A roundup of the sports information of the week
BASEBALL—The AMERICAN LEAGUE temporarily shelved its plan for expanding into Walter O'Malley's Los Angeles territory, offered instead a compromise proposal calling for immediate expansion by both leagues to nine teams, with an interleague schedule next season that would have every AL team meet every NL team six times (for 54 games), as well as each club meeting the others in its own league 14 times (for 112 games). American League President Joe Cronin announced that if the National League accepted the proposal before the interleague meeting next week in St. Louis his league would drop its plans to move into California next season. Most National League sentiment, however, was against the proposal.
New Yankee General Manager Roy Hamey, in what he called a new Yankee policy aimed at full-scale bonus-baby competition with other clubs, signed HOWARD KITT, an 18-year-old Columbia University engineering student from Ocean-side, N.Y. The Yankees paid one of their largest bonuses ever, believed to be in the neighborhood of $65,000. Kitt had a high school pitching record of 40 victories and one defeat.
The Minneapolis-St. Paul major league team, recently shifted from Washington, will be known as the MINNESOTA TWINS.
BASKETBALL—BOSTON CELTICS moved into first place in the Eastern Division with a 122-105 victory over New York, increased their lead when they moved on to Philly and beat the Warriors 132-129. They finished the week with another victory over New York and one over Syracuse, to make it seven straight. ST. LOUIS held first place in the Western Division.
In the NIBL, the NEW YORK TUCK TAPERS took on dark horse status with a 2-2 record and a 102-95 victory over the Bartlesville Phillips 66ers, the defending champions. ADRIAN SMITH, former Olympian and guard for the Akron Good-years, leads the league in scoring with 83 points in three games.
BICYCLE RACING—TED SMITH of Buffalo, a 1948 Olympian, won the season-long U.S. Senior Men's all-round title by nine points over Bob Tetzlaff of the U.S. Army, a 1960 Olympian.
BOATING—LOWELL NORTH of Mission Bay, Calif. won the world Star-class sailing championship for the second straight year, at Rio de Janeiro. In five races, North had three firsts, a fifth and a ninth, for a total of 218 points. Runner-up: Don K. Elder of Newport Harbor, Calif. with 216.
BOWLING—DAVE SOUTAR of Detroit rolled 1,276 in five games to break the world record of 1,274 set last year, at Detroit.
Jim Hartley of Costa Mesa, Calif. claimed a U.S. marathon record after bowling 1,042 games in 183½ hours. Hartley allowed himself an hour shower break every morning, a half-hour rest every two hours.
BOXING—DR. EDITH SUMMERSKILL of England, longtime opponent of boxing, author of The Ignoble Art, and Laborite Member of Parliament, announced she would introduce a bill banning the sport, after Fighter Bobby Neill, KO'd by Terry Spinks in the 14th round of a bout for the British featherweight title, underwent an emergency operation to remove a blood clot from the brain.
Mike De John, bleeding from numerous cuts, released a sudden barrage of blows in the 9th round that KO'd Billy Hunter in a heavyweight bout at Madison Square Garden.
Chic Calderwood, British light-heavyweight champion, suffered a broken nose in the 5th round of a nontitle bout against Chicago's Sonny Ray, gamely fought on to win on points, at Wembley, England.
CROSS-COUNTRY—AL LAWRENCE led Houston to the NCAA championship at East Lansing, Mich., set a course record in defending his individual title (see page 25). Lawrence, from Sydney, Australia, ran the 4-mile course in 19:28.2, was followed 75 yards later by teammate John Macy. Three days later at Louisville, Lawrence won the National AAU championship, ran the 6-mile distance in 31:20.8. Runner-up: Fred Norris of Lancashire, England and Lake Charles, La. Team champion was also Houston, beating out the New York AC.
Bob Peet of Alabama won the Southeastern Conference title at Atlanta, covered the 4.4-mile distance in 21:09.6. Mississippi State took the team championship with 38 points to second-place Alabama, with 52.
Joe Thomas of Southern Illinois University won the NAIA title at Omaha, covered the 4-mile race in 20:39, also led his school to the team title with a low score of 37 points.
FIELD TRIAL—DOLOBRAN'S SMOKE TAIL, a 9-year-old Labrador owned and handled by Richard H. Hecker of Tucson, Ariz., won the National Retriever Trials at Weldon Spring, Mo. (see page 56). Hecker, a lawyer, was the first amateur handler ever to win the trials.
FOOTBALL—The OTTAWA ROUGH RIDERS defeated the Edmonton Eskimos 16-6 in a slightly abbreviated Grey Cup championship at Vancouver, B.C. With five minutes of play left, fans began crowding into the Eskimo end zone. With 41 seconds left, they charged onto the field, swamping policemen who had brought dogs in case of trouble. A daring youngster picked up the ball and ran away. Others ripped down the crossbar of the goal posts. After a huddle the officials called the game. It was the second time in four years the Grey Cup was not completed.
GOLF—ARNOLD PALMER of Ligonier, Pa. won the $15,000 Mobile (Ala.) Open with 274 for 72 holes. Runner-up: Johnny Pott of Shreveport, La., with 276. Palmer's $2,000 first-place purse gave him $73,716 for the year, a new record for the pro circuit.
HOCKEY—DETROIT beat league-leading Montreal 3-1 before the largest crowd (15,859) ever to attend a home game in Detroit and moved into first place in the NHL (see page 53). While Detroit was outplayed most of the game, Red Wing Goalie Hank Bassen held Montreal with 25 difficult saves. Dickie Moore made the only Canadien goal, put away his 20th of the season. At that rate he will better Maurice Richard's season record of 50 goals set during the 1944-1945 season. DETROIT first, MONTREAL second, CHICAGO third in NHL standings.
HORSE RACING—NICKEL BOY ($9.70), profiting by a slipped saddle on Don Poggio, galloped off with the $55,900 Display Handicap at Aqueduct by 10 lengths over Manassa Mauler. Don Poggio, leading as he passed the stands the first time in the two-mile race, suddenly bore out (carrying Manassa Mauler with him) as his saddle slipped up on his neck. Jockey Sam Boulmetis, at first unable to control the horse, eased him up on the outside and out of the race. Nickel Boy with Manuel Ycaza up, covered the distance in 3:21 1/5.
Primonetta ($4), leading all the way, easily won the $37,280 Marguerite Stakes at Pimlico by five lengths over Plum Cake. With Bill Hartack up, she covered the 1 1/16 miles in 1:46 2/5, became the first daughter of 1955 Kentucky Derby winner Swaps to win a stakes race.
Clear Road ($52.30), under the furious urging of Ray York, took the $28,400 Firenze Handicap at Aqueduct by a nose over Soldadesca. The filly covered the mile in 1:36 2/5.
Kelso, gelded son of Your Host-Maid of Flight, by Count Fleet, was named 1960 Horse of the Year, as well as the best 3-year-old. in the annual Morning Telegraph and Daily Racing Form poll. The Bohemia Stable's gelding won eight of his nine races this season, taking his last six stakes in a row, earned $293,310.
SOCCER—ST. LOUIS UNIVERSITY, in a fast-moving game, defeated University of Maryland 3-2 to win the NCAA championship for the second year, at New York (see page 20). St. Louis beat West Chester (Pa.) State 2-1, and Maryland beat Connecticut 4-0 to reach the finals.
Elizabethtown (PA.) COLLEGE and NEWARK (N.J.) COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING were declared NAIA cochampions when darkness halted their game with the score 2-2, at Slippery Rock, Pa.
TENNIS—ARTHUR ASHE JR. of St. Louis won the National Junior Indoor Championship at St. Louis with a four-hour 10-minute 6-4, 16-14, 9-11, 3-6, 6-1 victory over Frank Froehling of San Antonio. Ashe is the first Negro to win the indoor championship.
MILEPOSTS—ELECTED: JOHNNY LOFTUS, rider of the first triple-crown winner, to the Jockey Club Hall of Fame at Pimlico. In 1919 Loftus rode Sir Barton to victories in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes.
RESIGNED: DEWITT WEAVER, head coach and athletic director at Texas Tech, to enter private business in Mobile, Ala.