Newsmakers

Denied A Nevada judge denied a motion to dismiss a lawsuit accusing Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger of raping a woman at a hotel-casino in Lake Tahoe. Roethlisberger has denied the allegations and maintains the woman acted voluntarily at all times while in his room. His lawyers have said the fact that she never filed a formal criminal complaint with police is proof she made up the story to try to secure a big payout from the NFL star.

Refused A fight over the shoes Michael Jordan’s son will wear at the University of Central Florida could cost the school financially. Freshman guard Marcus Jordan is refusing to wear shoes made by adidas, the brand the university has a contract with for all its sports. He says he will only wear his father’s Nike Air Jordan shoes because they hold special meaning to his family.

Continuing Red Sox right-hander Tim Wakefield wants to pitch as long as possible after undergoing back surgery. The veteran knuckleballer said he has no plans to retire after Wednesday’s operation for a herniated disk that derailed his first All-Star season. Retirement “never crossed my mind. I was fully confident in what our doctors were telling me,” Wakefield said.

Sidelined American defender Oguchi Onyewu will be sidelined for six months following surgery to repair a ruptured patellar tendon in his left knee, a layoff that could jeopardize his appearance in next year’s World Cup. After Onyewu was injured in last week’s World Cup qualifier against Costa Rica, the U.S. Soccer Federation projected his recovery at three to four months.

Suspended Anaheim Ducks right wing Evgeny Artyukhin has been suspended three games by the NHL for a slew-footing incident in Wednesday night’s game against Dallas. Stars defenseman Matt Niskanen was injured on the play at 4:23 of the second period, though no penalty was called.

Died Real Madrid’s longest-serving fan has died. He was 99. Felix Perez Alvarez, who died Thursday of natural causes, became a supporter of the soccer team in 1923 and remained a paying member for the next 86 years. Known as the team’s “No. 1 fan,” Alvarez was well-known among fellow supporters. The club honored him several times.