Sports
USTA names Aussie Open boss Craig Tiley as new CEO
Sep 7, 2025; Flushing, NY, USA; (from left to right) Former tennis player Ivan Lendl, Jannik Sinner (ITA), Carlos Alcaraz (ESP), and USTA president Brian Vahaly pose for a photo after the final of mens singles at Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images Australian Open CEO Craig Tiley, who has overseen massive growth in tennis participation in Australia during his tenure, was named CEO of the United States Tennis Association (USTA) on Tuesday.
Tiley, CEO of Tennis Australia since 2013 and Australian Open director since 2006, will assume his new role in the next few months while working with the board of directors of Tennis Australia to ensure a smooth change atop the country’s governing body for the sport.
“I am truly honored to step into the role of CEO of the USTA later this year,” Tiley said. “I’ve long admired the organization’s leadership in growing the game across the United States and the extraordinary success of the US Open.
“Tennis has shaped my life — personally and professionally — and having begun my tennis journey in the U.S. as an NCAA championship coach, this opportunity feels like a full-circle moment. I’m excited to return to American tennis and to work alongside our leadership locally and nationally to continue building the sport’s reach, impact and future.”
A former tennis coach at the University of Illinois, Tiley also has experience running community tennis and administration for the Australian Open. The first Grand Slam of the season has broken attendance and revenue records under Tiley’s watch.
“From the very beginning of this process, our top priority was identifying the right leader to accelerate participation growth and help us achieve our goal of reaching 35 million players by 2035,” USTA Board Chair and interim Co-CEO Brian Vahaly said. “Craig brings a rare combination of global credibility at the highest level of the sport and a proven commitment to growing the game at the grassroots. That balance is exactly what this moment requires.”
From 1994-2005, Tiley served as Illinois’ head coach and led the team to a national title in 2003 with a 32-0 record. The South African native twice was honored as Division I National Coach of the Year and was inducted into the ITA Men’s Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame.
During Tiley’s tenure as CEO of Tennis Australia, more people play tennis in the country than any other sport besides soccer. Last year, tennis saw 8.3% growth, the most of any sport, and overall participation has grown by 30% in the last five years. Coach membership, and female coaches in particular, has also seen a massive uptick in numbers.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Anders Lee's game-winner downs Panthers, caps another Islanders comeback
Mar 1, 2026; Elmont, New York, USA; New York Islanders left wing Anders Lee (27) controls the puck against the Florida Panthers during the first period at UBS Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Schneidler-Imagn Images Anders Lee scored the game-winning goal with 30.9 seconds left Sunday night for the surging New York Islanders, who overcame another two-goal deficit to beat the Florida Panthers, 5-4, in Elmont. N.Y.
Lee got a step on Aaron Ekblad, extended his stick to draw out goalie Sergei Bobrovsky and buried a forehand into the wide open left corner of the net.
Rookie Mathew Schafer scored twice while Carson Soucy and Bo Horvat also scored for the Islanders, who have won five straight games. New York has trailed 2-0 in each of its last three victories.
Goalie David Rittich made 29 saves.
Sam Bennett scored twice while Sandis Vilmanis and Sam Reinhart scored one apiece for the Panthers, who have lost seven of nine (2-7-0). Bobrovsky recorded 21 saves.
Vilmanis opened the scoring 3:44 after the opening faceoff, when he gloved a pass from A.J. Greer and backhanded a shot that trickled under Rittich’s legs.
Bennett doubled the lead by scoring six seconds into a power play with 5:06 left, when his shot from the left faceoff circle sailed past Rittich’s glove.
The Islanders began their latest comeback in unusual fashion with 1:59 remaining, when Schaefer’s shot from the right faceoff circle bounced before the crease, caromed over Bobrovsky’s head and glanced off the top post before bouncing off his back and into the net.
Soucy tied the score with a 4-on-4 goal 7:28 into the second. The defenseman took a drop pass from Simon Holmstrom, who was draped by the Panthers’ Gustav Forsling, and sent a shot under Bobrovsky’s glove.
Bennett gave the Panthers the lead again with 7:56 remaining, when his backhander from the middle of the right faceoff circle went under Rittich’s stick arm.
Horvat tied the score with 2:46 left with an angled shot from near the goal line that landed beneath Bobrovsky’s stick.
Schaefer gave the Islanders their first lead by scoring from the slot with 9:31 left in the third. This gave Schaefer 20 on the year at just 18 years old, making him the youngest defenseman to ever record 20 goals in a season and the youngest since Dion Phaneuf (20 years old) did it for the Calgary Flames in 2005-06.
With Bobrovsky pulled for an extra attacker, Reinhart tied it back up with 1:58 remaining.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Lionel Messi, Miami score four in second half to upend Orlando
Mar 1, 2026; Orlando, Florida, USA; Inter Miami CF forward Lionel Messi (10) controls the ball from Orlando City SC defender Tahir Reid-Brown (29) in the first half at Inter&Co Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images Lionel Messi recorded a brace, Telasco Sevogia scored the tiebreaking goal in the 85th minute and assisted on two others and Inter Miami dominated the second half to record a 4-2 comeback victory over host Orlando City on Sunday night.
Mateo Silvetti added a goal and an assist in Inter Miami’s four-goal second half that erased a 2-0 deficit. The Herons (1-1-0, 3 points) bounced back from a 3-0 season-opening loss to Los Angeles FC.
Messi, who scored in the 57th and 90th minutes, has eight goals in five meetings against the Lions across all competitions.
Marco Pasalic and Martin Ojeda scored goals for Orlando City (0-2-0, 0 points).
Orlando was unable to clear the ball out of its zone on the tiebreaking sequence.
Miami’s German Berterame came up with the ball to begin the sequence. Sevogia eventually received it and booted a right-footed shot into the net.
Three minutes later, Orlando City’s Colin Guske pulled Messi down and was given his second yellow card. The automatic upgrade to red led to Guske’s ejection, leaving the Lions with just 10 men for the rest of the match that included 10 minutes of stoppage time.
Messi then took a free kick from close range in the 90th minute and sent a left-footed shot past the wall and inside the left post to give the Herons a two-goal lead.
Dayne St. Clair made three saves for Miami, which outshot Orlando City 16-12 and placed eight shots on target to the Lions’ five.
Maxime Crepeau had four stops for Orlando City.
Orlando City won both regular-season meetings last season, prevailing by scores of 4-0 and 3-1.
Miami woke up fast after the halftime break.
Silvetti was beyond the box when he ripped a right-footed shot into the left corner of the net in the 49th minute.
Messi scored the equalizer eight minutes later by lining a left-footed shot inside the right post.
Ojeda had a big opportunity to put Orlando City back ahead in the 70th minute but St. Clair made a leg save on Ojeda’s close-ranged left-footed shot.
Orlando struck in the 18th minute when Ivan Angulo fed Pasalic, who sent a left-footed grounder that caromed off the arms of St. Clair and into the net.
Six minutes later, the Lions made it 2-0 when Ojeda performed a give-and-go with Griffin Dorsey. Upon receiving the ball back, Ojeda sent a right-footed shot into the right corner.
Crepeau made three first-half saves, including one of Messi in the 28th minute. Messi also sent a free kick wide left of the net late in the half.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Stars aim for franchise-best winning streak on trip to Canucks
Nov 20, 2025; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Dallas Stars forward Colin Blackwell (15) drives past Vancouver Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes (43) in the third period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images Confidence is riding high in Dallas as the Stars take their franchise-tying eight-game winning streak on the road to face the Vancouver Canucks on Monday night.
Wyatt Johnston and Nathan Bastian scored in regulation, and Jason Robertson added the overtime winner as the Stars erased a 2-0 deficit to top the Nashville Predators 3-2 on Saturday.
Jake Oettinger, making his first start since winning gold with Team USA at the Olympics, made 25 saves as the Stars matched their franchise record for consecutive wins. Dallas has won nine of 10 overall.
With the win, the Stars recorded their sixth multigoal comeback.
“I feel like with the win streak, the confidence goes higher and higher, and lately the simple things have been better, and the physical play — it sounds quite simple, but it has been effective,” Stars defenseman Esa Lindell said. “I feel like we just stuck with it and just kept working.
“Especially in the second period, I thought it started to turn for us, and I felt like we just kept pushing, and then got rewarded in the third and got the win in OT.”
Missing Mikko Rantanen, Roope Hintz and Radek Faksa, the Stars, second in the Western Conference, continue to find ways to win games. Dallas has not lost since Jan. 22.
“When you are missing such key guys, and you are able to still win hockey games, I think it shows positive signs of a good hockey team,” said Bastian, who snapped a nine-game goalless drought. “Guys like us maybe can’t bring all the skill, but we can make up for it in other areas.
“Maybe a little more physicality, and with a little more ice time, you get a little more confidence, and then all of a sudden you can string together some good games.”
Monday is the third and final meeting between the Canucks and Stars. Vancouver topped Dallas 5-3 on Oct. 16, while the Stars doubled up the Canucks 4-2 on Nov. 20.
The Canucks, on the opposite end of the Western Conference standings, open a brief two-game homestand following a 5-1 loss in Seattle on Saturday.
Liam Ohgren scored the lone Canucks goal, and Kevin Lankinen made 20 saves for Vancouver, which has lost five in a row and has just two wins over their past 21 (2-15-4).
“We had a couple mistakes early that they capitalized on. We know we can’t do that, but we did,” Canucks coach Adam Foote said. “We were around and it was closer than the score.”
Forward Elias Pettersson, who paces the Canucks with 35 points in 51 games this season, was benched for the final 10 minutes of the third period on Saturday with Foote trying to send a message to the veteran.
“He’s got to be better and he knows that. He’s aware of that,” Foote said. “He’s got to play with more zip, like with more pace to his game, more engaged, and good things will happen when he gets his motor going, and he’s aware of it. So, I’m sure we’ll see it next game.”
–Field Level Media
