UKRAINE reportedly is making gains in the Bahkmut area (Shutterstock).

Ukrainian forces have reportedly recaptured a village in the southern front of the war against Russian invaders.

It would be the second ”significant gain” in the counter-offensive in the area of Bakhmut, reports the Reuters news service, referring to remarks by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a video address to his nation. Also claimed to have been talken is the village of Andriivka.

The Klishchiivka village is considered strategic because it is on higher ground and just six miles south of Bahkmut. The campaign has taken weeks to accomplish.

Trump hits DeSantis on abortion ban

In the latest of political jabs in the so-far one-sided contest for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, former president Donald Trump slammed his closet rival – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis – for the state’s six-week abortion ban.

Trump, in an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” said this about DeSantis’ signing of the bill: “I think what he did is a terrible thing and a terrible mistake,” according to The New York Times.

Trump went on to say that if was elected president he would preside over a negotiated agreement on abortion between pro-choice and pro-life factions.

Football: Chargers, Rams are defeated

Both Los Angeles area NFL teams went down to defeat on Sunday.

The Chargers (now 0-2) lost 27-24 to the Tennessee Titans on the road in overtime. Justin Herbert completed 13 of 39 passes for 305 yards and two touchdowns, but the Bolts were not able to establish much of a running game. Joshua Kelly was the top ball-carrier with 39 yards 13 carries.

Tennessee won the game in overtime on a 38-yard field goal by Nick Folk.

The Rams’ (1-1) game at SoFi Stadium wasn’t quite that close. They were tied with the San Francisco 49ers 17-17 at halftime, but were outscored 13-6 in the second half. 

Matthew Stafford completed 30 of 48 passes for 267 yards. He threw for one touchdown but was intercepted twice, Kyren Williams ran for 100 yards and had two TDs, one rushing and one as a receiver. 

Wide receiver Puka Nacua caught 15 catches for 147 yards, replacing the injured Cooper Kupp.

AP COLLEGE TOP 25: This week’s college football AP Top 25 has Georgia (3-0) still in first place, followed by Michigan (3-0), Texas (3-0), Florida State (3-0) and USC (3-0) in the top five.

Pac-12 teams in the top 25 are Washington (3-0) in eighth, Oregon (3-0) in 10th, Oregon State (3-0) in 14th, Colorado (3-0) in 19th, Washington State (3-0) in 21st and UCLA (3-0) in 22nd.

Baseball: Dodgers sweep M’s; Angels keep losing

The Los Angeles Dodgers (91-57) defeated the Mariners 6-1 in Seattle on Sunday to sweep the series, one day after they clinched the National League West Division title.

With three home runs – Jason Hayward, Austin Barnes and James Outman went deep – the game was never close.

Ryan Yarbrough (8-6) got the win, working 4.2 innings and giving up five hits but only one earned run.

With five losses in a row, the Los Angeles Angels are 4-12 in September. On Sunday in Anaheim, the Halos lost 5-3 to the Detroit Tigers to be swept at home.

Randal Grichuk homered and doubled and drove in two runs for the Angels. David Fletcher was 2-for-4 with one RBI. The loss went to Kenny Rosenberg (1-2), who worked five innings and yielded seven hits (including two home runs) and five earned runs. He struck out three batters and walked two.

Weather: A cloudy week ahead

The outlook for our West Orange County area is for an alternation of morning clouds/afternoon sun with partly cloudy days right through the weekend. 

Monday is expected to have a daytime high of 76 with an overnight low of 63. The temperatures with rise and dip all week from 74 to 79 during the day, and from 61 to 63 at night.