Place an Ad Calendars Classified Forums Sports Weather

sptimes.com Text-only News sections Arts & Entertainment AP The Wire Business Citrus County Columnists Floridian Hernando County Hillsborough Letters Movies Neighborhood Times News Update North Pinellas North of Tampa Obituaries Opinion Pasco County South Pinellas Sports State Tampa Bay TV Times World & Nation  Find your local news section Weekly sections Brandon Times City Times Homes Outdoors Perspective Personal Tech Taste Travel Weekend Xpress Special Sections Arena football Buccaneers College football Devil Rays Lightning Police reports Schools Seniority Subscriber Services Subscribe Renew Help Advertise Place an ad In print Online Market Info Join Us Internships Scholarships Times Jobs Contact us

Sports briefs

Compiled from Times wires

© St. Petersburg Times, published October 25, 2000

NCAA gives Gophers 4 years

What was described as one of the worst cases of academic fraud in 20 years cost Minnesota four years' probation and five men's basketball scholarships. But the Gophers escaped the worst penalty.

Because Minnesota acted firmly to investigate itself and punish those involved in a widespread term-paper scam, the NCAA decided Tuesday it would not bar the university from post-season play.

Such punishment would have cost the school hundreds of thousands of dollars in TV money and immeasurable recruiting chances.

The committee added slightly to several of Minnesota's self-imposed punishments, adding to recruiting limits and ordering that all records of post-season tournaments during the misconduct from 1993-98 be erased.

University president Mark Yudof said the school considers the additional penalties fair, and no appeal would be made.

MORE COLLEGE BASKETBALL: South Carolina freshman forward Rolando Howell will miss the first seven games of the regular season for his part this summer in a fake money-order scheme. ... St. Bonaventure gave coach Jim Baron a five-year contract. It replaces Baron's previous pact, which had two years left. ... Dan Dakich, the coach at Bowling Green for three seasons, signed a five-year contract retroactive to July 1. ... Ball State guard Cedric Moodie will be sidelined about six weeks with a broken foot.

COLLEGE BASEBALL: Florida State third baseman Pichi Balet is ineligible to play next season because he took a dietary supplement not approved by the NCAA. FSU confirmed the NCAA's ruling, but did not make public the name of the supplement. In a separate incident, Balet was suspended Friday by the school after a DUI arrest.

GOLF: A media company suing the PGA Tour about real-time scoring was denied a preliminary injunction and won't be allowed to sell scores to other media pending the outcome of its antitrust lawsuit. Morris Communications, the parent company of the Florida Times-Union in Jacksonville, claims the scores are public domain once they are available. The tour, which also posts real-time scores on its Web site, says it has a right to keep companies from trying to profit from its $26-million scoring system.

SOCCER: The United States' crucial World Cup qualifier at Barbados is scheduled for 2 p.m. Nov. 15. ... The Women's World Cup is going back to China in 2003, with FIFA ratification "expected to be a formality," spokesman Andreas Herren said. ... Ray Hudson, who took over as coach of the MLS' Miami Fusion at midseason, will return next year under a restructured contract that includes an option for 2002. ... Jay Hoffman, a former scout for the U.S. men's team for the 2000 Olympics, was hired as coach of the Boston franchise of the Women's United Soccer Association. ... Rudi Voeller received approval to coach the German national team as well as his club team.

TRACK AND FIELD: The women's pole vault world record by Stacy Draglia was confirmed by the sport's international governing body. She set the mark of 15 feet, 21/4 inches July 23 at the U.S. Olympic trials in Sacramento, Calif.

OLYMPICS: Ioannis Pyrgiotis will take over as executive director for the Athens 2004 organizing committee from Costas Liaskas, who was fired Oct. 18 after a public exchange of thinly veiled insults with the public works minister over who controls major construction projects for the Games. ... Ten cities, including Montreal and Barcelona, applied to become home to the World Anti-Doping Agency, established a year ago to oversee drug testing.

PARALYMPICS: Rob Evans, a senior at Florida, won his second gold medal in Sydney, Australia. Evans won the 5,000 meters in 14 minutes, 39 seconds. ... Wheelchair racer Chantal Petitclerc's victory in the 800-meter final was recognized by the Court of Arbitration for Sports, which overruled a decision by officials to hold the race again.

SAILING: Murray Jones, Kelvin Harrap, Chris Dickson and James Spithill qualified for the championship round of the Colorcraft Gold Cup in Bermuda. All four are America's Cup sailors. St. Petersburg skipper Ed Baird, who already had qualified, faces Dalton Bergan in one of eight races that begin today.

CYCLING: Richard Virenque told a court in Lille, France, he used performance-enhancing drugs in the 1998 Tour de France and that doping was as common in his sport as putting air in the tires. Virenque is charged with "complicity in facilitating and inciting the use of doping," but not with taking drugs. Virenque faces up to two years in prison.

BOXING: Jose Sulaiman was elected president of the World Boxing Council for another four-year term.

BOWLING: Robert Smith beat Walter Ray Williams Jr. 239-233 to win the PBA Flagship Open in Erie, Pa.

FIGURE SKATING: Elvis Stojko has withdrawn from the Skate Canada International meet next week in Toronto with tendinitis in his left heel.

© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111

Contact the Times | Privacy Policy
Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright

World Series