09.21.99--The Cleveland Browns cut ex-Jet OL Alex Bernstein yesterday. WIth all the injuries in the NFL, he shouldn't be out of a job for long.

09.17.99--The St. Louis Rams re-signed Chad Levitt this past Monday. He had been released earlier in the preseason.

09.14.99--Larry Rothschild was given a 1-year extension on his contract that will have him coaching the Tampa Bay Devil Rays through the 2001 season. Rothschild has done a good job with the expansion team, increasing their win total from last year.

09.12.99--Tamir Goodman, the Orthodox shooting guard from Baltimore who had accepted a scholarship offer from Gary Williams, has decided not to become a Terp after all. Goodman said that Williams and his staff were not as flexible as he and his family had hoped regarding his Shabbat observation. "It was very discouraging," Goodman, 17, told The Baltimore Sun. "It would have been better off if they would have said in January `we would love to have you as a player, but I'm not sure the Sabbath can be worked out.' I would have said 'thank you' and moved on." For more details, click here.

09.09.99--Rosh Hashanah begins tonight at sundown and continues until Sunday night at sundown. All of us here wish you and yours a happy and sweet year full of Shawn Green homers, Chad Levitt touchdowns and more Lenny Krayzelburg world records.

09.06.99--Jamila Wideman, a 3-year veteran of the WNBA, will play in Israel this season for league power Elitzur Ramle. Wideman's mother is Jewish and thus she will play as an Israeli in the league (not counting against the 2 foreigner team limit). Wideman was not raised in any particular faith so she should have ample opportunity to explore her maternal family's heritage in detail during the season.

09.06.99--Josh Taves, the 1998 Defensive MVP in NFL-Europe, was released yesterday by the Oakland Raiders. The 6-7, 230 lb DE may want to try his luck in the CFL after failed attempts with the Lions, Dolphins, and now the Raiders.

09.05.99--Chad Levitt, one of the greatest players in Ivy League history, was released yesterday by the St. Louis Rams.

09.05.99--Virginia's K Todd Braverman kicked a game-winning 50-yard field goal to send the Cavs to a 20-17 victory over UNC. In Ann Arbor, Hayden Epstein handled the kickoff duties versus Notre Dame. Vitaly Pisetsky made all 7 FGs in Wisconsin's rout of Murray St. Wash.St. QB Steve Birnbaum finished 12-21-0-150 in a 27-7 loss to Utah.

09.03.99--In recent action, Israel's Anna Smashnova lost a tight 2-setter to Ai Sugiyama. Yesterday, Paul Goldstein lost a 4-set match to Jan Kroslak. However, Justin Gimelstob continued to move up the draw with a tough 5-set victory over Daniel Vasek

09.03.99--Maryland Kicker Brian Kopka kicked two field goals to lead the Terps to a 6-0 victory over Temple.

08.31.99--On the men's side, Paul Goldstein and Justin Gimelstob cruised through the first round with straight set victories on Monday. On the women's side, Anna Smashnova will open today against Japan's Ai Sugiyama.

8.29.99--After setting a world record in the 100m backstroke earlier this week, Ukrainian-born American Lenny Krayzelburg set 200m and 50m world records Friday and Saturday, respectively. Lenny's 24.99 in the 50m at the Pan Pacific championships knocked a whopping .14 off the previous World Record.

8.27.99--24-year-old Siberian-born immigrant Alex Averbukh vaulted 19-1/4 yesterday in taking the bronze medal at the World Track & Field Championships. It marks the 1st time that an Israeli has won a medal at the world's. Danny Krasnov took 9th place in 18-1/2. Not too shabby for such a small country to have 2 athletes make the finals of an event.

Also competing was Deena Drossin. In her 1st World Championship track race, Drossin took 11th in the 10000 in a respectable 32:11.14, the top American. A few days ago, Tommy Kafri broke the 11-year-old national record in the 200 in 20.89, but was unable to advance to the quarterfinals.

8.26.99--Justin Mallis, currently in Israel and will sign with a basketball club soon. Mallis, the all-time 3-point shooting leader at Adelphi, is automatic from 20-22 feet and causes matchup problems due to his legit 6-foot-7 frame at the small-forward slot.

Meanwhile, D3 All-American Mike Schantz has decided to play for the Plymouth Raiders in the English 1st Division instead of the Israeli League, which he had previously been considering. We wish both Mike and Justin the best of luck!

8.26.99--Dan Calichman returned to the New England Revolution lineup after missing several games with a groin pull. With the former D3 All-American from Williams College on defense, the Revs beat the Metrostars 2-1 in a shootout.

8.25.99--Israelis Aleksandr Averbukh, 18-6 1/2, and Danny Krasnov,18-6 1/2, both qualified for the Pole Vault Finals at the World Championships in Seville based on qualifying heights. As a result, they also qualified for the Sydney Olympics. It will be Danny's 3rd trip to the Olympia.

8.25.99--Lenny Krayzelburg broke Jeff Rouse's 7 year old 100m backstroke World Record yesterday at the Pan-Pacific Championships with a time of 53.60, knocking .26 off the previous mark. Friday night, Lenny goes after the 200m mark.

8.24.99-- Rogel Nachum, the world-class Israeli record-holder in the triple jump, just missed out on making the finals at the World Championships with his 54-8.75 leap, just 0.75 inches from 12th place. Making the finals would have automatically qualified the 1996 Olympian for the Sydney Games.

8.23.99-- Shawn Green eclipsed the 100 RBI mark for the 2nd consecutive season. Click here to see other Jewish players who have pulled the trick.

8.23.99-- Zhanna Pintusevich-Block was unable to repeat her World Championship silver medal performance in the 100 from 2 years ago, as she took 4th in 10.95, well off superstar Marion Jones (10.70) and improving Inger Miller (10.79). Maybe she will medal in the 200 later this week, but this time around she will have to contend with Jones, who did not run the 200 at the last championships when Pintusevich-Block won gold. Either way, Pintusevich-Block remains a world class sprinter who is a threat in Sydney.

In other news, Andy Bloom qualified for the discus final on Tuesday by finishing 3rd in the Group B heat. The women's 10000 qualifying heat got canceled, and thus there will only be a final. This should play into the hands of Alamosa, CO native Deena Drossin, who is not used to Seville's humidity.

8.21.99-- Andy Bloom's 4th place heave of 68-8.75 in the shot put highlighted the Jewish involvement in the 1st day of the World Track & Field Championships. He will also compete in the discus. Alex Porkhomovskiy, although bowing out in the quarterfinal, reset his Israeli record in the 100 in 10.20. His time was the 17th best of all sprinters who ran in the quarterfinal heats. Tommy Kafri was also eliminated in his quarterfinal heat with a 10.36 time, after running 10.38 in the 1st round. Meanwhile on the women' side, 1997 world runner-up Zhanna Pintusevich-Block is heating up after running 11.20 and 10.94 in the 1st round and quarterfinal heats. She has the 4th fastest time in the 100 going into Sunday's semifinal.

8.21.99--Tamir Goodman, tabbed the "Jewish Jordan" by the national media, is transferring to Takoma Academy in Takoma Park, Maryland. Takoma Academy, a Seventh Day Adventist school, observes their Sabbath at the same time as the Jewish Sabbath. This will allow Goodman to play basketball and attend secular classes while not interfering with his Orthodox Jewish studies and lifestyle. Goodman, a 6-3 (and growing) wing from Baltimore, will attend the University of Maryland on a basketball scholarship starting in the Fall of 2000. Check out the Baltimore Jewish Times for complete coverage.

8.21.99-- Check out the Sept/Oct issue of Fitness Swimmer at your local newsstand. Lenny Krayzelburg, the American record holder in the 200-meter backstroke, is on the cover!

8.20.99--Mathieu Schneider resigned with his hometown Rangers yesterday. The former Olympian and Maccabian received $2.75 million for 1-year. Hopefully the big spending by the Rangers this offseason will not backfire as it did last year.

8.20.99--Alex Bernstein, the big 300-pound guard out of Amherst College, was released by the Jets earlier this week and picked up by the new edition Cleveland Browns. The 3rd year pro and former D3 All-American has been used solely on practice squads during his career.

8.17.99--One week after topping 7th-seeded Todd Martin, Justin Gimelstob upset 15th-seeded Richard Fromberg, 6-4,2-6,7-6 (7-4) yesterday at the Legg Mason Classic. Hopefully, this will help Justin improve on his world ranking of 91.

8.16.99--The grumblings out of Foxwoods and Dana's camp suggest a rematch with Vinny Pazienza (Dana's only loss) on Nov. 5th. Ron Borges of the Boston Globe reports that Dana will receive 185K, while Vinny will get 350K. The rematch has lost its luster, as Vinny and Dana received 750K and 400K respectively for their first bout in August, 1996. We will keep you posted on any official announcements.

8.16.99--FL native Josh Cohen won the USTA under-14 doubles Nat'l Championship 6-2, 6-1, Saturday but Sunday lost the singles title to his own partner, 6-1, 6-3. Just goes to show you, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose! Way to go, Josh!

8.13.99--Former Knick GM Ernie Grunfeld was hired by the MIlwaukee Bucks, where he began his playing career to take over the General Manager duties. He joins owner Sen. Herb Kohl in the front office to form a one-two Jewish punch!

8.12.99--In Mason, OH, at the ATP Championship, Justin Gimelstob pulled off the upset of the day by beating 9th seeded Todd Martin, 6-4, 6-4. The news wasn't all good, though, as Paul Goldstein lost a tough match to 12th seeded Nicholas Kiefer, 2-6, 6-4, 7-6.

8.10.99--In a story that somehow slid under the radar, back on July 16, Mitch Marrow received an injury settlement from the Carolina Panthers and was released. The UPenn grad missed all of last season with a back injury. No word yet on whether he plans a comeback.

8.10.99--We're late on this, but better late than never. Andrew Lorraine threw a 3-hit shutout against the Astros in his debut with the Cubs on August 6th. The journeyman lefthander had his contract purchased from AAA Iowa last Thursday and made the most of it with his 1st career complete game and shutout. Lorraine, who saw action as a reliever for Seattle last year, said, "I just used my fastball and located my fastball really well. I just mixed everything else in, nothing spectacular." Look out for Lorraine later this week as he makes his next appearance.

8.09.99--Bruce Fleisher continued to dominate the Senior PGA Tour in his rookie season by winning the Long Island Classic in Jericho, NY by two strokes. Despite a final day one-over 73, Fleisher easily held off Allen Doyle for his fifth tour victory. With the win, he passed Hale Irwin to take over first place on the money list.

8.08.99--Lenny Krayzelburg, the Ukrainian-born American, reset his American record in the 200-meter backstroke yesterday at the US Championships in Minneapolis. His time was 1:56.68. After winning the US Championship, Krayzelburg said, "I think I can take the world record down at Pan Pacs [Pan Pacific Championships in Sydney later this month]. I'm a tenth off. I think it's going down." Also winning a championship was Jason Lezak in the 100-meter freestyle in a personal best of 49.34. The Irvine, CA native is now the 8th fastest American ever.

8.07.99--Harry Litwack, the legendary coach of Temple University's basketball program, passed away today at the age of 91 at his home in Huntingdon Valley, PA. Litwack is credited with developing the first zone defense. Litwack led the Owls to the 1969 NIT Championship (back when the NIT meant something). He also took the Owls to the NCAA Final 4 in 1956 and 1958. Nicknamed "The Chief", Litwack's career record from 1952-1973 was 373-193. He was inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1975. Litwack, also a player and captain for Temple in the 1920s, will be missed!

8.06.99--Paul Goldstein won a gold medal in singles' tennis at the Pan Am Games yesterday by beating Cecil Mamiit in a thrilling three set match, 4-6, 6-0, 6-3. The former Stanford All-American is a native of Rockville, MD.

8.05.99--Eddie Zosky made it back to the Bigs for the 1st time since 1995 when he played for the Marlins. The 2nd-baseman got called up to the Brewers earlier this week and now has 42 career at-bats. However, Zosky was sent back to the farm yesterday after just 2 games. The career journeyman also played for the Blue Jays in 1991 and 1992.

8.03.99--Aleksandr Averbukh of Russia recorded the best ever pole vault by a known Jewish athlete on August 1 at a local meet in Tel-Aviv. His height was 19'0.75". The 25-year-old is now currently ranked among the top 12 in the world. Averbukh has mostly been a decathalete in the past, but this breakout meet could be significant as he will represent his new country Israel at the World Championships in Seville later this month. Averbukh has competed at the Israeli Championships the past 2 years as a guest athlete.

8.02.99--Mickey Halika, the 21-year-old IDF soldier, took the silver in the 400-meter individual medley today at the European Swimming Championships in Istanbul. His time of 4:17.49 reset his Israeli record by over 4 seconds, while it is the 14th best ever in the world. After a slow start, Halika picked things up on the backstroke leg. Halika's silver is the 2nd ever silver for Israel at these championships, matching Eithan Urbach's silver 2 years ago.

Unfortunately, the highly rated 4x100 medley relay team failed to reach the finals. However 3 additional Israeli finalists that qualified for the 2000 Olympics include Eithan Urbach (bronze in 100 backstroke), Yoav Bruck (50 freestyle), and Yoav Gat with his 4th place (.22 off of the bronze) in the 200-meter backstroke in an Israeli record 2:00.72.

8.01.99--Shawn Green has surpassed the 30 homer mark for the 2nd year in a row and now has 31 for the year. He is on pace to become the 3rd Jewish player to hit 40 or more in a season. Click here to see the list of Jewish players who have hit 30 or more in a single season. Green also concluded a 28-game hit streak today,a Blue Jay record and AL high this season.

7.30.99--Deena Drossin took 3rd in the 5000 in a personal record of 14:56.84 at the prestigous DN Galan Grand Prix in Stockholm today. In breaking the 15-minute barrier for the 1st time, Drossin is now the 4th fastest American ever in the 5000 and currently owns the 7th fastest time in the world this year.

7.30.99--Jesse Levis is back in the Majors, this time with the AL power Cleveland Indians. Levis, 31, signed a Major League contract for the rest of the season after being released from Tampa Bay's minor league affiliate at his request earlier this week. Last year Levis hit .351 in 22 games for the Brew Crew before season ending right shoulder surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff. The former Tar Heel will replace Pat Borders as the Tribe backup catcher.

7.27.99--Eithan Urbach, the 22-year-old swimming sensation and model, took the bronze today at the European Championships in his forte, the 100-meter backstroke in 55.87. His medal marks the 2nd medal ever won by an Israeli at the European Championships, the other also won by Urbach back in 1997 when he took silver in the same event. Considered one of Israel's best hopes at a medal at the 2000 Olympics, Urbach (who qualified for the Olympics based on making the final in Istanbul) will have to contend with Jewish-American star Lenny Krayzelburg, who is favored to win gold.

Another top result was turned in by Mickey Halika with an Israeli record of 2:04.39 in the semifinals of the 200-meter individual medley. The highly rated 1996 Olympic Finalist 4x100 medley relay team of Urbach (back), Halika (fly), Yoav Bruck (free), and Vadim Alexeev (breath) is yet to compete. Both Urbach and Bruck are former All-Americans at Auburn University.

7.25.99-- In sync with the Toronto Blue Jays taking over the lead from the Red Sox for the AL Wild Card, Shawn Green has been on a tremendous tear since coming off the DL with an injured wrist. Since June 15, Green has the most homers in the AL, at 14 (John Jaha is 2nd with 12). Green is on pace to hit 47 dingers, which is only behind Hank Greenberg's magical 58 on the "All-Time Jewish List".

7.24.99-- Scott Schoeneweis, the former Duke Blue Devil, was sent back to Triple A on Friday to get some more innings before a possible pennant race with the Anahaim Angels this September.The 25-year-old lefty has pitched in 31 games, with 39.1 innings and a 5.49 ERA.

7.20.99-- Alex Porkhomovskiy, who immigrated to Israel from Moscow last Fall, set the Israeli record in the 100-meters in 10.23 at the 63rd Israeli Track & Field held at Hader Yosef last weekend. Porkhomovskiy, who won the race in a photo finish over former record (10.34) holder Tommy Kafri, had been struggling as of late, but this meet will hopefully put him back on track. His PR in the 100 is 10.12 (set in 1994). It is the fastest time ever by a known Jewish sprinter.

Later in the meet Porkhomovskiy ran the anchor leg of the 4X100, which included Raffi Yaar, Gideon Yablonka, and Kafri. They also set a new National Record with a time of 39.61, beating the previous best of 40.0 set in 1997.

Additionally, two Israelis studying at NAIA colleges won national titles. Gezachw Yossef, a 10-time All-American from Lindenwood (MO), won the 800 and 1500. Shai Shalev, an All-American from Life (GA), took the shot put.

7.18.99-- Deena Drossin PR'ed in the 3000 in 8:45.13 at the Nikaia Grand Prix in Nice, France. Her time was a 21-seond improvement over her previous best, and is significant as she has been training for the much longer 10000 at the World Championships in Seville this August. Drossin's time yesterday is the 16th best ever by an American in the 3000.

7.18.99-- Juan Alberto Espil's leading 14 points were not good enough, as the USA routed Argentina 103-72 in San Juan. Espil, the best Jewish basketball player from South America, is trying to lead his homeland to a 2nd place finish, which will result in a year 2000 Olympic birth.

Incidentally, Team USA is being coached by Jewish coaching legend Larry Brown, who is substituting in for the exhausted Rudy Tomjanovich. Also, Larry's brother Herb, has been named coach and VP of operations for the Baltimore Bay Runners of the new IBL, which begins play this Fall.

7.17.99-- It is now almost certain that Israeli star PG Oded Katash will play next season in Athens for Panathinaikos. The 6-4 star will put his NBA plans on hold for another year as he gets ready to sign a $1.1 million 1-year contract, with a 2nd year option at $1.2 million.

7.16.99-- Ken Barer, the former GWU basketball player and French League performer, has taken the lead assistant position at Long Island University. LIU is a NEC power. Barer coached last year at Wright St.

7.16.99-- Mila Nikolich, the naturalized Israeli from Belgrade, signed with the Houston Comets just before the All-Star break. She saw her first action tonight in 2 minutes. Nikolich, although not Jewish, is a beloved forward in the Israeli League. She led LACHEN Ramat Hasharon to the Ronchetti Cup Finals and the Israeli Championship last season. The 6-1 star averaged 22.7 PPG and 4.7 RPG.

7.14.99-- The Israeli yachting duo of Anat Fabrikant and Shani Kedmi took the bronze in the 470-Division, marking the 3rd medal won by Israel in WUG history.

7.12.99-- Andy Bloom has won 2 medals at the WUG - Silver in the Discus and Gold in the Shot. He threw the shot 69-3.75, a meet record and the best ever by a known Jewish shot puter. Another medal was turned in by IDF soldier Mickey Halika in swimming, in the 400-meter medley (4:21.78). His silver medal marks the 2nd ever medal by an Israeli at the WUG. Halika won the other medal 2 years ago at the last WUG.

7.10.99 -- Mazel Tov to Shawn Green and Mike Lieberthal, who were selected as reserves for the American and National League All-Star teams last Thursday. They are the first Jews to be selected to the All-Star game since pitcher Steve Stone (Orioles) in 1980, who started and threw 3 scoreless innnings for the American League in a 4-2 loss.

7.10.99-- Jewish American soccer player Jeff Agoos (DC United), was voted in as a starting defender for the MLS All-Star game in San Diego on July 17. He will represent the Eastern Conference. Agoos is a member of the US National Team and a former Maccabiah competitor.

7.03.99-- Zhanna Pintusevich-Block won the St. Denis Grand Prix 100 meters in a season best 10.97. She will be going for a medal in the World Championships later this summer, representing Ukraine. In 1997 Zhanna won the World 200-meter Championship and placed 2nd in the 100 in 10.85 (PR).

7.1.99-- The Argentinian National Basketball Team earned a trip to the Pan-American Games this July with their Silver Medal performance at the South American Championships. Although unable to win gold in a 73-67 loss to Brazil, star 6-4 Jewish guard Juan Espil led with 16 points.

6.28.99-- Deena Drossin and Andy Bloom qualified for the World Championships in Seville in August based on their bronze medal performances in the 10000 and discus at the US Championships. Drossin set a PR (Personal Record) in 32:00.72.

6.7.99-- Here are 3 Jewish college players taken in the 1st Year MLB Draft: Pitcher Tony Cogan (12th round - KC) of Stanford, Outfielder Glenn Katz (41st round - Tampa) of UConn, and Pitcher Scott Berney (28th round, Tampa) of UConn.