Rantanen records hat trick as Stars rally past Avalanche

Aryna Sabalenka holds a trophy after winning the Madrid Open on Saturday in Madrid, Spain. JOSE BRETON — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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The Stars celebrate after Mikko Rantanen, laying against boards at rear, scored against the Avalanche’s Mackenzie Blackwood (39) in the third period in Game 7 of a first-round playoff series on Saturday in Dallas. JULIO CORTEZ — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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DALLAS >> Mikko Rantanen assisted on Wyatt Johnston’s tiebreaking power-play goal with 3:56 left before completing a third-period hat trick with an empty-netter as the Dallas Stars beat the Colorado Avalanche 4-2 in Game 7 on Saturday night to wrap up the first-round Western Conference playoff series.

Rantanen, who was in the playoffs with Avalanche the past seven seasons and part of their 2022 Stanley Cup title, had his second four-point period in the series. He is only the second player in NHL history to have four points in the third period of a Game 7.

The Stars move on to the second round to face top-seeded Winnipeg or St. Louis, who play their own Game 7 on Sunday night.

Tennis

Sabalenka beats Gauff in straight sets to win Madrid Open>> Aryna Sabalenka beat Coco Gauff in straight sets to win her record-tying third Madrid Open on Saturday.

No. 1-ranked Sabalenka powered through the first set and edged the American in a tiebreaker for 6-3, 7-6 (3) on the outdoor clay court.

Sabalenka added to titles in Madrid in 2021 and 2023 and equaled Petra Kvitova’s tournament record.

Golf

Scheffler leads at Byron-Nelson >> Scottie Scheffler still has a six-shot lead at his hometown CJ Cup Byron Nelson after the rest of the field completed the weather-delayed second round.

The top-ranked player is 18 under with the low round each of the first two days, a 10-under 61 followed by a 63 that was interrupted halfway through by a six-hour weather delay. Scheffler’s 36-hole lead is the biggest in Nelson history.

Ryu leads at LPGA’s black desert championship >> Hae Ran Ryu regained control of the Black Desert Championship by holing out for eagle on the 11th hole, sending her to a 4-under 68 to maintain her two-shot lead in the LPGA Tour’s return to Utah for the first time in more than 60 years.

Her biggest challenge might be Ruoning Yin, the former Women’s PGA champion who ran off 10 birdies at Black Desert for a 62.

Baseball

Pirates fan who fell is awake >> The man who fell from the top of a 21-foot-high wall onto the warning track at PNC Park during a game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night is awake and alert.

The organizer of a GoFundMe page for Kavan Markwood, the 20-year-old who slipped off a railing and onto the field during the seventh inning of Pittsburgh’s 4-3 win over the Cubs, shared an update that Markwood is improving.

According to Jennifer Phillips, who is organizing the fundraiser, Markwood has made significant progress since being admitted to the trauma center at Allegheny General Hospital on Wednesday in critical condition.

Broadcasting

Carmelo Anthony joins NBC as analyst >> Carmelo Anthony is joining NBC Sports as a studio analyst when NBC and Peacock begin their NBA coverage in October.

Anthony will be enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame in September. He was a 10-time NBA all-star and is currently 10th on the NBA all-time scoring list with 28,289 points.

WNBA

Storm’s Samuelson to miss season >> Seattle Storm forward Katie Lou Samuelson is expected to miss the 2025 WNBA season due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee.