September 1, 2007

Oregon gets Fullerton's head coach for baseball

UNION-TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICES

The University of Oregon will hire Cal State Fullerton baseball coach George Horton to restart its own varsity program, The Oregonian reported last night.

Oregon has not had a varsity baseball team in 26 years and is the only Pac-10 school without one. Oregon, which has been trying to make a high-profile hire for weeks, announced a news conference for this morning to introduce the new coach but did not name him.

Oregon recently announced it would revive baseball, drop wrestling and add competitive cheer.

Horton, 53, has taken his team to the College World Series six times. His team won in 2004, and he twice has been named national coach of the year.

Horton has strong California recruiting ties. Coach Pat Casey of two-time defending national champion Oregon State has had a virtual lock on in-state talent. Oregon plans to begin play with limited scholarships in 2009.

Ex-SDSU AD's wife dies

Denice Bay, wife of former San Diego State Athletic Director Rick Bay, died Tuesday in a single-car accident in Morro Bay. She was 53. Morro Bay Police said she may have suffered a seizure, leading her to lose control of the car as it traveled at a high speed and struck a concrete planter and sculpture. No one else was injured. Denice Bay was from Eugene, Ore. She and her husband lived in Palm Desert.

– BRENT SCHROTENBOER

NBA

Divers resumed searching the Delaware River in Chester, Pa., for the father of Orlando Magic guard Jameer Nelson. Floyd “Pete” Nelson was reported missing from his job at a tugboat repair shop about noon Thursday . . . Boston Celtics forward James Posey was suspended by the NBA for one game for pleading no contest to reckless driving stemming from an incident in April.

Sports and courts

A son of Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid failed a drug test while awaiting sentencing on drug charges. Garrett Reid tested positive for a small amount of morphine and will be allowed only limited leave from his family's home in Villanova until his sentencing, a Montgomery County judge ruled. He is not permitted to drive, a prosecutor said. . . . A federal judge in Greenbelt, Md., sentenced former University of Maryland basketball star Lonny Baxter to 60 days in prison for illegally shipping firearms, a ruling that cost Baxter his contract with a Spanish team . . . New York Knicks center Randolph Morris pleaded guilty in Lexington, Ky., to reckless driving and agreed to pay a $100 fine.

NHL

The San Jose Sharks signed center Patrick Marleau to a two-year contract extension, securing their captain through the 2010 season. The new deal is reportedly worth $12 million . . . The local group that put down a $10 million nonrefundable deposit to buy the Nashville Predators for $193 million signed a deal that includes the purchase agreement with current owner Craig Leipold.

Cycling

Kazakh rider Andrej Kashechkin has been fired by Astana after his “B” sample tested positive for a banned blood transfusion.

Crew

The U.S. and Canadian eights won their semifinal heats to move into the final of the top event at the rowing world championship in Munich, Germany. The six finalists secured berths at next year's Beijing Olympics.

Swimming

Marathon swimmer Skip Storch was in stable condition in Nyack (N.Y.) Hospital, where he was being treated for muscle tears, abrasions and hypothermia following his record-setting swim around Manhattan.