University Of California Riverside

In a strange twist, the Anteaters beat the Highlanders in a nonconference game and clinched a tie for their first Big West Conference title. Irvine got help from Boise State, which came from 12 points down to upend visiting Utah State, 78-77, in overtime. That gives the Anteaters (22-3, 13-1 in the Big West) a two-game lead over the Aggies (22-5, 11-3) with two games left. Irvine can win the title outright with a victory Thursday afternoon against Cal State Fullerton.

In a strange twist, the Anteaters beat the Highlanders in a nonconference game and clinched a tie for their first Big West Conference title. Irvine got help from Boise State, which came from 12 points down to upend visiting Utah State, 78-77, in overtime. That gives the Anteaters (22-3, 13-1 in the Big West) a two-game lead over the Aggies (22-5, 11-3) with two games left. Irvine can win the title outright with a victory Thursday afternoon against Cal State Fullerton.

University of California, Riverside The University of California, Riverside, celebrated its 32nd annual commencement Sunday afternoon at the south tower mall on campus. Degrees: 1,068 diplomas awarded, including 229 master's and 115 Ph.D. degrees. Speaker: Yvonne Brathwaite Burke, former congresswoman and supervisor, spoke about careers. "I challenge you not to predict the future but I challenge you to use that creativity to design the future.

Most schools and city, county, state and federal offices in western Riverside County will be closed Monday in observance of President's Day. Corona, Norco and Riverside city halls and public schools will close for the holiday, as will courts, post offices and most banks. Riverside City College, Chaffey College and the University of California, Riverside, will be closed, but California Baptist College plans to hold classes.

The National Institutes of Health has dismissed charges of research animal abuse at University of California, Riverside. The final NIH report found animal care at the university generally "appropriate," although it recommended that a surgical procedure involving the sewing shut of a monkey's eyelids be abandoned. The university was the site of a raid last April by animal rights advocates who accused the institution of violating animal care guidelines.

A scientist from the University of California, Riverside, says he may urge the state to halt a planned $27-million cleanup of the Kesterson National Wildlife Refuge if test results show a fungus is ridding the refuge of selenium poisoning. Soil microbiologist William Frankenberger said "hard data" should be available by October that will show whether the fungus can clean up the Kesterson selenium by converting it to a gaseous form which is harmlessly dispersed into the air.

Jack B. Clarke Sr. became the first black ever elected to the Riverside City Council, beating Bud Stone by 2,185 votes, or 56.9%, to Stone's 1,653 votes, or 43.1%. "This whole thing is simply tremendous," Clarke told supporters at his home as he declared victory. The race was for the Second Ward, which includes the affluent neighborhoods behind the University of California, Riverside, and Canyon Crest, as well as the poorer Eastside, which has a heavy concentration of minorities.

Biologists hoping to eradicate the pesky ash whitefly, a tiny insect which has defoliated trees from Sacramento to San Diego, were preparing today for the release Friday of 50 wasps that help control the pest. The tiny, stingless wasps will be released at the Balboa Sports Center, a fly-infested park in Encino, by scientists from University of California, Riverside. The black-and-gold wasps, which rapidly reproduce, were imported from Israel and Italy.