e team.Ashley, who had a 3.0 GPA as a freshman and is interested in studying criminal justice, said the Panthers chemistry is part of what makes the team special.We encourage each other, she said. We believe in each other.That goes for all 45 girls in the PVI prog

LAS VEGAS -- Super middleweight Claressa Shields, the two-time U.S. Olympic gold-medal winner, made her professional debut in action-packed style as she powered to a four-round decision victory against amateur rival Franchon Crews on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena.Shields, a 21-year-old from Flint, Michigan, was the best female in amateur boxing and named the most outstanding fighter of the womens tournament at the Rio Games in August. She began her pro career by defeating Crews, a decorated amateur who had lost three times to Shields in the unpaid ranks.Shields beat Crews again in the paid ranks and did so handily, winning 40-36 on all three judges scorecards in a blazing fight. ESPN.com also had Shields winning 40-36. Shields victory took place on the undercard of her idol Andre Wards light heavyweight world title challenge against Sergey Kovalev.It feels so good to have just made my pro debut, Shields said. This is what Ive been training for. Im faster and I hit harder. And Im the better fighter. But Crews brought 100 percent, and I respect her for that. I hope to fight next in January or February.?As soon as the bell rang to begin the fight, Shields and Crews stormed toward each other with all-out aggression in what was a blazing first round. There were several heated exchanges, and they both landed clean punches. The action did not let up in the second round, but Shields appeared to get the better of Crews, even landing a heavy left hand as the round wound down.Referee Russell Mora twice warned Crews (0-1), 29, of Baltimore, for pushing Shields to the canvas and sneaking in some solid blows.Shields (1-0), who earned $50,000, was going hard for a knockout in the fourth round and rattled Crews, who made $10,000, with several hard punches.Its not what I wanted, but to be called on, last minute, for a fight of this magnitude, I am proud of myself, Crews said. We will fight again in the future.Shields, the most decorated female amateur in history who is also a four-time U.S. national champion and two-time world amateur champion, has not lost since 2012 and finished her amateur career 77-1. Mecole Hardman Jersey Large . If ever they start actually putting pictures beside words in the dictionary, the Blue Jays left-handers mug will appear beside “Consistency. Jerrel Wilson Jersey . Supported by three-run homers from Jayson Werth and Wilson Ramos, the young right-hander went seven strong innings in the Washington Nationals 8-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night. http://www.customchiefsjersey.com/custom-joe-montana-jersey-large-776n.html .C. - The Carolina Hurricanes have placed backup goalie Anton Khudobin on injured reserve with an unspecified lower-body injury. Dustin Colquitt Jersey . Just as Montreal was settling into the first full working week of a new year, the Impact announced the appointment of their new head coach. Alex Brown Jersey . The Americans, skipped by John Shuster, seized the advantage in the eighth end by scoring five points for a 7-3 lead. The Czechs pulled two back in the ninth, but Shusters team of third Jeff Isaacson, second Jared Zezel and lead John Landsteiner ended with another point to secure the last Olympic berth on offer. When Ashley Owusu was a 9-year-old aspiring basketball player, her father vowed to take her to the gym anytime she wanted.That promise became difficult to keep.Owusu, bitten by the basketball bug, would call her dad every day as he was driving home from work, telling him she was eager to put up shots.At first, Emmanuel Owusu, who had played soccer and baseball as a youth, was excited that his daughter was a budding athlete. But after a while, especially on days when he was especially tired, things changed. Emmanuel started fibbing, telling his daughter that the recreational center was closed.Ashley, though, would not be denied. One day, she went online -- on her own -- and found the phone number to the center, called and discovered that the gym was actually open.So I put on my basketball clothes, Owusu said, and I made sure I was ready to go when he got home.Realizing hed been outsmarted by his fourth-grader, Emmanuel had no choice but to acquiesce.And now, a half-dozen years later, hes glad he did because Ashley is the No. 12 prospect in the espnW HoopGurlz Terrific 25 for the 2019 class. Shes also the point guard for the No. 1 girls basketball team in the nation, Paul VI (Fairfax, Virginia).Now a 5-foot-9 sophomore, Owusu got her first scholarship offers when she was in eighth grade. She averaged 13.1 points as a freshman and is at 14.5 points this season, and has offers from schools such as Maryland, Ohio State, Virginia Tech, Virginia, Georgia and Michigan.Its a good problem to have, Emmanuel said. But its overwhelming. Sometimes a coach will call with an offer, and Im thinking they already offered. It can be embarrassing.But as popular as shes become with college coaches, Owusus hardly the only Paul VI player who gets attention.The Panthers have nine Division I players on their roster, including at least eight who will go to a high-major school.That list includes Amira Collins, a 6-3 junior post player and the No. 27 prospect in the espnW HoopGurlz Super 60 for the 2018 class. She committed to Tennessee last week.In addition, 6-3 senior center Mikayla Vaughn, a transfer from Friends Central (Wynnewood, Pennsylvania), signed with Notre Dame last month.Honesty Scott-Grayson, a 5-10 junior guard, is ranked No. 11 in the Super 60 but has yet to pick a college. She transferred in this season from Blair Academy (Blairstown, New Jersey).Other top players include 5-4 senior guard Rayna Barbour, 6-4 junior center Lauren Ebo, 5-11 sophomore guard Jayla James, 5-11 junior wing Kate Klimkiewicz and 5-7 freshman guard Aurea Gingras.Evolution of a powerThis is Scott Allens 15th season as coach of the Panthers, and its been anything but an overnight success.In Allens first 11 years at Paul VI -- or PVI as it is often known -- the Panthers were a solid team but not good enough to win a single conference title or even get to a final.Then again, the Panthers play in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference, regarded as one of the best leagues in the nation.Allen grew his program with great patience. The breakthrough finally came in the fall of 2010 when talented 5-9 guard Ariana Freeman showed up on campus.I knew she was the type of player we could build around, Allen said. As she grew older, we started to have some success.In 2013-14, Freeman averaged 16.2 points and was named the WCAC player of the year after leading the Panthers to a 29-5 record and the first league title in program history.The Panthers made it three in a row last season, winning their final 19 games, finishing with a 33-1 record and a No. 3 national ranking.Guard Jasmine Whitney, now at the University of Pittsburgh, was one of the stars of last seasons team, along with guard Raven James, a freshman at Villanova. Whitney finished her four-year Paul VI career with a 123-12 mark, setting the program record for wins as a player.Former Panther Marlena Tremba, now a senior guard for William & Mary, said shes proud of her alma mater.I got to play three years with Ariana, and I think we did a good job of establishing the program, Tremba said. Its great to see how far the program has come.Fate intervenesFreeman, now a redshirt sophomore at the University of Colorado, said she almost didnt attend Paul VI. She wanted to attend St. Johns College High School in Washington D.C., whiich would have required a nearly two-hour train ride from her home.dddddddddddd Freeman wanted to play with guard Lindsay Allen, now a senior star at Notre Dame.Freemans parents, however, insisted she go to PVI, which was much more convenient. But Freeman arrived at PVI indignant. She was a champion eye-roller and a master at cursing under her breath.I thought I was hot stuff, Freeman said. I was like, I dont want to do this. Why do we have all these rules? Why do we have to dress a certain way? Me and [Allen] would get into it.Freeman remembers one time when she was averaging 28 and 12 and yet was benched, along with Tremba, because of some attitude they had displayed the previous day in practice.He didnt look at us, Freeman said. He didnt talk to us -- the whole first half.Things got so bad that Freeman requested a meeting with her parents, Allen and assistant coach Jeff Benjamin. Freeman brought in a hand-written list with a full page of grievances. She was intent on transferring.But once her parents -- Desmond and Veronique -- heard Allens side of the story, they were shocked at their daughters attitude. Veronique took the piece of paper from Freemans hands and ripped it up.Her mother nearly came across the table -- thats how upset she was, Allen said. After that, we never had a problem with Ariana again.Freeman said shes grateful to Allen.It doesnt matter how good you are if you dont follow the rules, Freeman said. It took me until my senior year to realize and see that he truly cares about me.I had a knee injury early in my senior year. The doctors told me I would miss the rest of the season, but no way -- I came back for the playoffs.Fittingly, Freeman was there when PVI defeated St. Johns -- the school she had wanted to attend -- for the Panthers first WCAC title.A winning systemMark Giannotto, who covers girls basketball for The Washington Post, said it was noteworthy before last season when Amira Collins transferred to PVI from its rival, St. Johns, showing how much things have changed.[Allen] has a system that works, he said.Owusu is a perfect example of that system.When she was in seventh grade, she was averaging 22 points in AAU ball while playing up against high school sophomores.Seeing her special abilities, her father started going to different high school gyms, watching games and taking notice of which players on which teams tended to improve each year. Whitney was one player he saw get better, adding new elements to her game every season.PVI didnt even call us -- we called them, Emmanuel said. We took a visit, and Ashley loved the school.Emmanuel said playing in the Panthers structured system will help Ashley once she gets to college.[Allen] plays the San Antonio Spurs style, Emmanuel said. No one person is more important than the team.Ashley, who had a 3.0 GPA as a freshman and is interested in studying criminal justice, said the Panthers chemistry is part of what makes the team special.We encourage each other, she said. We believe in each other.That goes for all 45 girls in the PVI program, counting the junior varsity and the freshman teams, and theres a great deal of continuity in how they are instructed.The JV program, which has lost an average of just one game per year the past five seasons, is coached by Benjamin, who has been with PVI since 2005. The freshmen, since 2001, have been coached by Tony Conques, the father of five PVI graduates.As the head coach, Allen has created a feeling of togetherness that goes hand in glove with talent. But there is another T word -- along with togetherness and talent -- that is a factor in the Panthers success story, and thats Allens well-placed temper.Tremba said there were times when Allen would kick the girls out of practice when he wasnt happy with their effort.We would regroup outside the locker room and then come back in, Tremba said. There was one time that I missed a layup in practice, and he got so mad that he threw his sunglasses down and stomped on them. He always jokes that I owe him $20 for those sunglasses.[Allen] is tough but personable. He was great at preparing us for college. He made sure that we ran college-level practices. ' ' '