NEWS » and approved in time.Theyre now in Port

DURHAM, N.C. -- Virginia Tech took the lead with some Beamerball. The Hokies kept hold of it with another program staple -- some tough defense at the right time.Adonis Alexander returned a blocked field goal 75 yards for the early, go-ahead touchdown, and No. 23 Virginia Tech held on to beat Duke 24-21 on Saturday and remain in control of the ACCs Coastal Division race.We took what could have been a really difficult situation, and the kids did a great job, first-year Tech coach Justin Fuente said.It was classic Beamerball -- even without Frank Beamer, whos in his first year of retirement.Travon McMillian ran 14 yards for a TD and Jerod Evans passed for 192 yards and scored on a 7-yard run, carrying three Duke defenders along for the ride, for the Hokies (7-2, 5-1, No. 19 CFP).Daniel Jones pulled Duke within three points with his second touchdown run of the game, a 2-yarder with 7:10 to play.The Blue Devils got the ball back with 5:55 remaining after forcing a three-and-out, but it looked like they gave it right back when Shaun Wilson fumbled at the 35. But that decision was overturned after a review determined Virginia Tech rover Terrell Edmunds should have been called for targeting, giving the Blue Devils the ball at midfield.These Hokies didnt buckle. Dukes next three plays netted three yards before the Blue Devils punted back, and Virginia Tech ran out the final 4:06, with Evans converting the game-sealing third-and-3 with less than 2 minutes to go.I was pleased with the way the team responded after that event, Fuente said. That was an opportunity to kind of let the air out of your balloon, so to speak, and it certainly did not happen. The defense responded, the offense got the ball and ran the clock out to finish the ball game.Jones, who finished with 148 yards passing, also scored from 7 yards out late in the third quarter to make it 21-14, before Joey Slye extended the Hokies lead to 10 with a 27-yard field goal on the next possession.Wilson had a short touchdown run for the Blue Devils (3-6, 0-5), who have lost three straight and are 1-4 since upsetting Notre Dame.THE TAKEAWAYVirginia Tech: The path to the Coastal Division title still runs through Blacksburg, thanks to that 34-3 win at North Carolina last month. Nothing came easy after they went up 21-7 in the second quarter, but at least the Hokies handled success better than last time and now they will wrap up their first ACC title game berth since 2011 with home wins against Georgia Tech next week and Virginia on Nov. 26.Duke: The Blue Devils have to be in win-or-else mode the rest of the way if they want to extend their school-record postseason streak to five years. They could reach a bowl game with a 5-7 record because of their high APR scores -- and if theres a shortage of six-win teams -- but at this point, theres a serious question about whether Duke will make it to the five-win mark. What we have is a good football team without a very good record, coach David Cutcliffe said.POLL IMPLICATIONSThis victory may not send the Hokies much higher, but at least they made enough timely plays to avoid a repeat of the Syracuse loss last month that sent them tumbling out of the Top 25.PLAY OF THE DAYWith the score tied at 7 -- and two snaps after Jones misfired on a sure-thing touchdown pass that would have given Duke the lead -- the Blue Devils brought in AJ Reed, who to that point had made just 3 of 7 field goals all season, to try a 30-yarder.Greg Stroman came off the left edge to block it, and after Alexander scooped it up and took off downfield, Stroman delivered a crushing block on Reed that helped spring him for Techs second special-teams TD of the season and first off a blocked field goal since 2005.INJURY REPORTStroman did not return after he injured his right ankle during a hit from Jeremy McDuffie while fielding a second-quarter punt. He was carried to the sideline and carted to the locker room. Fuente did not provide any details on Stromans status.QUICK HITSEvans was held without a touchdown pass for the first time this season. ... Virginia Tech was held to 399 total yards. The only time the Hokies finished with fewer this season was in the victory at North Carolina in hurricane conditions.UP NEXTVirginia Tech: Faces Georgia Tech next Saturday before making a visit to Notre Dame.Duke: Has a short week to prepare for its fiercest rival, No. 18 North Carolina, on Thursday night.---Follow Joedy McCreary at http://twitter.com/joedyap. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/joedy-mccreary---More AP college football at www.collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25 Fake 49ers Jerseys . R.J. Umberger scored twice to lead the Blue Jackets to a franchise-record for consecutive wins with a 5-3 victory Tuesday night over the Los Angeles Kings. San Francisco 49ers Pro Shop . In what the team had called a retirement, Ryan said Thursday that he is resigning as chief executive of the Rangers in a move effective at the end of this month. https://www.49ersjerseysale.com/ . Here are his mid-season NBA awards. MVP: (KEVIN DURANT-Thunder) - Has been sensational this season and more importantly, the most consistent player in the league. Considering that his team has been without star guard Russell Westbrook and with the free agent departure of sharpshooter Kevin Martin, hes had to carry the majority of the load to not only keep his team afloat but more importantly, at an elite level. 49ers Jerseys 2021 . Irving scored 23 points, Tristan Thompson had 20 points and 10 rebounds and the Cavaliers beat the Denver Nuggets 117-109 on Friday night. 49ers Jerseys 2020 . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . MOSCOW -- Russia is confident that most of its Olympic team will be able to compete in Rio de Janeiro, but the countrys efforts to reinstate banned athletes are a mixed bag.Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko on Friday told local media that 272 of the countrys athletes had been approved by international sports federations, out of an original team of 387. Mutko added that the number could rise.More than 100 Russian athletes have been excluded by sports federations, including a blanket ban on the track and field team and more than 30 rejected under new International Olympic Committee rules.After the World Anti-Doping Agency accused the Russian government of directing a vast doping cover-up, the IOC said it would not allow Russians to compete in Rio if they had previously been banned for doping, were implicated in the alleged cover-up or had not been tested often enough internationally.Most federations have not excluded Russians on the basis of a lack of testing, but rowing is the exception, having barred 19 Russians, most for insufficient tests. Testing in Russia does not count under IOC rules because of the repeated allegations made against Russias drug testing agency and national lab, both of which have been suspended.An appeal is being prepared against World Rowings decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, Russian Rowing Federation head Veniamin But told The Associated Press.dddddddddddd That could send the 19 to Rio days before the Games start, if the case is heard and approved in time.Theyre now in Portugal, But said. Theyre training, and theyre ready to go.World Rowings approval process left just six rowers eligible to compete for Rio, meaning Russia could compete in only one event, the mens four. Reserve crews from around the world have rushed to Brazil to compete.There was good news for Russia on Friday, when the Russian Taekwondo Union said it had received notification from the World Taekwondo Federation that all three of its entries could compete in Rio.However, Russias best-known track and field athlete, two-time Olympic gold medalist Yelena Isinbayeva, said she had been refused in her final attempt to make the team for Rio following the blanket ban on Russia in that sport.Isinbayeva had applied again for an individual exemption but was refused by the IAAF, tracks world governing body.Unfortunately they didnt make an exception for me, she wrote on Instagram. They didnt admit me for the Olympics in Rio. The miracle didnt happen. ' ' '