Wild send Wellman to Rangers

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - The Minnesota Wild have traded forward Casey Wellman to the New York Rangers for center Erik Christensen and a conditional seventh-round draft choice.

UMass seeks bounce back

WASHINGTON, D.C. - With the wounds of Wednesday night's loss at Rhode Island still fresh, the University of Massachusetts men's basketball team will try to put that game behind it when it plays George Washington at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Smith Center.

Surprise stories come to an end

The next Victor Cruz might come from Maine or Northern Iowa. The next James Ihedigbo might list McNeese State or Montana as his alma mater.

The dueling improbable stories with roots in Amherst coincidentally mark the end of an era for the University of Massachusetts. Because going from the Minutemen to the NFL won't likely be an unusual occurrence anymore.

Minutemen need points in race to Hockey East postseason

After last weekend's two losses, the University of Massachusetts hockey team urgently needs some points to stay in the Hockey East playoff picture.

The Minutemen will play Northeastern tonight at Matthews Arena in Boston and are at home against Merrimack Saturday. Both games are at 7 p.m.

Former coach Ron Lashway 'immensely proud' of Patriots safety James Ihedigbo

Of all the Patriots fans hoping for a Super Bowl victory on Sunday night, there will be at least one spectator in Amherst with a personal connection to the field. Former Amherst Regional football coach Ron Lashway has kept track of the professional career of New England safety James Ihedigbo, who starred for the Hurricanes from 1999 through 2002. "I'm just so immensely proud of James and everything he's accomplished," Lashway said. "He's never given up fighting for his dream, and now he's playing in the Super Bowl."

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Victor Cruz's Super Bowl run inspires Paterson, N.J.

PATERSON, N.J. - The word VICTORY is spelled out in the windows of Paterson's School 21, along with the phrases "Go Giants" and "Cruz Control."

It's a tribute to Victor Cruz who, in addition to being a star wide receiver on New York's Super Bowl-bound team, is also a School 21 graduate.

Rhode Island delivers deflating overtime loss to UMass men's basketball

KINGSTON, R.I. - The overwhelming optimism about the potential for the University of Massachusetts men's basketball team after Saturday's win over Saint Louis took a sizable dent Wednesday night.

Last-place Rhode Island, which stunned Dayton Saturday, added the Minutemen to its victim list by delivering an 81-78 upset in overtime Wednesday at the Ryan Center.