RIO DE JANEIRO -- Sailing past her crumpled teammate, Anna van der Breggen suddenly realized she was the only hope the Netherlands had of defending its gold medal in the womens Olympic road race.She did so in the most dramatic of fashions.Working with Swedens Emma Johansson and Italys Elisa Longo Borghini to track down American rival Mara Abbott in sight of the finish, van der Breggen swept to the lead and won the dash to the line along Copacabana Beach on Sunday in the biggest victory of her career.Van der Breggen was soon embraced by Dutch teammate Marianne Vos, who won gold at the 2012 London Games, and turned her thoughts to Annemiek van Vleuten, whose spectacular crash gave her a chance.We passed Annemiek on the road. It didnt look good, van der Breggen said. So after, Emma just said, `Do it for Annemiek, and I said `Yeah, thats right.Van der Breggen thrust her arms in the air as thousands of fans lining the course roared approval, and a light mist that had been threatening for hours finally began to fall.It would have taken a downpour to dampen her spirits.I would have put money on Anna to win this race, said world champion Lizzie Armitstead, who was fifth for Britain. Shes a phenomenal athlete and this course was designed for her.Abbott coasted across in fourth in another shattering disappointment for the United States, one of the strongest teams in the race. Shelley Olds was in a similar position to medal four years ago when a puncture on the run-in to the finish cost her.In Abbotts case, it was simply a matter of tired legs.I saw the 300-meters to go sign and I thought ... `Oh my goodness. I could actually win this, Abbott said. Then I looked under my shoulder and they were right there.The climbing specialist obliterated most of the field on the hard climb of Vista Chinesa, then stayed upright when van Vleuten crashed on the same ruthless downhill that claimed the leaders Vincenzo Nibali and Sergio Henao and allowed Greg van Avermaet to win the mens race.Van Vleuten was taken to the hospital for tests that revealed three small fractures in her spine, the Dutch team said. She will remain in intensive care for at least 24 hours.It was a horrendous crash, said Johansson, who added a second silver to the one she won in Beijing in 2008. The peloton is so small and we all know each other very well. We just hope shes OK.Borghini matched Imelda Chiappas performance at the 1996 Atlanta Games for the best finish by an Italian woman, while Vos finished ninth -- a strong performance after her 10-month injury hiatus.Unlike the mens race on Saturday, the women stuck together for the first 100 kilometers, each attack quickly shut down by the powerhouse teams trying to set up their leaders.Lotte Kopecky of Belgium spent time in front early, and Britains Emma Pooley tried in vain to animate the proceedings. But the field was together after two trips of the Grumari Circuit, where jarring cobblestones caused so much trouble for the men.Seven riders sprung away in sight of Vista Chinesa, the hard climb and descent that would decide the race. Among them was Vos, Trixi Worrack and former world champion Pauline Ferrand-Prevot.The Americans missed the break and were forced to work hard to bring it back.Abbott accomplished it almost single-handedly, the worlds top climber quickly catching them as the race tilted uphill. She also succeeded in splintering the peloton, pushing a tempo so strong that Vos and Armitstead -- the silver medalist at the London Games -- slowly dropped off.With stretches approaching a gradient of 20 percent, Abbott and van Vleuten shook loose of the survivors of the first part of the climb and turned it into a two-woman race on the slick downhill.On the last tight curve, van Vleuten locked up her wheels and crashed hard through the bend.I wasnt comfortable holding her wheel and the pace she was holding on the descent, Abbott said, and unfortunately she crashed. Hopefully it wasnt as bad as it looked.Abbott cautiously navigated the corner, then realized 10 kilometers of flats to Fort Copacabana stood in her way of gold. She got into her handlebar drops, sucked down one last energy gel and began to accelerate through streets lined with fans.Three riders, working together behind her, caught Abbott just before she got to the line.I cant imagine being in her shoes right now. Shes going to have a lot of sleepless nights, American teammate Kristin Armstrong said. Fourth is a wonderful position in the Olympics but also the hardest position. KWaun Williams Jersey . Oaklands loss to Seattle clinched the ALs best record for the Red Sox with one day to spare in the regular season. "I think everybody was kind of watching," catcher David Ross said. "Demp (Ryan Dempster) came out before he went to the bullpen and was just yelling that they lost. Reuben Foster Jersey . 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NORMAN, Okla. -- Desperate for a strong performance from its defense, Oklahoma found the perfect opponent in Kansas feeble offense.No. 16 Oklahomas offense did its usual thing -- rolling up 538 yards -- in a 56-3 rout of Kansas. Baker Mayfield threw for 236 yards and four touchdowns and receiver Dede Westbrook scored on a 71-yard punt return and a 41-yard reception for Oklahoma (6-2, 5-0).But the Sooners defense -- much maligned after allowing 854 yards a week earlier in a 66-59 win over Texas Tech -- also did its part this time, limiting Kansas (1-7, 0-5) to 170 yards, the fewest by an Oklahoma opponent this season.Its positive to play well, Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said. Its one week. Next week will be another journey. In our world, you live week to week. Right now, the guys responded and really played well in all parts.It was a defensive outing featuring two particularly memorable plays. After Kansas -- then trailing 7-3 -- recovered a fumble at the Oklahoma 25, cornerback Jordan Thomas ended the threat with an interception at the 2-yard line, getting both feet just inbounds, then tossing the football away forcefully, as if to make a point.In the third quarter, Jordan Evans also picked off a pass by Kansas quarterback Montell Cozart and weaved his way for a 33-yard return for a touchdown, which meant the Sooners defense outscored Kansas offense.Sure, it came against Kansas, a team that now has lost 17 straight Big 12 games and 39 straight road games overall. But after the Texas Tech debacle, it was what the Sooners defenders needed.Weve been through a lot this past week, Oklahoma defensive coordinator Mike Stoops said. The guys played with a lot more energy and focus. Obviously, we got embarrassed a week ago. . The guys practiced well and prepared well and went out and executed. Its not that difficult.Kansas coach David Beaty noted the Sooners shut down the Jayhawks despite the absence of key players such as linebacker Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, who sat out with an injury.I have to take my hat off to them because I know theyve got a bunch of guys injured on their defense and they played a pretty good game, Beaty said.Mayfield, who threw a school-record seven touchdown passes against Texas Tech, threw three in the second quarter against the Jayhawks -- the 41-yarder to Westbrook, a 15-yarder to Mark Andrews and a 9-yarders to Dimitri Flowwers, the latter with 20 seconds left before halftime to put Oklahoma up 28-3.dddddddddddd Mayfield finished 16-of-24 passing.Mayfields 15 touchdown passes in the Sooners last three games are a program record.THE TAKEAWAYKansas: The Jayhawks will win another Big 12 game and win on the road again someday, but that W probably wont come against the likes of Oklahoma or West Virginia, Kansas next opponent. But a home game against Iowa State looms on Nov. 12. Maybe that first streak ends then?Oklahoma: The Sooners said after starting the season 1-2, with losses to Houston and Ohio State, that they still had the Big 12 title as motivation. Now Oklahoma is atop the league, but the Sooners must finish the season with the gauntlet of Baylor, West Virginia and Oklahoma State.POLL IMPLICATIONSNo. 10 West Virginias loss at Oklahoma State and No. 13 Boise States loss at Wyoming should open up at least two spots for Oklahoma to move up in the Top 25 .WILD WESTBROOKWestbrook finished with 230 all-purpose yards. His punt return for a touchdown was the first by an Oklahoma player since Jalen Saunders vs. Oklahoma State on Dec. 7, 2013. After Kansas first-quarter field goal, Westbrook returned the ensuing kickoff out of the end zone for what looked like another touchdown, but a holding penalty wiped it out.Early in the second quarter, he made a diving catch on the 41-yard touchdown pass from Mayfield, one of his five receptions for 105 yards. Later in the quarter, on a receiver option on a third-and-16 play, he eschewed passing the ball and instead ran 24 yards for a first down.In five October games, he had 881 receiving yards and scored 12 touchdowns. Nine of those scoring plays (including the punt return) went for 40 or more yards. He has 1,035 receiving yards through eight games, making him only the sixth Oklahoma player to go over the 1,000-yard mark for a season.He is as good as advertised. Hes even better when youre looking at him down there on the sideline, Beaty said I mean, hes a really talented guy.UP NEXT:Kansas: The Jayhawks will travel next Saturday to face an angry West Virginia team coming off its first loss of the season.Oklahoma: It will be a short week for the Sooners, who will visit Iowa State on Thursday. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '