Juneau's Dylan Baker turned back the clock and pitched his best game since 2013 as the veteran racked up eight innings in a 7-2 win for the Kansas City T-Bones of the American Association independent league.

The 27-year-old rocket right-hander threw a three-hitter with five strikeouts in his second-longest outing of his eight-year pro career.

Baker, of Juneau-Douglas High fame, is a 2012 fifth-round draft pick by the Cleveland Indians and played as high as Double-A in 2018.

Now that football is in his rear-view mirror, former New Mexico State University linebacker Lui Fa'amasino of Anchorage has embarked on a new journey in the boxing game.

The 23-year-old made his amateur debut in style, with the 6-foot, 225-pound Alaskan winning a unanimous decision in the heavyweight division over New Mexico's 6-foot-5, 205-pound Chris Okoa, a member of his state's Golden Gloves team.

Some baseball teams are willing to give away a little offense to get a lot of defense at the catcher position, but the Tri-City Dust Devils are getting the best of both worlds with Jonny Homza of Anchorage.

The third-year backstop has made a terrific transition behind the plate and shown patience and polish at the dish in his first season at the Class-A level.

In just a few hours, Patrick Schmidt and Shauna Severson went from virtual unknowns to King and Queen of the Mountain.

The unheralded runners each came from behind to win the Matanuska Peak Challenge, an event widely regarded as the toughest mountain race in Alaska.

The race near Palmer climbs from the base of Lazy Mountain to the top of 6,119-foot Matanuska Peak - and then back. Organizers boast it climbs 10,000 vertical feet (and descends the same) in just 12 miles. There are no aid stations and participants must be self-sufficient and carry mandatory gear.

While in Sweden for a Nordic ski camp, Kendall Kramer jumped in a mountain running race.

The skiing and running teenage phenom from Fairbanks placed second in the 13.5-kilometer Ulvang Kvartsmaraton on August 3 in Are, Sweden.

She finished the course in 1 hour, 12 minutes and 34 minutes and was bested only by Norwegian Maria Slars (1:11:44). Kramer was the only American among 159 female finishers.

Anchorage's Mario Chalmers has built a reputation on making big shots, but in Week 7 of the BIG3 he got a taste of his own medicine.

Chalmers and the 3 Headed Monsters lost 50-48 to the Triplets after former 7-time NBA All-Star Joe Johnson drilled a 4-point walk-off jumper.

The loss overshadowed a 16-point performance from Chalmers, which matched his career high in his rookie season in the BIG3. It's also the fourth-highest point total for an Alaskan in the celebrated 3×3 league made up former NBA players like Chalmers.

Wasilla's Dane Kuiper is headed overseas to play professional basketball after signing a deal with UBSC Graz from the top league in Austria.

The former University of New Mexico standout is a defensive specialist who wrapped up his NCAA eligibility in the spring and will be playing pro ball in the fall.

UBSC Graz is based in Wels, Austria. The team plays in the Austrian Basketball League since it was founded in 2000 and won the Austrian national championship in 2009.

Philip Wall of Juneau received a tip of the cap from the Sunset League as the starting pitcher for the SoCal Shepherds was named to the league's all-star game.

He recorded a 6-1 record in eight appearances during the collegiate summer league.

Wall, of Thunder Mountain High fame, had 27 strikeouts in 43 innings and posted a 2.09 ERA.

He is entering his junior season at the University of Northwestern St. Paul.