Eighteen WAC student-athletes have been named to the 2010 U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Division I All-Academic Track and Field Team.

Matt Schneider, a former member of the Bowling Green State University men's golf team, has qualified for the United States Men's Amateur Golf Championship...

The women's basketball Final Four will return to the DeVos Center at Hope College in Holland, Mich., where the 2012 and 2013 Division III national champions will be crowned. The school will also host the women's volleyball championships the same year.

The men's basketball Final Four was recently re-upped for the Salem Civic Center in Salem, Va., for the 2012 and 2013 championships, where it has been held since 1996.

"That the NCAA has chosen Hope College to host four national championships in two sports for two years in a row speaks volumes to the quality of this campus, this community, and this facility," said co-athletic director Eva Dean Folkert. "Most of all, it speaks highly of the quality of Hope and Holland people who make these tournaments so special and so well-run. We have received rave reviews from NCAA personnel, athletic participants, parents and fans from our hosting of past

Budding Northwest Conference rivals George Fox and Puget Sound, each of which lost women's basketball coaches this summer, named new ones this week, just days apart. George Fox hired Michael Meek, coach at Southridge High School in Beaverton, Ore., while Puget Sound selected Loree Payne, anassistant coach at Division I Washington.

They replace Scott Rueck, who was hired as head coach at Division I Oregon State, and Suzy Barcomb, now the head coach at Division II Cal State-East Bay, respectively.

"I am so excited to be part of the University of Puget Sound family," said Payne, who also played at Washington. "This is an amazing opportunity at an excellent university with a great tradition in academics and women's basketball. I feel honored to be chosen to continue the tradition of success that has been built by Coach Barcomb and the alumnae of this program."

"I had had some on-and-off, back-and-forth thoughts about college coaching before," admitted Meek at George Fox's news conference, "but the George Fox situation was just a perfect fit. What they believe in and stand for is what I believe in and stand for as well. In sports, it is more about the journey than the goal, more about relationships than the record. If we have hard work, dedication, and commitment, then the wins and losses will take care of themselves."

Meek posted a career record of 264-79 (.770) in 13 seasons coaching girls' basketball in Oregon. His Southridge teams have won five of the last six Oregon large-school classification state titles.

"We are extremely impressed with Loree's enthusiasm, passion, and desire to be a part of the Puget Sound community," stated athletic director Amy Hackett. "She offers the confidence to create a positive environment in which student-athletes can grow, thrive and excel in all aspects of their college experiences."

Payne was a two-time All-Pac-10 player as a junior and senior as well as a three-time All-Academic Pac-10 honoree to round out a stellar playing career. Payne's name still appears in the Huskies record books where she currently holds or shares six school records. She previously spent

Four days into the raunchy extortion case involving Rick Pitino and the woman accused of demanding millions from him to cover up their sexual dalliance, here's the question that keeps running through my head. Wouldn't Pitino have been better off paying Karen Sypher to keep quiet? Being blackmailed sure looks like the lesser of two evils at this point considering the damage Pitino's legacy, reputation and ego have all sustained this week. A man whose reputation was spotless prior to last year's revelation of his 2003 affair has been forced to endure slings and arrows from defense attorneys and to share embarrassing details of his private life in a very public setting. In Monday's opening statement by Sypher's attorney, he alleged that Pitino "suggested something involving concrete and a river" after Sypher insisted she didn't want to have an abortion.In Pitino's first day of testimony on Wednesday, he revealed that his entire sexual encounter...

PROFIT SLIPS: News and information provider Thomson Reuters Corp. says its second-quarter net income fell 8 percent on weakness in its legal and markets divisions.

RATES KEEP FALLING: Mortgage company Freddie Mac said the average rate for 30-year fixed loans this week was 4.54 percent, down from 4.56 last week.

MetLife Inc. said Thursday that strong investment gains and a bump in premium revenues pushed it to a profit in the second quarter.

Police in Modesto, Calif., are wading through the damage from a flood at the downtown station after a suspect broke a sprinkler.

Investment firm Jana Partners LLC on Thursday urged shareholders of Charles River Laboratories International Inc. to reject the company's pending takeover of China's WuXi PharmaTech.

Usain Bolt thinks about winning the gold medal more than setting another world record.

Armenian-Americans have filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles against the Turkish government and two major Turkish banks for alleged damages dating back nearly a century.

(When were you first approached by the Sounders?) "During World Cup I was approached to start talks and I'm very happy to be here now."

Casino operator Wynn Resorts Ltd.'s second-quarter profit doubled to $52.4 million with help from its new resort in the Chinese gambling enclave of Macau, the company said Thursday.

Calgon Carbon Corp. said Thursday that a federal jury in Pennsylvania has ordered it to pay $12 million to coal technology company ADA-ES Inc.

A bill that would provide up to $7.4 billion in aid to people sickened by World Trade Center dust is in danger of stalling in Congress.

The major oil companies continue to climb back from the recession, with higher fuel prices driving up earnings.

A panel of federal judges is deciding where to consolidate several lawsuits against Google Inc. alleging the company violated wiretapping laws.

JOBLESS CLAIMS DROP: New requests for unemployment benefits dropped last week by 11,000 to 457,000, the third drop in four weeks.

Two iconic American brands are getting hitched.

THE CASE: Tribune Co. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2008, a year after piling on debt to go private. A downturn in newspaper advertising has hampered its ability to repay. Tribune owns newspapers and TV stations.

A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Thursday:

Biotechnology company Amgen Inc. said Thursday that its second-quarter net income slipped 5 percent, mainly on higher taxes, but the results topped Wall Street expectations.

Southwest Airlines Co. serves 69 airports in the United States, but CEO Gary C. Kelly says there's still room to grow before looking at international flights.

The mother wolf of the state's first confirmed pack of wolves in 70 years is missing.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal says his office is investigating two charities run by a man spearheading efforts to help a Yale women's hockey player fighting leukemia.

Bruce Vaughan took advantage of cool morning conditions with an opening-round 66 to take a two-shot lead in the first round of the U.S. Senior Open on Thursday.

Filed under: Louisville

Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino has finished testifying in the case of a woman who demanded millions from him after a sexual tryst, saying he didn't immediately report threatening phone calls because he didn't want his family to find out.

Pitino said Thursday that he kept quiet to "contain" potentially damaging information.

He and the attorney for Karen Cunagin Sypher, who is charged with extortion, had multiple heated exchanges during two hours of questioning Thursday.

Pitino a day earlier acknowledged on the stand the two had sex in a restaurant booth. Sypher has alleged it was rape.

During questioning about the rape allegation, Pitino interrupted defense lawyer James Earhart saying he's "here to give the truth." Earhart replied: "I bet you are."

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The NCAA has placed the University of Arizona men's basketball program on two years' probation and vacated 19 wins from the 2007-08 season for violations involving Hall of Fame coach Lute Olson.

Four days into the raunchy extortion case involving Rick Pitino and the woman accused of demanding millions from him to cover up their sexual dalliance, here's the question that keeps running through my head.

Wouldn't Pitino have been better off paying Karen Sypher to keep quiet?

Being blackmailed sure looks like the lesser of two evils at this point considering the damage Pitino's legacy, reputation and ego have all sustained this week. A man whose reputation was spotless prior to last year's revelation of his 2003 affair has been forced to endure slings and arrows from defense attorneys and to share embarrassing details of his private life in a very public setting.

In Monday's opening statement by Sypher's attorney, he alleged that Pitino "suggested something involving concrete and a river" after Sypher insisted she didn't want to have an abortion.

In Pitino's first day of testimony on Wednesday, he revealed that his entire sexual encounter with Sypher in the booth at Porcini's lasted  an, uh, efficient 15 seconds (Click here and here for the obvious one-liners).

In Thursday's combative cross-examination, Pitino had to dive deeper into the actual events of his interaction with Sypher in order to explain why he was confident she hadn't been pregnant with his child. I'll spare you the gory details, but they are graphic to say the least.

That the trial has been even more sordid than anyone could have imagined so far raises a handful of questions going forward.

Will Pitino receive the same respect from his players after these embarrassing public revelations? How will the publicity from this scandal impact Pitino's ability to sell parents that he's the right coach for their sons? And will Pitino be able to keep his cool during the season when opposing student sections inevitably serenade him with chants inspired by this trial?

Louisville is entering a critical recruiting stretch the next few months as it tries to replenish a roster lacking in elite talent, so it might not take long before we discover how much damage has been done.

Pitino will probably survive this scandal, but one thing is clear: Even though it's Sypher who is on trial, nobody is coming out of this a winner.

Authorities say one person is dead and three others are sick after an accident at a western Pennsylvania water treatment plant.

GO NORTH! North America went from a steep loss to a profit, helped by a 21 percent jump in sales.

Oil and gas exploration company Boots & Coots Inc. reported a spike in second-quarter profits Thursday, boosted by growing revenue across its businesses.

Tire inventories dwindled during the recession with money so tight. J.P. Morgan analyst Himanshu Patel asked Goodyear executives on Thursday to discuss the commercial truck inventory situation. Goodyear's president and CEO, Richard J. Kramer, said rebuilding inventories would provide a sales opportunity.

The Air Force has chosen bases in Arizona, Florida, Utah and Vermont to serve as homes to the U.S. Air Force's pricey new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

In just a few days, new Prime Minister David Cameron has openly declared Britain is no more than the "junior partner" of the U.S., irritated Israelis by calling Gaza a prison camp and enraged Pakistanis by suggesting their country exports terrorism.

A large farmers market that aimed at highlighting northern Indiana's agricultural roots will be shutting down less than four years after it opened.

While it hasn't been made official yet word has leaked out that Lake Wenatchee could open for sockeye fishing as soon as this Sunday (Aug. 1).

Hornbeck Offshore Services Inc., which provides water transportation for the petroleum industry, is prepared to move to wherever rigs go if the deepwater drilling moratorium in the Gulf of Mexico drives away business, the company's CEO said Thursday.

A grain bin accident that left two teenagers dead and a third hospitalized could have been prevented and preliminary investigations found one worker was underage and employees lacked safety equipment, a federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration spokesman said Thursday.

Chinese cartoonist Yang Xiang Yu addresses freedom with a drawing of the Forbidden City and a medical mask over Mao's mouth. Iranian cartoonist Mohammad Fatehi Kahvarin sees images of nuts and bolts lined up military style while listening to a nut giving a speech. Serbian artist Milenko Kosanovic envisions a man cowering behind a chair, hiding from a television that is broadcasting the word "freedom."

If we had anything resembling normal weather, it would be time for iced coffee. I'm writing this post anyway, as a sort of incantation that I hope will summon a temperature of at least 65 degrees today.

SCANA Corp. said Thursday that its second-quarter profit edged lower due in part to higher property taxes, interest and operating and maintenance expenses.

The dollar slid to its lowest level against the euro in nearly three months Thursday amid mounting concerns about the U.S. economy at a time when European indicators are improving.

Buck Showalter was hired to manage the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday, his latest rebuilding project in a major league career full of them.

United Auto Workers President Bob King says that General Motors Co. will file paperwork in mid-August to start the process of selling stock to the public.

Albert Haynesworth failed his conditioning test Thursday and was forced to sit out the first practice of the Washington Redskins training camp, the latest twist in a test of wills between the two-time All-Pro defensive lineman and coach Mike Shanahan.

Washington coach Loree Payne was on the road recruiting for the Huskies this week when she got the call -- she was selected to head the University of Puget Sound.

A group of people who own mineral rights in eastern Wyoming say they're planning to sell those rights to oil developers in a public auction.

Palladium prices marched higher Thursday after a parade of automakers reported stronger sales.