotional, very exciting,” he said. “And hopefully those little kids get to come out and watch us win. And that they don’t have to feel like scared, or have to be sad, but they get to feel the joy of being around their friends, their families.”
“This team means a lot to me,” added 16-year-old quarterback Brodie Carnes.
Carnes said Friday night’s game is “gonna be packed. Our community is kinda down … we’re gonna go out there and play for them.”
“It took us a while to be able to smile again without feeling guilty,” Eluterio Rendon said. “I believe that football will hopefully bring the community out … find a reason to smile, by enjoying watching our kids do what they love to do.”
ABC News’ Olivia Osteen, Jenny Wagnon Courts, Katie Conway and Kat Caulderwood contributed to this report.
(NEW YORK) — Venus Williams and Serena Williams, a pair who first walked onto the national stage of professional tennis in the 1990s, have most likely walked off the court together for the last time.
The legendary sister act likely came to a close on Thursday night after the pair lost 7-6(5), 6-4, to the Czech team of Linda Noskova and Lucie Hradecka.
The first-round game marked, most likely, the final time Serena Williams and her older sister Venus Williams would play in a Grand Slam doubles tournament together. Serena Williams had announced that she was “evolving away” from tennis in a personal essay in Vogue in August.
Venus Williams had told reporters earlier in the week that the idea to play together was her sister’s.
“She’s the boss so I do whatever she tells me to do,” she had said while smiling.
The two sisters have dominated the tennis world for nearly three decades, ending their go as a pair on the same court they had won their first U.S. Open Doubles title in 1999. The duo would go on to win 22 titles, 14 Grand Slams and three Olympic gold medals while playing together.
