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PHILADELPHIA -- Ryan Howard isnt the slugger he once was. He can still clear the fences, though.Howard homered and Maikel Franco singled home the tiebreaking run in the seventh inning to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 4-2 victory over the New York Mets on Saturday night.Howard put Philadelphia in front 1-0 by leading off the second with a 428-foot drive to right-center off Mets starter Logan Verrett. It was the 13th homer of the season and the 370th of his career for Howard, who moved into a tie with Gil Hodges for 77th on the all-time list.Obviously, in the moment, youre playing a game, but when I get time to sit back and reflect on it, its actually pretty cool, some of the names that Im there with, Howard said. Ive still got some work to do, but Im going to enjoy this one today.Carlos Ruiz doubled and had two hits for the fourth-place Phillies, who have won 11 of 15. Philadelphia also silenced a large contingent of Mets fans, who sometimes made Citizens Bank Park sound more like Citi Field for the second straight night.It was a good win, Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. I didnt want to hear the Mets fans.Jose Reyes and Travis dArnaud drove in the runs for the Mets, who have dropped four of five since All-Star slugger Yoenis Cespedes was injured.Were not taking care of opportunities, manager Terry Collins said. Weve got to take advantage of all those opportunities. We had a chance to add on and we didnt get it done.New York failed to homer for just the second time in the last 14 games. The Mets entered having hit 14 homers in four games at Citizens Bank Park this season and 33 long balls over the last two years at Philadelphias home park.The Mets appeared primed to take the lead in the top of the seventh, but pinch-hitter Kelly Johnson flied out to short left field with runners on second and third and one out before left fielder Cody Asche made an excellent sliding catch for the final out on Asdrubal Cabreras sinking liner with the bases loaded.Cespedes was available as a pinch-hitter, but Collins said he went with Johnson because Cespedes couldnt run the bases in the event of a walk.Philadelphia capitalized on Cabreras throwing error at shortstop in the bottom half for the go-ahead run. Cabrera threw wide of first baseman James Loney, allowing speedy Peter Bourjos to reach with one out. Bourjos went to second on Asches walk against Jerry Blevins (3-1) and scored on Francos single to left.I had all the time, said Cabrera, who has four errors this season. It happens.The Phillies tacked on a run in the eighth when Ruiz led off with a double, went to third on a groundout and scored on Erik Goeddels wild pitch.Edubray Ramos (1-0) worked a hitless inning for his first major league win. Jeanmar Gomez pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 25th save in 27 chances.The Mets tied it in the third on Reyes sacrifice fly that scored Juan Lagares.New York took a 2-1 lead in the fourth on dArnauds sacrifice fly before the Phillies tied it in the fifth on Asches groundout that scored pitcher Jerad Eickhoff.PHILLIES STARTING REPORTEickhoff allowed two runs and five hits with three strikeouts and one walk in six-plus innings. The right-hander singled and doubled to help his own cause.He really wasnt that sharp, but he pitched well enough to win, Mackanin said. Too many baserunners for my liking, but he got us into the seventh inning, so he did a good job that way.METS STARTING REPORTVerrett, making his seventh start in 25 appearances this season, gave up two runs and eight hits with four strikeouts and one walk in six innings. The right-hander is 1-4 with a 5.20 ERA as a starter this season. He took Matt Harveys spot in the rotation this month when the former ace was diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome.I felt good, Verrett said. I felt like I threw the ball well and kept us in the ballgame.TRAINERS ROOMCespedes missed his fourth straight game due to a strained right quadriceps. Collins said the outfielder will undergo testing Sunday morning to determine if he is able to play.UP NEXTThe teams wrap up their three-game series Sunday when Mets RHP Jacob deGrom (5-4, 2.61 ERA) opposes RHP Zach Eflin (2-2, 4.08). In six career starts against Philadelphia, deGrom is 3-0 with a 3.03 ERA. 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Kyle Denbrook, a soccer player from Saint Marys University, took the CIS male athlete of the week honour. Stanley, a fourth-year business administration student from Charlottetown, scored both goals in a 2-0 win over Dalhousie on Friday and tallied again in a 1-0 win over Saint Marys on Sunday.LIVERPOOL, England -- Roberto Martinez was hired as Everton manager on Wednesday after quitting relegated Wigan and immediately piled the pressure on himself by promising to guide his new club into the Champions League. The 39-year-old Spaniard signed a four-year deal as the replacement for David Moyes, who is taking over from Alex Ferguson at Manchester United. Martinez becomes only Evertons 14th permanent manager in its 135-year history. Moyes established Everton as a regular fixture in the top half of the Premier League during his 11 years at Goodison Park, but failed to either win a trophy or seriously challenge the top teams in the division. Martinez believes it can all be different under him. "Almost his first words to me were, Ill get you in the Champions League," Everton owner Bill Kenwright said, "and that is extraordinary for a man who doesnt know much about the football club from the inside but who has obviously studied the football club and looked at what we have been doing the last few years. "Im not going to say to you that it was like David Moyes and he got me in 30 seconds -- it took him at least 45 seconds. He understands the game, he understood Everton, the history, all the players, what he wanted to do ... All I can say is, when you know, you know." Linked heavily with jobs at Liverpool and Aston Villa in recent seasons, his stock remained high despite failing to keep Wigan in the Premier League for next season. He guided the northwest team to a first major trophy thanks to a surprise 1-0 win over Manchester City in the FA Cup final in May and insisted on adopting an easy-on-the-eye style that earned plaudits across the country. Relegation stained his record at Wigan but it didnt stop him being a wanted man. "This is a real, real special day," Martinez said. "And I have this feeling already of excitement, honour. This is a phenomenal and passionate football club and I cant wait to get sunk with everything it means (to be) at Everton and make sure we start working on playing football to be extremely proud (of)." A technically gifted midfielder who spent most of his 14-year playing career in the lower leagues in England, Martinez has gained more repute as a coach, first joining Swanseea in 2007 and then taking over at Wigan two years later.dddddddddddd. Under Wigan owner Dave Whelan, he enjoyed the rare commodity of a secure job and never wavered from his principles of entertaining and passing football. Ferguson was among the managers who praised Martinez for his approach to the game. "Its something I expected when he asked me if he could leave," said Whelan, who allowed Martinez to begin talks with Everton in the wake of his teams relegation. "Roberto has been for us one fantastic manager ... hes just such a wonderful character." Joining Everton will be a big step up for Martinez, with his remit changing to qualifying for Europe rather than simply keeping a team in the Premier League. Under Moyes, the club finished in the Premier Leagues top eight every year since 2007, despite having a small budget to work with, and it placed sixth last season -- ahead of local rival Liverpool for the second straight year. Everton remains one of Englands biggest clubs, with a large fan base around the world owing to its success in the 1980s when it vied with Liverpool as the countrys biggest team. Its last major trophy was the FA Cup in 1995, however, and success-starved fans will want Martinez to replicate the stability of Moyes, who was in charge for 11 years, but also add some trophies to the mix. "There is huge pressure but I am extremely proud of that pressure because it means what David Moyes did in 11 years is set high standards and lay an incredible platform," Martinez said. "I feel lucky to be able to carry on that work. He has given Everton an identity and an incredible standard and all I want to do is be humble and hard-working enough to take this magnificent job to the next level." Martinezs first task will be to secure the futures of Evertons star players such as Leighton Baines, Marouane Fellaini and Phil Jagielka, who are in demand after strong seasons at Goodison Park. But Kenwright said Evertons best players werent for sale and told Evertons fans to believe in his new appointment. "If you had been at the meetings, conversations that I have had with our new manager, you would be as thrilled, as excited, as buoyed and in awe as I have been," Kenwright said. ' ' '