Ruiz Moves to Third in Junior Tourney

Michael Ruiz vaulted into third place in the boys’ 15-18 division after two rounds of the Mission Hills Desert Junior golf tournament in Rancho Mirage Wednesday.

San Diego’s Ruiz began the day at the Mission Hills Country Club Course in a five-way tie for sixth. He shot par 72 for a 146 after two days. He is four strokes behind Tiger Woods of Cypress. On Wednesday, Gilberto Morales of Venezuela, the leader after the first round, dropped 10 shots out of first. San Diego’s Chris Riley is in a three-way tie for ninth at 150.

Rancho Santa Fe’s Greg Padilla continued to lead the boys’ 13-14 division. With a 146, Padilla has a one-stroke lead over Andy Hastings of Spokane, Wash. San Diego’s Jill Wery, two strokes behind the leader of the girls’ 13-14 division after a round, fell 16 strokes in back of Studio City’s Emilee Klein.

RUGBY

Junior Rob Affleck, an inside center on the University of San Diego’s men’s team, was named All-American last weekend at the Interterritorial All-Star championships in Chicago.

Affleck, of Mercer Island, Wash., represented the Pacific Coast Grizzly team. Thirty players, selected from 410 collegiate rugby programs throughout the nation, earned All-American honors. Affleck has played three seasons with the Toreros and has one season of eligibility left.

VOLLEYBALL

Men’s teams from the United States and Brazil will meet in two second-round World League playoff matches, one in San Diego, one in Inglewood, early in July. These are the last matches either team will play before the Olympics.

Tickets for the July 3 match at the Sports Arena and the July 5 match at the Forum are on sale. The U.S. team (10-2) clinched first place in its regular-season group. The top two teams from each of three groups advanced to the semifinals, where they will play four matches. Other teams that advanced were defending World League champion Italy, Cuba and the Commonwealth of Independent States.

BASEBALL

Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams have been named honorary captains for the Upper Deck Heroes of Baseball All-Star game, which will highlight Major League Baseball’s workout day July 13 at Jack Murphy Stadium.

The game, scheduled to start at 12:30, will feature 20 Hall of Famers during a kickoff day that includes batting practice for both the National and American leagues and a home-run hitting contest.

This marks the second time DiMaggio and Williams have appeared together at a heroes of baseball event.

Gatorade has donated 4,000 tickets for the July 13 All-Star workout to the Police Athletic League, who in turn will distribute the tickets to families who have pledged to “join a team, not a gang.”

More than 1,000 families and youth agencies have signed such an agreement with PAL. In exchange for the pledge, families receive tickets to athletic events throughout the San Diego area from PAL.

Fans are invited to “Punch out a Padre,” today at the Padres Pub in the Hilton in Mission Valley from 4 to 7 a.m.

The Mighty 690 Sports Radio is hosting the event, where fans are being asked to punch 15,000 All-Star game ballots. The first 69 fans to punch 100 ballots will earn a ticket to Thursday’s Padres-Giants game.

MARATHON

The San Diego Superior Court issued a temporary restraining order Monday against a group of Orange County businessmen who In Motion, Inc., the promoter of the San Diego Marathon, have accused of attempting a “hostile takeover,” of the event.

In Motion filed a $1 million lawsuit last week against the Newport Beach-based Mulcahy Sports Group, Inc., Patrick Mulcahy and Dean Rallis Sr., alleging conspiracy, unfair business practices, fraud, slander and injury to business reputation.

Lynn Flanagan, In Motion president, said “We’re pleased with the judge’s ruling and are confident a permanent injunction will be issued on July 2.”

CYCLING

Joany Copeland of Rancho Santa Fe finished third in the women’s kilometer time trial in Blaine, Minn. Copeland finished in 1:15.52, three minutes behind the winner. The event was a national championship, although it was held in conjunction with the Olympic trials. Tracy Evans of Encinitas was sixth (1:16.41).