U.S. women gymnasts are the team to beat

There were no medals awarded for this performance. Still, what a great night for the Americans to say they have the best gymnastics team in the world.

From Nastia Liukin’s graceful comeback to Alicia Sacramone’s “Remember Me?” floor routine, the U.S. women set themselves up as the team to beat at these world championships – and maybe next year in Beijing, too – with a razor-sharp and nearly mistake-free romp through the gym in qualifying Sunday at Stuttgart, Germany.

They scored 245.025 points to take a 3.85-point lead over China.

“We feed off each other’s energy all the time. When everybody’s doing good, it gives you that extra pump,” said Shayla Worley, one of the new faces on a team that is now the undisputed favorite for world gold.

Baseball

Eye injury serious

The damage a foul ball did to Juan Encarnacion’s left eye was the worst the St. Louis Cardinals’ medical director has ever seen to a baseball player.

Dr. George Paletta was not optimistic that the outfielder will regain full vision after his frightening injury and resume his career.

“It’s the worst trauma I’ve seen. Absolutely,” Paletta said.

Encarnacion crumpled to the grass after being struck while waiting to pinch hit in the on-deck circle in the sixth inning on Friday at St. Louis.

Miscellany

Leipheimer wins

Levi Leipheimer took the lead from his teammate in the final three finishing circuits to win the road race title at the USA Cycling Professional Championships in Greenville, S.C.

Leipheimer of Butte, Mont., finished the 110-mile road race in a time of 4 hours, 22 minutes, 19 seconds.

•A body pulled from the Delaware River in Wilmington, Del., was identified as the missing father of Orlando Magic star Jameer Nelson.

Floyd “Pete” Nelson, a 57-year-old welder for a tugboat company, was last seen Thursday working in a dry dock area in Chester, Pa.

•Russell Ellington, whose four-decade career coaching basketball included a stint with the Harlem Globetrotters, died Saturday from lung-cancer complications in Savannah, Ga. He was 69.

•Colombia’s Ricardo “Mochuelo” Torres successfully defended his WBO junior welterweight title, stopping American Kendal Holt in the 11th round in Bogota, Colombia.

•Daniel Unger passed pre-race favorite Javier Gomez of Spain in a final sprint to win the men’s title at the triathlon world championships in Hamburg, Germany, finishing in 1 hour, 43 minutes 18 seconds.

•109 wins and seven years after it began Cincinnati Elder ended the nation’s longest football winning streak with a 41-34 overtime victory over the North Carolina high school Saturday in Cincinnati.

•Don’t Let Down held off 2-5 favorite Separate Bet by a neck to win the $504,000 All American Derby in Ruidoso Downs, N.M.

•The United States won the women’s eights race and Canada took the men’s version on the final day of the world rowing championships in Munich, Germany.