LOCAL

LOCAL
Thunder to holdopen practice
YOUNGSTOWN -- The Mahoning Valley Thunder will hold an open practice tonight at the Chevrolet Centre.
From 6-8 p.m., fans can watch the Thunder practice. Admission is 1 or one non-perishable canned food item.
Players will be available for autographs after practice.
Season ticket holders can pick up their tickets at this time, and single game tickets will also be available.
New umpires
YOUNGSTOWN -- The area's new OHSAA-certified umpires who passed tests and received certificates for baseball are John R. Bosley Jr., East Palestine; Joe Dina, Austintown; Richard T. Elliott, Columbiana; Jason Franko, Boardman; Kevin Gnipp, Columbiana; Cory Sabo, Youngstown and softball, David Anderson, Vienna; Ed Costello, Boardman; Brian P. Earich, Warren; Richard T. Elliott, Columbiana; Jason Franko, Boardman; Jim Gahagan, Youngstown and Charlie McQuillan, Youngstown.
Trumbull HOF to meet
WARREN -- The Trumbull County Sports Hall of Fame will meet Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at the Buena Vista Cafe.
Nominations for the 2007 Hall of Fame induction class are due by April 15.
Martorana willtransfer to Malone
CANTON -- Lucas Martorana, a 2004 graduate of Howland High School, is transferring from the university of Buffalo to Malone College and will be playing soccer for the Pioneers this fall.
SteelHounds signwinger Sirianni
YOUNGSTOWN -- The Youngstown SteelHounds signed amateur right wing Rob Sirianni.
Sirianni, 23, joins the SteelHounds after a successful six-year career at Bemidji State and the Alberta Junior Hockey League's Bonneyville Pontiacs.
The 5-foot-11, 195-pound Sirianni played in 252 regular, playoff and NCAA tournament games (131 at BSU and 121 with Bonneyville), posting 249 career points (123 goals, 126 assists) and 279 minutes in penalties.
REGION
Oden among finalists for Wooden Award
LOS ANGELES -- Freshmen Greg Oden of Ohio State and Kevin Durant of Texas are among the five finalists for the John R. Wooden Award, presented to college basketball's outstanding player.
Others invited for the April 7 presentation at the Los Angeles Athletic Club are North Carolina sophomore Tyler Hansbrough, Texas A & amp;M senior Acie Law, and Wisconsin senior Alando Tucker.
Also honored Wednesday as Wooden All-Americans were UCLA junior Arron Afflalo, Oregon senior Aaron Brooks, Nevada senior Nick Fazekas, Florida junior Joakim Noah, and Kansas sophomore Brandon Rush.
The award ceremony at the Los Angeles Athletic Club will include the presentation of the men's and women's Wooden Award, the All-American teams and Legends of Coaching award to former Purdue coach Gene Keady. The top five women's finalists will also be invited.
The Wooden Award was created in 1976 -- a year after the former UCLA coach retired after guiding the Bruins to 10 NCAA championships in a 12-year span.
NATION
Syracuse lacrosse players apologize
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Two members of the Syracuse lacrosse team who were arrested for disorderly conduct outside a downtown bar and then suspended indefinitely by the university issued a public apology on Wednesday, vowing that it would never happen again.
Pat Perritt, a 20-year-old native of Holtsville, N.Y., and John Carrozza, a junior from Katonah, N.Y., were arrested March 11 and also charged with resisting arrest. Carrozza, 20, also was charged with criminal possession of a forged instrument after police discovered two IDs that belonged to someone else and an altered driver's license.
Serena Williams won't return to Indian Wells
KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. -- Serena Williams says her boycott of the Indian Wells tournament will continue, despite new WTA Tour rules making participation mandatory.
Williams and her sister Venus last played in the California tournament in 2001, when the family was booed after Venus withdrew just before a semifinal match against Serena. Their father, Richard, said the jeers were racially motivated.
The new WTA Tour rules were announced Tuesday and take effect in 2009. They require players to participate in four events -- Indian Wells, Key Biscayne and new tournaments in Madrid and Beijing. Top-10 players who miss mandatory tournaments will be subject to suspensions and larger fines than in the past.
Cubs demote Prior
MESA, Ariz. -- Mark Prior was sent to the minors Wednesday where the Chicago Cubs hope he can regain the form that made him an 18-game winner and All-Star selection four years ago.
Vindicator staff/wire reports