Buoyed by top performances in the hammer throw, high jump and 400 meters, the Georgia women’s track and field squad distanced itself from the opposition and cruised to its first outdoor national championship in team history in Eugene, Ore

Georgia lapped the field with 73 points ahead of runner-up USC (47) and third place Texas A&M (43). Fourth-year Bulldogs head coach Caryl Smith Gilbert also won national titles at USC in 2018 and 2021.

Olympic gold medalist Aaliyah Butler and Dejanea Oakley took the first two spots in the 400 meters with Butler posting a 49.26 and Oakley a 49.65. Butler’s time was the fifth best all-time for a collegian and Oakley was eighth.

The Bulldogs expanded their lead when Elena Kulichenko won the high jump for the second straight year after tying for the title last year. The Odessa, Russia, native won with a jump of 6 feet, 5 inches.

Michelle Smith, a freshman, finished third in the 400-meter hurdles at 55.20 to clinch the team title. Skylynn Townsend took sixth in the triple jump at 44-4 1/4.

Georgia ended the night by finishing first in the 4x400 relay with Butler taking the lead in the final leg with a winning time of 3:23.62.

The Bulldogs entered Saturday competition in the lead with 26 points after Stephanie Ratcliffe won the hammer throw on Thursday with a nation-leading distance of 234 feet, 2 inches.

Washington and USC shared the lead earlier Saturday night after Washington’s Sophie O’Sullivan won the 1,500 meters and USC’s Samirah Moody won the 100, but Georgia got 18 points from Butler and Oakley and never looked back.

GOLF

Lexi Thompson birdied two of the final three holes in the Meijer LPGA Classic for a share of the third-round lead with five others in a bid to win for the first time in just more than six years.

Thompson shot a 4-under 68, rebounding with birdies on Nos. 16 and 18 after driving into the water and making a bogey on the par-5 14th.

“Not my best ball-striking day,” Thompson said. ”But I scrambled very well and stayed positive, patient, and that’s what it’s kind of all about.”

She was tied with Nanna Koerstz Madsen (68), Madelene Sagstrom (67), Sofia Garcia (68), Hye-Jin Choi (69) and Carlota Ciganda (69) at 11-under 205 at Blythefield County Club in Belmont, Mich. Thompson was back on top a year after losing a playoff to Lilia Vu on the course.

“Everybody is going to come out swinging,” Thompson said. “Good weather tomorrow, so I know birdies will have to be made and I’ll have to go pin-seeking. I will hope for the best, go out there and embrace the opportunity, and really love on the fans.”

The 30-year-old from Florida won the last of her 11 LPGA Tour titles in early June 2019 at the ShopRite LPGA Classic. She’s making her sixth start of the season in a part-time tour schedule, and also is set to play next week in the major KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in Texas.

WNBA

Caitlin Clark made seven 3-pointers and scored a season-high 32 points in her return from a five-game absence, and the Indiana Fever handed the defending WNBA champion New York Liberty their first loss of the season with a 102-88 victory in Indianapolis.

Clark tied her career high for 3-pointers and added nine assists and eight rebounds as the Fever (5-5) set a franchise record with 17 3s in 35 attempts (48.6%).

The Liberty are 9-1.

Last season’s WNBA rookie of the year had been sidelined with a quadriceps injury.

COLLEGE BASEBALL

Kade Anderson limited Arkansas’ high-powered offense to three hits and a run in seven-plus innings, LSU knocked Razorbacks ace Zach Root out of the game early, and the Tigers beat the rival Razorbacks 4-1 in the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.

Anderson, a projected top-five overall pick in the MLB amateur draft next month, kept Arkansas batters off-balance with his four-pitch mix and struck out seven to become the national leader with 170.

“Outstanding performance, one we’ve been accustomed to on opening night of every weekend,” LSU coach Jay Johnson said. “He got stronger as the game went along, and he executed pitches at a high level, which you have to do against that offense. Offensively, we did just enough.”

LSU (49-15), which won the SEC regular-season series against the Razorbacks in Baton Rouge last month, improved to 4-0 in all-time CWS meetings. The Tigers will play UCLA on Monday night as they continue their bid to win a second national title in three years.

Arkansas (48-14), in its 12th CWS and looking for its first championship, meets Murray State in an elimination game Monday.

The matchup between the No. 3 national seed Razorbacks and No. 6 Tigers marked the first time since the NCAA Tournament went to its current format in 1999 that the highest remaining seeds have met in their CWS opener.

TENNIS

Madison Keys was stunned in straight sets by 37-year-old qualifier Tatjana Maria in the Queen’s Club semifinals in London.

Maria, a German mother of two, beat Keys 6-3, 7-6 (3) for her first career victory in four meetings with the reigning Australian Open champion.

She is the oldest singles finalist on the WTA Tour since 2020, when Serena Williams won the Auckland Classic at 38.

No. 86 Maria, a former Wimbledon semifinalist, toppled No. 8 Keys, who hit 10 aces but failed to get a break.

Keys, the No. 2 seed, exited with the No. 1, Zheng Qinwen, who lost to No. 8 Amanda Anisimova of the U.S., 6-2, 4-6, 6-4.

Belgian Elise Mertens saved 11 match points before beating Ekaterina Alexandrova to reach the final of the Libema Open in S-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands.

The WTA said that was the most match points saved in a main draw women’s match this decade.

After repeatedly fending off defeat, the 20th-ranked Mertens won 2-6, 7-6 (7), 6-4.

Mertens will face qualifier Elena-Gabriela Ruse of Romania in the final.

Emma Raducanu will miss next week’s Berlin Open because of a back problem, as she tries to get ready for Wimbledon.

The 37th-ranked Raducanu has been dealing with the back issue since before the French Open last month. She took an off-court medical timeout during her quarterfinal loss at Queen’s Club to Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen on Friday.

NBA

Center Steven Adams agreed to a three-year, $39 million contract extension to remain with the Houston Rockets, multiple sources repported.

Adams, who was set to become an unrestricted free agent June 30, has been with the Rockets since a trade from Memphis in February 2024.

He missed the entire 2023-24 season while recovering from knee surgery before returning this season. He averaged 3.9 points and 5.8 rebounds in 58 games.