Killorn scored a short-handed goal 37 seconds into the perio

PITTSBURGH -- The comeback James Conner never doubted, not once, officially ended with an unremarkable 1-yard loss.And while the Pittsburgh running back picked himself up and quietly headed back to the huddle early in the first quarter against Villanova on Saturday, thousands inside Heinz Field rose to their feet for a standing ovation that had nothing to do with football and everything to do with perseverance.There will be plenty of time for Conner to nitpick his performance in Pitts 28-7 season-opening win. Just not Saturday. Conners well aware of the significance of his familiar No. 24 jersey sprinting onto the field for the first time in 364 days, a layoff that began with a knee injury last September against Youngstown State then became something far more harrowing when he was diagnosed with Hodgkins lymphoma around Thanksgiving.The road back included months of chemotherapy treatment, sessions that left him drained but undaunted. He soldiered through spring practice wearing a mask during drills to protect his depleted immune system, all the while hoping his example would resonate with those facing similar battles. Its a role he never envisioned having to fill, but one hes willingly embraced.Its why the stands were filled with family members, the medical staff that helped restore him to health and hundreds of friends from back home in Erie, Pennsylvania. Conners two-touchdown performance was as much a testament to their support as it was his resolve. At the same time hes only too happy to put this chapter -- the first chapter anyway -- behind him and get back to football and not the disease that temporarily brought the 2014 ACC Player of the Years blossoming career to a halt.Its not my first game, Conner said. I know its a comeback game but its felt like a regular season football camp really. My battle was already won, beating cancer. Everything else was a reward.There was rust to be sure. There were also signs that hes going to be just fine. The proof came in the second quarter when Conner took a handoff and raced around the left end, stiff-arming a Villanova defender before crossing the goal line to give the Panthers the lead while the teammates who elected him as one of Pitts three captains raced to congratulate him.That first touchdown couldnt be any better, stiff-arm into the end zone right into the student section, quarterback Nate Peterman said. It was an emotional moment.Conner was at it again just before the half, hauling in a 9-yard score by making a difficult grab in traffic over the middle. He finished with 53 yards on 17 carries and added three receptions for 16 yards as Pitt avoided an embarrassing slip-up a week before a highly anticipated showdown with Penn State.Im sure as we watch the tape were going to have a lot of corrections for him, coach Pat Narduzzi said. Mainly that hes looking for a touchdown every play instead of hitting it up there for three or four yards and be happy with it. Its been a long time since he stepped on the field in a game situation. He made plays when he needed to.Quadree Henderson returned the second-half kickoff 96 yards for a score to break things open. Peterman completed 19 of 32 passes for 175 yards and two touchdowns, including a pretty 16-yard lob to Jester Weah with six minutes to go. Still, the Panthers managed just 211 total yards.The Wildcats controlled play for portions of the first half, but three straight drives into Pitt territory failed to produce any points, giving the Panthers time to get going. Rob Rolle returned a Peterman fumble 3 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter for Villanovas only score.THE TAKEAWAYVillanova: Coach Andy Tally said entering his 32nd and final season the Wildcats will have to rely heavily on their defense. Theres reason for optimism as Villanova stayed within striking distance, keeping Pitts running game in check for the most part and preventing big plays.Pitt: The Panthers will need the passing game to develop quickly if they want to make noise in the crowded ACC Coastal Division. Villanova stacked the line of scrimmage and dared Peterman to throw it, which he did with only middling success.UP NEXTVillanova: Host Lehigh in their home opener.Pitt: Resumes its rivalry with Penn State after a 15-year hiatus when the Nittany Lions visit Heinz Field.---AP College Football site: www.collegefootball.ap.org Air Jordan Sale Uk . Oaklands loss to Seattle clinched the ALs best record for the Red Sox with one day to spare in the regular season. "I think everybody was kind of watching," catcher David Ross said. "Demp (Ryan Dempster) came out before he went to the bullpen and was just yelling that they lost. Air Jordan Trainers Uk . Arsenal failed to take full advantage of its main rivals stumbles on Saturday as substitute Gerard Deulofeu levelled with a hard shot from a tight angle in the 84th minute to give Everton a deserved point. Ahead of a crucial fortnight that will see them play against Napoli in the Champions League, Manchester City and Chelsea, Arsenal leads by five points ahead of Liverpool and Chelsea. http://www.airjordansaleuk.com/ .Y. -- Canadas Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse have another World Cup gold medal after winning the two-women bobsled race on Saturday in Lake Placid, N. Cheap Jordans For Sale . 4 Villanova with a 96-68 drubbing on Monday. Wragge hit 9-of-14 from behind the arc, matching Kyle Korvers school record for 3-pointers in a game set in 2003, as Creighton (16-3, 6-1 Big East broke a conference record with 21 treys in the rout. Air Jordan Shoes Uk . While hell be dialed in to that tournament on a course he loves, you can forgive him if his eyes glance down the calendar just a bit, towards April. CALGARY, Alberta -- After falling behind early on the road, the Tampa Bay Lightning were pleased with the way they responded.Brian Boyle scored two first-period goals and the Lightning beat Calgary 6-3 on Wednesday night to snap the Flames six-game winning streak.Thats a really good team over there. A lot of speed, a lot of skill. Theyre tough to play at home, and theyve been hot, Boyle said. Its never a perfect game, but we made some strides tonight.Alex Killorn also scored twice, the second into an empty net, and Braydon Coburn and Andrej Sustr added goals. Victor Hedman and Valtteri Filppula each had three assists, and Ben Bishop made 19 saves to help Tampa Bay win for only the second time in nine games (2-6-1).I give them credit. I thought they were the hungrier of the two teams and the margins were small and they deserved to get points out of there, Flames coach Glen Gulutzan said.Troy Brouwer, TJ Brodie and Micheal Ferland scored for Calgary.Brouwer had a power-play goal 3:06 into the game before the Lightning tied it at 10:04, converting their first man advantage. With Dougie Hamilton serving a double-minor for high-sticking, Boyle neatly re-directed Hedmans point shot past goalie Chad Johnson.Tampa Bay took the lead for good less than 4 minutes later when Boyle got behind Brodie with a nifty give-and-go with Filppula and beat Johnson with a deke to his backhand.(Hedman) was a monster tonight. Hes such a huge part of our team. Head up on the first one. I just kind of had my stick out in the air and he hits it, sandlot style, Boyle said.Trailing 2-1, the Flames had a couple of good chances to tie it early in the second but Johnny Gaudreau hit the post and good defending from Anton Stralman prevented Ferland from getting away a shot on a breakaway.ddddddddddddhortly after, Coburn put the Lightning up 3-1 when his slap shot from the blue line beat Johnson. It was Coburns first goal in 102 games.Sustrs first of the season at 18:47 made it 4-1.It wasnt the start we wanted, but Im pretty happy with the resiliency of our group coming back, Killorn said. You cant always control the way that the game starts, but you can control how you respond to that and I think we responded really well.Gulutzan replaced Johnson with Brian Elliott to open the third. Killorn scored a short-handed goal 37 seconds into the period.There are going to be games where you just dont have it, Brouwer said. Its a shame, because I actually thought we were pretty good to start the game and I liked where we were at, but then we let a couple floater shots from the point get through -- things that are uncharacteristic of us.Game notes The Lightning were without leading scorer Nikita Kucherov (undisclosed), who joined Steven Stamkos and Ryan Callahan on the sidelines. Then they lost Ondrej Palat (undisclosed) in the second period. ... Cory Conacher, recalled earlier in the day from Syracuse of the AHL, took Kucherovs spot on the line with Tyler Johnson and Palat.... Hedman played in his 500th NHL game. ... Calgarys Sean Monahan had an assist to extend his career-best scoring streak to eight games. He has four goals and six assists during the run, the second-longest active streak in the NHL behind Sidney Crosby (nine games).UP NEXTLightning: Complete their four-day, three-game Canadian trip at Vancouver on Friday night and Edmonton on Saturday night.Flames: Host Columbus on Friday night. ' ' '