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In my previous article, I wrote about the high-profile disappointments of the 2013 MLB season—players who were on fire last year but have since cooled off considerably. Periodic downswings are, of course, a natural part of a professional athlete’s career; there have only been a few players who have never had the term “slump” attached to their legacies. Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers is one of them.

Coming off a 1-0 loss to Sky Blue FC at home last Thursday, the Portland Thorns had little time to recover and prepare for a Sunday match against the Washington Spirit. But the quick turnaround wasn’t enough to hold back Portland as forwards Christine Sinclair and Alex Morgan each tallied goals to lead the team to a 2-0 victory over Washington at Jeld-Wen Field.

Tamia Hasan played behind upperclassmen in her freshman season last fall, but she has proven that she is ready for more in 2013. Hasan, who recently netted her first goal as a Viking during the nonconference spring season against the Seattle University Redhawks, is quickly figuring out her role on the team, and head coach Laura Schott expects her to become a solid contributor for the squad this year.

The timing of this article could be seen as a little strange, as we are currently in the midst of one of the more evenly matched and compelling NBA playoffs in years. But as a total college basketball junkie, I felt it my duty to commemorate the heights reached at the NCAA level this past season, while providing a scouting report for those who are (wisely) not spending their time poring over recruiting blogs.

A few weeks before Manchester United wrapped up another English Premier League title, Sir Alex Ferguson announced that he was resigning from his managerial duties after more than a quarter century leading the Red Devils.

THURSDAY, MAY 23 Track and Field NCAA West Regional Austin, Texas, 8 a.m Forecast: high of 94 degrees, partly cloudy FRIDAY, MAY 24 Track and field NCAA West Regional Austin,…

The scheduling of the NBA playoffs makes no sense to me. I could probably write an entire column about how foolish it is that the Western Conference Finals began Sunday afternoon while the Eastern Conference Finals don’t begin until tomorrow evening, three long days later, even though the matchups have been set since Saturday. What this means is that the West champion may be crowned and resting up to a week before the East champion is decided.

Twenty-two minutes into Saturday’s Memorial Cup opener against Halifax, the Portland Winterhawks held a 3-1 lead after Ty Rattie sliced through the Moosehead defense for a power play goal. By the second intermission, however, any hope of a Winterhawks victory had evaporated as Halifax center Nathan MacKinnon’s hat trick spurred a five-goal second period that propelled the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League champions to a 7-4 win.

Feelin’ Thorny? The once-controversial T-shirt slogan turned into an unofficial motto as the Portland Thorns rolled through their first six games of 2013 unbeaten, leaving the competition wondering if they had just taken an up-close and personal tour of the city’s rose gardens. But when the National Women’s Soccer League leaders faced off against Sky Blue FC on Thursday, they finally ran into an opponent they could not deny, losing 1-0.

The Portland Timbers needed another gritty comeback to keep their unbeaten streak going against the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday. Vancouver welcomed the Timbers to BC Place with the vast majority of the 19,823 fans in attendance behind the Whitecaps for the clash with their Cascadia Cup rivals. Going into the game, Portland was in second place in the MLS Western Conference, while the Whitecaps were one spot from the bottom.