Sports Briefs 3-18-13

TERENCE CHEA Associated Press Published:

SAN FRANCISCO -- The teenage driver already had multiple race victories under his belt and was pursuing a course laid out by several generations of his family when tragedy struck.

Chase Johnson's car careened off the northern California track Saturday evening and hit two people in pit row -- his 14-year-old cousin Marcus Johnson and 68-year-old race car owner Dale Wondergem, according to the Yuba County Sheriff's Department. The younger victim was not an official member of his cousin's crew. Authorities are investigating why he was in the pit area, according to Undersheriff Jerry Read.

Marcus Johnson's father, Rob Johnson, told KPIX-TV that his son was helping out in the pit when "something strange happened and the steering wheel came off ... this car flew probably 100 to 150 feet and hit him." He said his son and cousin were like best friends.

The crash occurred when six or seven sprint cars were doing warm-up laps before the start of a scheduled race. The car of 17-year-old Chase Johnson left the track at an undetermined speed and hit the two before it tipped on its side, sheriff's officials said.

• Golf

Streelman finally wins: Kevin Streelman finally won on the PGA Tour with a game that looked as if he had done this many times before.

Streelman didn't make a bogey over the final 37 holes on the tough Copperhead course at Innisbrook. He didn't miss a shot over the last 11 holes Sunday on his way to a 4-under 67. That gave him a two-shot win over Boo Weekley in the Tampa Bay Championship.

Jumps to No. 1: Stacy Lewis won the LPGA Founders Cup on Sunday to jump to No. 1 in the world, taking advantage of Ai Miyazato's collapse on the 16th hole.

A day after Lewis was penalized two strokes for her caddie's blunder on the short par 4, the American took a two-stroke lead with a birdie on the hole after Miyazato made a double bogey following an errant approach shot that left her with an unplayable lie in a desert bush. Coming off a victory two weeks ago in Singapore, the 28-year-old Lewis won for the seventh time in her LPGA Tour career to end Yani Tseng's 109-week run at No. 1.

• Elsewhere

Tearful gathering: Members of the Seton Hill University community tearfully gathered Sunday at Saint Joseph Chapel, known on the small Catholic university hilltop campus outside Pittsburgh as "the heart" of the school, to memorialize victims of a fatal bus crash -- especially head lacrosse coach Kristina Quigley, who was remembered as warm, outgoing and a natural leader.

Players and coaches from Seton Hill were among 23 people aboard when the bus crashed into a tree Saturday on the Pennsylvania Turnpike outside Harrisburg. Police are investigating the cause. Quigley, 30, died of her injuries at a hospital. Quigley was about six months pregnant, and her unborn son didn't survive. The bus driver, Anthony Guaetta, 61, of Johnstown, died at the scene.

Second longest: The Miami Heat equaled the second-longest winning streak in NBA history, pulling away in the fourth quarter Sunday to beat the Toronto Raptors 108-91 for their 22nd consecutive victory.

LeBron James had 22 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists, Dwyane Wade added 24 points and nine assists, and Ray Allen scored 16 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter for the defending NBA champions. Chris Bosh finished with 18 points as the Heat tied the 2007-08 Houston Rockets for the second-longest winning streak in NBA history. The longest is 33 games, set by the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers.

Another Long: The St. Louis Rams and free agent offensive tackle Jake Long agreed to terms on a deal Sunday night. Long was the first overall pick of the 2008 draft by the Miami Dolphins.

St. Louis took standout defensive end Chris Long, who has 241⁄2 sacks the last two seasons with the second overall pick of the '08 draft. Long started every game his first three seasons and has been to four Pro Bowls, but has been injured at the end of the last two years. He finished 2012 on injured reserve with a left triceps injury and the Dolphins declined to give him a franchise tag and pay him $15.4 million next season.

Nadal rallies: Rafael Nadal rallied from a set and 1-3 down in the second to beat Juan Martin del Potro 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the BNP Paribas Open final on Sunday, giving the Spaniard his third title in four tournaments since returning from a seven-month injury layoff. Maria Sharapova defeated Caroline Wozniacki 6-2, 6-2 to win her first title of the season.

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