From staff reports
Payton Russell, who competes with the Salisbury Speedsters, was crowned national champion in the 100 and 200 meters at the AAU Junior Olympic Track and Field Championships held in Des Moines, Iowa.
Russell, 9, competes in the bantam girls division. She ran 13.746 seconds in the 100 and 28.29 in the 200.
Russell also was fourth in the 400 (1:04.35). She ran personal bests in the 200 and 400 to medal in the recent USATF Nationals held in Greensboro.
Russell qualified for the AAU Nationals for the fourth time.
n Salisbury’s Marianne Abdalah, 10, competed in the finals in the 800 and 1500.
Abdalah ran a personal best 5:40 with a late kick to win a 1500 heat and placed 12th in the final.
Abdalah was making her third appearance at the AAU Nationals.
n Minor leagues
Jerry Sands (Catawba) got a promotion. The Los Angeles Dodgers moved Sands up to the Great Lakes Loons in Midland, Mich., this weekend.
Great Lakes is in the Class-A Midwest League. Sands will be competing against Kane County’s David Thomas (Catawba) and Clinton’s Kyle Seager (NW Cabarrus, UNC).
Sands batted .350 with 14 homers and 39 RBIs in 41 games for the Ogden Raptors to earn the promotion.
n Daniel Wagner (South Rowan) hit his seventh double for Bristol on Saturday. Wagner is batting .279.
n Tim Smith (Catawba) pitched a scoreless inning for Kingsport on Saturday in a 6-5 loss against Johnson City.
n New Britain’s Spencer Steedley (East Rowan) allowed two runs in one inning in an 11-7 loss against Akron on Saturday.
Steedley surrendered an eighth-inning homer to Carlos Santana, one of the top catching prospects in the minors.
Steedley’s ERA is 6.75 since his promotion to Double-A ball.
n Intimidators win
The Kannapolis Intimidators won 8-6 at home against Greensboro on Saturday.
The Intimidators were aided by three unearned runs in the eighth.
Jon Gilmore had a two-run double for the Intimidators, who have won their last five.
n Overseas hoops
Terris Sifford (West Rowan) is returning to Italy to play his fall.
He’ll be with a new club ó Pol.5 Fonti Amandola.
n McCanless Couples
The McCanless Couples played at Asheboro Country Club on Saturday.
Fourteen golfers participated with a Two-Man Best Ball format.
Gene Seaford and Sharon Miller shot 76 to win. Walt and Kim Kincaid shot 81 for second. Robin and Brett Leslie shot 86 for third place.
Chris Livengood made the longest putt on No. 3. Kim Kincaid was closest to the pin on No. 10.