The Record, Bergen County, NJ

Phil Glides Into Basketball Hall

ATLANTA Phil Jackson rode his string of three NBA championship three-peats straight to the Basketball Hall of Fame on Monday in his first year of consideration. Jackson has won nine NBA titles as a coach with Chicago and the Los Angeles Lakers, matching Red Auerbach's record and making him an easy selection to the hall.

Summer Football

The Giants and Jets each will have one nationally televised preseason game this summer. The Jets' Aug. 17 game against Minnesota at Giants Stadium will be televised by Ch. 5 (Fox) and the Giants' game in Baltimore two days later will be shown by Ch. 4 (NBC). The two teams will meet the next weekend in the Meadowlands (probably Aug. 25 or 26).

Player On Par to Live Till 100

AUGUSTA, Ga. When Gary Player won his first Masters title in 1961, someone said he'd never last. All that weightlifting and exercising was going to ruin his career. So much for that.

Mayor to Veto Metal Bat Ban ; N.Y. Council May Override

NEW YORK Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Monday he'll veto a bill passed last month to outlaw metal bats from high school baseball in the nation's largest school system, which some believe would make the game safer. "I don't know whether aluminum bats are more dangerous or less dangerous," said Bloomberg. "But I don't think it's the city's business to regulate that."

Sheppard Herds Iha ; Paramus Cath. Senior's Curve, Bat Lead to Upset

PARAMUS Brittany Sheppard, welcome to the conversation. The topic is best softball pitchers in Bergen County and Sheppard became a big part of it Monday as the senior scattered five hits as Paramus Catholic soundly beat Immaculate Heart, 4-0. It was the Paladins' first win over the Blue Eagles since the 2004 Bergen County final.

Gael Warning ; St. Mary Ballclub Armed and Dangerous

RUTHERFORD Championship swagger comes with experience, at least that's the mantra St. Mary might just throw on the back of T-shirts this baseball season. The Gaels have plenty of varsity seasoning, especially on the mound, where they return four pitchers who accounted for all 20 of their victories last season, ending with a trip to the State Non- Public B final in Toms River.

5 Stars Add Big Feathers to Their Caps ; Ap Honors North Jersey's Best

Tayler Wejnert knows her days as a high school student are growing short. The Holy Angels' forward hears her classmates excitedly counting down to graduation, but she's not in such a hurry for it to end. Wejnert received one more accolade for what was a magical senior season, as she is one of five North Jersey players selected to The Associated Press All-State teams that were announced Monday.

Stringer Did It for a Reason

CLEVELAND C. Vivian Stringer thrust her index finger at her recruiting coordinator Carlene Mitchell, and said, "Get back on the road." Stringer glared at her associate head coach Jolette Law, and said, "Find me some players with heart."

Rutgers Notes

Friendly trash talk Some 25 years into their friendship, Pat Summitt had no problem teasing tonight's counterpart, C. Vivian Stringer.

Rutgers Just Like Stringer ; Knights Follow Feisty Leader

CLEVELAND Whoever coined the phrase that teams take on the character of their coach must have had Rutgers women's basketball and C. Vivian Stringer in mind. Like their leader, the Scarlet Knights are feisty, passionate battlers.

A-Minus ; a-Rod and Yanks Make Grade After Shaky Start

NEW YORK Mariano Rivera had just finished blistering the Devil Rays with one merciless cutter after another, striking out the side so efficiently (13 pitches) and with such overwhelming force (six swings and misses) that it was impossible to ignore the closer's message: At age 37, the war against time is anything but over. Welcome to opening day, where everyone gets to customize their unveiling of the summer ahead. Rivera put his timeless cut fastball on display, Carl Pavano pitched without ...

Devils' Gm to Coach ; Lou Cans Julien; 3 Games to Go

EAST RUTHERFORD When Lou Lamoriello walked into the Devils' locker room at noon Monday, none of the players could have guessed what the team's president and general manager was about to tell them. Lamoriello calmly announced that he had fired head coach Claude Julien and was taking over behind the bench for the final three regular-season games beginning with tonight's big one against Ottawa and the playoffs.

Steph's All Grown Up ; Isiah: Marbury Due Respect for Showing Maturity

GREENBURGH, N.Y. Isiah Thomas not only didn't get off the "Stephon Marbury gets no respect" train Monday that he first boarded Saturday in Oklahoma, he suggested that Marbury's off-court growth should earn him more respect from officials. The league, meanwhile, was still "reviewing" the initial remarks by the Knicks' president/coach to determine whether he would be fined, a league official said Monday.

Weaver Out at St. Mary ; Wresting Coach Resigns; Heads to Queen of Peace?

Six years after taking over a winless St. Mary wrestling program regarded as one of the weakest in the state and transforming it into one of the toughest teams in North Jersey, Scot Weaver is ready for his next challenge. According to sources, Weaver has resigned his position as St. Mary wrestling coach. The move comes just a month after Weaver helped guide the Gaels to their fourth Non-Public B State title in six seasons.

Englewood Tastes Victory ; Team Was Winless in '06

ENGLEWOOD The Englewood softball team jumped on its coach "I told them not to pour anything on me, its cold," said the Maroon Raiders' Shannon McGowan - so they jumped on each other, and yelled for joy. After a winless inaugural season last year, the Maroon Raiders were winners for the first time, beating University Charter School of Jersey City, 23-11.

Lakeland Receives Confidence Boost

WANAQUE Lakeland started the softball season Monday knowing it would have to replace the hitting of Casey Sierra and the pitching of Sam Tempe if the Lancers were to get off to a successful start. The youthful Lancers showed how ready they are in a shutout win over experienced Manchester, 4-0.

Ridgewood Fifth at Garden State

Ridgewood was the lone North Jersey golf team to finish in the top five and Chris Burns of St. Joseph the lone local golfer in the top 10 at the prestigious Garden State Cup. Ridgewood, No. 2 in The Record's preseason rankings, finished fifth among 20 statewide entries by carding a shoot-five, count- four score of 339 Monday at Blue Heron Pines West in Cologne.

Derner Lifts River Dell ; Double in 7th Beats Hh

ORADELL First baseman Adam Derner ripped a ground-rule double in the bottom of the seventh inning to give River Dell a 10-8 baseball victory over Hasbrouck Heights. Kevin Sonnett tripled to lead off the inning. Jake Muriello followed with a walk and Blake Crouch was intentionally walked to load the bases for Derner. The senior responded with his third hit and second double. He finished 3-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored.

Softball

Pesky Royals Rock Schilling

In his first start since signing a five-year, $55 million contract, Gil Meche outdueled a shaky Curt Schilling and pitched the Royals to a 7-1 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Monday in Kansas City. Meche, being counted on to improve the worst pitching staff in the majors, went 71/3 innings and gave up one run on six hits, with one walk and six strikeouts. He walked off the field to a standing ovation from the crowd of 41,257.