Eddie Pells, Author at Valley News

Baylor players celebrate at the end of the championship game against Gonzaga in the men's Final Four NCAA college basketball tournament, Monday, April 5, 2021, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Baylor won 86-70. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

Baylor denies Gonzaga its undefeated season in NCAA title game, 86-70

by Eddie Pells AP National WriterApril 6, 2021

INDIANAPOLIS — There was another team out there that was marching through the season undefeated, that looked unstoppable at times, that had all arrows pointing toward a national title. COVID-19 put a halt to the undefeated dream. Nothing could stop…

FILE - In this Sept. 4, 2011, file photo, Alysia Montano, of the United States, left, falls as she crosses the finish line in fourth place as Russia's Mariya Savinova, right, celebrates winning the Women's 800m final at the World Athletics Championships in Daegu, South Korea. On Monday, Sept. 30, 2019, Montano walked off the track at the World Championships in Doha, Qatar, with a pair of bronze medals that were placed around her neck several years too late. The U.S. 800-meter runner who has stood up on behalf of every athlete who has ever kept off the medals stand by a doper finally got the third-place prizes she was robbed of at two straight worlds, back in 2011 and 2013.(AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus, File)

Better late: Montano gets medals, but the fight goes on

by Eddie Pells AP National WriterSeptember 30, 2019

FILE - In this Sept. 9, 2019, file photo, Allyson Felix of the U.S, left, competes during a women's 400-meter run in the Match Europe against USA at Dinamo stadium in Minsk, Belarus. A rebellion led by some of track and field's top athletes, like Felix, had led to changes in sponsorship contracts that are altering what could best be described as the sport's 'pregnancy penalty.' For decades, the message to women in track and field was crystal clear: get pregnant, lose sponsorship money. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits, File)

Felix, others fight track’s penchant for penalizing pregnancy

by Eddie Pells AP Sports Writers, and Pat Graham AP Sports WritersSeptember 26, 2019

FILE - In this Feb. 18, 2014 file photo, a Russian skating fan holds the country's national flag over the Olympic rings before the men's 10,000-meter speedskating race at Adler Arena Skating Center during the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. A person familiar with the case tells The Associated Press that Russia's anti-doping agency could face suspension again based on information indicating data from the Moscow drug-testing lab had been manipulated before being delivered to the World Anti-Doping Agency earlier this year. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)

Russia fears missing Tokyo over doping data tampering

by James Ellingworth AP Sports Writers, and Eddie Pells AP Sports WritersSeptember 23, 2019

FILE - In this July 26, 2019, file photo, Christian Coleman celebrates as he wins the men's 100-meter dash final at the U.S. Championships athletics meet, in Des Moines, Iowa. The world’s fastest man now that Usain Bolt is on the sideline is 100-meter runner Christian Coleman, who almost was forced to miss world championships because he had missed too many drug tests. He got a reprieve, but, as always, the specter of doping lingers over the sport’s biggest event. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

Doping back as the main topic in sprint game

by Eddie Pells AP National WriterSeptember 22, 2019

FILE - In this Feb. 28, 2019, file photo, UCLA forward Cody Riley, right, grabs a rebound away from Southern California guard Kevin Porter Jr. during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Los Angeles. The NCAA’s Board of Governors is urging Gov. Gavin Newsom not to sign a California bill that would allow college athletes to receive money for their names, likenesses or images. In a six-paragraph letter to Newsom, the board said the bill would give California schools an unfair recruiting advantage. As a result, the letter says, the NCAA would declare those schools ineligible for its events. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)

Analysis: California trying to make NCAA pay

by Eddie Pells AP National WriterSeptember 12, 2019

This image provided by the Todd County (Minn.) Sheriff's office shows Dylan John Bennett. Authorities say Dylan John Bennett, the son of a former NFL lineman wanted on murder charges in the death of his parents has been arrested in Mexico The Todd County Sheriff’s Office says 22-year-old Dylan John Bennett was arrested at a hotel Saturday, Aug. 24, 2019 in Cancun. (Todd County Sheriff's Office via AP)

Sports briefs: Son of ex-NFL lineman accused in murders

by Eddie Pells The Associated PressAugust 24, 2019

FILE - In this Jan. 20, 2019, file photo, Los Angeles Rams' Nickell Robey-Coleman breaks up a pass intended for New Orleans Saints' Tommylee Lewis during the second half of the NFL football NFC championship game in New Orleans. The non-call on the play involving Rams Nickell Robey-Coleman in the NFC championship game cost the Saints a trip to the Super Bowl. (Or, at least that's how they see it in New Orleans) After taking tons of flak, then admitting the call was wrong, but doing nothing to alter the outcome of the game, the NFL rule-makers met a few months later and declared pass interference would now be reviewable.(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

Analysis: Tough calls in sports get tougher in today’s hot-take society

by Eddie Pells AP National WriterMay 9, 2019

Virginia's De'Andre Hunter (12) goes up for a basket during the first half in the championship of the Final Four NCAA college basketball tournament against Texas Tech, Monday, April 8, 2019, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Perseverance pays: A year after historic defeat, Virginia wins NCAA title in OT thriller

by Eddie Pells AP National WriterApril 9, 2019

FILE - In this April 6, 2019, file photo, Virginia's Kyle Guy (5) takes a shot as Auburn's Samir Doughty (10) was called for a foul during the second half in the semifinals of the Final Four NCAA college basketball tournament, in Minneapolis. Guy sank all three free throws and Virginia defeated Auburn 63-62. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)

Games don’t always reward deserving

by Eddie Pells AP National WriterApril 8, 2019