Serena Williams moves into quarterfinals
MIAMI, March 26 (UPI) -- Top-ranked Serena Williams was kept on court longer than usual Tuesday but still routed French qualifier Marion Bartoli, 6-1, 6-2, at the $6.21 million Nasdaq-100 Open.
Williams hit 31 winners, broke serve 8-of-16 times and had her way at the net. Although she needed just 61 minutes to eliminate Bartoli, Williams maintained the match was tougher than it appeared.
The 18-year-old Bartoli reached the quarterfinals of a Tier I event for the first time after facing a local wild-card entry, a lucky loser, a qualifier and an injured player in consecutive matches.
Playing against the defending champion was another thing. Although Bartoli felt like she could handle Williams' groundstrokes, she was unable to deal with the power of the overall package.
Williams has dominated since her triumph here last season. She has won four straight Grand Slams and five other events in the last 12 months.
Other than her sister Venus, one of the few players to bother Williams has been Kim Clijsters, a possible semifinal foe here. The third-seeded Belgian squared off against No. 9 Jelena Dokic of Yugoslavia on Tuesday night.
Clijsters defeated Serena Williams in the final of last year's season-ending tournament in Los Angeles, but squandered a 5-1 lead in the final set of the Australian Open in January.
In another evening match, men's second seed Andre Agassi of the United States encounterd Australian Mark Philippoussis. Agassi was seeking his third straight title here and sixth Miami crown overall.
Marcelo Rios, whose promising career has been stunted by injuries, pulled out of this event for the second straight year. The 28th seed from Chile was to have faced No. 13 Paradorn Srichaphan of Thailand in the fourth round but could not play due to a back injury.
After reporting pain to trainers following his third-round win over third seed Juan Carlos Ferrero, the 1998 champion underwent an MRI on Monday. The test showed he had a slight herniation of the fourth and fifth vertebrae in his back.
NFL changes playoff referee system
PHOENIX, March 26 (UPI) -- The NFL announced Tuesday that officiating crews which grade the highest will be used in postseason games.
Until now, playoff crews were made up of officials who rated the highest at their positions.
The proposal was developed by the officiating department in an attempt to develop cohesion among the referees in the postseason.
The top-ranked crew will work the Super Bowl in 2004 and the second- and third-rated crews will be assigned to the conference championship games. Previously, the top-rated officials, even if they were from separate crews, were assigned to playoff games.
The league was fearful of going to full crews for the playoffs because most include first- or second-year officials. Under the new system, the rookies will be replaced by veterans of other crews.
The most glaring mistake in last season's playoffs occurred in the San Francisco 49ers' 39-38 win over the New York Giants in an NFC wild card game. With six seconds left, the Giants lined up for the winning field goal, but a botched snap forced holder Matt Allen to attempt a desperation pass. The Giants were penalized for an illegal receiver downfield, but replays indicated the Niners should have been called for pass interference.
The day after, NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue and Mike Pereira, the league's director of officiating, admitted that a defensive pass interference penalty should have been called on the final play.
Altering the overtime rules and expanding the playoffs have been the hot topics for discussion in the first two days of the NFL meetings, which conclude Wednesday.
Els, Mickelson withdraw from Players Championship
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla., March 26 (UPI) -- The Players Championship will be without two of its biggest attractions as Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson have bowed out of the $6.5 million event.
Red-hot Tiger Woods heads the field that will begin play Thursday at the TPC at Sawgrass, but gone are potential Sunday showdowns with the second- and third-ranked players in the world.
Els pulled out with a right wrist injury while Mickelson withdrew, citing the need to be with his wife and newborn son. The child, Mickelson's third, was born Sunday.
Even Woods is not a guarantee. On Sunday, he had heaves on three of the first five holes in the final round of the Bay Hill Invitational because of a bout with food poisoning, and still won the event by 11 strokes.
On Monday, Thomas Bjorn of Denmark withdrew. He is at home with his wife awaiting the birth of twins.
The Players Championship is among the most prestigious events on PGA Tour, and is often referred to as the fifth major.
Els, who won the first two PGA Tour events of the year and has four titles in 2003, suffered his injury punching a bag in his garage in London.
Mickelson has not played since the Match Play Championships in early March. According to a release issued by Mickelson after the birth of the child, there were some complications with the delivery, but both mother and baby are now doing well.
The tournament begins Thursday at TPC at Sawgrass at Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Woods, the defending champion, won by an 11-shot margin in 2002.
Padres claim Merloni from Red Sox
FORT MYERS, Fla., March 26 (UPI) -- The Boston Red Sox lost infielder Lou Merloni on Tuesday when he was claimed off waivers by the San Diego Padres.
Merloni, 31, became expendable because of a crowded Boston infield that includes Nomar Garciaparra, Jeremy Giambi, Shea Hillenbrand, Damian Jackson, David Ortiz, and Todd Walker.
The native of Framingham, Mass., hit .247 with four homers and 18 RBI last season. He was hitting .200 in 30 at-bats this spring.
The 5-10, 200-pounder has played parts of five seasons with the Red Sox, and has a career average of .271 with nine homers with 77 RBI.
Lindell off to Buffalo
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y., March 26 (UPI) -- The Seattle Seahawks have decided not to match the offer sheet extended to free agent placekicker Rian Lindell by the Buffalo Bills.
His agent, Paul Sheehy, confirmed that Lindell will get a little over $4 million over four years. Lindell had a breakthrough season in 2002, when he 20-of-32 field goals. In his three years in the NFL, he has never missed an extra point.
Lindell was 58-of-78 in his career with Seattle. In 2001, he made just 6-of-14 kicks between 40 and 49 yards, and last season, he was the only kicker in the NFL not to have touchback on a kickoff.
Claiborne now a Viking
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn., March 26 (UPI) -- Linebacker Chris Claiborne, who led the Detroit Lions in tackles each of the last two seasons, has signed as a free agent with the Minnesota Vikings.
Terms were not disclosed, but the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reported that Claiborne accepted a two-year deal worth $5 million, including a $750,000 signing bonus.
Claiborne, the ninth overall pick in the 1999 draft, is expected to start at strongside linebacker, and is considered a long-term replacement for middle linebacker Greg Biekert.
In four NFL seasons, Claiborne has 534 tackles, including 145 last season. He had three interceptions and 4 1/2 sacks, both career highs, in 2002, and returned one of the interceptions for a touchdown against the Vikings.
Darius signs one-year franchise tender
JACKSONVILLE, Fla., March 26 (UPI) -- Safety Donovin Darius, the anchor of the Jacksonville Jaguars' secondary, signed the club's one-year tender offer Tuesday as a franchise player.
By signing the deal, Darius will be paid as one of the top five players in the league at his position, or at least $3.04 million for this coming season.
Darius, 27, has been a starter for the Jaguars at strong safety since being drafted in the first round out of Syracuse in 1998. Last season, the 6-1, 214-pounder finished third on the team with 69 tackles while also collecting one interception and a sack.
Darius has played in 71 games in his career - all starts - and is second in club history with 500 tackles. He also has amassed eight interceptions and a touchdown.
Oakland re-signs Wheatley
ALAMEDA, Calif., March 26 (UPI) -- The Oakland Raiders have re-signed running back Tyrone Wheatley, who has served primarily as a backup to Charlie Garner over the last two seasons.
Wheatley reportedly attracted interest from other teams at the outset of the signing period, but Oakland officials pursued him from the first day of free agency, and was the team for which he wanted to play all along, which is why he decided to act now on the Raiders' offer.
Wheatley had 108 carries for 419 yards and two touchdowns and caught 12 passes for 71 passes last season in the NFL's top-rated offense.
The eight-year veteran signed with the Raiders in August 1999, and rushed for 936 yards that season. He followed that with a career-high 1,046 yards the following year, but his role diminished when the Raiders signed Garner as a free agent in 2001.
Wheatley, a 1995 first-round draft pick by the New York Giants out of Michigan, spent his first four seasons with them and often was hampered by injuries. The Miami Dolphins acquired Wheatley in April 1999, but cut him during training camp.
He has 32 career starts, and has rushed for 3,957 yards and 32 touchdowns on 1,026 career attempts. He also has 98 receptions for 702 yards and seven touchdown catches.
DuPuy rules on penalties
NEW YORK, March 26 (UPI) -- Major League Baseball President Bob DuPuy addressed a number of penalty-related issues Tuesday.
DuPuy upheld the sentence handed down to Florida's Brad Penny but reducing the suspension given to Montreal's Vladimir Guerrero.
Penny and Guerrero were involved in a benches-clearing brawl on March 10 after the Marlins' starter beaned the Expos' slugger. Penny was hit with a five-game suspension, Guerrero was suspended three games and Montreal infielder Jose Macias, who joined the altercation, was hit with a two-game ban.
Tuesday, Dupuy upheld Penny's sentence, which is set to begin March 31. Guerrero agreed to drop his appeal and in turn had his suspension reduced to two games. He will begin serving his suspension on March 31.
All three players were fined.
