Reuters Sports News Summary

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Triumphant Massachusetts teen girl golfer denied trophy: report

A 16-year-old Massachusetts teenager who finished first in a regional tournament this week was denied the trophy and an opportunity to play at the state high school golf championships because she is female, according to a local media report. High schooler Emily Nash, 16, shot a three-over-par 75 at the Central Massachusetts Division 3 boys' golf tournament on Tuesday, four strokes ahead of the runner up, the Worcester Telegram & Gazette reported.

Girardi out as Yankees manager

Joe Girardi's tenure with the New York Yankees, who came within one win of a World Series berth this year, has come to an end after the Major League Baseball team said on Thursday he would not return as manger in 2018. Girardi, who won a World Series title in 2009 and guided the Yankees to the post-season in six of his 10 seasons as manager, had just concluded a four-year, $16 million contract with the storied ball club.

Alonso to race Daytona 24 Hours

McLaren's Fernando Alonso will compete in next January's Daytona 24 Hours sportscar race as preparation for an eventual tilt at Le Mans. The United Autosports team owned by McLaren executive director Zak Brown announced the move on Thursday.

Hamilton wants to seal title with a win

Lewis Hamilton says he wants to secure his fourth Formula One title by winning Sunday's Mexican Grand Prix, rather than finishing fifth. The Mercedes driver is on the brink of becoming Britain's first four-times world champion, one more than Jackie Stewart, and needs only a fifth place to do so, such is his advantage.

Astros beat Dodgers in wild Game Two to square series

George Springer's two-run home run in the 11th inning gave the Astros a wild 7-6 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday to send the World Series to Houston tied a 1-1. The Astros offense, which has been virtually non-existent on the road this postseason, came to life in extra innings when Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa hit back-to-back solo home runs to lead off the 10th, putting the Astros up 5-3.

Venus stuns Muguruza to advance at WTA Finals

Venus Williams gained revenge for her Wimbledon final defeat by Garbine Muguruza when the American advanced to the last four of the WTA Finals with a gutsy 7-5 6-4 victory over the Spanish world number two on Thursday. Both players knew a win would secure a passage to the semi-finals as they held identical 1-1 records in White Group play at the season-ending event but the 37-year-old was stronger on the key points and moved brilliantly around the court to progress.

Resilient Dodgers moving on from Game Two loss

The Los Angeles Dodgers remain a confident bunch even after suffering a dramatic extra-innings loss at home to the Houston Astros that leveled the World Series at one game apiece. Rather than hang their collective heads after the defeat on Wednesday the Dodgers did not appear shaken in the least but rather eager to head to Houston where the next three games of the best-of-seven series will be played starting on Friday.

Swiss great Hingis announces retirement

Swiss great Martina Hingis has announced she will retire from tennis at the end of this week's WTA Finals, where the 37-year-old multiple grand slam champion is playing in the doubles tournament alongside Taiwan's Chan Yung-jan. "Looking back now, it's hard to believe that almost exactly 23 years ago I made my professional debut," Hingis said on Facebook on Thursday.

Jewish leader urges Italian sports authorities to fight anti-Semitism

Italian sports authorities must do more to root out anti-Semitism in stadiums and apply sanctions against offending fans, the head of the country's Jewish communities said on Thursday. She was reacting to an anti-Semitic outburst by Lazio fans, who pasted stickers of Holocaust victim Anne Frank wearing the jersey of their rivals AS Roma at Rome's Olympic Stadium.

Ostapenko signs off with big win over Pliskova

Jelena Ostapenko ended her maiden WTA Finals campaign on a winning note with a surprisingly easy 6-3 6-1 victory over a subdued Karolina Pliskova on Thursday, the Latvian saving her best until last after she was eliminated earlier in the week. World number three Pliskova won her opening two White Group ties against Venus Williams and Garbine Muguruza to book a semi-final berth with a match to spare but the Czech was out-gunned by an inspired Ostapenko at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.