U.S. Takes Solheim Cup Lead

Dottie Pepper hit Team USA’s first shot and was the emotional leader the rest of the day, scoring two points as the Americans took a 5 1/2-2 1/2 lead over Team Europe after Friday’s opening rounds of the Solheim Cup--the women’s equivalent of the men’s Ryder Cup--at Dublin, Ohio.

The United States, seeking its third consecutive team title, took three of four points in the morning foursome, or alternate-shot, matches, then came back to win 2 1/2 of a possible four points in the afternoon four-ball, or best-ball, matches.

“It’s not done yet,” Pepper said. “You just can’t stop after day one. You have to keep pushing.”

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Bruce Summerhays birdied the last five holes to complete a six-under-par 64 and take a two-stroke lead in the $1.1-million Kroger Senior Classic at Mason, Ohio. Mike Hill, Graham Marsh and Jim Albus were at 66.

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Dave Barr shot a seven-under 65 to take the lead after two rounds of the B.C. Open with a two-round total of nine-under 135 at Endicott, N.Y.

Barr, 46, has been struggling to recover from back surgery that cut short his 1997 season. He has won twice on tour, but not since 1987.

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Ian Woosnam of Wales shot a four-under 67 in the second round to take a two-shot lead at 135 in the Lancome Trophy outside of Paris.

Jurisprudence

Former St. John Bosco High basketball standout Schea Cotton sued the NCAA for denying him the chance play for UCLA or North Carolina State on a full athletic scholarship.

Cotton seeks a court order overturning the NCAA decision that he was academically “unqualified” to receive a scholarship.

The Los Angeles Superior Court suit also seeks unspecified general and compensatory damages.

A Miami judge upheld a decision ordering Tennessee Oiler rookie defensive back Samari Rolle to pay $375,000 to a high school teacher injured in a 1994 confrontation.

Tennis

Marc Goellner of Germany upset top-seeded Alberto Berasategui of Spain, 6-4, 6-3, to advance to the semifinals of the Samsung Open at Bournemouth, England. Goellner will play defending champion Felix Mantilla of Spain, who beat Stefan Koubek of Austria, 6-7 (8-6), 6-4, 6-4.

Francisco Clavet defeated fellow Spaniard Julian Alonso, 7-5, 6-0, and was the only seeded player to advance to the semifinals of the Romanian Open at Bucharest.

Yevgeny Kafelnikov of Russia battled to a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 victory over Gaston Etlis of Argentina and advanced to the semifinals of the President’s Cup at Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Kafelnikov will face Cedric Pioline of France, who defeated Marat Safin of Russia, 6-7 (6-3), 6-2, 7-6 (6-3).

Motor Racing

Billy Boat won the pole for the inaugural Lone Star 500 at Fort Worth with a lap of 225.979 mph, the fastest qualifying lap with the current Indy Racing League engine-chassis combination.

Mark Martin broke Rusty Wallace’s four-month-old qualifying record with a lap of 155.966 mph to win the pole for Sunday’s MBNA Gold 400 at Dover Downs (Del.) International Speedway.

Kevin Grubb, 20, running for only the third time at Dover Downs, won the pole for the MBNA 200 Busch Grand National race with a Busch Series-record 153.498 mph. . . . Gary Scelzi (top fuel), Dean Skuza (funny car) and Richie Stevens (pro stock) were the top qualifiers in the first round of the Pioneer Electronics Keystone Nationals at Mohnton, Pa.

Dave Villwock drove Miss Budweiser to a speed of 163.890 mph around the 2 1/2-mile Mission Bay course to lead eight qualifiers for Sunday’s unlimited hydroplane race at San Diego.