Williams loses to Lisicki in Wimbledon stunner

Sabine Lisicki of Germany celebrates after beating Serena Williams of the United States in a Women's singles match at the All England Lawn Tennis Championships in Wimbledon, London, Monday, July 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Sabine Lisicki of Germany celebrates after beating Serena Williams of the United States in a Women's singles match at the All England Lawn Tennis Championships in Wimbledon, London, Monday, July 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Serena Williams of the United States reacts during her Women's singles match against Sabine Lisicki of Germany at the All England Lawn Tennis Championships in Wimbledon, London, Monday, July 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Embargada por la emoci?n, Sabine Lisicki llora en el c?sped de Wimbledon tras eliminar a Serena Williams en la cuarta ronda el 1ro de julio del 2013. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Sabine Lisicki of Germany bows to the crowd after beating Serena Williams of the United States in a Women's singles match at the All England Lawn Tennis Championships in Wimbledon, London, Monday, July 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Serena Williams of the United States reacts during her match against Sabine Lisicki of Germany in a Women's singles at the All England Lawn Tennis Championships in Wimbledon, London, Monday, July 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

LONDON (AP) ? Serena Williams joined a growing list of marquee names eliminated early at this wild and unpredictable Wimbledon.

The defending champion and five-time Wimbledon winner failed to close out a see-saw third set Monday, dropping the last four games to Sabine Lisicki of Germany and losing 6-2, 1-6, 6-4 in the fourth round. The result ended Williams' career-best 34-match winning streak.

It was the latest in a string of improbable exits to jolt the tournament, with defending champion Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal knocked out in the first three days along with Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka.

"I probably couldn't be more disappointed," Williams said. "I think I may have backed off of a success. I was playing something successful. I didn't continue that path. The result didn't go the way it could have gone had I continued to play the way I did in the second set."

Of the two big favorites still in the tournament, second-seeded Andy Murray stayed on course for a second straight final by beating 20th-seeded Mikhail Youzhny of Russia 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-1, while top-ranked Novak Djokovic played Tommy Haas later.

After dropping the first set, Williams looked to be cruising, winning nine straight games to take a 3-0 lead in the third. The players then traded breaks to give Williams a 4-2 lead, but the American couldn't win another game despite having four break points at 4-3.

Those would have given her a chance to serve for the match. Instead, Lisicki held, broke again, and converted her second match point with a forehand winner.

"I'm still shaking," Lisicki said in a post-match interview, covering her face with her hands to wipe away tears. "I'm just so happy."

Williams said her serve ? usually her main weapon ? let her down in the third set.

"I felt that I was on the verge of winning," she said. "At that point I just was physically unable to hold serve. ... You have to be ready and willing to hold your serve. I wasn't willing or able, probably didn't even want to hold my serve today."

Lisicki reached the semifinals at the All England Club in 2011 but this will rank as her biggest victory at the grass-court Grand Slam. She has now eliminated the reigning French Open champion the last four times she played Wimbledon, having missed the tournament in 2010. She ousted Sharapova in the fourth round last year.

Murray, facing the ever-increasing pressure to become the first British man since 1936 to win Wimbledon, was in trouble in the second set. He trailed 5-2 against Youzhny, a 2012 Wimbledon quarterfinalist, but broke back when the Russian served for the set at 5-4. Then, down 5-3 in the tiebreaker, Murray took the set's last four points. He broke immediately in the third, and cruised from there to set up a meeting with Fernando Verdasco of Spain.

Murray is the only British player left in the tournament, after 19-year-old Laura Robson lost. She couldn't recover from her missed chances in the first set and fell 7-6 (5), 7-5 to Kaia Kanepi of Estonia, failing to become the first British woman in the quarters of any Grand Slam since 1984.

Robson, the first British woman to reach the second week at Wimbledon since 1998, served for the first set at 5-4 but was broken, then led 5-2 in the tiebreaker. She double-faulted at 5-4, with neither serve coming close to going in ? the first one went about 5 feet long and the second bounced into the net.

"I had my chances here and there and I just didn't take them," Robson said. "At that point, I was just trying to will myself to play unbelievable tennis when just making a serve would have been fine. But, as cliche as it sounds, it's all part of the learning experience. The more I get myself into those kinds of situations, the more I'm going to benefit."

Instead of a big headline Williams vs. Robson matchup, Kanepi will now face Lisicki in the quarterfinals.

Former champion Petra Kvitova, last year's runner-up Agnieszka Radwanska and No. 4 David Ferrer all avoided upsets to advance, as did sixth-seeded Li Na of China.

Juan Martin del Potro, playing with his left knee heavily taped after a scary fall in the previous round, beat Andreas Seppi 6-4, 7-6 (2), 6-3. He said his knee was "really painful" but that he hopes it will be better by the time he plays fourth-seeded David Ferrer on Wednesday.

Ferrer overcame another slow start to beat Ivan Dodig of Croatia 6-7 (3), 7-6 (6), 6-1, 6-1. Having trailed twice in the previous round before winning in five sets, Ferrer struggled initially to create opportunities on Dodig's serve and was two points from going two sets down against the Croat. But he dominated the final two sets, breaking Dodig five times and clinching the match with a forehand winner.

Despite Williams' loss, there's still an American woman in the quarters after Sloane Stephens beat 19-year-old Monica Puig of Puerto Rico 4-6, 7-5, 6-1.

On a busy day at Wimbledon with every round-of-16 match to be played, Kvitova was the first to reach the last eight, beating Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain 7-6 (5), 6-3. She will play Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium, who reached her first career Grand Slam quarterfinal by ousting Flavia Pennetta of Italy 7-6 (2), 6-3 ? a year after her ranking plummeted to 262nd because of injuries.

Poland will send two men into the quarterfinals for the first time after 24th-seeded Jerzy Janowicz and 130th-ranked Lukasz Kubot each won five-set matches.

The big-serving Janowicz outlasted Jurgen Melzer 3-6, 7-6 (1), 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, while Kubot defeated Adrian Mannarino 4-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. They'll play each other Wednesday with the winner becoming the country's first Grand Slam semifinalist.

In other results, Verdasco beat Frenchman Kenny De Schepper 6-4, 6-4, 6-4, and 15th-seeded Marion Bartoli ousted Karin Knapp of Italy 6-2, 6-3. Radwanska rallied to beat Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria 4-6, 6-3, 6-3.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-07-01-Wimbledon/id-0384d8206c9e43e29a77dbc05dabe463

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TEXAS: Palestinian student coerces high school into allowing her to carry an Islamic flag at her graduation

There has never been a country called Palestine. Is the Muslim referring to BIBLICAL Judea and Samaria? Is she referring to this holy JEWISH area of Israel where the Jewish prophets walked?

The Muslim said she felt so ?Palestinian?. It?s not until you do something in their name that you feel that pride.?

We will NEVER forget that THOUSANDS of Palestinian Authority Muslims CELEBRATED with great joy and delight the barbaric murders of our cherished 3,000 on 9/11. INHUMAN Muslims danced in the streets, passed out candy and fired into the air.

Muslims also celebrated in America and countries around the world. Muslims whom Americans and others are forced to finance with their taxes and reward with a Muslim terror state dedicated to Jewish annihilation.

Rest in eternal peace, cherished 3,000. We will NEVER forget you. NEVER.

Source: http://www.barenakedislam.com/2013/06/29/texas-palestinian-student-coerces-high-school-into-allowing-her-to-carry-an-islamic-flag-at-her-graduation/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=texas-palestinian-student-coerces-high-school-into-allowin

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Frost shuts down Carnarvon in Midget AA baseball final

Duncan Renegades are the champions of Greater Victoria Midget AA baseball. And they won it in convincing fashion.

Renegades started on their way by topping the round robin and then laid a 15-2 beating on Layritz in the semifinals on the mercy rule.

The final game was against the Carnarvon Giants and the mercy rule went into effect again, with the Renegades winning 10-0 in five innings.

Jordy Frost came within one batter of pitching a perfect game. The only hit against him by Glen Harrison came in the second inning.

Frost struck out eight and did not issue a walk. He actually faced the minimum 15 batters for the five-inning game, picking off Harrison from first base on a lead-off.

Catcher Alex Boos did a great job calling the pitches for Frost.

The defence scooped up everything else, with Aaron Frost making three outs, Cameron Frame two and pitcher Frost another one besides his strikeouts.

The Renegades were held scoreless in the first inning, but got it going in the second when Reiya Tomida reached first base on an error and came home on a single by Jake Heerwagen. Keygan Hankins walked and came home on a failed pickoff attempt.

In the third inning, Sam Cross and Carlito Livingstone walked, Cameron Frame hit a triple to bring them both home and, with two out, more production came after Adam Sakuma's walk and a single by Aaron Frost.

The fourth inning opened with a walk to Blair Robertson, Heerwagen reached base on an error and then Justis Doucet and Ben Slang hit back-to-back singles.

The Renegades were retired in order in the fifth inning. But they already had their 10 runs and when Frost also sent Carnarvon down in order, the game was over.

?

Source: http://www.bclocalnews.com/sports/213751851.html

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Ecuador flower growers in Snowden shock

A man harvests flowers on the Valleflor flower farm in Pifo, Ecuador, Saturday, June 29, 2013. A week after National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden began his flight across the globe, every passing day without him making progress toward Ecuadorean asylum makes the prospect look less likely. But the men who grow roses, asters and delphinia in the thin air of Ecuador's sun soaked highlands are deeply concerned that, whatever happens to Snowden, they may turn out to be the most unlikely collateral damage from the geopolitical wrangle over his fate. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

A man harvests flowers on the Valleflor flower farm in Pifo, Ecuador, Saturday, June 29, 2013. A week after National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden began his flight across the globe, every passing day without him making progress toward Ecuadorean asylum makes the prospect look less likely. But the men who grow roses, asters and delphinia in the thin air of Ecuador's sun soaked highlands are deeply concerned that, whatever happens to Snowden, they may turn out to be the most unlikely collateral damage from the geopolitical wrangle over his fate. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

Flowers grow on the Valleflor flower farm in Pifo, Ecuador, Saturday, June 29, 2013. A week after National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden began his flight across the globe, every passing day without him making progress toward Ecuadorean asylum makes the prospect look less likely. But the men who grow roses, asters and delphinia in the thin air of Ecuador's sun soaked highlands are deeply concerned that, whatever happens to Snowden, they may turn out to be the most unlikely collateral damage from the geopolitical wrangle over his fate. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

Ecuador's President Rafael Correa, center, sings with a band before the start of his his weekly broadcast "Enlace Ciudadano," or "Citizen Link" in Manta, Ecuador, Saturday, June 29, 2013. While the Ecuadorean government appeared angry over U.S. threats of punishment if it accepts U.S. National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden, there were also mixed signals about how eager it was to grant asylum. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia)

Ecuador's President Rafael Correa, left, speaks during his weekly broadcast "Enlace Ciudadano," or "Citizen Link" in Manta, Ecuador, Saturday, June 29, 2013. While the Ecuadorean government appeared angry over U.S. threats of punishment if it accepts Edward Snowden, there were also mixed signals about how eager it was to grant asylum. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia)

Flowers grow in a greenhouse on the Valleflor flower farm in Pifo, Ecuador, Saturday, June 29, 2013. A week after National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden began his flight across the globe, every passing day without him making progress toward Ecuadorean asylum makes the prospect look less likely. But the men who grow roses, asters and delphinia in the thin air of Ecuador's sun soaked highlands are deeply concerned that, whatever happens to Snowden, they may turn out to be the most unlikely collateral damage from the geopolitical wrangle over his fate. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

PIFO, Ecuador (AP) ? Gino Descalzi used to fret about things like aphids, mildew and the high cost of shipping millions of roses a year from Ecuador to florists in the United States. These days he's worried about a 30-year-old American thought to be stuck in the transit area of the Moscow airport, and he can't believe it.

The Obama administration sent a thinly veiled economic threat to this South American country on Thursday when it indefinitely delayed a decision to eliminate tariffs on imports of roses worth about $250 million a year. The move created leverage over the leftist government seen as likeliest to grant National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden political asylum that would protect him from U.S. criminal charges.

A week after Snowden began his stuttering, surreal flight across the globe, every passing day without him making progress toward Ecuadorean asylum makes the prospect look less likely. But the men who grow roses, asters and delphinia in the thin air of Ecuador's sun-soaked highlands are deeply concerned that, whatever happens to Snowden, they may turn out to be the most unlikely collateral damage from the geopolitical wrangle over his fate.

"This totally changes the financial panorama for our businesses and seriously affects the structure of our markets," said Descalzi, whose 280 employees produce some 22 million roses a year. "We're just shocked that an event so far from the political and economic life of Ecuador has caused so much commotion and worry."

The rose benefit for Ecuador had been widely expected to be approved. Any delay, they say, puts it into uncomfortably uncertain territory.

Even if Snowden never touches Ecuadorean soil and the U.S. cuts the 6.8 percent tariff on Ecuadorean roses, along with tariffs on frozen broccoli and canned artichokes, Ecuadorean flower growers are worried that the brouhaha has damaged Ecuador in the eyes of the United States, hurting its reputation for stability and reliability among the buyers who must decide between flowers from Ecuador and the already tariff-free blooms from its nearby market-dominant competitor, Colombia.

"This is not a mathematical equation," said Benito Jaramillo, the head of the Ecuadorean flower-growers' association. The graduate of Texas A&M and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign employs hundreds of people growing "summer flowers" ? a category of less-flashy blooms like hydrangeas and asters ? on his farm about a half-hour from the capital, Quito.

"The point is that there are a lot of other factors that damage our industry's image and competitiveness in the midterm," Jaramillo said.

Flowers are serious business in Ecuador.

The industry says it employs about 50,000 people on about 550 farms across the country and is indirectly responsible for 110,000 jobs, putting it after only oil, seafood and bananas in the ranks of the country's biggest exporters. It boasts that the long days, rich sunlight and cool nights of the Andean highlands mean the heads of flowers, particularly roses, grow fuller and richer than those from Colombia, which they scoff at as more suitable for grocery stores than florists.

Industry representatives spent around a year campaigning hard in Washington for the inclusion of cut roses under the Generalized System of Preferences, or GSP, a mechanism meant to encourage development in lower-income countries. A broader trade pact that covers a wide range of Ecuadorean products, the Andean Trade Preference Act, had been widely expected to expire next month. That now seems certain, not least because Ecuador declared Thursday that it was preemptively rejecting it.

Now, the flower industry has turned its focus to its own government, which it desperately hopes won't offer asylum to Snowden.

A small group of U.S. senators explicitly threatened trade retaliation if Ecuador harbors Snowden. And on Saturday, Vice President Joe Biden asked Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa to turn down any asylum request.

"We can't put the interests of 14 million Ecuadoreans at risk because of a 29-year-old hacker whom we don't even know," Descalzi said. "This gentleman doesn't mean anything to us."

The business impacts of the Snowden affair have infuriated Ecuador's main business groups, who accuse the government of putting ideology before commerce.

The decision to renounce the Andean Trade deal was "permeated by political and ideological motives," said Roberto Aspiazu, chairman of a coalition of Ecuador's largest industries. The country's business sector is calling on the government to manage the relationship with the United States "with the utmost care," he said.

The government said it planned to compensate business damaged by the loss of U.S. tariff benefits and has painted its decision in terms of the nation's sovereignty versus U.S. threats.

However, Correa told The Associated Press in an interview Sunday that his government was not thinking about renouncing the GSP trade benefits that would affect rose exports, along with a host of other Ecuadorean products, because those benefits had not been subject to U.S. threats.

"If they threaten us, we'll take the appropriate decisions. Ecuador doesn't accept threats from anyone, we don't allow blackmail and our sovereignty isn't for sale," Correa said.

When asked how he feels about the whole situation, Jaramillo, the head of the flower association, thought before responding with a single word: "frustrated."

"One isolated issue shouldn't create so much damage," he said.

___

AP writer Gonzalo Solano contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-06-30-NSA-Surveillance-Ecuadorean%20Flowers/id-46e7eca38cd24c41ba419ec84b599a18

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You Can Apply to Use Google's Street View Backpack Now

If you've always fancied mapping out an obscure part of the globe, it could be your lucky day: you can now apply to use Google's Street View backpack.

Called Trekker, the backpack is used to image the more obscure locations around the planet that cars, trikes and snowmobiles can't access. And now If you?re a "tourism board, non-profit, university, research organization or other third party" who has access to a hard-to-reach place, Google are willing to give you the chance to use it yourself.

In fact, you can apply online here to use Trekker. Which you should. [Google]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/you-can-apply-to-use-googles-street-view-backpack-now-631925651

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Kill Bill Volume II: Texas SB5 opponents issue a call to action against abortion bill

On June 25, a crowded gallery of more than 400 people screamed until the midnight hour chimed on Texas clocks after Texas senator Wendy Davis stood for more than 13 hours in protest of SB5.?SB5 seeks to prohibit abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, regulate first-trimester abortion clinics as ambulatory surgical centers and restrict access to medication abortions.?

Passage of the bill would shutter abortion facilities in Texas.

Senator Wendy Davis is a democrat that serves district 10 in the Lonestar state. A Harvard graduate, Davis has served as senator since 2008.

Some of the highlights?involved points of order in attempt to end the filibuster for Davis' specific comments regarding ultrasounds as well as an incident in which she adjusted her back brace.

Texas Governor Rick Perry decided to call a second session to attempt to pass the bill again on July 1.

Perry is personally supportive of the bill saying that it is lawmakers? "duty" to prevent abortions.?Even the woman who filibustered in the Senate the other day was born into difficult circumstances," Perry said. Davis herself began working at 14 to help support her single mother and became a teenage mother herself before going on to Harvard."It's just unfortunate that she hasn't learned from her own example that every life must be given a chance to realize its full potential and that every life matters," Perry said.Davis said that by using her story, Perry demeaned the office that he owns via her Twitter account, @WendyDavisTexas.

Organizations are gearing up for another round of protesting on July 1 during the special session.

Rallies in Los Angeles, Sacramento, Chicago and of course Austin, Texas will take place on Monday in support of women's rights, according to Defend Women's Rights (DWR).?Calling it a "call to action," DWR says "the struggle isn't over." DWR joins Planned Parenthood and NARAL as supporters of the bill's defeat.?

Texas' Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst says that protests won't matter.?

?Believe me,? he told reporters. ?I have spent most of my time between about 4 a.m. on Wednesday morning and through yesterday making sure that when I give the order ? to clear the gallery, it gets done," said Dewhurst, reported the Fort Worth Star Telegram.

He also encouraged pro-life supports to tweet with the hashtag "#stand4life" to oppose the "#standwithWendy" hashtag on social media, reported the Telegram.

We will update as results from the special session are announced on Monday. Let us know in the comments what you think about the Texas bill.

Source: http://blog.al.com/wire/2013/06/kill_bill_volume_ii_sb5_oppone.html

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Family: American killed in Egypt was a teacher

CHEVY CHASE, Md. (AP) ? The family of an American college student killed in Egypt during violent protests says their son was passionate about the Middle East and was in the country teaching English.

Andrew Pochter, of Chevy Chase, Md., was killed Friday in Alexandria during clashes between government supporters and opponents. His family said in a statement Saturday that he was stabbed by a protester while observing the demonstrations.

Pochter's family says the 21-year-old spent his spring semester studying in Jordan. He was teaching English to children before a planned return this fall to Kenyon College in Ohio, where he majored in religious studies and co-managed the Hillel House Jewish organization.

His family says he cared deeply about Middle East culture and "planned to live and work there in the pursuit of peace and understanding."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/family-american-killed-egypt-teacher-152819995.html

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