Briefs | Transponder is blamed for IRL confusion

Auto racing

Dixon first was shown as winner of race despite losing to Castroneves: IndyCar Series champion Scott Dixon was initially shown as the winner of the season's final race because of a faulty transponder on his car, Indy Racing League officials said Monday.

Electronic timing indicated Dixon was the winner of Sunday's PEAK Indy 300 at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, Ill., but race officials studied photos of the finish and gave the victory to Helio Castroneves. The margin was 0.0033 seconds.

"The improperly installed transponder clearly affected the data we were receiving from Dixon's car," said Jon Koskey, IRL timing and scoring director. "With the signal going the wrong direction, it could have bounced off of any number of things and made it difficult for the antenna to pick up an accurate signal."

The IRL timing system is backed up by a high-speed camera that takes a picture every ten-thousandth of a second. After the race, the camera operator told race stewards the images showed Castroneves in front at the finish line.

IRL president Brian Barnhart reviewed the photos and confirmed Castroneves was the winner. By that time, Dixon already had gone to victory circle to celebrate both the apparent race victory and the series title. The second-place finish left Dixon 17 points ahead of runner-up Castroneves in the final standings.

College basketball

Richmond admits violations in men's and women's programs: Richmond men's and women's teams violated NCAA rules by contacting recruits in hundreds of e-mails and phone calls, and the two coaches involved have left the school, according to a posting on the school's Web site.

Richmond athletic director Jim Miller declined to identify the coaches and told The Associated Press they had not been fired.

Man gets life without parole in Porter death: Rashad Raleigh, 29, who pleaded guilty in the beating death of former Villanova standout Howard Porter last year in Minnesota, was sentenced to life in prison without parole. Porter was 58.

Dupay pleads not guilty: Ex-Florida player Teddy Dupay, 29, was bound over for trial on charges of rape, aggravated sexual assault and aggravated kidnapping. A trial is scheduled for Jan. 6 in Park City, Utah.

Prosecutor Paul Christensen said Dupay pleaded not guilty to all three charges during a preliminary hearing in Park City. According to court documents, a 28-year-old woman told police Dupay hit or kicked her 150 times before sexually assaulting her in June.

The two reportedly had been in a relationship for two years.

Notre Dame schedule: Notre Dame's men will renew rivalries with Indiana and UCLA this season, meeting Indiana on Nov. 24 in the Maui Invitational in Hawaii and visiting UCLA for a game Feb. 7.

Paralympics

Tennis player wins her 345th match in a row: Esther Vergeer of the Netherlands beat Daniela Di Toro of Australia 6-2, 6-0 in a first-round wheelchair tennis match at the Beijing Paralympics. Vergeer extended her winning streak to 345 matches.

Pistorius eyes record: Double-amputee Oscar Pistorius, a South African who races on carbon-fiber blades, ran 11.16 seconds in the 100-meter heats to surpass the Paralympics record and is targeting his world mark of 10.91 seconds in the final. He also has world records in his category in the 200 and 400.

Track and field

Carter arrested: U.S. sprinter Xavier Carter, 22, was arrested Sunday in Gainesville, Fla., for allegedly carrying a concealed weapon. He was released after agreeing to appear on the third-degree felony charge.

Horse racing

Paulson buys back colt for $7.7 million: Owner Michael Paulson bought back yearling colt Vallenzeri, by A.P. Indy out of Azeri, for $7.7 million at the Keeneland September yearling sale in Lexington, Ky.

Vallenzeri failed to meet his reserve price, which Paulson declined to reveal.

Santos' daughter faces prison: The daughter of Hall of Fame jockey Jose Santos pleaded guilty to drunken driving in a November car crash in Levittown, N.Y., that left one person dead and three others injured.

Sophia Santos, 21, faces 3 ½ to 9 years in prison when sentenced Oct. 8 in Long Island's Nassau County Court. Santos told a judge she had a blood-alcohol level three times the legal limit of 0.08 percent when she ran a red light and struck a car at an intersection.

Seattle Times news services