Kvapil wins pole for Amp Energy 500

Sports Digest

October 5, 2008

Travis Kvapil won the pole for today's NASCAR Sprint Cup Amp Energy 500 at Talladega Superspeedway to show Yates Racing is on an upswing after several lean years, and Dale Earnhardt Inc. had a strong day to counter rumblings the team is in trouble. Kvapil turned a lap at 187.364 mph in his Yates Racing Ford to edge Casey Mears' lap of 187.295 in a Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. DEI's Aric Almirola was third, Regan Smith was fourth, Paul Menard was fifth and Martin Truex Jr. was 10th. Carl Edwards was the highest-qualifying Chase driver and will start 12th.

NHL: Markus Naslund and Brandon Dubinsky scored to lift the New York Rangers to a 2-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning in the season opener in Prague, Czech Republic. ... Tyler Kennedy scored his second goal with 25 seconds left in overtime to lift the Pittsburgh Penguins past the Ottawa Senators, 4-3, in Stockholm, Sweden.

Golf: Paula Creamer birdied the final three holes for a 4-under 68 and a one-stroke lead over Angela Stanford after the third round of the LPGA Samsung World Championship in Half Bay Moon, Calif. Creamer had a 6-under 210 total. ... Tag Ridings (71) missed a short par putt on the final hole to fall into a tie with Charles Howell III (69) for the third-round lead at 8-under 208 in the PGA Turning Stone Resort Championship in Verona, N.Y.

Tennis: Venus Williams lost, 6-7 (8), 7-5, 6-2, to Jelena Jankovic, who overcame a foot injury to advance to the final of the Porsche Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany. Jankovic will play Nadia Petrova today for the title. ... Andy Roddick was upset by Tomas Berdych, 6-7 (3), 7-5, 7-6 (3), in the semifinals of the Japan Open in Tokyo. The ninth-seeded Berdych will face fifth-seeded Juan Martin Del Potro in today's final.

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Baseball: Given the state of the U.S. economy, commissioner Bud Selig warned team owners not to "get too cocky" and overprice game tickets. "Because you do pay a price," Selig said. Speaking before the Phillies-Brewers game, Selig called 2008 a "phenomenal success" for baseball despite a decline in attendance that Selig attributed to bad weather and high gas prices. But Selig acknowledged concern about a prolonged economic downturn and how it might affect the sport next year.

Soccer: Alecko Eskandarian had a goal and an assist to help Chivas beat host D.C. United, 3-0. United is winless in six games and is a point out of the final playoff spot.

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Kvapil wins pole for Amp Energy 500

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