w that for practical purposes, she wasnt in the same area code as theat

HOUSTON -- Angels manager Mike Scioscia called what Houston starter Bud Norris has done to his team this year a "nightmare you cant shake." Thankfully for Los Angeles, Scioscias offence woke up when Norris left the game before the eighth inning and found a way to put the Astros away for a 4-2 win on Friday night. Pinch-runner Peter Bourjos scored the go-ahead run in the eighth on an error and Erick Aybar added a two-run single in the ninth to help the Angels to the victory. Hank Conger doubled off Paul Clemens (4-3) to start the eighth. Conger was replaced by Bourjos before Aybar drew a walk. Bourjos took third on a fly out by J.B. Shuck. Shortstop Ronny Cedenos error on the play, when he bounced the ball trying to pick off Aybar at second, allowed Bourjos to dash home just ahead of the throw. Aybars bases-loaded single sent two home and extended the lead to 4-1 in the ninth. Houstons Jason Castro homered in the fourth before Mike Trout tied it at 1 with an RBI single in the sixth. The Angels had scored 33 runs on 46 hits in their last four games. But Norris, who entered the game having allowed just one run in three starts -- all wins -- against Los Angeles this season, continued to be tough on the Angels. He yielded four hits and no earned runs with five strikeouts in seven innings. "Hes thrown as well as anybody weve faced this year, probably better than anybody weve faced on a consistent basis," Scioscia said. "Hes got that fastball thats sneaky and hes mixing his breaking ball in. I thought we had better at-bats against him tonight but the results were pretty much what weve seen the first several times hes pitched against us." Conger was glad they were finally able to win a game against the Astros when Norris was pitching and extend their winning streak to four games. "Its huge," he said. "Just the fact that we were able to pull off a win facing Bud Norris, knowing how well hes been throwing against us. That was one that we really needed coming off the road trip with Detroit and bringing that momentum here was really huge for us." Los Angeles starter Jerome Williams limited Houston to five hits and a run over 6 1-3 innings. Dane De La Rosa (3-1) and Kevin Jepsen pitched 1 2-3 scoreless innings before Ernesto Frieri allowed one run in the ninth for his 20th save. The win by Los Angeles breaks a four-game losing streak to the Astros, but the Angels still trail Houston 7-4 this season. Houston manager Bo Porter was disappointed with the two errors his team made that led to two runs. The Astros lead the majors with 63 errors this season. "Weve all played this game and understand that mistakes do happen and errors are a part of the game," he said. "For the most part its the speed of the game and the mental part that we definitely need to clean up." Houston had several chances to add to its run total. Perhaps the best opportunity came in the eighth inning. Jose Altuve walked with one out and stole second base. A single by Brett Wallace sent him to third but Jepsen retired Castro and Chris Carter to end the threat. Castro opened Houstons fourth with his homer to the bullpen in right-centre to make it 1-0. Williams got back on track after that, retiring the next three batters. Cedeno walked with no outs in the fifth, but Williams still faced the minimum in that inning when Cedeno was thrown out trying to steal second on a strikeout by Barnes. Aybar started the sixth with a single and advanced to second on an error by Brandon Barnes. A one-out single by Trout sent Aybar home to tie it at 1-all. Altuve singled in the sixth before Castro took a one-out walk. But Houston came away empty-handed when Altuve was caught trying to steal third before Carter grounded into a force out. Carlos Pena and J.D. Martinez hit back-to-back singles to start the seventh and chase Williams. Pena was thrown out trying to advance to third on the single by Martinez. De La Rosa struck out Cedeno before centre fielder Trout made an excellent running catch on a sharp fly ball hit by Matt Dominguez to end the inning. Barnes made a pair of nifty defensive plays in the third inning. The first one came when he sprinted and leaped to grab a fly ball hit by Conger before crashing into the padded wall in centre field and falling to the ground for the first out of the third. He then ended the inning by dashing to make a diving catch on a liner hit by Shuck. Scioscia was impressed by Congers at-bats on Friday. "Hank hit the ball hard every time," Scioscia said. "Drove the ball well to centre field; Barnes made a couple good plays on him. And then he just hammered that last one for a double in the eighth and was the start of our go-ahead rally." NOTES: The series continues on Saturday when Houstons Jordan Lyles opposes Joe Blanton. ... Houston signed ninth-round draft pick C catcher Brian Holberton, 14th-rounder LHP Chris Cotton, 18th-round pick 3B Adam Nelubowich, 19th-round pick C Jake Rodriguez and RHP Juan Santos, who was selected in the 39th round. Sebastian Lletget Jersey . Patrice Bergeron and Daniel Paille scored 20 seconds apart a few minutes after Stamkos was taken off the ice on a stretcher with a broken right leg, and the Bruins beat the Lightning 3-0 on Monday afternoon. Bill Hamid USA Jersey .25 million option on reliever Jose Veras. http://www.soccerusateamonline.com/Tyler-Miller-America-Jersey/ . U.S. District Judge Lorna G. Schofield in Manhattan agreed that lawyers on both sides could make their formal requests by Nov. 8. A hearing is scheduled for a day earlier. Jordan Siev, a lawyer for Rodriguez, wrote in a joint letter to the judge from lawyers on both sides that MLB lawyers planned to ask that the lawsuit be dismissed. Jonathan Lewis USA Jersey . The head of USA Boxing came out swinging Tuesday with an open letter to Tyson -- a former Olympic hopeful himself -- that accuses the former heavyweight champion of trying to poach fighters who might be candidates for the U. Justin Morrow Jersey . Brad Jacobs and his Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., team took control of the game early. OMAHA, Neb. -- Natalie Coughlin wore charcoal-gray University of California warm-ups Friday to announce she was scratching the 50-meter freestyle and bowing out of what probably is her last U.S. Olympic trials. She faced a small group of reporters sitting upright with her usual elegant carriage, holding a microphone, her hair pulled back into a tight bun. The wide, striking blue eyes that have gazed out of a thousand photo shoots were subdued and subtly ringed with the smoky tinge that comes from lack of sleep.She wasnt going to retire, not on this note, not at this meet where anything but a top-two finish is a failure. She didnt want condolences. She just wants to go home.Its the way people look at you, Coughlin said afterward. The pity. The way people avoid you when you have a bad meet at this meet. Its tough.This meet, with its depth chart unlike any in the world, its drama and its cruelty -- the 33-year-old Coughlin has experienced it in every way an athlete can. She fell short as a teenager coming off an injury in 2000. She ruled the 100-meter backstroke here in 2004 and 2008 and went on to win back-to-back Olympic gold medals in her signature event in Athens and Beijing.Coughlin made the team as a relay swimmer in 2012, which for someone with her bona fides was a little like dangling from the team helicopter with a rope ladder. She swam in the morning preliminaries in London and wasnt chosen for the evening final, a decision made by her longtime Cal mentor and Olympic head coach Teri McKeever, who delivered her bronze medal privately in the Olympic Village.Then on the cusp of 30, Coughlin knew many would write her off. She wrote a new script for herself instead, staying at Cal but switching lanes and training with the men under Dave Durden.That slight yet momentous shift reinvigorated her. Most important, it enabled her to continue tending to her garden and chicken coop on two-thirds of an acre in nearby Lafayette at thhe home she shares with husband Ethan Hall and their two dogs.dddddddddddd?I dont look at the past four years as wasted time or anything, said Coughlin, who swam a lifetime best in the 50 freestyle at last years Pan American Games in Toronto, the consolation prize after she was unable to qualify for world championships. Im really happy with what I was able to accomplish the past few years, but the momentum for whatever reason couldnt move forward.This week, Coughlin finished eighth in the 100 backstroke and didnt qualify for the 100 freestyle final. She swam in outside lanes and knew that for practical purposes, she wasnt in the same area code as the women who would win. I just had to look at it realistically, she said. I wasnt going to have a best time, I would rather cheer on my friends and teammates than try and swim a 50 free and continue the heartbreak for myself.Ive definitely been off for a few months. I cant put my finger on it. Ive been really tired and not been able to recover or get out of the hole. I really dont know why. Its not for lack of working hard. Sometimes it just doesnt work out.Coughlin steps out of the blocks at trials with 12 Olympic medals, tying her with Dara Torres and Jenny Thompson for the most of any female swimmer in history. She has a brace of solid sponsors, a brand synonymous with holistic fitness, and marketing power that will live on past her racing years. I dont see the point of saying its over when itll always be there, Coughlin said of her lifelong passion, with the defiance -- or perhaps constructive denial -- of someone who has been immersed since she was 6 years old.She wont have a problem feeding herself whenever she does decide to retire. But like any athlete who has tasted dominance, Coughlin will have to figure out how to nourish her competitive soul. ' ' '