<table> </table> <strong><span class="subhead">Stretch run in WNBA</span></strong></p><p>The Olympics are over, the gold medals put away in the safe-deposit boxes for the time being. And it&#8217;s time for the WNBA to finish its season after a monthlong break. Five games are on tap now.</p><p>To catch you up, three teams are vying for first place in the Eastern Conference: Connecticut, New York and Detroit are within a half-game of first. All seven teams in the West are alive in the playoff chase &#8212; though second-place Seattle will not have <strong>Lauren Jackson </strong>the rest of the season because of ankle surgery.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Name coming next week</span></strong></p><p>Will it be Thunder, Energy, Wind, Marshalls, Barons or Bison? Oklahoma City&#8217;s new NBA team will announce its name and team colors Sept. 3. A television station in Oklahoma City has reported the choice will be Thunder, but owner <strong>Clay Bennett </strong>has refused to comment.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">U.S. softball coach resigns</span></strong></p><p><strong>Mike Candrea</strong>, the Arizona softball coach who has guided the U.S. national team since 2002, is stepping down as coach of the national team. His teams have a 17-1 record in Olympic play, the only loss in the gold-medal game last week.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s been a tremendous ride and blessing to be part of this,&#8221; Candrea said. &#8220;But I am ready to settle down and begin my life at home and allow someone else this honor.&#8221;</p><p>Softball was added as a sport at the 1996 Olympics. It will not be an Olympic sport in 2012.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Language rule needs tweaking</span></strong></p><p>Korean golf star <strong>Se Ri Pak </strong>agrees that players on the LPGA Tour should speak English, saying, &#8220;When you win, you should give your speech in English.&#8221; But she said being excited about the win and not thinking in English sometimes causes nerves to take over.</p><p>Her quibble with the rule is that she believes players should be fined, not suspended, for failing to pass a verbal English test after two years.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Missouri state softball moving</span></strong></p><p>The Missouri state high school softball tournament will move this fall to Heritage Park in St. Joseph. The MSHSAA said both the 2008 and 2009 tournamnets will be in St. Joseph. The tournament previously was held in Columbia.</p><p>This fall&#8217;s state tournament is scheduled for Oct. 24-25.</p><p><strong><span class="subhead">Elsewhere</span></strong></p><p>&#8226;A second set of blood samples taken from four horses suspended in the Olympic equestrian team jumping competition confirmed the positive test for a banned medication.</p><p>&#8226;Former Portland Trail Blazers center <strong>Kevin Duckworth </strong>died when his enlarged heart failed, according to an autopsy done by a state medical examiner.