Nov 20, 2017 4 min read

Banaszak resigns

as coach at RMU

John Banaszak resigned Monday after four seasons as head football coach at Robert Morris University.

Only the second head coach in Robert Morris history, he served as an assistant coach for 11 seasons under Joe Walton before becoming head coach in December 2013.

The Colonials finished the 2017 season with an eight-game losing streak and 2-9 record. Banaszak’s overall record at Robert Morris was 8-34 and he was 3-13 in the Northeast Conference.

The former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman was head coach at Washington & Jefferson from 1999 to 2002. He put together a record of 38-9 to go along with four consecutive appearances in the NCAA Division III playoffs. The Presidents Athletic Conference named him Coach of the Year all four seasons he was with W&J.

Popeck named PAC Rookie of the Week

After leading the Waynesburg University men’s basketball team in scoring over its first two games of the season, freshman guard Matt Popeck was named Monday the Presidents’ Athletic Conference as its Rookie of the Week.

Popeck, a former standout at Washington High School, scored a game-high 23 points on 9-of-13 shooting Friday at Whitman, the top-ranked team in NCAA Division III. He made all four of his three-point attempts against the Blues. On Saturday, Popeck had a team-best 12 points and a game-high four steals at Whitworth. Popeck shot 50 percent (14-of-28) from the floor and from three-point range (5-of-10) over the two-game stretch.

The Yellow Jackets make their home debut Wednesday against Fredonia. Tipoff is 5 p.m.

Pirates trade Ngoepe

Pittsburgh traded Ngoepe to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for cash considerations or a player to be named later. The 27-year-old Ngoepe became the first African-born player in baseball history to reach the major leagues when he debuted April 26 in a loss to the Chicago Cubs. Ngoepe, who is from South Africa, hit .222 in 28 games for the Pirates while spending the majority of the season at Triple-A Indianapolis.

Pittsburgh also added three players to the 40-man roster, including outfielder Austin Meadows. Considered the top prospect in the organization going into 2017, Meadows hit .250 with four home runs and 36 RBIs for Indianapolis while battling injuries much of the season. Pittsburgh also added pitchers Dario Agrazal and Luis Escobar to the 40-man roster.

Wild Things bring back Hill

The Washington Wild Things announced the re-signing of third baseman Mike Hill to a contract for the 2018 season. Hill is the ninth player to re-sign from the 2017 team, and the second position player.

Hill played his first season in the Frontier League this past summer and hit .214 with 13 home runs and 39 RBI. He had an on-base percentage of .327, and was good with the glove as he played three different infield positions.

Penguins send Corrado to AHL

The Pittsburgh Penguins have re-assigned defenseman Frank Corrado to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League.

Coarrado, who played in three games with Pittsburgh, returns to a WBS squad that has the AHL’s best record at 11-2-1, which includes an active 11-game point streak (10-0-1).

Rams’ Woods out

Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Robert Woods has a shoulder injury that will take him out of the lineup for the playoff contenders.

Coach Sean McVay says Woods will miss a “couple weeks” after he got hurt late in the fourth quarter of a 24-7 loss at Minnesota Sunday. McVay says the injury will not require surgery.

McVay says Monday that Woods has played “like a complete receiver,” so it’s a “significant loss” for the team.

Woods leads the Rams with 47 receptions for 703 yards and four touchdowns, including 16 catches for 252 yards and two scores in his last two games.