HIGH SCHOOLS
York’s Posternak honored as best in field hockey
Lily Posternak of York was named the winner of the Miss Maine Field Hockey award, presented to the state’s top high school senior.
Posternak, a two-time Maine Sunday Telegram Player of the Year, led the Wildcats to consecutive Class B state championships and a 51-game winning streak. She holds school career records with 77 goals and 50 assists, and will play at Duke.
Coach Paula Doughty of Skowhegan, who notched her 500th career victory this fall, also was honored. She led the Indians to the Class A title, her 17th state championship.
The awards were announced Sunday at the Maine Field Hockey Association’s annual banquet in Augusta.
COLLEGES
MEN’S BASKETBALL: University of Maine freshman Andrew Fleming was named America East Rookie of the Week.
Fleming, a graduate of Oxford Hills High, scored a career-high 20 points with eight rebounds Wednesday against Central Connecticut State. He also had six rebounds and two steals Saturday at Duke.
SOCCER
BRAZIL: Brazil will play Colombia in a friendly match at the end of January to help victims of the air crash that killed most of the players, staff and directors of soccer club Chapecoense last week.
Nineteen of Chapecoense’s players were killed in the crash just outside Medellin, Colombia.
FIFA: Sepp Blatter said he has lost his appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport against a six-year ban by FIFA.
Blatter says in a statement it is “difficult” to accept but that “the way the case progressed, no other verdict could be expected.”
The former FIFA president, who was banned for approving a $2 million payment to Michel Platini in 2011, said he will accept the decision and not appeal to Switzerland’s Supreme Court.
AUTO RACING
FORMULA ONE: The French Grand Prix will return to the Formula One calendar in 2018 after a 10-year absence.
Christian Estrosi, head of the Provence-Alpes-Cote d’Azur region, said the race will be organized at the Paul Ricard circuit in southern France.
The world’s oldest grand prix was first held in 1906 but was dropped from the calendar in 2008 because of financial issues.
The Paul Ricard circuit last hosted the French GP in 1990.
BASEBALL
WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: NL Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer and previous MVPs Buster Posey and Andrew McCutchen are among the top players confirmed to play for the United States at the 2017 World Baseball Classic.
Major League Baseball announced the initial list of 30 players set for the tournament, which takes place in March. Among them are 24 All-Stars.
Joining Scherzer, Posey and McCutchen for the U.S. are right-handed pitcher Chris Archer, third baseman Nolan Arenado and outfielder Adam Jones.
Manny Machado, Robinson Cano, Adrian Beltre, Nelson Cruz and Dellin Betances will play for the defending champion Dominican Republic. Felix Hernandez will pitch for Venezuela, which will also have Miguel Cabrera and Carlos Gonzalez on its roster.
MLB: Baseball’s new labor contract bans tobacco chew among players with no current major league service time. The death of Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn at age 54 two years ago shook up many in the industry.
– Staff and news service report
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