Congratulations to the Rochelle High track and fielder on winning the 1A state championship - the team championship.

Richardson was the only Rochelle athlete to qualify for the state meet and stunningly won the team title. University Interscholastic League officials said it was the first time they can remember a single athlete winning a girls’ team title.

It’s happened before on the boys’ side, but not since former Baylor Bear and Pittsburgh Steeler Frank Pollard did it for Meridian High School in the 1970s, said UIL Athletics Director Charles Breithaupt.

“This totally blows me away,” the freckle-faced Richardson said while holding the trophy with a gold medal draped on her neck. “This is amazing. I had no idea it was even possible.”

Richardson’s title march began with field events on Friday when she won the high jump (5 feet, 5 inches), placed second in the long jump (18-7) and was third in the discus (121-0).

On Saturday, she won the 200 meters in 25.03 seconds and nearly pulled off a huge upset in the 100 before finishing second (12.19) to defending champion Kendra Coleman of Santa Anna. Richardson, a junior, earned a total of 42 team points to edge team runner-up Chilton (36).

It was a good thing the 1A events were split over two days because Richardson said the heat — temperatures were in the high 90s both days — might have knocked her down. She laughed off a suggestion that she could have won more if UIL rules didn’t limit individual participation to five events.

“I don’t think I could handle any more,” she said. “It was hot and I was tired.”

Former Bengal Chris Henry, whose rap sheet is more extensive than his career stat sheet, says he’d like to join the other poster boy for the NFL’s disciplinary policy, Pacman Jones, in Dallas. Henry is currently under house arrest as he waits to face trial for misdemeanor assault charges.

No matter what happens, it’s all going to be on HBO. Can’t wait.

Nice analogy, counselor.

[Cedric Benson's lawyer Brian] Carney added Benson did nothing “aggressive” until after he was pepper sprayed, when he started screaming for his mother and the boat. He said officers threw his client to the ground and poured water on him to wash away the spray, causing Benson to choke.

“They might as well have been waterboarding him,” Carney said.

Pepper spray? Dragged into custody? Really?

Chicago Bears running back Cedric Benson was charged with failing a sobriety test while operating a 30-foot boat, then resisting arrest before being hit with pepper spray and dragged ashore by officers.

Benson faces charges of boating while intoxicated and resisting arrest after the incident Saturday night on Lake Travis, Travis County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Roger Wade said.

Benson was released from jail early Sunday on a $14,500 bond. A call to Benson’s agent was not immediately returned.

Benson was operating the boat with 15 passengers aboard when he was stopped by a Lower Colorado River Authority officer for a random safety inspection. He failed a field sobriety test on the officer’s boat and was uncooperative when the officer tried to take him ashore, the authority said.

“When Benson did not pass the test, he presented himself as a threat to the officer and argued about whether or not he would be taken to land to have a follow-up field sobriety test performed on land and refused to put on a life jacket,” the authority said in a statement.

The officer had to use pepper spray to subdue Benson. He then refused to leave the officer’s boat and authorities had to drag him to a car to be taken to the Travis County jail, the authority said.

Avery Johnson, we hardly knew ye.

So which is the most striking part about the allegations in the New York Daily News? That Roger Clemens (allegedly) had an affair with Nashville bombshell Mindy McCready? That she was (allegedly) 15 when they (allegedly) first met? That this (alleged) meeting took place at a karaoke bar? Or that it’s all (apparently) becoming public due to the singer’s post-addiction and probation comeback?

This is certainly tough news to swallow. I mean, sure, we’ve all come to accept that maybe, just maybe, Rocket did use HGH or steroids. But the suggestion that he might be anything less than a perfect husband, Christian and swell guy? Surprising. Devastating. Unexpected.

Nevertheless, I choose to withhold judgment until we get Dan Burton’s take.

Deadspin highlights a Greensboro, NC news report about a two year-old named “Parker Duncan Ginobili Till.” Yes, his parents John and Rhonda Till are native San Antonioans.

Once again, the Stars have won two California road games as the underdog.

It didn’t take too long for Sergei Zubov to remind us of his artistry…

And soon they’ll be the only playoff team in town. When the Stars owned Dallas between 1997 and 2000, of course the main reason for that was winning. And when the luster faded by 2003, of course the main reason for that was losing.

But it also didn’t hurt them, in the first case, that their arena’s other tenant was a mess. And it surely didn’t help them, in the second case, that their arena’s other tenant was a blast.

IMO, post-season hockey didn’t truly win (and break) the city’s heart until the conference final with the Red Wings back in 1998. If things keep going like they’re going now, we’ll have a conference final with the Red Wings in 2008. The headlines, buzz and TV viewership are right there for taking.

Update: Mike Heika also has Mavericks on the brain. Meow!

Brad Richards out-scored Jason Kidd tonight. That’s right, Richards had four points, Kidd had three. Richards had three assists, Kidd had three.

Willa Ford can answer no.

Hats off as well to ESPN.com’s Scott Burnside, one of the few people not married to Mike Modano who got it right.

I guess in hindsight we can give a new name to the Stars’ 4-8-2 performance since March 1: “The Preseason.”

So now that the defending champion Ducks are cooked, I guarantee you all those folks who didn’t give Dave Tippett’s club a chance will now say that they’ve got a great shot at the Cup (i.e., this is one of them right here, saying just that).

Tuesday is Game 7 between Calgary and San Jose in San Jose; if the Sharks advance, the Stars are singing Dionne Warwick, which is why I’ve gotta say, “go Flames!” In that scenario, Dallas would be higher-seeded for a series against Colorado - the team they got through with high drama during the good old days of 1999/2000, and the team that tripped them up two of the last three years.

I’m a big believer in “be careful what you wish for,” but if the Stars do draw the Avs, they really are a good bet for the final. They’d be favored in that series, and you gotta figure that Detroit and Calgary would beat each other up.

That said, it would still be nice to have a full corps of defensemen.

Happy 32nd and 33rd birthday to Miguel Tejada, who revealed his real age to the team this week.

From the Houston Chronicle:

Saying he wanted to unburden himself, Miguel Tejada approached general manager Ed Wade and asked to correct misinformation he gave the Oakland A’s when he signed in 1993….

Tejada was actually 19 when he signed as a kid out of poverty-stricken Bani, Dominican Republic. At the time, he says, a local coach encouraged him to say he was 17.

“I’m a poor kid that wanted to sign,” he said. “I’m feeling free now,” he said. “It’s something that I had in my mind.”

Tejada was signed out of the Dominican Republic by Hall of Famer Juan Marichal, but he was clear that Marichal had no part in the deception. Moreover, Wade and Tejada both said the shortstop’s green card, driver’s license and other legal papers in the United States reflect his actual birthday, May 25, 1974.

The Astros’ media guide lists his birthday as May 25, 1976….

“Fact of the matter is that he plays like he’s 25, so I don’t think it really matters a whole lot,” said Wade.

Well sure. Vitamins will keep you young.

Today in Philadelphia, Miggy has gone 2-for-3, but his solo home run is also Houston’s only run. Phillies lead 6-1 in the middle of the sixth.