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1B Sports Wednesday November 13, 2013 Packers' Rodgers not sure when he'll return GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Injured Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said Tuesday he never gives up hope on playing, though he is not sure exactly when he will be back on the field. Rodgers said on his radio show on 540-AM ESPN that he's doing everything he can to return from the fractured left collarbone suffered a week earlier in a 27-20 loss to the Bears. He said he's giving the bone time to heal, and that Tuesday was the best he had felt since getting hurt. General manager Ted Thompson replenished depth Tuesday in announcing the signing of Rodgers' former backup Matt Flynn, who has been released this year by the Raiders and Bills. With Rodgers hurt, Flynn will back up one-time practice squad player Scott Tolzien, who replaced Seneca Wallace in the 27-13 loss Sunday to the Eagles. Given the circumstances, Tolzien played well after Wallace left with a groin injury after the first series. Coach Mike McCarthy was so impressed that he's already named Tolzien the starter for Sunday's game against the Giants. Wallace was placed on injured reserve Tuesday to make room for Flynn, the Packers' seventh-round draft pick in 2008 who spent four years in Green Bay. The ultimate goal is to get back to the 2011 NFL MVP. Rodgers on Tuesday pointed to ''small victories'' in his recovery, like sleeping through an entire night, and putting socks on without being in extreme pain. ''I haven't given up hope on playing any week. It depends on how I heal,'' Rodgers said on his radio show. ''Obviously this week is probably not going to happen. Not going to happen.'' Pressed again, Rodgers said ''probably not going to happen.'' McCarthy said Monday he thought Rodgers might be a couple weeks away, though he didn't have a specific date. 49ers' Davis, Reid optimistic in concussions recovery SANTA CLARA (AP) — San Francisco 49ers tight end Vernon Davis and rookie safety Eric Reid were together in the Candlestick Park locker room, slightly groggy after each suffered a concussion during Sunday's 10-9 loss to the Carolina Panthers. ''We sat there watching the game on television,'' Davis said. ''It was frustrating because we wanted to be out there.'' Two days later, both players are optimistic about returning in time to play the Saints in New Orleans this week. ''I'm doing fine, feeling great,'' Davis said. ''All I can do is to wait for the doctors to tell me what I can do next.'' Davis and Reid each sustained their second concussion, with Davis getting hurt last year. He says it's difficult trying to balance between playing all out and being concerned with his health. ''You have to be concerned with your health, but you can't really think about it,'' Davis said. ''It's a tough spot to be in. Concussions are one of the big ones. Sometimes you're ready to make contact with someone and you're thinking about your head.'' Davis was injured midway through the second quarter, as the 49ers were driving for a score. He went up for a pass from Colin Kaepernick and hit the ground hard on what was ruled an incomplete pass. The 49ers settled for a field goal to make it 9-0. Reid suffered his concussion when he tackled Carolina's Mike Tolbert following a 17-yard pass reception midway through the third quarter. ''I'm feeling fine,'' he said before heading off. He nodded when asked about what was expected of him this week. Davis said he did a little weightlifting, rode a stationary ride and attended meetings. ''My memory was good. I remembered everything,'' he said. ''My balance was OK.'' David and Reid will have to pass a contact test on Thursday or Friday before being cleared to play. Second-year tight end Garrett Celek said he's taking things day by day after sustaining a hamstring injury less than six minutes into the loss. He missed the remainder of the game. Celek strained his hamstring during a punt return with 9:18 remaining in the first quarter. ''It was a freak thing,'' he said. ''It didn't feel right. This is the first time something like this has happened. I don't know how my body is going to respond.'' Celek tried to stretch it out by running around and getting in his stance. ''It was sore and the doctors didn't want to risk anything and they told me to sit out,'' Celek said. ''Right now I still don't know the extent of it.'' Tehama Tracker Sports on TV COLLEGE FOOTBALL 5 p.m. ESPN2 — Ball St. at N. Illinois GOLF 6 p.m. TGC — PGA Tour of Australasia, Australian Masters, first round, at Cheltenham, Australia Midnight TGC — European PGA Tour, DP World Tour Championship Dubai, first round, at Dubai, United Arab Emirates MEN'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL 4 p.m. ESPNEWS — Florida St. at UCF FS1 — Wright St. at Georgetown NBA BASKETBALL 5 p.m. ESPN — New York at Atlanta 7:30 p.m. ESPN — Oklahoma City at L.A. Clippers NHL HOCKEY 5 p.m. NBCSN — Philadelphia at Pittsburgh SOCCER 12:15 p.m. ESPN — Men's national teams, World Cup qualifier, Mexico vs. New Zealand, at Mexico City Daily News photo by Rich Greene Mercy's Caitlyn Safford, Jessica Curl and Gillian Coelho talk at the net before a point during Tuesday's playoff game. Lady Warriors cruise to playoff win By RICH GREENE DN Sports Editor The fourth-seeded Mercy Lady Warriors dispatched visiting Big Valley 25-9, 25-21, 25-20 Tuesday night in the opening round of the Northern Section's Division-VI volleyball playoffs. That was the first step for the defending champions, the next three should be more challenging and it starts with a huge clash Nov. 19. "Redding Christian is after us," Mercy Coach Zane Zelei said. The Lady Lions will get another crack at Mercy in the quarterfinals after they swept Dunsmuir in Redding Tuesday. Mercy has defeated Redding Christian eight straight times dating back to the start of the 2011 season. Taming the Lions a ninth consecutive time will just be the start. No. 1 seed Fall River looms as a potential opponent in the Nov. 21 semifinals and then there's the championship itself. Should Mercy make it that far it would be their third trip in a row. Even with all the success the Lady Warriors have had in recent years Zelei said his team is still hungry for more. He said it starts with captains Breana Kemp and Jessica Curl, who both want to end their senior year on a high note. Both came to play Tuesday as Mercy raced out to an 8-1 lead in Game 1. Later Curl had six straight service points to push the Mercy lead to 15-5. Mercy finished the first game out with a Marissa Starman ace and a Julia Misslin kill. Game 2 was filled with service errors from both team and Big Valley led by as many as four points as late as 12-8. The Lady Warriors eventually righted the ship once again behind a string of successful serves from Curl. Mercy had no intentions of going further than three games and cruised for most of the final game 25-20. Starman slammed home the match-winning point. Zelei said outside Game 2, his team showed signs of being aggressive throughout the night despite their opponent. "We still played up to our potential for the most part," he said. Zelei was also to work in his junior varsity call-ups, an option he might not be able to be so flexible with for the rest of the tournament. MLB confident players, umps will expand replay ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Get ready for expanded instant replay for umpires' calls next year. Major League Baseball says it's virtually certain all the new systems will be in place for opening day. MLB Executive Vice President Joe Torre met with general managers Tuesday and said he expects approval from owners, players and umpires by January. ''We expect to be all on the same page by the time we need to have it,'' he said. Virtually all umpires' calls other than balls and strikes, checked swings and some foul tips will be reviewable. The system was tested last week during Arizona Fall League games, with two major league umpires reviewing video and making the final call. Owners are expected to give their go-ahead Thursday for funding and then approve the rules when they meet in January. ''I'm sure they'll do as much testing as they think is feasible, but ultimately they'll probably go with what they have,'' New York Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said. ''There probably will be bugs. ... It might be a little rough at the beginning, but I think that things will work out thereafter.'' AP file photo Yankees left fielder Melky Cabrera fails to make a play on a fly ball hit by Minnesota's Joe Mauer that lands fair but is called foul by umpire Phil Cuzzi in Game 2 of the 2009 ALDS. Baseball started using video review in 2008 but limited it to home run calls — whether a ball went over a fence or was fair. Under the system that's been in place, three of the four umpires at a ballpark watched video provided them by MLB. Starting next year, challenged calls will be reviewed at a central location. ''We'd like to have everything clean and be incorporated into the challenge system,'' Torre said. Most reviews during the Arizona test averaged 1 minute, 40 seconds. Torre expects the new system will be used at some but not all spring training sites. ''We have to make sure the managers have a chance to practice with this. They need practice only because it's never been done before,'' he said. ''You're not going to be able to test it everywhere because you just can't put the equipment everywhere.'' On another matter, Torre said there will be no change to baseball's obstruction rule, which gave St. Louis a controversial 5-4 win over Boston in Game 3 of the World Series last month. Cardinals runner Allen Craig tripped over Boston third baseman Will Middlebrooks in the ninth inning of a tied game and was awarded home plate on obstruction — intent is not a factor in the obstruction decision by umpires. ''I really don't see anything'' to be done, Torre said, before adding: ''Nobody wants a game to end like that. I don't think that's any secret.'' 49ers release Kyle Williams, Perrish Cox SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers released wide receiver and return man Kyle Williams on Tuesday after three-plus seasons, while also waiving cornerback Perrish Cox. Linebacker Nick Moody was activated from the injured reserve/designated for return list Tuesday. The rookie returned to practice Oct. 23 for the first time since Week 1, when he went on injured reserve with the designation to return after breaking his hand. Moody is a sixth-round draft pick who transitioned from playing safety. ''Decisions like these are always difficult, especially at this time of year,'' 49ers general manager Trent Baalke said. ''Kyle and Perrish have represented the 49ers organization very well, both on and off the field. We appreciate their dedication and contributions and wish them all the best.'' Williams' agent, Wynn Silberman, was told of the move Tuesday by the reigning NFC champions. ''We're looking forward to the opportunity to compete within the league somewhere this year,'' Silberman said. ''We're very appreciative of the San Francisco 49ers organization for the opportunity to contribute.'' Williams missed last season's run to the Super Bowl — a 34-31 loss to the Ravens — because of a serious knee injury but remained a key member of the team and was honored with the team's Ed Block Courage Award.