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DAVIDGOLDMAN—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Serena Williams lost 2-6, 6-4, 6-4on Friday at Flushing Meadows to 43rd-ranked Roberta Vinci of Italy in the semifinals of the U.S. Open. ByHowardFendrich TheAssociatedPress NEWYORK ForSerenaWilliams'first 26 matches at major tournaments in 2015, no deficit was too daunting, no opponent too troublesome, no victory too far from reach. She was unbeaten and, seemingly, unbeatable, nearing the first Grand Slam in more than a quarter-century. All Williams needed was two more wins to pull off that rare feat. And yet, against an unseeded and un- heralded opponent in the U.S. Open semifinals, she faltered. Her pursuit of history ended, oh so close. In one of the most significant up- sets in the history of tennis, Williams finally found a hole too big to climb out of, losing 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 Friday at Flushing Meadows to 43rd-ranked Roberta Vinci of Italy. "I don't want to talk about how disappointing it is for me," Wil- liams said at the start of a briefer- than-usual news conference. "If you have any other questions, I'm open for that." Vinci had never before played in a Grand Slam semifinal; Williams owns 21 major titles. In four previ- ous matchups, Vinci had never taken a set off Williams. "Every so often," Vinci said, "a mir- acle happens." How little faith did even she have? Vinci said she booked a flight home for Saturday, the day of the final. But Vinci's unusual style, full of slices and net rushes, kept Williams off-balance enough to cause prob- lems and prevent the 33-year-old American from becoming the first player since Steffi Graf in 1988 to win all four Grand Slam tournaments in a calendar year. As Williams quickly left the scene, hopping in a waiting black SUV and taking off, her coach, Patrick Moura- toglou, was explaining to reporters what he called "a bad day, clearly." He said he could tell before the match that something was off. "She was very slow. There was no movement with her lower body, so U.S. OPEN TENNIS VincistunsWilliamsinsemis 43rd-rankedItalianpulls off shocking upset, ends American's bid for Slam CORNING3,LASSEN2 Up next: Corning at Davis, 4:30 p.m. Monday. THESCORE Staff Report CORNING The Cardinals field hockey team beat the Lassen Union High School Grizzles 3-2 on Wednesday. In the first half of the game, the Grizzles scored the first point be- fore the Cardinals took charge. "Marissa Hopkins had a corner shot with an assist from Gabby Peterson," Cardinals head coach Teresa Lamb said. Hopkins had another corner shot with an assist from team captain Whitney Armstrong. Cassie Carter had a hard drive to the net for a score in the sec- ond half. "We improved from the jam- boree and throughout the game," Lamb said, "Communication and moving the ball (have also im- proved)." Angela Diaz did a nice job tak- FIELD HOCKEY Corning takes 3-2 win over Lassen By Carl Steward Bay Area News Group ALAMEDA In a stunning NFL de- velopment that rocked both sides of the bay Friday, talented but troubled linebacker Aldon Smith not only signed with the Oak- land Raiders but wasted no time integrating himself with his new team. The 25-year-old Smith signed a one-year deal reportedly worth $8 million plus incentives, and he immediately took part in practice for a Raiders team that's elated to have him in spite of his off-field difficulties. He could actually play on Sunday when Oakland opens the season against the Cincinnati Bengals at O.co Coliseum. Just five weeks ago, Smith was cut loose by the 49ers mere hours after reports surfaced about his latest brush with the law. He re- mains subject to potential league discipline in the wake of his Aug. 6 arrest for an alleged hit-and- run, drunken-driving accident. It was the fifth time he'd been NFL Raiders sign Smith as DUI charges filed Jeff Gordon knows a 17th- place finish Saturday night guarantees him a spot in NAS- CAR's playoffs in his final sea- son. Based on history, that's where he expects to run in the last regular-season race. NASCAR SPRINT CUP FinalChasequalifier tonight in Richmond FULL STORY ON PAGE B2 By Janie McCauley The Associated Press SANTACLARA Vernon Davis is per- fectly candid about what he went through last season, among his hardest years ever. Injured and an afterthought at times, Davis had one of his least productive overall performances as a pro. "Oh, man, it was something. It was tough. It was hard," he said, not- ing that even once he was healthy, "I wasn't involved. I wasn't a factor. Shocking, yeah. It was probably the toughest year I've had in my life." Come Monday night's season opener at home against Minnesota, it's a fresh slate — and a most wel- come one at that for a guy so used to being among the most dynamic tight ends in the league. Davis missed two games during the first half of last season and was hampered much of the year by an ankle injury and regular back pain. Frustration mounted even after get- ting back on the field. "I'm not just talking about the in- juries. I was injured but I was only injured for the games that I missed and some of the games I came back," he said. "Most of the games I came back ... I wasn't healthy but I played. But even when I got healthy it was still tough. We all go into the season with targets and goals, and when you don't achieve it, it kind of puts a sour taste in your mouth, like 'Uh, why this didn't happen, that didn't happen?'" There were other issues, too. He acknowledged as training camp began this year that he had parted ways with an adviser be- fore last season who had been urg- ing him to push for a new contract. He said: "I fired that person because he worships money. That's not what I worship." Now, he's heading into a contract year looking to show he's still one of the most dynamic and athletic tight ends in the league who can catch touchdown passes as regu- NFL 49ERS' DAVIS LOOKS TO ENJOY BIG YEAR San Francisco's veteran tight end enters 10th season coming off career lows in performance BAY AREA NEWS GROUP FILE The San Francisco 49ers' Vernon Davis catches a pass during pre-game activity before a game Dec. 20, 2014, at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara. NHAT V. MEYER — BAY AREA NEWS GROUP FILE The San Francisco 49ers' Vernon Davis (85) can't make a catch against the Philadelphia Eagles' Earl Wolff (28) in the first quarter on Sunday, Sept. 28, 2014, at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara. During years of going to ground zero every Sept. 11, Paul Acquaviva has seen crowds diminish at the cer- emonies commemorating the terror attacks. His determina- tion to participate hasn't. TERROR ATTACKS On Sept. 11 anniversary, appeals to remember FULL STORY ON PAGE B3 The third annual Nash Ranch Mud Mash will be Oct. 3and benefit student recognition and scholarship programs of Sunrise Rotary of Redding. For more information, visit nashranchmudmash.com. RUN Nash Ranch mud run set for October 3 The A's have acquired le -handed reliever Daniel Coulombe from the Dodgers for cash considerations. Coulombe appeared in five games with the Dodgers and had no record with a 7.56ERA. MLB Athletics pick up le y reliever Coulombe CORNING PAGE 2 DAVIS PAGE 2 TENNIS PAGE 2 SMITH PAGE 2 SPORTS » redbluffdailynews.com Saturday, September 12, 2015 MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS B1