Selden Pitches UCLA to Victory

Emily Zaplatosch had a run-scoring single in the first inning, Lisa Dodd homered in the sixth and top-ranked UCLA defeated the South Florida, 2-0, Saturday in Game 1 of a best-of-three NCAA super-regional softball series at Westwood.

Anjelica Selden gave up five hits and struck out nine in seven innings for the Bruins. The teams play today at noon.

Left-hander Paul Coleman gave up two hits and struck out eight in 7 2/3 innings for No. 20 Pepperdine, which defeated host and No. 23 San Francisco, 11-0, to tie the best-of-three West Coast Conference championship series.

The Waves (39-19) and Dons (38-20) play today at 1 p.m. for the championship and the WCC’s automatic NCAA tournament berth.

Coleman (7-5) retired the first nine batters he faced and 19 of 20.

Danny Worth, Chad Tracy and Luke Salas had two hits apiece for the Waves, who had a 6-0 lead in the fourth inning, and Justin Tellam drove in two runs.

Top-seeded Benjamin Kohlloeffel of UCLA advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA men’s tennis tournament by beating Conor Niland of California, 6-4, 6-2, at Stanford.

Unseeded Theresa Logar of Stanford defeated second-seeded Kristi Miller of Georgia Tech to advance to the women’s semifinals. Lindsey Nelson of USC beat Celia Durkin of Stanford, 5-7, 6-0, 6-3, and Suzi Babos of Cal defeated Riza Zalameda of UCLA, 7-5, 6-1.

The USC men’s track and field team won the NCAA west region championships at Provo, Utah, with 123 points. UCLA was sixth with 62.50.

Garry Jones set a meet record in the 100 meters and tied for 10th on USC’s all-time list with a time of 10.23 seconds. Philip Francis finished second in 10.30. Francis also won the 200 meters in a wind-aided 20.46.

USC tied Stanford for first in the women’s competition, with 94 points. UCLA was third with 92.50.

ARENA FOOTBALL

Dallas and San Jose Advance in Playoffs

Clint Dolezel threw eight touchdown passes, including four to Terrill Shaw, and the Dallas Desperados defeated the Georgia Force, 62-27, in a playoff game at Dallas.

The Desperados will play host in the National Conference title game to the winner of today’s game between Philadelphia and Orlando.

Dolezel finished 31 of 38 for 260 yards and no interceptions. Shaw had 11 receptions for 133 yards and four touchdowns.

Ben Nelson tied a playoff record with six touchdown catches, helping the host San Jose SaberCats beat the Arizona Rattlers, 62-48, and move into the American Conference championship game.

Nelson finished with 12 catches for 202 yards and six touchdowns, tying the mark held by five players. His total for yards receiving was the third-highest in postseason history.

San Jose will play the winner of today’s game between Chicago and Colorado for the right to go to the ArenaBowl.

SOCCER

Germany Routs Luxembourg in Tuneup

Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski each scored twice to lead World Cup host Germany to a 7-0 victory over Luxembourg at Freiburg, Germany.

In other games involving teams bound for the June 9-July 9 tournament, host Portugal beat Cape Verde Islands, 4-1; the Netherlands beat visiting Cameroon, 1-0, in steady rain; and France defeated Mexico, 1-0.

Zinedine Zidane played his 100th game for France.

MISCELLANY

Gatlin, Powell to Run at Prefontaine Classic

Co-world record holders Justin Gatlin and Asafa Powell will compete today in separate 100-meter races to highlight the Prefontaine Classic at Eugene, Ore.

This month, Gatlin had the record by himself for five days when he ran an announced time of 9.76 in a meet at Doha, Qatar. Because of a timing conversion mistake, the International Assn. of Athletics Federations adjusted Gatlin’s mark to 9.77, which matched the record Powell set in June.

The Prefontaine mile will be stocked with top runners: Daniel Kipchirchir Komen of Kenya, the No. 1-rated miler in the world; American record holder Bernard Lagat; Rachid Ramzi of Bahrain; Alex Kipchirchir of Kenya; and Alan Webb, American two-mile record holder.

The top female athletes competing today include quarter-milers Tonique Williams-Darling and Sanya Richards, jumper Chaunte Howard and hurdler Michelle Perry.

Mourners preferred not to remember Steve Howe as the once-promising pitcher derailed by battles with drug abuse.

Instead, they recalled a confident joker blessed with a slingshot of a left arm.

Howe, the 1980 National League rookie of the year while with the Dodgers who was banned from baseball for drug abuse, died April 28 when his pickup truck rolled over in Coachella. He was 48.

His family and friends, including former major leaguers Bob Welch and Rick Leach and several former high school teammates, gathered at Clarkston High in Michigan for a memorial service.

“He loved to play baseball and was always fun to be around,” said Paul Tungate, his high school coach. “He was a joy to coach.”

The left-hander played two seasons at Michigan and helped lead the Wolverines to the College World Series. The Dodgers selected him in the first round of the 1979 amateur draft, shortly after he was selected as an All-American.

A season after being selected the NL’s top rookie, he closed out the Dodgers’ World Series win over the New York Yankees. He made his only All-Star appearance in 1982.

His problems with cocaine began after that season, when he checked himself into a rehabilitation center. The Dodgers fined him and suspended him twice during the 1983 season. Three positive cocaine tests during the off-season prompted then-commissioner Bowie Kuhn to suspend him for the 1984 season.

UCLA’s 1976 Rose Bowl championship team, including coaches, players and cheerleaders, will have a 30-year reunion Saturday. The team, coached by Dick Vermeil, upset No. 1-ranked Ohio State, 23-10. Information: Frank Stephens at (310) 206-6668.

JURISPRUDENCE

Steelers Receiver Holmes Is Arrested

Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Santonio Holmes was arrested on suspicion of disorderly conduct at a hotel in Miami Beach, Fla., police said.

Holmes was arrested Friday night. He was released from jail after he signed a promissory note to appear in court to be arraigned, police said.

The events leading to Holmes’ arrest weren’t released by police.

A Steelers spokesman said he didn’t know about the arrest and couldn’t immediately comment on it.

Holmes, who played at Ohio State, was the Steelers’ first-round pick in April.

PASSINGS

Heyward, Former NFL Fullback, Dies of Cancer

Former NFL fullback Craig “Ironhead” Heyward died after a 7 1/2 -year fight with a recurring brain tumor, his son’s high school football coach said. He was 39.

Heyward spent 11 seasons in the NFL with New Orleans, Chicago, Atlanta, St. Louis and Indianapolis.

The former University of Pittsburgh star rushed for a career-high 1,083 yards with Atlanta in 1995.

Blair Armstrong, who coached Heyward’s son, Cameron, at Peachtree Ridge High in Atlanta, said he often talked to Heyward when he came to see his son play.

“He wasn’t real mobile, but he’d been rehabbing. He thought he might walk again. But once he lost his hearing and his sight, his organs started shutting down. Other problems were just developing.”

Born in 1966 in Passaic, N.J., the 5-foot-11, 250-pound fullback had 4,301 yards rushing in the NFL and 1,559 yards receiving.