[naviga:h3]SRU pole vaulters athletes of week[/naviga:h3]

SLIPPERY ROCK — Slippery Rock University pole vaulters Courtney McQuaide and Maddy Marshall have been named PSAC Women’s Indoor Co-Field Athletes of the Week.

McQuaide won the pole vault at the 25-team Youngstown State Invitational with a PSAC-best vault of 12 feet, eight inches. Marshall matched that height at the same event, but lost to McQuaide based on number of misses.

[naviga:h3]Kobe Bryant gets Oscar nomination[/naviga:h3]

LOS ANGELES — Does Kobe Bryant need another trophy? He might get one — at the Oscars.

Bryant, the retired Los Angeles Lakers star, was nominated in the animated short category for “Dear Basketball,” based on a poem he wrote in 2015 announcing his impending retirement from basketball. He was nominated along with veteran Disney animator Glen Keane.

“What??” Bryant responded on Twitter. “This is beyond the realm of imagination. It means so much that the (at)TheAcademy deemed (hash)DearBasketball worthy of contention. Thanks to the genius of (at)GlenKeanePrd & John Williams for taking my poem to this level. It’s an honor to be on this team.”

[naviga:h3]Granderson, Jays reach 1-year deal[/naviga:h3]

TORONTO — Outfielder Curtis Granderson and the Toronto Blue Jays have finalized a $5 million, one-year contract.

The three-time All-Star wore a Blue Jays T-shirt in a video posted to his Twitter timeline Tuesday and wrote he was “thrilled” to announce he’ll be playing north of the border this season.

He can earn an additional $1.5 million in performance bonuses.

[naviga:h3]NFL rejects veterans group’s Bowl ad[/naviga:h3]

MINNEAPOLIS — The NFL has denied advertising space in the Super Bowl program for a veterans group that declined to alter language about standing for the national anthem.

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy confirmed Tuesday that American Veterans, or AMVETS, submitted an advertisement last week to the third-party publisher of the game program with the message, “Please Stand.”

McCarthy said the league, which has editorial control over the content, asked AMVETS to consider other options for the message, such as “Please Honor our Veterans” or “Please Stand for our Veterans.” The two organizations were unable to agree on language in time to meet production deadlines.

Staff and wire reports