Devil Rays get off to 3-0 start
TAMPA, Fla., April 5 (UPI) -- Pinch-hitter Randy Winn's grand slam was one of four homers for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays Thursday, who received seven scoreless innings from Ryan Rupe and completed a three-game sweep of the Detroit Tigers with a 9-2 victory.
The Devil Rays, who lost an American League-high 100 games in 2001, have opened a season with three straight wins for the first time in franchise history. Tampa Bay is the first team to go 3-0 after losing 100 the previous year since the Boston Braves in 1929.
Winn had an RBI single to give the Devil Rays a win in 12 innings on Wednesday night and he broke open Thursday's matinee with a grand slam off Matt Miller in the fifth that put Tampa Bay up, 9-0.
Ben Grieve hit a two-run homer in the second and Brent Abernathy added a solo shot in the third off Jose Lima (0-1), who lasted just three batters into the third inning and surrendered four runs and four hits.
Other American League results: Texas 7, Oakland 5; Toronto 7, Minnesota 2; New York 4, Baltimore 1.
Anderson leads Pirates past Mets
NEW YORK, April 5 (UPI) -- A 17-game loser in 2001, Jimmy Anderson and three relievers combined on a five-hitter and Kevin Young hit a two-run homer Thursday to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 3-2 victory over the New York Mets in the rubber game of their season-opening three-game series.
Despite playing the entire series without injured slugger Brian Giles, who strained a muscle in his right side during batting practice Monday, the Pirates moved above .500 for the first time since Aug. 15, 1999 when they were 59-58.
Mesmerizing the Mets with his sinker, Anderson (1-0) induced 14 groundball outs in 6 2/3 innings. The 26-year-old lefthander did make two mistakes, yielding solo homers to leadoff hitter Joe McEwing in the first inning and Jeromy Burnitz in the seventh. The only other hit Anderson allowed was a single to Edgardo Alfonzo in the fourth.
Anderson pitched eight innings and gave up just one run and four hits in a 5-1 win here last Oct. 1 and improved to 3-1 with a 1.55 ERA in five career games against the Mets. He owns a 17-29 record in 65 career starts.
Other National League results: Colorado 6, St. Louis 1; Houston 6, Milwaukee 3; Florida 1, Montreal 0; Cincinnati 3, Cincinnati 1; Atlanta 11, Philadelphia 2; San Francisco 3, Los Angeles 0.
Islanders near playoff spot
BOSTON, April 5 (UPI) -- Oleg Kvasha scored with 1:31 remaining in the overtime Thursday night as the New York Islanders posted a 2-1 victory over the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Bruins.
New York needs just two points in its final five games to qualify for the postseason for the first time since 1994.
Despite being outshot, 40-16, the Islanders opened a three-point lead over seventh-place New Jersey in the East and have quietly pulled within four points of first-place Philadelphia in the Atlantic Division.
Glen Murray tied the contest for the Bruins with 2:16 left in regulation, but the Islanders were not satisfied with just one point.
Defenseman Kenny Jonsson won a faceoff and got the puck to Kvasha in the neutral zone. Kvasha skated down the left wing, cut around defenseman Hal Gill and flipped a backhander between the legs of goaltender Byron Dafoe.
The Bruins lost for just the second time in their last nine games and remained four points ahead of the Flyers in the battle for the top seed in the East.
Other NHL results: Columbus 2, Nashville 1Montreal 3, Philadelphia 1; Tampa Bay 4, Pittsburgh 2; New York Rangers 4, Toronto 2; Calgary 4, Minnesota 3; Los Angeles 3, Detroit 0.
Mavericks maintain division lead
DALLAS, April 5 (UPI) -- Dirk Nowitzki scored 25 points to lead five players in double figures Thursday night as the Dallas Mavericks maintained their lead atop the Midwest Division with a 115-90 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
Michael Finley added 20 points for Dallas (52-22), which leads San Antonio by 1 1/2 games in its quest for its first division title since 1987. The Mavericks also are chasing the Sacramento Kings for the best record in the Western Conference.
After a slow start, Dallas grabbed a 44-43 halftime lead, took control in the third quarter behind Raef LaFrentz and blew out Los Angeles in the final period.
It was another discouraging loss for the Clippers (37-39), whose faint playoff hopes are just about over. They have lost six of their last eight games, including a pair to the Utah Jazz. Los Angeles trails Utah by 5 1/2 games for the final playoff spot in the West.
Other NBA results: Atlanta 95, Indiana 94; Orlando 105, Cleveland 101; San Antonio 102, Houston 78; Denver 88, Minnesota 97; Portland 88, New York 80.
Elkington leads in Masters preview
DULUTH, Ga., April 5 (UPI) -- South African Steve Elkington birdied the final three holes and, despite a double bogey on the card, shot an 8-under 64 Thursday to take a one-shot lead over Phil Mickelson after the first round of the BellSouth Classic.
Elkington led a birdie barrage at the TPC-Sugarloaf, overcoming a double-bogey on the third hole with a remarkable seven birdies on the front. He started a string of four straight birdies on No. 4 and made the turn at 5-under 31 before adding three more on the back.
Mickelson, who captured this tournament two years ago, shot a 65 and was one stroke ahead of Dudley Hart, Frank Nobilo, Ian Leggattt, Thomas Bjorn and Jesper Parnevik.
More than half the players in the 143-man field broke par.
Winless on the PGA Tour since capturing the 1999 Ryder Open, Elkington had been in a slump since finishing fifth at the Genuity Classic. He tied for 63rd at the Players Championship and missed the cut last week at the Houston Open.
Mountaineers hire Dan Dakich
MORGANTOWN, W.Va., April 5 (UPI) -- West Virginia, spurned by Bob Huggins, hired Dan Dakich as the school's new basketball coach Thursday. Dakich, a Bob Knight disciple, will succeed long-time coach Gale Catlett.
Catlett retired in February with 565 wins after 24 years at the school. But his final college season was not a memorable one as the Mountaineers finished 8-20 overall and 1-15 in the Big East in 2001-02.
West Virginia courted Huggins, who attended the school and worked there as a graduate assistant in 1977-78. But Huggins opted to remain at Cincinnati, saying he had "unfinished business" with the Bearcats, who were a top seed in the NCAA Tournament but lost in the second round to UCLA.
The Mountaineers also interviewed Stan Heath, who led Kent State to the East Regional final in the NCAA Tournament and replaced Nolan Richardson at Arkansas. Bruce Weber of Southern Illinois and Jeff Lebo of Tennessee Tech were also candidates for the position.
In another basketball coaching moves, Montana hired Pat Kennedy, who resigned as coach at DePaul after a 9-19 season; and former Arkansas assistant Mike Anderson took the job at Alabama-Birmingham.
Maine advances to NCAA title game
ST. PAUL, Minn., April 4 (UPI) -- More than six months after the death of its coach, Maine has one more hurdle in its emotional quest for a national championship -- the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
Defenseman and captain Peter Metcalf scored a pair of goals Thursday to lead the underdog Black Bears to a 7-2 victory over top-ranked New Hampshire in the national semifinals of the NCAA Hockey Tournament.
Both of Metcalf's goals came on slapshots from the left point in the second period, giving Maine a 3-2 lead. Robert Liscak scored with 13 1/2 minutes left to ignite a four-goal third period for the Black Bears.
Maine, the third seed out of the East Region, is playing with as much heart as talent, using the inspiration from former coach Shawn Walsh to advance to its fourth championship game in 10 years.
After taking over a losing program in 1984, Walsh guided the Black Bears to a pair of national championships in 1993 and 1999. The Black Bears lost in the 1995 title game to Boston University. But on Sept. 24, he died at the age of 46, losing a battle with kidney cancer.
Maine (26-10-7) will play hometown favorite Minnesota (31-8-4) in the national championship contest Saturday night.
The Golden Gophers survived a third-period rally by Michigan to hold on for a 3-2 win and earn their 10th appearance in the finals and first since 1989.
Grant Potulny scored twice and Jeff Taffe netted the game-winner and added an assist for Minnesota, which is seeking its fourth NCAA title.
Goaltender Adam Hauser was brilliant through the first two periods, turning away 23 shots, including a diving glove save on Jed Ortmeyer in the final minute of the second.
Dokic reaches semifinals
SARASOTA, Fla., April 4 (UPI) -- Top seed Jelena Dokic of Yugoslavia cruised into the quarterfinals of the Sarasota Open Thursday with a 6-1, 6-0 rout of Israel's Anna Smashnova.
The 18-year-old Dokic, who has battled a series of leg injuries this season, advanced to play Switzerland's Patty Schnyder. Dokic reached the final of the Paris Indoors in early February but followed that with early-round exits at Antwerp, Indian Wells and Miami.
In 2001, Dokic won her first three career WTA Tour titles and appeared in three other finals.
Second seed Meghann Shaughnessy of the United States also advanced easily with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Marlene Weingartner of Germany.
The only seed to exit the tournament Thursday was No. 6 Daja Bedanova, a Czech teenager who was forced to withdraw from her match with Paola Suarez of Argentina due to a wrist injury.
De la Hoya bout postponed
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., April 4 (UPI) -- The highly anticipated super welterweight title bout between Oscar de la Hoya and Fernando was postponed Thursday after de la Hoya injured his left hand.
Top Rank and Main Events, the co-promoters, announced the May 4 bout in Las Vegas will be rescheduled at a later date to be determined.
The 29-year-old de la Hoya, the WBC champion, injured his hand while sparring.
De la Hoya is 34-2 with 27 knockouts. Vargas, the WBA champion, is 22-1 with 20 knockouts.
