MOSCOW - Rika Hongo of Japan hit every jump she aimed for to win gold at the Rostelecom Cup on Saturday while Canadas Alaine Chartrand took the bronze for
her first ISU Grand Prix medal at the senior level.
Wilt Chamberlain
Jersey .Chartrand was in first place after the short program but fell two
positions with a free skate where several jumps were underrotated.I felt really
uptight and the skating wasnt as good as I wanted it to be, she said. Mostly the
biggest errors were the landings on the jumps.The 18-year-old was still pleased
with her personal-best score of 172.00.Definitely I reached a new level today to
win a medal in my first season on the senior Grand Prix, Chartrand said. I didnt
feel any extra pressure today because I had won the short program. Im always
nervous anyway.Chartrand, from Prescott, Ont., was seventh at Skate Canada two
weeks ago.Hongos free skate to music from the opera Carmen featured seven
triples including an opening flip-toe loop combination. The 18-year-old is also
in her first year of seniors competition.Anna Pogorilaya of Russia, who won at
Skate Canada two weeks ago, took silver despite a troubled program in which her
hand went to the ice on three jumps.The gold was Hongos first medal in the Grand
Prix series. Her accomplished performance could raise the temptation to fancy
being the next big thing in Japans long line of standout skaters, but Hongo said
she isnt ready to think that way.I really havent thought about that, she said. I
am trying hard to get closer to skaters like Mao Asada.Hongo had 178.00 points
and Pogorilaya had 173.43 points.Pogorilaya suggested she may be experiencing
the opposite of a home advantage, noting that she generally performs better
abroad.I felt some kind of pressure ... I cant really fathom it, she said.In the
mens competition, the wait was a little hard for Javier Fernandez as the last
skater to get on the ice, but he overcame it to win his second Grand Prix gold
medal.As the leader after the short program, the Spaniard had to worry about
seeing strong free skate performances from Sergei Voronov and Michal Brezina and
about losing the sharpness from his warmup.When I got onto the ice, (my) legs
were not the same after waiting for a long time, he said.His confident opening
quad toe loop gave no hint of concerns, though he stepped out of his following
quad salchow and put his hand to the ice on a third quad attempt. But his
exuberant skating to strains of The Barber of Seville ended with him 13 points
ahead of Voronov.Brezina nailed a quad-double combination early on that helped
power the Czech skater to bronze, aided by the falls and popped jumps that
dropped Japans Takahiko Kozuka from third place to sixth.Jeremy Ten of Vancouver
was 10th.I came here to introduce my quad jump into the program and for me that
was a success, said Ten. I gained confidence that its a jump that I have the
ability to land, hopefully at my next competition. I was also pleased with how I
came back with a strong triple Axel today as well.In pairs, Russians swept the
podium. Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov won with a dramatic and taxing free
skate to Notre Dame de Paris music, followed by Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir
Morozov and the duo of Kristina Astakhova and Alexei Rogonov.Americans Haven
Denney and Brandon Frazier earned the second-highest free program marks, but
ended just 0.01 points short of a medal.Megan Chock and Evan Bates of the United
States took gold in ice dance, followed by Elena Ilinykh and Ruslan Zhinganshin
of Russia and Britains Penny Coomes and Nicholas Buckland.It was the Americans
second Grand Prix gold of the season and looking back on Skate America, this was
a step forward, Bates said of their free dance to An American in Paris.
Emotionally it felt better.———With files from The Canadian Press.
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was the most lopsided loss in Lakers history. Darren Collison had a team-high 24
points while starting at shooting guard for the injured Jamal Crawford.
Chris Paul added 13 points and 11 assists for the Clippers, who apparently are
trying to make up for decades of humiliation at the hands of the Lakers all in
one season; theyve won the last two meetings by a combined 84 points.
Swingman Kurt Rambis
Jersey .com) - Theres nothing better for a team than to send out the staff
ace in the most important game of the season.
http://www.prolakersonline.com/Jerry-West-Jersey/ . "Im not doing enough to help them," Durant told The Oklahoman on Monday of his
28-9 team. "Im shooting too much. Im shooting too many threes. Im not helping
them out at all.SAN DIEGO -- Eric Stults is all too familiar with low-scoring
games. Winning one was the surprising part. Stults pitched effectively into the
seventh inning and the San Diego Padres won their fifth straight overall by
beating the Colorado Rockies 1-0 Monday night. For the 12th time this season,
the Padres scored no more than one run when Stults started. This was the first
time he cashed it in for a victory. "It was nice to get that early run and to go
out there and try to make it stand up," Stults said. Stults (8-17), tied with
Philadelphia right-hander A.J. Burnett for the major league lead in losses,
scattered seven hits and a walk over 6 1-3 innings in beating the Rockies for
the first time this season following two defeats. Kevin Quackenbush worked the
ninth for his sixth save, ending Colorados season-high, six-game winning streak.
San Diego went ahead in the first inning when Rene Riveras double scored
Jedd Gyorko, who walked. It was Riveras fifth RBI and third double in four
games. Rockies starter Tyler Matzek (6-11) struck out eight in six innings. He
allowed one run, four hits and three walks. "He can do a variety of things,"
Colorado manager Walt Weiss said. "Hes got some weapons." To open the eighth,
Padres left fielder Tommy Medica misplayed Justin Morneaus fly ball into a
double, and Dale Thayer relieved Frank Garces. Thayer got Michael Cuddyer and
Corey Dickerson to pop up and retired Michael McKenry on a fly to centre. "That
was impressive, as his high fastball beat some of their bats," Padres manager
Bud Black said. "They couldnt get on top of the high heater." After DJ LeMahieus
one-out single in the seventh chased Stults, he was replaced by Nick Vincent.
Pinch-hitter Drew Stubbs struck out and, after Charlie Blackmon singled, Vincent
retired Josh Rutledge on a fly to right.
Byron Scott
Jersey. "The bullpen did a good job like it has all year," Stults said.
The Padres could have extended their 1-0 lead in the sixth when they loaded the
bases with one out on Riveras second hit and walks to Gyorko and
Yasmani Grandal. Matzek, however, struck out Medica and Rymer Liriano. The
Rockies had an opportunity in the fifth inning when Blackmon walked with two
outs to load the bases, following singles by Rafael Ynoa and LeMahieu. Stults
struck out Rutledge on one his quickest fastballs, at 90 mph, to retire the
side. Stults wiggled out of trouble in the second after giving up one-out
singles to Dickerson and McKenry. Ynoa popped up and LeMahieu struck out. The
Padres are 32-19 in one-run games, the best record in the majors. "Hes pitched a
lot of games like this and didnt get the win," Black said of Stults. "He got it
today." TRAINERS ROOM Padres: RHP Tyson Ross, bothered by a sore right forearm,
wont pitch again this year. His last start came at Arizona on Sept. 13 when he
gave up six runs (four earned) and five hits in three innings. UP NEXT Rockies
LHP Jorge De La Rosa (14-11, 4.61 ERA) will tie a career high Tuesday when he
makes his 32nd start of the season, his second straight year with at least 30.
Hell face Padres LHP Robbie Erlin (4-4, 4.53), who is looking for his second
consecutive win as he makes his second start since May 17 at Colorado. HOME
SWEET HOME With the win, the Padres tied their best showing at Petco Park with
47 victories. That matches the standard set by the 2007 club. The Padres will
end their home schedule on Wednesday, after two more games with the Rockies. NOT
SO SWEET 16 It marked the 16th time in franchise history that the Rockies lost a
1-0 game, and the first since July 13 last season when the Dodgers beat them in
Los Angeles. Of those 1-0 defeats, 13 have come on the road.
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