espnW Blog: WFYI
AP Photo/John BazemoreOn paper, it looks like a mismatch. It’s Stanford against Texas A&M for the NCAA women’s tennis championship today in Urbana, Ill. Stanford has claimed 16 NCAA titles and has six runner-up finishes since 1982, while the Aggies will be making their first appearance in the finals.
AP Photo/Rebecca BlackwellA New York cabbie is believed to be the first person in the United States to be issued a speeding ticket on this date in 1899. No, not for going 110 in a school zone, but for "speeding" down Lexington Avenue at 12 mph in his electric car.
Allen Einstein/NBAE/Getty ImagesBill Laimbeer, coach and general manager of New York Liberty, turns 56 today. Laimbeer is among 16 former NBA players who went on to coach in the WNBA. He won NBA championships in 1989 and 1990 with the Detroit Pistons.
AP Photo/Alexander BarkoffOnly one filly has won the Preakness Stakes since 1929, and that was Rachel Alexandra in 2009. She became the first filly to win both the Kentucky Oaks and then the Preakness. Later that year, Rachel Alexandra was named the American Horse of the Year.
AP Photo /Stuart RamsonThe New York Stock Exchange can trace its origins back 221 years, to May 17, 1792. At one time, the opening and closing of trading was marked by a gavel, and then later by a gong. Today, a bell signifies the opening and closing of business, and, since 1995, celebrities and athletes have been taking part in the action.
AP Photo/ Eric Risberg¡Bienvenidos a Barcelona! It's the fourth stop on this year's X Games global tour. The Spanish city hosted the Olympics in 1992, but this is the first time that X Games will be held in the country. The Moto X, RallyCross and Enduro X competitions will take place at Olympic Stadium, which hosted the opening and closing ceremonies in 1992 as well as the track and field competition.
AP Photo/Liam KidstonThree days shy of her 17th birthday, Jessica Watson set an unofficial world record when she became the youngest to sail nonstop, solo and unassisted around the world. On Oct. 18, 2009, the Australian teenager took to the open seas from Sydney, Australia and, seven months later, sailed back into Sydney Harbor to complete her 23,000-nautical-mile voyage on May 15, 2010.
AP Photo/Dave MartinMaybe it's not so crazy that collegiate sports are a multi-million dollar industry considering they've had 139 years to get the ball rolling. Back in 1874, McGill University in Montreal traveled to Cambridge, Mass.
AP Photo/Chris BaconEighteen years ago today, a British woman conquered the Earth's highest mountain. At the age of 33, Alison Hargreaves became the first woman –- and only the second person -- to climb Mount Everest without oxygen or assistance from sherpas.
Brian Garfinkel/Getty ImageMajor League Baseball will honor mothers everywhere today, bringing out hot pink bats, gloves and cleats for the eighth consecutive year. For the first time ever, Rawlings will release a pink-stitched ball and Phiten will feature a pink compression sleeve.
AP Photo/Stuart RamsonMan vs. machine is the name of the game. On this date in 1997, a chess-playing supercomputer named IBM Deep Blue became the first computer to defeat a world chess champion. Garry Kasparov was none too pleased by his one victory, Deep Blue's two and the three draws in the series.
AP Photo/Julio CortezThe 12th NCAA women’s water polo championships, which begin today in Boston and conclude on Sunday, will have a California feel. Stanford, which has won three titles, is the two-time defending champion and the No.
AP Photo/Fred JewellToday marks the 29th anniversary of the longest game in Major League Baseball history, when the Chicago White Sox and the Milwaukee Brewers concluded 25 innings in 8 hours and 6 minutes. The game started at 7:30 p.
Scott Halleran/Getty ImagesThe first ever U.S. Women's Open on Long Island tees off 50 days from today at Sebonack Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y. Na Yeon Choi is the defending champion, claiming the 2012 title at Blackwolf Run in Kohler, Wis.
AP Photo/Sergey PonomarevBoston Breakers forward Sydney Leroux turns 23 today, and she’s already packed a bunch of goals into her years. Leroux made her U.S. women's national team debut on Jan. 21, 2011, and in just her second appearance, on Jan.