College Baseball
Vanderbilt earns its first national title with 3-2 victory
OMAHA, Neb. – John Norwood’s home run in the top of the eighth inning gave Vanderbilt the lead, and the Commodores beat Virginia 3-2 on Wednesday night for their first national championship.
Norwood turned on Nick Howard’s 97 mph fastball and sent it into the left field bullpen to break a 2-2 tie in the third and deciding game of the College World Series finals.
It was Norwood’s third homer of the year, his first since April 19 and Vanderbilt’s first since May 16. It also was only the third home run in 16 CWS games and the 22nd in 72 games by the Commodores (51-21).
Cycling
Another rider bites the dust of a doping suspension
MILAN – Italian cyclist Diego Ulissi is provisionally suspended by the Lampre Merida team after failing a doping test.
Lampre says it was told by the International Cycling Union on Wednesday of an adverse finding following a test after the 11th stage of the Giro d’Italia.
Ulissi, who won the fifth and eighth stages of the Giro, had almost double the permitted amount of salbutamol in his urine after the 11th.
Cavendish looking to regain health before Tour de France
LONDON – Sprint star Mark Cavendish is skipping this weekend’s British national championships so that he can clear up a bout of bronchitis before the start of the Tour de France.
Cavendish, the reigning champion, said in a statement issued by his Omega Pharma-Quick-Step team Wednesday that he regretted not being able to defend his jersey on Sunday in Wales.
The Tour de France begins July 5 in Leeds, the first of three stages taking place in Britain.
Tour de France to see first Chinese rider in race history
PARIS – Cheng Ji will become the first Chinese rider to race in the Tour de France when he lines up for Team Giant-Shimano at the start July 5 in Leeds, England.
Cheng was included Wednesday on the team’s nine-rider lineup for the 101st edition of the Tour. He will be part of Giant-Shimano’s sprint formations attempting to deliver Marcel Kittel and John Degenkolb to stage victories.
Giant-Shimano coach Rudi Kemna said riding the Tour “will be huge for him and his country, and we look forward to seeing the impact this has on the globalization of the sport.”
MLB
Schilling striking out cancer; he sends it into remission
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Curt Schilling, the former Boston Red Sox pitcher turned ESPN television analyst, said Wednesday his cancer is in remission.
He hasn’t indicated the type of cancer or his prognosis but has posted pictures of himself undergoing treatments.
Schilling is a three-time World Series champion – with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001 and the Red Sox in 2004 and 2007. In 20 seasons, he was 216-146 with a 3.46 earned-run average. The right-hander shared the 2001 World Series MVP award with left-hander and teammate Randy Johnson.
NBA
Rumors swirl on the eve of league’s big draft night
NEW YORK – Jabari Parker and Andrew Wiggins aren’t NBA players yet, and they already are learning their first lesson.
This is LeBron James’ league, and they will just be playing in it.
A night before they could be the first two selections in what appears to be a deep NBA draft, Parker, Wiggins and the rest of the class of 2014 were sharing the spotlight with James, whose decision to opt out of his contract and become a free agent Tuesday still had the league shaking a day later.
The Cleveland Cavaliers have the No. 1 selection for a second consecutive year.
Associated Press
