LOCAL HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS ON TAP
SOFTBALL
Aspen plays at Grand Valley at 4:30
SOCCER
Glenwood travels north to Steamboat Springs for a game with the Sailors at 6.
At 4 o’clock, Rifle plays at Palisade and Coal Ridge welcomes Roaring Fork.
VOLLEYBALL
Three matches are scheduled for 6 o’clock tonight; Glenwood at Battle Mountain, Coal Ridge at Aspen and Grand Valley at Basalt.
CHAMP BAILEY COMING BACK/CLADY DONE FOR THE SEASON
ENGLEWOOD (AP) – Champ Bailey is practicing for the first time since injuring his left foot last month. The Denver Broncos’ perennial Pro Bowl cornerback hadn’t practiced since getting hurt in an exhibition game at Seattle on Aug. 19. Barring a setback, he’ll play Monday night against Oakland after missing consecutive games for the just the fourth time in his 15-year NFL career. Also returning to practice Thursday was tight end Joel Dreessen, who missed training camp while recovering from the second of two arthroscopic surgeries on his left knee this offseason. And newcomer Winston Justice joined his teammates on the field after signing this week to take the roster spot of All-Pro left tackle Ryan Clady, who went on season-ending IR with an injured left foot.
AVS DROP EXHIBITION GAME TO DUCKS
DENVER (AP) – Hampus Lindholm had a power-play goal at 14:04 of the third period, lifting the Anaheim Ducks to a 2-1 victory over the Colorado Avalanche in a preseason game Wednesday night. Devante Smith-Pelly added a power-play goal for Anaheim. The Ducks were 2 for 7 with the man advantage. John Gibson stopped 18 shots after entering the game midway through the second period. Paul Stastny scored for Colorado. Stastny’s rebound shot deflected off the stick of Mark Fistric at 13:15 of the first period.
ROCKIES LOSE TO CARDS
DENVER (AP) – Adam Wainwright pitched effectively into the eighth after a shaky start and helped himself at the plate with three hits as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Colorado Rockies 4-3 on Wednesday night to expand their lead in the NL Central race. Wainwright (17-9) gave up two runs in the first and then found his groove to earn his 17th win, second-most in the NL this season. He went 3 for 3 with a double and two RBIs to help the Cardinals stretch their lead to two games over Pittsburgh after the Pirates lost 3-2 loss to San Diego. St. Louis also reduced its magic number for clinching a playoff spot to three with 10 games to play. Tyler Chatwood (7-5) allowed four runs in six innings before being lifted for a pinch hitter. Chatwood is rounding back into form after missing nearly a month with an inflamed right elbow.
ELSEWHERE IN SPORTS…
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – The Eagles are home to the Chiefs in tonight’s NFL game. The game marks the return of former Eagles coach Andy Reid to the City of Brotherly Love as the new coach of the Chiefs. KC has a mark of 2-0 while the Eagles, with new coach Chip Kelly, are 1-1.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – There’s a Top-25 game tonight as North Carolina State plays host to No. 3 Clemson. Each team is unbeaten after two games. Two years ago the then-seventh-ranked Tigers were upset by the Wolfpack in Raleigh, N.C.
LONDON (AP) – The 2013 tennis season is over for Wimbledon champ Andy Murray. He’s going to undergo surgery on a long-standing back problem after soliciting medical advice after a hard season of playing on hard courts and clay this summer.
ATLANTA (AP) – The FedEx Cup competition comes to an end this weekend with the Tour Championship in Atlanta. The first round is being played today with every player in the field still in the running to win the $10 million top prize. The winner a year ago was Brandt Snedeker, who won both the event and the FedEx Cup, worth a total of $11.44 million.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) – That big four-game series between the Rays and Rangers comes to an end tonight in St. Petersburg, Fla. The Rays have won two of the first three games and now lead Texas by a game in the American League Wild Card race.
