SPORTS - US gains WCup quarters with 3-0 rout of Colombia (AP)

SPORTS - US gains WCup quarters with 3-0 rout of Colombia (AP)

AP – CORRECTS TO THIRD GOAL - Colombia goalkeeper Sandra Sepulveda fails to save a ball by United States' …

• Play Video World Cup Video:U.S. women advance to World Cup quarterfinals AP
• Play Video World Cup Video:Little Uruguay has big plans for the Copa America AFP
• World Cup Video:Australia advances in U-17 Australia 7 News

By NANCY ARMOUR, AP National Writer Nancy Armour, Ap National Writer – 1 hr 2 mins ago

SINSHEIM, Germany – Anyone can sign autographs or pose for photos. The U.S. women found a better way to say "thank you" to the American military members who turned their World Cup match into a home game.

The U.S. advanced to the quarterfinals of the Women's World Cup with a 3-0 rout of Colombia on Saturday, delighting a sellout crowd made up almost entirely of American fans. The team lined up for a military salute after Heather O'Reilly's opening goal, and Megan Rapinoe grabbed a TV mic and sang "Born in the USA" after she scored.

"The troops came out to practice the other day, which was a fantastic environment," said Carli Lloyd, who scored the third goal. "We thought it would be good to salute them. It was fun, something different."

The two-time World Cup champions now play Sweden, one of two teams to beat them this year, on Wednesday in Wolfsburg to determine the Group C winner. The Americans and Sweden both have six points, but the U.S. leads the group on goal differential and can claim the top spot with a victory or a tie.

Colombia is a team on the rise, finishing fourth at the Under-20 World Cup last year. But this is its first World Cup appearance, and the youngsters were no match for the deeper, more experienced Americans. The U.S. harassed goalkeeper Sandra Sepulveda relentlessly, forcing her to work more in this game than some goalkeepers will work all tournament.

She didn't get much help from her backline, which was shredded by the speedy O'Reilly time and again.

"It's a growing experience," said defender Nataly Arias, who was born and raised in the Washington, D.C., area. "It was their size, their speed. They're all big, they're all fast, they're all agile."

And it could have been even worse for the Colombians. The Americans missed at least a half-dozen other chances, and had a whopping 27-12 advantage in shots. Abby Wambach missed so many chances she had little choice but to laugh at her misfortunes by the end of the game, and Rapinoe banged a shot off the crossbar.

Colombia did get four shots on goal, with their best chance coming in the 54th minute. Orianica Velasquez came in as a substitute, immediately got possession and took a shot, but Hope Solo punched it away.

"It's a tough loss for us, obviously," Arias said. "At the same time, I feel proud of what we did in this game."

The Americans are feeling pretty good about themselves, too.

Though the U.S. is the top-ranked team in the world and the defending Olympic champion, it was Germany, not the Americans considered the favorite when the tournament began. They had dropped three games in a five-month span after going more than two years without a loss, and needed to win a two-game playoff with Italy just to get to Germany.

But the U.S. rolled through its first two games, and its confidence is growing with every win. Though Wambach has yet to score and the Americans are struggling to finish shots, their five goals have come from five different players.

"That's a huge positive," O'Reilly said.

O'Reilly made Colombia pay for its botched clearance of a goal kick in the 12th minute, jumping on the ball after it bounced off Liana Salazar. O'Reilly took a few steps and then blasted a right-footed shot from 25 yards that Sepulveda had no chance to stop. It was O'Reilly's third World Cup goal, and 30th overall.

"Pia's always saying, 'If you have space in front of you, just take it,'" O'Reilly said. "I took a couple of touches and just let it fly."

The crowd of 25,475 burst into cheers as the ball rolled around the upper corner of the net, and the players lined up for their salute. There is a U.S. Army base in nearby Mannheim, and about 350 service members and their families watched the team practice Thursday.

"We were really moved and inspired by the support they gave us," O'Reilly said.

The Americans could have had another four or five goals just in the first half alone. But, just as they have much of the year, they struggled to finish. Wambach, one of the world's best players in the air, misdirected one header wide and sent another soaring over the goal. Amy Rodriguez had a short chip shot blocked and skied a rebound of a Wambach miss, and Sepulveda punched away a shot by Lauren Cheney.

But the U.S. quickly put the game out of reach in the second half, with Rapinoe scoring in the 50th minute and Lloyd in the 57th.

Rapinoe, who replaced Rodriguez at halftime, took a throw-in for the U.S. that Cheney collected. She dished off to Rapinoe, who made a thunderous shot from just inside the penalty box. As the crowd roared, Rapinoe ran to the corner of the field, grabbed one of the big, fuzzy TV mics and did her best Bruce Springsteen imitation.

Lori Lindsey soon joined her, playing air guitar, and the game took on a party atmosphere.

"It always helps to hear 'USA' chants and see so many flags," O'Reilly said. "It builds us up even more."

___

Follow Nancy Armour at http://twitter.com/nrarmour

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SPORTS - Short session: NFLPA, owners break talks for week (AP)

SPORTS - Short session: NFLPA, owners break talks for week (AP)

AP – NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, left, and National Football League Players Association executive director …

By DAVE CAMPBELL, AP Sports Writer Dave Campbell, Ap Sports Writer – Fri Jul 1, 7:57 pm ET

MINNEAPOLIS – The NFL commissioner and the boss of the league's locked-out players stood together this week and addressed the league's rookies, a picture of cooperation that raised hopes pro football would soon be back in business.

This, however, is the reality: The league's longest work stoppage has now stretched into July, with gaps that still must be bridged before teams can be assembled and training camps can begin.

The next bargaining session has been scheduled for after the holiday weekend, putting the end point of this labor dispute — now well past the 100-day mark — ever closer to the preseason.

The negotiating teams led by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and NFL Players Association Executive Director DeMaurice Smith met for a couple of hours Friday morning at a Minneapolis law firm with U.S. Magistrate Judge Arthur Boylan, following a 15-hour Thursday session that stretched past midnight and gave the negotiators a short night's sleep.

Several people familiar with the situation said the talks would resume Tuesday in New York City. The people all spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press because Boylan has ordered the details of the talks to be kept confidential.

Goodell, Smith, their colleagues and constituents all appeared in good spirits as they left the office building where they met and either walked away or climbed into black cars waiting by the doors.

But they had little to offer for an update.

"We'll continue to meet next week, and the goal is to get a deal done," Smith said on his way out.

Said NFL lead negotiator Jeff Pash: "We'll be back at it again next week."

Friday marked the fourth straight day of discussions, with a handful of owners and players joining their lawyers and leaders for the last two days.

The two sides have been trying to figure out how to agree on the division of revenues for this $9 billion business that has steadily grown in popularity, power and wealth over the last couple of decades as the NFL has become the nation's dominant pro sports league.

The revenue split, a major sticking point all along and particularly over the last couple of weeks, is considered a domino that must fall for a deal to get done.

There are several other issues to iron out as well, since the two sides are essentially creating a new collective bargaining agreement from scratch. The old one expired March 11, and the lockout began the next day. That's also when the NFLPA declared an end to its union status, a move the owners have protested as strategically convenient and have contested in court.

Among the players in Minneapolis this week were Jeff Saturday of the Indianapolis Colts and Brian Waters of the Kansas City Chiefs, with Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys and John Mara of the New York Giants part of the group of owners.

For weeks, owners, players and their representatives have been crisscrossing the country, holding unannounced meetings in spots ranging from a Chicago suburb to the Maryland shore.

This week began with optimism stemming from the joint trip Smith and Goodell took to Sarasota, Fla., to address incoming rookies at an orientation symposium Wednesday morning. But they still left Minneapolis without a deal, and time has become more of a factor in this process.

Training camps start in about three weeks, with the preseason-opening Hall of Fame game scheduled Aug. 7 between the Chicago Bears and St. Louis Rams. Even missing an exhibition game or two would begin to really cost the league money, not to mention testing the faith of the fans that have made this sport so big.

There also is the wild card of a pending ruling by the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in the players' antitrust lawsuit against the league, which was filed in Minneapolis and prompted Boylan's involvement as a mediator.

The appellate judges won't wait forever, and one of them warned earlier that neither side will like their decision on the legality of the lockout. But a faction on the players' side believes it's worth waiting on the court's ruling, and the owners have had plans in place for years to endure an extended work stoppage.

___

AP Pro Football Writer Barry Wilner in New York and AP Sports Writers Jon Krawczynski in Minneapolis and Dennis Waszak Jr. in New York contributed to this report.

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SPORTS - Giants tower over toothless Tigers with 15-3 win (Reuters)

SPORTS - Giants tower over toothless Tigers with 15-3 win (Reuters)

AP – NBA union chief Billy Hunter speaks with reporters after a meeting with the NBA, Thursday, June 30, 2011 …

By RACHEL COHEN, AP Sports Writer Rachel Cohen, Ap Sports Writer – Sat Jul 2, 4:13 pm ET

In March, NFL owners locked out their players. On Friday, NBA owners followed suit.

It's believed that only once before two of the United States' major sports leagues have been shuttered at the same time.

A look at what's at stake in the labor disputes, and how they are similar and different:

___

Q: What's with the NFL and the NBA being stuck in labor lockout at the same time? Are the two situations connected?

A: It's partly a coincidence that the two leagues' collective bargaining agreements expired within months of each other. But it's probably not a fluke that owners in both sports are saying at the same time that the old deals didn't provide them with sufficient revenue. The U.S. economy is emerging from a recession. And NFL and NBA leaders contend there aren't enough new revenue streams to cover costs for building and improving stadiums and arenas.

Q: But haven't both sports being doing very well recently?

A: The NFL and NBA have enjoyed a surge in interest the last couple of seasons, with appealing story lines and big-name stars driving robust television ratings. In fact, the two most watched U.S. television programs of all time were the past two Super Bowls. And the NBA, while not the same draw as pro football, last month had the highest rating for a Game 6 of its final series in 11 years.

Both players' associations argue that's proof the leagues are better off than they purport to be. The owners counter that ratings and other indicators of popularity are irrelevant when their economic models are broken. NBA owners say they lost hundreds of millions of dollars in every season of the last collective bargaining agreement, which was ratified in 2005. According to league officials, 22 of the 30 teams were losing money this past season. One of the points of contention between the NFL and its players is that the union wants access to more financial data from teams to see the exact economic situation of the clubs.

Q: OK. But what, exactly, is a lockout? And how's it different from a strike?

A: Management has the right under federal labor law to shut down a business once a CBA expires. That means, for instance, that the leagues aren't paying for players' health insurance, and free agents can't sign with teams. Employees have the same right to strike.

In this case, for both basketball and football, the owners' side is the one that wants to significantly alter the structure of the old deal, leading to a lockout, not a strike.

Q: How similar are the issues in the two sports' negotiations?

A: The tone of the two labor disputes has differed because of the league's disparate financial situations. For the NFL, the debate is how to divvy up $9 billion in revenues, with players and owners wrangling over what is the fairest split. The NBA is in a more dire economic plight, and the question is how much of a hit players' salaries will take as a result.

Q: Is the NBA lockout going to look like the NFL's?

A: The NFL union decertified and turned to the courts in an attempt to lift the lockout. The NBA players' association doesn't plan to go that route, at least for now.

Q: Should fans be worried about losing games in either situation?

A: Anything's possible. There was optimism earlier this week that an NFL deal was near, but the sides went into the holiday weekend without an agreement. The league says it hasn't set a deadline for when games would be canceled without a CBA. The regular season is supposed to start Sept. 8, but the NFL could start later and still get in 16 games. The NBA's regular season isn't scheduled to start until around late October, but at the moment both sides say they're very far apart.

Q: Are NFL or NBA players looking for jobs in other leagues?

A: NFL players don't have the sort of high-paying options NBA players do overseas. For example, guard Sasha Vujacic, who played for the New Jersey Nets last season and now is a free agent, said Saturday he would be open to signing with a team in Europe or China. "Definitely, as players, we've got to look at other opportunities," he said.

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SPORTS - Kvitova beats Sharapova at Wimbledon for 1st major (AP)

SPORTS - Kvitova beats Sharapova at Wimbledon for 1st major (AP)

AP – Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic holds her trophy aloft after defeating Russia's Maria Sharapova in …

• Slideshow:Roger Federer

By HOWARD FENDRICH, AP Tennis Writer Howard Fendrich, Ap Tennis Writer – Sat Jul 2, 3:41 pm ET

WIMBLEDON, England – One might reasonably have expected Petra Kvitova, not Maria Sharapova, to be betrayed by nerves in the Wimbledon final.

This was, after all, Kvitova's first Grand Slam championship match, while Sharapova already owned three major titles, including one from the All England Club. So Kvitova decided to pretend she was heading out on Centre Court to play in the fourth round.

That mindset worked. So, too, did nearly everything Kvitova tried once play began, particularly her big, flat left-handed groundstrokes that pushed Sharapova back on her heels. In a surprisingly lopsided final, Kvitova beat the higher-seeded, yet shakier, Sharapova 6-3, 6-4 Saturday to win Wimbledon for her first Grand Slam trophy.

"I was surprised how I was feeling on the court," Kvitova said, "because I was focused only on the point and on the game and not on the final."

If there were those who wondered how the eighth-seeded Kvitova would handle the setting and the pressure, her coach did not.

Indeed, David Kotyza had an inkling his new pupil possessed the right stuff to win titles shortly after they began working together about 2 1/2 years ago. That's because he was wowed by the several pages of handwritten answers Kvitova supplied for a questionnaire he gave her back then — and has kept to this day.

"I was really surprised about how she thinks about tennis, how clever she is. She told me her advantages, disadvantages, what she has to improve," Kotyza said, then pointed a finger to his temple and added: "Her brain is a big advantage for this game."

When she was a kid growing up in Fulnek, Czech Republic — population: 6,000 — and practicing an hour or so after school each day, Kvitova didn't count on becoming a professional tennis player. She simply wasn't that good, yet. Clearly, she's a quick study.

Before Wimbledon in 2010, Kvitova's career record on grass was 0-4. She is 16-2 on the slick surface since, including a run to the semifinals here last year before losing to Serena Williams.

At 21, Kvitova is the youngest Wimbledon champion since — you guessed it — Sharapova was 17 in 2004. Kvitova is also the first Czech to win the tournament since Jana Novotna in 1998.

Plus, Kvitova is only the third left-handed woman to win the grass-court Grand Slam tournament. The last was Martina Navratilova, who won her ninth Wimbledon title in 1990, a few months after Kvitova was born.

"I'm thrilled for her. She played brave tennis, and she deserved to win. She was by far the better player," said Navratilova, who was born in Czechoslovakia and sat near Novotna in the Royal Box on Saturday. "I don't think this is the only time she'll win here. It's very exciting. A new star."

That last phrase was being uttered by many people around the grounds after Kvitova managed to make Sharapova look rather ordinary.

Consider: Until Saturday, Sharapova had won all 12 sets she played over the last two weeks. But, as Sharapova's coach Thomas Hogstedt summed up afterward: "One played well. The other didn't play well. Maria didn't play as good as she can."

That was, at least in part, Kvitova's doing.

She compiled 19 winners, most by zipping her heavy forehands and backhands from the baseline, where her 6-foot frame and long arms helped her get to seemingly out-of-reach balls.

"She created offensive opportunities from tough positions on the court," Sharapova said. "Sometimes it's just too good."

Kvitova also broke Sharapova five times, anticipating where serves were headed.

It helped that Sharapova double-faulted six times, although at least those were fewer than the 13 the Russian hit in the semifinals.

"She performed incredible. Sometimes, when you don't know what to expect and you don't know how you're going to feel, sometimes you play your best, because you have that feeling of nothing to lose," said the fifth-seeded Sharapova, who was playing in a major final for the first time since right shoulder surgery in October 2008. "She went for it, absolutely."

What really was odd was seeing the experienced and normally gritty Sharapova bothered by distractions such as the swarms of tiny greenflies that showed up Saturday or the occasional clap or yell that came from the stands during points.

Even more stunning was the way Sharapova crumpled at key moments. One example: She double-faulted twice in a row to lose serve and fall behind 4-2 in the first set. Sharapova turned her back to the court and gave herself a little lecture, then smacked herself on her left palm with her racket.

Kvitova — now 4-1 in tournament finals this year — broke again to begin the second set, capping that game with a running forehand that caught the back edge of the baseline. The women exchanged four consecutive breaks in the middle of that set, before Kvitova — not Sharapova — gathered herself.

Ahead 4-3, but trailing 15-30 while serving, Kvitova hit three straight service winners to get to 5-3.

"She served quite hard. Her second serve was pretty big as well. She was going for it, for the second serve," Sharapova said. "I felt like I could have reacted a little bit better."

Credit Kvitova also for being at her steadiest in the most resolve-testing moments. She served out both sets at love, including with a 105 mph ace on match point.

What was running through her head right then?

"I have to do it now," she would say later.

After that last point — one last nerve-free point — Kvitova raised both arms, then dropped to her knees. A raucous celebration ensued in her guest box, including some overzealous chest-bumping that left one man knocked off his feet. Kvitova's allotted seats were completely filled — with her coach, parents, two brothers and Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, among others — while Sharapova's section had only her agent, coach, hitting partner and fiance, New Jersey Nets guard Sasha Vujacic.

"When you lose in the final, you feel like the biggest loser in a way, but Maria is on the right track. She's working hard," Vujacic said. "She needed a lot of time to come back, and I think if she stays on the same road, there are many good things ahead of us."

Now there will be similar expectations of Kvitova.

Kotyza, her coach, said Kvitova's best quality probably is that "she's just an ordinary girl. She's standing with both feet on the ground. And I think it's very, very important for ... these matches. Because she's 'OK, just hit the ball, and we will see.'"

Asked after Saturday's victory when she first realized she might one day win a Grand Slam title, Kvitova smiled, tucked some strands of hair behind her ear and replied: "Probably yesterday."

___

Follow Howard Fendrich at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich

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SPORTS - Belgium's Gilbert wins 1st stage of Tour de France (AP)

SPORTS - Belgium's Gilbert wins 1st stage of Tour de France (AP)

AP – Philippe Gilbert of Belgium celebrates winning the first stage of the Tour de France cycling race over …

– Sat Jul 2, 3:12 pm ET

MONT DES ALOUETTES, France – Philippe Gilbert won the first stage of the Tour de France on Saturday to take the yellow jersey, while defending champion Alberto Contador lost more than a minute because of a late crash.

The Belgian rider, who dazzled fans by winning three classics races in April, sped ahead from the pack in the final several hundred yards and kissed his jersey as he crossed the line.

"It was the last 500 meters, I had a lead ... (and) I went for it," Gilbert said. "It was an extreme effort and I was able to take advantage."

Gilbert, who has notched 13 victories between race and stage wins this year, had been a favorite to win the opening stage.

He clocked 4 hours, 41 minutes, 31 seconds for the sun-baked 119-mile ride from La Barre-de-Monts to Mont des Alouettes in the western Vendee region.

Two-time Tour runner-up Cadel Evans of Australia was second, three seconds back — making him the best performer among the expected title contenders. Thor Hushovd of Norway was third, six seconds off the pace.

The 2,131-mile race ends July 24 on Paris' Champs-Elysees. It's shaping up as a battle among riders like Contador and last year's runner-up Andy Schleck of Luxembourg. Three-time champion Contador, a Spaniard, beat Schleck by just 39 seconds last year.

However, they both ran into trouble toward the end of the stage on Saturday.

With about 5.5 miles left, Astana rider Maxim Iglinskiy knocked shoulders with a fan on the roadside, causing a mass crash that delayed Contador and split the pack. About 40 riders stayed in front. The Spaniard finished 1:20 after Gilbert and is 82nd overall.

Schleck too got slowed down by yet another crash near the end, and finished the stage in 39th place. But according to race rules about crashes within last three kilometers, he was credited with the same time as the pack he was in — six seconds behind Gilbert — and placed 33rd overall.

Among other possible title contenders, Belgium's Jurgen Van den Broeck is fifth overall, Levi Leipheimer of the United States is 38th, and Briton Bradley Wiggins trails in 50th place — all six seconds behind the Belgian stage winner.

Five crashes took down riders in the nervous debut stage, including Movistar leader David Arroyo of Spain and Linus Gerdemann, the Leopard Trek rider who won the Tour of Luxembourg this year. Two injured Movistar teammates, Andrey Amador and Benat Intxauti, were taken to hospital for X-rays.

Belgium's Jelle Vanendert paid for his courtesy. Near the front of the main pack around the 39-mile mark, the Omega Pharma-Lotto rider held out his left arm to warn those behind him of a roadway median — a gesture that caused him to lose control of his bike. He tumbled to the ground with his helmet bouncing and his sunglasses skidding away, while several others fell in his wake. All of those involved returned to the race.

While the stage was mostly flat, the end was tricky. Riders had to scale the bumpy Mont des Alouettes — a 1.8-mile hill — up to the finish, so it was not tailor-made for traditional sprinters.

In a break with recent tradition, the Tour opener this year was not an individual time-trial prologue, with riders instead embarking right away on a full stage.

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SPORTS - Bryans equal Woodies' 11 Grand Slam mark (AFP)

SPORTS - Bryans equal Woodies' 11 Grand Slam mark (AFP)

AP – Rickie Fowler tees off the on the third hole in the third round of the AT&T National golf tournament …

By DOUG FERGUSON, AP Golf Writer Doug Ferguson, Ap Golf Writer – Sat Jul 2, 7:20 pm ET

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. – Before he even teed off, Rickie Fowler knew this was going to be a different day at the AT&T National. The course record already had been matched, with several other low rounds in progress at suddenly soft Aronimink Golf Club.

One thought crossed his mind: Go time.

That's the message Fowler always puts on Twitter right before he plays, and off he went. He birdied six of his opening 10 holes — and missed two other chances inside 10 feet. He wound up with a 6-under 64 on Saturday and a share of the lead with Nick Watney, who set the course record with a 62.

"I got out, and my game has been feeling good all week," Fowler said. "Went out and started off well, hit some good shots and kept moving from there."

Watney took a while to get moving. He made a mess of the par-5 ninth and was even-par on the front nine, going nowhere. What happened after that, not even Watney can explain.

"The hole looked really big on the back," said Watney, a World Golf Championship winner. "The ball was going where I was looking, and by the time I looked up, I was 8 under."

That's 8 under for his round, and the back nine alone.

After three straight birdies, he then made a 30-foot eagle putt on the par-5 16th. Facing a dangerous pin on the par-3 17th, he went after it with a wedge to 5 feet and another birdie. Watney shot 27 on the back, missing by one the PGA Tour's nine-hole record.

When the massacre of Aronimink was over — 40 of 76 players shot in the 60s, including 14 rounds at 66 or better — nothing had really been settled except for a lot of birdies being made.

Fowler and Watney were at 9-under 201, one shot ahead of 36-hole leader K.J. Choi, who came to life late in his round with two birdies on the final three holes to salvage a 69.

Steve Marino, who had a 63 to own the course record for about 20 minutes, was two shots behind at 7-under 205 along with Webb Simpson (64) and Adam Scott (66). The group another shot back included Chris Kirk, whose 63 was in the record book much longer — about an hour.

Scott was tempted to start firing at flags when he saw all low scores, but stuck to his plan and meticulously worked his way around the golf course.

"I'm quite happy with a 66, to be honest," Scott said. "But yeah, it doesn't really stack up against a 62, does it?"

For all the hype over the fashionable Fowler, the 22-year-old hasn't won on the PGA Tour in 46 starts as a pro. He gave himself another chance at Aronimink.

But he isn't the only player going for his first win. Eight of the top 12 players on the leaderboard have yet to win on the PGA Tour.

Marino is regarded as among the best to have never collected a PGA Tour trophy, and he and Simpson — also winless on tour — could have even more at stake Sunday. The leading player among the top five not already eligible will be exempt for the British Open. Marino and Simpson also are battling for a higher ranking to see who will be the top alternate — which becomes more significant with Tiger Woods not expected to compete at Royal St. George's.

Watney, the highest-ranked player at Aronimink at No. 15 in the world, didn't figure to be part of the mix when he ended his front nine with back-to-back bogeys. He birdied his next two holes, then played a five-hole stretch in 6 under capped by his birdie on the 17th.

"I guess anything is possible," Watney said. "But I don't think you ever expect to shoot that low. You don't go on to the golf course very often anticipating a 62."

Certainly not this golf course.

In the opening round Thursday, only four of the holes average under par. On Saturday, with softer greens, tees moved forward and some hole locations that allowed shots to funnel toward the pin, half of the holes played under par.

Not everyone took advantage.

Chris Riley, playing in the last group with Choi, wound up with a 75. Justin Leonard and Bo Van Pelt each had a 71 to fall five shots behind, although they are still very much in the game.

Mark Russell, a vice president of competition in charge of setting up the course, said the watering pattern didn't change and attributed the soft conditions to more humidity in the air. It doesn't figure to change much for the final round, with storms in the forecast. The starting times for Sunday where moved up to try to avoid any weather delays.

Watney's last win was his biggest — a big drive on the 18th hole of the Blue Monster at Doral for a birdie and a two-shot win, proving to himself that he could deliver key shots under pressure.

Fowler is trying to draw on the experience of being a runner-up. He had two good chances last year, laying up on a par 5 late in his round in Phoenix, then losing a lead at the Memorial when he hit a tee shot into the water on the par-3 12th hole.

"I think the biggest thing is just go out and be patient, not get ahead of myself and not get too excited or anxious, just sit back, relax, go through things the same way tonight and just go have some fun tomorrow," Fowler said.

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SPORTS - Watney, Fowler share lead at Aronimink (AP)

SPORTS - Watney, Fowler share lead at Aronimink (AP)

AP – Urijah Faber, left, trades punches with Dominick Cruz during the first round of their UFC bantamweight …

– 2 hrs 2 mins ago

LAS VEGAS – Dominick Cruz retained the bantamweight title and avenged his only career loss, unanimously outpointing Urijah Faber in a five-round bout in UFC 132 on Saturday night.

Cruz, the aggressor throughout who utilized his awkward style to land a number of leg kicks and solid strikes. had winning scores of 50-45, 49-46 and 48-47 from the judges.

In the co-main event at MGM Grand Garden Arena, Chris Leben rebounded from a loss in his last fight to stop Wanderlei Silva in 27 seconds.

On the undercard, former light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz won for the first time in nearly five years with a first-round submission victory over Ryan Bader.

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SPORTS - Logano wins at Daytona with help from Kyle Busch (AP)

SPORTS - Logano wins at Daytona with help from Kyle Busch (AP)

AP – In this photo taken Friday, June 24, 2011, a man walks past near a sign for the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter …

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By STEPHEN WILSON, AP Sports Writer Stephen Wilson, Ap Sports Writer – Sat Jul 2, 4:05 pm ET

LONDON – Send the Winter Olympics to a new frontier in Asia, or go back to the roots of winter sports in the heart of Europe?

That sums up the choice facing the International Olympic Committee when it selects the host city for the 2018 Games.

By all accounts, the South Korean bid from Pyeongchang remains the one to beat in the three-city race that also includes Munich and Annecy, France, when nearly 100 IOC members cast their secret ballots on Wednesday in Durban, South Africa.

Pyeongchang, bidding for a third consecutive time after narrow defeats for the 2010 and 2014 Olympics, would become the first Asian city outside Japan to host the Winter Games.

Munich, bidding to become the first city to stage both the Summer and Winter Olympics, is pushing Pyeongchang to the wire in what is shaping up as a two-horse race. The French bid from Annecy is the clear outsider.

"The two front-runners are still front-runners and Annecy is a little behind," Norwegian IOC executive board member Gerhard Heiberg told The Associated Press. "Everybody is waiting for the presentations and most people have not made up their minds."

In May, the three contenders made presentations to the IOC in Lausanne, Switzerland, but frantic campaigning will remain until the last minute, capping a two-year race that took bid leaders around the world to push their case.

IOC votes can be unpredictable — particularly for the Winter Games, with many members coming from countries with no winter sports tradition or interest. Intangible factors such as politics, geography, sentiment, future bids and personal relationships come into play as much as the quality of the bobsled or curling venues.

The final presentations on Wednesday could also swing some votes.

"I think it's still close," Swiss IOC executive board member Denis Oswald said. "Munich is certainly a very strong challenger. We would be sure they would have an excellent organization. The Annecy bid is not bad at all, but they had a bad start and it was difficult to catch up."

South Korea President Lee Myung-bak and German President Christian Wulff will be in Durban to promote their countries' bids. However, in a sign of Annecy's faint hopes, French President Nicolas Sarkozy is not traveling to South Africa and is sending Prime Minister Francois Fillon instead.

Tony Blair was instrumental in securing the 2012 Olympics for London, and Vladimir Putin helped Sochi land the 2014 Winter Games. But President Barack Obama didn't help Chicago's cause when he traveled to Copenhagen for the IOC vote in 2009, and the U.S. city was eliminated in the first round.

Better recognized than the heads of state this time will be two figure skating stars: Former two-time Olympic gold medalist Katarina Witt chairs the Munich bid, while 20-year-old reigning champion Kim Yu-na is a key face in the Pyeongchang delegation.

On paper, Pyeongchang would seem to have everything going for it: The persistence of bidding several times over 10 years, geography, the promise to develop winter sports in a new market of Asia, strong national priority given to the bid, compact layout of the venues.

The recent trend of sports bodies in taking their major events to new territories also plays in Pyeongchang's favor.

Russia will host its first Winter Olympics in 2014 in Sochi; Rio de Janeiro will be the first South American city to stage the Olympics in 2016; the 2018 World Cup will take place in Russia and the 2022 tournament in Qatar.

It's no coincidence that Pyeongchang's bid slogan is "New Horizons."

The Winter Games have been held twice in Asia, both times in Japan — Sapporo (1972) and Nagano (1998).

"For me, it's a sports/political decision," Oswald said. "It's mainly whether you take this opportunity to open winter sport to a new continent. It would be pretty much in the spirit of Rio."

Not surprisingly, Pyeongchang has sought to downplay the favorite tag.

"Bidding is like a marathon," bid leader Cho Yang-ho said. "This is the final kilometer and everyone is working hard to keep going until the end. I am tense. I used to be a good sleeper but now I don't sleep. Some people say we are leading but you never know until the last minute."

Munich is offering its own strong case, noting that winter sports power Germany will not have hosted a Winter Games in more than 80 years — in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in 1936. Garmisch-Partenkirchen would stage the Alpine events in 2018.

Witt said the choice of an Olympic host city is "about more than just geography."

"It is a choice about the kind of Olympic experience the athletes of the future should have," she said, citing Germany's passionate sports fans and full arenas.

Munich has also played up the financial clout of German sponsors, pointing out that half of sponsorship revenues for the seven winter sports federations comes from funding by German companies.

Annecy, a lakeside town, says it would offer "authentic" and "green" games in a traditional style in the heart of the French Alps.

Behind the scenes, an unpredictable factor could come into play: the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Rome is already a declared candidate, while Madrid and Tokyo are also considering bids ahead of the Sept. 1 deadline. European members may prefer to have the 2018 Games in Asia to increase their chances for 2020.

"It may in their best interest to not have something in Europe and not let Tokyo get away with some kind of sympathy," senior Canadian IOC member Dick Pound said. "If you give the winter games to Asia, you effectively take Tokyo out of 2020. How that will affect European voting patterns remains to be seen."

There will be only a limited amount of time for lobbying in Durban as most IOC members won't be arriving until Monday or Tuesday. Several dozen will be arriving straight from Monaco, where they were invited to attend the weekend wedding of Prince Albert and former South African Olympic swimmer Charlene Wittstock. Albert is an IOC member and former Olympic bobsled competitor.

Under the IOC voting system, a majority is required for victory. The candidate getting the fewest votes is eliminated after each round until a winner emerges.

In 2003, Pyeongchang led after the first round of voting for the 2010 Winter Games. The Koreans had 51 votes, followed by Vancouver with 40 and Salzburg with 16. Vancouver won 56-53 in the next round.

In 2007, Pyeongchang led with 36 votes in the first round for the 2014 Games, followed by Sochi with 34 and Salzburg with 25. Sochi won 51-47 in the final ballot.

"I would have thought if Korea is going to win they've got to win on the first round, like they almost did each time in the previous two," Pound said.

The IOC has 110 members, but President Jacques Rogge doesn't vote and six members from France, Germany and South Korea are ineligible to vote while their cities are still in contention. Oswald has recused himself from voting to avoid any perception of conflict of interest after the international rowing federation, which he heads, signed a sponsorship deal with South Korean electronics giant Samsung.

That means 102 members will be eligible to vote in the first round. However, several members usually are ill or unable to attend the session, so the actual number is likely to be below 100.

A first-round winner is possible, though by no means certain.

"You can not play — you have to vote immediately for the one you think is the best candidate," Oswald said.

On the morning of the vote, each city will have 45 minutes to make final presentations, followed by 15 minutes for questions and answers.

"You can't win in the presentations, but you can lose," Pound said. "Some people may say, 'I know the one I don't want, let's wait and see what the bells and whistles are on July 6.' It makes it that more unstable as an exercise."

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SPORTS - NC State tourney star Lorenzo Charles laid to rest (AP)

SPORTS - NC State tourney star Lorenzo Charles laid to rest (AP)

Reuters – Sky procycling rider Bradley Wiggins (R) of Britain rides during the first stage of the Tour de France …

By Julien Pretot Julien Pretot – Sat Jul 2, 10:04 pm ET

LES ESSARTS, France (Reuters) – Philippe Gilbert's reign as Tour de France leader may be brief, with a 23-km team time trial featuring in Sunday's second stage.

The Belgian first-stage winner's Omega Pharma Lotto team are not among the favourites for Sunday's timed effort and the yellow jersey is likely to change hands.

World champion Thor Hushovd of Norway, third overall after Saturday's first stage, looks a likely candidate to take it, with his Garmin-Cervelo squad considered one of the strongest and most cohesive in the peloton and including time-trial specialists David Zabriskie and David Millar.

Hushovd's team seem to be threatened only by American team HTC Highroad, whose leader is German Tony Martin.

"It is clear that the (team time trial) is a major goal for us," said HTC team director Allen Peiper.

Team Sky, with pursuit specialists such as Bradley Wiggins and Geraint Thomas, can also hope to shine on the Vendee roads.

"We come from team pursuit and this is very similar. Obviously we have this team time trial at the back of our minds," said team manager Dave Brailsford.

However, most experts believe the stage is too short for huge gaps to be made.

Rabobank sports director Adri Van Houwelingen, who was one of the best specialists with the invincible Raleigh team in the 1970s and 1980s, said on Saturday: "You're not going to see major time differences tomorrow. Yet a good performance in the team time trial is always a great boost to the team morale. As such, it is essential."

Defending champion Alberto Contador, who rides for SaxoBank, is unlikely to get the chance to make up for the 80 seconds he lost in Saturday's first stage after getting caught behind a crash but should at least not lose much more time.

(Editing by Clare Fallon)

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SPORTS - Pyeongchang, Munich lead chase for 2018 Olympics (AP)

SPORTS - Pyeongchang, Munich lead chase for 2018 Olympics (AP)

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SPORTS - Ragan redeems himself at Daytona with 1st win (AP)

SPORTS - Ragan redeems himself at Daytona with 1st win (AP)

AP – David Ragan celebrates after winning the NASCAR Coke Zero 400 auto race at Daytona International Speedway …

By JENNA FRYER, AP Auto Racing Writer Jenna Fryer, Ap Auto Racing Writer – 1 hr 1 min ago

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Daytona 500 was one big could've, would've, should've for David Ragan.

With a chance at redemption, the 25-year-old hardly needed a reminder on late-race procedures.

In his return to Daytona International Speedeway, a little over four months after a late-race gaffe in the season-opening Daytona 500 cost him what would have been a life-changing victory, Ragan stayed calm when he found himself out front on the final restart of Saturday night's race.

With teammate Matt Kenseth on his bumper, their spotter tried to warn Ragan to stay in his lane on the restart, the error he made that led to his crushing penalty in February.

"I was on Matt Kenseth's radio that last restart and his spotter mentioned it, and I said 'You don't have to tell me, so don't even say it,' " Ragan said. "That kind of lightened the mood. Everyone was so tense there at the end."

Kenseth pushed Ragan for the final two laps as Ragan cruised to his first career Sprint Cup win in 163 starts.

"I told him, 'I'm not going to leave you and try to pass you,' " said Kenseth, "because I knew that one of us weren't going to win. So that was a plan to work as a team all night and it just so happened he was in front at the end. Both of us were kind of unselfish all night and worked together really well."

It helped Ragan atone for the Daytona 500, when he was black-flagged for passing too early on the restart and slammed his steering wheel three times with his fist. After finishing 14th, he said "It'll take us a long time to forget this one. The sooner we can win one, the sooner we can forget it."

Now he feels a whole lot better.

"It was a tough one in February and coming back here, we knew that we'd have a shot to win," he said. "We got one back at Daytona. It would have been tough to lose another one. I thought about that under the last caution."

With the win, Ragan could be in contention for a berth in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship. Ragan jumped to 17th in the standings, and two spots in the Chase will go to the winningest drivers ranked between 11 and 20.

And it could save the relationship with sponsor UPS, which is in the final year of its contract with RFR. The team learned this week that Crown Royal will not return as primary sponsor for Kenseth, and so far the organization has only one of its four primary sponsors resigned for 2012.

"David has a great future ahead of him and we look forward to many more trips to victory lane with him," Ron Rogowski, UPS vice president of sponsorship and events, said in a statement immediately after the race.

Kenseth finished second to give RFR a 1-2 sweep for Ford.

Joey Logano, who won his first Daytona race Friday night with a Nationwide Series victory, finished third in a Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing. Kasey Kahne was fourth in a Toyota for Red Bull Racing and Kyle Busch was fifth for JGR.

Jeff Gordon made a terrific late-race save to avoid a race-ending wreck and finished sixth in a Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports. Kevin Harvick was seventh for Richard Childress Racing and claimed the series points lead after an early accident caused previous leader Carl Edwards to finish 37th.

Paul Menard was eighth, while Juan Pablo Montoya and AJ Allmendinger rounded out the top 10.

The race was, as expected, more of the two-car tandem style that has taken over at Daytona and Talladega, the two restrictor-plate tracks in NASCAR. It was fairly tame until the final 20 or so laps, when the racing got dicey.

It got downright chaotic with just over two scheduled laps remaining, when Gordon needed a beautiful save to prevent a massive accident. That set up the first attempt at overtime, which ended with a 15-car accident triggered when Mark Martin and Logano went for the same piece of track space.

Then came the second overtime, which ended with Ragan crossing the finish line first as a second 15-car accident broke out in the final turn.

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SPORTS - Klitschko outpoints Haye to keep all belts in the family (Reuters)

SPORTS - Klitschko outpoints Haye to keep all belts in the family (Reuters)

AP – NASCAR driver Joey Logano celebrates in victory lane after winning the Subway Jalapeno 250 auto race …

By JENNA FRYER, AP Auto Racing Writer Jenna Fryer, Ap Auto Racing Writer – Fri Jul 1, 11:02 pm ET

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Joey Logano needed a boost to turn around his slumping season. It started last weekend on the road course at Sonoma and continued on the high banks of Daytona.

Logano picked up his first win of the season Friday night with a last-lap push from teammate Kyle Busch to win the Nationwide Series race at Daytona International Speedway. It comes on the heels of him winning the pole at Sonoma then finishing a career-high sixth on the road course.

"I really needed it. I've been digging as hard as I possibly can. I've been confused," Logano said. "I don't know what to do different, but the big thing is just having some momentum on your side and you'll be amazed at what it can do. This is definitely a huge win for me for a lot of reasons. I'm pretty pumped up."

He was the unlikely winner, though, as Danica Patrick flirted several times with the victory. She had help at various times from Tony Stewart, and was paired in the closing laps with JR Motorsports teammate Aric Almirola.

Stewart at that point had hooked up with Elliott Sadler and was committed to pushing his Kevin Harvick Inc. teammate to the win.

The Sadler-Stewart pairing took the lead from the Patrick-Almirola tandem, and Patrick had to weave her way back to mount another pass. Then Logano-Busch charged to the front on the final lap, leaving all the other contenders stuck in a tight pack of traffic.

As Logano closed in on the finish line, Mike Wallace squeezed Patrick against the wall, she bounced back into the pack and an eight-car accident marred the finish. Sadler and Stewart were also in the wreck, and Almirola had to climb from a car engulfed in flames.

"It just looks like a bit of a cluster," Patrick said. "I kept my foot in it, which might not be the best thing here, but I was going for broke. I learned a lot, that's for sure."

It was Logano's first win at Daytona, and ninth of his Nationwide career.

"They told me a stat here earlier this week and it said the last eight superspeedway races I finished second four times out of the eight," Logano said. "It's nice to be on the other side of it and be in Victory Lane here. This will really help me a lot."

Jason Leffler finished second and Reed Sorenson was third to win a $100,000 bonus as the highest finishing eligible driver in sponsor Nationwide's first Dash 4 Cash race. Nationwide is paying out a guaranteed $400,000 over four races to one of four eligible series regulars as a way to promote NASCAR's second tier series.

Winning the bonus capped a strong week for series points leader Sorenson, who earned his first victory of the season last Saturday at Road America.

Busch was fourth, Justin Allgaier fifth and Michael Annett was sixth. Kenny Wallace was seventh, while Sadler, Almirola and Patrick rounded out the top 10.

KHI swept the top four spots in qualifying, but all four wrecked in the end. Clint Bowyer was wrecked late in the race, and Harvick, Sadler and Stewart were all in the last-lap accident.

"Well that was expensive ... " team owner Delana Harvick posted on Twitter immediately after the race.

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SPORTS - Rangers reel in C Brad Richards with 9-year deal (AP)

SPORTS - Rangers reel in C Brad Richards with 9-year deal (AP)

AFP – US palyers Bob Bryan (L) and Mike Bryan pose with the trophy after beating Swedish player Robert Lindstedt …

– Sat Jul 2, 2:34 pm ET

LONDON (AFP) – American twins Bob and Mike Bryan equalled Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge's record of 11 Grand Slam men's doubles titles on Saturday when they captured their second Wimbledon crown.

The Bryans clinched a 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (7/2) win over Sweden's Robert Lindstedt and Horia Tecau of Romania to add to their victory in 2006. They had also lost three previous finals at the All England Club.

Their Grand Slam haul also includes five Australian Opens, three US Open and one at Roland Garros.

However, they captured this year's Wimbledon title the hard way, needing five sets to see off Simon Aspelin and Paul Hanley in the third round and another five to subdue Michael Llodra and Nenad Zimonjic in the semi-finals.

"This is a Wimbledon title. This is as special as it gets. I always thought we'd play our best at Wimbledon, and we've lost three heartbreaking finals," said Mike Bryan.

"To get on that board again, to have two Wimbledon titles, is really special. And then to equal the Woodies, a team that we idolized, the greatest team in our mind, is unbelievable.

"We'd love to try to get to 12 and do that at the US Open, but those guys have been really gracious. They're the first to come up to us and congratulate us."

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SPORTS - Cruz outpoints Faber in UFC 132 (AP)

SPORTS - Cruz outpoints Faber in UFC 132 (AP)

Reuters – Ukrainian IBF and WBO titleholder Vladimir Klitschko (R) fights against British WBA champion David Haye …

– Sat Jul 2, 7:12 pm ET

HAMBURG, Germany (Reuters) – Vladimir Klitschko beat Britain's David Haye on a unanimous points decision on Saturday to add the WBA heavyweight title to his three other belts and complete his family's domination of the division.

The Ukrainian, whose lighter and smaller opponent took him the full 12 rounds despite fighting with a broken toe, was declared the winner 117-109, 118-108 and 116-110 by the two American and one South African judge.

While denied the 50th career knockout he had hoped for, Klitschko could still celebrate with his brother and WBC champion Vitali.

Between them the pair now have the WBA, WBC, WBO, IBF and IBO belts, their lifelong dream of uniting the entire division in the family.

"I would have loved to celebrate my 50th knockout," said the Ukrainian, who was taunted publicly by the trash-talking English showman in the build-up to the fight and who was determined to make him pay.

"I am still not okay with his behavior before the fight," he said. "It's definitely disgraceful to the boxing fans, to the sport of boxing, the way the man behaved himself. I think the fight talked for itself."

Klitschko aimed and landed far more punches than Haye, who was unable to connect with his famed 'Hayemaker' while being picked off by the Ukrainian's jab.

He explained afterwards that had been more to do with the secret injury he was carrying.

"I broke my toe about three weeks ago," Haye told Sky television, baring his foot in the ring to prove his point. "I didn't let anyone know that.

"I've been giving it local anaesthetics in the gym... that's why I stopped sparring. My Hayemaker wasn't there, I couldn't push off my right foot to land that shot. It was really frustrating."

Haye said he had considered pulling out of the fight but had refused to let down the considerable British support among the 50,000 strong crowd who made the trip to Germany for their biggest heavyweight fight in nearly a decade.

"There was no way after all the good fans had paid so much money to come over here, I could not pull out," he said.

(Writing by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Ken Ferris; For Reuters sports blog Left Field go to: http://blogs.reuters.com/sport)

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SPORTS - USA crush Colombia to cruise into quarter-finals (AFP)

SPORTS - USA crush Colombia to cruise into quarter-finals (AFP)

AFP – USA´s midfielder Carli Lloyd plays during the football match of the FIFA women's football World …

by Emmeline Moore Emmeline Moore – Sat Jul 2, 3:03 pm ET

SINSHEIM, Germany (AFP) – The United States cruised into the quarter-finals of the women's World Cup here on Saturday with a 3-0 thrashing of Colombia in their second Group C match.

Goals from Heather O'Reilly (12), Megan Rapinoe (50) and Carli Lloyd (57) ensured the two-time winners remained unbeaten ahead of their game against Sweden, who also advance with a maximum six points, after earlier beating North Korea 1-0.

Colombia and North Korea crash out of the tournament after losing both their games and will play each other in their final group game on Wednesday with nothing but pride at stake.

"I enjoyed that, even if I have to say I was nervous before the game," said US coach Pia Sundhage of her side's first meeting with the South American debutantes.

"But particularly after the second half, people were coming off the bench and they really made the difference.

"We didn't finish all our chances but as long as we're creating chances, I'm happy they will eventually go in and they did in the second half."

Colombia coach Ricardo Rozo said: "We're out but it's not the end. The team believes there will be more opportunities.

"We're going to continue fighting for women's soccer in Colombia and who knows, maybe we can win the World Cup."

World number ones the USA, who beat North Korea 2-0 in their opener, dominated from the outset and their South American rivals could have been further behind at half-time but for some big saves from Sandra Sepulveda.

Sepulveda, 23, did well to keep out an Amy Rodriguez effort after just three minutes.

Striker Abby Wambach almost put the Olympic champions ahead after seven minutes only for Sepulveda to again block the powerful effort, which left her needing ice applied to her hand.

Rodriguez tried to fire in the rebound but sent it over.

Three minutes later Rodriguez missed another chance but O'Reilly made no mistake after 12 minutes, slamming past the beleagured Sepulveda with a glorious effort from distance.

For the goal celebration the entire US team lined up and saluted US military personnel among the sell-out 25,475 crowd who had travelled from bases in nearby Heidelberg in southwestern Germany.

The match was the first not involving hosts Germany to be sold out.

The USA pushed forward again, with Wamback sending a header over on the half hour mark, while Sepulveda again proved solid when faced with a 36th-minute Lauren Cheny shot.

Katerin Castro looked to have got the equaliser before the break only for the Estudiantes striker to be ruled offside.

Rapinoe came on as a second-half substitute for the Americans and five minutes later she found the net after a Cheney assist, leaving Sepulveda with no chance.

Seven minutes later Stephanie Cox set up Lloyd for the third.

The US forwards piled forward in search of more goals, with star striker Wambach bad day continuing as she missed two quick-fire opportunities on 65 and 66 minutes and a golden Rapinoe effort hitting the crossbar.

Colombia's Orianica Velasquez had a chance to get one back four minutes from time but her weak effort was held by US goalie Hope Solo.

"Overall there were three fantastic goals and we can now move on and focus on Sweden. We've played them a few times and know what to expect," said Lloyd, who was voted player of the match.

Of the goal celebration, she added: "The troops came out to our practice the other day and it was fantasic. Everyone really made it special so we thought it would be nice to salute them."

The USA next play Sweden in Wolfsburg on Wednesday, with North Korea and Colombia going head to head in Bochum.

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SPORTS - Team time trial likely to throw up new Tour leader (Reuters)

SPORTS - Team time trial likely to throw up new Tour leader (Reuters)

AP – FILE - In this Dec. 8, 2010 file photo, Dallas Stars' Brad Richards reacts to a call during the first …

By IRA PODELL, AP Hockey Writer Ira Podell, Ap Hockey Writer – Sat Jul 2, 9:04 pm ET

NEW YORK – Brad Richards impatiently waited for this day, the day he could finally pick a new team from a whole slew of suitors.

After a day of being wooed by teams around the NHL, Richards chose the one that was the front-runner all along — the New York Rangers.

Richards, considered the biggest prize in this year's underwhelming free-agent market, struck it rich Saturday when he agreed to a nine-year, $60 million deal.

"The phone will probably get thrown in a lake later today and we'll get on with just relaxing," Richards said. "You have to respect the process but I'm not a person that likes to wait around for something to happen and it's kind of been like that for 60, 70 days knowing that nothing can happen until July 1.

"You're kind of in limbo. Your mind doesn't really relax like it might in a regular summer."

The 31-year-old center will be reunited with coach John Tortorella, with whom he won the Stanley Cup in 2004 with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He'll be alongside Marian Gaborik on New York's revamped top line. The Rangers will likely pick a left winger from within.

After a career-high 28 goals and 49 assists last season with the Dallas Stars, Richards jumped to the head of the free-agent class and was coveted by the Rangers. The Los Angeles Kings and Toronto Maple Leafs also made in-person pitches at the office of his agent, Pat Morris, in Ontario.

The Calgary Flames also made a late push Friday, the first day of the free-agent shopping season, to try to land the Prince Edward Island native.

Tim Leiweke, the chief executive of Anschutz Entertainment Group, which owns the Kings, was part of a group that included general manager Dean Lombardi and several others who went to Canada to meet with Richards. Not even video messages from Wayne Gretzky and Kobe Bryant won over Richards.

"It's not easy to say no to people," he said. "The offers being made are very flattering. I am excited to play for one NHL team, let alone having that many options."

New York stated its case remotely and did enough to lure Richards, despite not offering the most lucrative deal. The Rangers hope Richards can carry them further than their first-round exit of last season.

"You can find a player like this as a free agent or find a player like this in the top five (of the draft) and it takes a long time to develop," general manager Glen Sather said. "We needed somebody like this to take us to the next step. I think it's a great opportunity for us. I know he left a lot of money on the table by accepting the offer."

The Rangers hope Richards will end their search for a center to power their top line and run their often struggling power play. New York thought it filled its hole in the middle four years ago when it signed Chris Drury and Scott Gomez on the first day of free agency, hoping for a good mix with Jaromir Jagr.

It didn't work.

Gomez was traded just two years into his seven-year, $51.5 million deal, and this week the Rangers bought out the final year of Drury's contract — a five-year, $35.25 million pact — ending the captain's stay with the team and opening more cap space to squeeze in Richards.

"John Tortorella pushes people to be the best they can be," Sather said. "We needed to be pushed a little further. I think (Richards) pushes us to the next step. It helps everyone move forward and brings a lot of confidence to the room."

Richards will occupy $6.66 million of cap space for nine years, although the length of the deal lessens the amount each season. Sather said Richards' work ethic and condition eliminated his concern about the number of years.

The Rangers have been burned many times on lucrative contracts with veteran players. New York stashed defenseman Wade Redden in the minor leagues all of last season to get his $6.5 million off the cap. Redden still has three years left on his deal.

Richards carries another risk — he was sidelined for a month last season after a concussion. He was struck in the jaw on a check against Columbus on Feb. 13 and missed 10 games before returning March 9.

"I have been training for six weeks, way ahead of any other training schedule I have been on because I was healthy after the season," Richards said. "My body felt great, my head felt great, so I got at it pretty quick.

"I know there is a lot of talk about those things, but it's really in the past."

Two seasons ago, Richards had 16 goals and 48 points in 55 games before breaking his right wrist when he was checked by Columbus' Jakub Voracek. He missed 15 games, but a broken left hand against San Jose in his first game back ended his season.

In 11 NHL seasons with Tampa Bay and Dallas, Richards has 220 goals and 496 assists in 772 games. Among active players, Richards is seventh in the NHL over the last two seasons with 1.11 points a game. During his career, Richards ranks 20th at 0.93 points, and 13th in the playoffs with 0.98 points.

Richards had 12 goals and a NHL-best 26 points, seven power-play goals and seven game-winning goals during the 2004 postseason to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP to go with the Lightning's Stanley Cup title. He was traded to Dallas during the 2007-08 season in a big deal after six-plus seasons with Tampa Bay.

"He just fits. There are things we need within the club and he brings quite a few of those things," Tortorella said. "At the end of the day, we're a better hockey club than at the beginning."

New York was relatively quiet Friday, agreeing to a three-year, $4.5 million deal with former Pittsburgh Penguins forward Mike Rupp, and re-signing forward Ruslan Fedotenko for one year, $1.4 million.

Now that they have secured their biggest target, the Rangers can move to re-sign restricted free agent forwards Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov and Brian Boyle, and restricted defenseman Mike Sauer.

Unrestricted free agent defenseman Matt Gilroy left the Rangers on Saturday after two seasons by agreeing to a deal with the Lightning. New York also traded minor league forward Brodie Dupont, who played one game with the Rangers, to Nashville for right wing Andreas Thuresson. Both players are restricted free agents.

Thuresson has been with Milwaukee of the AHL for most of the past four seasons. In 25 career games for Nashville, including 22 in the 2009-10 season, he has one goal and two assists. Thuresson was pointless in three games last season with the Predators.

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SPORTS - A guide to the lockouts in the NFL and NBA (AP)

SPORTS - A guide to the lockouts in the NFL and NBA (AP)

AP – FILE- This April 4, 1983 file photo shows North Carolina State's Lorenzo Charles (43) dunking the ball …

By JOEDY McCREARY, AP Sports Writer Joedy Mccreary, Ap Sports Writer – Sat Jul 2, 1:49 pm ET

RALEIGH, N.C. – Lorenzo Charles was remembered Saturday for more than a last-second dunk that remains one of the NCAA tournament's signature moments.

Charles' funeral was held five days after the hero of North Carolina State's title-winning upset of Houston in 1983 was killed in a single-vehicle bus wreck.

"It's a tough time for family, teammates, fans and friends, but it's also a time to celebrate and reflect on a wonderful man's life," teammate Dereck Whittenburg said.

Charles caught Whittenburg's 30-foot heave and dunked it at the buzzer to give underdog N.C. State its second national championship. Late coach Jim Valvano scurried onto the court during the wild celebration in Albuquerque, N.M., searching for anyone to hug and creating an unforgettable highlight that is replayed every March.

"For the past 28 years, Lorenzo and I have been linked together in one championship moment," Whittenburg said, "and we'll be linked forever."

Charles was also remembered for his imposing presence on the court and a different sort of demeanor off it.

"Lorenzo was always a strong guy, a big, powerful guy," teammate and best friend Cozell McQueen said. "But at the same time, he was a gentle guy."

Whittenburg recalled making fast-food runs with Charles when they were still in school. His niece Ericka Charles said she once asked her uncle, who embraced his second career as a charter bus and limousine driver, who his most famous passenger was.

"He said, 'I drove Lorenzo Charles,'" she said, drawing laughs from the crowd.

Charles scored 1,535 total points — 15th on the N.C. State scoring list — and his .575 shooting percentage in 1985 remains a school record for seniors. He played one season in the NBA, averaging 3.4 points in 36 games with the Atlanta Hawks in 1985-86, then played internationally and in the Continental Basketball Association until 1999, before he started his second career as a driver.

"More than anything else, I know that Lorenzo meant much more to his family, his teammates and to us at the university than being a basketball player," N.C. State athletic director Debbie Yow said during the ceremony. "Those of you who today knew him best knew firsthand of his kindness, his affection and ... his smile."

Charles was killed Monday when the Elite Coach charter bus he was driving crashed along Interstate 40 in Raleigh. No passengers were aboard, and police don't know what caused the wreck.

Along the meandering, two-lane road that led to the church where Charles' funeral was held, someone placed a portable basketball hoop in his front yard and affixed a ball on the rim with a poster on the backboard that read: "Thanks Lo 43."

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SPORTS - Disputed run gives San Diego 1-0 win over Seattle (AP)

SPORTS - Disputed run gives San Diego 1-0 win over Seattle (AP)

AP – San Diego Padres manager Bud Black, center, argues with plate umpire Phil Cuzzi after Cuzzi called out …

By TIM BOOTH, AP Sports Writer Tim Booth, Ap Sports Writer – 30 mins ago

SEATTLE – Cameron Maybin looked up, saw a full count on the scoreboard and figured like everyone else in the ballpark that he should be headed to first base.

Problem was, Maybin was trotting down to first after just three balls from Doug Fister, and no one picked up on the mistake.

"I thought it was a full count, like everybody else in the park. Turned out to be a big play," Maybin said. "It was a crazy play. I've never been a part of something like that. It worked out in our advantage, so we'll take it."

Maybin walked after just three balls were thrown by Fister and came around to score the only run of the game on Antonio Gonzalez's single, sending the San Diego Padres past the Seattle Mariners 1-0 on Saturday night.

With one out in the fifth, Maybin walked when a pitch was called high by home plate umpire Phil Cuzzi. A video review of the at-bat by official scorer Dan Peterson confirmed the count should have been 3-2 when Maybin walked.

No argument was made by anyone on the field and the stadium scoreboard showed a three-ball count before Fister (3-9) delivered the pitch.

After the game, the umpiring crew huddled, reviewed the tape and agreed Maybin should not have walked. Crew chief Tom Hallion said Cuzzi's hand indicator had the count at 2-2, but he noted the stadium scoreboard read 3-2 before Fister's pitch missed high.

"My plate umpire thought his count was wrong. The scoreboard had 3-2 and he thought he was wrong because when Maybin took off for first, nobody said anything," Hallion said. "The catcher didn't react, the dugout didn't react so he thought he had the wrong count.

"Do we feel bad? Absolutely. We count the pitches and it was just one of those things that gets away with you with the scoreboard having the 3-2 count up there and then nothing being said by anybody, he thought he had the wrong count."

The missed count became an issue when Maybin scored on Gonzalez's hard one-hopper that skipped off shortstop Brendan Ryan's glove and into left field, and Seattle failed to mount any sort of offense against spot starter Cory Luebke.

"At the end of the day it's easy to sit there and point fingers at people but we've got to score runs," Seattle catcher Josh Bard said.

Luebke (2-2) allowed two hits in six innings, and Chad Qualls, Mike Adams and Heath Bell each got three outs to complete the two-hitter. Bell earned his 24th save in 25 chances.

But all the attention was on Maybin's strange at-bat and how the mistake with the count went unnoticed on the field.

Maybin fell behind 0-2, then fouled off a pitch before Fister missed to make the count 1-2. Maybin fouled off another before Fister missed with a curveball in the dirt. The count both in the stadium and on the television broadcast showed 3-2 and the next pitch missed high with Maybin walking to first base and no one making an argument.

"You have an at-bat full of pitches, you see pitches, foul off a couple," Maybin said. "Sometimes you get lost so you look up there — that's what those big numbers that say ball, strike are there for. So I looked up there and saw three balls, two strikes so on that last pitch I was assuming that was, 'take your base.'"

Hallion said sometimes when the count gets lost in a glut of pitches, the home plate umpire will double check with the catcher where the count should be.

"It happens a lot of times in the game you look down and it says '2-2' and a lot of times what you'll do is 'Josh, what do you got?' just trying to make sure you're not wrong or something is wrong," Hallion said. "Unfortunately we didn't do this in this case and that's where we stand with it. It's one of those things that you wish didn't happen."

Maybin moved to second on Anthony Rizzo's groundout and raced home when Gonzalez's smash got into left field.

Seattle manger Eric Wedge said he learned after the fact it was only the third ball and thought he simply missed a pitch. Fister was unaware of the situation as well.

"Ultimately, it's our job to watch the game. It was a mistake. A 1-0 ballgame, it means a great deal," Wedge said. "But it still doesn't change the fact that we've still got to score a run to win."

In just his second start of the season, Luebke gave up two hits by Greg Halman and nothing else. Halman doubled in the second, but was stranded. He singled leading off the fifth, but was thrown out trying to steal second base.

Seattle got a break in the seventh when Jason Bartlett committed his 13th error of the season on Ryan's grounder up the middle. Ryan then stole second and moved to third when Franklin Gutierrez flew out to the warning track in right field.

Qualls got Justin Smoak to wave at strike three low and away, then got a popout from Halman to end the threat.

NOTES: Seattle kept C Miguel Olivo (hamstring) and 2B Dustin Ackley (bruised rib) out of the lineup. Both said they could play and may be back in the lineup Sunday. ... Padres 2B Orlando Hudson is likely to miss a few days after fouling a pitch off his left knee on Friday night. Manager Bud Black said they believe just a few days off is all Hudson will need. ... Qualls made the 500th appearance of his major league career. All have come in relief.

___

Tim Booth can be reached at http://twitter.com/tjbooth7

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