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WASHINGTON -- Bryce Harper swung at the 91 mph pitch in the bottom of the 13th inning and could tell right away the ball would end up over the fence. "I knew it was gone. I mean, I felt it," the 2012 NL Rookie of the Year said. "I havent felt like that in a while. I havent got extension on a ball in a pretty long time." Harpers fourth homer of an injury-interrupted, trying season was a game-ending, two-run shot to the opposite field off righty reliever Carlos Torres, lifting Washington past the New York Mets 5-3 Thursday and giving the Nationals a season-high 4 1/2-game lead in the NL East. "Wanted to put a two-seamer down and away," said Torres (5-5), who struck out Harper on Wednesday. "It didnt move that much, unfortunately." Harper was hitting .250 with 14 RBIs in 2014 entering Thursday, with zero homers since July 18. "Hopefully he rides that for the next couple months and (we) sail off into the sunset," said Ian Desmond, who walked ahead of Harpers homer. Desmond drove in Washingtons first three runs with a two-run homer in the second inning, his 18th, and an RBI single in the fourth -- both off Mets starter Jacob deGrom. So can one swing change things for Harper? "In my mind, Im hoping so. Definitely," he said. Harper missed 57 games because of a torn ligament in his left thumb, returning June 30. He immediately caused a stir that day by publicly offering suggestions for how Williams should arrange his lineup. This week, the morning after Harper went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts in a loss to the Mets on Tuesday, Williams was asked on radio station 106.7 The Fan whether it would be a bad idea to send Harper to the minors. When a reporter followed up during Williams pregame news conference Wednesday, the manager vented, saying: "The minute you think you can read my freaking mind, youre sorely mistaken." At the end of his postgame session with reporters Thursday, Williams offered an unprompted mea culpa, saying: "I didnt sleep much last night. So I just wanted to apologize to members of the press for my actions yesterday." The Nationals now head into a three-game series beginning Friday at the reeling second-place Atlanta Braves. Atlanta was off Thursday after an 0-8 road trip against the Dodgers, Padres and Mariners. "Theyre going to want our throat," Harper said. Said Craig Stammen (2-4), who worked three scoreless innings for the win Thursday: "We know these three games will be big because theyre right on our tails." He was Washingtons seventh pitcher. The Mets used eight. Closer Jenrry Mejia left after giving up two hits in his only inning of work, the 12th, and said afterward his right calf was "just a little bit tight." Hours after he left the mound following his 6 1-3 innings of work, Nationals starter Jordan Zimmermann was thrilled with the way Harper ended the game. "Were all pulling for him," Zimmermann said. "Hopefully he gets out of this little rut hes in." TRAINERS ROOM Mets: About Mejia, whose right calf was taped up after the game, manager Terry Collins said: "Well find out more tomorrow. If its still bothering him, he certainly wont pitch tomorrow." Nationals: Reserve outfielder Nate McLouth (15-day DL, right shoulder) got an anti-inflammatory injection and was "shut down for a few days to get everything calmed down in there," Williams said. UP NEXT Nationals: Stephen Strasburg (8-9, 3.39 ERA) faces Atlantas Ervin Santana (10-6, 3.59 ERA) in Fridays opener at Atlanta. In 14 career starts against the Braves, Strasburg is 3-5 with a 4.04 ERA, his highest ERA against any team hes faced more than three times. Mets: In the opener of a four-game set at the Phillies, 41-year-old righty Bartolo Colon (10-9, 4.12 ERA) makes his second attempt at career victory No. 200. Nike Air Max 270 Rabatt . PETERSBURG, Fla. Nike Air Max 1 Sverige . The Boston Celtics hadnt played since the All-Star break. So the Suns 100-94 victory over Boston Wednesday night was an uphill affair, with Phoenix relying on balance rather than its trademark high energy. http://www.reaairmaxsverige.com/air-max-95-rabatt.html . On a hot, sweaty day, the Hall of Famer looked cool and comfortable. Nike Air Max 95 Billigt .com) - The Los Angeles Dodgers made it official Tuesday and signed pitcher Brandon McCarthy to a four-year contract. Air Max 200 Herr .ca/CurlingSkins - with the Top 16 curlers earning a ticket to Banff, Alta. to compete in the TRAVELERS ALL-STAR CURLING SKINS GAME Presented by Pintys, running Jan.VERNON, B.C. -- Chase Norrish didnt want his season, or his junior hockey career, to end one game short of the Canadian Junior A Championship game. Norrish scored the winning goal and added a key assist as the Yorkton Terriers doubled the host Vernon Vipers 6-3 in a semifinal contest at the RBC Cup Saturday. The Saskatchewan representatives will meet Ontarios Carleton Place Canadians -- who advanced with an upset comeback 4-3 win over the Dauphin Kings later Saturday -- in the final Sunday. Both Yorkton and Carleton Place are seeking their first Canadian championship. "It means quite a lot to the guys, I guess, going to the last game that you can possibly play this season," said Norrish. Norris, a 21-year-old Strongfield, Sask., native, will see his junior eligibility expire Sunday before he heads off to play U.S. college hockey next season at Rochester Institute of Technology. "Its a great feeling," said Norrish of his goal and his assist on the goal that put Yorkton ahead to stay. "I just go out and play hockey. a A lot of hard work went into this team, and its a great feeling to get to the next step." Norrish scored at 11:39 of the second period, giving the Terriers a 4-2 lead before Yorkton scored two empty-netters in the final two minutes of the game, to ensure their third straight win after starting the tournament 0-2. "We dont like to be put in a spot where were going to be eliminated," said Norrish. "It kind of sticks in some guys." Daylan Gatzke led Yorkton with two goals, with one going into an empty net, as the Terriers thwarted Vernons attempt at a desperate rally. Tanner Lishchynsky, Dylan Johnson and Tayler Thompson, into an empty net, also scored for Yorkton. Goaltender Kale Thomson made 34 saves. Brett Mulcahy, Michael McNicholas and Dexter Dancs replied for the Vipers, who enjoyed a 37-31 edge in shots. The Terriers scored on one of five power plays while the Vipers converted on two of six. Vernon overcame an early 2-0 deficit to create a 2-2 tie early in the second period. But Yorktons defence remained tight while killing a pair of penalties, including a Vernon two-man advantage for 26 seconds, in the third. "Right now, its deflating and a pretty emotional group in (the dressing room), because they have a loot of pride and they wanted to bring a seventh national title to the town of Vernon," said Vipers coach Jason Williamson. Johnson put the Terriers ahead 3-2 at 8:57 of the second period as he deflected in Norrishs wrist shot. Vernon goalttender Austin Smith, who was replaced by Danny Todosychuk after Norrishs goal, allowed four goals on 16 shots.dddddddddddd The goaltending change had an effect on the Vipers as Dancs scored during a scramble only 59 seconds later. "We played great when we were desperate, and obviously, we didnt want to go down two goals," said Dancs. "But it happened and we fought back to make it 2-2, and (the win) didnt come for us." Later, Dylan Gareaus goal on a one-timer at 10:43 of the third period gave Carleton Place the win as the fourth-place Canadians upset first-place Dauphin. The upset shocked Carleton Place coach Jason Clarke, who says he never envisioned that his team would reach the Canadian final when the season began nine months ago. "We didnt play a very good game for the first 40 minutes, and in the third period, we really showed what kind of hockey club we can be," he said. The Ottawa-area victors outshot Dauphin 16-2 in the final frame. But after taking a 1-0 lead, the Canadians had to overcome 2-1 and 3-2 deficits to forge a 3-3 tie. "The guys played great," said Carleton Place goaltender Guillaume Therien. "I struggled in the first, for sure. But I give credit to the guys, for sure, in the third. Two shots on goal in the third? What else can I ask for?" Anthony McVeigh led the Canadians with two goals, with the second going into an empty net in the final minute. Carleton Place got other goals from Luke Richards and Andy Sturtz, who also assisted on the winning goal. "We knew Dauphin was a strong team," said Sturtz. "Their goaltender (Michael Stiliadis) had an unbelievable tournament. He had a good game again today." Dylan Butler, Tanner Butler and Brayden Cuthbert scored for Dauphin. "I thought the first two periods, we played well enough to win," said Kings coach Marlin Murray. "The third period, we had a rough one. We were on our heels the whole time." The Canadians will attempt to beat Yorkton for a second time in the tournament. Carleton Place qualified for the playoff portion of the RBC Cup by beating the Terriers in the final round-robin game. Notes: Norrishs twin brother Brady also plays defence for Yorkton and will head to RIT with his sibling next season. a The Vipers last won the RBC Cup in 2010, when they earned the second of back-to-back titles. a Yorkton forward Derek Falloon is a cousin of former NHLer Pat Falloon, who was drafted second overall by the San Jose Sharks in 1991 behind Eric Lindros. ' ' '