Slug: Sports–Fantasy Football Old School, 860 words.
2 photos available.
By Dane Palmer Cronkite News
PHOENIX – The first sign of this fantasy football league’s uniqueness is the walk commissioner Mark Armijo makes to his mailbox every August. Inside sit the $75 entry fee checks required of each participant. Venmo? PayPal? In this league, that’s blasphemous.
Fantasy football – a game in which members are general managers of teams they’ve drafted, often for money – has become a way to unite friends and family, as well as claim glory by way of bragging rights or prize. One group of friends with connections to the Arizona Republic have done just that for 46 years in the most old school of ways: no apps, no fantasy programs, just old-fashioned pen, paper and emails. Lots of emails.
PHOENIX – After suffering its third straight loss last Friday, Phoenix Rising FC’s season was in jeopardy. Interim coach Diego Gómez was unable to propel his team to a needed victory, and everything looked dim for the club.
Despite the loss to Monterey Bay FC in front of Rising’s dejected but loyal fanbase, Gómez had a couple of words to share heading into Wednesday’s crucial matchup on the road against rival New Mexico United.
PHOENIX – The Arizona State Fair is one of Arizona’s longest-standing traditions, dating back almost 30 years before statehood. Starting all the way back in 1884, it’s one of the largest fairs in the United States, bringing in over 1.4 million visitors in 2023.
The Native American Rodeo is part of the rich tradition of the fair, with spectators and competitors from tribal nations across the country. It celebrates the Indigenous peoples who heavily influenced the history of Arizona. It is one of the most popular events among Indigenous communities at the fair, but there are questions surrounding their involvement with all aspects of the rodeo.
EDS: Cronkite School journalists profiled candidates for Phoenix City Council and the Maricopa County sheriff race. You can find all the profiles here.
EDS: Cronkite School journalists profiled candidates for Phoenix City Council and the Maricopa County sheriff race. You can find all the profiles here.
By L. M. Boyd Special for Cronkite News
Candidate name: Tyler Kamp
Political affiliation: Democrat
Position sought: Maricopa County Sheriff
Career: Former nonprofit director, former Phoenix Police lieutenant
EDS: Cronkite School journalists profiled candidates for Phoenix City Council and the Maricopa County sheriff race. You can find all the profiles here.
By Armond Sarduy Special for Cronkite News
Candidate name: Kate Gallego
Political affiliation: Democratic
Position sought: Second term for mayor
Age: 43
Career: 62nd mayor of Phoenix, Phoenix City Council District 8
EDS: Cronkite School journalists profiled candidates for Phoenix City Council and the Maricopa County sheriff race. You can find all the profiles here.
TUCSON – Before the Arizona Wildcats travel to Provo, Utah, to take on BYU for the first time since 2021, the No. 14 Cougars have been studying last week’s game between Arizona and Texas Tech in search of weaknesses.
At Arizona’s Big 12 home opener, quarterback Noah Fifita struggled to gain an offensive rhythm in the first half, getting sacked on the Wildcats’ first possession and throwing an interception returned for a touchdown that allowed the Red Raiders to take the lead at halftime.
SALT LAKE CITY – Rally towels, singer Shaboozey and slushie-drinking contests. All were features of the Utah Hockey Club’s inaugural game at the Delta Center, marking the NHL’s first regular-season game in Salt Lake City. While the team let the local fans go home happy, winning 5-2 over the Chicago Blackhawks, reminders of where the franchise was a year ago were everywhere.
Forward Dylan Guenther got the crowd on their feet early Tuesday night, just 4:56 into the game. The young Edmonton native scored the first-ever goal in Utah franchise history and more than likely, found a spot in Utah fans’ hearts as well after scoring a second goal late in the third period.
PHOENIX – Rep. Ruben Gallego and Kari Lake had a polite handshake to start their first and potentially last U.S. Senate debate, but that was the friendliest moment in a border-focused and interruption-prone event.
Gallego and Lake quickly launched broadsides about their opponent’s position on the border, with Lake firing off comments about open borders and Gallego countering with her position on the failed bipartisan immigration bill.
PHOENIX – Tyus Jones could be the missing link to unleashing the Phoenix Suns’ offensive potential and bringing an NBA championship to the Valley in 2025.
Jones will look to spearhead a high-tempo brand of basketball oriented on crisp ball movement and transition 3-pointers while serving as a security blanket that maximizes each player’s strengths.
Slug: Sports-Booker Russell friendshop, 1,060 words.
Photo available.
By Connor Moreno Cronkite News
PALM DESERT, Calif. — As Devin Booker wrapped up his routine of feeling out the game ball before the Phoenix Suns tipped off last Sunday’s preseason game, Los Angeles Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell jokingly tried to steal the ball in front of referee Kevin Cutler to stop Booker from getting comfortable.
After exchanging a few words and laughs, the two guards embraced with a dap-up and a hug and lined up on their respective sides of the jump ball circle to open the 2024 NBA preseason – marking the start of the 10th season for the friendly foes.
From getting each other in trouble for breaking curfew at the NBPA Top 100 camp in 2014, to hitting golf balls at Booker’s mountainside driving range in the 2024 offseason as a part of Russell’s “Backyard Podcast,” their friendship has mostly been unknown to the public. Continue reading “Book & D-Lo: One of NBA’s closest friendship is hidden in plain sight”
Slug: Latino Blood Drive. 470 words. By Brianna Chappie
Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).
By Brianna Chappie Cronkite News
PHOENIX – Every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs a blood donation, according to the American Red Cross. The Southwest Arizona Chapter of the organization is running a campaign to encourage more Latinos in Arizona to donate blood.
The Southwest Arizona Chapter serves 1.4 million people across Pima, Santa Cruz, Cochise, Yuma, La Paz, Graham and Greenlee counties. The group’s”Los Donates” campaign, timed to coincide with Hispanic Heritage seeks to inspire more Latinos in Arizona to donate blood and help meet the critical demand.
“Donating blood is one of the noblest acts a person can do,” said Edgar Olivo, CEO of the Red Cross of Arizona and New Mexico.
The initiative draws inspiration from the traditional Mexican card game lotería, similar to bingo. The donantes, or donors, featured on the Red Cross cards represent people who’ve won because they’ve donated a lifesaving necessity which is blood donations.
Around 60 percent of Latinos have Type O blood, according to the American Red Cross. Type O is vital: O-positive blood is the most common blood type, account for an estimated 37% of the world’s population. O-negative blood is a universal donor, meaning it can be donated to anyone regardless of blood type or phenotypes.
Latinos also make up 30.7% of Arizona’s population, showing a heightened need for a significant portion of people in the state.
Olivo emphasized how increasing the number of blood donors could help meet the needs of people outside urban areas.
“We know that the rural hospitals, the ones that are away from the metro Phoenix area, are the ones that need blood just as much as the metro hospitals as well,” Olivo said.
Ashley Mérida, chapter president of the National Association of Hispanic Nurses in Phoenix, says that fighting misinformation is a challenge when it comes to encouraging new donors.
“I think a lot of Latinos have a lot of misinformation regarding the donation of blood,” Mérida said. “I’ve heard some people say that it can alter the DNA. It changes the DNA. I’ve heard people just say like they just really aren’t interested, or maybe it’s just the lack of time of getting to a blood drive.”
Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs was at the Red Cross’ Hispanic Heritage Month Kick Off on Sept. 17 and encouraged all people to donate, regardless of blood type.
“Even if you don’t have Type O blood, your donation is invaluable,” Hobbs said. “So today, I’m encouraging all of you celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month to consider doing so by making a blood donation and encouraging your friends and family to do so as well.”
Hispanic heritage Month runs through Oct. 15. Anyone interested in donating blood or blood platelets can visit the American Red Cross website to find the nearest American Red Cross clinics and view available times to donate.
Attendees and media representatives at the launch of the Los Donantes initiative in Phoenix on September 17, 2024. (Photo by Ignacio Ventura/Cronkite News)Scarlett Spring donates blood at Health & Wellness Phoestival on April 13, 2024. (File photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)
TUCSON – Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium came alive as Tucsonans flocked to the diamond for a vibrant weekend of baseball, food and lively music to celebrate Mexican culture during National Hispanic Heritage Month.
The Mexican Baseball Fiesta, a beloved annual Tucson tradition, hosted professional teams from the Mexican Pacific League along with a special appearance from the Arizona Wildcats baseball team.
