WASHINGTON (AP) — Cade Cavalli took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, and the Washington Nationals beat the Chicago Cubs 7-0 on Thursday to avoid a three-game sweep.
Michael Busch delivered the Cubs' lone hit with an opposite-field bloop single to left with two outs in the seventh. The Nationals Park crowd then applauded Cavalli, who was trying to throw Washington’s first no-hitter since Max Scherzer did it twice in 2015.
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Washington Nationals pitcher Cade Cavalli throws during the third inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Chicago Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong (4) reacts after the struck out during the fourth inning of a baseball game next to Washington Nationals catcher Keibert Ruiz, right, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Chicago Cubs pitcher Kevin Gausman throws during the third inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Washington Nationals pitcher Cade Cavalli, left, talks with catcher Keibert Ruiz, right, during the third inning of a baseball game, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Washington Nationals pitcher Cade Cavalli throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Cavalli (10-5), who turns 28 on Friday, retired the first 15 batters before walking Dansby Swanson to open the sixth. Swanson was quickly erased on Michael Conforto’s double-play grounder.
Cavalli walked Swanson again with two outs in the eighth, but struck out Conforto looking to finish his day. The right-hander struck out 10 while setting career highs in innings (eight) and pitches (103).
Clayton Beeter worked a perfect ninth for Washington.
The Nationals didn’t muster a baserunner against Kevin Gausman (6-11) until Abimelec Ortiz’s one-out single in the fourth. Two pitches later, Dylan Crews laced an RBI double to left-center.
Washington’s first two men in the fifth reached base before Andrew Pinckney’s sacrifice fly. After CJ Abrams singled, Ortiz hit a three-run shot to right-center to make it 5-0. Daylen Lile added an RBI single later in the inning to end Gausman’s day.
Ortiz has four homers in 11 games this season and hit .389 (7 for 18) with three homers and seven RBIs during the Nationals’ six-game homestand.
Gausman allowed six runs in 4 2/3 innings while striking out seven in his second start since joining the Cubs from Toronto at the trade deadline.
RHP Clay Holmes (4-5, 2.86 ERA) makes his second start as a Cub as Chicago returns home Friday to begin a three-game series against St. Louis. LHP Andrew Alvarez (2-3, 3.76) starts Friday as Washington opens its three-game series at the New York Mets.
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Washington Nationals pitcher Cade Cavalli throws during the third inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Chicago Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong (4) reacts after the struck out during the fourth inning of a baseball game next to Washington Nationals catcher Keibert Ruiz, right, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Chicago Cubs pitcher Kevin Gausman throws during the third inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Washington Nationals pitcher Cade Cavalli, left, talks with catcher Keibert Ruiz, right, during the third inning of a baseball game, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
Washington Nationals pitcher Cade Cavalli throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
British sprinter Amy Hunt has stormed into the spotlight at the European championships.
The 24-year-old Hunt started the week by winning the 100-meter final and made it two-for-two Thursday by taking the 200 gold at Alexander Stadium. She’s also in contention to be in two relay teams.
“I am only 50% through as I have set out for the full set of four golds," Hunt said. “Now I am incredibly excited for the relays because I get to do them and have so much fun with my friends.”
The ever-affable Hunt likes to quote a “High School Musical” character when she says “I want it all” on the track. But the University of Cambridge alum can get more serious, too, like when she recently discussed the legacy of colonialism associated with the Commonwealth Games.
Here's what to know about her career:
Hunt was the surprise silver medalist in the 200 at the world championships last September in Tokyo, where she ran 22.14 seconds in the final — U.S. sprinter Melissa Jefferson-Wooden was the winner.
At the 2024 Olympics in Paris, Hunt ran the third leg on the British women’s 4x100 relay team that won silver.
In the youth ranks, Hunt set an under-18 women's world best in the 200 when she ran a 22.42 in June 2019 in Mannheim, Germany.
Hunt juggled academics — studying English Literature — while training and overcame a leg injury to reach world-class levels. After her silver medal in Tokyo last year, she told the BBC she's glad she stayed in school: “You can be an academic badass and a track goddess.”
When describing her goals, Hunt cites a “High School Musical” character Sharpay Evans and the song called “I Want it All.”
Hunt mentioned it in the pre-championships news conference and again after winning gold in the 100 on Monday night.
“That performance is one step closer to being like Sharpay Evans,” she said after the victory. “I really want to win it all and I’m so happy now I’ve got one out of four done. Hopefully I can take this momentum and the good vibes into the rest of the week.”
Hunt gives fans a behind-the-scenes view of her life as an athlete with video updates on her YouTube page. Her “vlog” touches on everything from meals to sightseeing to anti-doping tests.
The sprinter's most recent video was a review of her time at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow where she won a silver medal in the 100.
Hunt takes a few minutes in the video to discuss the history of the games, saying she doesn't “ethically or morally agree with the kind of notion of a Commonwealth Games.” The games, she added, “used to celebrate a colonial empire.”
“I think the Commonwealth Games provides the opportunity for us to reflect on ourselves and our history with colonialism, also the fact that England as we know it was rebuilt post-war by the Windrush generation, by immigrants,” Hunt said.
Athletes discuss this privately, she said, but that's where it stays.
“I think a lot of people are afraid to speak about it openly. I think as a white athlete, it’s important for me to speak about my thoughts on it. ... I just kind of wish there was more dialogue and more conversation about that.”
She concludes: “You’re more than free to disagree with it and you’re more than free to think that if I have these views it’s hypocritical for me to compete.”
AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports
Amy Hunt of Britain crosses the finish line to win the women's 200 meters final at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Amy Hunt of Britain celebrates winning the gold medal in the women's 200 meters final at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Thursday, Aug. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
Britain's Amy Hunt reacts after crossing the finish line to win the women's 100 meters final at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Monday, Aug. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Morgan Harlow)
Britain's Amy Hunt, centre, competes in her women's 200 meters semifinal at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Morgan Harlow)
Britain's Amy Hunt celebrates winning the women's 100 meters final at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Monday, Aug. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Morgan Harlow)
Britain's Amy Hunt reacts after her women's 200 meters semifinal at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, England, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
