Williams Defeats Hingis in Rome

Venus Williams finally caught up to Martina Hingis on clay, wearing down the world’s No. 1 player in three sets Saturday to reach the Italian Open final at Rome for the second consecutive year.

Williams found just the right mix of power and guile to oust the tournament’s defending champion, 6-4, 1-6, 6-4.

Williams ended her two-match clay losing streak to the Swiss teen and will face fourth-seeded Mary Pierce in today’s final at the Foro Italico.

Pierce beat fellow Frenchwoman Amelie Mauresmo, 6-7 (7-1), 6-2, 6-4, mixing speeds perfectly after a strategy adjustment.

The final will be a rematch of last week’s final at Hamburg, Germany, where Williams triumphed to claim her first clay championship.

Against Hingis, Williams temporarily struggled in the second set, registering only eight points. Williams proceeded to drop the opening two games of the decisive set before staging a spirited comeback.

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Marcelo Rios of Chile overcame Carlos Moya of Spain, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4), and will play Mariano Zabaleta of Argentina in the first all-South American final at the German Open at Hamburg.

Zabaleta beat Nicolas Lapentti of Ecuador, an Australian Open semifinalist, 7-5, 6-2, in a meeting of unseeded players.

Motor Sports

The Indy Racing League will issue no points or official prize money to the teams and drivers who competed in the race where three spectators were killed by flying debris.

Leo Mehl, executive director of the IRL, said it will pay a specified amount to each owner and driver to help cover expenses incurred in the VisionAire 500 on May 1 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.

The race was called off after 79 of 208 laps. Wheel and suspension parts from a three-car wreck on lap 59 flew into the grandstand.

Greg Biffle, winless in 32 previous NASCAR Truck Series starts, held off Kevin Harvick to win the Memphis 200 at Memphis Motorsports Park in Tennessee.

Biffle, who started from the pole position, didn’t lead the race until the 50th lap.

Elton Sawyer won under caution in the Busch Series 200 at New Hampshire International Speedway in Loudon. It was Sawyer’s first NASCAR Grand National victory since 1994.

Rookie Joshua Wise, 16, took the lead on the second lap and easily won his first USAC Three-Quarter Midget feature before 3,851 at Irwindale Speedway.

Wise, a sophomore at Mira Loma Jurupa Valley High, was competing in only his third race.

Five-time motorcycle world champion Michael Doohan left a Jerez, Spain, hospital for medical treatment in the United States.

Doohan fractured his right leg, left wrist and collarbone Friday when he crashed during the fifth lap of qualifying for today’s Spanish Grand Prix.

Track and Field

Ato Boldon won his 100-meter heat in the revived Modesto Relays with a time of 9.89 seconds, and Maurice Greene won his heat in 9.91.

Both times were wind-aided, however. A $200,000 bonus had been offered to any runner who broke the world record of 9.84 of Donovan Bailey.

Romanian Lonela Tirlea outran Olympic champion Deon Hemmings of Jamaica and world record-holder Kim Batten of the United States to win the women’s 400-meter hurdles in 54.09 seconds at the Japan Grand Prix at Osaka. Frank Fredericks of Namibia won the 200 meters in 19.87. . . . Olympic champion Michael Johnson won the 200 meters in 20.07 at a meet in Fort-de-France, Martinique.

Miscellany

Cablevision chairman Charles Dolan may get a third chance at owning an NFL franchise after two unsuccessful bids.

Dolan is being mentioned among the potential buyers for the New York Jets following the death of owner Leon Hess.

Dolan was an unsuccessful bidder for the Washington Redskins earlier this year and also failed to buy the Cleveland Browns expansion franchise last September.

A Dayton trustee acknowledged he made two personal loans to a basketball recruit’s father, in violation of NCAA rules, the Dayton Daily News reported.

Clayton Mathile said he made the loans last summer to Chuck Hall, father of Brooks Hall, to help the elder Hall qualify for a home mortgage.

Defending NCAA champion Jennifer Rosales finished with a three-under-par 69 to lead USC to a come-from-behind victory at the Women’s Golf West Regional at Pine Forest Country Club in Houston. Fifth-ranked USC defeated second-ranked Arizona by 11 strokes. . . . Erica Sorgi, 16, of Mission Viejo finished third in the women’s platform final at the USA Diving Grand Prix at Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Brothers Justin and Troy Dumais of Ventura won the synchronized competition. . . . Germany’s Sven Ottke defended his International Boxing Federation super-middleweight title for the second time with a unanimous decision over Gabriel Hernandez at Duesseldorf, Germany. . . Former world junior-flyweight champion Michael Carbajal won a unanimous decision over Mexico’s Oscar Andrade at Miami. . . . Amateur Brian Boghosian upset tournament leader and 19-time PBA champion Parker Bohn III to win the American Bowling Congress Masters at Syracuse, N.Y.