Cal Lutheran

Nick Kukuc rushed for a career-high 250 yards in 20 carries, leading North Central Illinois to a 41-21 victory over Cal Lutheran in the first round of the NCAA Division III playoffs. The Cardinals (9-2) won for the fifth consecutive time in the first round of the postseason, putting up 528 total yards and establishing control early with a 24-point first quarter. Kukuc went 79 yards for a touchdown on the Cardinals' second play from scrimmage. North Central's defense held Cal Lutheran (8-2)

Nick Kukuc rushed for a career-high 250 yards in 20 carries, leading North Central Illinois to a 41-21 victory over Cal Lutheran in the first round of the NCAA Division III playoffs. The Cardinals (9-2) won for the fifth consecutive time in the first round of the postseason, putting up 528 total yards and establishing control early with a 24-point first quarter. Kukuc went 79 yards for a touchdown on the Cardinals' second play from scrimmage. North Central's defense held Cal Lutheran (8-2)

Sophomore guard Rodney Lusain hit a three-pointer with 11 seconds left to give UC San Diego a 67-65 victory Friday over visiting Cal Lutheran in a nonconference basketball game. Cal Lutheran (2-6) had a chance to win, but it missed a shot with four seconds left. Chris Moore led UCSD (5-3) with 15 points and seven rebounds, Eric Johnson added 13 and Rick Batt and Lusain had 11 each. Jeff DeLaveaga led Cal Lutheran with 21 points.

EVENTS And you thought playing with Legos was just a constructive way to spend a rainy afternoon. Turns out some children have been building them into fierce robots and will square off in a First Lego League Robotics Qualifying Tournament for a spot in the regional competition come December. This round hosted by California Lutheran University will feature 24 teams from local schools and their Lego minions, who will somehow carry out a task associated with this year's theme: food safety.

Chapman, which beat rival Cal Lutheran three of four games during the regular season, couldn't find that same magic in the postseason. Cal Lutheran had an answer against Chapman in the NCAA Division III West Regional, defeating the Panthers twice, including a 5-2 victory in Saturday's championship game at Georgetown, Texas. The Panthers (39-5) were knocked into the losers' bracket Friday after losing to the Kingsmen (31-12).

Tim Wimbish gave up five hits over seven innings and top-ranked Cal Lutheran came from behind to beat Methodist, 7-4, Monday in the NCAA Division III baseball tournament. Cal Lutheran (42-5) scored five runs in the seventh inning. Wimbish improved his record to 6-0. The Kingsmen play Methodist again today, with the winner advancing to a championship game against William Paterson (34-7). William Paterson beat Ithaca, 8-4, Monday.

Dustin Magdaleno, a three-sport standout at Santa Paula High, said Thursday that he has committed to Cal Lutheran, for which he hopes to play football and baseball. Magdaleno (5-foot-9, 165 pounds) set the Ventura County career record with 138 receptions in football and hit .348 with 22 stolen bases in baseball. He has a 3.76 grade-point average.

Cal Lutheran starter Richard Bell paced the Kingsmen to a 10-5 victory over Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in a losers' bracket game Friday at the NCAA Division III Baseball Championships in Salem, Va. The Kingsmen (31-13-1) will play at 9 a.m. Sunday against the loser of a winners' bracket game today between Upper Iowa College and William Paterson College. Bell (10-3), a junior left-hander, allowed 10 hits and two earned runs in seven innings with 10 strikeouts.

Persistent light rains forced the postponement of Cal Lutheran's first-round baseball game against Ithaca in the NCAA Division III World Series on Thursday in Battle Creek, Mich. The game will be played today at 2:30 p.m. PDT at Nichols Field. All four first-round games of the eight-team, double-elimination tournament were rained out. The championship game is still scheduled for Tuesday.

John Burton has been hired as an assistant football and track coach at Cal Lutheran. Burton replaces Kyle Tarpenning, who resigned to pursue a degree in exercise physiology at USC. Burton will serve as an assistant track coach under Ken Roupe, who takes over as head coach this spring. Burton played football in 1977 and 1978 at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo under Joe Harper, the current Cal Lutheran coach. Burton coached the Mustangs' running backs in 1979 and 1980.

The other morning I woke up to find a football in my bed. Down where the dog should have been, a football. Guess I'd had a little too much grape juice the night before, at least that's what I'm telling the wife. I snuggled the football. Whispered sweet nothings. Made a lunch date. Spooned. See, football is more than a one-night stand with me. It's a chronic, lifelong commitment. I've studied football back to the days of Cactus Face Duggan. Yes, he was an actual player (for the Giants)

at No. 19 Nevada 52, New Mexico State 6: Vai Taua ran for 111 yards and two touchdowns and scored a third on a 79-yard pass at the Wolf Pack (10-1, 4-1 Western Athletic) tuned up for Friday's showdown against Boise State. Nevada ensured its first 10-win season since 1991 with its 11th consecutive home victory as Colin Kaepernick completed 15 of 27 passes for 251 yards and two touchdowns and ran for a third. Freshman Andrew Manley completed 19 of 39 passes for 220 yards for the Aggies (2-9, 1-6 WAC)

Hans H. Baerwald Retired UCLA professor, scholar of Japanese politics Hans H. Baerwald, 82, a retired UCLA professor and scholar of Japanese politics, died June 2 at his home in Pope Valley, Calif., the university announced. He had prostate cancer. Baerwald was born in Tokyo on June 18, 1927, to a German businessman and his wife. Growing up in Japan, he learned to speak German, Japanese, English and, after transferring to a Swiss school in the late 1930s, French.

No. 4 Texas Christian 45, at Wyoming 10: Matthew Tucker and Joseph Turner each ran for two touchdowns, and the Horned Frogs (11-0, 7-0) routed the Cowboys (5-6, 3-4) for their best start in 71 years. The win keeps TCU in the thick of BCS contention and clinches at least a share of the Mountain West Conference crown. TCU last went 11-0 in 1938. In other Mountain West games: Max Hall threw five touchdowns passes and set a school record with his 30th win as No. 19 Brigham Young (9-2, 5-1)

Thousands of other students might have jumped at the chance to attend UCLA, but not Michael Rodriguez. He passed up his UC acceptance last year in order to attend California Lutheran University, a less well-known but more intimate private campus in Thousand Oaks. Rodriguez, who is happy with his choice, said one reason for the decision was a financial aid program Cal Lutheran established specifically to lure students who had been admitted to several top UC campuses. A math and physics major from San Fernando, Rodriguez also said he wanted a more personal setting with small classes and hoped to avoid the overcrowding and other problems state budget cuts are causing at UC schools.

at No. 6 Boise State 63, Idaho 25: Kellen Moore threw four touchdown passes to Austin Pettis and tied a career high with five overall, and the No. 6 Broncos (10-0, 5-0) overwhelmed the visiting Vandals (7-4, 4-3) in a Western Athletic Conference game. Titus Young had a 100-yard kickoff return that was actually longer and Kyle Wilson returned an interception 71 yards for another score for big-play Boise, which beat its rival for the 11th consecutive time. In other WAC games: Luke Lippincott rushed for 149 yards and three touchdowns to lead Nevada (7-3, 6-0)

at No. 5 Boise State 34, UC Davis 16: Kellen Moore threw for 285 yards and three touchdowns as the Broncos (5-0) beat the Aggies (1-3). at No. 11 Texas Christian 39, Southern Methodist 14: Jeremy Kerley returned a punt 71 yards for the go-ahead touchdown as the Horned Frogs (4-0) defeated the Mustangs (2-2). at Nevada 63, Nevada Las Vegas 28: Freshman Mike Ball ran for 184 yards and five touchdowns, and the Wolf Pack (1-3) amassed 773 yards of offense against the Rebels (2-3)

at No. 15 Texas Christian 56, Texas State 21: Joseph Turner ran for 129 yards and three touchdowns, Jerry Hughes had three sacks and the Horned Frogs (2-0) beat the Bobcats (1-1). TCU scored three fourth-quarter touchdowns to put the game away. "We didn't play the way we needed to, we didn't have the emotion we needed to," TCU Coach Gary Patterson said. "We just came out and did what we needed to do." Air Force 37, at New Mexico 13: Jon Davis intercepted two passes, returning one for a touchdown, to lead the Falcons (2-1, 1-0)