Fanfare 6/23/03

Briefly

Baseball

Montreal slugger Vladimir Guerrero may be able to return to the Expos' lineup sooner than originally expected.

Expos general manager Omar Minaya told reporters Sunday that Guerrero's extensive therapy on his injured back is yielding "encouraging results".

Placed on the 15-day disabled list on June 5 for the first time since 1997, Guerrero has been receiving treatment in Florida for a herniated disc under the care of Dr. Barth Greene of the University of Miami.

"He's continuing to improve -- that's what the doctor says," Minaya said following Montreal's 4-2 loss to Toronto. "So instead of a couple of months, they estimate a couple of weeks, and now they're going to do more baseball exercise."

The most-feared hitter in the Expos' lineup, Guerrero was hitting .301 with eight homers and 33 RBIs this season.

Basketball

Chicago Bulls guard Jay Williams injured his knee and pelvis in addition to breaking his leg in a motorcycle accident, a source close to the player said Sunday.

The source, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity, would not elaborate.

The Chicago Tribune reported Sunday that Williams sustained extensive nerve damage to his left leg and has a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

The Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times said Williams underwent surgery Thursday to repair pelvic injuries and he would require multiple operations on his left knee. Both newspapers cited anonymous sources.

Advocate Illinois Masonic Hospital in Chicago would not discuss Williams' condition Sunday.

Football

Music blared, confetti dropped from the ceiling and the city of Tampa celebrated another pro football championship Sunday night, saluting the Tampa Bay Storm's 43-29 victory over the Arizona Rattlers in the ArenaBowl.

Reserve quarterback Pat O'Hara threw for two touchdowns and ran for a third as the Storm won its record fifth Arena Football League title.

Tampa became the first city to have the Super Bowl and AFL champions in the same year. The Buccaneers beat Oakland in January to capture the NFL title.

Storm coach Tim Marcum hoisted the championship trophy for a record seventh time. It's his third title with Tampa Bay, which also won under him in 1995 and 1996. The Storm also won championships in 1991 and 1993.

Lawrence Samuels caught three touchdown passes, and the Storm forced five turnovers to frustrate Arizona's offense. The Rattlers entered the game averaging 68.3 points per game in the playoffs.

O'Hara replaced John Kaleo, who left with a back bruise early in the third quarter, and threw TD passes of 9 and 43 yards to Samuels. His 3-yard TD run eliminated any realistic chance for an Arizona comeback, dropping the Rattlers into a 43-22 hole with 10:39 remaining.

Gymnastics

Paul Hamm's second straight national title came without an asterisk.

Relentlessly consistent, Hamm won the U.S. Gymnastics Championship in Milwaukee on Sunday, hanging onto the lead he built over Jason Gatson and Blaine Wilson in preliminaries and putting to rest any doubts about who is really the best male gymnast in the country.

Hamm's first championship last year was well-earned, although it came with Wilson nursing a shoulder injury that left him at less than 100 percent. This time, though, it was Hamm competing with a sore shoulder and Wilson at full health. Even with the injury, Hamm was better.

He finished with 113.325 points, 1.2 more than Wilson, the five-time champion who finished third. Gatson came in second.

Area digest

Jackson tennis tournament wraps up

The sixth annual Jackson Tennis Action Tournament, featuring three divisions, concluded Sunday.

Mani Trump of Cape Girardeau won the boys 16-under singles title with a 6-4, 7-5 win over Michael Navrkal of Metropolis, Ill.

Bill Dahnke of Union City, Tenn., captured the men's 'A' singles title by beating Darren Neader of Jackson 7-5, 7-6.

In an all-Cape Girardeau men's open doubles final, Zach Miller and Drew Seib defeated Ken Campbell and John Davie 7-6, 6-4.

Correction

Auer Power, an area APA 8-ball billiards team sponsored by the Billiard Center, was not disqualified from competing in August in the national APA tournament. The team disqualified was an area APA 9-ball team with the same sponsor. Incorrect information appeared in Thursday's editions.

The Southeast Missourian regrets the error.