From staff reports
Former Salisbury standout Shayla Fields banked in a runner with 18 seconds left to lift N.C. Stateís womenís basketball team to a 63-61 victory over St. Johnís on Sunday.
The Wolfpack (21-14) got the defensive stop it needed after Fieldsí bucket and advanced to a WNIT semifinal game at Michigan State on Wednesday night.
Khadijah Whittington and Nikitta Gartrell led the Wolfpack to a 20-point halftime lead, but the Red Storm put together a 13-1 run to tie the game at 61-61 before Fieldsí winning basket.
Fields scored 14 points and added five rebounds and three assists, while playing all 40 minutes.
* Minor leagues
Right-hander Bobby Parnell (East Rowan) turned in a dazzling mound effort for the New York Mets in a spring training outing against the Florida Marlins on Wednesday.
Parnell started and worked five shutout innings against Florida regulars such as Hanley Ramirez, Dan Uggla, Josh Willingham and Mike Jacobs. He allowed three hits, struck out five and walked one.
The Marlins rallied to win the game 7-5 after Parnell exited.
Parnell, 23, spent the spring with the big-league Mets as a non-roster player, although he is still expected to open the new season in the starting rotation of the Double-A Binghamton (N.Y.) Mets.
Parnell, a ninth-round draft pick out of Charleston Southern, had an impressive spring and may get a real shot at the big leagues in 2009.
* Lefty pitcher Spencer Steedley (East) had a strong debut in the Minnesota Twins organization last summer after being drafted out of Charlotte on the 25th round and assigned to Elizabethton (Tenn.) in the Appalachian League.
In 37 innings of relief, Steedley struck out 51 and walked 12.
Heíll begin this season with the Beloit (Wisc.) Snappers, Minnesotaís low A team in the Midwest League.
* Infielder/outfielder Brett Bartles (A.L. Brown) hit over .300 at Billings (Mont.) after being drafted out of Duke on the 30th round by the Cincinnati Reds last summer and will probably take some swings against Steedley this spring. Bartles appears certain to open the season with the Dayton (Ohio) Dragons in the Midwest League.
* Right-hander James Russ (NW Cabarrus) is back with the Double-A Carolina Mudcats in the Florida Marlins organization after suffering some physical setbacks last season.
* Minnesota farmhand Zach Ward (A.L. Brown) may return to the Fort Myers Miracle in the high Class A Florida State League. Ward was 5-17 on a weak club last season despite putting up solid strikeout and ERA numbers. Double-A New Britain (Conn.) is the next step up the ladder for Ward.
* College baseball
Zachary Glass (Salisbury) had a single for Lenoir-Rhyne that broke a 4-4 tie in Sundayís 12-4 victory over Mars Hill. The Bears (9-6) moved into a tie for second place in the SAC with Carson-Newman.
* Daniel Wagner (South Rowan) had two hits for Belmont in a 10-0 loss to Gardner-Webb on Saturday.
* Davidsonís Brett Shore (South) had two hits in a 6-5 victory over Wofford on Saturday.
* North Carolinaís Kyle Seager (NW Cabarrus) extended his hitting streak to 22 games with a ninth-inning single in the Tar Heelsí 8-6 loss to N.C. State on Saturday. Wade Moore (West Rowan) scored a key run for the Wolfpack.
* Patrick Atwell (South) scored two runs for Belmont Abbey in a 5-1 victory over St. Andrews on Saturday.
* Whit Merrifield (Davie County) had two hits for South Carolina in a 6-2 victory over Kentucky on Sunday.
South Carolinaís Keegan Linza (North Rowan) pitched well in relief in Fridayís loss to Kentucky. He worked 12/3 innings in relief and allowed one hit and no runs.
* College softball
Devon Williams (West Rowan) had an RBI single for Maryland in an 8-3 loss to Virginia Tech on Sunday.
* Heather Suggs (South Rowan) was 3-for-7 and knocked in two runs to help Pitt Community College sweep USC-Sumter.
* Catawbaís scheduled games with Georgia State & College were rained out on Sunday and will not be rescheduled.
* College track and field
N.C. Stateís Jason Jones (East Rowan) finished fourth in the shot put at the Raleigh Relays with regional qualifying effort of 55 feet, 61/2 inches.
* Overseas basketball
Damien Agrett (South Rowan, Pfeiffer) had 13 points and Rico Grier had 11 points and seven assists as Decin (23-15) blew out Liberec 86-60 in the Czech Republic National Basketball League on Wednesday.
* Bryan McCullough (North Rowan) averages 24.6 points a game and leads the Romanian A League in scoring.
* Brian Graves (Catawba) scored 28 points to lead the Grevebroich Elephants to a recent 88-76 victory over BBV Hagen.
Terris Sifford (West Rowan) added 19 points for the Elephants, who finished second in one of Germanyís strong regional pro leagues.