The University of Washington softball team, which has competed in five consecutive College World Series, will begin its next journey on Thursday at the NCAA Tournament in Norman, Okla. The Huskies, seeded No. 2, will face Seton Hall at 2:30 p.m.
This is Washington’s eighth straight invitation to the NCAA Tournament – but the Huskies have never played Seton Hall before.
“The thing I like about our region is that we have not seed any of the teams this year and they haven’t seen us,” UW coach Teresa Wilson said. “I would rather face a team we have not played than a team we have seen two or three times, especially since early in the season we weren’t as successful as we might have been.”
Joining Washington in the double-elimination regional is defending national champion Oklahoma, third-seed North Carolina, fourth-seed Massachusetts and sixth-seed Lehigh.
Other Pac-10 schools making the tournament in seeded announced Sunday night are California, Arizona State and Oregon State.
Turning 40 isn’t about to quiet Dennis Rodman.
Police shut down a birthday bash at the former NBA star’s house in Newport Beach, Calif., over the weekend for what police said was an illegal helicopter landing and a live concert by two rock bands.
The party started about 2:30 p.m. Saturday when Rodman made a dramatic entrance in a helicopter that circled his house several times before landing on the beach, police spokesman Mike McDermott said.
About 300 people came to celebrate Rodman’s 40th birthday, with most of the guests spilling onto the public beach outside his home.
By late afternoon about 30 police officers – some in riot gear – had gathered nearby as Rodman’s lawyers negotiated with the district attorney’s office and Rodman argued with police.
McDermott said Rodman eventually agreed to move the celebration to his nearby restaurant. No arrests were made.
A rock concert on his patio prompted about 50 complaints from irate neighbors, police said. It was the latest in a series of confrontations with neighbors and police since Rodman moved into the beachfront home several years ago.
Previous Rodman gatherings have resulted in more than 70 police visits and more than $3,000 in fines for violating local noise ordinances, according to city records.
Sylvester Morris of the Kansas City Chiefs took care of Mother’s Day and Father’s Day all at once.
The wide receiver is having a house built for his parents, Cynthia and Sylvester Sr.
“My mother and father were always behind me and steered me in the right direction,” Morris said. “I felt the house was the least I could do for all of their hard work.”
Jason Sehorn of the New York Giants took care of Mother’s Day in a different way. He plans to surprise a single mother with a down payment on fully furnished home on Thursday in Newark, N.J.
“The true merit of an athlete is not only what you do on the field but off it,” he said.
Herald staff, news services
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
