Irvan Watches Jarrett End a 55-Race Drought

Dale Jarrett ended a 55-race winless streak Sunday by passing Morgan Shepherd with less than four laps left and holding on to win the Mello Yello 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.

His third career victory, and first since the 1993 Daytona 500, came one week after Jarrett had failed to qualify for a race at North Wilkesboro, N.C.

Shepherd wound up second. Dale Earnhardt, who finished third, holds a 321-point advantage in the Winston Cup standings with three events left.

Defending champion Ernie Irvan, continuing to recover from severe injuries he suffered in an Aug. 20 wreck, watched the race from a condominium overlooking the front stretch.

Before the race, the first he has attended since the crash, Irvan came to the drivers’ introduction ceremony and received a long standing ovation when he was presented to the crowd as “the answer to all our prayers.”

Baseball

Ed Lynch, a former pitcher and one of baseball’s most promising young executives, will become general manager of the Chicago Cubs today, The Associated Press reported.

Lynch, 38, had been a special assistant to Joe McIlvaine, the New York Mets’ general manager, since September of 1993. He had been director of player development for the San Diego Padres since November of 1990 until joining the Mets.

Ichiro Suzuki went two for four and finished the regular season with a Pacific League record .385 batting average, leading the Orix Bluewaves to a 7-2 victory against the Kintetsu Buffaloes in Japanese baseball. Suzuki finished with 210 hits, 19 more than the previous high in Japan. Only Randy Bass, a former major leaguer who batted .389 for the Hanshin Tigers in 1986, has hit for a higher average in Japan.

College Football

Miami moved back into the top 10, while Florida State, Arizona and Notre Dame dropped out in the Associated Press poll.

Idle Penn State moved up one spot to No. 3 and Colorado rose one place to No. 4 after defeating Missouri, 38-23. Penn State received two first-place votes and 1,427 points, while Colorado got four firsts and 1,410 points.

Florida and Nebraska remained 1-2 for the fifth consecutive week.

Michigan climbed two notches to No. 5 with a 40-20 victory over Michigan State, Auburn jumped three spots to No. 6 after a 42-18 victory over Mississippi State, and Texas A&M; moved up three places to No. 7 after defeating Houston, 38-7.

Miami, which fell out of the top 10 two weeks ago after losing to Washington, jumped from No. 13 to No. 8 after beating Florida State, 34-20. The Seminoles dropped from No. 3 to No. 11, the first time they have been out of the top 10 since 1990.

Stoney Case passed for two touchdowns and ran for a third and Winslow Oliver rushed for two more scores Saturday night as New Mexico defeated fumble-plagued Hawaii, 38-21, at Honolulu for its first victory of the season.

The Lobos are 1-5 overall and 1-2 in the WAC, the Rainbows 2-4, 0-4.

Pro Basketball

Forward Shawn Kemp, who held out for three workouts, signed with the Seattle SuperSonics. The contract commits Kemp to the SuperSonics for more money and more years, a club spokesman said.

Rudy Tomjanovich, 45, coach of the Rockets, was hospitalized in Houston for treatment of a digestive problem.