Parmlid, USC Women Win NCAA Golf Titles

Mikaela Parmlid won the NCAA women’s golf championship in a playoff and led USC to its first team title Friday at West Lafayette, Ind.

Parmlid, a senior from Sweden, edged Florida’s Andrea Vander Lende with a par on the first extra hole after they both shot 77s to finish regulation at nine-over-par 297 on Purdue’s Kampen Course.

USC had a 45-over 1,197 total for a 15-stroke victory over Pepperdine.

“This is my seventh year at USC, and I’m in heaven right now, so this is seventh heaven for me,” Trojan Coach Andrea Gaston said.

Parmlid forced the playoff with a par on the final hole of regulation and needed only a par on the first extra hole after Vander Lende’s double bogey.

Arizona’s Erica Blasberg from Corona and USC’s Irene Cho tied for third.

Tennis

Serena and Venus Williams were put on opposite sides of the field in the French Open draw, meaning they could meet in their fifth straight Grand Slam final.

Serena beat Venus for the title at last year’s French Open, a result duplicated at Wimbledon, the U.S. Open and the Australian Open.

Serena’s potential semifinal opponent in Paris is fourth-ranked Justine Henin-Hardenne of Belgium. Venus could have a final four matchup against No. 2 Kim Clijsters, another Belgian.

The men’s quarterfinals could include No. 1-seeded Lleyton Hewitt vs. David Nalbandian in what would be a rematch of last year’s Wimbledon final and No. 2 Andre Agassi vs. Guillermo Coria.

(Complete draw on D11)

Chile reached the final of the World Team Cup after Fernando Gonzalez and Marcelo Rios won singles against Argentina at Dusseldorf, Germany. Chile will play for the title today against the Czech Republic, which beat the United States, 2-1.

Top-seeded Andy Roddick reached the final of the Raiffeisen Grand Prix at St. Poelten, Austria, when Spain’s David Sanchez quit in the second set because of a leg injury. Roddick was ahead, 6-2, 2-0. He will play Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko today for the title. Davydenko beat Netherlands’ Martin Verkerk, 7-5, 6-1.... Chanda Rubin beat seventh-seeded Iroda Tulyaganova of Uzbekistan, 6-0, 6-4, to reach the Spanish Open final at Madrid. Top-seeded Rubin will play for the title today against Spain’s Maria Antonia Sanchez Lorenzo, a 6-1, 6-3 winner over Austria’s Barbara Schett.... Karolina Sprem of Croatia advanced to the final of the Strasbourg Open in France after beating sixth-seeded Vera Zvonareva of Russia, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. In today’s final, Sprem will play Italy’s Silvia Farina Elia, a 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 winner over Ashley Harkleroad.

Pro Football

Former Los Angeles Ram quarterback Jeff Rutledge was in critical condition with unspecified injuries early Friday after the car he was driving went under a truck in Memphis, Tenn.

The crash occurred at about 2:45 p.m. Thursday on Interstate 40. Rutledge, 47, was airlifted to Regional Medical Center in Memphis, said Beth Tucker Womack, spokeswoman for the Tennessee Department of Safety.

New York Giant defensive tackle Keith Hamilton was charged with cocaine and marijuana possession after his car was stopped for having tinted windows.... Green Bay Packer defensive end Joe Johnson was charged with marijuana possession after a deputy saw his car stopped on the highway in Tifton, Ga.

College Baseball

Ryan France gave up one run in seven-plus innings to help Chapman win its opener in the Division III College World Series, 6-1, over Wisconsin-Oshkosh at Grand Chute, Wis.

Fernando Valenzuela, son of the former Dodger left-hander, had a three-run homer to lead Nevada Las Vegas to a 13-1 victory over San Diego State in the Mountain West Conference tournament at Albuquerque. UNLV will play San Diego State again in today’s final.

Miscellany

Ryan Newman won the pole for the Coca-Cola 600, giving owner Roger Penske cars on the front row in both of Sunday’s races.

Newman, last year’s top rookie, ran a lap at 185.312 mph at Concord, N.C., in his No. 12 Dodge to qualify first for NASCAR’s longest race of the year. Helio Castroneves is on the pole for the Indianapolis 500.

Elliott Sadler qualified second for the Coca-Cola 600 and Mike Skinner was third.

Kevin Harvick set a Busch Series track record, turning a lap at 184.543 mph to win the pole for the Carquest 300 at Concord, N.C.

Cat Osterman pitched a two-hitter with 17 strikeouts to help Texas beat California, 1-0, in the College World Series softball tournament at Oklahoma City. Arizona scored an unearned run in the top of the seventh to win, 2-1, over Washington. UCLA needs two wins today to avoid elimination.

Former middleweight boxing champion Michael Nunn pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Des Moines to conspiring to distribute cocaine. Nunn’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for Aug. 25.

The Mighty Ducks’ run to the Stanley Cup finals has not only forced a postponement of Top Rank’s scheduled May 31 Fight Night at the Pond boxing card, but also a change in the main event.

With the Ducks playing host to Game 3 of the finals that night, the card has been moved to June 14.

Having to skip the show is International Boxing Federation junior-lightweight champion Carlos “Famoso” Hernandez, who was to have faced Gustavo Corral in a non-title bout but can’t fight after June 1 because of his IBF mandatory bout with Steve Forbes in August.

Former World Boxing Council lightweight champion Jose Luis Castillo (46-6-1, 42 knockouts) will now headline the card in a scheduled 10-round fight against Corral (12-4-3, seven KOs).

Mule racing made its debut at Los Alamitos as Black Ruby continued her domination of Taz with a three-quarters length victory in a $10,000 match race.