"And I believe that we started

S-HERTOGENBOSCH, Netherlands -- Benjamin Becker of Germany reached his first ATP semifinals in almost 2 1/2 years when he beat the equally desperate Vasek Pospisil of Canada 6-7 (3), 7-6 (5), 6-4 at the rainy Topshelf Open on Thursday. Jack Youngblood Jersey . Becker, who won his only ATP title here in 2009, was leading in the second set when their quarterfinal was interrupted for 90 minutes by rain. It didnt help Pospisil, who has been dealing with a lower back strain and lost for the 10th time in 13 matches since the Australian Open. In his first semi since Memphis in February 2012, Becker will face Joao Sousa, the Portuguese qualifier who put away Dutch wild card Thiemo de Bakker 6-4, 6-2. Meanwhile, second seed Fernando Verdasco of Spain and eighth seed Jurgen Melzer of Austria were stopped by darkness at 6-7 (3), 7-6 (6). Melzer double-faulted at 6-6 and Verdasco finished the second set with an ace to tie the set score. On the womens side, Klara Koukalova of the Czech Republic, who won her first tournament here in 2005, dispatched Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan 6-2 6-4. She will face Coco Vandeweghe after the American qualifier defeated seventh seed Garbine Muguruza of Spain 7-6 (3), 6-1. The other semi features Zheng Jie of China against Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia, both winners of four titles on tour. Darrell Henderson Jersey . Louis Blues were workmanlike, methodical and -- most of all -- effective on Monday night. Cooper Kupp Rams Jersey .The Williams siblings, with 25 Grand Slam titles between them, will have a couple of Madisons joining them, too.Madison Keys had a 6-4, 7-5 upset win over two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova on Saturday night, and Madison Brengle beat Coco Vandeweghe 6-3, 6-2 in an all-U. http://www.ramsrookiestore.com/Rams-Taylor-Rapp-Jersey/ .C. -- Marcus Paige and his North Carolina teammates have endured so many wild swings -- big wins, surprising losses, NCAA drama -- that no one can blame their Hall of Fame coach for wondering whats next.WINNIPEG -- Wade Miller barely smiled Tuesday as he discussed the "acting" tag being removed from his title of Winnipeg Blue Bombers president and chief executive officer. Maybe it was because hes not comfortable facing a room of reporters, but more likely its because hes all business when it comes to turning around the floundering CFL club. And that wont be an easy task. The Bombers finished this season with a league-worst record of 3-15 that tied a franchise-low mark for an 18-game schedule. Theyve missed the playoffs four of the past five years and havent won a Grey Cup for a league-high 23 seasons. "Life takes you in different paths and this is the direction Im going down now and I look forward to the challenge," Miller said after he was appointed to officially oversee a team he played for from 1995-2005. The 40-year-old former fullback/linebacker was named the teams acting president and CEO on Aug. 9 following the firing of Garth Buchko. Millers first move was to fire general manager Joe Mack and elevate assistant GM Kyle Walters into an acting GM role. Millers long to-do list begins with either stripping Walters of his acting title or finding someone to replace him. "Were two to four weeks away from being able to make that determination on that position," he said. Hell also have a hand in football operations with the person who ends up with the GMs job. "The general managers got a role to do in the organization and I expect them to do that to the best of their ability, and Ill be involved in football as anybody would be when its such a critical part of our business," Miller said. The Bombers also have question marks surrounding their coaching staff. Mack had fired head coach Paul LaPolice in August 2012 and defensive co-ordinator Tim Burke took over on an interim basis until he was given the job last November. Burkes first full season was an uphill battle as Mack kept often-injured Buck Pierce as the teams starting quarterback. Pierce ended up getting injured, his young backups didnt flourish and then Pierce was traded in September. If the clubs GM decides a new head coach is needed -- the team has had five in nine years -- Miller said hell be involved in that hiring process. "Ill work with the general manager and be that second interview that you should do within any organization," he said. "Its such a key position for us."; Miller co-founded Pinnacle Staffing Solutions in 2002 and helped build it into Manitobas largest recruitment firm. Deacon Jones Womens Jersey. Hes also a partner in Elite Performance (a high-performance training centre), three Elite Sports Injury clinics and two Booster Juice franchises. Bombers board chairman Brock Bulbuck attended Tuesdays announcement and said the board didnt conduct a formal process to look outside the club for another candidate while Miller had the acting title. "We obviously kept our ears to the ground, effectively to be able to move on a Plan B if we needed to," Bulbuck said. "But we also needed to respect and give Wade the confidence that was necessary in order for him to be able to undertake the role that he had agreed to." Miller has "free rein" to hire a GM and doesnt need board approval, he added. When Miller was hired in August, it was believed he was the "right man for the job" and hes "proven" himself as a leader with good business acumen, Bulbuck said. "He brought an extreme passion and fan and sponsor focus to the organization," he said. "(He) effectively instilled a culture and an expectation of winning and us needing to do whatever it takes in order to be competitive on the field and in the business office." He wouldnt divulge Millers contract term, but said it was a typical CEO term that was "not a very short term and not an extremely long term." "We want to return this organization to the successful history that it has enjoyed in the past," Bulbuck said. "And I believe that we started to make those changes, but they will not happen overnight, just as the change we made in August was not able to translate into on-field performance overnight." Miller, a former University of Manitoba player drafted by the Bombers in 1995, defied the odds by making the CFL squad. His tenacity and football smarts carried him through an 11-year career, including twice being named an East Division all-star. He left the club as its leader in career special-teams tackles. Now hes ready to tackle many more challenges. "The football club means a lot to me," Miller said. "We need to bring this organization up to where it should be in terms of the connection we have with our community, being competitive on the football field and those are the challenges I take on." ' ' '