Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone won her second U.S. title in the 400-meter flat Saturday, running the oval in 48.90 seconds to secure a spot in the race at world championships later this summer.

McLaughlin-Levrone, a four-time Olympic gold medalist and the world record holder in the 400 hurdles, has been focusing on the flat race this season. She beat Isabella Whittaker by .31 seconds to improve to 6-0 lifetime in 400-meter finals.

McLaughlin-Levrone also won the national title in 2023, but missed worlds due to injury.

This marked the 25-year-old’s third time cracking the 49-second mark in the 400. It was her best time of the season, though she came up short of both her personal best (48.74) and the American record (48.70) set by Sanya Richards-Ross in 2006.

McLaughlin-Levrone also has two Olympic gold medals in the women’s 4x400 relay.

Jacory Patterson won the men’s 400 in 44.16 seconds to earn a spot on his first outdoor world-championships team.

WNBA

A group led by Celtics minority owner Steve Pagliuca reached a deal to buy the Connecticut Sun for a record $325 million and move the team to Boston, multiple sources reported. The franchise wouldn’t play in Boston until the 2027 season.

The sale is pending approval of the league and its Board of Governors.

“Relocation decisions are made by the WNBA Board of Governors and not by individual teams,” the league said in a statement.

The league has announced five expansion teams that will begin play over the next five seasons with Portland (2026), Toronto (’26), Cleveland (’28), Detroit (’29) and Philadelphia (’30) joining the WNBA. Each paid a then-record $250 million expansion fee.

Nine other cities bid for expansion teams, including Houston, which the league singled out as getting a team in the future when it announced Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia in June. Boston did not.

“No groups from Boston applied for a team at that time and those other cities remain under consideration based on the extensive work they did as part of the expansion process and currently have priority over Boston. Celtics’ prospective ownership team has also reached out to the league office and asked that Boston receive strong consideration for a WNBA franchise at the appropriate time.”

The WNBA said that the individual who threw a sex toy on the court at an Atlanta Dream game earlier in the week was arrested and that any person throwing objects onto the court will be ejected from the arena and face a minimum one-year ban.

The incident in Atlanta occurred late in the fourth quarter of the Dream’s game against Golden State on Tuesday in College Park, Ga. On Friday, another sex toy was thrown in Chicago under a basket after a whistle was blown to stop play during the third quarter of Golden State’s 73-66 victory over the Sky. An official kicked the object aside before it was picked up and removed.

It’s unknown if the fan who threw the object at the Sky game was arrested.

“The safety and well-being of everyone in our arenas is a top priority for our league. Objects of any kind thrown onto the court or in the seating area can pose a safety risk for players, game officials, and fans,” the league said in a statement. “In line with WNBA Arena Security Standards, any fan who intentionally throws an object onto the court will be immediately ejected and face a minimum one-year ban in addition to being subject to arrest and prosecution by local authorities.”

“It’s super disrespectful,” Sky center Elizabeth Williams said after Friday’s game. “I don’t really get the point of it. It’s really immature. Whoever is doing it needs to grow up.”

Kayla McBride led a 3-point barrage, making 8 of 10 from beyond the arc, and the Minnesota Lynx set the WNBA record for the biggest road win, beating the Las Vegas Aces 111-58.

McBride made all eight of her 3-point attempts in the first half and the Lynx were 13 for 14 as a team.

Minnesota’s 53-point win broke the league-record for largest margin of victory on the road, a record set in 1998 by the Houston Comets. Minnesota also set a team record with 17 3-pointers.

MVP candidate Napheesa Collier scored 18 points but left the game late in the third quarter with an ankle injury.

TENNIS

Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko, 18, upset top-seeded Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-4 to reach the National Bank Open quarterfinals in Montreal.