Jurisprudence
Gallo sentenced to 51 years to life for Adenhart's death
The young motorist convicted of murder for driving drunk in the car crash that killed Los Angeles Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart of Williamsport was sentenced to 51 years to life on Wednesday. Prosecutors said they sought the maximum term for Andrew Gallo, 24, because the pitcher and two other people died in the crash and his blood-alcohol level was nearly three times the legal limit. Gallo was on probation for a previous drunken-driving offense at the time. A jury in September convicted Gallo on three counts of second-degree murder for causing the April 9, 2009, wreck, which took Adenhart's life just hours after he threw six shutout innings against the Oakland Athletics. The 22-year-old rising star for the Angels made his major league baseball debut in 2008 and pitched three games that season. Also killed were Adenhart's girlfriend, Courtney Stewart, 20, and his friend Henry Pearson, 25. Jon Wilhite, 24, the fourth person in the Mitsubishi Eclipse that was carrying Adenhart, narrowly survived the crash but had to have his skull reattached to his spinal column. Adenhart's parents live outside California and did not attend the sentencing, but in a letter read in court they said the crash left them with a hole in their lives. Some of the victims' families said Gallo smirked when the jury verdicts were read in September. But at the sentencing hearing on Wednesday he apologized, and tried to explain his demeanor during the trial. "I know at times I had a look on my face," he said. "It's because I have so much hatred for myself and no one else. I would never look at the families with disrespect."
Maaco bowl
No. 10 Boise State rebounds to rout No. 20 Utah, 26-3
Doug Martin shook Boise State out of its brief postseason funk with an 84-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, and the 10th-ranked Broncos dominated the rest of the way to beat No. 20 Utah, 26-3, in the MAACO Bowl in Las Vegas. Boise State had turned the ball over three times and was trailing, 3-0, when Martin went up the middle and outran Utah defenders down the left side to give the Broncos a much-needed spark. From there, Boise State's defense shut the Utes out and Kellen Moore threw two touchdown passes as the Broncos cruised to an easy win.
Maryland
Running back Scott to play in East-West Shrine Game
Maryland running back Da'Rel Scott has accepted an invitation to play in the 86th East-West Shrine Game, the longest-running college football all-star game. The game will be held Jan. 22 at the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Fla., at 4 p.m. It will be broadcast on the NFL Network.
Women's soccer: Coach Brian Pensky has been named the Women's Coach of the Year by Soccer America, becoming the first Maryland women's soccer coach to be selected for a national award. "To be recognized on a list with the previous winners is very humbling," Pensky said. "And I'm even more fortunate to be able to coach great players. Coaches never win awards like this without being surrounded by great players." Pensky, who just completed his sixth year at the helm of the Terrapin program and was the 2010 Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year, guided the Terps to their first-ever No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament and a berth in the ACC tournament finals. Maryland ranked as high as No. 3 in the Soccer America rankings during the season and finished with an 18-2-3 record for a winning percentage of .848, which is the highest in Maryland history. Pensky's Terps went undefeated against non-conference opponents for the second straight season. Maryland also defeated three top 10 teams during the 2010 season, including the program's first-ever victory over then-No. 2 North Carolina.
College basketball
Johnson gets 50th win as Princeton men beat Towson
Princeton (9-3) ran out to a 9-2 lead and never trailed, beating host Towson, 75-65, on Wednesday. Princeton coach Sydney Johnson (Towson Catholic) collected his 50th win at the school. Isiah Philmore (John Carroll) led all scorers with 18 points for Towson (3-7), which has lost two straight. Princeton has won seven straight.
More men: Mike Phillips gave host Howard its first lead with 48.5 seconds left and sank a pair of free throws with nine seconds left to lift the Bison (2-8) over Loyola, 69-65. Justin Drummond led the Greyhounds (4-7) with 17 points. … Tim Ambromaitis had 21 points and 11 rebounds to power host No. 22 Notre Dame past UMBC, 93-53. Chris De La Rosa led the Retrievers (0-12) with 15 points. Justin Fry hit a 3-pointer with 16:20 left in the first half to tie the score at 8 before the Fighting Irish went on a 14-4 run. … Jordan Sugars had a game-high 21 points in a losing effort as Navy fell to Elon, 73-58. The Phoenix (5-7) was led by Drew Spradlin (14 points) and Chris Long (13). Elon's largest lead was 15.
Women: Charlotte (10-2) held host UMES (2-6) scoreless for nearly five minutes to open the game and went on to win, 74-36. Casey Morton had eight points for the Hawks. Shannon McCallum and Paige McCallum each scored 12 for the 49ers, who won their seventh straight, shooting 51.9 percent from the field. UMES has lost three straight. … Host Georgetown started the game with an 8-0 run and never looked back, beating Coppin State, 73-52. The Hoyas (10-3) were led by Sugar Rodgers with a game-high 22 points. Larissa Carter had 13 for the Eagles (2-7), who trailed, 44-20, at the half.
Mystics
Season opener scheduled for June 4 at Connecticut
The Washington Mystics' 14th season will begin on the road for the third consecutive year when the team travels to Uncasville, Conn., to face the Connecticut Sun on Saturday, June 4, at 7 p.m. Washington will then visit the defending Eastern Conference champion Atlanta Dream on Thursday, June 9, for a contest to be broadcast on ESPN2 at 7 p.m. The Mystics will return home for their opener on Saturday, June 11, at 7 p.m. against the Chicago Sky. Washington's annual camp day game for local children's camps and groups will be held on Wednesday, July 20, at 11:30 a.m. against the Dream. "We are excited for the arrival of the 2011 WNBA season," Mystics chief operating officer Greg Bibb said. "Over the coming weeks, we will announce our promotional schedule and theme nights for the upcoming campaign. Once again, our goal is to deliver world class basketball at an affordable price." Washington will play the majority of its games on the weekends, including two Fridays, three Saturdays and four Sundays. Seven of the team's 17 regular-season games are scheduled for the month of August. The team's longest homestand of the season will span four games from July 29 to Aug. 12. In addition to the camp day game played on a Wednesday morning, the Mystics will also play four Tuesday games and three Thursday games.
—From Sun staff and news services