Finch leads US to 2-0 win over Japan in softball’s Japan Cup final

October 6th, 2009 US Open champ del Potro knocked out of Japan OpenTOKYO — U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro made a quick exit at the Japan Open.

October 3rd, 2009 Sharapova wins as Jankovic retires in Japan finalTOKYO — Maria Sharapova won her first tournament since returning from a 10-month injury layoff when Jelena Jankovic retired because of an arm injury in the first set of the Toray Pan Pacific final Saturday Sharapova was up 5-2 at Ariake Colosseum when the seventh-seeded Serb took a timeout to have her right arm examined by the trainer. Jankovic returned to the court and lost the first two points of the eighth game before retiring.

September 25th, 2009 Federer pulls out of Japan Open, Shanghai MastersTOKYO — Roger Federer withdrew from the Japan Open and Shanghai ATP Masters 1000 on Friday, citing the need to rest after a physically challenging year. The Japan Tennis Association said the top-ranked Federer was withdrawing from the Oct.

September 17th, 2009 Patrick, Briscoe in the spotlight at Indy JapanMOTEGI, Japan — Danica Patrick will be looking to repeat history. Ryan Briscoe is hoping to make his own at the Indy Japan 300, the penultimate event of the 2009 IndyCar series.

September 14th, 2009 Japan praises Ichiro Suzuki's major league recordTOKYO — The high praise for Ichiro Suzuki came from none other than Japanese home run king Sadaharu Oh. "Sometimes we forget how difficult it is to accomplish these things amid a baseball schedule which is much tougher in the U.S.

August 27th, 2009 Mexico moves on at LLWS after 6-0 win over JapanSOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — Raul Rojas hit a two-run homer and got five outs on the mound to finish a one-hitter, helping Reynosa, Mexico, beat Chiba City, Japan, 6-0 to advance at the Little League World Series.

August 24th, 2009 Curacao gets wild 12-11 win over Japan at LLWSSOUTH WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — Richendly Bicentini sprinted home with the winning run in the bottom of the sixth on Jayson Libert's bunt to lead Willemstad, Curacao, to a 12-11 victory over Chiba City, Japan, at the Little League World Series on Sunday night.

August 20th, 2009 Tokyo says 17 sponsors backing 2016 Olympic bidTOKYO — Tokyo now has 17 Japanese companies serving as official sponsors for the city's bid to host the 2016 Olympics, organizers said Thursday. The sponsors include sports apparel companies Asics and Descente, beer maker Asahi, toymaker Bandai, commercial carriers Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways, Internet giant Yahoo Japan, and parcel service Yamato Transport.

July 31st, 2009 US downs Australia in Japan Cup softballSENDAI, Japan — Natasha Watley and Jenae Leles drove in three runs each to lead the United States to an 11-3 win over Australia on Friday in the Japan Cup softball tournament. The Americans took a 9-0 lead over the first three innings before the game was called after the fifth inning under the tournament's mercy rule.

July 28th, 2009 England gets Rugby World Cup in 2015, Japan 2019DUBLIN — England will host the Rugby World Cup in 2015 and Japan will get the 2019 tournament. Tuesday's announcement by the International Rugby Board was widely expected.

July 24th, 2009 Lou Holtz, Notre Dame legends ready to face JapanTOKYO — Lou Holtz expects his players to uphold the Notre Dame football tradition when they face Japan in the Notre Dame Japan Bowl. Holtz will coach a selection of alumni from the Notre Dame college team against Japan's national American football team and expects a tough game from the hosts.

July 18th, 2009 Finch, Leles lead US to mercy rule win over ItalyOKLAHOMA CITY — Just because the U.S. team has called on Jennie Finch to focus on her top-notch pitching all these years doesn't mean she's forgotten how to hit.

July 14th, 2009 Japan's Hasegawa retains WBC bantamweight titleKOBE, Japan — WBC bantamweight champion Hozumi Hasegawa of Japan has kept his title by stopping Nestor Rocha of the United States in the first round. Hasegawa sent Rocha to the canvas twice Tuesday before the referee stopped the bout after 2 minutes, 28 seconds.

June 15th, 2009 Gandolph Finch wins Churchill featureLOUISVILLE, Ky. — Gandolph Finch took the lead leaving the backstretch to win Sunday's $49,280 Morluc Purse feature race at Churchill Downs by 1¾ lengths.

June 6th, 2009 Japan is 1st qualifier for 2010 World CupTASHKENT, Uzbekistan — Japan has become the first country to qualify for soccer's 2010 World Cup by beating Uzbekistan 1-0 in a qualifier. Japan advanced with two games to spare and will be appearing in its fourth straight World Cup.