WAC Adds Six Schools, Two From the Big West

The Western Athletic Conference confirmed Thursday that it will add six members, including two from the Big West, to become a 16-team league by 1996.

The newly aligned conference, which will be the largest in the country, will include Nevada Las Vegas and San Jose State from the Big West and three leftover schools from the Southwest Conference--Rice, Southern Methodist and Texas Christian, as well as Tulsa.

Jurisprudence

Tony Davis, a University of Florida running back, has been charged with sexual battery and aggravated assault over a dormitory incident, police said. Davis, 20, was arrested Wednesday night on the complaint of a 19-year-old woman who told police that Davis hit her and later sexually assaulted her. . . . Tracy Graham and Michael Miller, Notre Dame football players found with stolen merchandise in their off-campus apartment, will not face criminal charges because of insufficient evidence, according to an Indiana county prosecutor. . . . Rickey Dudley, captain of the Ohio State basketball team who was arrested for drunk driving, was not allowed to drive in Ohio after involvement in a 1992 accident. Dudley is the third Buckeye basketball player to have a serious legal trouble in the last two months.

Tennis

Yevgeny Kafelnikov of Russia defeated top-seeded Michael Stich of Germany, 7-6 (7-3), 6-4, in the third round of the Monte Carlo Open. It was the third consecutive time that Kafelnikov had beaten Stich, ranked No. 2 in the world. No. 2 Stefan Edberg and No. 3 Jim Courier also won their third-round matches in straight sets.

Top-seeded Arantxa Sanchez Vicario of Spain and No. 2 Conchita Martinez advanced to the quarterfinals of the La Familia Open in Barcelona.

Boris Becker was given German police protection after his manager received calls from a man threatening to kill the tennis star and his family. Munich police spokesman Bernd Fink said a man telephoned Becker’s manager, Axel Meyer-Woelden, five times in March and threatened “a fearful blood bath” of Becker’s family.

Miscellany

Penske Speedway, Inc., officials announced plans to build an oval motor racing track in Rancho Cucamonga on land formerly occupied by the Kaiser steel mill. Kaiser, which owns the property, will have a 20% interest in the speedway. Walter Czarnecki, president of Penske Speedway, said the facility should be completed in late 1996.

Led by Agina Simpkins, defending team champion Georgia dominated the opening session of the NCAA Gymnastics Championships at Salt Lake City but fourth-seeded UCLA remained close. UCLA, which is second behind Georgia, was led by Kareema Marrow, Karen Nelson and Leah Homma. . . . A drive to increase student attendance at Wisconsin football games fostered “a laissez-faire policy” toward enforcing rules in the stands, according to a report released on a crowd surge that injured dozens.

Intrum Justitia, a European yacht, moved to within 138 miles of Yamaha, a Japanese-New Zealand entry, in the Whitbread World Race yachting competition. . . . The Desert Storm Soccer Club of Coachella Valley will hold the next round of the National State Cup Soccer Games for players 14-19, this weekend at the Eldorado Polo Club in Indio.

Names In The News

Free-agent running back Reggie Cobb agreed to terms on a two-year contract with the Green Bay Packers, according to the Milwaukee Sentinel. The deal is worth a minimum of $2.2 million, the newspaper reported. Cobb was a 1,000-yard rusher for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1992. . . . Kentucky’s Rick Pitino, believed to be one of the top candidates for the Laker coaching job, has met with General Manager Jerry West. The Lakers declined comment. The are believed to have previously talked with Maryland Coach Gary Williams.

Clifford Rozier, Louisville’s 6-foot-9 basketball center, will skip his senior season to make himself eligible for the NBA draft. . . . Quarterback Tony Sacca, a top draft pick in 1992 from Penn State, was waived by the Arizona Cardinals. . . . Jake Rodriguez scored a unanimous 12-round decision over Ray Oliveira at Ledyard, Conn., to retain his International Boxing Federation junior-welterweight title. . . . John Wooden will be honored today by the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation Los Angeles at the third annual Promise Ball at the Century Plaza Hotel.