Candace Parker had a whirlwind 24 hours.

Parker was selected No. 1 by the Los Angeles Sparks in the WNBA draft yesterday, a day after capping her college career by leading Tennessee to a second NCAA title in a row with a 64-48 victory against Stanford Tuesday night in Tampa.

"These last 15 hours or so have been just amazing," Parker said.

The Associated Press player of the year joins Lisa Leslie, turning Los Angeles into one of the top teams in the league. The Sparks were a franchise-worst 10-24 last season with Leslie sitting out after giving birth to a daughter in June.

LSU senior Sylvia Fowles was taken second by the Chicago Sky. The 6-foot-6 center led the Lady Tigers to four consecutive Final Four appearances and scored 24 points and had 20 rebounds in their heartbreaking 47-46 semifinal loss to Tennessee. Stanford star Candice Wiggins, whose team finished runner-up, went third to the Minnesota Lynx. Alexis Hornbuckle of Tennessee was chosen by Detroit and Matee Ajavon of Rutgers was selected by Houston, rounding out the top five. All five Tennessee starters got drafted. Shannon Bobbitt and Nicky Anosike were the first two picks of the second round, with Bobbitt joining Parker in Los Angeles and Anosike heading to Minnesota. Alberta Auguste was drafted in the third round by New York.

West Virginia center Olayinka Sanni was taken in the second round by the Detroit Shock and Notre Dame guard Charel Allen, a Monessen native, was drafted in the third by the Sacramento Monarchs.

Venus Williams will miss another tournament next week in Charleston, S.C., as she undergoes tests for a medical issue that her agent said isn't serious. Williams, a six-time major champion and former No. 1-ranked woman, plans to return to the tour at the Italian Open next month.

Bobby Rahal and Chip Ganassi are joining forces to help Alex Lloyd qualify for the Indianapolis 500 next month. The team owners announced a partnership, giving Lloyd, the Indy Lights champion last year, a chance to make his rookie debut in the biggest race on the IRL schedule. Details of how the partnership will work are still being discussed.

Big Truck will start from the sixth post for the Blue Grass Stakes Saturday at Keeneland in the crowded 12-horse field, the largest for the Blue Grass since 1982. Pyro, coming off a victory in the Louisiana Derby, will start next to Big Truck in the seventh spot and is the early even-money favorite.

The U.S. women's team qualified for the Beijing Olympics, beating Costa Rica, 3-0, in windy conditions in the CONCACAF qualifying tournament semifinals in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Natasha Kai had two goals and an assist -- all in the second half -- for the United States, which will face Canada in the final Saturday night.

Sarah Vaillancourt scored goals in a 37-second span of the second period and Canada beat Finland, 4-2, to advance to the title game in the women's world championship in Harbin, China. The Canadians will face the United States today in the final round-robin game. The Americans need to beat Canada to make it to the final. If not, Finland will advance.

Penn State hit three home runs as the Nittany Lions edged Pitt, 6-5, at Trees Field, Oakland. Scott Kelley, Joe Blackburn and Ryan Boonie homered for Penn State, which has won four in a row against the Panthers.

Three world records fell at the short-course world championships in Manchester, England. The decision by swimming's world governing body, FINA, not to ban the new high-tech Speedo suits resulted in the marks. Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe set the world record in the 400-meter individual medley. Then the U.S. team of Ryan Lochte, Bryan Lundquist, Nathan Adrian and Doug Van Wie broke the record in the men's 400 freestyle relay. And then the Dutch team established a new mark in the women's 800 freestyle relay.