Pleasant Grove dominates Seminole in game one of semi-state
Hunter Rose on the mound and the defense behind him quickly set the tone for the game getting three quick outs.
The Hawks had no problem getting the offense going, scoring three runs in the first inning.
Buck Anderson got the scoring started, rolling one down the third baseline getting Jarret Halter home. A Walker Wright two RBI double tacked on a few more runs shortly after, and the Hawks never let up, defeating Seminole 9-0.
'Our team is very confident coming into this series,' head coach Riley Fincher said. 'We're very confident because of everything they've gone through throughout the season, but it was a great win for us to get the first one, but the job's not finished.'
Defense was a big part of Thursday's success, specifically Anderson's strong arm behind the plate.
'Our catcher, he didn't get the credit he deserves, Buck Anderson,' Fincher said. 'He is a phenomenal, high school player for us, and what he does, he shuts down other teams game and he allows our pitchers to throw all pitches in any different count because they trust him a lot. So you know that's a huge asset for our team.'
Pleasant Grove hopes to seal their fate to state tomorrow as they face Seminole in game two. First pitch is at 4 pm.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
a day ago
- Forbes
Why The Atlanta Hawks Aren't Rushing To Sign Trae Young To An Extension
Atlanta Hawks star point guard Trae Young became eligible to sign a four-year extension worth as much as $228.6 million in early July. The San Antonio Spurs recently handed De'Aaron Fox that exact same deal shortly after he became extension-eligible on Aug. 3, but the Hawks don't appear likely to follow suit with Young anytime soon. On Sunday, Jake Fischer of The Stein Line reported "there are no plans for Young and the Hawks to engage in extension talks this summer." He added that "Young's side has actually been resigned for some time to the prospect of seeing out the final guaranteed year on his current contract, rather than securing an extension." That reportedly isn't sitting well with Young, though. He recently posted this on X as a response to Dallas Cowboys star edge-rusher Micah Parsons requesting a trade amidst his own contractual standoff. During a recent episode of ESPN's NBA Today, Marc J. Spears of Andscape said, "What I'm hearing now, at this point—you can tell by Trae's tweet, and I saw him during the Finals—I think he's disappointed that it hasn't come, it hasn't been offered." Young is earning $46.0 million this season, and he has a nearly $49.0 million player option for the 2026-27 campaign. If he declines it, he could be one of the marquee free agents in a class that's quickly losing high-end talent because of extensions. Aside from Fox, both Luka Dončić and Jaren Jackson Jr. took themselves off the potential 2026 free-agent market by signing max extensions with their respective teams. So, why did the Spurs hand Fox a max extension while the Hawks aren't willing to do so the same with Young, even though Young has been more prolific than Fox both from a scoring and playmaking standpoint? Each team's long-term financial situation may provide some clues. The Hawks' Long-Term Financial Uncertainty The Spurs project to have plenty of financial flexibility over the next few seasons even after signing Fox to a max deal. Victor Wembanyama won't become extension-eligible until next summer, so his inevitable max contract won't kick in until 2027-28. Stephon Castle will follow suit one year later, while No. 2 overall pick Dylan Harper is just heading into the first year of his four-year rookie-scale contract. At some point, the Spurs will have to decide which of Fox, Castle and Harper are long-term keepers alongside Wembanyama. They could have as many as three years before they're forced into making those choices, though. The Hawks don't necessarily have that luxury. They already have significant long-term financial commitments to Jalen Johnson, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Onyeka Okongwu trough the 2027-28 campaign. If they pick up their team options on 2024 No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher, they'll have $73.4 million committed to that quartet alone in 2025-26, $74.3 million in 2026-27 and $79.5 million in 2027-28. If Young was the Hawks' only major financial variable remaining, they'd be able to squeeze in a max contract for him and still stay far away from any luxury-tax or apron issues. However, they also have to contend with Kristaps Porziņģis and Dyson Daniels, both of whom are likewise heading into contract years. Daniels is fresh off a breakout campaign in which he averaged a league-high 3.0 steals per game en route to the Most Improved Player award and a second-place finish in the Defensive Player of the Year race. The Australian combo guard still isn't much of a three-point shooter, but his game-wrecking potential on defense should still earn him a hefty payday, whether from the Hawks or another free-agent suitor in 2026. Porziņģis is more of a wild card, particularly after a mysterious illness limited him for the final few months of this past season. The 30-year-old was a major X-factor for the Boston Celtics during their march to the 2023-24 championship, but his lengthy injury history could scare teams off from offering him a massive fully guaranteed contract. Both Porziņģis and Daniels are also eligible to sign extensions with the Hawks, although the rules are different for both players. If Daniels doesn't come to terms with the Hawks by the start of the regular season, he'll no longer be eligible to sign an extension. Instead, he'll become a restricted free agent next offseason. Although eight teams are currently projected to have salary-cap space in 2026, according to ESPN's Bobby Marks, plenty can change between now and then. The ongoing, drawn-out sagas of Jonathan Kuminga, Josh Giddey, Quentin Grimes and Cam Thomas this offseason could make Daniels think twice about testing restricted free agency next summer, even though the cap-space outlook appears to be more friendly. Since Porziņģis is on the final year of a non-rookie-scale contract, he'll remain extension-eligible through June 30. However, the Hawks can only tack on three more years to his deal until Jan. 7, at which point he'd become eligible for a four-year extension. His new deal can start at only 120% of what he's set to earn this season until that January date as well. After that, his new extension could begin at 140% of what he's earning this year. If the Hawks re-sign all three of Young, Daniels and Porziņģis, that could push the notoriously tax-averse franchise well abve the luxury-tax line. With that in mind, the Hawks might prefer to wait and see how new offseason acquisitions such as Porziņģis, Alexander-Walker, sharpshooter Luke Kennard and rookie forward Asa Newell fit together before making that sort of a long-term financial commitment. Does Trae Young Fit Into The Hawks' Puzzle? Young has earned an All-Star nod in four of the past six seasons, has averaged at least 24 points per game in each of those years and is fresh off leading the league with a career-high 11.6 assists per game this past season. However, he also shot a career-worst 41.1% from the floor, averaged a horrific 4.7 turnovers per game and has long been one of the worst defenders in the NBA. Having Alexander-Walker, Daniels, Johnson, Porziņģis and Okongwu alongside Young could help insulate the Hawks from his defensive miscues. But given his diminutive stature (6'1" and 164 points), he's always going to have a bullseye on his back defensively as soon as the playoffs roll around. The Hawks' surprise run to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021 was fueled in part by the New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers lacking the personnel to relentlessly hunt Young on defense. Since the Hawks don't have the luxury of being able to negotiate with Daniels in-season, he figures to be their primary focus for the time being. If they're able to come to terms with him, they'd have a better sense of exactly how much he'll cost over the coming years and how much financial flexibility they'll have for Young and/or Porziņģis. Once the season begins and the Hawks see how their new offseason pieces fit together, they'll have a better sense of whether this exact core is worth building around moving forward. If they can't take advantage of the wide-open Eastern Conference as Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum and Indiana Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton recover from Achilles injuries, that may be a glaring red flag. With Young at the helm, the Hawks have boasted a top-12 offense in four of the past five seasons. However, they've been 19th or worse in points per possession allowed over the past four years. Young's offensive acumen can help fuel an elite offense, but how much does that matter if they're giving up just as many points on the other end of the floor because of him? Those are the types of questions that the Hawks might want to see their new-look core answer before they make another long-term commitment to Young. Unless otherwise noted, all stats via PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Spotrac and salary-cap information via RealGM. All odds via FanDuel Sportsbook. Follow Bryan on Bluesky.
NBC Sports
2 days ago
- NBC Sports
Trae Young reportedly 'resigned' to idea he will not sign extension with Hawks this summer
Atlanta was aggressive this offseason in retooling its roster. They traded for Kristaps Porzingis, who brings much-needed shot blocking to Atlanta. The Hawks sign-and-traded for Nickeil Alexander-Walker to add shooting and more defense on the wing. The Hawks went out and got Luke Kennard. Add in Jalen Johnson's return to health, along with the potential of a Zaccharie Risacher leap in his second season, and the Hawks look like a potential top-four team in the East. The one area Atlanta was not aggressive this summer: Talking contract extension with Trae Young. While that may leave Young frustrated, both sides appear resigned to the idea of Young playing out this season on his current contract and figuring out the future next summer, reports Jake Fischer at The Stein Line. 'Yet league sources tell me there are no plans for Young and the Hawks to engage in extension talks this summer. This, though, does not necessarily come as a surprise... Sources say Young's side has actually been resigned for some time to the prospect of seeing out the final guaranteed year on his current contract rather than securing an extension, like his current contract, worth in excess of $200 million. He'd then have to make a decision about his $49 million player option for 2026-27.' To be clear, Young isn't looking to leave the Hawks and they aren't looking to trade him. This is a matter of the Atlanta organization wanting to play this season out with this improved roster, see what things look like and how it all meshes, and then make financial commitments next summer, when Porzingis will be a free agent and Young can opt out of the final year of his contract and hit the market as well. The risk for the Hawks is that Young opts out and signs elsewhere, and they lose him for nothing. However, considering how tight the free agent market has been in the apron era, Atlanta may be willing to take that risk. Next June, the Hawks also have the Pelicans' first-round pick unprotected (part of New Orleans trading up in this year's draft to get Derik Queen). If New Orleans struggles this season — a genuine possibility — this could end up being a high draft pick in a deep draft at the top, which could have Atlanta tweaking its vision for the future. For Young, he can turn his frustration into an opportunity — if the four-time All-Star can spark the Hawks' offense and lead this team to a high seed and a playoff run, his value goes up heading into the next round of negotiations (with the threat of him becoming a free agent and just walking away looming). However it plays out, it looks more and more like Young will not be joining Luka Doncic, De'Aaron Fox and other stars who signed extensions this summer.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Di Marzio – AC Milan Pushing To Sign Genoa Star Ahead Of Inter Milan After Thiaw Sale To Newcastle United
AC Milan are pushing to sign Koni De Winter ahead of Inter Milan after completing a deal to sell Malick Thiaw to Newcastle United. This according to Sky Sport Italia transfer market expert Gianluca Di Marzio, via FCInterNews. AC Milan have competed a deal to sell defender Malick Thiaw to Newcastle United. The Rossoneri will receive a fee of around €40 million for the former Schalke defender. And with that cash, Milan are ready to go out and sign a replacement. According to Sky Sport Italia transfer market expert Gianluca Di Marzio, meanwhile, Milan will target a player who has long been of interest to their city rivals Inter Milan. AC Milan Push To Sign Koni De Winter Ahead Of Inter After Thiaw Sale VERONA, ITALY – APRIL 13: Koni De Winter of Genoa during the Serie A match between Verona and Genoa at Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi on April 13, 2025 in Verona, Italy. (Photo by) Genoa defender Koni De Winter has been a target for Inter Milan for months now. Reportedly, the Nerazzurri have been eyeing the Belgian up as an ideal replacement in the event that either Yann Bisseck or Benjamin Pavard leave. However, Inter's city rivals Milan also see De Winter as a perfect replacement for Thiaw. And with the 24-year-old German international now on his way to Newcastle. The Rossoneri have the cash to move for De Winter. According to Di Marzio, Milan want to pay a fee of around €18-20 million for De Winter up front. Then, there could be add-ons in the deal, or a percentage of future resale. Meanwhile, Di Marzio reports, the Rossoneri are working to finalize an agreement with De Winter first on personal term. Then, they will move on to talks with Genoa.
