Lincoln, Neb. – Nebraska freshman Meghan Haggerty was honored by the Big Ten Conference on Monday as she was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week. Haggerty earned the award after helping Nebraska to the 2012 Ameritas Players Challenge team title.

She hit .600 for the week as the Huskers beat Oklahoma (3-0) and No. 19 Kentucky (3-1). She recorded an .818 hitting percentage against the Sooners, posting nine kills on 11 swings. Haggerty averaged 2.4 kills and 1.6 blocks per set over the weekend.

The award marks her second consecutive Freshman of the Week honor.

— Hilary Winter, Nebraska Sports Information

Two games tonight

UNDATED (AP) — There are two NFL games this evening. First up in Baltimore the Ravens are playing host to AFC North rival Cincinnati. A year ago the Ravens finished tied with Pittsburgh at 12-4 on top of the division, while the Bengals were 9-7.

The second game is in Oakland and has the Raiders playing host to the Chargers in an AFC West encounter. Both clubs finished 8-8 last season.

Sox and Tigers start key series

UNDATED (AP) — The top two clubs in the American League Central start a four-game series tonight in Chicago. The White Sox start the day with a two-game lead over the second-place Tigers. The pitching matchup has Rick Porcello for the visitors and Jose Quintana for the White Sox.

In another AL Central matchup, the Indians and Twins wrap up their four-game series for control of last place. The Twins have taken two of the first three games in the series and now trail the Indians by just a game for fourth place in the five-team division.

Two teams vying for one of the two American League Wild Card berths start a series tonight in Anahim, Calif. The Athletics currently hold on of the spots while the Angels are a game back. The other AL Wild Card berth is held by Baltimore and the Orioles have the night off.

In the National League this evening Atlanta and St. Louis, the two teams holding a Wild Card spot, are on the road. The Braves are facing the Brewers in Milwaukee, while the Cardinals are in San Diego for a game with the Padres.

In the NL East, the Braves are 5 ½ games back of Washington and tonight the Nationals are in New York facing the Mets.

First place San Francisco of the NL West has a chance to build on its lead over second-place Los Angeles. While the Dodgers have the night off, the Giants are playing the Rockies in Denver.

Wrapping up the rest of the NL schedule, Miami is at Philadelphia, Chicago is playing in Houston and Pittsburgh is in Cincinnati. The Reds have an 8 ½ game lead over the Cardinals in the Central while the Pirates are just 2 ½ games out of a Wild Card berth.

No. 1 Alabama’s Fowler to undergo knee surgery 

RGIII debut a hit in the Big Easy

In opening week NFL results:

— Maybe the Washington Redskins knew what they were doing when they traded up to take Baylor QB Robert Griffin III with the second pick in the draft. Griffin completed 19 of 26 passes for 320 yards and two touchdowns in the Redskins’ 40-32 upset of New Orleans. Griffin is the first QB to break in with more than 300 passing yards, two TDs and no interceptions in his debut.

— Top draft pick Andrew Luck didn’t have much luck in his NFL debut. Luck was picked off three times and was outplayed by Jay Cutler as the Chicago Bears routed Luck’s Indianapolis Colts 41-21.

— The San Francisco 49ers have ended the Green Bay Packers’ streak of five straight opening day victories–and they did it at Lambeau Field, no less. The Niners defense harassed quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Packers offense most of the day in pulling off a 30-22 upset.

— Michael Vick atoned for his four interceptions by tossing a late touchdown pass that lifted the Philadelphia Eagles to a 17-16 road win over the Cleveland Browns. Vick threw for 317 yards and two TDs.

— Detroit rallied to nip St. Louis 27-23. Matthew Stafford hit Kevin Smith with a five-yard TD pass with 10 seconds left to win it.

— The defending AFC champion Patriots rolled the Titans 34-13 for their ninth-straight season-opening win. Tom Brady threw for 236 yards and two touchdowns,

— After a weak preseason, the New York Jets came out firing in a 48-28 rout of Buffalo. Mark Sanchez tossed three TD passes, two to rookie Stephen Hill.

— Matt Ryan threw for three touchdowns and ran for a fourth score in Atlanta’s 40-24 drubbing of Kansas City.

— Houston trounced Miami 30-10. Arian Foster ran for two touchdowns and Texans quarterback Matt Schaub threw for 266 yards and a TD.

— Rookie Blair Walsh booted a 55-yard field goal as regulation time expired and another in overtime to lift Minnesota past Jacksonville 26-23.

— Tampa Bay’s rejuvenated defense came up with two interceptions against Cam Newton, and the Buccaneers won their debut under coach Greg Schiano 16-7 over the Carolina Panthers.

— Kevin Kolb replaced injured John Skelton and led Arizona on the deciding touchdown drive, throwing 6 yards to Andre Roberts for a score with 4:59 to play, and the Cardinals held on to beat the Seattle Seahawks 20-16.

Monday night’s doubleheader has a strong AFC North matchup of Cincinnati at Baltimore, followed by a not-so-strong AFC West matchup of San Diego at Oakland.

Week 1 action began Wednesday night when the Super Bowl champion New York Giants were stunned 24-17 by visiting Dallas.

Working out the kinks…An NFL first in the Motor City

UNDATED (AP) — Replacement officials are working NFL games for the first time in 11 years and things did not go as smoothly as the league would have liked. These officials are from Division II and Division III college, Arena League and even the Lingerie Football League.

Replacements in a game between Arizona and Seattle needed several minutes to determine whether the Seahawks had any timeouts left after calling one in the closing seconds.

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll called timeout with 30 seconds left, but the officials had announced three plays earlier Seattle used its last one when receiver Doug Baldwin was injured.

After huddling, then meeting with two different people from the sideline, the officials determined the previous stoppage had been on an incomplete pass, so the Seahawks were not charged with a timeout. NFL rules require teams to use a timeout for an injured player with the clock running in the final two minutes.

Shannon Eastin made history on the opening Sunday of the 2012 season. The 42-year-old became the first woman to be an official in a regular-season game when she worked as the line judge for the Detroit Lions’ game against the visiting St. Louis Rams.

Eastin has been a referee at college football’s second-highest level and has 16 years of officiating experience.

The NFL is using replacement officials while the regular officials are locked out in a labor dispute.

Yanks alone at the top…But fear Teixeira could be out awhile…Angels surge into wild card hunt

UNDATED (AP) — The Yankees regained sole possession of first place in the American League East by clobbering the Orioles 13-3 to gain an important split of their four-game series in Baltimore. Both teams have 22 games left.

Curtis Granderson blasted his 35th homer and collected five RBIs. Derek Jeter also homered for the Bronx Bombers.

The two teams finished 9-9 in head-to-head meetings this season. If the O’s had won this one they would have had home field for a playoff if they finished tied for the division title with New York.

Now, if the two are tied at the end of the regular season, their record within the division will be the tiebreaker.

The Yankees fear first baseman Mark Teixeira aggravated a leg injury Saturday night, and the severity of his strained left calf will determine if he returns to play this season. Teixeira returned Saturday night from a 10-day absence, then hurt himself on the final play.

Yanks manager Joe Girardi doubts whether Teixeira will play “anytime soon.”

Also in the AL:

— Zack Greinke pitched seven strong innings of five-hit ball, Mike Trout hit a leadoff homer for the second straight day and the L.A. Angels completed their second straight series sweep with a 3-2 win over slumping Detroit. The Angels have surged within one game behind Baltimore in the wild card chase.

— James Shields improved to 14-8 by twirling a two-hitter, and B.J. Upton blasted three solo home runs to lead Tampa Bay past visiting Texas 6-zip. The Rays took two of three from the West-leading Rangers and remain two games behind the first-place Yankees in the AL East race.

— Mike Moustakas stroked a go-ahead single in the 10th inning to lift Kansas City to a 2-1 win over the Central-leading Chicago White Sox. The Royals plated both their runs with two outs in the 10th off Brett Myers.

— Omar Vizquel’s sacrifice fly in the top of the ninth provided what proved to be the game-winning run in the Blue Jays’ 4-3 victory at Boston. Toronto entered the series in last place in the AL East but left Fenway Park two games ahead of the Red Sox. The Blue Jays have won four straight overall and six in a row against Boston.

— Justin Morneau hit his second homer of the game in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift Minnesota to an 8-7 victory over Cleveland. The Twins have won two in a row and move within one game of the Indians in an attempt to get out of last place in the AL Central.

— Jonny Gomes hit a three-run home run, Tommy Milone worked six strong innings and the Oakland Athletics finished off a three-game sweep of the Seattle Mariners with a 4-2.

In NL Play:

— San Francisco ran its lead in the NL West to five and a-half games by blanking the L.A. Dodgers 4-0. Barry Zito (ZEE’-toh) tossed six and a-third innings, allowing just four hits. Zito and six relievers combined on the shutout. Buster Posey hit his 20th home run.

— Ricky Nolasco tossed a four-hitter and visiting Miami blanked Washington 8-0. It’s the second time in two weeks the veteran right-hander shut out the major league-leading Nationals. Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton homered for the third straight day.

— Atlanta creeps within 5 ½ games of East leader Washington with a 3-2, 10-inning victory over the Mets in New York. Brian McCann homered and drove in the go-ahead run in the final frame, giving the Braves their fifth straight victory.

— Allen Craig’s RBI single with two outs in the 10th inning lifted St. Louis past Milwaukee 5-4 as the Cardinals avoid a three-game sweep by the visiting Brewers. The Cards ended a three-game skid and still hold their slim lead for the second NL wild-card spot.

— Matt Dominguez hit a three-run homer and the Houston Astros slowed Cincinnati’s run to the NL Central title with a 5-1 win over the Reds. Tyler Greene added a solo shot for the winners.

— San Diego clubbed Arizona 8-2. Chase Headley hit a grand slam to extend his career-bests to 27 homers and an NL-high 102 RBIs. Headley and Carlos Quentin connected on the Padres’ first back-to-back homers this season.

— Alfonso Soriano hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning to give the Cubs the go-ahead runs and Chicago completed a three-game sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates with a 4-2 win. Josh Vitters and Anthony Recker hit solo home runs for the Cubs in the fourth. Andrew McCutchen went deep for the Pirates.

15th Grand Slam for Serena…Djokovic bounces back big time

NEW YORK (AP) — Serena Williams beat No. 1-ranked Victoria Azarenka 6-2, 2-6, 7-5 for her fourth U.S. Open championship and 15th Grand Slam title overall. Williams improved to 26-1 since a first-round exit at the French Open in late May, winning Wimbledon and the London Olympics.

It was the first three-set women’s final at the U.S. Open since 1995, and Williams came through with a late charge. She is the first woman to win Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in the same season since she did it a decade ago.

Williams trails Steffi Graf’s all-time record of 22 Grand Slams. Martina Navratilova is next on the list with 18 Slams.

Defending champion Novak Djokovic found his game overnight and went out and beat No. 4 seed David Ferrer 2-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 to earn a berth in the U.S. Open final. The second-seeded Serb trailed 5-2 in the opening set Saturday when bad weather forced them off the court at Flushing Meadows.

Djokovic will play Andy Murray for the title this afternoon in New York. The third seed beat No. 6 seed Tomas Berdych in four sets Saturday. Murray, the Olympic champ, is stalking his first major.

PGA champ goes back to back in playoffs

CARMEL, Ind. (AP) — Fresh off a victory in the Deutsche Bank Championship at TPC Boston, Rory McIlroy beat Lee Westwood and Phil Mickelson by two strokes at the BMW Championship at Crooked Stick near Indianapolis. McIlroy closed with a 5-under-par 67 to finish minus 20 for the tournament. Westwood carded a 69 and Mickelson signed for a 70.

Tiger Woods shot a 68 and finished three shots back in a tie for fourth place with Robert Garrigus, who had a 69.

McIlroy became the first player since Woods in 2009 to win in consecutive weeks on the PGA Tour. He joins Woods and Jack Nicklaus as the only players to win at least six tour events before turning 24.

The top 30 in the FedEx standings will play in the Tour Championship Sept. 20-23 at East Lake in Atlanta.

AMERICAN LEAGUE
N-Y Yankees 13 Baltimore 3
Toronto 4 Boston 3
Tampa Bay 6 Texas 0
Minnesota 8 Cleveland 7
Kansas City 2 Chi White Sox 1, 10 Innings
L.A. Angels 3 Detroit 2
Oakland 4 Seattle 2
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Philadelphia 3 Colorado 2 (first game)
Philadelphia 7 Colorado 4 (second game)
Atlanta 3 N-Y Mets 2, 10 Innings
Houston 5 Cincinnati 1
Chi Cubs 4 Pittsburgh 2
Miami 8 Washington 0
St. Louis 5 Milwaukee 4, 10 Innings
San Diego 8 Arizona 2
San Francisco 4 L.A. Dodgers 0
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Atlanta 40 Kansas City 24
N-Y Jets 48 Buffalo 28
Chicago 41 Indianapolis 21
Minnesota 26 Jacksonville 23, OT
Houston 30 Miami 10
New England 34 Tennessee 13
Philadelphia 17 Cleveland 16
Detroit 27 St. Louis 23
Washington 40 New Orleans 32
Tampa Bay 16 Carolina 10
San Francisco 30 Green Bay 22
Arizona 20 Seattle 16
Denver 31 Pittsburgh 19

The Denver Broncos defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-19 at Sports Authority Field last night, opening Peyton Manning’s Bronco tenure on a high note. The veteran quarterback showed almost no sign of rust as he completed 19-of-26 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns. He led the Broncos to 10 points on consecutive drives after the Steelers had taken a 19-14 lead early in the fourth quarter. Another new acquisition sealed the win for the Broncos. Tracy Porter returned an interception for a touchdown right at the two minute warning to put Denver in front by two scores. The Broncos defense sacked Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger five times and limited the Steelers to 284 total yards. Week Two will provide another tough test for Manning and the Broncos. They head south to take on the Atlanta Falcons next Monday night.

The Husker football team is out of the AP Top 25 poll for the first time since November 2009. They dropped into the ‘Also Receiving Votes’ category after their 36-30 loss at UCLA Saturday night. The Huskers had been ranked 16th entering the contest, which saw them give up 653 yards of total offense. That’s the most that any Husker defense has allowed in the Bo Pelini era. Nebraska remains ranked 24th in the USA Today coaches’ poll, down 10 spots from the week before. The Huskers had good company in terms of tumbling out of the AP Poll – Arkansas, Wisconsin and Oklahoma State, all considered conference title contenders, saw themselves slide out of the rankings after losses this weekend as well. Nebraska looks to rebound against Arkansas State on Saturday at Memorial Stadium. It’s set for an 11 AM kickoff.

The Colorado Rockies blew early leads in losing both ends of a doubleheader to the Philadelphia Phillies yesterday. In the opener, the Rockies edged out to a 2-0 lead in the second inning, but the offense would do no further damage and the Phillies won 3-2 on a walk-off bloop single by John Mayberry Jr. in the ninth. The nightcap saw the Rockies take a 4-1 lead in the third inning, with Chris Nelson’s three-run homer capping the four-run frame. But again, one inning of offense would be all the Rockies would get. The Phillies scored twice in the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings, helped by five Rockies errors, and won the game 7-4. The Rockies will hope to rebound from their sweep in Philadelphia as they return home to open a series against San Francisco tonight. ESPN Radio 1410 has the action, with the pregame show at 7:05 and the first pitch at 7:40.

Saturday
BASEBALL
American League

Kansas City at Chicago White Sox, 3:05 p.m.

N.Y. Yankees at Baltimore, 6:05 p.m.

Toronto at Boston, 6:10 p.m.

Texas at Tampa Bay, 6:10 p.m.

Cleveland at Minnesota, 6:10 p.m.

Detroit at L.A. Angels, 8:05 p.m.

Oakland at Seattle, 8:10 p.m.

National League

Miami at Washington, 12:05 p.m.

Atlanta at N.Y. Mets, 3:05 p.m.

L.A. Dodgers at San Francisco, 3:05 p.m.

Chicago Cubs at Pittsburgh, 6:05 p.m.

Colorado at Philadelphia, 6:05 p.m. (LISTEN LIVE on ESPN Radio 1410)

Houston at Cincinnati, 6:10 p.m.

Milwaukee at St. Louis, 6:15 p.m.

Arizona at San Diego, 7:35 p.m.

FOOTBALL
Top 25

No. 1 Alabama vs. Western Kentucky, 2:30 p.m.

No. 2 Southern Cal vs. Syracuse at East Rutherford, N.J., 2:30 p.m.

No. 3 LSU vs. Washington, 6 p.m.

No. 4 Oregon vs. Fresno State, 5:30 p.m.

No. 5 Oklahoma vs. Florida A&M, 6 p.m.

No. 6 Florida State vs. Savannah State, 5 p.m.

No. 7 Georgia at Missouri, 6:45 p.m.

No. 8 Arkansas vs. Louisiana-Monroe at Little Rock, Ark., 6 p.m.

No. 9 South Carolina vs. East Carolina, 11:21 p.m.

No. 11 Michigan State at Central Michigan, 2:30 p.m.

No. 12 Clemson vs. Ball State, 11:30 p.m.

No. 13 Wisconsin at Oregon State, 3 p.m.

No. 14 Ohio State vs. UCF, 11 a.m.

No. 15 Virginia Tech vs. Austin Peay, 12:30 p.m.

No. 16 Nebraska at UCLA, 6:30 p.m.

No. 17 Texas vs. New Mexico, 7 p.m.

No. 18 Oklahoma State at Arizona, 9:30 p.m.

No. 19 Michigan vs. Air Force, 2:30 p.m.

No. 20 TCU vs. Grambling, 6 p.m.

No. 21 Kansas State vs. Miami, 11 a.m.

No. 22 Notre Dame vs. Purdue, 2:30 p.m.

No. 23 Louisville vs. Missouri State, 2:30 p.m.

No. 24 Florida at Texas A&M, 2:30 p.m.

No. 25 Stanford vs. Duke, 9:30 p.m.

MOTORSPORTS

Formula One, Italian Grand Prix Qualifying, Monza, 7 a.m.

NHRA Full Throttle, U.S. Nationals Qualifying, Clermont, Ind., 10 a.m.

NASCAR, Federated Auto Parts 400, Richmond, Va., 6:30 p.m.

Sunday
BASEBALL
American League

Toronto at Boston, 12:35 p.m.

N.Y. Yankees at Baltimore, 12:35 p.m.

Texas at Tampa Bay, 12:40 p.m.

Cleveland at Minnesota, 1:10 p.m.

Kansas City at Chicago White Sox, 1:10 p.m.

Detroit at L.A. Angels, 2:35 p.m.

Oakland at Seattle, 3:10 p.m.

National League

Atlanta at N.Y. Mets, 12:10 p.m.

Houston at Cincinnati, 12:10 p.m.

Miami at Washington, 12:35 p.m.

Chicago Cubs at Pittsburgh, 12:35 p.m.

Colorado at Philadelphia, 12:35 p.m. (LISTEN LIVE on ESPN Radio 1410)

Milwaukee at St. Louis, 1:15 p.m.

Arizona at San Diego, 3:05 p.m.

L.A. Dodgers at San Francisco, 7:05 p.m.

FOOTBALL
NFL

Indianapolis at Chicago, 12 p.m.

Jacksonville at Minnesota, 12 p.m.

Miami at Houston, 12 p.m.

New England at Tennessee, 12 p.m.

Washington at New Orleans, 12 p.m.

Atlanta at Kansas City, 12 p.m.

Buffalo at N.Y. Jets, 12 p.m.

St. Louis at Detroit, 12 p.m.

Philadelphia at Cleveland, 12 p.m.

Seattle at Arizona, 3:25 p.m.

San Francisco at Green Bay, 3:25 p.m.

Carolina at Tampa Bay, 3:25 p.m.

Pittsburgh at Denver, 7:20 p.m. (LISTEN LIVE on ESPN Radio 1410)

MOTORSPORTS

Formula One, Italian Grand Prix, Monza, 6:30 a.m.

NHRA Full Throttle, U.S. Nationals, Clermont, Ind., 10 a.m.

OTHER EVENTS
Tennis

USTA, U.S. Open, New York

Golf

PGA Tour, BMW Championship, Indianapolis.

LPGA Tour, Kingsmill Championship, Williamsburg, Va.

European Tour, KLM Open, Hilversum, Netherlands.