Martinez Is Finally a Winner Against Seles

Conchita Martinez, who had never even won a set in 11 previous matches against Monica Seles, defeated her nemesis, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, Friday to reach the semifinals of the Bank of the West tournament at Palo Alto.

Martinez, seeded sixth, pumped her right fist as she completed the victory over the second-seeded Seles.

“It’s been many, many years. I can’t explain how happy I am,” Martinez said.

Martinez advanced to a semifinal match today against third-seeded Amanda Coetzer, who defeated No. 7 Kimberly Po, 7-5, 6-4. Top-ranked Martina Hingis struggled past Linda Wild, 6-1, 6-7 (9-7), 6-3, and will play Lindsay Davenport, who defeated Russia’s Elena Likhovtseva, 7-6 (7-2), 6-3.

Golf

John Daly made a late save from the water to survive the cut at the Greater Hartford Open, his first tournament since his abrupt exit from the U.S. Open, and Wayne Levi strengthened his lead after two rounds.

Levi has a four-stroke lead at 11-under-par 129 after shooting a five-under 65. Daly shot 70 at the TPC at River Highlands and was one over for the tournament.

Bruce Devlin, Mike McCullough, Tom Shaw, Kermit Zarley, Hugh Baiochi, Frank Conner and Bobby Stroble were tied at five-under 67 and Johnny Miller made his senior debut with a 72 in the Franklin Quest Championship at Park City, Utah. . . . Australian Noel Ratcliffe set a course record with a seven-under 65 to take a three-stroke lead after two rounds of the Senior British Open at Portrush, Northern Ireland. . . . Tammie Green and Anna AckerMacosko matched the tournament record with eight-under 64s to share the first-round lead in the Giant Eagle LPGA Classic at Warren, Ohio. . . . John Ray Leary of Culver City and Jin Park of Fullerton were eliminated in the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship at Newtown Square, Pa. Trevor Immelman, a 17-year-old South African, will face Sean O’Hair, 15, of Scottsdale, Ariz., and Jason Allred, 17, of Ashland, Ore., will face Chris Zeller, 17, of Boca Raton, Fla., in the semifinals.

Beach Volleyball

Randy Stoklos and Brian Lewis, seeded second, fell into the loser’s bracket of the $300,000 Miller Lite U.S. Championships after a 15-12 loss to Dan Castillo and Aaron Boss at Hermosa Beach. Troy Tanner and Bill Boulliane, seeded No. 5, lost both their matches and were eliminated. . . . Second-seeded Lisa Arce and Holly McPeak of Manhattan Beach advanced to the semifinals of the FIVB World Tour event at Marseille, France.

Hockey

Goaltender Byron Dafoe has agreed to a two-year contract with the Kings. . . . The Carolina Hurricanes acquired defenseman Enrico Ciccone from the Chicago Blackhawks for defenseman Ryan Risidore and a fifth-round pick in the 1998 draft. . . . The St. Louis Blues acquired center Darren Turcotte from the San Jose Sharks for left wing Stephane Matteau. . . . The Chicago Blackhawks traded veteran forward Murray Craven to the Sharks for Finnish left wing Petri Veras and a sixth-round draft choice in 1998.

Miscellany

John Lounsbury, the agent at the center of a scandal that ultimately led to Massachusetts and Connecticut being stripped of their placement in the 1996 NCAA men’s basketball tournament, confirmed details published by the Boston Globe, saying he gave $40,000 in cash and gifts to Marcus Camby while he was at Massachusetts, and provided additional spoils to former Connecticut star Ray Allen and other college athletes. . . . A three-member NASCAR panel has denied an appeal by Tony Furr, crew chief for Pepsi 400 winner John Andretti, and upheld the $50,000 fine levied against him when inspectors found an illegal carburetor mounting before that race.

Names in the News

Michael Carbajal, badly bloodied in his loss a week ago, is calling it quits as a fighter after a decade during which he held three major titles. Carbajal was 45-4 with 30 knockouts. . . . The Golden State Warriors signed first-round draft pick Adonal Foyle, who has a broken left foot, to a three-year contract. . . . Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson, banned for life from international competition after testing positive for drugs, lost his bid to end his exile. Ontario Judge Moira Caswell rejected Johnson’s application to have his ban declared an illegal restraint of trade. . . . Nevada Las Vegas basketball recruit Lamar Odom, upset by allegations he cheated on his ACT test, said he will not play at UNLV and will pursue a pro career. . . . Warren Harper, former head football coach at Texas El Paso, has died at 65. . . . Carrie Neal, 25, of Poway was killed when her dragster crashed during qualifying for the Autolite Nationals at Sears Point Raceway in Sonoma.