Tustin football rolls to win over El Dorado with revised offense

• September 6, 2024

PLACENTIA — Eimesse Essis scored three first-half touchdowns and Jon Ioane had two touchdown passes to help Tustin’s football team improve to 3-0 with a 42-10 win over El Dorado on Thursday night at Valencia High.

Tillers coach Anthony Lopez admitted the entire offense changed once their projected starter at quarterback, Michael “Butter” Tollefson, was ruled ineligible to play for the Tillers this season by CIF-SS, but the team has come together despite the adversity.

“We love the kid, he is missed tremendously from our team and we built a whole offense around him but we still gotta play on Friday nights,” Lopez said, referring to Tollefson. “So we put something together on offense. We have a lot of guys going both ways and they’re doing a tremendous job and that’s really what our team is built on, guys doing their job and leaning on each other.”

Ioane stepped up with 175 yards passing and two touchdowns. The sophomore defensive lineman, who is listed at 6-foot-3, 290 pounds, has a throwing arm that matches his enormous stature.

“The kid’s never played quarterback in his life but stepped up when the team needed him,” Lopez said. “He’s our 3-technique (lineman), but he has a phenomenal arm and we knew we could take some shots (down field) and that really helps the run game.”

Khalil Terry’s first-quarter interception helped set up Tustin’s first score.

“Our defense has done an amazing job for us this year,” Lopez said. “They put the offense in good positions.”

After the interception, Ioane connected with Essis on a fourth-down screen pass that went for a 19-yard TD.

Essis doubled his touchdown tally on another fourth-down scenario as the senior took a handoff 21 yards to the house to make it 14-0.

Tustin RB Eimesse Essis scored 3 TDs in the Tillers 42-10 win over El Dorado. The senior running back gives credit to all the offseason work and his offensive line for the great start. Essis also praises @jonnioane for stepping in to play QB. @ocvarsity @Tiller_Football… pic.twitter.com/MiNXxsZSDm

— David Delgado🇪🇨 (@DavidDelgado_OC) September 6, 2024

Essis added an 11-yard TD run in the second quarter after a 49-yard completion on a double-pass from Ioane to Chris Perez, who found Rufai Azeez open down field.

“Eimesse does his thing, just like he does every game.” Lopez said.

Tre Cushionberry added two touchdowns for the Tillers, one on a 37-yard reverse in the second quarter and the other on a 31-yard reception in the third quarter to make it 36-3.

Tustin running back Jeremiah Williams recovered a fumble in the end zone in the third quarter to give the Tillers a 42-3 lead late in the third quarter.

The Tillers defense collected a pair of interceptions. One of them went to Jalen Gay, and Tustin recorded three sacks as it pressured Mitchell Schroth for most of the game.

El Dorado (1-2) got on the board as time expired in the first half thanks to a 29-yard field goal by Nathan Tierney. It added a 4-yard touchdown run by JP Murray in the fourth quarter.

Tustin kicker Nathan Ixta connected on a 29-yard field goal in the second quarter.

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​ Orange County Register 

Foothill football uses potent attack to beat Orange in high-scoring battle

• September 6, 2024

ORANGE – When it seemed like defenses need not apply between Foothill and Orange on Thursday, it was the Knights that made the key stops and answered with big plays.

Foothill quarterback Gino Marchetti accounted for seven total touchdowns, three with his arm and another four with his legs, as the Knights outpaced Orange 55-35 at El Modena High.

“Kids had a good week of practice,” Foothill coach Doug Case said. “It was the short week, and it was probably beneficial for us (after losing to Tustin 42-24 last week). We needed to get right back in the saddle and executing again… We have to shore some stuff up still, but it’s game three. Kids hung in there, and I’m proud of them.”

Foothill (2-1) goes on the road to play Troy on Friday, Sept. 13. Orange (0-3) is at La Habra.

Marchetti paced a potent Foothill attack from the game’s opening drive, where he opened the scoring with a 27-yard, highlight-reel scamper. Marchetti was flushed right from the pocket, and the 6-foot-6 senior danced down the sideline, around and through Orange defenders for the score.

Marchetti completed 12 of 16 passes for 221 yards and three touchdowns – 43 yards to senior Jesus Martinez, 47 yards to senior Mike Galey and 53 yards to junior Luke Smith – and carried the ball 10 times for 73 yards and four touchdown runs, including three quarterback sneaks.

“He’s maturing every week. He had eight reps last year as a junior,” Case said. “The game is slowing down for him. He’s figuring out where I’m trying to place the ball. He really did a great job running the ball.”

Foothill QB Gino Marchetti threw for 3 TDs and ran for 4TDs, as the Knights (2-1) bounced back in a 55-35 road win over Orange (0-3).

The 6-foot-6 senior signal-caller completed 12 of 16 passes for 221 yards and ran for 73 yards. @ocvarsity @GoFoothill @GinoMarchetti19 pic.twitter.com/41LHCfn44c

— Zach Cavanagh (@ZachCav) September 6, 2024

Foothill senior running back Nathan Gouvion also carried the ball 23 times for 113 yards.

On the other side, Orange freshman quarterback Star Thomas kept up his high volume of work, completing 23 of 39 pass attempts for 336 yards and three touchdown passes and one interception. Gianni Porfilio caught seven passes for 167 yards and all three touchdown receptions.

Foothill led by 21 points at halftime, 35-14, but Orange came out swinging in the second half.

The Panthers opened with a 14-yard touchdown run by Jordan Hardaway, a fourth-down stop of Foothill and a 64-yard touchdown pass from Thomas to Porfilio to cut the lead to 35-28.

However, Foothill locked in, and three plays later, Marchetti hit a wide-open Galey for the 47-yard touchdown and the two-score lead.

Foothill junior Andrew Arrazola stepped up for an interception on the next Orange possession, and Marchetti topped off the ensuing drive by bouncing off the goal-line pile for a 2-yard sneak touchdown and a 20-point lead, 48-28.

TOUCHDOWN: Foothill pushing back out again.

After an interception of Orange, Knights take advantage of the short field. Marchetti bounces off the pile for his third TD run of the game.

Foothill 48, Orange 28 – 3:15 3Q @ocvarsity @GoFoothill pic.twitter.com/nCT9oQXdyl

— Zach Cavanagh (@ZachCav) September 6, 2024

Orange and Foothill traded fourth-quarter scores, including a 23-yard showcase throw from Thomas to Porfilio for the Panthers and a 1-yard extension over the pile by Marchetti for Foothill.

The game began fast and furious as both teams scored on the first five combined drives of the game with Foothill opening up a 21-14 lead. Orange converted three fourth-down attempts on its opening two drives.

After grabbing the lead again, Foothill came up with the game’s first defensive stops to begin pulling away.

Orange was finally stopped on fourth down at midfield, and Foothill engineered a 10-play scoring drive with a 1-yard touchdown sneak by Marchetti, 28-14.

Orange’s next drive went backwards, and as the Panthers punted from their own end zone, Preston Smith snagged the shanked kick in stride to waltz in for a 17-yard punt return touchdown and a 21-point lead going into halftime, 35-14.

During Foothill’s previous scoring drive, a member of the officiating crew was taken to the sidelines for heat exhaustion and attended to by the Orange training staff. After lying on the ground for several minutes, an ambulance and paramedics arrived to take him off for further care before halftime.

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​ Orange County Register 

Defense stars again for Northwood football in shutout of Pacifica

• September 6, 2024

IRVINE — Northwood’s defense continued its streak of dominant play in a 24-0 win over Pacifica Thursday in a nonleague football game at Irvine High.

The Timberwolves (3-0) have allowed just one offensive touchdown this season through three games. Northwood’s starting defense held Pacifica (1-2) to 103 yards of total offense with four first downs.

“I couldn’t be happier,” Northwood coach JC Clarke said. “After 27 years of running ‘the bear’ defense, we switched it up this year and it’s working better than I thought.”

Northwood forced three turnovers and allowed Pacifica to cross the 50-yard line only once.

“It’s been amazing. We have had hiccups on offense but the defense has always been there to have their backs,” Northwood senior Joseph Harper said. “When the offense clicks and we are firing on all cylinders, I think this team is going to be really great.”

Harper, who has been a two-way starter all four of his years at Northwood, ran for 66 yards with two touchdowns and recovered a fumble on defense.

“He’s a special player just like his older brother (Adam Harper) was,” Clarke said.

It took over 20 minutes of game time for Northwood to score its first points. The Timberwolves’ first three possessions of the game resulted in a missed field goal, a turnover on downs and a lost fumble.

After a fumble recovery by Harper, he capped a 60-yard scoring drive with a rushing touchdown to end the scoreless tie.

Harper said the play of the defense kept the team calm while the offense struggled early.

“A lot of that is the defense. We made mistakes and turned it over in the red zone, but the defense got a three-and-out and we were back,” Harper said. “I said, ‘you guys block and I’ll score,’ and once we get that first touchdown, the rest will come.”

Final: Northwood 24, Pacifica 0
Joseph Harper (below) had 2 touchdowns and recovered a fumble. Northwood’s starting defense has allowed just one touchdown this season. @SoCalVarsity @Northwood_FB @JosephHarper_8 @SteveFryer @latsondheimer @ocvarsityguy pic.twitter.com/zfFPcqZOc0

— Michael Huntley (@mikehuntley63) September 6, 2024

Cole Hidalgo intercepted a Pacifica pass deep into Mariners territory. Gavin Lounsbury threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Donald Longo to give Northwood a 14-0 lead entering halftime.

Lounsbury threw for 149 yards with a touchdown. Hidalgo led all receivers with 93 yards on eight receptions.

Pacifica struggled offensively all game but particularly in the first half. The Mariners did not get a first down until there was one minute remaining in the second quarter and had just 67 yards of offense in the first half.

Running back Jack Brucker drove the Timberwolves down the field and Harper ran for a 2-yard touchdown to extend the lead to 21-0.

Brucker led Northwood in rushing with 109 yards on 18 carries.

After a fumble recovery by Quintin Lynch, Hidalgo made a 20-yard field goal for the Timberwolves.

Ryan Armenta had a fumble recovery for Pacifica and Jerad Verdure had a sack.

Ethan McLaughlin threw for 80 yards and Michael Lee ran for 55 yards.

Northwood won two consecutive CIF-SS championships in 2021-22 and will play in a tough Foxtrot League this season with teams that have been in higher playoff divisions than the Timberwolves.

“I think we can compete with anybody in our league,” Harper said. “It’s a tough league. There are a lot of great players and big teams in this league. I know we aren’t favored, but I think we can surprise some people.

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​ Orange County Register 

San Jacinto football rallies to beat Yorba Linda with TD in final minute

• September 6, 2024

YORBA LINDA — San Jacinto overcame a 10-point halftime deficit, held Yorba Linda scoreless in the second half and made big plays down the stretch on third and fourth downs to come away with a 19-16 victory over the Mustangs in a nonleague football game Thursday night at Yorba Linda High.

The Tigers (2-1) also took advantage of some critical miscues by the Mustangs (2-1) late in the game.

Yorba Linda had a difficult time containing Tigers quarterback Jaylen Patterson, who completed 23 of 34 passes for 277 yards and three touchdowns.

Patterson’s 20-yard touchdown pass to Daylen Love with just over one minute remaining wound up being the difference.

The touchdown came on a fourth-and-4 play, capping an 80-yard drive in which the Tigers converted on a third-and-5 from their 25, fourth-and-9 from their 45, third-and-11 from the Yorba Linda 40 and finally the 20-yard touchdown on fourth down.

“That’s something we work on in practice in certain situations when we’re backed up,” Tigers coach Aric Galliano said. “They did a great job of executing, off the week we had, the short week with the holiday, all the heat restrictions and not being able to get out and practice.”

In the third quarter, Patterson connected with Daishaun Davis for a 45-yard touchdown on a third-and-9 play.

“Everybody knows the one thing that he has is his feet to keep things alive,” Galliano said. “And that helps us out up front and the wide receivers continuing to work and doing a great job.”

After the go-ahead touchdown, a short kick on the ensuing kickoff gave the Mustangs possession on the Tigers 47 with a minute remaining, plenty of time to get into field goal range and tie the score with a field goal or even win with a touchdown.

But the Tigers recovered a fumble on first down and ran out the clock.

The Mustangs had chances to put the game away earlier but couldn’t capitalize on their opportunities.

The game-winning drive came after the Mustangs missed a 26-yard field goal, which would have put them ahead by a touchdown.

In the sequence that ended with the missed field goal, Yorba Linda blocked a punt and took possession on the San Jacinto 15.

But the Mustangs failed to convert on a third-and-9 which then prompted the field goal attempt.

In the first quarter, Yorba Linda’s Thomas Knutson scooped up a fumble and returned it 35 yards to the Tigers 36.

Yorba Linda converted the takeaway to a 2-yard touchdown run from Vaughn Sharp, giving the Mustangs a 7-0 lead.

Cole Nerio’s 25-yard touchdown run in the second quarter gave the Mustangs a 13-6 lead.

But the Mustangs could only manage a field goal from there.

“We were great at the start,” Yorba Linda coach Jeff Baily said. “We made enough mistakes to let them in the game, and then they took advantage of it. With our schedule, we’re not going to beat a team like that making those mistakes.”

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​ Orange County Register 

NFL season opener: Chiefs hold off Ravens in wild finish

• September 6, 2024

By DAVE SKRETTA AP Sports Writer

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Patrick Mahomes thought for a moment that the Kansas City Chiefs were headed to overtime. So did Baltimore Ravens counterpart Lamar Jackson, who had found Isaiah Likely in the back of the end zone with no time left for a touchdown that appeared likely to tie the game.

In the end, the NFL’s season opener Thursday night was decided by referee Shawn Hochuli undertaking a video review.

With a capacity crowd that included pop superstar Taylor Swift waiting in anticipation, Hochuli needed just seconds looking at that final play before making his announcement: Likely landed with his toe on the end line, putting the Baltimore tight end out of bounds, and giving the Chiefs a 27-20 victory as they began pursuit of a record third consecutive Super Bowl title.

“Definitely nerve-wracking because it looked good from my angle on the sideline,” Mahomes said, “but then the first view you could see his cleat. … You have to wear white cleats next time. That’s my advice for him.”

Mahomes threw for 291 yards and with a touchdown pass to Xavier Worthy, who also scored a rushing touchdown in his NFL debut, as the Chiefs not only won the rematch of last season’s AFC title game but beat the Ravens for the fifth time in six meetings.

That lopsided ledger has been especially frustrating for Jackson, who has called Kansas City the Ravens’ “kryptonite.” He was sublime Thursday night, throwing for 273 yards and a touchdown and adding 122 yards on the ground, but that review of the final play left him to rue another missed opportunity to finally upstage Mahomes and Co.

“I thought it was a touchdown,” Jackson said. “Still think it was a touchdown.”

The Ravens were trailing 27-17 in the fourth quarter before kicking a field goal, then got the ball back at their own 13-yard line with 1:50 left and no timeouts. Jackson completed a couple of throws to Likely, who had 111 yards receiving and a score, and scrambled for a crucial first down. Two plays later, Jackson found Rashod Bateman down the sideline for 38 yards to move the Ravens to the Kansas City 10 with 19 seconds remaining.

Jackson’s first pass was a throwaway, but his second missed wide-open Zay Flowers in the back of the end zone. Then came the final throw, after Jackson had scrambled for what seemed like an eternity, and Likely looked like he had forced overtime.

Ravens coach John Harbaugh even signaled for his team to try a winning 2-point conversion, though it never got the chance.

“I thought our guys (overcame) setbacks at times, and fought like crazy to overcome. It looked like we had an opportunity there to tie the game up and try to win,” Harbaugh said. “Didn’t happen at the end, but our guys fought.”

The wild ending came after the start was delayed about 20 minutes by a storm that brought heavy rain and lightning.

The Ravens proceeded to open with an 11-play, 70-yard drive that ended with Derrick Henry, who had tormented the Chiefs in six previous meetings while he was with Tennessee, plunging into the end zone from 5 yards out for the early lead.

But the high-octane Chiefs, trying to avoid back-to-back season-opening losses, needed just two minutes to answer. Mahomes twice connected with Rashee Rice, who has so far avoided any NFL punishment for his role in an alleged street-racing crash in Dallas, before Worthy showed why the Chiefs made him their first-round pick with his 21-yard touchdown run.

After those two drives, though, the first half was mostly marked by Week 1 blunders.

Jackson was strip-sacked by Chris Jones deep in his own territory, leading to a Kansas City field goal. Flowers was stopped short of the first-down marker on fourth-and-3 near midfield on the Ravens’ next series, leading to another field goal. And even Justin Tucker, one of the league’s most accurate kickers, pulled a 53-yard field-goal attempt wide left.

The Chiefs were not immune to mistakes. Mahomes’ pass was picked off by Roquan Smith on a poor throw late in the first half, leading to a chip-shot field goal that got Baltimore – which trailed twice at halftime all of last season – to 13-10 at the break.

Yet the Ravens’ inability to get into the end zone, and swing the momentum their way, ultimately proved costly.

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The Chiefs opened the second half with an 81-yard touchdown march to extend their lead. Then, after Jackson had connected with Likely on a broken play for a 49-yard touchdown throw, Mahomes drove them 70 yards against the top-ranked scoring defense in the NFL last season for a touchdown that made it 27-17 with 10 minutes to go.

Tucker made it a one-score game with his field goal with 4:54 to go, and Baltimore quickly forced a punt. But despite Jackson’s impassioned play, he was left to trudge off the field after another disappointing loss to the Chiefs.

“It was a fight down to the end,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “When they say it’s a game of inches, might be shorter than that.”

STAR-STUDDED CROWD

Swift, the 14-time Grammy winner, wasn’t the only star attending the NFL’s opening night. Quincy Hall, the Olympic 400-meter champion, was in the crowd along with AC Milan midfielder Christian Pulisic, who will join his U.S. teammates Saturday night for an exhibition match against Canada at nearby Children’s Mercy Park.

INJURIES

Baltimore linebeacker Kyle Van Noy left six plays into the second half with an eye injury and did not return.

UP NEXT

The Ravens host Las Vegas on Sunday, Sept. 15. The Chiefs get a visit from Cincinnati the same day.

The Ravens were THIS CLOSE to scoring the game-tying touchdown #Kickoff2024 pic.twitter.com/08KjTVFHQZ

— NFL (@NFL) September 6, 2024

XAVIER WORTHY HAS ARRIVED.

: #Kickoff2024 on NBC/Peacock
: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/0612BrVxlJ

— NFL (@NFL) September 6, 2024

Lamar up over 80 yards on the ground tonight

: #Kickoff2024 on NBC/Peacock
: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/oaP183vAD0

— NFL (@NFL) September 6, 2024

ISAIAH LIKELY SO GOOD

: #Kickoff2024 on NBC/Peacock
: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/wusReXzb9I

— NFL (@NFL) September 6, 2024

Xavier Worthy is really a Kansas City Chief

: #Kickoff2024 on NBC/Peacock
: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/6fVsiolvAX

— NFL (@NFL) September 6, 2024

​ Orange County Register 

U.S. Open: Jessica Pegula to face Aryna Sabalenka in women’s final

• September 6, 2024

By HOWARD FENDRICH AP Tennis Writer

NEW YORK — Jessica Pegula could do no right at the outset of her first Grand Slam semifinal. Her opponent at the U.S. Open on Thursday night, Karolina Muchova, could do no wrong.

“I came out flat, but she was playing unbelievable. She made me look like a beginner,” Pegula said. “I was about to burst into tears, because it was embarrassing. She was destroying me.”

Pegula managed to shrug off that sluggish start and come back from a set and a break down to defeat Muchova, 1-6, 6-4, 6-2, for a berth in the final at Flushing Meadows. The sixth-seeded Pegula, a 30-year-old from New York, has won 15 of her past 16 matches and will meet No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka for the title on Saturday.

Sabalenka, last year’s runner-up to Coco Gauff at the U.S. Open, returned to the championship match by holding off a late push to beat No. 13 Emma Navarro of the United States, 6-3, 7-6 (2).

It will be a rematch of last month’s final at the hard-court Cincinnati Open, which Sabalenka won – the only blemish on Pegula’s post-Olympics record.

“Hopefully I can get some revenge out here,” said Pegula, whose parents own the NFL’s Buffalo Bills and NHL’s Buffalo Sabres. “Playing Aryna is going to be really tough. I mean, she showed how tough she is and why she’s probably the favorite to win this tournament.”

Things did not look promising for Pegula early Thursday. Not at all.

Muchova, the 2023 French Open runner-up but unseeded after missing about 10 months because of wrist surgery, employed every ounce of her versatility and creativity, the traits that make her so hard to deal with on any surface. The slices. The touch at the net. The serve-and-volleying. Ten of the match’s first 12 winners came off her racket. The first set lasted 28 minutes, and Muchova won 30 of its 44 points.

After grabbing eight of the first nine games, Muchova was a single point from leading 3-0 in the second set. But she couldn’t convert a break chance there, flubbing a forehand volley off a slice from Pegula, and everything changed.

“I was thinking, ‘All right. That was kind of lucky. You’re still in this,’” Pegula said. “It comes down to really small moments that flip momentum.”

Quickly, the 52nd-ranked Muchova went from not being able to miss a shot to not being able to make one. And Pegula turned it on, heeding her two coaches’ advice to mix up her serves and her spins, to go after Muchova’s backhand more. Most of all, Pegula demonstrated the confident brand of tennis she used to eliminate top-ranked Iga Swiatek, a five-time major champion, in straight sets on Wednesday. Pegula had been 0-6 in major quarterfinals before that breakthrough.

It took Pegula a while to play that well Thursday, but once she got going, whoa, did she ever. All told, she collected nine of 11 games, a span that allowed her to not merely flip the second set but race to a 3-0 edge in the third.

“I was able to find a way, find some adrenaline, find my legs. And then at the end of the second set, into the third set, I started to play like how I wanted to play. It took a while,” Pegula said. “I don’t know how I turned that around.”

Muchova, a 28-year-old from the Czech Republic, hadn’t ceded a set in the tournament until then. But she began to fade. After going 7 for 7 on points at the net in the first set, she went 15 for 29 the rest of the way. After only seven unforced errors in the first set, she had 33 across the second and third.

And all the while, the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd that was flat at the beginning – save for the occasional cry of “Come on, Jess!” – was roaring.

When things suddenly got quite tight in the second set of the first semifinal, and spectators suddenly got quite loud while pulling for Navarro, Sabalenka found herself flashing back to 2023, when a rowdy Ashe crowd backed Gauff vociferously.

“Last year, it was a very tough experience. Very tough lesson. Today in the match, I was, like, ‘No, no, no, Aryna. It’s not going to happen again. You have to control your emotions. You have to focus on yourself,’” said Sabalenka, a 26-year-old from Belarus who was the champion at the last two Australian Opens.

Using her usual brand of high-risk, high-reward tennis, Sabalenka produced 34 winners and 34 unforced errors – punctuating most of her groundstrokes with a yell – and, in a fitting bit of symmetry, Navarro had 13 winners and 13 unforced errors.

Navarro did not fold in the second set, despite trailing for much of it, and as the noise around her grew, she broke when Sabalenka attempted to serve for the victory at 5-4.

“I wasn’t ready for the match to be over,” Navarro said.

But in the tiebreaker that followed, Sabalenka took over after Navarro led 2-0, grabbing every point that remained.

“I kind of got my teeth into it there at the end of the second set,” said Navarro, who got past Gauff in the fourth round, “and I felt I could definitely push it to a third. Wasn’t able to do so.”

Navarro, who defeated Gauff in the fourth round, is a 23-year-old who was born in New York, grew up in South Carolina and won an NCAA singles title for the University of Virginia in 2021. This was her debut in a Slam semifinal and, while she displayed the skills and steadiness that carried her there, Navarro was not able to keep up with Sabalenka, who was in that round at a major for the ninth time.

If Sabalenka is as demonstrative as can be, often holding a fist aloft and screaming after a big point or rolling her eyes after a miss, Navarro is far more subdued, rarely, if ever, betraying a hint of emotion, whether positive or negative.

Even when she broke to 5-all, there wasn’t a way to tell what happened by looking at Navarro. The sounds from the seats were an indication. But soon, thousands of ticket-holders were saluting Sabalenka for her latest show of mastery on a hard court; she’s now into her fourth straight final at a major held on that surface.

“Well, guys, now you are cheering for me,” Sabalenka with a laugh. “Well, it’s a bit too late.”

Second-seeded Aryna Sabalenka celebrates after scoring a point against American Emma Navarro during their U.S. Open semifinal on Thursday night in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

RETIRING YOUNG LOSES IN MIXED DOUBLES FINAL

Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori won the U.S. Open mixed doubles title with a 7-6 (0), 7-5 victory over Taylor Townsend and Donald Young, who fell just short of a Grand Slam title in his final match before retiring.

Errani, who won a career Grand Slam in women’s doubles with fellow Italian Roberta Vinci, added her first career mixed doubles title to the Olympic gold medal in women’s doubles she won last month with Jasmine Paolini.

“It’s incredible for me this year. It’s amazing,” Errani said.

Townsend and Young, who have been friends since they were kids, were given a wild card into the event for what was the 35-year-old Young’s final tournament. The former top-ranked junior hadn’t played much in recent years, having made the switch to pickleball.

“Obviously wasn’t the result we wanted,” Young said, “but I can’t think of a better spot, place to go out in, having watched that as a kid, and playing with someone I’ve known our whole life. It’s pretty cool for me.”

He and Townsend made their way through the draw, knocking off defending champions Anna Danilina and Harri Heliovarra in the quarterfinals.

But Errani and Vavassori, the No. 3 seeds, dominated the tiebreaker and then won the match by breaking Townsend’s serve.

Errani hadn’t played a mixed doubles event for eight years before partnering with Vavassori at Wimbledon. They were knocked out in the first round, then reached the quarterfinals at the Olympics before coming to New York.

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Young’s parents coached Townsend, who lost in the women’s doubles semifinals with Katerina Siniakova after they won the Wimbledon title.

The 28-year-old Townsend said after the match that she hoped fans seeing two Black players in the finals, after Coco Gauff won the women’s title in Flushing Meadows last year and Frances Tiafoe is in the men’s semifinals on Friday, would inspire more of them to play.

Young was then presented with a framed collage of photos of himself playing at the U.S. Open.

“For me, Donald and I, we go so far back. I mean, in life in general,” Townsend said. “It’s not the end. We both live in Atlanta, so I’m going to see him a ton and follow what he’s doing in the next chapter. But it’s cool to be able to close the book this way. Again, being able to leave here with some hardware when a lot of people didn’t, that’s the most special thing.

“So, I mean, it’s fantastic. I’m glad to be able to do it by his side.”

AP sports writer Brian Mahoney contributed to this story.

Americans Taylor Townsend, left, and Donald Young hold up the runner-up trophy after losing to Italians Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori during the U.S. Open mixed doubles final on Thursday in New York. It was the final match of Young’s career. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

​ Orange County Register 

Gavin Newsom returns to his duties in California and finds his status has diminished

• September 6, 2024

Gavin Newsom’s flirtation with national political status ended abruptly when Vice President Kamala Harris, often depicted as his rival, became the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate.

For months California’s governor had been soliciting national media attention, making campaign-like visits to other states and otherwise acting like an aspirant for the White House — all the while insisting that he had “sub-zero” interest in such a goal.

Virtually ignored at the Democratic National Convention, Newsom’s disdain for the party’s rapid embrace of Harris was evident in a podcast interview.

“Now we went through a very open process, a very inclusive process,” Newsom responded to a question about party leaders’ anointment of Harris. “It was bottom-up, I don’t know if you know that. That’s what I’ve been told to say.”

Moreover, as he returns to gubernatorial duties and reality, Newsom is finding that his status in California has also taken a beating.

A poll the Public Policy Institute of California took in June found that 62% of adults believe the state is headed in the wrong direction and only 44% approve of Newsom’s performance as governor.

Newsom’s diminished popularity and the simple fact that his governorship is beginning to wind down manifest a declining ability to dominate the state’s political playing field.

One example is the presence of two major measures on the Nov. 5 ballot that he opposes, Propositions 35 and 36.

Prop. 35, if passed, would make a tax on health care plans permanent and direct its proceeds and the extra federal money it would draw into higher reimbursements for those providing care to Medi-Cal recipients. Indirectly, it prevents Newsom from using the funds, billions of dollars, to close chronic budget deficits.

Prop. 36 toughens penalties for some crimes, modifying Prop. 47, a landmark measure voters passed in 2014 that reduced penalties. Newsom tried — and failed — to head off Prop. 36 with a rival measure.

Earlier in his governorship, when he enjoyed high approval ratings, Newsom could pretty much dictate legislation and thwart adverse ballot measures, but he clearly lacks such domination now.

Newsom’s much-diminished influence was apparent in the closing hours of the 2024 legislative session last week.

Newsom habitually proposes last-minute legislation to be passed with only cursory examination, but his eleventh-hour demands to force gasoline refiners to maintain larger reserves and to give token refunds to electric power ratepayers fell flat this year.

Newsom was whipsawed by the Legislature’s two new leaders, Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas and Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire.

Rivas refused to take up the legislation, saying it needed more scrutiny, and asked Newsom to call a special legislative session. McGuire was willing to put the package to a vote before adjournment Saturday night but opposed a special session.

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Newsom called the special session, supposedly to begin immediately, and Rivas agreed. But McGuire said the Senate would not return to the Capitol until the new biennial session begins in December, when it will have dozens of new members from the Nov. 5 election.

“We won’t be convening a special session this fall, but we look forward to continuing conversations with the governor and speaker about this critical issue in the days and weeks to come,” McGuire said.

Newsom spokesman Izzy Gordon said in a statement late Saturday, rejecting McGuire’s position, “The special session has already begun.”

While Newsom can call special sessions, the Legislature is not legally required to do anything and can simply adjourn without acting. Non-action would be the best outcome, because both proposals are nothing more than virtue-signaling tokens by a governor trying to recapture what he has lost.

Dan Walters is a CalMatters columnist.

​ Orange County Register 

Real Housewives of Orange County: Tears, tumult and toots

• September 6, 2024

Emily Simpson and Katie Ginella are side-by-side in separate hot tubs at a Sonoma County spa when Emily turns to Katie and sums up the situation.

“This is dirty, it’s salacious, it’s gross,” she says, and for the record, she’s not talking about Gina Kirschenheiter’s audible toot earlier in the episode. “It’s like the worst, longest, most-traumatic breakup –”

“– ever,” Katie interjects

“– ever,” Emily agrees.

You can take “The Real Housewives of Orange County” out of Orange County, but the drama lingers in the air like Gina’s – well, you get the picture.

All the housewives but Jenn Pedrano fly to Sonoma County in Heather Dubrow’s private jet on this week’s episode to taste wine, relax at the spa, and attend a charity event for Family Equality, an LGBTQ+ non-profit that Heather has supported for years.

Shannon Storms Beador and Alexis Bellino have fought almost every episode this season. When Shannon’s ex-boyfriend John Janssen dumped her he took up almost immediately with Alexis. Now there’s more bad blood between them than poured out of elevators of the Overlook Hotel in “The Shining.”

Heather thinks she’s got the situation under control. She’s made a seating chart for the short flight north that will keep Shannon and Alexis apart, and she’s kept them apart in the activities she’s planned too.

“If I can keep Shannon and Alexis separate on this trip I think we’ll be OK,” Heather tells the cameras early on. Yet while she does manage to keep them mostly separate, things fall apart spectacularly for Shannon, though she ends up the more sympathetic character by the end of episode.

The day of the trip is Shannon’s deadline to reply to John’s demand to pay him $75,000 that he says was a loan and Shannon says was a gift.

At lunch at the Dawn Ranch resort, Shannon tells Emily, Gina and Katie that she’s instructed her attorney to offer John about half what he’d demanded to resolve the situation without going to court.

A few episodes back, Alexis revealed that John had Ring doorbell videos of Shannon moments after she left his house and crashed her car in a 2023 accident that resulted in her pleading no contest to a charge of driving under the influence.

To be specific, she revealed this to all the housewives except for Shannon, but Shannon’s blissful ignorance is about to end.

Emily, Gina, Shannon and Katie arrive at the resort spa for a bit of pampering that starts with healing teas. Gina opts for a “clarifying” tea, which Emily helpfully informs us is because Gina is “backed up.”

Cut to a scene 30 minutes earlier where our close forensic analysis of the video – rewinding and replaying over and over – reveal what may be the first audible flatulence ever heard on “The Real Housewives of Orange County.”

“Oh, God, too many problems in the old torso today,” Gina says. Remarkably, none of the other housewives react, which goes to show you that sometimes the housewives are more mature than we give them credit for.

At the spa, Gina gives the others an update on her relationship with boyfriend Travis, who has moved out of her house after several years, while trying to keep their romance alive and their blended family of six kids together. Gina is stressed out, she says.

“This is why I have gas,” she adds.

Shannon, who had stepped out of the spa to consult with her attorney for a minute, returns just in time to hear this.

As it turns out, John rejected her offer to pay a portion of the money he demanded, and Shannon told her attorney to proceed to court once the lawsuit was served. (In the world outside of the show, the lawsuit did get filed and is still pending in civil court.)

“It just feels so vindictive,” Gina says to the camera. “Why do you want to hurt someone so bad when you’re so happy in your new relationship? Take the (bleepin’) check and go live your life.”

The others urge Shannon to just pay the full amount to end the stress this is causing her. Especially, Gina adds for inexplicable reasons, because of “the video thing.”

“What video thing?” Shannon asks with a look of alarm on her face. Then she asks four more times until Katie tells her what Alexis had told the others: There’s apparently Ring camera footage of Shannon either during or right after the crash that led to her DUI arrest.

She starts to sob, and ultimately leaves the spa to return to her cabin and sob some more.

“This is not as relaxing as I thought it would be,” Gina says in the understatement of the week.

Heather, Alexis, Tamra Barney, and Jenn, who flew up separately after a hearing in her divorce case, all are tasting wine in downtown Guerneville, and frankly, not much of interest happens there. But after Heather returns to the resort, Shannon shows up at her door looking like she’s been crying all afternoon, which, of course, she has been.

Elsewhere on this week’s episode:

— As Heather packs for the trip, we learn that she wraps clothes she’s already bought and worn in white tissue paper so that they don’t get wrinkled and seem as fresh as when they came home from stores wrapped in white tissue paper for the first time. “I’ve been packing like this for years,” she tells an assistant of some sort. “My friends make fun of me.” As they should, Heather, as they should.

— Jenn, meanwhile, is her usual dizzy self, talking with Katie on FaceTime while trying to get ready herself. “God only knows what I’m throwing in this damn suitcase and I don’t care,” she says. “I’ll drink wine in sweats if I have to.” Relatable.

— Katie is invited on the trip despite Heather’s anger at her in past episodes over a paparazzi kerfuffle. “I’m actually shocked that I’m not below where they put the dogs,” she says as she finds her place on Heather’s seating chart for the private jet.

— The spa provides consultations with a perfumer, who asks the housewives to describe their favorite scents and why. “Like tacos?” asks Emily, God bless her taco-loving heart.

“You can do tacos but you have to tell me why?” Jess the perfumer replies after a barely imperceptible pause to make sure she really heard what she heard.

“Oh, because they’re very meaty and juicy, like carnitas,” Emily replies. “It’s like a perfect scent.”

Related links

Real Housewives of Orange County: A stormy night of murder!
Real Housewives of Orange County: Pickleball and OnlyFans
Real Housewives of Orange County: Spats, spills and stepping right into it
‘Real Housewives of Orange County’: Shannon and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad episode
‘Real Housewives of Orange County’ swings from dirty dancing to fancy pantsing

​ Orange County Register