The Indianapolis Star from Indianapolis, Indiana • Page 29

WWW.INDYSTAR.COM THE INDIANAPOLIS STAR MONDAY, AUGUST 27, 2001 D7 SPORTS 10 Georgia Tech sputters past Syracuse TENNIS Sampras' winless streak reaches 16 Tommy Haas beat Pete Sampras 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 in the finals of the Hamlet Cup on Sunday, extending Sampras' winless streak to 16 tournaments. The sixth-seeded Haas, who finished with 15 aces, beat Sampras for the first time in five matches on hardcourt. He beat Sampras on clay In Dusseldorf, Germany, in May 2000. The victory was the second of the year and third in the career of the 23-year-old German, who earned $54,000. The third-seeded Sampras, a wild card into the tournament, picked up $31,500.

Sampras, competing in his third final this year, has not won a tournament since Wimbledon in 2000. CYCLING Armstrong drops out of race Three-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong dropped out of Switzerland's Zurich Championship after 25 miles on Sunday. The reason for Armstrong's withdrawal was not immediately known. He was expected to return to the United States today and will not compete in Europe again this season as he awaits the birth of his twin daughters in early December. Italy's Paolo Bettlni sprinted ahead of Olympic champion Jan Ullrich to win the race.

SKIING Maier likely out of Salt Lake City Games The surgeon who operated on Olympic and World Cup champion skier Hermann Maier says he'll Yellow Jackets begin season with a narrow victory over Orangemen in the Kickoff Classic. By Richard Rosenblatt ASSOCIATED PRESS EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. A run at the national title Is still a long way off for No. 10 Georgia Tech but don't count out the Yellow Jackets OA. TECH 13 yet SYRACUSE 7 sputtering 13-7 victory over Syracuse In the Kickoff Classic on Sunday did nothing to dissuade quarterback George Godsey from believing his team is championship caliber.

Just look at Florida State's opening game in 1998, he said. "It wasn't pretty, but look In the past," Godsey said. "Florida State made it to the national championship game and they only won 23-14. It's hard to judge a season by the first game." The Seminoles beat Texas In the '98 Kickoff Classic, then reached the title game, losing to Tennessee in the Fiesta Bowl. But before Georgia Tech thinks national title, It still has to deal with dethroning annual Atlantic Coast Conference champion Florida State on Sept.

15. Tech'warms up for the Seminoles the next two against The Citadel and Navy. "Obviously, we have a lot of improvement to do," Tech coach George O'Leary said. "We have to play better In a lot of facets of the game, but I'm thinking when you can walk away from a tight game with a win in your first game it says a lot about your team." Against the Orangemen, Godsey i Pkfk 'Jr. tl-'J Associated Press Ed Betz Serving notice: Tommy Haas slams 15 serves past Pete Sampras to win the final of the Hamlet Cup in Commack, N.Y.

Haas had not beaten Sampras on hardcourts before. let Knights starting quarterback for the season opener at Buffalo on Thursday. Wisconsin starting quarterback Brooks Bollinger, who bruised his liver in the Badgers' 26-17 victory over Virginia, is expected to be released from a Madison, hospital today. MOTOR SPORTS Motorcycle racer dies in crash Motorcycle racer Will Davis died after crashing in the first lap of a race in the AMA's Grand National Championship in Sedalia, Mo. Davis, 36, was involved in a crash with five other riders on the fourth turn at the State Fairway Speedway on Friday.

He died at Bothwell Regional Health Center. ROWING Romanian men snap U.S. run Romania won the men's eights, snapping a three-year run by the U.S. men in the event at the Rowing World Championships in Lucerne, Switzerland, on Sunday. The U.S.

team, which had won the past three world championships, finished out of the medals in fourth. Britain, the Olympic champions, placed fifth, beating only Canada. Australia won the women's eights in 6:03.66 and set a new senior world record in the lightweight quadruple sculls. In the lightweight quadruple sculls, Americans Marny Jaastad, Abigail Cromwell, Jennifer Edwards and Stacey Borgman crossed in one length back in second place. SOCCER Defense reigns in scoreless tie MLS goalkeepers Jose Fernandez of New England and Adin Brown of host Tampa Bay stood out as the Revolution and Mutiny battled to a scoreless double-overtime tie Sunday night.

The Revolution (7-12-6) moved within four points of Dallas for the final playoff berth. Tampa Bay (4-18-2) became the first team eliminated from postseason contention. HOCKEY Former Maple Leaf Carl Brewer dead Former Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Carl Brewer, credited with being the driving force behind retired NHL players reclaiming their pension money in a landmark lawsuit, died Saturday night. He was 62. Compiled from staff and wire reports Associated Press Daniel Hulshizer likely miss the 2002 Olympics.

Surgeon Arthur Trost, who operated for seven hours on the Austrian superstar after, he injured his right leg Friday In a motorcycle accident, said Maier will be unable to defend the two Olympic gold medals he won in 1998. There's no room for discussion as regards to next season," Trost said. Big day: Georgia Tech's Kelly Campbell (front) is taken down by Willie Ford after a catch. Campbell caught 10 passes for 193 yards, giving him a school-record 2,392 receiving yards. hooked up with record-setting Kelly Campbell 10 times for 193 yards and Joe Bums ran for 113 yards and a touchdown in the lowest-scoring Kickoff Classic ever.

Godsey was 15-of-26 for 224 yards, and comerback Marvious Hester intercepted a pass at the Syracuse 6 to set up Burns' 1-yard TD with 8:27 left in the half for a 10-0 lead. Luke Manget had field goals of 22 and 20 yards one in each half. Syracuse, guilty of crucial penalties that kept alive Georgia Tech drives, stayed In the game thanks to the Yellow Jackets' failure to make big plays. The game at Giants Stadium drew the smallest crowd in 19 Kickoff Classics at 41,517. Biffle cruises to easy truck victory Sunday, and the kidney problems Hermann Maier that arose after the surgery were under control.

GOLF Four Ball Championship final set Two-time champion Randy Nichols of Conners-ville and Skip Runnels of Richmond will face the Fort Wayne duo of Marty Rifkin and Jim Joseph Jr. today in the final match of the 26th IGA Four Ball Championship at Rock Hollow Golf Club in Peru, Ind. Nichols and Runnels defeated Rock Hollow members Max Weaver and Ted Kitchel 2 and 1 in Sunday's semifinal, while Rifkin and Joseph defeated David Brown and Tom Jones 1-up to advance to the final. COLLEGE FOOTBALL Q3 leaves Rutgers after losing starting job Junior quarterback Chad Schwenk has decided to leave the Rutgers football team, first-year coach Greg Schiano announced Sunday. Schwenk's decision came Just two days after Schiano named freshman Ryan Cubit as the Scar- Speedway.

He also became the first full-time Busch driver to win on the truck circuit. "Today was a dominating day for all of us," said Biffle who made just his third appearance of the season in the series for owner Jack Roush. "Today I really got in the groove with the truck." The victory was the second of 2001 at Nazareth by Biffle who, in May, took the Busch mile layout at Nazareth Speedway. The 2000 truck champ, currently the top rookie on the NASCAR Busch Series, averaged 108.778 mph. The speed, as just three brief cautions for 15 laps slowed the pace, topped Biffle's race record of 95.910 mph set in 1999.

Biffle, who won $50,410, scored his 15th victory on the series but first since July 2000 at Michigan Associated Press NAZARETH, Pa. Greg Biffle gave Ford its first victory of the year in the NASCAR truck series with a virtually perfect performance Sunday in the Chevy Silverado 200 race. Biffle, who won the 200-mile race two years ago, erased his own record in leading the final 192-of-200 laps over the triangular 1- Go online for more scores, stats and schedules at www.indystar.comsports IRL NOTEBOOK 0 Since 1972 WISER Continued from Page 1 MASTER $500 TRADE IN On Any Air Conditioner, or Furnace Cannot be combined with other coupom. Expirei 9 3001 2r HEATING AIR CONDITIONING o-ct Furnace or Lazier falls back in season race PAV045 AC Tune-Up Special $4995 $4495 Reg. $89 Seniors Cannot be combined with other coupon.

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IK maiHucmauuutut Gateway 250 (Top finishers) Driver Equipment 1. Al Unser Jr. G-A 2. Mark Dismore D-A 3. Sam Hornish Jr.

D-A 4. Eddie Cheever Jr. D-l 5. Robbie Buhl G-l 6. Billy Boat D-A 7.

Jeff Ward G-A 8. Scott Sharp D-A 9. Alrton Dare G-A 10. Robby McGehee D-A Chassis: G-G Force, D-Dallara Engines: A-Aurora, l-lnfiniti Series points leaders: Hornish 411, Buddy Lazier 366, Sharp 310, Boat 277, Felipe Giaffone 275 24 Hour Service CUSTOM MAK MOOR WEATHBT li I 4f Mnnlho 1 rt fTTff 1 Limned Availability SERVING ALL OF CENTRAL INDIANA Don't Dream of Old Glory Senior GaitlGS! Basketball, Bowling, Checkers, Cycling, Dominos, Euchre, Golf, Ping Pong, Race Walking, Kacquetball, inuttleboard, 1 TV I I "Al (Unser Jr.) really drove a hell of a race today. He saved his fuel so well and still battled Sam (Hornish Jr.) really well." eluding 49 in a row in the middle stages of the race.

Unser earned his first lead by passing Hornish on the inside on a restart. He got his last lead (of three) when Homish pitted on lap 190 for fuel. Galles told Unser on their lap-133 stop that he had to conserve In a major way to make it 67 laps. "I said we could go to lap 196," Galles said. "I'm surprised he made (it around the 1.25-mile circuit) on his (victory) parade lap, if that's any indication." "We were making fuel out there," Unser Joked.

Unser's efficiency caught several rivals off guard. Robbie Buhl, running In the top six with plenty of fuel, seemed primed to win before Donnie Beechler brought out the yellow on lap 188 with a first-turn accident. "I don't think (Unser) could have made it without that yellow," said Buhl, who felt burned by bad luck for the umpteenth time this season. "But good for him." Asked if experience helped Unser win the race, as Galles and others suggested, Hornish bristled. "I think fuel mileage helped him win," he said.

Hornish had a straightaway lead when Beechler crashed, but he knew he had to stop. He and Eddie Cheever Jr. pitted for fuel and figured fellow contenders Unser and Mark Dismore would Join them. They did not. "We had no choice but to pit," said Homish's general manager, John Barnes.

"We had 1.54 gallons left. Maybe two more laps." Hornish, a self-proclaimed sore loser, had trouble being too disappointed in finishing third. With chief rival Buddy Lazier losing fuel pressure on the opening lap and settling for 13th place, 10 laps off the pace, Homish opened a 45-point lead In the season series with two races to go. The title, which would be his first in two years in the league, seems wrapped up. Dismore also celebrated Sunday.

His second-place finish was his first top-five effort of the season and came on the heels of learning his ride for 2001 is in jeopardy because of a lack of spon lennis, lracic neia, Two-Mile Walk, Volleyball. "The bottom line is, we had 100 laps of practice together, so you can see we jelled extremely fast," Lazier said. "People knew we were there and that we'll be back." Jaques Lazier has signed with John Menard's team through the 2002 season. Competing beers After Al Unser Jr. won Sunday's race, team owner Rick Galles said the victory would help his negotiations with Budweiser to be the team's primary sponsor in 2002 and beyond.

But the smile on Galles' face was for the scenario that is developing. Coors Light officials clearly want to return to backing Unser, as they did in his early days in Championship Auto Racing Teams. "We've got a little competition going now," Galles said. "We'll have to see where it ends up." Notes At least three CART teams had representatives at Gateway: Team Rahal, Sigma Autosport and Her-dez Bettenhausen. Each is considering participating in at least one IRL event (Indianapolis) in '2002.

PacWest also attended the event, with driver Dan Wheldon winning the 80-lap Indy Lights race. Townsend Bell led the first 69 laps before retiring with mechanical failure. The Indy Lights race drew only 10 cars, but partnering with the IRL for the second time this season allowed league officials and Indy Lights teams to discuss the IRL's new support series, which will begin next summer. Indy Lights is a CART-owned property but is being phased out. In related news, Indy Lights has been dropped from next week's IRL race at Joliet, 111., because of a low car count.

His recent chase in standings loses steam when his car loses power on first lap. By Curt Cavin STAFF WRITER MADISON, 111. Buddy Lazier couldn't bring himself to admit his bid to defend his Indy Racing League championship all but ended Sunday on the first lap of the Gateway 250. When his engine soured at Gateway International Raceway, Lazier was off the pace. When Sam Hornish Jr.

finished third, Lazier wound up 45 points behind with two races to go. Even if Lazier wins both races, Hornish can claim the title by scoring 45 points, an average finish of eighth. Hornish has finished in the top six in 10 of the 11 races this season. "It's hard to say it's over," Lazier said of the points mountain he must scale in races in Joliet, III, and Fort Worth, Texas. The Hemelgarn Racing crew changed its Aurora engine before the morning practice session and Lazier turned 27 practice laps with no noticeable problem.

But the next lap, the first of the race, was a killer. He lost his ability to accelerate. "It's hard for me to understand how it can happen on the first lap of the race," Lazier said. "I can't believe it." No IRL champion has repeated since it was founded in 1996. More Lazier woes Jaques Lazier, Buddy's younger brother, had problems, too, In his debut with high-profile Team Menard.

A mechanical failure knocked him out of contention and he finished 16th. But he ran a strong third for much of the race. mm- Rick Galles, team owner -j'v; September 12th 13th 2001: HeaWipkx Sports dub Medical Pavilion on the Westview Hospital Campus. Westview Hospital 4n omotMTHK. MnrnTKM 36i() Gmon Rfud IndiinafxiliUN-t); v.

wrttview hospital Hfdlthplex Spouts Club "It was a race where everything went right like I needed it to go," said Dismore, who nearly crashed in traffic while charging from the 19th starting position. "We really needed this." Cheever finished fourth while Buhl settled for fifth. Unser wasn't the only winner. He put the first Force chassis in victory lane since Juan Montoya did so in the 2000 Indianapolis 500. Beechler's crash was one of only two wall-bangers for the weekend.

Rookie Chris Menninga spun exiting the first turn of lap 52. Neither he nor Beechler was injured. Alex Barron's car was damaged during a pit-road tangle with Buzz Calkins on lap 42. Contact Curt Cavin at 1-317-444-6409 or via e-mail at curt.cavinindystar.com Medical PtviuoN JMOGuMiltud Indianapolis. IN -16222 ww htalthpln-indyaim I American Senior Commuiiities ADVANTAGE Heal th Choice Hospital raindalicfi Lafayette Square Mall For Information Call 317-920-7483 This ad must accompany your Entry Form to receive $2.00 OFF your registration fee.

Contact Curt Cavin at 1-317-444-6409 or e-mail curtcavin indystar.com 1 sorship. I i'.