Late field goal beats Raiders

John Vaughn, filling in for All-Pro Rob Bironas, kicked a 33-yard field goal as time expired Friday night to lift the Tennessee Titans to a 17-16 exhibition victory over the Oakland Raiders at Nashville.

Aaron Elling, subbing for an injured Sebastian Janikowski, kicked three field goals with the last one bouncing off the left upright with 5:19 left to give the Raiders a 16-14 lead.

Ingle Martin completed six of eight passes on the last drive and set up the winning field goal with a 26-yard pass to Chris Davis.

Peyton Manning, Bob Sanders and Dwight Freeney will sit out their third consecutive exhibition game for the Indianapolis Colts today at Atlanta.

In all, 12 players, including six starters, will not play against the Falcons, the Colts said.

The announcement was no surprise since Manning, Sanders and Freeney have yet to practice.

Manning still has not been on the practice field as he recovers from knee surgery last month.

The New England Patriots have signed nine-time Pro Bowl safety John Lynch.

The Patriots did not report terms of the deal, but the NFL Network reported that Lynch signed a one-year, $1.5 million contract.

Lynch, a 15-year veteran, spent the first 11 years of his career with Tampa Bay and the last four years with Denver

The trial of four men accused of murdering Washington Redskins All-Pro safety Sean Taylor has been delayed until next year.

A Miami judge set a new trial date of March 3, 2009. It had been previously set for later this month, which would have been unusually fast for a murder case.

Prosecutors say the suspects shot Taylor in November during a robbery attempt at his Miami-area home.

TENNIS

Top-seeded Roddick upset

Andy Roddick’s tournament is over, but Juan Martin del Potro’s streak continues.

The top-seeded Roddick was upset by Viktor Troicki, 0-6, 6-2, 6-4, in the quarterfinals of the Legg Mason Classic at Washington.

The second-seeded Del Potro won his 17th consecutive match, 6-4, 6-4, over John Isner.

Nathalie Dechy advanced to the semifinals of the Cincinnati Open by beating sixth-seeded Aleksandra Wozniak, 7-6 (4), 7-5. She will play fifth-seeded Amelie Mauresmo, who beat Vania King, 6-2, 6-4.

Second-seeded Nadia Petrova will play third-seeded Maria Kirilenko in the other semifinal. Kirilenko defeated Sabine Lisicki, 6-2, 1-6, 6-1, and Petrova beat Lilia Osterloh, 6-2, 6-3.

MOTOR RACING

Vickers earns Cup pole

Nobody came close to Brian Vickers during NASCAR Sprint Cup Series qualifying at Michigan International Speedway.

“It was there from the first lap, the first turn,” Vickers said after his lap of 188.536 mph in a Toyota put the Red Bull Racing driver on the pole for Sunday’s race.

It was the fifth career pole for Vickers, but the first for his team and his first since November 2006, when he was still driving for Hendrick Motorsports.

Two-time reigning Cup champion Jimmie Johnson was second at 187.028.

Elliott Sadler was third at 186.577, followed by Dale Earnhardt Jr. at 186.321.

PRO BASKETBALL

Pargo opts for Europe

New Orleans Hornets guard Jannero Pargo signed a one-year deal with Dynamo Moscow of the Russian League, agent Mark Bartelstein told the Associated Press in a phone interview.

The one-year deal is worth nearly $4 million and is about twice what Pargo made for the Hornets last season, Bartelstein said.

Michael Finley is set to re-sign with the San Antonio Spurs.

According to a report posted on ESPN.com that cited NBA front-office sources, the guard-forward has reached terms on a deal with the Spurs.

SOCCER

Marsch out eight weeks

Chivas USA announced that midfielder Jesse Marsch, 34, will be sidelined six to eight weeks because of a fractured jaw he suffered during Thursday’s 2-2 tie with the Galaxy.

Marsch was hit in the face late in the game by Galaxy defender Sean Franklin.

-- Barry Stavro

The U.S. women’s team will play Ireland in a three-game exhibition series at Philadelphia, New Jersey and suburban Chicago following the Beijing Olympics.

The series starts in Philadelphia on Sept. 13, moves to East Rutherford, N.J., four days later and finishes Sept. 20 in Bridgeview, Ill.

BASEBALL

Cole opts to play for UCLA

Gerrit Cole, a right-handed pitcher from Orange Lutheran High who was the New York Yankees’ first-round draft choice this year (28th overall pick), has decided to attend UCLA rather than sign a pro contract.

PASSINGS

Benoit, 81, racing executive

Bob Benoit died Friday at Centinela Valley hospital in Inglewood after a lengthy illness. The cause of death was pneumonia. He was 81.

Benoit, a longtime thoroughbred racing executive in Southern California, founded and was president of Benoit and Associates, track photographers at Santa Anita, Hollywood Park, Del Mar and Fairplex Park.