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Two USC football players practice a handoff earlier this week. Carolina will close out Its spring practice with the Spring Game Saturday at 1 p.m. at Williams-Brlce Stadium. Serena leaves Family Circle BY BRUCE SMITH THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ^ CHARLESTON - Serena Rwilliams’ comeback was cut short. The six-time major champion withdrew from the Family Circle Cup on Thursday, saying her left knee is sore from practicing and playing too much after returning from an eight-month absence. The announcement comes a day after Williams pulled out of the U.S. Fed Cup team’s first round match at Slovenia and raises questions about Williams’ fitness with the French Open less than six weeks away. She had knee surgery Aug. 1, then missed the U.S. Open and Australian Open, returning to the tour just last month. “The official diagnosis by the I doctor was that he was shocked l^was playing this many tourna ments in the beginning,” Williams said. “He said normally when you’re coming back from a pro cedure like me, you should play one week and then maybe take a week or two weeks off. ” Williams beat Kelly McCain 6 1, 6-0 Tuesday in the second round here. But the reigning Wimbledon champ withdrew about 11/2 hours before she was scheduled to play Conchita Martinez on Thursday, saying she has been pushing too hard in recent weeks. Williams said she should have stopped playing after last week’s tournament in Florida, “but I was too. excited by the fact I was coming back” to Charleston, where she was a finalist last year. Williams said she has not had her knee tested recently. “I feel confident that it’s fine when the doctor was checking it out. The surgery site is 100 per cent, and it’s another part of the area of the knee that is kind of just compensating for the surgery site and it was, again, too many tournaments in a row,” she said. She said that sliding on the clay “was giving my leg a lot of problems.” But Williams said she plans to play in a French Open tuneup in Rome next month and said her rehabilitation would consist of running and strength work for her legs. Williams planned to stay in Charleston through the weekend. Her older sister Venus, a four time Grand Slam tournament champion, was scheduled to play a third-round match Thursday evening. “I’m really excited to stay and watch Venus play and be there — a big cheerleader,” Serena said. Venus also missed a chunk of last season and the start of this season because she was hurt (a strained stomach muscle). Briefly Women’s track nabs first place in poll The USC women’s track and field team moved up to a No. 1 ranking this week in the USTCA Team Power Rankings, while Arizona State holds the top spot for the men. Propelling the Gamecocks into the No. 1 spot was Lashinda Demus, who dazzled spectators in the 400-meter hurdles and the 4x400-meter relay, in which USC is ranked second. The team is trying to win its second title in three years after taking the NCAA Outdoor Championships in 2002. Rounding out the top five of the poll was Nebraska at num ber two, UCLA in third, BYU in fourth and LSU in fifth. On the men's side, the Sun Devils are ranked first, Tennessee is second, Florida is third, BYU is fourth and LSU is fifth. The men’s rankings feature five SEC teams in the top 10. Rebels beat USC in conference tourney The USC women’s tennis team lost 4-3 to Mississippi in the first round of the SEC Tournament Thursday, the first time in seven years the Gamecocks have been eliminated in the first round. The Rebels won the doubles point with wins in the number two and three doubles, taking an early 1-0 lead. The lead was quick ly extended when Ole Miss’s r* Virginia Tomatis defeated USC’s Faflon Koon 6-0,60 and Florencia t Basile defeated Gamecock Magda Wojdylo 7-5,60. However, USC was not done yet taking the next two matches with Danielle Wiggins defeating Chloe Carlotti 6-4, 6-1 and Justine Walsh defeating Audra Adams 6-1, 6-0 to cut the Rebel lead to 3-2. Tying the match for USC was Christyn Lucas, who defeated Karem Harboe 7-6,6-3. In the end, the Rebels would inch out the Gamecocks as Sabrina Peppl wrapped up the' match with a 6-4, 7-5 win over Laura Ganzer. The team will now hope to make its 10th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance as the fiel,d is announced May 5 on ESPN News. Baseball CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10 Auburn. The other games against SEC opponents were nasty for the Wildcats. Florida and No. 17 Tennessee swept Kentucky while Mississippi State took two out of three. Right-hander Kalen Gibson will be the starting pitcher on Friday and teiiow rignty betn btamey win start on Saturday. As of publica tion, the Sunday starter was to be announced. Gibson has a 3-1 record, but has a 4.07 ERA. Gibson’s last credited win was UK’s only win against Mississippi State, a 10-9 decision that relied heavily on the Wildcats’ early scoring which put the Bulldogs in a 10-2 hole in the fifth inning. Stanley nas an even less glam orous 5.79 ERA, but still main tains a 5-1 record on the year. Stanley’s last credited game was - a 7-1 loss at Tennessee on April 3. The first game between Carolina and Kentucky will be .tonight at 6:30 p.m., while Saturday’s game will be at 2 p.m. and Sunday’s contest will be at lp.m. Comments on this story?E-mail gamecocksports@gwm.sc.edu Wallace CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10 two major league rosters. I could go on for pages citing statistics that show what most USC fans already know — Ray Tanner is a good baseball coach. But there are no statistics that car ry more weight than this: Tanner coached teams do not just win, they win the right way — with class, within the rules and with out NCAA violations. Tanner, the entire Gamecock baseball program and the Carolina faithful deserve this sta dium. While Sarge Frye Field is filled with enough nostalgia to ac commodate the loyal fans who fill its bleachers each year, it is not much of a boon to recruiting. The Sarge is out of date compared to its SEC counterparts and rival coaches are sure to point this out when trying to woo recruits. The facilities at Capital City Stadium are so inadequate they are even beneath the standards of their major league affiliate, the New York Mets (anyone heard of Mo Vaughn?). The suffering of the Bombers, however, could be a blessing in disguise if they are re warded, along with USC, with a shiny new stadium in a prime lo cation. As opposed to the previous pro posals, the current incarnation ap pears to make more sense from the standpoint of taxpayers. Coble has expressed reservations, how ever, wondering if the whole en deavor is worthwhile — if baseball fans will validate his efforts. If Coble wishes to assuage his doubts, he simply needs to visit the Sarge on game day. He can ask any one of the 5,782 people who showed up to the Clemson game Wednesday, or the 5,982 people who witnessed the decisive game against then-No. 1LSU or even the 3,816 fans who attended the season opener against an outmatched Charleston Southern squad. Mayor Bob, if you build it, we will come. Comments on this story?E-mail gamecocksports@gwmsc. edu wwvtfxlallyg No^updated five times a week. _ - _: Be a Leader in the Army National Guard, and get the respect of soldiers who will look to you for leadership. You’ll also get career training, money for college and opportunities to develop management skills - plus special training to prepare you for advanced positions. Most Guard members train part-time, so they’re ready to respond if their community or the Nation needs them. If you have at least 60 college credits and meet other requirements, you can apply to Officer Candidate School.The Guard offers flexible Officer programs that can help you stay in school or let you work full-time. Graduate as an Army Guard Officer. I ycu can I _ a—! I