Area and National Sports Briefs: Hall of Fame inductions

Published 1:22 am Monday, July 27, 2015

From staff and wire reports
COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. — Three pitchers who became dominant after trades and a rock-solid catcher-turned-second baseman have a new moniker — Hall of Famer.
Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, John Smoltz and Craig Biggio were inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on Sunday and basked in the spotlight one more time with at least 40,000 fans cheering from the sun-drenched field beyond.
For Martinez, the last to speak, the moment was magical as scores in the crowd waved Dominican flags for one of their own. Martinez, who also delivered part of his speech in Spanish, and former Giants great Juan Marichal, elected in 1983, are the only Hall of Famers from the Caribbean nation.
At the end of the ceremony, Martinez beckoned Marichal to the stage and they held their flag high, one last emotional gesture as the crowd roared.

Intimidators
The Kannapolis Intimidators lost 5-3 on Sunday at Lakewood.
Kannapolis starting pitcher Thad Lowry pitched five hitless innings to start the game. Kannapolis (15-15 second half) has lost three straight.
• Kannapolis lost 5-1 on Saturday night at Lakewood on “The Boss” Night.

Youth softball
Rowan Little League’s 14U team won 21-10 against West Virginia on Saturday in regional play in Fort Myers, Fla.
Hannah Roberts pitched for Rowan.
Ally Young had four hits and four RBIs. Katie Jewell had four RBIs. Jentri Meadows and Katelyn McGee had three hits each.
Defensive standouts included Ayden Gilmore, Ashlyn Fritz and Kylie Goodman.
• Rowan built a 9-1 lead and won 14-13 vs. Virginia.
Roberts was the winning pitcher.
Jewell hit two homers. Alyssa Zocchi homered. All three homers left the park.

Youth baseball
East Rowan’s 11U team lost to Laurinburg in the Southeast Regional.
East Rowan had beaten Laurinburg twice in pool play and was 4-0 in pool play. East Rowan went 5-1 in the tournament and placed third.
• China Grove went 2-1 in pool play and was eliminated by a runs-allowed tiebreaker.

Professional golf
OAKVILLE, Ontario — Jason Day birdied the final three holes to win the Canadian Open on Sunday, spoiling David Hearn’s bid to become the first Canadian winner in 61 years.
Day made a 20-foot putt on the par-5 18th for a 4-under 68 and a one-stroke victory over Bubba Watson. Day finished at 17-under 271 at Glen Abbey.
Senior British Open
SUNNINGDALE, England — American Marco Dawson held off Bernhard Langer and Colin Montgomerie over the final nine holes to win the Senior British Open.
Dawson closed with a 6-under 64 to finish at 16-under 264 on Sunningdale’s Old Course.
LPGA
BELMONT, Mich. — Lexi Thompson won the Meijer LPGA Classic by a stroke for her fifth LPGA Tour title, shooting a 6-under 65 to overcome a four-stroke deficit.
The 20-year-old Florida player won for the first time since capturing her first major title last year at the Kraft Nabisco Championship.