DALLAS—It was an old fashioned Texas shootout in Dallas Saturday night as the Rush outlasted the Vigilantes 63-56 at the American Airlines Center.After struggling to put points on the board the past two weeks, the Rush(5-2) scored touchdowns on nine of its 10 possessions, while the Vigilantes (1-5) scored on all but two. The Rush offense seemed to regain the well-balanced form that carried it to a 4-0 start, as six different players contributed touchdowns for the Rush – Robert Boss, Nichiren Flowers, Joe Peters, Clifton Smith, Russ Michna, and Kenny Higgins.The game was without a defensive stop in the first half, with the teams combining for 11 touchdowns in the first 30 minutes. The only blemish in the half was a missed extra point by the Rush, but they held a 41-35 lead at the half.The third quarter opened with a five minute Vigilante drive that saw Dallas drive the ball to the Rush 1-yard line. But on second and goal for Dallas, the Rush defense stepped up, and defensive back Josh Ferguson came up with his fifth interception of the season.The interception stopped Dallas’ streak of consecutive possessions with a touchdown at five, and proved to be the difference in the game.The visitors took advantage of the turnover, mounting a seven-play, 44-yard drive and scoring on a one-yard dive by Clifton Smith that put the Rush up two scores at 48-35.The Vigilantes never went away, however, as quarterback Collin Drafts (26-29, 295 yards, 6 TDs, 2 INTs) continued to match the Rush score-for-score but simply could not get a stop when they needed one.With the Rush leading by seven and attempting to run one final play to run the clock out, Rush QB Russ Michna fumbled with 1.2 seconds left in the game. Dallas recovered, giving the Vigilantes one final shot to tie the game.A Hail Mary pass with no time remaining was intercepted by DeJuan Alfonzo and the Rush walked away with a win that puts them back atop the Midwest Division.

NOTES— Michna completed 28 of 35 passes for 339 yards and four TDs, without throwing an interception … Nichiren Flowers led all Rush receivers with 11 receptions for 168 yards and three touchdowns …The Rush had four rushing touchdowns, two from Robert Boss, and one each from Michna, Alfonzo, Joe Peters and Clifton Smith…..The Rush visit Cleveland next Saturday night.

ROSEMONT—Tamika Catchings scored eight of her 28 points in overtime to lead the Indiana Fever to a 92-86 victory over the Sky on Saturday night.Shay Murphy added 20 as the Fever (1-2) snapped a season-opening two-game losing streak.Playing in front of a franchise record 6,477 fans in their new Allstate Arena home, the Sky (0-3) forced a 78-78 deadlock late in regulation on Sylvia Fowles’ short jumper.Indiana went ahead for good early in overtime as Catchings’ layup put them in front, 82-80.Fowles led the Sky with 22 points while rookie Epiphanny Prince added 20 points.The same two teams play again in Indianapolis Sunday.

Rios hit a two-run homer and Gavin Floyd pitched 6 1/3 sharp innings to help the White Sox beat the Florida Marlins 4-1 on Saturday.Rios was acquired off waivers on Aug. 10 from the Toronto Blue Jays. He is in the third year of a seven-year $69 million dollar contract. Last season, Rios hit .199 with the White Sox with three home runs and nine RBI in 41 games.Rios is hitting .322 with six home runs, nine doubles and 13 stolen bases in his last 32 games.He drove in three runs Saturday for the White Sox, who won back-to-back games for the first time since April 25 when they swept the Seattle Mariners, and they’ve only won consecutive games three times this season.Guillen also got a strong start from Floyd, who has struggled most of the season.Floyd (2-4) came in the game allowing five runs or more in each of his last three starts, but he had his best outing of the season against the Marlins. He allowed just one run and six hits.Floyd was backed by a strong White Sox bullpen. J.J. Putz got two outs in the seventh and Sergio Santos pitched a scoreless eighth inning.Bobby Jenks ended the game with a perfect ninth for his seventh save in eight chances.Santos has not allowed a run in 16 of his 17 appearances. He’s been a surprise for the White Sox, who converted him to a pitcher from shortstop last season after seven years as a position player in the minors.The Sox improved to 130-101 record in interleague play.In its last six road games, Florida has been held to three runs or fewer five times. The Marlins ended a 22 inning scoreless inning drought on Cameron Maybin’s RBI single in the seventh inning.Marlins starter Chris Volstad (3-5) gave up three runs over six innings. He struck out four and walked three.Gordon Beckham reached on an infield hit in the third inning and stole second. After Beckham took third on a wild pitch, Rios hit a two-out RBI single.Mark Teahen doubled to the left-center warning track with two outs in the fourth inning, but was thrown out at the plate by left fielder Chris Coghlan when trying to score on Ramon Castro’s single.Volstad hit Beckham with a pitch in the fifth inning, and two outs later, Rios homered to left to put the White Sox ahead 3-0.They got an insurance run in the eighth on Carlos Quentin’s RBI double off Florida reliever Renyel Pinto.

NOTES—Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook, who watched the game from suite, got a nice applause when he appeared on the Jumbotron in the sixth inning. The Blackhawks are one win away from clinching a berth to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1992….A.J. Pierzynski had the day off.

LES

Mark Buehrle pitched eight scoreless innings to win for the first time in six decisions, Alexei Ramirez drove in five runs and the White Sox defeated the Florida Marlins 8-0 on Friday night.Ramirez hit a three-run homer and a two-run double and Mark Kotsay was 3 for 4 with a home run and three runs scored for the Sox, who won for just the fifth time in 13 games.In his previous six starts, Buehrle (3-5) was 0-5 with a 6.44 ERA. He was 4-12 with a 4.97 ERA in 21 starts since his perfect game last season. He allowed three hits and three walks.Marlins starter Ricky Nolasco (4-3) had his worst start of the season, allowing eight runs on 10 hits in 5 1/3 innings.

ARLINGTON—Texas Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton can play small ball, too.In the first interleague game of the season, Hamilton showed a little National League flair. His first career sacrifice bunt came between run-scoring doubles by Vladimir Guerrero and Nelson Cruz and Texas extended its winning streak to a season-best five in a row with a 2-1 victory over the Cubs on Friday night.In his 1,585th career plate appearance, in his 376th game and on his 29th birthday, Hamilton bunted after Guerrero’s RBI double drove in Ian Kinsler to tie the game. Cruz then doubled.Colby Lewis (4-2) labored through six innings for his first victory in five starts.Lewis (4-2) didn’t have a 1-2-3 inning until the sixth, but he had already thrown 109 pitches by then and was done. Darren O’Day and Frank Francisco each worked scoreless innings before hard-throwing right-hander Neftali Feliz extended his Rangers rookie record with his 12th save in 14 chances.Feliz worked around Tyler Colvin’s pinch-hit double and benefited from Cruz’s leaping catch against the wall in foul territory.Ted Lilly (1-4) pitched into the seventh but remained without a victory since winning his injury-delayed season debut April 24 for the Cubs. He is 0-4 his last five starts.An infield hit and two throwing errors got Kinsler to third leading off the fourth.Kinsler kept running after leading a slow roller that third baseman Mike Fontenot fielded and threw wide of first base. After second baseman Ryan Theriot grabbed the ball in short right field, he flung it into left field for another throwing error when trying to get Kinsler out at second.Lewis hadn’t won since April 25, when he was 3-0 through his first four starts and then got a no-decision despite throwing nine scoreless innings his next outing. The right-hander was 0-2 in three May starts before facing the Cubs.The former first-round pick, who is back with the Rangers after spending the past two seasons in Japan, struck out four and walked three. Lewis had two walks and two strikeouts in a 30-pitch first inning.Lilly began the season on the disabled list while still recovering from arthroscopic shoulder surgery in November, then won his season debut – and hasn’t since. He allowed two runs over 6 2/3 innings in Texas. Fontenot blooped a leadoff double into short left in the second. He scored when Geovany Soto grounded into a double play. But that was it for the Cubs, who left nine runners on base.Former Rangers Alfonso Soriano and Marlon Byrd had consecutive two-out singles in the eighth, grounders past third baseman Michael Young. But Francisco got out of the jam when Fontenot took a called third strike.

NOTES—Former Cub Greg Maddux, an assistant to GM Jim Hendry, is with the team this weekend to work with young pitchers. Maddux also gets a chance to visit his older brother, Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux. … Soriano, still a second baseman when with Texas in 2004-05, was backpedaling in left field when he awkwardly reached up for Hamilton’s flyball over his head that became a double.　

Ervin Santana pitched seven solid innings, Juan Rivera hit a two-run homer and the Los Angeles Angels held on to beat the struggling Chicago White Sox 6-5 on Thursday night.After watching his fellow relievers give up four runs in the eighth inning, Brian Fuentes pitched a perfect ninth for his sixth save in eight opportunities. Kendry Morales had three hits and drove in two runs for the Angels, who have won five of seven. But the Angels escaped after nearly blowing a big lead.Santana (3-3) didn’t have any problems with the White Sox, who came into the game with the worst batting average in baseball at .230. He allowed one unearned run on seven hits. He struck out six and pitched around three walks.The White Sox have only won two series — Royals and Mariners — this the season and have lost eight 12.They’ve dropped to a season-low eight games under .500 a day after White Sox general manager Ken Williams expressed his impatience with the club during a team meeting.Jake Peavy (3-3) was tagged for six runs and eight hits. He struck out eight and walked two.The White Sox staged a comeback in the eighth inning against the Los Angeles bullpen. Trailing 6-1 with two outs, Carlos Quentin singled off reliever Kevin Jepsen. Mark Teahen then walked and Alexei Ramirez followed with another single to load the bases.Gordon Beckham chased Jepsen with a two-run single. Juan Pierre greeted Fernando Rodney with an infield hit to load the bases and A.J. Pierzynski lined a ground-rule double over the left-field wall, leaving Pierre at third, who would’ve had a chance at scoring the tying run. Rodney rebounded by getting Andruw Jones to fly out to center with runners on second and third. And Fuentes finished it off. Santana didn’t wait long to pitch with the lead.Erick Aybar led off the game with a single. On a hit and run, he moved to third on Howie Kendrick’s single. Aybar then scored on Bobby Abreu’s double-play ball. With two outs, Torii Hunter lined a double to left-center and scored on Morales’ single.Aybar finished with three hits for the Angels.With one out in the third, Abreu doubled off the wall in left-center. After a walk to Hunter, Morales followed with an RBI single. Hunter scored on Hideki Matsui’s sacrifice fly.Peavy entered the game 3-0 with a 2.31 ERA in May, but was more like the pitcher who went 0-2 with a 7.85 ERA in the month of April.After a single to Matsui in the sixth inning, Rivera tagged Peavy with a two-run shot. It was his sixth of season and gave the Angels a 6-1 lead. The White Sox got on the board against Santana in the fifth thanks to a two-base throwing error on third baseman Kevin Frandsen. Frandsen made an unbalanced throw to first after fielding a bunt by Ramirez. Frandsen’s throw short-hopped first base and rolled down the right-field line. Ramirez went to third and scored on Gordon Beckham’s groundout.

NOTES—The Sox have an interleague series with the Marlins at home starting Friday night……Scioscia gave 3B Brandon Wood the night off. Scioscia said Wood, who is in a 7-for-57 slump, is pressing too much. Scioscia is unsure if Wood will be back in the lineup on Friday at St. Louis. … The game was played after a 29-minute rain delay. … Matsui singled in the sixth inning to halt an 0-for-11 skid.

PHILADELPHIA—Jose Contreras is learning the last three outs are the hardest to get.Raul Ibanez,a guy the Cubs could have gone after last year instead ofMilton Bradley, hit a tiebreaking RBI single in the eighth inning, Contreras pitched out of a jam in the ninth and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Cubs 5-4 on Thursday.Jimmy Rollins hit a three-run homer and Chase Utley also went deep for the NL East-leading Phillies, who snapped a two-game losing streak in which they scored a total of two runs.Kosuke Fukudome hit a tying solo shot in the eighth, and Derrek Lee also connected for the Cubs, who had won four in a row.Danys Baez (2-1) retired all three batters he faced to earn the win, before Contreras worked out of trouble in the ninth for his second save in two tries. The 38-year-old Contreras, a starter most of his career, is filling in as the closer with Brad Lidge and Ryan Madson on the disabled list.Alfonso Soriano started the ninth by getting hit on the 11th pitch he saw from Contreras. Soriano advanced to third on Mike Fontenot’s single to center, but Contreras struck out Starlin Castro and pinch-hitter Aramis Ramirez. Fontenot stole second as Ramirez went down swinging on a pitch down and way outside, but Geovany Soto fouled out to first baseman Ryan Howard to end it.John Grabow (0-3) entered with one out in the eighth and walked Utley. He retired Howard before walking Rollins, and Ibanez lined a single to right that allowed Utley to slide in ahead of Fukudome’s off-target throw.Ibanez stood at first base, listening to the familiar chants of “Ra-uuuuuuul!” Ibanez became an instant fan favorite in his first season in Philadelphia last year. The All-Star left fielder has struggled this season, batting just .246 with three homers and 19 RBI. Phillies starter Joe Blanton allowed three runs and five hits. He retired the first 11 batters and didn’t allow a hit until Soriano doubled down the left-field line leading off the fifth.Cubs starter Ryan Dempster gave up four runs and five hits in six innings. His biggest mistake was a 3-0 pitch that Rollins crushed into the seats in right, giving the Phillies a 4-1 lead in the sixth. Rollins, the 2007 NL MVP, returned from the disabled list Monday after missing 29 games with a calf injury.Lee led off the seventh with a solo shot to left. The Cubs then loaded the bases on a walk and singles by Fontenot and Castro. Pinch-hitter Tyler Colvin’s sacrifice fly cut it to 4-3, but Blanton escaped further damage by retiring pinch-hitter Xavier Nady on a pop-up.Fukudome’s drive off reliever Antonio Bastardo leading off the eighth tied it at 4.Utley put the Phillies ahead 1-0 when he ripped a liner the right-field seats in the first. Seven of Utley’s 10 homers have been solo shots.One pitch before Soriano doubled in the fifth, he hit a foul pop that first baseman Howard lost in the sun. Castro’s one-out single to right scored Soriano to tie it at 1.

NOTES—The Cubs have a weekend of interleague play with Texas in Arlington starting Friday night….Rollins batted fifth behind Howard, the third different spot he’s hit since returning from the DL on Monday. Rollins, the team’s usual leadoff hitter, batted third twice and sixth once….Philadelphia starters are 12-5 with a 3.05 ERA in 18 games this month…..A crowd of 45,325 was the 62nd straight sellout at Citizens Bank Park.

PHILADELPHIA—Tom Gorzelanny threw 6 2/3 shutout innings and Starlin Castro and Jeff Baker had RBI singles to lead the Cubs to their fourth consecutive victory 4-1 victory against the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday night.A night after the Phillies struggled against Pittsburgh’s Zach Duke, Gorzelanny kept them off-balance until he was struck by Carlos Ruiz’s line drive in the seventh inning.Ruiz’s one-out shot struck Gorzelanny’s left ring finger, then rolled toward first. He retrieved the ball and flipped to Derrek Lee, who scooped it for the out. After a mound conference, Gorzelanny left. He had X-rays taken, which came back negative.John Grabow finished the seventh inning, but ran into trouble in the eighth, when the Phillies threatened with Ryan Howard up with one out and runners on first and third.Grabow made a nice play on a slow roller for the second out, while a run scored. Carlos Zambrano got the final out of the inning with an assist from Castro, who fielded the ball at deep short and made a strong throw to nip Jayson Werth, with the tying run on second.Carlos Marmol earned his seventh save in nine chances by getting the final three outs.Castro, the youngest player in the major leagues, singled in the first run off the game’s oldest player, Jamie Moyer (5-3), in the third inning. Jeff Baker stretched the lead to 2-0 with a seventh-inning single. Both run-scoring innings began with two outs and nobody on, and featured shots off the glove of a diving Placido Polanco.Moyer worked seven inning for Philadelphia, allowing two runs on four hits, with one walk and seven strikeouts.Chase Utley returned to the lineup after missing two games with flu-like symptoms. He went 1 for 3 with a single.The Cubs added two insurance runs in the ninth inning on Xavier Nady’s bases-loaded single up the middle with two outs.

NOTES—Philadelphia catcher Brian Schneider (strained left Achillies strain) is scheduled to head to Triple-A Lehigh Valley for a rehab assignment. … The Cubs placed reliever Esmailin Caridad on the 15-day disabled list with a right elbow strain, and recalled Jeff Stevens from Triple-A Iowa. Caridad felt soreness after facing one batter Tuesday against Colorado. … Zambrano is scheduled to throw a simulated game Monday, as he works toward increasing his workload for a return to the rotation. The Phillies had 45,140 fans, the 61st consecutive sellout at Citizens Bank Park.

Old Pal Torii Hunter hit a two-run homer and Joe Saunders pitched 7 2/3 strong innings to lead the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim to a 3-2 victory over the White Sox on Wednesday.Hunter hit his third home run in three games and Saunders (3-5) allowed just one run and four hits to help the Angels bounce back after losing consecutive games to the Texas Rangers.Saunders, who snapping a three-game losing streak with his second career shutout in a 4-0 win over Oakland on Friday, struck out four and walked two.Fernando Rodney got one out in the eighth and Brian Fuentes survived a shaky performance in the ninth for his fifth save in seven opportunites.Paul Konerko led off the ninth with a home run for the Sox, and A.J. Pierzynski singled with one out. Omar Vizquel ran for Pierzynski and advanced to second on a passed ball with two outs. However, Fuentes finally recovered to strike out Alexei Ramirez to end the game.The White Sox wasted another strong outing from John Danks (3-3), who allowed three runs, two earned, on three hits. He struck out eight and walked two.The Sox has totaled four runs while losing Danks’ last three starts. He gave up three runs in seven innings of a 3-2 loss at Minnesota on May 12.The White Sox have not won back-to-back games since a three-game sweep of the Mariners on April 23-25.Before the game, general manager Kenny Williams met with the White Sox. He says he can’t remember the last time he felt the need to address the club. The Sox are 16-23 and still trail AL Central-leading Minnesota by 7 1/2 games.Williams says he hasn’t had any conversations about replacing manager Ozzie Guillen or changing the coaching staff.Williams, in his ninth season as GM, has always been adamant letting his players and coaching staff know where they stand.Danks gave up a two-out walk to Bobby Abreu in the fourth inning and Hunter followed with a two-run shot to left. It was the Angels’ first hit of the game and Hunter’s seventh homer of the season.The next hit for the Angels didn’t come until Juan Rivera singled with one out in the eighth. Mike Napoli followed with another single. With two outs and runners on first and second, White Sox third baseman Jayson Nix booted Erick Aybar’s grounder. Nix still thought he had a shot at the force at second and rushed an errant throw that ended up in right field. Rivera scored from second and Nix was charged with two errors on the play.The White Sox failed to score in the sixth inning, despite having runners at second and third with one out. Andruw Jones popped out to second base and Alex Rios hit a shallow fly out to left.The Sox first run came in the second inning. Konerko opened with a single, moved to third on Pierzynski’s double with one out and scored on Carlos Quentin’s sacrifice fly. Saunders rebounded by retiring the next 10 batters he faced.

NOTES—Jake Peavy will start on Thursday against the Angels and Mark Buehrle will start Friday against the Florida Marlins. Buehrle was scheduled to start on Wednesday but Monday’s rainout in Detroit backed up the starters one day. The White Sox want to break up their two left-handed starters, Danks and Buehrle. … Konerko hit his 14th home run.